CA CA - Thousand Oaks, in Santa Monica Mtns, WhtFem 35-50, UP4424, covered w/trash bags, Sep'78

tifflee

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Doe Network: http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/1309ufca.html
NamUs: https://identifyus.org/cases/4424
1309UFCA


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Unidentified White Female

  • The victim was discovered on September 3, 1978 in Thousand Oaks, Los Angeles County, California
Vital Statistics

  • Estimated age: 35-50 years old
  • Approximate Height and Weight: 5'5"; 100 lbs.
  • Distinguishing Characteristics: Brown hair.
  • Fingerprints: Not Available
  • Dentals: Available; #5,7,9,10,12,20-22,24,25,29 missing post-mortem.
Case History
The victim was located in the Santa Monica Mountains, in Thousand Oaks, California on September 3, 1978.

Investigators

If you have any information about this case please contact:
Jeannine Willie
California Department of Justice
916-227-3405
Email
You may remain anonymous when submitting information.

Agency Case Number:
1978-10883

NCIC Number:
U-280018417
Please refer to this number when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.

Source Information:
NamUs
____________________

NamUs UP Case Number: 4424

ME/C Case Number: 197810883

Los Angeles County, California
35 to 50 Year Old White Female
Date found September 03, 1978
https://identifyus.org/cases/4424

Demographics

  • Estimated age Adult
  • Minimum age 35 years
  • Maximum age 50 years
  • Race White
  • Ethnicity
  • Sex Female
  • Weight (pounds) 100, Measured
  • Height (inches) 65, Measured
  • All parts recovered
  • Probable year of death 1978 to 1978
Physical

  • Hair color: Brown
  • Head hair: Brown
  • Eye description: Unknown
Dental

  • Comments#5,7,9,10,12,20-22,24,25,29 MISSING POSTMORTEM
 
Any thoughts on this UID and Marilee Lee Bruszer?

Charley Project: http://charleyproject.org/cases/b/bruszer_marilee.html
Doe Network: http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/1176dfca.html
NamUs: https://www.findthemissing.org/cases/9493/0/
Websleuths: CA CA - Marilee Bruszer, 33, Long Beach, 22 Aug 1978 - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community


Marilee Bruszer disappeared on August 22, 1978. She was on her way from Long Beach, CA to her job at Sears Roebuck in Downtown Los Angeles. The UID was discovered on September 3, 1978 in the Santa Monica Mountains, Thousand Oaks, CA. There is little information on the condition the UID was recovered in other than all parts were recovered.

Marilee was reported to be 33 years old, 5'4" - 5'5", 145-155 lbs. with brown hair and blue eyes. The UID is estimated to be 35-50 years old, 5'5", 100 lbs. with brown hair. The weight is quite off. I took a look at Marilee's full body length photographs in Namus and in those, she seems to be of slim build, but I have never been good at gauging these things.

Here is a map of Long Beach to Los Angeles to Thousand Oaks. Charley Project notes that Marilee never made it to her job at Sears Roebuck that day.
 
She sure fits the description. The body was found 12 days after her disappearance. I am just wondering how badly skeletonized the remains were. There was enough hair present to establish a hair color.
 
CarlK: I agree. I am tempted to email the UID case contact listed to ask, but with so little information on the UID, did not want to sound kooky and wanted to ask here first.

____________________

I also wanted to add that I found an archived L.A. Times article that requires a subscription to see.

$5,000 Offered for Data on Missing Woman
Los Angeles Times (1923-Current File) - Los Angeles, Calif.
Author: ELIZABETH THOMPSON
Date: Sep 7, 1978
Start Page: OC_A11
Pages: 1
Section: Orange County
Text Word Count: 491

Abstract (Document Summary)
Marilee Bruszer has been missing since Aug. 22 and her friends and neighbors are willing to pay $5,000 to find out what happened to her.
 
Here is another woman who fits the general description of the UID. I found two other missing women profiles in the general area/age/height/time range, but they were reported as having auburn hair.

The Doe Network:
Case File 853DFCA

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/853dfca.html

byron_elizabeth.jpg
EByron.jpg


Elizabeth Mary Byron

Missing since May 1, 1978 from Oxnard, Ventura County, California.
Classification: Endangered Missing

Vital Statistics

  • Date Of Birth: March 21, 1942
  • Age at Time of Disappearance: 36 years old
  • Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 5'6" (168 cm.); 115 lbs (52 kg.)
  • Distinguishing Characteristics: White female. Brown hair; hazel eyes.
  • Marks, Scars: She has a large scar on her right leg
  • AKA: Elizabeth Winn; Elizabeth Underwood
  • Dentals: Not available

Circumstances of Disappearance
Byron was last seen on May 1, 1978 at her home in Oxnard, California.

Investigators
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:

Ventura County Sheriff's Office
805-654-2311

Agency Case Number: 7905792

NCIC Number:
M-077157758
Please refer to this number when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.

Source Information:
California Department of Justice


Charley Project: http://charleyproject.org/cases/b/byron_elizabeth.html

Map of Oxnard, CA to the Santa Monica Mountains, Thousand Oaks, CA.
[Map]
 
It seems like without more information on the UID, any number of women could match the description given so we have to start somewhere. I emailed both the NamUs and Doe Network contacts asking if Marilee Bruszer has ever been compared with the UID. I decided to ask on her case first because her timeline is the closest.
 
