Amanda Stavik

Summary

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Criminology Podcast: The Case of Amanda Stavik

Episode Date: January 4, 2026
Hosts: Mike Ferguson & Mike Morford
Episode Theme:
A thorough exploration of the 1989 abduction, sexual assault, and murder of 18-year-old Amanda “Mandy” Stavik—a case that haunted her Washington community for decades, went unsolved for nearly 30 years, and was ultimately cracked through eyewitness persistence and modern DNA science.

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Episode Overview

Mike Ferguson and Mike Morford return from the holiday break with a deep dive into the harrowing case of Amanda Stavik. The hosts revisit the facts of Mandy’s disappearance and murder in 1989, analyze the initial investigation, and examine how the case remained cold for years before a break due to the vigilance of two local women and the tenacious efforts of law enforcement and a brave coworker. The story highlights both failings and successes in investigative work, the impact on the Stavik family and community, and the eventual conviction and sentencing of Timothy Bass.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Mandy Stavik’s Disappearance (07:00–13:20)

• 18-year-old Mandy returns home for Thanksgiving in Acme, Washington, and leaves for her regular run along a five-mile loop at 2:30 PM, accompanied by the family dog, Kyra.
• Hours later, Kyra returns home alone, agitated—a moment that raises a red flag for the family.
  • Mike Ferguson [09:48]: “But the thing that really jumps out to me in this case is Kyra...if Kyra comes back, Mandy should have come back.”
• Family searches the route; Mandy’s brother saw her pass by his friend’s house, which narrowed the search area.
• Police are contacted at 7 PM, with official searches beginning that night.

2. Discovery and Aftermath (13:20–16:51)

• Two days later, searchers find torn green sweatpants (likely Mandy’s) and, on November 27, discover Mandy’s nude body in the cold, shallow river; only socks and running shoes remain.
• Medical examiner and detectives report the scene as deeply traumatic—her body appeared as if merely sleeping.
  • Dr. Gary Goldfogle (as relayed): "We'd look at Mandy and say, you know, if we could shake her and warm her up, then she would wake up."
• Cause of death: Drowning; evidence shows Mandy had been knocked unconscious and sexually assaulted prior.
• Case immediately devastates family and close-knit community.

3. Investigation Stalls and Initial Leads (16:51–18:30)

• Mandy’s boyfriend and others close to her are quickly ruled out by early DNA tests.
• Nearly 8,000 leads flood investigators, but with no strong suspects and immature DNA technology, the case grows cold.
  • Mary Stavik (Mandy's mother, quoted): “I absolutely did not think it would ever get solved.” (18:30)

4. Break in the Case Decades Later (20:18–23:33)

• In 2013, two former classmates, Heather Backstrom and Marilee Anderson, independently suspect the same man: Timothy Bass, recalling their chilling encounters from the late 1980s and early 1990s.
  • Bass used creepy, manipulative behavior—propositioning Marilee, inappropriately touching 15-year-old Heather—and both women had been haunted by their gut feelings ever since.
  • Mike Morford [21:47]: “These two women had kept these interactions with Bass in their minds for years, so they truly must have been disturbed by him.”
• Their tip leads investigators to reconsider Bass, previously overlooked despite living along Mandy’s running route.

5. Timothy Bass: A Closer Look (23:49–29:01)

• No criminal history; attended the same high school; younger brother was Mandy’s friend.
• Bass's ex-wife describes controlling and violent behavior, including chilling boasts about getting away with murder:
  • Gina Malone (ex-wife, quoted): “I wouldn't get caught because I'm not that stupid...it would be easy to get away with it.” (25:13)
• Surprisingly, Bass and his family were never questioned in 1989; he refused DNA sampling when approached years later.
  • Mike Ferguson [27:09]: “It is shocking to me...here's a guy who lived on Mandy's street and was never even talked to or questioned...that just seems like Police Work 101.”

6. Modern Investigation & Key Hope (29:01–33:10)

• Detectives face obstacles: no warrants, no direct evidence, Bass’s elaborate attempts to conceal or remove all potential DNA from his job at Franz Bakery.
• Remarkably, Mandy had confided in others and in her journal about Bass’s unwanted attention.
• Coworker Kim Wagner, suspicious of Bass due to his behavior and police request for help, resolves to get his DNA.
  • Mike Ferguson [29:57]: “Who takes their lunch trash home with them from work? So it does sound as though he...knew what he had done and he knew what technology had evolved into.”
• In August 2017, Wagner successfully retrieves Bass's discarded Coke can and water cup, passing them to police.

7. DNA Breakthrough, Arrest & Trial (31:45–35:53)

• The DNA is a match to that found on Mandy’s body. Bass is arrested in December 2017.
• Community and original investigators deeply affected; prosecutor comes out of retirement to pursue the case.
• At trial, Bass’s brother testifies that Bass tried to concoct false alibis and even considered blaming his own father.
• Bass's defense: claims sexual encounter was consensual and murder was unrelated. This is flatly contradicted by all available evidence and community recollections.
• Jury finds Bass guilty of first-degree murder; statute of limitations prevents further charges.

8. Sentencing & Community Impact (37:30–48:33)

• Bass receives a 27-year sentence (maximum under sentencing laws from 1989).
  • Molly Stavik (Mandy’s sister, quoted): “Almost 30 years we suffered. I want him to suffer like we did.” (38:26)
• Family and hosts express frustration at the relatively short sentence and at the missed opportunities in the original investigation.
• Mandy’s murder and the delay in justice left a lasting scar. Parents and young women in the community grew up with heightened vigilance—their sense of safety permanently altered.
  • Amber Dawn (local, quoted): “I remember my mom and dad becoming extra vigilant, walking us to the bus stop and locking up the house when it had never seemed important in our small town to do that before.” (45:38)
• Mandy’s step-sister, mother, and investigators praise the bravery of the women who called in tips and Kim Wagner’s determination, recognizing them as heroes.

