On August 12th, 1984, San Jose resident Carol Panzica checked into the Dream Inn Hotel in Santa Cruz, California, with her were her two sons aged 11 and 13. The three of them checked in at 3:00pm and the two boys went outside to play and use the hotel swimming pool. When the boys got back at 6:00pm, they found their mother who had stayed behind to take a shower or bath, face down in the tub filled with water.

The boys screamed for help and another hotel guest responded to their cries. This person pulled Carol out of the tub. A beach patrol officer also responded to the scene and did CPR until the fire department and ambulance arrived. Carol Panzica was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.

When investigators looked at her body they initially thought she had slipped in the shower, fell and her body blocking the drain caused the tub to fill, drowning her. There were wounds consistent with this theory. A pathologist looked at the body and found other wounds that were inconsistent with an accidental drowning. These wounds included bruises on the body that were unexplained. Her death was ruled a homicide.