CA CA - Fontana, BlkFem UP6429, 20-30, in field, white tutu, Aug'88

Roaming around and bumped into this- thumbs up? or thumbs down?

Donna Marie Cudrup:
LKA: Fall 1986 in Washington DC, 24, 5'6", 135-142lbs, scar on forehead and mole on upper lip, last known having a tube removed for having fluid in her lungs, may have run off with someone named Jerome.

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/1065dfdc.html

UID Female:
EDD:8/15/88, Found in Fontana CA in an open field, 20-30, 5'7", 142lbs, multiple scars listed, 2 on forehead, one on right hip and others on her arms, listed as wearing a white tutu:waitasec:

https://identifyus.org/cases/6429

:twocents: All thoughts on this appreciated!

Adding the side by side.

It looks pretty close, so I tried a new trick I learned on Corel Photo Paint. I drew a red line along Donna's facial features. I could not go below the upper lip because the UID's mouth is slightly open. I modified the color of the UID image for clarity, and then I copied the red line and overlaid it over the UID's image, lining up the cheekbones and nose.



As you can see, they are pretty close, but Jane Doe has a wider nose and wider lips, and wider eyes.

I do the same thing but the low tech way- with a piece of tracing paper and a pencil. I thought the lips and nose were wider too, but I think the UID looks pretty swollen in the lip area especially.

Swelling might account for the mouth difference, and eyebrows sometimes raise up postmortem, but that doesn't account for the wider nose or the eye spacing. Only in cases where there is severe bloating would one's nose widen that much

Okay so I am new and don't really know what I'm doing but I just wanted to say the ears don't match at all. UID ears are more rounded

The lips could definitely be swollen due to trauma, and the nose may even appear a bit wider due to the re-stitching of the face post-autopsy. Try this at home: look in a mirror and put your fingers on your cheeks over the cheekbones, and then gently pull outward. You can definitely see a little change in the width of nostrils and the bridge of the nose.

That being said, the ears still don't look right, as far as the outer shape and lobe. Another "but" here; depending on the tightness of the stitching of the scalp, it could possibly change how close the ears appear to the head, maybe some of the curve of the ear. I can see if I can ask one of my friends at the M.E. what her experiences have been.

Looks pretty close though.

UID looks older than Donna.

malaika said:

UID looks older than Donna.

Click to expand...

I agree -- she looks at least ten years older.

Her whole face just looks...I dunno, fleshier? to me -- very close, but different.

Not enough to make a ruleout, however.

I never did anything with this case. I didn't think there was enough for me to submit it.

Ruleouts as of June 21, 2014

Exclusions
The following people have been ruled out as being this decedent:
First Name Last Name Year of Birth State LKA

Jennifer Barton 1955 Texas
Sandra Steppuhn 1950 California

The "tutu" is described like this in the Namus circumstances: Wearing a white tutu or "evening dress." Under the clothing description, it says, White tutu, ballet, evening dress, white satin undershirt on dress

I think they mean a dress something like this one, which was a hot style in 1988. My daughter was a high school senior that year so I learned a bit about fashion, which is not otherwise my strong suit Click the attachment to enlarge. The skirt could have been anything from mid-thigh to ankle length.

:bump: for image revision.

When they say "tutu", could they really mean this style of dress, which was VERY popular in the 80s up to about the mid 90s?

http://galleryplus.ebayimg.com/ws/web/190713114940_1_0_1/1000x1000.jpg

If so, that ruffle around the waist is called a peplum, although I can see why someone might compare the ruffle to a tutu.

That could be. The description of the undershirt on the dress makes me think of the other style, but it could mean a dress like the one you found.

I guess it could also be a regular ballet costume, too.

Does anyone know what is behind her ear in the 2nd PM photo in the 1st post? It looks like a tattoo of an awareness ribbon to me, but when I zoom it looks like a weird shaped scar. She was only deceased a few hours.

Made an album for her on the FB page Still Seek Answers & I run called <modsnip>

Fontana CA - Unidentified Black Female Aged 20 to 30

Unidentified Black Female aged 20 to 30 years old, was discovered on August 15, 1988 in Fontana, San Bernardino County, California within HOURS of dying. She was dressed in a white satin evening dress with a white ballet tutu on the outside. It was 1988; Madonna was popular. Wish we could get photos of her outfit! She had a lot of distinct scars too. You will see in one photo what resembles an awareness ribbon; we're not sure if it's a scar, tattoo or something else.

Vital Statistics - Estimated age: 20-30 years old
Approximate Height and Weight: 5'7"; 142 lbs.
Distinguishing Characteristics: Black, short afro style hair; brown eyes. Multiple small scars, face, arms, legs, abdomen. Semicircular inverted C-shaped healed scar (4cm) above left eye. Irregular linear scar (2.2cm) above right eye. Scar over right hip (1.5X3.5cm). Several irregular scars to right arm, one 10cm in length. 3 piercings to each ear - no earrings present. Ornate toenail painting: Red (magenta) or hot pink with dots. Prosthetic fingernails.
Clothing: White tutu, ballet, evening dress, white satin undershirt on dress.
Dentals: Available. All 32 permanent teeth present. No restorations.
Fingerprints: Available
DNA: Available.

Case History - The victim was located in an open field west of Sierra Avenue, north of Riverside.

Investigators, If you have any information about this case please contact:
San Bernardino County Sheriff Department - Coroner Division
909-387-2978
You may remain anonymous when submitting information.

Agency Case Number:
88-3637; Jane Doe #14-88

NCIC Number:
U-642400117
Please refer to this number when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.

NamUs - https://identifyus.org/en/cases/6429
Doe Network http://doenetwork.org/cases/735ufca.html

Bobby88 said:

When they say "tutu", could they really mean this style of dress, which was VERY popular in the 80s up to about the mid 90s?

http://galleryplus.ebayimg.com/ws/web/190713114940_1_0_1/1000x1000.jpg

If so, that ruffle around the waist is called a peplum, although I can see why someone might compare the ruffle to a tutu.

Click to expand...

I assume ballet tutu but am unsure of length. The description says ballet tutu

Clothing: White tutu, ballet, evening dress, white satin undershirt on dress.

Roselvr said:

Does anyone know what is behind her ear in the 2nd PM photo in the 1st post? It looks like a tattoo of an awareness ribbon to me, but when I zoom it looks like a weird shaped scar. She was only deceased a few hours.

Click to expand...

To me it looks like a home done "micro dermal piercing". On my screen it looks like an actual tiny piece of ribbon going thru the skin behind her ear. Maybe to honor someone???

Could it have been some sort of sorority initiation/ hazing of new members gone tragically and horribly wrong? I had college friends that were required to wear white formal gowns when they were initiated into their respective sororities. One of them purchased a wedding dress and cut off the train for her initiation-that's how formal the "sisterhood initiation" ceremony was.

This is sketchy info but the pic grabbed my attention.

A family member posted this on FB so I'm not going to mention the name since I didn't find her listed as missing anywhere else.

Mp listing says: 5'6 inches (-1" from doe) 130lbs (-12lbs from doe), short hair, missing about 22 years and would have been about 21YO (pic looks like a HS type pic so she is younger there).

Missing year may have been 1992. I don't see an exact last seen date. I don't know what state she was in yet.