Dead And Buried: A True Story Of Serial Rape And Murder. Corey Mitchell

      NINE

      Aundria Crawford did not know Rachel Newhouse. They did not go to the same college, even though they lived in the same town. They did not hang out with the same crowd, even though they were the same age. They did not live similar childhoods, even though they would both end up in the centralcoastal town of San Luis Obispo.

      Many people knew Aundria Crawford as Aundria Eberhart. She was born on July 10, 1978, in Pasco, Washington, to Jim and Gail Eberhart. Her parents were hardworking middle-classAmericans. Her mom worked in retail for the local Sears department store and her dad worked as an electrician. Despitea love for their only daughter, Mom and Dad did not share a love for one another. They divorced when Aundria was only six months old. After the divorce Gail packed up the car and relocated with Aundria to her grandparents’ home in Fresno, California. Don and Jody Crawford gladly took them in and nurtured their precocious granddaughter.

      Aundria enjoyed growing up with her grandparents. They were warm and loving and did everything possible to assure that she had a normal childhood. She loved to play outside and inspect the creatures that wandered the yards in their neighborhood. Her grandfather recalled her deep love for animals:“When she was a child, she would get mad at me for crushing snails.”

      Aundria also developed a fondness for ballet. She danced in The Nutcracker and Alice in Wonderland and impressed everyone with her ability.

      After Aundria’s foot problem forced her out of ballet, she turned her attention to horses. Her father owned some horses and she always loved to ride them when she visited him. Even though she already knew how to ride, she took additional lessons. She got so good that she began to compete in barrel racing. She even won several awards.

      As Aundria got older, she branched out beyond stereotypicalfemale obsessions. Despite a definite feminine exterior, Aundria accepted her masculine side. She especially loved working on cars. She was not just some weekend warrior wanna-be either. She knew her way around the inside of an engine block and even learned how to change an alternator. She met some boys who were also into cars and racing and she started to attend various car races around Fresno Valley and Bakersfield.

      Aundria attended Bullard High School in Fresno and made several friends. She also began to slip while she was there. Some of her friends ran in some interesting circles and were not the best of influences. She allowed too many distractions to take away from her schoolwork and soon fell behind. She was not into drugs or alcohol; she just liked to hang out. Her grandfather Don Crawford stressed the point that “she did not do drugs and she didn’t drink. She was just a good girl.”

      Gail and Aundria relocated to Clovis, California, in 1996, her senior year. By then, Aundria was prepared not to graduatewith her classmates. Her grades had fallen so far that she had to attend a special home-study program known as ReStart to help get her back on track. Embarrassed by her lack of discipline,she took her studies seriously this time. Her ReStart instructor, Joy Cravens, met with Aundria once a week and went over her assignments to make sure she showed signs of improvement. Cravens explained that Aundria was studious, considerate, and quiet, but had a tendency to show up late for their meetings. Cravens also stated that Aundria did not leave much of an impression on her because the teacher mainly remembered the bad students.

      Aundria’s efforts paid off. She upped her grade point averageand walked in her senior high school graduation ceremony with all of her classmates.

      She was extremely proud of her redemption and was determinedto continue the cycle.

      Aundria’s first collegiate adventure took place at nearby Fresno City College. After a year of doing well there, she was ready and eager to be on her own. With financial help from her grandparents, she packed up her 1988 white Ford Mustang and headed out to Central California. San Luis Obispo was her destination. Her ultimate goal was to attend Cal Polytechnic Institute, but first she would have to earn her way in one more time. Aundria’s high school and junior college grades were not quite good enough for Cal Poly’s standards, so she had to registerat another junior college and work her way up. Aundria was used to obstacles and looked forward to the challenge. She enrolled at Cuesta College, located on Highway 1, less than five miles from Cal Poly. On the surface Cuesta College appeared to be the rougher of the two colleges—a smaller campus, with older, more run-down buildings, and more students standing around smoking and flashing multiple piercingsand tattoos. In many ways it is the polar opposite of Cal Poly, which exudes a more polished exterior. Its student body is populated by the Hollywood stereotype of the surfer dude jock types and beautiful blond California girls.

      Underneath the rough outer shell of Cuesta College lies a launchpad for better and brighter things. Cuesta has one of the highest transfer rates for its students in the state. Many students attend the junior college to get their grades back up so they can attend colleges such as UCLA, USC, and Cal Poly. Aundria was fully aware of Cuesta’s exceptional transferrate. She planned to take full advantage of the opportunity.

      Aundria began in general studies but switched to interior designing. She exhibited a knack for how to make a room look good—if it involved furniture positioning, drapery hanging, or color schemes, it coursed through her bloodstream.Her favorite class during the spring 1999 semester was interior-space planning. She learned about the effects and value of proper lighting, use of space, and the power of walls.

      Margaret Collier, dean of the school’s design department, spoke highly of Aundria. “She loved school,” the dean praised. “Her teachers thought she was doing great.”

      Aundria made a positive impression on her coworkers as well. Since money was always tight, Aundria usually stayed employed to keep up with the bills for school and her duplex. Aundria turned her love of cars into a job working for the local Kragen Auto Parts in San Luis Obispo. Her auto knowledge,positive demeanor, and ability to communicate with total strangers proved to be a winning combination at the huge automotive repair superstore. Her coworker Robert Santos,who was also a classmate of hers from Cuesta College, sang her praises. He spoke highly of her intelligence, wit, and confidence.

      “She wasn’t afraid to speak her mind and tell you how she felt,” Santos recalled. “I think she was going to do good in life. I think if there was something she wanted, she would go get it.”

      Santos was surprised when Aundria quit her job at Kragenafter five months to go work for veterinarian James Waldsmith at the Equine Center in town. Her family, however, was not. They knew how much Aundria loved animals. For her, it was the dream scenario: this beautiful California girl, who loved the ocean and animals, working in a vet’s office and living in gorgeous San Luis Obispo.

      What more could she ask for?

      Unfortunately, the veterinarian’s assistant position did not work out for Aundria. Dr. Waldsmith let her go after only one month of employment. Aundria had shown up late to work far too many times in her short stay at the company. Dr. Waldsmith found her congenial yet unreliable.

      “She was a nice gal,” the doctor recalled. “The typical Cal Poly kid [she was a Cuesta College student] that shows up at our door.”

      Aundria would not let this setback throw her off course. She set out to get back her job at Kragen. Her former manager,Gil Luera, spoke with her just before she disappeared. Luera stated that Aundria had “just come back to reapply here when all this came down.” Luera also stated he was looking forward to giving her old job back to her.

      He never got the chance.