CA CA - Corona Del Mar, WhtFem 25UFCA, 25-35, scoliosis, near Crystal Cove, May'89

http://www.doenetwork.us/cases/25ufca.htmlhttp://www.doenetwork.org/cases/25ufca.html

Unidentified White Female

* Located on May 14, 1989 in Corona Del Mar, Orange County, California
* Cause of death was homicide

Vital Statistics
o Estimated age: 25 - 35 years old
o Approximate Height and Weight: 5'2"; 158 lbs.
o Distinguishing Characteristics: Bleached-blond, shoulder-length hair with dark roots. Hazel eyes. She had a stocky build. She had pierced ears and was afflicted with scoliosis, curvature of the spine. Her fingernails were painted.
o Dentals: The general condition of her teeth were poor. She was missing four top front teeth when discovered. Dental records are available for this victim as well as fingerprints.
o Clothing: She was wearing a white tank top; short red skirt; pantyhose; and a white, size seven tennis shoe. No identification was found.

Case History
A surfer found the victim's body about 6 a.m. on Mother's Day, crumpled against a barbed wire fence along the Pacific Coast Highway, near Crystal Cove.
She had been killed elsewhere and then dumped along the highway from a passing car. She had been strangled to death.
Toxicology tests showed no signs of alcohol or drugs in her system.

Her fingerprints were run through "Cal ID"--a statewide computer system for identifying fingerprints--but nothing turned up. Her description and a drawing of her was published in local newspapers, but no one came forward and identified the woman. She did not look like a transient

http://www.doenetwork.us/cases/1760dfor.html


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Rhonda Gayle Sansovich
Missing since March 7, 1988 from Elmira, Lane County, Oregon
Classification: Endangered Missing

Vital Statistics

* Date Of Birth: October 15, 1961
* Age at Time of Disappearance: 26 years old
* Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 5'4"; 130 lbs.
* Distinguishing Characteristics: White female. Brown hair; hazel eyes.
* Marks, Scars, Tattoos: Tattoo of a "butterfly" on shoulder, tattoo of the name "Wayne" on abdomen, tattoo of "roses" on chest, small scar near navel on abdomen.
* Dentals: Missing two front teeth

Circumstances of Disappearance
Rhonda was last known to be hitchhiking to California.
She may have been seen in the Omaha, Nebraska area in a black Kentworth truck.

Possible match?:
1. There is a very strong resemblence between Jane Doe and Rhonda. Especially around the eyes and chin area. There is the same photo of Rhonda, but its larger and somewhat clearer here.
http://www.theyaremissed.org/ncma/gallery/ncmaprofile_all.php?A200503379S

2. Rhonda's age of 26 fits the age estimate. Rhonda is listed as 2" taller than the estimate for Jane Doe. The weight is off by 28lbs.

3. Jane Doe had bleached hair with dark roots. Rhonda's hair was brown. They both are listed as having hazel eyes.

4. Rhonda went missing in March of 1988, Jane Doe was found in May of 1989 - a little over a year later.

5. Rhonda was missing 2 front teeth when she disappeared. Jane Doe was missing 4 front teeth when found. If this is Rhonda could she have had 2 other teeth pulled in the 1+ years she was gone? The condition of Jane Doe's teeth were "poor"... again, if it is Rhonda could she have had some dental problems and had them pulled?

6. Rhonda was thought to possibly have hitchhiked to California. Jane Doe was found in California.

7 There is no mention that Jane Doe had any of the tattoos that Rhonda is reported to have.

***I tried looking for more information on Rhonda and all the sites I located had the same details as above.

I also tried looking for a site about Jane Doe, in the hopes of finding some tattoo information and couldn't come up with a link.

New Doe link:
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/25ufca.html

According to the Orange County Coroner at http://egov.ocgov.com/ocgov/Sheriff...roner/Unidentified Dead/Jane DOES/89-02618-AB, Jane Doe was found at

Highway shoulder, SR 1 (PCH) south of Cameo Shores Road, Corona del Mar

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No tattoos were noted. I wonder if she wore a removable bridge to cover her missing teeth in the front.

Thoughts on Ruth Annette Johnson Barber?

Doe Network: http://doenetwork.org/cases/1152dfms.html
NamUs: https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/12785/0/

There is an age discrepancy (she would have been 40) and her height range is reported as 2-4 inches higher than the UID's. I am also confused about the dentals since she is listed as having dentures and/or natural teeth which does not narrow things down much, if I am reading correctly.

She does have a California connection as she was there with a man wanted by the FBI prior to her visit to Mississippi.


The Doe Network:
Case File 1152DFMS

Ruth Annette Johnson Barber
Missing since May 31, 1984 from Gulfport, Harrison County, Mississippi.
Classification: Missing

Vital Statistics

• Date Of Birth: November 26, 1948
• Age at Time of Disappearance: 36 years old
• Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 5'4 - 5'6"; 150 - 165 lbs.
• Distinguishing Characteristics: White female. Bleached blonde hair with dark roots; hazel to green eyes.
• Marks, Scars: Scars on head and hands and scars on legs from infentigo.
• Dentals: Dentures and/or natural teeth
• Other: Fingerprints available

Circumstances of Disappearance
Ruth Annette Barber left her new job at a Gulf Coast lounge called Bobbie Magees Club. She was intoxicated. She got into a cab with a coworker and was taken to the Holiday Inn on Highway 90 in Gulfport, Mississippi. When they arrived and the coworker got out, Barber had passed out in the backseat. The cab driver woke her and she vacated the cab and walked toward Highway 90 and the beach. No one has seen her since that evening. Barber left her purse in the cab and it was later turned in by the cab driver. From that day on she has never been seen or heard from again.