9. Reflection and Unanswered Questions (48:33–52:42)

• Mandy was not the first Stavik child to be murdered; her older brother Brent was killed in an unsolved 1975 shooting in Alaska.
• Hosts question how Bass avoided earlier scrutiny and whether he may have committed other crimes.
• Praise for those who broke the case open years later; the episode ends with a meditation on the pain and resilience of the family and the importance of community vigilance and modern forensic work.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Mike Ferguson [09:48]:
  “But the thing that really jumps out to me in this case is Kyra...if Kyra comes back, Mandy should have come back.”

• Dr. Gary Goldfogle (via Morford) [13:20]:
  "We'd look at Mandy and say, you know, if we could shake her and warm her up, then she would wake up."

• Gina Malone (Timothy Bass’s ex-wife) [25:13]:
  “I wouldn't get caught because I'm not that stupid...it would be easy to get away with it.”

• Mary Stavik (Mandy’s mom) [18:30]:
  “I absolutely did not think it would ever get solved.”

• Molly Stavik (Mandy’s sister) [38:26]:
  “Almost 30 years we suffered. I want him to suffer like we did.”

• Amber Dawn (community member) [45:38]:
  “I remember my mom and dad becoming extra vigilant, walking us to the bus stop and locking up the house when it had never seemed important in our small town to do that before.”

• Bridget Whitson (Mandy’s stepsister) [43:16]:
  "Normal means not having to worry about the monster being out there. The monster is not lurking anymore.”

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Important Timestamps

• 03:14–07:00: Intro, holiday context, setup for Mandy's case
• 07:00–13:20: Timeline of Mandy’s disappearance and the search
• 13:20–16:51: Discovery of Mandy’s body, initial evidence
• 16:51–18:30: Early suspects cleared, case goes cold
• 20:18–23:33: 2013–2017: Eyewitnesses break the case open
• 29:01–33:10: Kim Wagner’s role in securing Bass’s DNA
• 31:45–35:53: DNA match, arrest, trial, and defense
• 37:30–39:54: Sentencing, family’s reaction, criticism of the investigation
• 45:38: Community impact revealed through personal accounts
• 48:33–52:42: Reflections, the unresolved murder of Mandy’s brother, legacy of the case

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Episode Tone & Takeaways

The tone is reflective, meticulous, and compassionate, combining methodical case analysis with empathy for Mandy’s family and their community. Both hosts celebrate the perseverance of ordinary people—especially women who trusted their instincts and came forward—and underline the tragic consequences of investigative oversights. Their discussion is grounded in respect for the victim’s memory and the local impact, while also acknowledging the flawed but ultimately redemptive course of justice.

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Heroes of the Case

• Heather Backstrom & Marilee Anderson: Their willingness to revisit past fears and approach authorities broke the case open.
• Kim Wagner: Risked suspicion and reprisal to secure crucial DNA evidence for investigators.

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Final Reflection

• Justice for Amanda Stavik was delayed, but not denied; her case stands as a testament to the power of community, the long arm of forensic science, and the courage of those who speak up.

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Transcript

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[Mike Ferguson]

A missing person, a strange death, a vanished vehicle, a series of unanswerable questions. In so many true crime mysteries, the answers remain elusive, but in many instances, the clues lead right to the water's edge. And sometimes the truth lies below the surface. Hi listeners, my name is Olivia and I'm host of the true crime podcast Below the Surface from abjack Entertainment, the podcast that features bizarre cases with a common theme. Water. You can listen to Below the Surface on every major podcast platform or app. Be sure to subscribe today so that you don't miss an episode.

[Mike Morford]

Criminology is a true crime podcast that may contain discussion about violent or disturbing topics. Listener discretion is advised.

[Mike Ferguson]

Hello everyone and welcome to episode 391 of the Criminology Podcast.

[Mike Morford]

This is Mike Ferguson and this is Mike Morford.

[Mike Ferguson]

Mr. Morford, how are you doing in 2026?

[Mike Morford]

I don't know. It's hard to tell because we're only a couple days in, but so far, so good. I've been working hard on a new podcast that I'm producing called Below the Surface. Listeners may have just heard a preview of that right before we started talking, so I'm very excited about that. I just want to hit the ground running and working in 2026. How you doing?

[Mike Ferguson]

That's great. That's great news. I'm doing good. Been spending a lot of time with family. The week off was very nice and now I'm ready to get back into it. But we say this a lot. We probably say it every year, but it's always tough getting into a new year. I remember being a kid in school, when you go back to school, I'm going to write 2025. I don't know how many times before it sticks.

[Mike Morford]

Yeah, I'm, I'm actually pretty good about changing the year, like, immediately in my head, so I don't have that problem. But I am, I do have that lag of not wanting to get moving sometimes. And the kids, you know, their school vacation is going to be ending soon, so they're kind of feeling that leg, too. So just got to get, get going and get motivated. Yeah.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, let's go ahead and give our Patreon shout outs. We had Jer and Mike Torrance, so great new support. We really appreciate it.

