Suspected murder victim identified
Sheriff’s Office releases name of dead woman
The body of a woman found in west Chico March 16 has been identified by the Butte County Sheriff’s Office as 55-year-old Cass Edison (pictured) of Chico. Her death was declared a homicide and Christopher Warren Swihart Sr., 49, remains in custody after turning himself over to authorities at a local attorney’s office on March 18. He’s being held on a charge of murder, to which he is scheduled to enter a plea Thursday (March 26). Edison and Swihart reportedly knew each other.
Edison was a freelance reporter and owner of the now-defunct North Valley Business News. She had an impressive résumé, including an extensive education, but acquaintances say she’d fallen on hard times. Swihart has a court record that includes two convictions for domestic violence.
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