CA CA - Los Angeles Co, WhtFem UP4396, 40-60, maybe name Julie or Juliette Young, Oct'79

[MelmothTheLost]

Ok, I've just heard back from the medical officer.

The MedicAlert bracelet was for diabetes. He has no idea from which country, no serial number reported (I think from sloppy record keeping), and no owner name was reported. Once again, sloppy record keeping or very basic medical alert bracelet.

I asked him some other questions to clarify some aspects.

Do we know exactly what information is usually engraved on one of these bracelets? Should it have the owner's name, or just a serial number that is logged against the purchaser's name in a register somewhere? If it has just a serial number and it can't be matched to the name of the wearer then yes, it sounds as though MedicAlert's record keeping may be at fault. On the other hand, could it be that both the bracelet and any transcription of its information have gone missing over the years and LE is trying to cover this up?

Meanwhile, we must search missing persons with diabetes to get a match.

Almost certainly Type 1 diabetes based on the following:

Clothing: dark blue slacks size 10; white blouse; white bra size 34B

She was obviously slim which makes Type 2 diabetes unlikely.

Type 1 diabetes accounts for around 5% of cases of diabetes at present. Type 2 diabetes is generally regarded as lifestyle related, and especially related to obesity, but since obesity was much rarer in 1979 than it is now I'd suggest that in 1979 there were far fewer cases of Type 2 diabetes so a diabetic of either persuasion would have been much rarer than they are now.

 

[Giuc0]

Do we know exactly what information is usually engraved on one of these bracelets? Should it have the owner's name, or just a serial number that is logged against the purchaser's name in a register somewhere? If it has just a serial number and it can't be matched to the name of the wearer then yes, it sounds as though MedicAlert's record keeping may be at fault. On the other hand, could it be that both the bracelet and any transcription of its information have gone missing over the years and LE is trying to cover this up?

ME told me that they have only the property receipt copy. Nothing in the property receipt. No photo in the file dixit ME.

Almost certainly Type 1 diabetes based on the following:



She was obviously slim which makes Type 2 diabetes unlikely.

Type 1 diabetes accounts for around 5% of cases of diabetes at present. Type 2 diabetes is generally regarded as lifestyle related, and especially related to obesity, but since obesity was much rarer in 1979 than it is now I'd suggest that in 1979 there were far fewer cases of Type 2 diabetes so a diabetic of either persuasion would have been much rarer than they are now.

Actually, I knew some thin folks with type 2 diabetes.

Someone slim but with bad habits is making a hot bed for type 2 diabetes.

OTOH, you can be obese per BMI and zero diabetes, nada.

ME told me that there was no clue of what type of diabetes. No police report in the file.


ETA : property receipt states : "1 w/m I.D. medical alert bracelet”

So little clues it's very frustrating. Police report seems to have been lost. Ugh !!

 

[Giuc0]

Meanwhile, I could not find a single case of woman with diabetes in the US before 1979. Ugh !!
Earliest ones are in the 1980s. Once again, ugh !!

And the police report is missing :facepalm:

 

[booghawk]

I found one lady before 80s with diabetes, but name is no where close. Went missing in 1959.

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[Giuc0]

Can you give the link, please ?

 

[Giuc0]

If this bracelet is personalised but hasn't led to the identification of the wearer then either MedicAlert's records are incomplete or the bracelet does indeed belong to someone else.

Actually, the reason was even simpler than your hypothesis. The police report is missing. So, we can't blame MedicAlert on this one

Do we know exactly what information is usually engraved on one of these bracelets? Should it have the owner's name, or just a serial number that is logged against the purchaser's name in a register somewhere?

Per http://www.medicalert.org/how-our-medical-ids-work :

Your medical ID includes MedicAlert's toll-free phone number, along with your unique ID number, which is used to obtain information through the Live 24/7 Service.

RBBM

Same in all MedicAlert countries.


Now, I haven't found if it worked the same way in 1979. This answer is not a straightforward finding :-/

 

[MelmothTheLost]

Actually, I knew some thin folks with type 2 diabetes.

Someone slim but with bad habits is making a hot bed for type 2 diabetes.

OTOH, you can be obese per BMI and zero diabetes, nada.

