Rita left her residence on Horton Road in West Linn, Oregon at 7:15 p.m. on June 29, 1973 to go for a walk. She never returned. She was last seen between 8:30 and 9:00 p.m. that day, walking uphill on Sunset Avenue. Rita has never been heard from again.
Rita may have been a victim of the serial killer Theodore Robert "Ted" Bundy. A photograph of Bundy is posted with this case summary. He was executed in Florida in 1989. He is a suspect in scores of murders, mainly from the Pacific Northwest, though he was convicted only of killing three females in Florida. He confessed to many deaths prior to his execution.
Bundy may be responsible for the disappearances of Nancy Baird, Ann Marie Burr, Lynette Culver, Julie Cunningham, Susan Curtis, Georgeann Hawkins, Vicki Hollar, Donna Manson, Denise Oliverson, Nancy Wilcox, and many other girls and young women.
The women continue to be listed as missing persons. Their remains have never been recovered. It is worth noting that Bundy did not confess to Rita's murder before his death, but he is considered a suspect in many deaths and disappearances he did not claim responsibility for.
Rita's disappearance remains unsolved, as her body was not found and Bundy was never charged or confessed to her murder. Foul play is suspected in her case. She was a junior at West Linn High School in 1973.
I have been interested in Rita for a long time. I found that people still seem to think that Bundy is responsible despite the fact that he had an alibi that day (I will provide a link below).
It is not just Bundy whom people like to point a finger at. Warren Leslie Forrest was also active in Washington and Oregon at the same time. Unlike Bundy, Forrest is still alive as of this publication. I would like it if he was questioned on Rita's disappearance - if he has not been questioned already - but as you will see in this reading, perhaps Rita's fate lies closer to home.
1.
Eight
of Swords, reversed. Being released from obligations, taking steps to empowerment,
obstacles clearing, fatality.
This could be a sign that Rita met with death.
This is not surprising, considering who the main suspects are, but I cannot say
for certain if this necessarily means death.
2.
Nine
of Swords, reversed. Prolonged anxiety, going over old ground, not finding the
solution, mental exhaustion, seeing an end to despair. It could mean
imprisonment or reasonable fear.
Could this possibly mean that Rita was alive
for a time after she was last seen?
It might also link to the search for her. The
second card refers to obstacles that the Querent – in this case Rita – comes across,
but it might connect to law enforcement. They possibly latched onto the idea
that Bundy killed her and refused to let go of this possibility. The idea of ‘going
over old ground’ could literally mean examining a place that was previously
searched, or looking back at other suspects.
3.
The
Hanged Man, reversed. In limbo, being narrow-minded, not seeing from all sides,
not letting go, having false motives, holding back. Freedom fighters, humanitarians,
eco warriors and protesters.
The idea of protesters makes me think of the
Vietnam War, although Rita’s case may have nothing to do with it. Did she know
anyone who took part in a protest? This card represents the Querent’s past, but
I cannot find anything online that may suggest that she was involved in any
protests.
The idea of false motives, however, makes me
wonder about someone tricking her. Someone that she thought that she could
trust. It might NOT have been Bundy, though; since this card links to the past,
she may have been hurt by someone in her past, or someone that she knew lured
her away.
4.
Seven
of Pentacles. Delays in payment, long term returns, slow but steady growth, not
working as hard as you could, working for nothing, little reward for a lot of
effort. Farmers, long term investors, garden centre workers, tree surgeons.
The fourth card indicates the future. In the
case of a reading for a missing person, the future refers to the time after
they were last seen. Pentacles relate to money, so this makes me think that
money was involved somehow. Did Rita owe someone money?
The idea of ‘little reward’ and ‘working for
nothing’ makes me think that for forty-five years law enforcement has been
barking up the wrong tree. A quick look at Bundy’s timeline shows that he was
in Seattle on the day that Rita went missing. The exact timing is unknown, but
I do not believe that he was in Oregon at all on that date.
5.
