Suspect in 2 Fountain Valley Slayings to Be Extradited : Courts: Paperwork for Douglas Frederick Stanley, 57, is finally complete, clearing the way for his return to California. He faces charges of murder, car theft.

Douglas Frederick Stanley, who was the subject of a nationwide manhunt after allegedly killing his sister-in-law and an employee in Fountain Valley in July, was ordered Tuesday to return to California to face two counts of murder.

The extradition was ordered by District Judge Charles Buss, ending nearly two months of delays.

Stanley, 57, of Westminster, is accused of shooting his sister-in-law, Joyce Stanley, 52, and her employee, Terry Vasquez, 41, on July 8 at her embroidery business in Fountain Valley. He then allegedly fled in her car.

Stanley reportedly had threatened to harm family members many times, and co-workers and neighbors described Stanley as hostile and angry. Authorities searching for him considered Stanley armed and dangerous.

He was arrested July 11 in Parachute, a small town 45 miles east of Grand Junction. Authorities in Orange County believed Stanley intended to head for Wyoming, where he had lived and worked as a ranch hand until moving to California a little more than a year ago.

Colorado state troopers found the car, believed battered by off-road travel, apparently broken down in De Beque, 12 miles west of Parachute. Police put out a bulletin and received a description of Stanley.

Within minutes, police officer Jerry Beers saw a man fitting Stanley’s description sitting at a rest stop in Parachute. Stanley at first gave a false name, blurting out that he was just waiting for a bus, even before Beers had a chance to question him.

Stanley’s overeager explanation prompted Beers to meet with a state trooper and a Garfield County deputy sheriff, and the three of them confronted Stanley together.

Stanley claimed he had gotten off a bus but had no ticket, then stood up, causing a gun to fall out of his pants leg. He was immediately arrested and later booked into the Mesa County Jail in Grand Junction.

After his arrest, Stanley chose to fight extradition. That began what Public Defender David Eisner called “a paperwork zoo” that lasted almost two months.

The process involved simply obtaining a warrant from California Gov. Pete Wilson and transmitting it to Colorado Gov. Roy Romer. But the first delay came when Romer failed to fax all the necessary paperwork along with the signed warrant.

It was unclear whether the required paperwork was held up in Romer’s or Wilson’s office. Judge Buss delayed Stanley’s hearing three times in the last two months before Tuesday’s final proceedings.

Tuesday, Eisner argued that the affidavit did not definitely “prove” Stanley was the same man California authorities were seeking. Eisner pointed out that the photos taken of Stanley in Grand Junction did not clearly look like those of Stanley in California. Since awaiting extradition in Mesa County Jail, Stanley had grown a beard and mustache.

Buss disagreed with Eisner and, after only brief consideration of the affidavit, concluded that the documents were finally in order and authorized Stanley’s transport from Colorado. The order must be carried out within the next 10 days.