Huntington Beach officials planned to unveil a memorial Sunday in honor of a 12-year-old girl who was the youngest victim of a serial killer who terrorized the L.A. area in the 1970s.
Robin Samsoe was biking to her ballet class in 1979 when she was abducted. Her decomposed body was later found in the Angeles National Forest, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Samsoe’s mother, Marianne Connelly, said she was elated when Huntington Beach city council members voted unanimously in July to create a memorial in honor of her daughter.
“I’m amazed,” Connolly said. “I hope no one ever forgets her. I mean, we won’t, but we’re involved. Other people should know her too.”
Councilwoman Jill Hardy told the LATimes she was Samsoe’s age when the girl was killed and remembers the lecture she received from her parents on what to do when approached by strangers.
“I really like the idea of a bench because I could see myself sitting with my daughter, who is now the same age I was in 1979, and using that as a spot to have that discussion that every parent needs to have,” she said, tearing up as she spoke during the July meeting.
One time “Dating Game” contestant Rodney Alcala was convicted three separate times for Samsoe’s death – the first two were reversed on appeals.
“(This) should have been over a long time ago,” Connolly said. “There’s never been any closure. Even after the trials, there’s always appeals. It’s never over. We’re not done yet, we still got another court hearing because he’s entitled to appeals.”
Alcala was also convicted of killing four L.A.-area women, and two women in New York in the 1970s. He is now on death row.
The unveiling of the memorial was scheduled for 10 a.m. at the Huntington Beach pier. Attendees were asked to wear pink, Samsoe’s favorite color.