A 23-year-old mother and her family were stopped and killed after offering help to fugitives in the Arizona desert. On July 31, 1978, Donnelda Lyons was traveling near Quartzsite, Arizona with her husband, 24-year-old Marine Sergeant John Lyons, their 22-month-old son Christopher, and their 15-year-old niece Theresa Tyson. Their vehicle was intercepted by escaped convicts Gary Tison and Randy Greenawalt after the fugitives’ car broke down.

The Lyons family was forced at gunpoint into their own vehicle, driven into the desert, and then shot; Donnelda, John, and little Christopher were killed. Theresa, who tried to run, was found dead a short distance away. Their bodies were discovered on August 6, 1978, which sparked a large manhunt for the perpetrators.

The case raised grim questions about a random act of violence against a traveling family; does anyone have memories of the area or the family from that summer?