[Mike Morford]

Thank you so much for that support. It really helps out the show. For anyone else that would like to help support the show, head over to patreon.com criminology to get signed up.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, let's go ahead and jump into this week's case, our first of 2026 and more. If I just talked about it, spending time with my family over holiday break. I'm sure you did, and I'm sure our listeners did. That's really a time that most people appreciate and they cherish the memories from the time spent together. But holidays can also be tough for some families, especially if they've suffered the loss of a loved one to violence. And that's what happened to the family of a young woman named Amanda Stavic, who was murdered during the holiday season in 1989, during the Thanksgiving time frame. And for years, they waited for justice with an empty seat at the table during the holidays where Amanda should have been sitting. Thankfully for them, justice would finally come, but it would take decades. And I mentioned more of the week off that we had. I spent a fair amount of time watching true crime shows, I found some good ones that I had never seen before. Now they were cases that I was familiar with oftentimes, but a lot of them involved justice delayed. And you know, quite frankly, you and I talk about that a lot. These cases from the 70s and 80s.

[Mike Morford]

Yeah, I think a lot of times investigators are just waiting for technology to catch up, maybe for someone to come forward to clear their conscience, that kind of stuff. So we do see a lot of cases receiving justice and outcomes, even if it takes a long time, which is.

[Mike Ferguson]

Always great to see that happen. But I'm always struck by the fact of, because it does take so long. You know, obviously in many cases there are people who die without ever knowing what happened to their loved ones. And that's, that's tough. It's really tough.

[Mike Morford]

Friday, November 24, 1989 was the day after Thanksgiving. 18 year old Amanda Stavic, who went by Mandy, had recently graduated from Mount Baker High School and was now a freshman at Central Washington University. And she was back home at her parents house in Clipper, just north of Acme, Washington, visiting for the holiday. While a lot of people skipped their workouts over the holidays, Mandy wasn't the type of person to do that. She was very athletic and regularly went running. When she was at her parents home, she ran a five mile loop to the Nooksack river and back. That day she took off for a run at around 2:30 in the afternoon. Kyra, the family's German shepherd, ran with her. This run was often a family affair with Mandy's mom Mary joining on her bike. Because of the holiday, though, Mary was busy at the time, so Mandy decided to head out alone.

[Mike Ferguson]

Mandy was in very good shape. The run shouldn't have taken her much time at all. She ran that same route often and everyone kind of had a good sense of her routine. But hours passed and she didn't return home. At 5:15, Kyra showed up at the house, but she was alone and she was acting very sheepish and upset. Mary was immediately worried when Mandy was late because it was so unlike her. And then when Kyra came back alone, acting strange, Mary knew something was terribly wrong. Mandy's sister Molly would later tell ABC News, we just prayed that they would find her alive. You think to yourself, God, maybe she's hurt, she can't get home. But if Mandy was just hurt, she should have been pretty easy to find. And Mandy's older brother Lee was at a friend's house about a quarter of a mile down the street. He saw Mandy pass by on her way home. So the search area should have been very small. If Mandy had just, say, twisted her ankle or pulled a hamstring or something like that. Kyra didn't return home for another two hours after Lee saw them run by her family searched the area Starting at about 4:30 in the afternoon along the route for a couple of hours. When they didn't find her, they knew it was time to call police. They placed a call to 911 at around 7pm and police came right out. An official search by police began that night after 9pm but they too had no luck finding Mandy. And I feel like more if in any case that we talk about where someone doesn't return home or someone is missing, there's always a decision that has to be made by the family or loved ones. At what point do we call 911? Because most people don't call 911 immediately in this type of situation, right? There's calls maybe to be made. You're going to jump in your car, you're going to run out to see if she's hurt. But the thing that really jumps out to me in this case is Kyra, you know, Mandy going out running with her dog routinely. And we all love our animals, we love our pets. And you can just imagine what was going on in the minds of the family when the dog, Kyra, comes home without Mandy. I think that is what jumped out at me because that's different than what we talk about in many cases, right? Somebody just doesn't return. But in this scenario, Mandy was with Kyra. So if Kyra comes back, Mandy should have come back.

[Mike Morford]

And that's pretty amazing. You know, the way animals, pets are resilient. They can find their way home. And, you know, oftentimes you hear of pets trying to summon help. Obviously they can't talk and tell you what happened, but they'll find their way home. And sometimes they'll try and instigate people to come with them to find someone if they're missing, that kind of thing. So that didn't happen here, but it was still that. The fact Kyra came home, I find that really interesting that she found her way home and that had raised the alarm that she was alone and Mandy wasn't with her. The search for Mandy expanded to nearby areas over the next two days, and some areas were researched. On Sunday, November 26, two days after Mandy vanished, searchers found a pair of light green sweatpants in the woods. They were dirty and torn. Mandy's mom didn't feel like they could have been her daughters. Even though Mandy did have a pair of light green sweats, no one could remember exactly what Mandy had been wearing when she left that day. But they tried to push the memory of her wearing those sweatpants out of their minds. If those pants belonged to her, there likely wouldn't be any good outcomes.

[Mike Ferguson]

With no clear sign of Mandy in the area, both police and nearby residents began to theorize about what had happened to her. The leading theory was that Mandy had been kidnapped and taken from the area somehow. But authorities continued to search the woods near the river. Investigators believe that someone armed with some kind of weapon had kicked Kyra into a ditch where she was helpless, and then forced Mandy into a car. Since Mandy was a fast runner, it wouldn't make sense for someone to just be able to run up to her and grab her, Especially with Kyra on the run alongside her. On Monday, November 27, three days after she went missing, the search for Mandy came to a sad end. And it was an ending that no one wanted. Mandy was found dead, submerged in the Nooksack River. Her body had gotten caught in some debris in the South Fork, about three and a half miles away from her home. All of her clothing was missing. She was wearing only her socks and running shoes.

