CA CA - Desert Hot Springs, WhtFem 551UFCA, 40-55, Prescription Glasses, Feb'97

[Romulus]

Sherry Elizabeth Roach? Age is off.http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/2989dfca.html

 

[digitective]

Some possibilities...they have brown eyes but hazel eyes can often look light brown.

Pamela Jones: https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/21778/

Dorothy Pitcher: https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/1081/

Stephanie Fladgard: https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/12267/

Arlene Stewart: https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/18224/
(hair looks curly in photo but could have been an old perm)

 

[Coffee56]

Posted but it's not here. Try again.

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/3491dfmd.html

Quite travelled and could be anywhere. Wears contacts and wearing glasses in a pic. Does not have the distinctive features of the UID I was looking for but posting for thoughts.

 

[Owutatangledweb]

I can see a few of these ladies fitting this woman:

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...woods-dentures-Mar-15&p=13649445#post13649445

 

[digitective]

Posted but it's not here. Try again.

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/3491dfmd.html

Quite travelled and could be anywhere. Wears contacts and wearing glasses in a pic. Does not have the distinctive features of the UID I was looking for but posting for thoughts.

Could be a possibility, although she would have had to travel quite far. But it sounds like she was traveling all over the world anyway, as you mentioned.

 

[carbuff]

Jane Doe Namus link and exclusions. Anne Ferguson is not among them.
Unidentified Person Case

Dorothy Chiappuzzo 1938 California
Cynthia Coover 1956 California
Tina D'Ambrosio 1961 Arizona
Carmen Hetrick 1956 Colorado
Sandra Jacobson 1959 North Dakota
Gloria King 1954 New Mexico
Wendy Ratte 1953 California
Patricia Schmidt 1964 Virginia

DNA sample for the Doe is not available but her dentals are quite distinctive.
I didn't find a Namus page for Anne Ferguson.

Jane Doe was wearing a wedding ring. Was AF married?

Billie Willard has been added to the ruleouts list. Unidentified Person Case

No new ruleouts. Updated link: Unidentified Person Case

 

[ivonne]

The Doe Network: Case File 1749DFTN
245UFVA

 

[coffeeandacig]

What do you think??
I noticed the matching forehead right off the bat. Also, the nun, Sr. Jacinta Bracken was originally from Ireland and would've probably known how to speak and write Gaelic. Also, a gold wedding ring would be worn by a "bride" of Jesus.
551UFCA
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
Sr. Jacinta's Missing page:
Christina (Sr Jacinta) Bracken (Laois)

 

[Melt71]

@coffeeandacig at first glance I did a double-take but on trying to tilt the faces to the same angle I feel like the UID has a narrower nose than Sr Jacinta and I don't think this occurs with age, though it does to a certain degree with weight loss. I also think the UID's nose may not have had the hooked appearance of Sr. J but hard to tell due to the photo angle. Sr Jacinta's ears may be artificially pinned back by her headpiece so hard to compare the ears but if I had to guess I would say the lower ear of the UID may attach lower on her head than Sr.J. Thoughts from others?

 

[coffeeandacig]

@coffeeandacig at first glance I did a double-take but on trying to tilt the faces to the same angle I feel like the UID has a narrower nose than Sr Jacinta and I don't think this occurs with age, though it does to a certain degree with weight loss. I also think the UID's nose may not have had the hooked appearance of Sr. J but hard to tell due to the photo angle. Sr Jacinta's ears may be artificially pinned back by her headpiece so hard to compare the ears but if I had to guess I would say the lower ear of the UID may attach lower on her head than Sr.J. Thoughts from others?

I think the unidentified lady seems very thin.

Perhaps, her narrow nose, was due to weight loss and it appearing offset, could possibly be broken from a fall at the time of death or prior.
The position of her mouth, eyes and nose match, when superimposed. Also, the jawline is remarkably similar.
Can't really tell anything from an ear comparison, since Sr. Jacinta's seem pinned under her habit. Although, like you said they appear lower.
Since, Catholic mass is still said in Gaelic in some parts of the country, I've no doubt that she would've had a grasp of the language and could've written that letter.

As you said @Melt71...I'd love to hear what others think.
Because, I would think the Riverside Co. Sheriff's office would've looked at all the missing Irish and Scottish women first for a match. I don't think they would've overlooked Sr. Jacinta's case.