She sure fits the description. The body was found 12 days after her disappearance. I am just wondering how badly skeletonized the remains were. There was enough hair present to establish a hair color.

According to the post, 100 lbs was the weight of the woman when they found her, so [it is my understanding] in life, her weight was more and she lost weight through decomposition (?).
 
According to the post, 100 lbs was the weight of the woman when they found her, so [it is my understanding] in life, her weight was more and she lost weight through decomposition (?).

Could some weight loss be partially due to dehydration? Since all remains were found I wonder if she was there long, no animals dragged anything off. There's no mention of clothing or any jewelry, so she was stripped of anything when placed there.

I wish they'd do a skull reconstruction.
 
First reply received from the contact listed for the UID on Doe Network at the California Department of Justice, except it was someone else in the department who replied from the Missing Persons DNA Program. She first asked if I was with an investigative agency and when I replied that I was just a member of the public, she wrote back, "Thank you for your efforts. If you need any updates on the cases, please contact the investigative agencies." and wished me a wonderful day.

Not entirely sure who the investigative agency is since the DOJ was the one listed on Doe Network, but still hoping the NamUs contact replies - he is at the Los Angeles County Coroners Office. If they also tell me to contact "the investigative agencies," I will have to start emailing Marilee Bruszer's listed contacts because there are no other agencies listed for the Jane Doe.
 
The NamUs contact from the Los Angeles County Coroners Office replied.

We did a comparison of the dental x-rays of MP Marilee Bruszer to the dental x-rays of our case 1978-10883 and this came back as Not a match.

Our case 1978-10883 was recovered/found as skeletal remains.

If you have any further questions please feel free to contact me.
I appreciate him providing more information about the state that the UID was found in.
 
Hi, I rarely comment here, but I thought that Elizabeth Mary Byron looks like an excellent match. Ventura is pretty close to Thousand Oaks, and 115 lbs is pretty close to 100 lbs. Also, disappearing in May with remains found in September sounds like the right amount of time for the remains to become skeletal. I hope you all submit it!
 
Circling back on this to see if there are any NamUs updates. No rule-outs are listed, but DNA is now showing as "Status: Complete - Insufficient DNA for profiling."
 
So, it's not Marilee Bruszer (found deceased), but Elizabeth Mary Byron looks like she might be a good match! Was she ever submitted?
 
I agree about Elizabeth Mary Byron. And Oxnard is VERY close to Thousand Oaks. By the 101 fwy it is about 15 to 18 minutes. And if you are in Oxnard and you want to go to the mountains, Thousand Oaks is the closest place to go. Oxnard is flat land all on the coast. You need to go North and inland to reach the mountains to hide a body.
 
I submitted Elizabeth Mary Bryon as a potential match via the Doe Network potential match submission form. We'll see how that goes. NamUs has the UID's DNA as insufficient to profile and no DNA is listed on Elizabeth Mary Byron's NamUs profile: https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/17693/152.
 
Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner

Case Number 1978-10883
Gender F
Approximate Age 25+ years
Ethnicity W
Date Found September 3, 1978
Hair Color brown
Eye Color unk
Weight 100
Height 5'5"
Tattoos None listed
Jewelry No property

Comments
On 09/03/1978 the decedent was found by a jogger as he was running in the Santa Monica mountains. She was found down on the hillside covered with plastic trash bags. She was severly decomposed and not visually identifiable. She appears to be a White Female with an age range between 25-35.
 
Her The Doe Network profile has recently been updated.
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
No Photo
No exclusions

1309UFCA
Date of Discovery: September 3, 1978
Location of Discovery: Thousand Oaks, Los Angeles County, California
Estimated Date of Death: 1978 to 1978
State of Remains: Unknown
Cause of Death: Unknown

Physical Description
Estimated Age: 25-35 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'5", Measured
Weight: 100 lbs., Measured
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown

Identifiers
Dentals: Available. Teeth #5,7,9,10,12,20-22,24,25,29 missing post-mortem.
Fingerprints: Available
DNA: Available

Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown

Circumstances of Discovery
On September 3, 1978, the victim was found by a jogger as he was running in the Santa Monica mountains. She was found down on the hillside covered with plastic trash bags. She was severely decomposed and not visually identifiable.

Investigating Agency(s)
Agency Name: Los Angeles County Coroner's Office
Agency Contact Person: Betsy Magdaleno, Coroner Investigator
Agency Phone Number: 323-343-0512
Agency E-Mail: IDUnit(at)coroner.lacounty.gov
Agency Case Number: 1978-10883

Agency Name: California Department of Justice
Agency Contact Person: Jeannine Willie
Agency Phone Number: 916-227-3405
Agency E-Mail: jeannine.willie(at)doj.ca.gov
Agency Case Number: 197810883

NCIC Case Number: U280018417
NamUs Case Number: 4424

Information Source(s)
Namus
Los Angeles County Medical Examiner

Admin Notes
Added: 2/18/09; Last Updated: 7/7/20
 

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