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Sandra Darlene Lamb, 49, suffered blunt force trauma to the head and neck and was found dead on November 29th, 2010.

Lamb was Edmonton's twenty-fourth homicide victim of the year.

Kirsten Lamb, 27, was charged with first-degree murder.

charges laid | first court appearance
second court appearance - cause of death revealed

For about a month, mystery surrounded the death of a woman whose body was found inside a home at 10816 52 Street.

A neighbour called police about a barking dog at about 3:50 p.m. on November 29th.

After officers arrived to check on the welfare of the resident, paramedics were dispatched.

"We routinely get a lot of those type of calls," a police spokesman said.

"Upon futher inspection they discovered a body in the residence. My information at this time is that until an autopsy is conducted we cannot positively determine whether the body is that of a male or a female."

Signs at the scene seemed to indicate foul play had taken place and homicide detectives were immediately brought in – see additional images »

The home was sealed off for several days as forensic staff gathered evidence.

The street was blocked off with traffic pylons and crime scene tape circled the house, from the back alley to the street where it wrapped around a black Monte Carlo parked out front – see images »

An area resident said police paid particular attention to the rear of the house. Several people were questioned but no one was taken into custody.

Police later said the death was being investigated as a homicide but that they had no suspects.

"There are a lot of unknowns at this time," a spokesman said.

"They're looking for a lot of answers right now. They're hoping the public can help them with some of them.

"They have indicated to me that they are still looking for information and are hoping that if we put another call out either for people to call Crimestoppers or the complaints line that could help them further in their investigation," the spokesman said.

While police went door-to-door asking questions, media tried their best to learn more by stopping passersby – read more »

Police would not say when the woman may have died but forensic staff entering the home were seen donning breathing masks.

It was first revealed by media that the deceased woman was Sandra Darlene Lamb, a pipefitter who worked primarily in northern Alberta, was divorced and lived alone.

"She wasn't the chatty type," neighbour Darrel Saunders wrote in an e-mail to news outlets.

"She worked long hours, only time we saw her was when she went outside to mow her lawn or shovel snow."

Saunders said Sandra owned a black Labrador named Rowdy. The dog was taken to a police officer's farm until Lamb's family could be notified.

Forensic staff remained on the scene until December 2nd when police finally confirmed the identity of the city's latest homicide victim as 49-year-old Sandra Lamb.

Autopsy results were withheld for investigative purposes but police did reveal that Lamb was last seen alive over the weekend.

Investigators said they had interviewed numerous people but failed to come up with any leads on suspects.

They renewed their appeal for assistance.

"If people saw anything, even things they think are insignificant, even the smallest detail can be a gigantic piece of the puzzle for us," Det. Dan Jones said.

A tribute to Lamb came from the United Association of Plumbers & Pipefitters, Local 488 – read more »

Two days after Lamb's body was discovered, another city woman was found dead in her home. This prompted a women's shelter representative to speak out – read more »

On December 5th, Lamb's obituary was posted, followed by a notice from the United Association of Plumbers & Pipefitters.

Charges laid

On December 28th, 2010, police announced that charges had been laid in connection with Sandra Darlene Lamb's death.

On Boxing Day, 27-year-old Kirsten Lamb had been arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

Kirsten was the middle of Sandra's three daughters.

First-degree murder is distinguished by the elements of planning and pre-meditation.

Police were not able to release additional information, such as Lamb's cause of death or what led to the charges being laid, as the case was now before the courts.

Reaction to news of the arrest was that of sympathy and relief – read more »

First court appearance

On December 29th – exactly one month after her mother was found dead – Kirsten Lamb made her first court appearance.

Showing little emotion, wearing blue prison coveralls and her brown hair long, Lamb appeared composed and spoke in a clear, strong – almost defiant – voice when she told the provincial court judge she had not yet spoken to a lawyer.

As a result, no plea was entered and no application for bail was made.

The matter was put over to January 20th, 2011, and Lamb was remanded into custody.

One of Kirsten's sisters was present in court, accompanied by victim's services personnel and homicide detectives.

While the woman declined to speak to media at the courthouse, Sandra's brother later wrote an email to the Edmonton Journal on behalf of his family – read more »

Second court appearance - cause of death revealed

On January 20th, 2011, Kirsten Lamb appeared in court and told a judge she had yet to retain legal counsel.

The matter was put over until February.

Court documents obtained by CBC Edmonton revealed that her mother had suffered blunt force trauma to the head and neck, in addition to slashes on her neck.

Lamb's cause of death had been previously withheld by police.

All the information presented on this page has been compiled primarily from published media reports and should not be interpreted as having legal bearing or other prejudice against the individuals named on this web site.
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deadmonton 2010 - sandra darlene lamb