Naman Shrestha
In July 1981, the massacre of the Wonderland Gang members grabbed the headlines all over the nation. The investigation of the gruesome yet intriguing case consisted of lots of twists and turns, which led to the emergence of multiple suspects. However, not all the members were murdered that day, as a couple of them were not present in the residence at the time, including David Clay Lind. The entire case is covered in detail in MGM+’s ‘The Wonderland Massacre & The Secret History of Hollywood,’ a true crime docuseries that also includes in-depth interviews with important individuals linked to the case.
David Clay Lind Took Part in the Burglary of Eddie Nash’s Residence
David Clay Lind hailed from California, particularly the city of Los Angeles. He came into the world on October 24, 1940, as the son of Eugene C. H. Lind and Bernice Merle Haddock Lind. Growing up, David developed quite an interest in bikes. Not much is known about his familial relationships and early life but reports suggest he graduated from Lodi High School in Lodi sometime in his 20s, seemingly implying he didn’t really have a great academic record. Nonetheless, what we do know is that David tied the knot with Paige Seymour Jackson in the year 1960. The two were reportedly married for over two decades until Paige passed away at the age of 43 in 1983.
David reportedly led a very reckless lifestyle and was also heavily dependent on drugs. The biker had multiple run-ins with the law and was a member of the Aryan Brotherhood — an infamous neo-Nazi white supremacist group formed in the 1960s in the California state prison system. During one of his stints in prison, he met Ronald Launius, also known as Ron. As they got to talking, they realized they shared common ideologies and became friends. Ron even convinced Lind to return to Los Angeles and join his crew — the Wonderland gang. David became a member in 1981 and began running drugs in the area with the members — Ronald Lee “Ron” Launius, Joy Audrey Gold Miller, Tracy Raymond McCourt, and William Raymond “Billy” DeVerell.
By then, David had a lengthy rap sheet which included cases of forgery, armed burglary, assault, and assault with the intent to commit rape. On June 29, 1981, some members of the Wonderland Gang, including David, Ron, and Billy, invaded the property of Eddie Nash while Tracy was on the lookout. With the help of the pornstar John Holmes, the three men sneaked into the property through the unlocked sliding glass door, after which they ambushed Eddie and his bodyguard, Gregory Diles. Pretending to be police officers, they began handcuffing the two hostages, but when Ron bumped into David, the latter accidentally shot the bodyguard. The Wonderland gang members stole Eddie’s jewels, drugs, and thousands of dollars.
What Saved David Lind on the Day of the Massacre Claimed His Life Later
A couple of days after the burglary at Eddie Nash’s house, on July 1, 1981, a group of unidentified individuals entered the Wonderland Gang’s lair on Wonderland Avenue in Los Angeles and committed brutal bludgeoning of everyone present in the property. Several members of the gang and their associates became victims of the crime, including Ronald Lee “Ron” Launius, William Raymond “Billy” DeVerell, Billy’s girlfriend Joy Audrey Gold Miller, David Lind’s alleged girlfriend Barbara Richardson, and Ron’s wife, Susan Launius. Fortunately, David was not present in the house that fateful day. He claimed that he was doing drugs with a male sex worker at a motel in the San Fernando Valley on the night of the attack.
Due to this coincidence, his place in the drug underworld was put into question as many rival drug dealers believed that he was an undercover police informant who possibly had a hand in the Wonderland Gang massacre. During the investigation of the murders, he cooperated with the authorities, but both the suspects, Eddie Nash and Gregory Diles, were acquitted of the charges. In 1983, his wife, Paige Seymour Jackson, tragically passed away. Over the years, he dealt with the grief of losing his wife and tried to keep going. More than 14 years after the massacre of the Wonderland Gang, on November 16, 1995, David Lind reportedly died of a heroin overdose at the age of 55.
Read More: Wonderland Gang Murders: How Did They Die? Who Killed Them?
