Erin moved to 29 Palms with her husband, John Corwin, who was a Marine stationed at the local Marine Base.
Erin and John met at the East Tennessee Riding Club when Erin was in fifth grade and John was a year older.
They wanted to secure housing on the Marine base, where married couples get preference, and because John was preparing for deployment.
Erin felt isolated, moving from a house full of siblings to an empty apartment, and struggled with loneliness while John was often out in the field.
Erin found solace and a sense of freedom at the White Rock Horse Rescue, where she could escape the strains of her marriage and reconnect with her passion for horses.
The NCIS was involved because Erin was a Marine's wife, and the local sheriff's department needed to follow protocol by alerting the military, which then involved the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.
The main challenge was the vastness of Joshua Tree National Park, which is larger than the state of Rhode Island, making it difficult to search such a large area effectively.
Erin's upbringing in Oak Ridge, a controlled and sheltered environment, contributed to her naivety and shyness, which affected her ability to cope with the challenges of military life.
Social media was crucial for NCIS analyst Ashley DeChelfin, who used it to track Erin's last online activities, identify her close contacts, and gather potential leads.
John's delay in reporting Erin missing, waiting 24 hours, and his lack of an alibi, combined with his unemotional demeanor, made him appear suspicious to investigators.
Marine wife Erin Corwin was just 19 years old when she disappeared in California’s Joshua Tree National Park. Nearly two months later, her body was found in an abandoned mine in the unforgiving desert, and suspicions quickly fell on a fellow Marine. Here’s the first episode of the new series, “48 Hours: NCIS”, which merges the award-winning journalism of one of the most celebrated true crime news programs with the world’s #1 TV franchise, to bring you the real-life cases that NCIS agents will never forget. This 6-episode premiere season of “48 Hours: NCIS”, hosted by CBS News correspondent Natalie Morales, untangles this twisted story of infidelity and betrayal that led to Erin’s tragic end. Listen to the series now by searching for "48 Hours: NCIS" wherever you get your podcasts.
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