[Mike Morford]

The water in the river was pretty cold, which helped preserve Mandy's body. There were also no injuries to her face, so it almost looked like she was just sleeping. The situation was distressing for first responders and those working on the case. It was a small town and no one was used to this kind of thing. Whatcom County Medical Examiner Dr. Gary Goldfogle told the Bellingham Herald. We'd look at Mandy and say, you know, if we could shake her and warm her up, then she would wake up. And he described the recovery of her body as very traumatic. Detective Ron Peterson had a hard time with the discovery. He told 48 Hours, Mandy looked like my daughter.

[Mike Ferguson]

And this is a very sad outcome. Morph. Obviously, you know, when a family is searching for a loved one, this is the, the last thing that they want to have happen. I can only imagine what that three day stretch was like for the family. I assume that in the beginning there's a lot of worry, but there's also a lot of hope. But what happens as each day ticks by? It has to become tougher and tougher now. Families don't give up hope, But I just wonder in the back of their minds, do they start to think that this outcome is not going to be good? Every day that passes Because I think that would be very logical, although extremely hard.

[Mike Morford]

Yeah. And I think while they're holding out hope, it's also likely that they knew something had to be wrong, because if she was out there in the cold alone for that long, there couldn't be any kind of good scenario. And I think when they got this news, it must have been devastating. And as hard as it was for her family, there's a good possibility that in such a small town, some of the recovery team may have known Mandy. So that may have been hard for them, too.

[Mike Ferguson]

While it was never 100% confirmed, those dirty and torn sweatpants that were found had likely belonged to Mandy after all, their condition just reflected the terrible struggle she went through as she tried to escape her attacker. There were cuts and scratches on Mandy's arms and thighs, showing that at one point she was running through thick, thorny BlackBerry bushes, desperately trying to get away. Mandy's official cause of death was drowning, even though the river was only knee deep at the time. She had been alive when she ended up in the river, but had been unable to swim or stand up. An injury to the back of her head suggested that her attacker had hit her over the head, leaving her unconscious before throwing her into the water. Those who knew Mandy say that this is the only possibility that makes sense because she was a very strong swimmer and actually was a Red Cross certified lifeguard. Besides, the water wasn't deep enough and it wasn't flowing fast enough that she wouldn't have been able to just stand up and save herself if she had been conscious. It was determined that Mandy had been sexually assaulted before being left in the river. Semen was collected from her body during her autopsy.

[Mike Morford]

Since most people that are victims of a murder know their killer, police started looking at Mandy's inner circle. Mandy's boyfriend, Rick Zender, was quickly ruled out as a suspect. He was questioned and fingerprinted, but he was extremely cooperative with the investigation, and he was shocked and heartbroken about the news. Down the road, DNA testing would confirm that Rick Zehnder's DNA did not match the DNA recovered from her body. This made it clear to investigators that the DNA definitely belonged to her killer.

[Mike Ferguson]

And that's a big deal, right? Obviously, we know that Rick is going to be looked at. He's the boyfriend. He is definitely inside Mandy's inner circle. He has to be vetted. In this case, he's ruled out, but ultimately down the road, ruling him out as being the contributor of this DNA, this semen, that's a big deal. I Mean, after all, he's her boyfriend. Not sure what their sexual history was, but if the semen was determined to be him, there could be a logical explanation for that. But it not being his, it had to have come from Mandy's attacker, her killer.

[Mike Morford]

Yeah, and I feel bad for her boyfriend to be questioned. You know, it's part of the process. But he cooperated, and, you know, the police believed him. And, you know, later that DNA ruled him out. He had nothing to do with it. And he's just one more person that was devastated by her loss.

[Mike Ferguson]

A memorial was held for Mandy on Sunday, December 3, and she was laid to rest at the St. Joseph Mission Cemetery. While Mandy's loved ones were grieving and saying their goodbyes, police pressed on with the hunt for her killer, and the investigation was in full swing. Whatcom county sheriff's Detective George Mastin told the Washington Post, we're still tracking down 7859 leads. Nearly 8000 tips or leads in about a week in that small town proved that the community was incredibly invested in finding answers. A reward fund was quickly put together, but eventually, after so long with no answers, the money was put toward a scholarship in Mandy's name. Many started to lose any hope that Mandy's murderer would ever be identified. Her mother, Mary, admitted to not having much hope, telling Inside Edition, I absolutely did not think it would ever get solved. With no witnesses, little evidence and no hard suspects and DNA testing being in its early stages, the case went cold.

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[Mike Morford]

For years, Mandy's case didn't move and stayed cold. But a big break in the case finally came in 2013. It actually happened pretty randomly. Two women, Heather Backstrom and Merrill Lee Anderson, who both went to Mount Baker High School, were socializing at a water park while waiting for their children. And the conversation ended up turning to Mandy Stavic. One of them said that she kind of felt like she knew who did it, and the other said that she felt the same way. Amazingly, they both blurted out the same name to each other. Timothy Bass. It Was easier to dismiss their own feelings as overreactions or misunderstandings. But when it was both of them, it felt like there was something to it. So they went to the police with his name. Bass, who is now 50 years old, was 22 at the time Manny was murdered.

[Mike Ferguson]

Heather backstrom and marilee anderson both suspected that it was Timothy bass, Due to run ins they had with him. Neither of their encounters with bass had been violent, but they had both made a lasting impression on the two women. Marilee recalled a time about a year after Mandy's murder that she felt bass lied about needing to use the phone in order to get into her house when she was home alone. He was friends with her husband, so he would have known he wasn't there. Once inside her home, Bass confessed to being in love with her and wanting to have sex with her. He laughed when she threatened to call the police on him.

