FL FL - Judith Hyams, 22, Coral Gables, 14 Sept 1965

[Betty P]

19 Sep 1965, 17 - The Miami News at Newspapers.com

Miami News 22 Sept 1965 -

report of finding her car in Atlanta. Nancy Rodgers of Atlanta noticed it in front of her home She said it was left there by a young man in his 20s with a sandy hair in a crew cut and bad complexion (probably acne scars), stocky build. He returned to the car later with a dark haired girl wearing a beige blouse, but the couple drove off again in a small Buick. Rodgers said the car was left there on the 14th, but Purcell (the investigator) said she may have gotten the date wrong and that it was actually the 15th

She was driving a rental car because hers had been damaged in a hurricane

22 Sep 1965, 1 - The Miami News at Newspapers.com


Miami Herald 20 Sept 1965

This story reports police discovering she was going to get an abortion, also information about her divorce.

This article also mentions the dentist she was dating at the time. He had taken her out on a date the night before she went missing.

Three docs - (1) The abortion doc, (2) another doctor who was friends with Judith who connected her with the abortion doc and (3) the dentist she was dating.

20 Sep 1965, 16 - The Miami News at Newspapers.com

Car she was driving was a turquiose 1965 Chevy Impala

Miami News 22 Sept 1965

Another article about discovering her car in Atlanta, including a statement from LE saying the woman seen with the man who dropped it off could have fit the description of Judith. Other LE seemed doubtful.

Atlanta LE said there was nothing about the car to indicate foul play. (Really?) A reward of $1,000 was offered (by Judith's family) for finding the car. Car was found at 1031 Atlantic Dr in Atlanta, GA. Near the Georgia Tech Campus.

22 Sep 1965, 13 - The Miami News at Newspapers.com

Miami News 28 Sept 1965

28 Sep 1965, 12 - The Miami News at Newspapers.com

Police determine dark haired woman seen near the abandoned car was not Judy. Police lab tests and finds one stain on the back seat that is blood. Several other stains still testing. Found 50 latent fingerprints on the car. Many people handled the car in Atlanta and, because it was a rental, had lots of other fingerprints.

The blood stain is described as a single blood smear, on the top of the back seat. Anyone who cut a finger could have left it there, said LE.

So, no, it wasn't a big blood stain on the back seat.




Miami News 15 Oct 1965

15 Oct 1965, 1 - The Miami News at Newspapers.com

State Attorney questions three doctors connected to the case:

Dr. Herschel Gordon of 1919 Bay Dr, Miami Beach was the doctor who referred her to the abortion doc

Dr. Lucius Gordon (not related) of 2545 S. Bayshore Dr was the dentist who had been dating Judith and had seen her the night before she disappeared

Dr. Lucius Gordon refused to waive immunity, but said he had some affadavits he would like to show. After conferring with is attorney, he decided not to show the affadavits.

Supboena was issued for Dr. George K Hadju, 353 W 47th St, Miami Beach. He hadn't appeared yet to be questioned.

The two Dr. Gordons knew Judy and were known by her family. Her parents went to the State Attorney and requested they be called in for questioning.



Miami News - 24 Feb 1966

24 Feb 1966, 1 - The Miami News at Newspapers.com

State Attorney is looking for another witness. Because he's being blocked by the other doctor friends of Judy's and their refusal to answer questions, he's seeking public help for anyone who knows about a man named "Smith" who drove Judy's car to Atlanta. It's believed he left it there and took a plane back to Miami.

Investigators say the three doctors know what happened to her, but refuse to talk. Asst Attorney says the chain of evidence shows Judy probably died at the hands of the abortionist on the day she disappeared.


That's all I have time to search and post. JMO, the two Dr. Gordons know what happened to her. LE and State Atty seemed very sure she was deceased and that the docs probably payed someone to drive her car to Atlanta and abandon it. They must have found records of one of the docs buying the guy an airline ticket to return to Miami.

One can be found with a simple google search, practicing in California. I haven't found the dentist yet.

Maybe the current investigator Captain Sheer should try to find friends or associates of the two Dr. Gordon's to question them. If they were absent from their jobs / medical practices to assist the abortion doctor in getting rid of Judith's body, people who know or work for them would have noticed them missing. Rechecking old alibi witnesses can sometimes be helpful. After many years, sometimes a friend or co-worker who lied to cover for someone begins to feel guilty and is ready to talk.

 

[theshadow45]

Judith has been missing for 54 years today.

