Identified! NV - Lovelock, 'Imlay Jane Doe', WhtFem 40-50, UP17848, in suitcase, poss left-handed, Oct'78 - Florence Charleston

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believe09

believe09

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Date Found: October 27, 1978 (death approximately six months prior to being found)

Location: Pershing County, several miles west of Imlay (Scossa Road area)

Description: Jane Doe (unidentified), female Caucasian, 40-50 years, 5-5, 155 pounds

Details: The victim was found inside of a piece of luggage and had been clothed in a bluish-green jacket and matching skirt, white knit sweater, white t-shirt.

http://www.8newsnow.com/story/13992...icides-and-unidentified-missing-persons-cases

LAS VEGAS -- The Nevada Department of Public Safety and the Nevada Threat Analysis Center is looking for information on unsolved Nevada female homicides and missing person cases found in the rural counties.
 
UID sleuthers, we have a unique chance to have some impact on some cold MP cases and homicide/UID cases that have been unsolved to date. Let's try and accumulate as much info as we can, like identifyus.org listings and any media we can uncover to see if we can restore this woman to those who loved her.
 
I don't see this UID listed at NamUs or Doenetwork. Hopefully the ME for this county will utilize NamUs. NamUs would be an excellent start so they can add any recons, dentals etc. etc.
 
Here are three moderately heavy women of the same approximate height, who come reasonably close to the limited info provided, and don't have significant physical identifiers (e.g., dentures, medical hardware, etc.). All three were in their 30's though (which is a little younger than the age range provided).

Patsy Ann Ravens
ravens_patsy.jpg

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/r/ravens_patsy.html
(Her clothing description comes close, although not quite spot-on.)

Sandra Flynn Fisher
fisher_sandra.jpg

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/f/fisher_sandra.html

Marilee Bruszer
bruszer_marilee.jpg

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/b/bruszer_marilee.html
 
given the clothing the UID was wearing - a jacket and a knit sweater, I would think that she was killed in a cooler time of the year or was from a cooler location. so in terms of possible matches, I don't see her as matching someone who disappeared in mid-summer from the desert southwest or the gulf coast region.

Also Imlay, NV is off of I-80 so it is possible that she was from anywhere near where that interstate crosses.
 
Imlay and Gerlach from I-80

Google terrain shows Scossa Road at about 5200', so it could have been cool enough for a sweater even in the heart of summer.

Imlay and Gerlach (where the other UID was found) are not close to much of anything. Imlay is only 30 miles from the nearest part of I-80, but it appears to be dirt roads; Google estimates more than an hour. The spot in Gerlach is another two hours away from anything -- and not on the way to anything else, either.

Not saying the two are necessarily connected, but the remote location does make you wonder.
 
At first, I thought that this might be Nan Cecile Dixon because she went missing in Pershing County, NV in 1978, yet there are very obvious discrepancies between Mrs. Dixon and the unidentified woman found in Imlay.

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/2836dfnv.html

I couldn’t help but notice that during the 1970s that several unidentified women (including Imlay Jane Doe) who were around 150 lbs were found in suitcases. I know that because of the distances involved, this is probably a coincidence, but you can’t help but wonder.

http://doenetwork.org/cases/598ufca.html
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/169ufpa.html

Also, luggage containing the woman in White Haven, Pennsylvania was thrown off a bridge on I-80. The I-80 goes through Imlay, NV.
 
Greetings,

I am Nan Cecile Dixon's granddaughter, and I have been investigating her disappearance myself for the past five years. It is possible that Imlay Jane Doe may be my grandmother. New developments in forensic science suggest the physical characteristics could have been naturally altered in the decomposition process.

I am currently in active contact with the Nevada DPS. Missing Person Kits are en route from the CA DOJ to our local police dept. My family's DNA will be submitted to the DOJ as early as next week; we then must wait for Nevada DPS to extract DNA from the skeletal remains to seek a match. As you know, this process often takes months.

Thank you for keeping my grandmother's name alive here; you will not be forgotten when all is said and done.

Peace to you,
Nanny
 
Nanny, welcome to Websleuths. I have read about your search for your grandmother and you have done some impressive, ambitious work that I can only hope I'd have been capable of doing had a relative of my own become missing. I hope you get an answer on this potential match soon.
 
There is some more information about this unidentified woman on a Nevada state website -- http://dps.nv.gov/documents/NVRCFemaleUnidentifiedDeadUnsolvedHomicides.pdf

There is some more information about where she was found --
13 miles west of Imlay on the north side of Scossa Road, 40 feet into the desert
Click to expand...
and her clothing
matching skirt and jacket, size 15-16, bluish-green w/ purple trim; one white knit sweater, white Jockey t-shirt, size 38-40 and one full size cotton women's panties.
Click to expand...
I am not sure if US clothing sizing was like it is now in 1978, yet a size 15-16 skirt and jacket seems sort of big for a woman who is 5'5" and 155 lbs.
 
Ambercat said:
There is some more information about this unidentified woman on a Nevada state website -- http://dps.nv.gov/documents/NVRCFemaleUnidentifiedDeadUnsolvedHomicides.pdf

There is some more information about where she was found --

and her clothing

I am not sure if US clothing sizing was like it is now in 1978, yet a size 15-16 skirt and jacket seems sort of big for a woman who is 5'5" and 155 lbs.
Click to expand...

It's about right.Body purportion makes a difference. She was probably curvy or had a belly. My dd is 5'5 and about 165 and wears a 16.
 
Charlie99909 said:
Has anyone contacted the case rep/Coroner attached to this case? I remember Washoe County hadn't heard of namus and after bringing it up Sheep Flats Doe was on with new pictures and info.
Click to expand...

Jim Lopey of the Nevada Department of Public Safety is listed as the contact person in the Channel 8 news article. I haven't contacted him.

"Valerie Doe" is still the only UID from Pershing County listed in NamUs. The contact person listed for her is George Gomez from the Pershing County Coroner's Office.

The information about the lady in the suitcase found near Scossa Road says that her dental charts are available through the NCIC -- is it safe to assume that she had her natural teeth or if she had dentures would this be phrased differently? If she had dentures, would they say it directly in her description?
 
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