ME told me that there was no clue of what type of diabetes. No police report in the file.

Yes, there are some slim people with Type 2, because no matter how slim you are a diet high in refined fructose can lead to the deposition of fat in and around the liver (non-alcoholic fatty liver disease), and it is this intra-abdominal fat which disrupts the functioning of the liver and pancreas and can lead to insulin resistance and in turn diabetes. Foie gras is bad for geese and humans alike.

In the West we've been eating too much refined sugar more or less since the end of WWII but a critical turning point occurred in the US around 1980 which has led to today's explosion in Type 2 cases. Before then the US diet was higher in fat and lower in sugar; a government police on "healthy" eating at that time reversed that, so manufacturers replaced the fat with sugar to make processed foods continue to taste palatable.

What this means is that before around 1980, Type 2 diabetes was unusual, so statistically this woman would probably have had Type 1.

There are some very good lectures on YouTube about the change in the US diet and the history of the rise in Type 2 diabetes by Dr Robert Lustig, a paediatric endocrinologist, which are well worth watching. This is the first of them:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM

 

[Giuc0]

There are some very good lectures on YouTube about the change in the US diet and the history of the rise in Type 2 diabetes by Dr Robert Lustig, a paediatric endocrinologist, which are well worth watching. This is the first of them:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM

Thank you but no thanks, mom's lecture are enough.

Mom was very slim actually. Putting on a ton of weight was the symptom of her diabetes, not the cause. Actually, they also found that the bc pill + smoking + genetic from her mom's side were the cause of her diabetes. She has never been fond of sugar, since childhood.
While the weight can be the cause, it can also be a symptom.


But let be back to our JD.

I think that the type of diabetes she had doesn't matter as much as I thought for ID purpose. Because in those days, diabetes classification was from the treatment : so, if you had type 2 diabetes treated with insulin, it was written as "insulino-dependant diabetes".
It changed in the '80s, switching to a classification by cause instead of treatment.
So, even if she had type 2 diabetes, the fact that she had a MedicAlert bracelet meant that she had diabetes treated with insulin. Metformin was on the market only in 1995, so people with type 2 diabetes in need of treatment were more often than not treated with insulin.

What I mean is that we can spend all the Christmas Eve on the discussion, it won't change the outcome for our JD identification.

Whatever the cause of her diabetes, the MedicAlert bracelet meant that she was treated with insulin because diabetes classification was different in those days.
If we were talking about a JD in the 90s, or even in 2011, the reasoning would had been very different.

We can't reason about our JD as if she were deceased nowadays. Otherwise, we will try to find info we can't have because they didn't exist. Hope it's English, not Greek !

 

[NadirCake]

Ok, thinking out loud.

Assuming Jane Doe was wearing a medical alert bracelet, she wore it because of a chronic medical condition. I don't see any reason for wearing a medical bracelet for the sake of having fun :-/
Medical alert bracelet is for getting the right treatment when in life-threatening situation.

It's possible she wore a bracelet for a serious allergy (penicillin, for example) and not necessarily for a chronic medical condition.

EDIT: Sorry, I didn't see the update that it was for diabetes.

 

[NadirCake]

Ok, I've just heard back from the medical officer.

The MedicAlert bracelet was for diabetes. He has no idea from which country, no serial number reported (I think from sloppy record keeping), and no owner name was reported. Once again, sloppy record keeping or very basic medical alert bracelet.

Not every piece of medical ID jewelry is part of the MedicAlert system. But "MedicAlert" has become a generic term for medical ID item of any maker. You can order these from lots of companies.

And not all medical ID jewelry/items will have the owner's info or be registered somewhere. Often, it's engraved with just the important medical info and nothing more.

 

[booghawk]

Not every piece of medical ID jewelry is part of the MedicAlert system. But "MedicAlert" has become a generic term for medical ID item of any maker. You can order these from lots of companies.

And not all medical ID jewelry/items will have the owner's info or be registered somewhere. Often, it's engraved with just the important medical info and nothing more.

Yes, my grandma has one that only says "Type 1 Diabetes", no name or any other info and it's basically just for paramedics. She has another one regarding her pacemaker and that one actually has her info on it.