[Mike Morford]

Heather was just 15 years old when she was riding in the car with her future husband before they were dating. They weren't alone on this ride, though. Along with them was Timothy bass, who was 21. This was just months before Mandy was killed. Bass started running a pen up and down Heather's thighs While he was telling her how beautiful her eyes were. And it really creeped her out. She felt like nothing would happen because they weren't alone, but she was still terrified. These two women had kept these interactions with bass in their minds for years, so they truly must have been disturbed by him.

[Mike Ferguson]

And based on the stories, you know, from these two women, Timothy bass sounds like a real creep. I mean, he's coming on to his friend's wife. He's. He's coming on to a 15 year old when he's 21. I mean, this is, you know, you can just tell this is not a good guy.

[Mike Morford]

And these incidents clearly stuck with these women for. For years. And so they had to be disturbing. And, you know, kudos to them for coming forward to the police with their suspicion. And the worst that could happen was the police would check him out and say, hey, there's nothing to it. But, you know, I think we talk about too many cases where someone has a name and just never shares it and come to find out it's them, and maybe they would have been arrested long before had they come forward.

[Mike Ferguson]

Yeah. And I could see in this situation where probably seemed like isolated incidents because they were isolated to each woman, but when they get together and they start talking about Bass, I think that's when it clicks for them.

[Mike Morford]

And I think when both of them Went to the police. You know, it was probably would be hard for them not to look into this guy because you have two concerned women that had run ins with him. So, you know, again, good job by them that come forward.

[Mike Ferguson]

Timothy Bass was local to the area, had no criminal history, and had attended Mount Baker High School, just like Mandy. His younger brother Tom was actually friends with Mandy. Gina Malone, who was once married to Timothy Bass, recalled that after Mandy was killed, Bass hurried their wedding along, moving it up to January of 1990, just two months after the murder. It's possible that he wanted to seem like an upstanding family man if he was questioned. They stayed together for a long time, but their marriage seems like it was far from perfect. In August of 2010, Gina filed for a domestic violence restraining order for herself and their three young children. And she noted that Bass regularly watched true crime shows, apparently specifically shows about cold case murders, and kind of bragged that he could easily get away with such serious crimes. Gina told the Washington Post that her husband said, I wouldn't get caught because I'm not that stupid. He added that it would be easy to get away with it. According to the Bellingham Herald, Timothy Bass also once roughly shoved Gina into a wall hard enough to actually leave bruises on her back from the impact, and said to her, people have made me so angry before, and I can see why people murder other people now. Watching true crime shows, listening to true crime podcasts, that doesn't necessarily make you a criminal, obviously, or we'd all be in trouble. But some of these comments, I wouldn't get caught. It would be easy to get away with it. When I watch a true crime show or listen to something that's not my thought, I'm not trying to figure out how I would get away with it. So to me, that's a red flag. And obviously the domestic violence is a huge red flag.

[Mike Morford]

Yeah. When you take into consideration now you have someone that was close to this guy saying these terrible things, you know, the domestic violence incidents, the things that he said about getting away with murder, and you combine that with what the other two women who went to police said, it's definitely not painting a good picture for this guy.

[Mike Ferguson]

And now we have an actual link. Right. His brother was friends with Mandy.

[Mike Morford]

Modern day police looked through the original reports from the time of Mandy's murder and saw that somehow, despite the fact that Bass lived on Mandy street and she would have to pass his house between the last time her brother saw her and making it home, he was never suspect in the Beginning of the investigation, in fact, he was somehow never even questioned or approached for a DNA sample. No one in his family had been. Years later, he was asked, like many other men in the area, for a voluntary sample. But Bass, unlike many of the others, refused to cooperate. When investigators tried to get a warrant to collect his DNA, they were denied because there wasn't strong enough evidence tying him to the crime. They didn't have the probable cause they needed to proceed with that route.

[Mike Ferguson]

And it is shocking to me, morph, that, you know, here's a guy who lived on Mandy street and was never even talked to or questioned, let alone approached for a DNA sample. You would think just in the course of the investigation, everyone on the street, especially the males on that street, would have been talked to. That just seems like Police Work 101.

[Mike Morford]

That's exactly what I was thinking. You know, you think a cursory search of the area, the residents there would be warranted to see if any of them have criminal records, to see if anybody saw anything. Even if they don't have criminal records, Just talking to everybody on that street should have been something that was done automatically, and somehow that just didn't happen.

[Mike Ferguson]

In 2015, Whatcom County Sheriff's office detective Kevin bauhe asked Kim Wagner, one of bass's co workers, to take swabs of areas of the truck Bass used to make deliveries. However, they were told by human resources for his employer, franz bakery in bellingham, that they would need a warrant to collect anything from their business or trash and. And that they wouldn't be giving out any information about Bass without a court ordered subpoena. The lack of cooperation didn't deter police. They were pretty sure that they had their man. They just had to prove it. According to the linden tribune, it turns out that Mandy had actually mentioned Bass to people as some guy named Tim who was bugging or annoying her when she was a senior. He would go to her basketball games and watch her, even though he had already graduated. She had even mentioned him in her journal.

