Source of Dorner Tip: His Mentor

It was Christopher Dorner's police mentor who warned the department that he might be a killer—and her quick work may have prevented more attacks, the LAPD chief says. On Feb. 4, Terie Evans got a phone call from an officer outside San Diego: He'd found a uniform with Dorner's name alongside ammunition in a dumpster. The day before, the Irvine daughter of a former LAPD captain had been found dead. Was there a connection? "In my mind, it felt like such a long shot," Evans tells the Los Angeles Times.

Still, it occurred to her that Dorner might have killed Monica Quan—whose father had represented Dorner when he was fired—then ditched his things in the dumpster. She told Irvine police of her concerns, and they launched an investigation. "At that point, I was absolutely sick," she tells the Times. "I thought, 'Oh my God, it really is him.'" After finding Dorner's angry manifesto, police arranged protection for Evans' family; she'd been at the center of his firing when he accused her of kicking a man in handcuffs. Evans is still receiving threats, police say; she fears her family could be in danger for "years." (More Christopher Dorner stories.)