Eight
of Pentacles. Being cautious, foresight, careful with money, learning, education,
a period of study, working hard, attention to detail, meeting deadlines.
Factory workers, the self-employed, mature students, tradesmen, skilled
workers, craftsmen.
Could Rita be the ‘mature student’ described
here? Is she the one who is ‘careful with money’? How does money fit into her
disappearance?
Regardless, I think that the person responsible
for her disappearance could fit into one of the jobs listed above. The fifth
card symbolises the best that the Querent can hope for. The idea of money
worries comes up again in regards to this.
This card also represents the Sun in Virgo,
which it certainly was on the day that she went missing.
6.
Eight
of Cups, reversed. Questioning your decision to leave, not being able to move
on, fear of the unknown, clinging to the past. Backpackers, travellers, night
shift workers, solitary workers, groundsmen and maintenance workers.
Rita had to ‘leave her life behind’. Whether or
not she chose to, however, is another question. Something that interests me is
the idea of groundsmen and maintenance workers. Warren Forrest worked for a
Parks and Recreation department. Could this be a factor?
Since the Eight of Cups when standing upright
shows a figure making his way towards the mountains, when this card is in
reverse I believe that it means that the Querent went AWAY from the mountains.
Since the mountain range was to the east of West Linn, I think that Rita went
westwards.
7.
Two
of Pentacles, reversed. An imbalance between work and home, not coping with
work, discord, resisting change, incomplete projects, buckling under pressure.
Injustice.
Was Rita also struggling at school? I believe
that school had just ended on June 29th, so it does make me wonder
if she believed that she hadn’t done as well as she expected.
However, the idea of resisting change or an
incomplete project again makes me think about how rigid investigators seemed
concerning whether or not Bundy was responsible. All of the cards so far
heavily imply that he was NOT involved in Rita’s disappearance, as well as the
fact that he seems to have an alibi for that date.
But the idea of ‘injustice’ infuriates me. I
think that the police were so focused on Bundy that they missed the real
culprit, who may have been right in front of them! Most crimes are committed by
someone the victim knows, after all.
8.
Seven
of Swords, reversed. Being caught out, ashamed of your actions. Blaming others,
making excuses, walking away at a crucial point, uncovering a sham. Private
investigators, researchers, burglars.
Compared to the last card, this one is somewhat
favourable, especially since the eighth card signifies the Querent’s hopes and
fears. Rita, wherever she is, must either be scared that those looking for her
are making excuses – and may even have been diverted from the real culprit when
Bundy was caught – or hopes that her case will be reopened and as such the
culprit will be named.
9.
Five
of Swords, reversed. An attempt at disruption, petty arguments,
attention-seeking behaviour, malicious gossip, paranoia, intimidation,
manipulation, humiliation.
The Five of Swords depicts three people on a
beach. One of them is carrying two swords, while three others lie on the sand.
I may have been right in thinking that Rita was taken westward. Perhaps she is
near a beach, or even underneath one.
10.
Two
of Wands. Being in control, dynamism, gaining control, dominating another or a
situation, seeing the big picture, wanting more, not satisfied with your lot,
focusing on your intent. Business partners, office workers and planners, travel
agents and hotel inspectors, hoarders and collectors, silent partners.
The last card not only represents the outcome
of a situation, but is the most important card in a reading. I wonder if this
particular card represents the person responsible for Rita’s disappearance. He –
or even she – may not have been satisfied with whatever happened to Rita. They
chose to dominate her, whether before or after her abduction. Even after they
were finished with Rita, they wanted more. This is a very sad card to end a
complex reading.
In conclusion, I think that Rita might have been taken by someone she
knew. Perhaps it was someone she owed money to, or someone she knew owed them money.
It could have been someone that she met at school. Either way, I think that it
ended tragically and one of the reasons that the culprit may have been able to
get away for so long is because people – particularly law enforcement – chose to
put all of their resources into questioning Bundy.
People chose to focus on serial killers because they do not like the
idea of someone from their own community being responsible for a horrific
crime.
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