Shannon Schaeffer was tragically murdered by an obsessed fan in 1989.
Shannon Schaeffer was a rising young actress known for her role on the sitcom “My Sister Sam.” On July 18, 1989, at the age of 21, she was fatally shot at the doorstep of her West Hollywood apartment. The perpetrator was Robert John Bardo, a 19-year-old man from Tucson, Arizona, who had become obsessed with Schaeffer after seeing her on television.
Bardo had previously attempted to meet Schaeffer at the studio where “My Sister Sam” was filmed, but security turned him away. Undeterred, he hired a private investigator to obtain her home address through California Department of Motor Vehicles records. After traveling to Los Angeles, Bardo approached Schaeffer at her apartment, where he initially had a brief conversation with her. He returned a short time later and shot her once at point-blank range, leading to her immediate death.
The murder of Shannon Schaeffer had a profound impact on Hollywood and the nation. It raised awareness about the dangers of stalking and led to changes in laws regarding stalking and the privacy of personal information. California subsequently passed the nation’s first anti-stalking laws in 1990, and the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act of 1994 was enacted at the federal level to prevent the DMV from releasing personal information.
Bardo was arrested the following day in Tucson after running into traffic on an interstate highway in an apparent suicide attempt. He was later tried and convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Schaeffer’s death remains a somber reminder of the need for vigilance and legal protection against stalking and harassment.