On Tuesday, a Shasta County judge handed down a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole for Roger Schmidt in the 1984 killing of 18-year-old Terry Arndt and the sexual assault of a 18-year-old woman in Burney.
The Shasta County District Attorney’s Office announced earlier in December that Schmidt pleaded guilty to the shooting death of Terry Arndt and the sexual assault of the woman who was inside of the car when Arndt was killed.
Authorities say that on December 14, 1984, Schmidt approached the car that Arndt and the female were seated in a car parked on Mountain View Road in the area of Burney High School.
The Shasta County District Attorney’s Office says that Arndt was shot multiple times by Schmidt. After fatally shooting Arndt, authorities say that Schmidt sexually assaulted the female.
The murder and sexual assault case went cold for decades, until technological advancements in DNA and forensic genealogy helped authorities identify Schmidt as the suspect in the case.
