Resolved WY - Sheridan Co, "I-90 Jane Doe", WhtFem 16-21, 390UFWY, shirt w/fancy buttons, Apr'92 - NamUs removed

tamar

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I can't find this Jane Doe on Doenetwork or on NamUs, and no photo or reconstruction is available on the state site. Can anyone with better sleuthing skills find some more info?

Homicide, April 13, 1992, Sheridan County, Wyoming: On April 13, 1992, the decomposed body of an unidentified female was found near mile post 5 on the west side of Interstate 90 in Sheridan County, Wyoming. The body was that of a white female, approximately 20 to 30 years old, 5'5" to 5'6" inches tall, approximately 110 pounds in weight with brown hair. No identification was found with the victim who appears to have died from a blow to the head. The victim was clothed in blue jeans with a white belt, a blue and white checkerboard short sleeve blouse. A gold post-type ring was in her right ear. No shoes or other personal items were found at the scene. Anyone with information regarding this case is urged to contact the Sheridan County Sheriff's Office at (307) 672-3455 or the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation at (307) 777-7181.


<MOD NOTE: Several original links throughout the thread were broken and have been edited to include the current link (when available) and images as of October 31, 2022>
 
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Donna Maria Gonzales
Missing since April 7, 1992 from Rayne, Acadia Parish, Louisiana.
Classification: Endangered Missing

Date Of Birth: August 29, 1964
Age at Time of Disappearance: 27 years old
Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 5'3"; 110 lbs.
Distinguishing Characteristics: White female. Brown eyes; reddish/brown shoulder-length hair. She wears glasses.
Dentals: Front teeth capped. Dental information available.
Clothing: Wearing a black and white checkered blouse, black pants and black shoes. Carrying a brown zippered briefcase.
DNA: Available.

Circumstances of Disappearance
Gonzales was last seen in Rayne, Louisiana on April 7, 1992 at 15:00, walking along South Adams Street near Devil's Alley. She was selling insurance policies door to door to businesses in the area.
Her car, a 1982 blue Pontiac Bonneville was found in a parking lot off of Devil's Alley near South Adams Street. The car was found with her purse and driver's license in the trunk. The keys were missing, as well as Gonzales' insurance brief case. There was no sign of struggle at the car.

She had just started her job as an insurance agent, and Tuesday was her first day without her boss accompanying her.

Police are convinced foul play was involved in the disappearance because she was too levelheaded to simply vanish on her own without a trace.

Gonzales had spent three years, from 1989 to 1991, with the Trappistine religious order of sisters in Iowa, contemplating joining the secluded order.
 
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I can't find this Jane Doe on Doenetwork or on NamUs, and no photo or reconstruction is available on the state site. Can anyone with better sleuthing skills find some more info?



Here is the DoeNet file, Tamar. There is no NamUs casefile for this UID.

The Doe Network:
Case File 390UFWY
390UFWY

390UFWY.jpg


Unidentified White Female

* The victim was discovered on April 13, 1992 in Sheridan County, Wyoming.
* Estimated Date of Death:
* Cause of Death: Blow to the head
* Decomposed Remains

Vital Statistics

* Estimated age: 20 - 30 years old
* Approximate Height and Weight: 5'5" - 5'6"; 110 lbs.
* Distinguishing Characteristics: Brown hair.
* Clothing: Blue jeans with a white belt, blue & white checkered short sleeve blouse. A gold post type earring was found in her right ear. No shoes or any other personal items were found.
* Dentals: Available
* DNA: Available

Case History
The victim was located on April 13, 1992, near mile post 5 on Interstate 90, in Sheridan County, Wyoming.
No identification was found with the victim. She died from a blow to the head. This case is being investigated as a homicide.
 
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Thank you Carl. I don't know how I missed it.
 

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A six day window between the disappearance and the discovery makes the approximately 24hour drive from Louisiana to Wyoming very possible.