[Mike Morford]

Detectives were sure that they had the right guy, but had a set of challenges in front of them. Those being no warrants, no subpoenas, no cooperation, and no eyewitnesses. Bass's ex wife, Gina Malone, was questioned in 2017, but told detectives that she had seen Mandy run past Bass home on her run that day because she had been walking the opposite direction on her way to see Timothy Bass. As much as bass had apparently watched true crime shows and taken in the information, it seems that his co worker Kim Wagner had, too. She was determined to help investigators get the DNA sample they needed, even if she had to get it for them herself. But Bass not only wore gloves when he was at work, he never threw anything away. If he drank from a cup or ate something, he. He took the trash home with him. This made Wagner more suspicious of him and even more determined to help investigators get what they needed from Bass.

[Mike Ferguson]

And I could see why she would be more suspicious of him. I mean, who takes their lunch trash home with them from work? So it does sound as though he, in watching all of these true crime shows, obviously more probably knew about DNA and all that, and he was worried about it because he knew what he had done and he knew what technology had evolved into.

[Mike Morford]

Yeah, I think a lot of times people, maybe they're paranoid or they've been watching too much crime shows and they start getting these crazy ideas about people and think they're up to no good. But in this case, it seems like it was warranted.

[Mike Ferguson]

And let's face it, police had already approached her, so she had to be wary. And Bass's activity at work is just going to cause that concern to go off the charts. Finally, In August of 2017, Wagner was able to snatch something with Bass DNA on it. A can of Coca Cola and a plastic cup from the water cooler. For some reason, he threw them away at work instead of taking them with him. She put on gloves, grabbed them out of the trash, and shoved them into her desk drawer. Later, she put them in a paper bag and turned the bag over to the detectives. It took a few more months for the lab results to come back. When they did, police were stunned but not shocked that the DNA on the can and on the cup was a match to the DNA found on Mandy's body. Their suspicions of Timothy Bass were well founded.

[Mike Morford]

In December 2017, Timothy Bass was taken into custody. A DNA swab was taken, and there's finally probable cause for that. And there is finally confirmation it was Bass's DNA on the items that Wagner collected. And that DNA was a match to DNA recovered from Mandy's body. Bass denied killing Mandy and entered a plea of not guilty. His bail was set at $1 million. Mary Stavic was still alive to learn who killed her daughter. That's pretty rare in cases that have gone unsolved for so long. Some of the original investigators were still around, too. County prosecutor David McEachern actually came out of retirement to be able to prosecute this case because it had affected him so deeply. His 44 year career as prosecutor just hadn't been enough time to close Mandy's case. But he wasn't going to let that stop him, he told the News Tribune. I've never seen a case that had an impact like this one did. It affected the entire community. McEachern recalled that after Mandy's murder, people thought that they didn't have a sense of safety and had suddenly realized that they were not all that safe and that there was a monster who was really living among them. And for nearly 30 years, the community was frozen with fear, wondering if Mandy's killer was still out there, walking amongst them, blending in, maybe even waiting for another opportunity to strike. There was no way to know, so there was no way to truly feel safe.

[Mike Ferguson]

Timothy Bass went to trial in 2019. Because Wagner was a very key witness, investigators actually kept her out of the loop on purpose. She also was not allowed to be in the courtroom during the trial until after she had completed her testimony, which is common in criminal cases like this. No one ever confirmed to her that the DNA samples she helped collect had been a match. She just learned the news that Bass had been arrested. It wasn't until after the trial that she knew how important her actions had been.

[Mike Morford]

At trial, Bass younger brother Tom, who knew Mandy, admitted that his brother had asked family members on multiple occasions to help him cover up his involvement in her murder by lying or creating a false alibi for him. He was also trying to think of a way that he could blame his deceased father and say that it was his DNA on Mandy's body. Bassett even asked his younger brother to tell investigators that he had also slept with Mandy to make it seem like she slept with a lot of people and there was no big deal that his semen had been found on her. And maybe he was even trying to frame his brother in the end, like he had thought about trying to frame his father. Either way, Bass understood that he couldn't ignore the fact that his DNA had been found on Mandy's body, and he couldn't deny it. Instead, he would need to explain it away. His main defense at trial was that he and Mandy had consensual sex before she either took her own life or crossed paths with the real killer. One of his defense attorneys explained in court that thinking that that semen donor must be the killer is the fundamental error in this case.

[Mike Ferguson]

And I just get such a sense here, Morph, that this must have been on his mind all the time for so many years. You know, he's watching the true crime shows. He's Seeing as the years pass, what DNA is accomplishing, and the whole time he's thinking, they have my DNA. And he's scheming about how to frame his father, maybe how to frame his brother. He's trying to line up alibis with his family or throw members of his family under the bus. I mean, you could see how this potentially could be all consuming to this guy.

[Mike Morford]

But I think for someone that is involved in a crime like this, it's only natural they're going to be looking over their shoulder for a long time, maybe just waiting for the police to knock on the door. So that time had finally come for him.

[Mike Ferguson]

But he has to try to explain it. He's not going to get out from under the fact that it's his DNA. So, like most criminals do, they have to come up with something. And what does he come up with? Well, we had consensual sex, and then whatever happened must have happened. The issue for Bass was that no one ever recalled seeing Mandy interact with him. Not his younger brother, not one of her siblings or friends, no one in the neighborhood. He tried to claim they were having an affair and that they kept it private. But that possibility seems unlikely, especially when we talked about it earlier, that Timothy Bass, according to Mandy herself, creeped her out by watching her at basketball games. When police first approached Bass, he tried to claim that he didn't even know who detectives were talking about, as if Mandy's murder didn't shake the entire community. His story was all over the place, and nobody believed him. And that also goes for a jury of six men and six women. They found Timothy Bass guilty of first degree murder, first degree rape, first degree attempted rape, first degree kidnapping, and first degree attempted kidnapping. The statute of limitations on all charges besides murder had already expired, but it was necessary to prove those crimes to be able to find Bass guilty of first degree murder.

