A woman arrested two weeks after a woman was robbed and stabbed to death in a shopping center parking garage in Rancho Palos Verdes will stand trial six years later.
Cherie Lynnette Townsend, 45, is charged with second-degree murder and robbery in connection with the killing of Susan Leeds, 66, of Rancho Palos Verdes.
Although she was not the first suspect arrested for the crime, police linked Townsend to the murder shortly after the killing, and there have been twists and turns with her connection to the case. She sued the county after her arrest, was then released, and then arrested again more than five years later.
Leeds was attacked in the middle of the day on May 3, 2018, in the Promenade car park on the Peninsula.
The retired nurse was found in her white 2016 Mercedes-Benz SUV parked on the first floor of the mall’s parking garage. She had been stabbed 17 times in the neck and upper body and had a wound on her finger that indicated she may have tried to defend herself, according to a deputy coroner who reviewed the autopsy results.
A man who was called a ‘person of interest’ was arrested the day after Leeds’ murder, but was eventually ruled out as a suspect in the murder case. He was, however, arrested for an unrelated offense.
Townsend was originally arrested for the crime on May 17, 2018in Victorville. Homicide detectives said at the time that they did not believe Leeds was specifically targeted, but that it was more of a crime of opportunity. Townsend was released five days later after prosecutors asked police to investigate the crime further.
Then-Sheriff Jim McDonnell said Townsend’s vehicle, a gold 2008 Chevrolet Malibu, was parked on the same level. He noted at the time that there was still a “tremendous amount of investigative work” to be done.
In November 2018, Townsend filed a lawsuit in federal court against Los Angeles County, McDonnell, and the then-mayors of Rolling Hills Estates and Rancho Palos Verdes, accusing the mayor of wrongful imprisonment, defamation, emotional distress, negligence, and civil rights violations.
After Townsend’s trial in October 2018, the sheriff’s office called it a “very complex, but ongoing investigation.” The sheriff said investigators were continuing to field public tips and follow up on all leads, continually reevaluating physical and forensic evidence.
Jail records show Townsend was arrested again in 2023 and has been held on $2 million bail since then.
During a four-day hearing, the judge heard testimony indicating that Townsend’s phone was found under the driver’s side of the victim’s SUV and that she had gone to a Verizon store in Carson that afternoon to try to find out where her phone was.
The lawsuit filed by Townsend was dismissed without prejudice shortly after her arrest last September.
Her arraignment will take place on July 16 at the Torrance courthouse.
