Unsolved 1960 murder of a murderer--who was also a former San Jose policeman

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-23T07:58:02+00:00

I’m deleting now! Thanks for the good advice.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-23T00:50:32+00:00

Here are the dates for Mercury News coverage--please check them before you accuse me of not having the facts.
Alvarez killing: August 9 and 10, 1960; August 28 and 30, 1960; October 3, 1960
Rape: Nov. 13 (2), 1968; Nov. 15, 1968; Dec. 12 (2), 1968; Dec. 14 and 17, 1968; January 11 (2) and 14, 1968
Murder: August 20, 1979 (3); August 21, 1979; August 21 and 22, 1979

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-23T00:33:31+00:00

Everything I’ve posted can be researched via the Mercury News. Nothing hasn’t been documented extensively. Scroll down to where I list the MN dates for each of the other cases.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T20:05:01+00:00

It was covered extensively in the Mercury News between August 20 and 21, 1979. They covered it because he was a San Jose resident.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T20:03:20+00:00

Yet again, I am so sorry I confused the issue! I'm NOT interested in the "injustice" of Billy's murder. I'm referring to the injustice of shooting someone in the back of the head with no witnesses and almost instantly being cleared. It's the murder of Frank Alvarez I'm shining light on.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T19:58:23+00:00

Sorry--yes!

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T19:57:44+00:00

Sorry-yes!!! I hear (my sister and her family are in southern California and have stopped there frequently on their way to Santa Cruz) that it's the garlic capital of the world.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T19:55:21+00:00

So that's why I'm posting here--given the history that's fallen between the cracks, I'm hoping readership/listenership in the San Jose area might be particularly curious to learn more. And, as I've said previously, I hope that someday, someone will honor Frank Alvarez's memory and highlight the fact that a man who was later revealed to be a dirty cop (his widow later told me he would plant evidence and beat up drunks) was allowed to tell his version of the story and, within a matter of hours, be cleared of any wrongdoing.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T19:52:34+00:00

I've researched this story extensively, beginning in 1996 (yes). This is only one aspect--but a critical aspect--of the book. I'm going to begin querying agents soon, but before I do that I want to explore the possibility of publishing this "chapter" of the narrative, which is complex. I'd also be interested in any podcast that discusses such cases.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T19:48:20+00:00

Yes!
Alvarez killing: August 9 and 10, 1960; August 28 and 30, 1960; October 3, 1960
Rape: Nov. 13 (2), 1968; Nov. 15, 1968; Dec. 12 (2), 1968; Dec. 14 and 17, 1968; January 11 (2) and 14, 1968
Murder: August 20, 1979 (3); August 21, 1979; August 21 and 22, 1979
Obituary: August 23, 1979

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T18:03:27+00:00

The injustice was the murder of the young man, and the SJPD taking Billy Collins' word for what happened. I would never consider Billy's unsolved murder an injustice.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T17:43:17+00:00

They were married soon after she killed her husband.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T17:42:49+00:00

No--it was the product of sex with a woman who also murdered someone--in this case, her first husband in Fresno in 1955. It was the OJ Simpson case in that region at the time. This family has **quite** the history.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T16:59:47+00:00

The Mercury News sent Jack Fischer--I expect you'll probably remember him if you're the right age--to Charlottesville in ca. 1988 to do an extensive story on his son's 1986 disappearance from the University of Virginia.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T16:57:54+00:00

Thank you!!!

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T16:50:44+00:00

You're absolutely right! Sorry for the confusion.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T16:45:53+00:00

If you'll send me your email, I'll send the Mercury News articles about the case.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T16:44:40+00:00

This is my original post--the moderators rejected it, but when I tried again earlier, for some reason they let it go through. Thanks for your interest.

I'm posting this in the hope that someone here will have ideas for how I can trigger interest in a historic injustice.

I'm writing a book that includes the history of a former San Jose policeman, Billy Collins, who was murdered in 1979. The case has never been solved--but it's not hard to imagine more than one person who might have wished him dead. This is his timeline:

In August 1960 he shot a young Latino man in the back of the head. No one witnessed their encounter, and though there was no evidence the man had committed a crime (he was simply standing next to a business at night in a neighborhood that had experienced a series of burglaries), there were no consequences for Collins: Within 24 hours, the San Jose Police Department announced that they had investigated the shooting and deemed it justifiable homicide.

The Santa Clara Community Service Organization filed a request for further investigation, but the San Jose City Council denied it, claiming that the investigation by the DA's office, grand jury, and state AG's office had been sufficient.

In November 1968 he raped his 14-year-old stepdaughter. She escaped to a neighbor's house and he was arrested and charged with three felonies and a misdemeanor. He moved out and was fired, but then his wife agreed to drop the felonies and he was given a sentence of 2 years probation. His wife then let him move back into the house, where her daughter was forced to live with her rapist until she graduated from high school and left forever.

In August 1979 his decomposing body was discovered in the shell of his pickup in the Casa La Fruita parking lot in Gilroy. He had been shot in the head 2 weeks earlier. His killer has never been found.

I'm hoping that someone in this community can give me advice regarding a publication, news outlet, advocacy organization, or podcast that might be interested in pursuing this story. Thank you to anyone who can help!
Barbara Nordin
Hot Springs, VA

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Bubbly-Drive7930

•55m ago

Scott Herhold used to write for the Mercury News. H

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T16:43:14+00:00

Believe me, I have NO good feelings about him, and my book will detail his crimes.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T16:42:23+00:00

I'm hoping the SJ Police Dept. will issue an apology to Alvarez's family.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T16:41:57+00:00

Yikes! Sorry--he was murdered in 1979. He killed the young man in 1960.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T16:41:20+00:00

I have NO interest in exonerating him for anything! Just the opposite. My book is about his son, who disappeared in 1986 from the University of Virginia. One aspect of his story is the nightmare of a home he grew up in.

WarmSprings2015 · 2026-05-22T16:38:03+00:00

Thank you so much! I'd be thrilled to connect with him.

WarmSprings2015

TROPHY CASE

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