[Mike Morford]

Timothy Bass was sentenced to the maximum amount of prison time allowed by law. 320 months, just under 27 years. It may not seem long enough. It may not seem long enough, but it's all that could be done with the actual charges. Prosecutors didn't want to risk that a juror would by Bass's story about consensual intercourse. So they didn't charge him with premeditated murder, which would have carried a sentence of life in prison or even a potential death sentence. But 27 years is about how much time Bass spent free after he killed Mandy. Living his life, gloating about how smart he was and how good he was at getting away with crimes. And it was more than the minimum sentence of 20 years, which is what his defense team had requested. Mandy's family seemed as happy with the sentence as they could be, given the circumstances. Mandy's sister Molly, told the Bellingham Herald, almost 30 years, we suffered. I want him to suffer like we did.

[Mike Ferguson]

And, you know, I would agree with you, Morph. 27 years doesn't seem like enough for the horrible act that Timothy Bass committed. Now. It's great that they got him, but what's always frustrating to me is that in these cases where it does take a long time to catch the killer, they essentially get to live out their life for many, many years. And that bugs me. I understand. Just sometimes takes quite a while to solve these cases. But the fact that he's living his life, I don't know, I. I can't get over it sometimes. It makes me mad.

[Mike Morford]

You know, what makes me mad is the way that some of these statute of limitations had run out, because these are very serious crimes. You know, attempted kidnapping, rape, that kind of stuff. But, you know, we talk about it often years ago, decades ago, the sentences on. On certain things were not very substantial in some cases, and therefore, the statute of limitations on them didn't last that long. I wonder if the law has changed, if he committed this crime today, if he might be sentenced to a much more harsher penalty.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, that's the thing, right? If you catch somebody 20, 30, 40 years later and you get the conviction, the sentencing guidelines that were in place at the time the crime was committed kick in. So I think there's a good chance to answer your question, that his sentence would be much more severe had he committed this crime in the current time that we're living in. When you think about how long it took for justice in this case, it's pretty frustrating because it's really baffling how Bass was able to slip through the cracks of this investigation. We talked about it, right? This case meant a lot to the authorities in the area. They worked it hard, but somehow never thought to look at Timothy Bass early on, despite him living on the same street as Mandy and along the route she had run, she also mentioned him by name in a negative light to multiple people. So I think, given all that, to a lot of people, it shouldn't have taken the authorities so long to look at Timothy Bass. Thankfully, even though it was 1989 when Mandy died, that DNA was not only properly collected, it was perfectly stored until 2017. As Sheriff Bill elfo told inside edition, as is true in so Many of these older cases, the collection and safe storage over the years made the solving of this horrific crime possible.

[Mike Morford]

Despite being convicted, Timothy Bass continued to maintain his innocence. As a sentencing hearing, he said, I would first like to say that I am 100% innocent of this crime. I wish no ill will towards anyone here, not even today, but I am having a hard time with this. Bass mother Sandra also still believes her son is innocent and noted that he got good grades in high school and never got into any trouble. She told the News Tribune, he was found guilty in people's minds way before the trial even started and is being sent to prison on people's emotions, not any real evidence. Bass is currently serving his time at Airway Heights Corrections Center.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well, you know mom is always going to stick with you or a lot of moms, right? They're going to have a hard time believing that their son, the boy that they brought into this world they raised, could be capable of this. But to say that there wasn't any real evidence, I have to take umbrage with that a little bit. There was DNA evidence. Now obviously, I'm sure he told her we had consensual sex and she believed him.

[Mike Morford]

And I think for a lot of moms it's just the accepting reality is to accept that your son is not perfect and is capable of something terrible. So it seems like a clear cut case of denial.

[Mike Ferguson]

Mandy's family is certain that Bass is the right guy and is glad to be able to move past the questions in the uncertainty. Mandy's stepsister Bridget Whitson told the Bellingham Herald, normal means not having to worry about the monster being out there. The monster is not lurking anymore. When Mandy's mother talks about Kim Wagner, the co worker of Timothy Bass who watched and waited for the opportunity to help authorities obtain Bass DNA, it's clear that she's very thankful for her efforts. She told the Bellingham Herald, she is the one that made it possible to get justice. Bass was careful with his DNA and authorities had to follow the law or they wouldn't be able to use the DNA match in court. Anything they wanted to test had to be collected in a legal manner. If she hadn't cooperated, he may still be free depending on how stingy he was willing to be with his trash for the rest of his life. As for Kim Wagner herself, she told the Herald, I'm proud of what I did. I like to think that that's just me. I like to do the right thing. But she said it wasn't easy and that the end goal was for Mandy's mom to finally know and for Mandy Soule to finally be free with a guilty verdict. And my thought morph is if Timothy Bass was willing to take home his lunch trash with him, he probably was also very careful with his trash at home, which would have made it, you know, tough for detectives. You often see that's seen in true crime shows or movies where they're dumping someone's trash to try to find DNA. I have a feeling this guy was very careful with what he put in there.

[Mike Morford]

Yeah, we talked about looking over his shoulder, and it's clear from. From his actions and from trying to cover his tracks and keep his DNA hidden that he. He was looking over his shoulder and trying to protect himself. Mandy's murder had an incredible and lasting impact on the community. It didn't matter if you were a hardened law enforcement professional, someone who knew Mandy, or just a young person growing up in the area. If you lived in that community, you knew who Mandy was. You knew what happened to her, and it made people re evaluate their own personal safety. Parents in the area were on high alert after Mandy's murder. It was a stark contrast from the carefree attitude Mannie previously had when it came to locking their doors. Amber dawn, who grew up in Acme and was in seventh grade at the time Mandy was killed, told the Herald, I remember my mom and dad becoming extra vigilant, walking us to the bus stop and locking up the house when it had never seemed important in our small town to do that before.

