On the night of August 13, 1978, 16-year-old Barbara Nantais and her 17-year-old boyfriend Jim Ault decided to sleep out on Torrey Pines State Beach in San Diego, California. It was summertime, and spending nights on the beach was a common thing for teens in the area.
Young, happy, and in love
Barbara was a popular, energetic girl, known for her beauty and bright personality. She had just made the varsity cheerleading team, something unusual for a sophomore. Her friends described her as fun, outgoing, and full of life.
Jim was also well-liked—funny, upbeat, and always the “life of the party.”
They had been dating for about nine months and were very close.
A casual night with friends
That night, Barbara and Jim met up with two friends:
- Richard Selga
- Cynthia Ancog
They originally planned to surf, but the waves were poor. Instead, they joined a small group around a bonfire, talking and drinking a little. Eventually the fire died down, and everyone got ready to sleep.
Barbara and Jim chose to sleep out in the open, side-by-side in their sleeping bags on the sand.
Their two friends preferred more comfort and decided to sleep in a car parked nearby.
Everything seemed peaceful.
The Morning Shock
At around 6:00 AM the next morning, Jim woke up violently shaking. He felt extremely weak, dizzy, and disoriented. When he tried to sit up, he fell back onto the sand. Something was terribly wrong.
When he reached beside him for Barbara—she wasn’t there.
Their sleeping bags were also gone.
Struggling to stand, Jim managed to crawl toward the waterline. There, he discovered the unthinkable:
Barbara had been brutally attacked and killed.
Jim himself had been severely injured. Though he was alive, he had suffered a significant head injury and was nearly unconscious when found.
The Investigation
Police determined that the couple had been attacked sometime during the night while they were asleep.
Barbara had been beaten and assaulted, and Jim had been struck in the head and left for dead.
Jim later said he remembered hearing rustling in the dark but had thought it was just people nearby on the beach.
The case was deeply disturbing to the community because:
- The attack appeared random
- It happened in a public, open area
- There were no immediate suspects
For years, the case remained unsolved.
Later Developments
Many years later, advances in DNA technology allowed investigators to take a fresh look. Evidence from the scene was re-examined, and DNA testing eventually linked the crime to a possible suspect already in the criminal system.
(Authorities have publicly connected the case to Clairemont-area attacks from the same time period, but full legal resolution has taken decades.)
Even today, the case continues to receive renewed attention from investigators, journalists, and true-crime researchers.
Remembering Barbara
Friends and family remember Barbara as a bright, joyful girl whose life was taken far too early. Jim survived but carried the trauma of that night for the rest of his life.
The tragedy of August 13–14, 1978, remains one of San Diego’s most heartbreaking unsolved crimes of that era.
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