Charles Repenning

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Charles Repenning

Born	August 4, 1922 Oak Park, Illinois
Died	January 5, 2005 Lakewood, Colorado
Field	Paleontology Zoology
Institution	United States Geological Survey
Known for	Paleoparadoxia
Notable prizes	Bronze Star Purple Heart

Charles Repenning (August 4, 1922, Oak Park, Illinois—January 5, 2005, Lakewood, Colorado) was an American paleontologist and zoologist noted for his work on shrews, fossil rodents, modern pinnipeds and their extinct relatives, the demostylians. He identified and researched the Paleoparadoxia found during the excavation of Stanford Linear Accelerator at Stanford University in California. Repenning was the first paleontologist to identify fossils from the North Slope of Alaska as dinosaur bones.

He was a veteran of World War II, serving as an enlisted soldier in the 104th Infantry Division and spent time in a German prisoner-of-war camp. He was awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

After the war, Repenning attended the New Mexico School of Mines and worked for the United States Geological Survey in Holbrook, Arizona, where he mapped the Navajo Reservation; Menlo Park, California, where he studied at the University of California at Berkley; and eventually Denver, Colorado, writing extensively on fossil and modern day mammals of many types, culminating in his work to create a bio-chronology based on microtine rodents.

Repenning was found murdered in his home in Lakewood on January 5, 2005. Richard Kasparson and Michael Wessel killed Repenning during a burglary. Kasparson and Wessel stole fossil specimens and World War II Nazi war souvenirs and many other things from Repenning in order to sell them to buy meth. There were three others involved in planning this murder and burglary. On October 29, 2005, Kasparson was found guilty of murder, burglary, conspiracy, and robbery and theft from an at-risk adult. Kasparson was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole plus 54 years. Michael Wessel was convicted in January 2006 of first degree murder, reckless manslaughter, burglary, theft from an at-risk adult, motor vehicle theft, and false imprisonment. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole plus 54 years. Ginny Kasparson pleaded guilty to accessory to murder, tampering with evidence, receiving stolen goods, and providing false information to a pawn broker. She was sentenced to 16 years in prison on May 19, 2006. Nicholas Savajian pleaded guilty to second degree murder. On May 5, 2006, Michael Mapps, accused of masterminding the crime, was found guilty.