[Mike Ferguson]

And I feel like this is something that comes up in many cases, especially when, you know a case occurs in a smaller town. You're talking 70s, 80s, even 90s. There are crimes in many towns across the country that changed things for the residents of that area forever. It's almost like before this happened and after.

[Mike Morford]

And murders have been around since the beginning of time and sometimes in small towns, until it affects them and they have a firsthand experience with it, that's when they change. Things are different for them. There's like a loss of innocence there in that community, and people know that anything can happen.

[Mike Ferguson]

Officials who worked on the case never forgot Mandy. Former sheriff's deputy George Sherry told the Herald, the day that she disappeared was one of the saddest days in my time as a deputy. Mandy's murder made people want to be able to create impactful change. Dan Baxter, who was dating a woman who lived in the same dorm as Mandy at Central Washington University and later became a juvenile probation counselor, supervisor for King County Superior Court told the Herald. We were all just shocked about the disappearance. And for myself, it impacted my choice to go into the criminal justice system as my profession.

[Mike Morford]

To this day, Mandy's sister Molly still won't go near the area of the river where authorities found her body. It's just too hard for her. Mandy would be in her mid-50s if she was still alive. There's now a Mandy Stavic scholarship awarded to candidates who. Who take an active part in the Mount Baker High School music program. Sadly, Mandy wasn't the first Stavik child to be murdered. Her older brother Brent, was killed in 1975 when she was just four years old. @ the time, Brent and their father Glenn, were still living in Anchorage, Alaska, where Mandy was born. The 16 year old was hunting near Fort Richardson army base when he was shot multiple times. It's still unknown who's responsible for his.

[Mike Ferguson]

Death. You know, morph, we mentioned it early on that this is the kind of case that will make most people appreciative of the holidays that they spend with loved ones even more than they normally would be. For Mandy Stavic's family. They didn't know that the Thanksgiving meal they had with her would be their last and that holidays would never be the same for them again. Without Mandy, though, nothing can bring Mandy back. Hopefully they have some peace knowing that her killer is behind bars and won't be able to hurt anyone else. So as we wrap this case up, obviously it was a horrific crime, a sexual assault, murder. And I hate to be too critical of police. They have a very hard job. But I think I would be remiss if I didn't point out that it seems like there were some errors made in this case. You know, we talked about what a big deal it was to this community, and police were taking it very seriously. But how did they miss talking to people on Mandy Street? How did they miss talking to people along the route which she had run? I just. That's mind boggling to.

[Mike Morford]

Me. Yeah, there's no guarantee that had police knocked on Bass's door that early on that they would have arrested him or found anything to. To charge him with. But you just going through the steps and questioning the people in that area as we talked about just seems like such a natural thing to do and just somehow it didn't happen.

[Mike Ferguson]

Here. The other thought that, that I had was you just wonder if this guy committed other crimes. It's hard for me to think that he didn't. We talked about how many different people were Creeped out by him. Mandy was creeped out by him. This guy, you know, he seemed to like he was a predator, like he was stalking people. I don't know that any other crimes came to light, but I always find it hard to believe that a guy who was capable of this and acted the way he did didn't commit other crimes, and they just weren't linked and he obviously wasn't going to bring them.

[Mike Morford]

Up. Yeah, it might be worth looking at any other similar crimes in that vicinity, just to see if there's any that might be linked to him. And eventually, you know, maybe down the road, at some point, DNA and genealogy would have been done that would have the same result. It would point to him, and he'd finally be arrested, but that might be years from now. So in this case, it was a good thing that those two women came forward after talking with each other to tell police, hey, this guy Bass really creeped this out. You should really look into him. And I think they're the heroes of this.

[Mike Ferguson]

Story. Yeah, I do, too. And it might seem like an easy thing to do, but in many cases, I don't know that it is. First of all, are you putting yourself in any type of danger by coming forward? Well, possibly. If this guy's a killer, then, yeah, potentially you are. So, you know, you have to factor all that in. So I'm with you. You know, I do feel like what they did was very brave and it helped solve this.

[Mike Morford]

Crime. And then you had another resident there that took it upon herself to help police by collecting that DNA. I think she's another hero as.

[Mike Ferguson]

Well. Yeah. Also a very brave thing to do. But even though, you know, he was out or not behind bars for many, many years, he is now. And hopefully he's not having a great time with.

[Mike Morford]

It. And hopefully him being where he belongs is given her family some.

[Mike Ferguson]

Peace. Yeah, absolutely. But that's it for our episode on Amanda Stavic. As always, if you love the show but haven't done so yet, take a minute, go out, leave us a rating. You can leave a review. Also, keep telling your friends. Word of mouth about the podcast really goes a long.

[Mike Morford]

Way. If you want to find us on social media or on every major platform, just search for Criminology Podcast on your favorites. And if you want to check out old episodes, find news about the show and more, head over to our website, criminologypodcast.com and finally, if you want to join a discussion with other listeners, head over Facebook and check out the Criminology Podcast. Discussion and fan.

[Mike Ferguson]

Group. So that's it for another episode of Criminology. But Morph and I will be back with all of you next Saturday night with a brand new episode. So until then, for Mike and Morph, we'll talk to you next.

[Mike Morford]

Week. Take care, everyone.