On Dec. 5, law enforcement officers found the decomposing body of 12-year-old Polly Klaas near Cloverdale, Calif.
On Oct. 1 , a knife-wielding stranger had abducted Polly from her bedroom in Petaluma, Calif., during a slumber party, in a crime that horrified the community.
Police arrested Richard Allen Davis, 39, a twice-convicted kidnapper with a 20-year criminal history. According to police, information from Davis guided them to the wooded thicket where Polly's body was found.
The Press Democrat of Santa Rosa reported that Davis confessed to kidnapping and murdering Polly. He told investigators that he picked Polly at random, took her from the bedroom and choked her to death.
In December, Polly's father Marc Klaas met with President Clinton to discuss the need for child safety.
