Who Killed Cindy James? A Woman's Story of Persecution and Terror

Ian Mulgrew

On May 25, 1989, Cindy James, a former nurse and social worker, disappeared. On June 8, 1989, her body was found in a vacant lot in suburban Vancouver. Her hands and feet were bound. She had a puncture wound in her right arm. Initially police investigated the case as a murder, but later claimed it to be suicide. On May 28, 1990, a coroner's jury ruled the cause of Cindy's death "indeterminate."

For nearly seven years Cindy's life had been a nightmare. At least ninety incidents had been reported to the police, including threatening phone calls, abusive notes, cut phone lines, strangled animals left in her yard, and physical and sexual assaults. Several of these events could be substantiated by coworkers or relatives who were present when they occured.

Was Cindy killed by a sadistic tormenter who is still free, or did the very real persecution drive her to stage horrifying incidents to gain the help and attention she so desperately needed? Why did all our social institutions fail her at every turn? Because one thing is certain: Cindy James's death was the result of systematic indifference and abuse on the part of the authorities-all men-who might have saved her. From difficult relationships at home to the indifference of psychiatrists and members of the police force, Cindy James's tragedy embodies a nightmare women everywhere share.