 

[Richard]

Judith Carole Hyams
Missing since September 14, 1965 from Coral Gables, Miami-Dade County, Florida
Classification: Endangered Missing

Vital Statistics

Date Of Birth: 1944
Age at Time of Disappearance: 22 years old
Distinguishing Characteristics: White female. Black hair; brown eyes. She was pregnant at the time of her disappearance. Slender build.
AKA: Judy

Circumstances of Disappearance

Hyams was last seen in Coral Gables, Florida on September 14, 1965.

Hyams, then 22, the daughter of a wealthy developer, vanished after she left her job as a lab technician at Jackson Memorial Hospital.
The previous month, in August of 1965, Hyams learned she was pregnant. On the day she disappeared, Hyams told a friend she was going shopping, withdrew $300.00 from her bank and said she was going to buy a watch. Instead, she went to an illegal abortion clinic run by a Hungarian immigrant, to have an abortion that a friend had helped arrange.

She was never seen again. Three weeks later, her rental car was found 650 miles away in Atlanta, Georgia. There was blood in the back seat, but the scene had been compromised as it had been at least 3 days since the car was parked. Neighbors said a man in his 30's had parked the vehicle and removed a duffel bag from the trunk. Police suspected she died after a botched abortion.

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

Coral Gables Police Department
305-442-1600
Agency Case Number: 65-7762

Source Information:
Unsolved Mysteries
The Doe Network: Case File 2188DFFL

 

[JSolt1210]

I agree with everyone else who says she most likely died during the abortion, and her body was disposed of in order to conceal evidence. Then her car was driven elsewhere to make it look like she drove off willingly.

I think the call about her being alive and in Omaha was just a prank call. Once the Unsolved Mysteries episode aired, someone connected to the fake doctor (either from his staff or other associates/relatives) decided to send the anonymous letter because they felt guilty knowing the truth but feared repercussions if they came forward.

As a side note, I have to say I've never forgotten the way the call was depicted on Unsolved Mysteries. I had just turned 9 when the episode aired, and the calm but cold intonation of the voice has always stayed with me—it was just so eerie!

 

[UncoolNegated]

Hadju, written above, might have been Hajdu. The newspaper articles I found on him had the spelling the latter way.

 

[theshadow45]

Judith has been missing for 55 years today.

 

[Betty P]

It's so terribly wrong these people won't tell police where to find Judirh. Give her family some peace and closure. Show Judith some respect.

If anonymous phone calls about Judith were still being made in the 1990s. It means someone living still has a guilty conscience. As they should. Shame on them for allowing questions to go unanswered and an innocent young woman to lie abandoned in an unmarked grave, thrown away like trash.

 

[Richard]

Judith Carole Himes

Himes, circa 1965

• Missing Since 09/14/1965
• Missing From Coral Gables, Florida
• Classification Endangered Missing
• Sex Female
• Race White
• Age 22 years old
• Height and Weight Unknown
• Medical Conditions Himes was pregnant at the time of her disappearance.
• Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Black hair, brown eyes. Himes's nickname is Judy. Some accounts spell her name "Hyams."

Details of Disappearance

Himes was last seen in Coral Gables, Florida on September 14, 1965. The previous month, she had learned she was pregnant. She was unmarried at the time and there was considerable social stigma attached to having an illegitimate child.

On the day of her disappearance, Himes said she was going shopping for a watch, and withdrew $300 from the bank. In fact, she was going to have an abortion. Abortion was illegal in 1965, but it was practiced covertly.

Himes has never been heard from again. Three weeks later, her rental vehicle was found parked in Atlanta, Georgia, 650 miles north of Coral Gables. It had been at that location for at least three days. There were traces of blood in the backseat.

Witnesses stated a man had parked the car and left it there, after removing a duffel bag from the trunk. This man, who appeared to be in his thirties, has never been identified.

The man who ran the abortion clinic Himes planned to use was a Hungarian immigrant who posed as a physician. He was arrested three months after her disappearance and charged with perjury and impersonating a physician, but he jumped bail and may have returned to Hungary afterwards.

An anonymous letter sent to the Coral Gables Police Department said Himes died as the result of a botched abortion and her body was dumped in Biscayne Bay near Miami, Florida. The letter's author has not been identified and the tip hasn't been confirmed, but police found the letter credible.

In the years since Himes disappeared, there have been tips that she is alive and living in Omaha, Nebraska. None of the stories have been confirmed. Himes was employed as a medical technician at the time of her disappearance. Her case was profiled on the television show Unsolved Mysteries decades after her disappearance. It remains unsolved.

