Vanderheiden visited a karaoke bar in Linden, California during the evening of November 13, 1998 with a friend. Another friend drove her to Old Corner Saloon in Vanderheiden's hometown of Clements, California afterwards. Vanderheiden's 1997 Chevrolet Cavalier was parked in the bar's lot and she planned to drive herself back to her family's residence, which was approximately one mile away. Vanderheiden's friend told authorities that he saw her pull into her driveway at approximately 2:30 a.m. on November 14, but he did not wait to see if she entered the home. Vanderheiden's mother also stated that she heard her daughter arrive home at the same time. Vanderheiden has never been heard from again. A photo of her wearing the clothes she wore the night she disappeared below this case summary, as is a photo of her and her Chevrolet Cavalier.

Vanderheiden's father discovered her vehicle abandoned in Glenview Cemetery on Mackeville Road in Clements later in the day. The car was unlocked and Vanderheiden's purse and cellular phone were still inside. There was no other sign of her at the scene.

Loren Herzog and Wesley Howard Shermantine Jr. were charged with Vanderheiden's abduction and murder in 1999. Photos of both men are posted below this case summary. Often referred to in the media as the "Speed Freak Killers," Herzog and Shermantine met Vanderheiden at the Linden, California karaoke bar the day she was last seen. According to Herzog, Vanderheiden met the two men after she drove into her driveway. Herzog and Vanderheiden knew each other previously and Herzog claimed that she met the two men in the early morning hours of November 14 after pulling into into her family's driveway. Herzog stated that the three shared drugs together, then Shermantine sexually assaulted and murdered Vanderheiden as Herzog looked on. Shermantine was found guilty in Vanderheiden's case and was sentenced to death in 2001. He was also found guilty in the 1985 disappearance and presumed murder of Chevelle Wheeler in California. As in Vanderheiden's case, Wheeler's remains have yet to be located.

Herzog was found guilty of three murders in 2001, but he was spared the death penalty and sentenced to 78 years to life in prison instead. An appelate court tossed out his convictions and Herzog pleaded guilty to a single count of involuntary manslaughter, three counts of being an accessory to a felony, and one drug charge. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison.

In 2010, Herzog was paroled. As per the conditions of his release, he had to keep a curfew, wear an electronic tracking bracelet and live in a trailer on the grounds of High Desert State Prison, although he was free to come and go at will during the daylight hours. In January 2012, he committed suicide by hanging himself inside his trailer. He left a note behind for his family; it didn't reference his crimes. The month before Herzog's death, Shermantine lead the police on an unsuccessful search for Wheeler's body on a hill near his father's former home. Cadaver dogs caught a scent and authorities dug with shovels, pickaxes and a backhoe, but turned up nothing. Shermantine denied having harmed Wheeler and said she'd gone horseback riding with Herzog and died when she fell off the horse.

Shermantine is considered a possible suspect in the 1997 California disappearances of Hannah Zaccaglini and Karen Knechtel Mero. He has never been charged in connection with either case.

Left: Vanderheiden wearing the outfit she wore on the night of her disappearance;
Right: Vanderheiden and her Chevrolet Cavalier

Left: Shermantine, circa 2000; Center: Herzog, circa 1999; Right: Herzog, circa 2010