Fullerton Couple and Son Found Dead in Burned Car

A Fullerton couple were found burned beyond recognition in the back seat of their Honda and their 19-year-old son was found dead in the trunk of the car, which had been set afire late Monday outside a school, police said Tuesday.

A neighbor of Dolores and Edward R. Charles had called Fullerton police Sunday night and reported a man screaming for help from inside the trunk of a car near her home. But when police arrived, she said, the car was gone.

“I knew (then) someone would turn up dead,” said the woman, who was still shaken Tuesday and asked that her name not be used.

Los Angeles and Orange County authorities were investigating the deaths as homicides, but would reveal few details of the case, including any possible motive for the grim slayings. Dental records were sought to positively identify the victims, but the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department late Tuesday released the victims’ names.

Fullerton police would not comment on the 911 call and what time it was received.

The body of Dolores Charles, 47, a real estate agent, and Edward Charles, 55, an engineer at Hughes Aircraft in Fullerton, were in the back seat of the car, and their son, Danny Charles, a USC student and opera singer, was found in the trunk.

Acting as the family spokesman, Danny Charles’ singing teacher, Wally Negrini, said that Eddie Charles Jr., the eldest son, and Dolores Charles’ father were staying at the house with four or five others.

The Charles neighbor said she could not remember exactly when she called 911 Sunday night but she was walking friends out to their car when she heard yells for help coming from the trunk of a car parked across the street.

Times staff writers Mark Pinsky, Nicholas Riccardi, Don Lee and Chris Woodyard contributed to this story.