Investigating Agency

• Coral Gables Police Department 305-442-1600

Source Information

• The Doe Network
• Unsolved Mysteries
• Judith Carole Himes – The Charley Project

 

[Diane Redfern]

I found this:
LUCIEN GORDON Obituary (2020) - New York Times
I don't know if this is the same Lucien Gordon, but I believe he is.
I think Lucien and Herschel Gordon did not plan what happened. I think she died because of Hajdu's ignorance and he contacted the doctors to ask for help. It's so sad that two doctors may have put their careers ahead of a woman's life and the right of her family to bury her properly.

 

[Cimatico]

Enhanced images from source The Doe Network: Case File 2188DFFL

 

[madamx]

Bumping

 

[PayrollNerd]

Wow. Makes you wonder if these 2 doctors are covering for the guy doing the botched abortion. But why? What does he have on them that they will not open up to LE? Are all 3 of them still working, living, retired, etc? Maybe on their death bed they'll confess or their papers will be found and provide more information.

 

[theshadow45]

Judith has been missing for 56 years today.

 

[Richard]

Judith Hyams, age 22
Missing since 14 September 1965

 

[theshadow45]

Judith has been missing for 57 years today.

 

[Justin537]

FamilySearch has a webpage for someone with her name that was married in Dade County, Florida in June 1964. She was a divorcee when she went missing, so the marriage couldn't have been long at all. It doesn't say who she was married to, but it has a Certificate Number of 18101, Volume 2227 if anyone could look her up.

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VJ8N-S7G

 

[Richard]

Judith Carol Hyams, 22, Missing since 14 September 1965




Judith Carol "Judy" Hyams was a twenty-two-year-old divorcee from Coral Gables, Florida. She worked as a medical technician at the University of Miami Medical School at Jackson Memorial Hospital. In August 1965, she discovered that she was pregnant. When she went for her pregnancy test, she used the name "B. Kenney" in order to keep her condition a secret. She also did not tell anyone that she was pregnant, most likely because she was single. On September 14, 1965, she vanished without a trace. On the day of her disappearance, she told her friend, Marilyn Jackson, that she was leaving work early that day to go shopping for a watch. She withdrew $300 from her bank account. Although she claimed that she was going to use the money to buy the watch, it is believed that she instead used the money to pay for an illegal abortion.

Later that day, Judy arrived at the office of Dr. George Hadju, a Hungarian immigrant who posed as an accredited physician. A friend of hers had put her in contact with him, who performed illegal abortions.

It is not known what happened to her after she arrived at his office that day. Three weeks later, a rental car registered in her name was found 650 miles away in Atlanta, Georgia. Traces of blood were found on the back seat. Since the car had sat there for several days before being discovered, investigators were unable to properly examine the rest of it. A local resident had spotted a man in his 30s parking it. He removed a duffel bag from the back and walked away. He has never been identified.

Three months later, Dr. Hadju was arrested for impersonating a physician. He jumped bail and has not been seen since. He is still wanted on perjury charges. Police speculate that he knows what happened to Judy. After Dr. Hadju fled, this case grew cold. Many assumed that Judy had died due to complications during the abortion, but her body was never found. Marilyn did not believe that she died because she had extensive medical knowledge from her job as a medical technician.

Almost twenty-five years later, however, the investigation was reopened after a series of bizarre events. It began in 1990 when Coral Gables Police Captain Chuck Scherer went to a narcotics lecture at a police academy 200 miles west of Omaha, Nebraska. The lecture itself was uneventful and Scherer returned to Coral Gables. Two weeks later, however, he received a phone call from a man claiming to be Steve Brown, a popular radio talk show host in Omaha. He said an anonymous caller had given him information about Judy's disappearance. Scherer told him that he was unfamiliar with this case and would have to call him back. A day later, he did so, but Steve was confused. He stated that he had never called Scherer and didn't know anything about this case. He was even more confused because the other caller had somehow given Scherer his unlisted phone number....

More at LINK:

Judy Hyams

Real Name: Judith Carol Hyams Nicknames: Judy Location: Coral Gables, Florida Date: September 14, 1965 Occupation: Medical Technician Date of Birth: 1943 Height: 5'2" Weight: Unrevealed Marital Status: Divorced Characteristics: White female with black hair and brown eyes. Judy was pregnant at...

unsolvedmysteries.fandom.com

 

[theshadow45]

Judith has been missing for 58 years today.