 

[alb1on]

I agree with the post at #35 that the use of Gaelic is significant. Especially important is the correct concatenation of the English and Scots Gaelic phrases. Unless it can be shown that this occurred in the same or similar format in the Outlander novels I would be fairly sure that she had a working knowledge of the language (unless the letter turns out to be written by someone else). I also note the Irish references in various posts. Irish Gaelic is different to Scots Gaelic, making it unlikely that there is an Irish connection, and Claddagh rings are a generic available worldwide.

It would be reasonable to think that LE investigated any missing women from areas (Scotland and Canada) with Scots Gaelic speakers - but even today Scottish police records on missing persons are not great and probably even worse for people missing since prior to 1997. In the late 1990s I would be surprised if a discussion would be easy given the various forces in Scotland.

It would certainly be worth revisiting Scottish missing women from the 70s to 90s (as this could be someone who had been missing for years and even married after leaving). Cases such as Mary Duncan from 1976 come to mind (although less likely to be a Gaelic speaker coming from Dunbartonshire).

 

[victoriarobinson642]

Lorie Lynn Walters-Pope visually resembles Jane Doe, but some of their stats don't match up (weight, eye color). I still may submit her as a match, though.

 

[Melt71]

Go for it @victoriarobinson642 sometimes I think it’s good to keep LE reminded that people care, too

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Lorie Lynn Walters-Pope visually resembles Jane Doe, but some of their stats don't match up (weight, eye color). I still may submit her as a match, though.

Yes, a lot matches (dates, state, age, height, appearance). She could have lost weight during the time she was missing. Blue eyes versus hazel could just be different interpretations of eye color, IMO.
(Glanced here for my information: Lorie Lynn Walters-Pope – The Charley Project)

 

[imstilla.grandma]

#1997-97I0827​

Unidentified Victim Details​

Unidentified ID:	97-009
Sex / Race:	Female / Caucasian
Date Died or Found:	February 10, 1997
Place Found / Died:	She was found in the hills behind the Desert Crossing shopping center in Palm Desert, CA
Estimated Age:	Thought to be between 40 and 55 years of age.
Hair / Eyes:	Hair is brown with gray mixed in. Her eyes are hazel.
Hair Length:	Shoulder length.
Height / Weight:	She was 5'6" and weighed approximately 145 lbs.
Location of Incident:	Hills behind shopping center.
Features or Distinguishing Marks:	She was wearing large frame prescription bi-focal eyeglasses. She was wearing a wedding ring and had extensive dental work including crowns and root canal work. She had no scars or tattoos.
Circumstances:	This woman was found behind a Target store in Palm Desert fully dressed with superficial contusions to her legs and head. She may have been disoriented. She was found with her personal property including medication and money. All identification was intentionally missing or been obliterated. Extensive local searches have all had negative results.
Other:	Unidentified# 97-009

Unidentified# 97-009

#1997-97I0827 | Riverside County Sheriff, CA

Help the coroner identify this woman who was found behind a Target store in Palm Desert fully dressed with superficial contusions to her legs and head.

ca-riversidesheriff-hidden.civicplus.com

 

[HmmMysterious]

Bumping

 

[alb1on]

One name jumps out to me as a possible, Christina McKechnie. McKechnie was the singer in the Incredible String Band in the 1960s/70s (and subsequently recorded with other bands). She moved to California in the mid-70s and was known to hitchhike around California and surrounding states before she disappeared in 1990. In 1997 she would have been 51. Her family's last contact was in 1990 when she was in Sacramento. She had married (and divorced) a musician called Brian Lambert, so the wedding ring is not out of place. There are many pictures of her online but I cannot find height or eye colour to compare. However the pictures from the 1970s do show someone who could have developed into the appearance in the picture of the deceased. Perhaps most interesting is her backstory. She was born and raised in Edinburgh. I do not know if she learnt Gaelic as a child but she certainly came across it with the Incredible String Band. Not only were they part of the British folk scene which had many gaelic performers but she was living with Robin Williamson, another Scottish member of the ISB, who certainly does have some Gaelic and remains active on the traditional folk scene. So a Gaelic text is not beyond her.
In summary; right age, Scottish but living in California before disappearing, previously married hence ring, consistent appearance based on old photos and likely to have some knowledge of Gaelic - and missing since 1990.

 

[LordMo]

wow, you're not kidding that images of her are hard to find online, especially ones that have accompanying dates. Still, I think I could be convinced to be able to see it:

 

[Nate_Bro]

Roy, Carole Dianne Carolle - Canadian Crime-opedia

coldcase.lailafarrell.com