Staff Reporter
In early 2010, Joseph and Summer McStay seemed to embody the Southern California dream. With two young sons, Gianni and Joseph Jr., the couple lived near the coast in San Clemente, filling their days with surfing, biking, and beach life. Friends described them as a loving family, devoted to one another and to their children.
“They really cared about each other,” family friend Jesi Silveria recalled in an interview with 20/20. “As their relationship evolved, I saw that both of them prioritized each other first, and then prioritized their children. It brought them all their pleasures living by the beach.”
But the idyllic picture shattered on February 4, 2010, when the McStay family vanished without warning. Their white Isuzu Trooper was later discovered near the U.S.-Mexico border, sparking speculation that they had crossed south. Grainy surveillance footage appeared to show a family of four on foot entering Mexico that same day. With few leads and no confirmed sightings, the McStay family mystery grew colder each year.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- McStay family disappeared from Fallbrook, California, in February 2010.
- SUV abandoned near Mexico border; surveillance video fueled speculation.
- In 2013, remains found in shallow graves in the Mojave Desert.
- Business partner Charles “Chase” Merritt arrested and convicted in 2019.
- Merritt sentenced to death, maintains innocence, prepares habeas petition.
The turning point came in November 2013. A motorcyclist riding through the Mojave Desert discovered what looked like a child’s skull in the sand. Authorities unearthed two shallow graves. Inside were the remains of Joseph, Summer, and their young sons. A sledgehammer, believed to have been the murder weapon, was buried alongside them.
The gruesome discovery ended years of speculation but raised new questions: Who would want to harm this family?
Investigators focused on Charles “Chase” Merritt, Joseph’s business associate. Merritt had worked closely with Joseph on a decorative fountain business. He was also one of the last people to see Joseph alive, admitting in a cable news interview, “I’m most definitely the last person he saw.”
Prosecutors built a case around financial disputes. They alleged Merritt owed Joseph $42,000 and wrote himself backdated checks from the company’s accounts on the day the McStays disappeared.
“We developed the theory that if there was a meeting at all, it was a very quick firing,” prosecutor Britt Imes explained to ABC News. “Merritt was in a bad financial situation. He had a gambling issue where he would go to casinos and spend a lot of money.”
Authorities also highlighted cell phone records. Merritt’s phone pinged near a tower close to the gravesite two days after the family vanished. Prosecutors argued this showed familiarity with the desert area, as Merritt had grown up nearby.
Defense attorneys countered that Merritt was being wrongly accused. “He wrote checks to himself to buy materials,” attorney Raj Maline told 20/20. “That was a common practice. Checks were backdated routinely.” They rejected claims of gambling debt and insisted Merritt had permission to handle funds.
Despite the defense, the jury convicted Merritt in 2019 on four counts of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to death, though California’s moratorium means he will remain incarcerated without parole.
Merritt continues to maintain his innocence. In a new interview for ABC’s 20/20, he claimed he is preparing a habeas petition. “I didn’t murder that family. I am innocent. And I will be out one day,” he said.
Family and friends, however, remember the McStays as they were before tragedy struck. Silveria keeps their beachside happiness frozen in memory: “I picture them at the beach playing in the sand — Joey’s surfing, the sun is out, they have their bicycles. That’s what I think of when I remember them.”
The McStay family mystery continues to fascinate, not only as a chilling Southern California crime story but also as a tragic reminder of how quickly lives can be taken. The new 20/20 episode, “What Happened to the McStays?”, revisits the case in detail, airing Friday, Oct. 3, at 9 p.m. ET on ABC and streaming the next day on Hulu.
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