I think things that require further info more often have more info attached.

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[Giuc0]

Not every piece of medical ID jewelry is part of the MedicAlert system. But "MedicAlert" has become a generic term for medical ID item of any maker. You can order these from lots of companies.

See update. Police report went missing

And not all medical ID jewelry/items will have the owner's info or be registered somewhere. Often, it's engraved with just the important medical info and nothing more.

How about in the '70s ?

 

[digitective]

It’s also possible that Jane Doe, especially since she was thought to be a homeless transient, just found the bracelet and wore it because she thought it was cool. Could have gotten it from a thrift shop, from a friend, found it on the street, etc. Homeless transients tend to collect and wear random stuff.

 

[Moosebegoose]

Edith Irene Bonham?

Older at 77 by a lot; however she matches hair, weight, eye colour and county.

Name: Edith Irene Bonham
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: October 08, 1979
Location Last Seen: Monrovia, Los Angeles County, California
Physical Description
Date of Birth: March 4, 1902
Age: 77 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'2"
Weight: 100 lbs.
Hair Color: Gray or Partially Gray
Eye Color: Brown
Nickname/Alias: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Pierced ears, Full dentures with lower right tooth missing.
Identifiers
Dentals: Not Available
Fingerprints: Not Available
DNA: Not Available
Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Glasses
Circumstances of Disappearance
She was last seen in Monrovia, California on October 8, 1979.

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/742dfca.html

 

[Giuc0]

Edith Irene Bonham?

Older at 77 by a lot; however she matches hair, weight, eye colour and county.

Name: Edith Irene Bonham
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: October 08, 1979
Location Last Seen: Monrovia, Los Angeles County, California
Physical Description
Date of Birth: March 4, 1902
Age: 77 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'2"
Weight: 100 lbs.
Hair Color: Gray or Partially Gray
Eye Color: Brown
Nickname/Alias: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Pierced ears, Full dentures with lower right tooth missing.
Identifiers
Dentals: Not Available
Fingerprints: Not Available
DNA: Not Available
Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Glasses
Circumstances of Disappearance
She was last seen in Monrovia, California on October 8, 1979.

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/742dfca.html

she is not diabetic, so, not a match for me

 

[Giuc0]

It’s also possible that Jane Doe, especially since she was thought to be a homeless transient, just found the bracelet and wore it because she thought it was cool. Could have gotten it from a thrift shop, from a friend, found it on the street, etc. Homeless transients tend to collect and wear random stuff.

It just doesn't make sense actually.

Besides, if you look at her personal items, they are not items of a transiant. Especially not the cosmetics and her keys.

 

[Melt71]

What a pity about the lack of info in the police reports for this diabetic, grey-haired lady.

 

[digitective]

It just doesn't make sense actually.
Besides, if you look at her personal items, they are not items of a transiant. Especially not the cosmetics and her keys.

Disagree, I’ve definitely seen transient women wearing makeup. And it doesn’t say what the keys are for — could be a car (many transient people live in their cars) or a locker or a safe...
Not saying she was definitely a transient but I don’t think anything about her description rules that out, either.

 

[Giuc0]

Disagree, I’ve definitely seen transient women wearing makeup. And it doesn’t say what the keys are for — could be a car (many transient people live in their cars) or a locker or a safe...
Not saying she was definitely a transient but I don’t think anything about her description rules that out, either.

Thank you for the feedback.
Definitely learnt something today!

 

[Giuc0]

Ok guys, back to the drawing board.

I was thinking about my digging for a match with the following criterias:
- female
- diabetes
- Julie/Juliette
- Young

A first research with [female + diabetes + Julie], a second one with [female + diabetes + Juliette], a third one with [female + diabetes + Young] and so forth.


If she was a transient, as we can't rule it out, I won't put any research criteria for age, height and weight. If she was a transient, she can look much older than her chronological age.
Furthermore, age, height, weight and race have been way off more often than not.

Do we have a PM picture or only reconstructions? I prefer comparing MP with PM photos than reconstructions.

Also, can race be off too? Already saw a match where race was off (UID was estimated as Asian, he was Black or the other way round, memory is not serving me well today).