Barber had recently been in California with a male who was wanted by the FBI. The man had been in trouble with the law for quite some time and was believed to be on the run.

Barber and her male friend arrived in Mississippi for her daughter's birthday, and was going to stay with the daughter for a short period of time.

Investigators
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Gulfport Police Department
Detective Craig Petersen
228-868-5920
Agency Case Number:
84-13635
NCIC Number: M-036953957
Please refer to this number when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.
Source Information:
Carole Sun Foundation

Could be. She sure looks like the Jane Doe. The bleached blond hair with dark roots matches perfectly to the description, the eye color is right, and she has missing teeth (unclear which teeth are missing).

She is a little old, a little too tall, and heavier than the Jane Doe, but nothing too far out of whack. No mention of scoliosis.

But she might be worth a look.

Jane Doe and Ruth both have pierced ears too, judging from Ruth's photos.

Ruth's fingerprints are available somewhere so it should be easy enough to rule in or out.

Seems like somebody should know what Ruth was wearing. She was at work and left her job. What the heck did she wear to work that night?

Salem

Salem said:

Seems like somebody should know what Ruth was wearing. She was at work and left her job. What the heck did she wear to work that night?

Salem

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Since there is a five-year discrepancy between her disappearance and this Jane Doe's discovery (and she had not been dead very long), her clothing is probably not too much of an issue here.

Thanks for the feedback, everyone!

I emailed the Orange County Coroners contact listed on NamUs to see if they felt this warranted a comparison given fingerprints are available for both.

I know the match is a stretch. Ruth is a bit older. Her height range is a bit taller, but since it was a range, I feel that means estimates and leeway are involved. The UID's measured weight of 158 is right between Ruth's estimate of 150 to 165 lbs.

Charley Project's link adds some more details to Ruth's disappearance: http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/b/barber_ruth.html.

If Charley Project's description is accurate, the female coworker seems like just that - a coworker and not a friend - as she couldn't even be bothered to hold onto Ruth's purse when the cab driver tried to turn it in.

While Doe Network's description makes it sound like she planned to stay there for a short while, Charley's makes it sound as if she had decided to stay put. The conflicting tones at least makes the scenario of her leaving town (and maybe even returning to California) a possibility.

As for Ruth's purported statement of, "Where am I? I want to be with my baby," one wonders if she is referring to her daughter/other children or the man she was traveling with who was on the run from the FBI.

Ruth also has a Websleuths thread here with an article pasted: MS MS - Ruth Annette Johnson Barber, 36, Gulfport, 31 May 1984 - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community.

Her NamUs page https://identifyus.org/en/cases/7669 lists three rule outs -- Carmen Hetrick, Patricia Schmidt, and Darline Vaughan.

Quick update: I got a nice reply from the Manager of Investigations at the Orange County Coroner Division.

I&#8217;ve received your inquiry on Ms. Barber&#8217;s disappearance and possible connection with one of my Jane Does from 1989. I am looking into the information you&#8217;ve provided as well as the information I have on the Jane Doe you mentioned and will let you know what I find from my end as soon as I can. Thank you for your inquiry. I&#8217;ll be in touch. Best Regards

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Still a long shot, but I always appreciate when LE and staff take the time to acknowledge potential matches submitted so this makes me hopeful that we'll know soon of a rule-out or otherwise.

Another rule-out! Saturday night, and I mean half past midnight her time, Supervising Deputy Coroner O'Neal of Orange County emailed me:

We seriously considered your possible match to our DOE but unfortunately she was not a match to the mission person Barber. We compared fingerprints from each person and they did not match.

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Six days turnaround from my initial email to this confirmation. Pretty fast!

Clara Grunst who went missing from Joplin, MO on October 9, 1984 got my attention because she has scoliosis like the UID and she looks like she has blonde hair with dark roots. Her eyes are blue, though, and I am not sure if blue eyes could be mistaken for hazel (I have grey eyes which have been mistaken for green, blue, hazel, and [even once] brown -- the person who thought they were brown wore very thick glasses and wasn't wearing them at the time). I'm not sure if the time and other discrepancies might be a problem, but she could have lost the four teeth and gained weight during that time (or her weight estimate could be off).

https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/240/20

Recently, I also came across a LA Times article from 1990 that talks about Jane Doe Cameo Shores.
http://articles.latimes.com/1990-01-28/local/me-1537_1_jane-doe

Kimster said:

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Thanks, Kimster! I see some similarities if I don't get distracted by Ms. Grunst's glasses.

According the the CA DOJ Missing Persons Website, Barbara Louise Cotton has curvature of her spine (this is not listed on her NamUs page). Her NamUs page says that she is 5'2" tall with hazel-brown eyes.

https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/2921/0
http://dojapp.doj.ca.gov/missing/detail.asp?FCN=1869717800541
Barbara Cotton was 15 years old when she went missing in 1981. Her teeth and weight could have changed in eight years.

I noticed that Heidi Ann Zampell's description says that she is "slightly hunchback" and I wondered if she could have scoliosis? Her height is correct, her weight is off, timing is close enough (I think) --

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/268dffl.html
http://www2.colliersheriff.org/CaseProfiles/CCSOMissing/CaseProfile.aspx?ID=50&i=0

Lisa Bradley, who is possibly missing from Reno, NV, was mentioned in a thread for an unidentified automobile accident victim with scoliosis in Washington state www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=181690 and UID Slidell Lake Pontchartrain JD. Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be that much information about her (she went missing sometime in the mid-1980s). From her photo, I do see a resemblance between Lisa Bradley and Jane Doe Cameo Shores.

I think Michigan's Terry Gayton could be a match, right height, right age, right eye colour. On her file its suggests she was involved in retail fraud, might have annoyed the wrong people and had to flee Michigan.