I wish I could find more information about the UID's dentals; if her front teeth were also capped.

My only other concern is the level of decomposition after 5-6 days. It seems that the details are bit sketchy about just how decomposed she was when they found her. I would still "call it in" FWIW; I do like the comparison between the missing and the UID.
 
the UID is now in Namus, no rule outs:


they got DNA, some fingerprints and dentals for her. she's not Donna Marie Gonzales as Donna had her front teeth capped and the UID did not.
 
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From the NamUs profile:
Notes on body parts recovered
Intrauterine Pregnancy, Approx 2 1/2 month
Also, more details on:
Clothing with body
Light blue and white check midriff shirt which is tied beneath the breasts, and is a pullover with several fancy pearl and false jeweled buttons extending to the midchest region; light blue lacy supprot bra size 38C: pair of size 5-6 blue jeans; wide white plastic belt with silver colored buckle; pair of nylon pink bikini panties with paisley design
 
I wonder if the killer was the father to be and did not want to become father of the year.
 
That would be almost certainly mean westbound. I-90 runs pretty directly east and west through Wyoming.
 
Amy Danielle Gibson has very similar looking teeth, fits the height parameters, and is at the low end of the revised age range.


fe95dd04-1679-4d04-a103-089ec54dc727.jpg
69a77415-1569-476e-a2c2-a9464635e150.jpg


The timeframe from 07-Dec-1990 to 13-Apr-1992 is about 16 months. That would be reasonable, given that she appears to be a habitual runaway.

Not sure how she would end up in Wyoming from North Carolina, but again - she is a habitual runaway, so the distance is plausible.

And her hair appears to fit the description (brown, slightly wavy, and dark brown pubic hair)


Unfortunately, the dental charts for NamUs UP cases aren't available anymore, so I don't know if the Jane Doe had "extensive dental work".
 
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The teeth look a lot alike! Carl, I just want to thank you-you are truly amazing!
 
Here's the dental chart for UP9970 (i.e., this Jane Doe).

UP 9970.jpg

I suppose that five fillings on a 15-year old might qualify as "Extensive" dental work.
 
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That would be almost certainly mean westbound. I-90 runs pretty directly east and west through Wyoming.

Except in the area where I-90JD was found, where it takes more of a north-south turn. But the only reason I might suggest it as at all material to identifying her is that if she were dumped on the eastbound side, she might be a little more likely to be coming from Canada.

Here's the dental chart for UP9970 (i.e., this Jane Doe).
I suppose that five fillings on a 15-year old might qualify as "Extensive" dental work.

Thanks for turning that up. In all the particulars you've pointed out, Amy Danielle Gibson seems reasonable. She and I-90JD fortunately both have some form of DNA available. One thing that gives me pause is the UID's past childbirth and possible current pregnancy. From past press it does not appear that Amy Gibson had a child or was known to be pregnant when she disappeared. However:

News & Record (Greensboro said:
In November 1991, an anonymous caller said Amy had a child and was living in Randleman. Loy checked hospital records in all the surrounding counties, as well as health departments. Nobody had taken care of Amy Gibson.
News & Record (Greensboro, North Carolina): The Crime Scene: Missing teen cold case turns 20 next month
Missing teen cold case turns 20 next month : News-Record.com : Greensboro & the Triad's most trusted source for local news and analysis
 
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Except in the area where I-90JD was found, where it takes more of a north-south turn. But the only reason I might suggest it as at all material to identifying her is that if she were dumped on the eastbound side, she might be a little more likely to be coming from Canada.
(snipped)

It's possible, but I wouldn't think they'd say "near mile post 5 on the west side of Interstate 90" if they were talking about a compass direction rather than the highway direction?
 
On 3/10/2014 the FBI released ViCAP alerts on this victim and Bitter Creek Betty, another unidentified woman found in Sweetwater County, Wyoming in 1992 (213UFWY) (NamUs.)

DNA evidence has linked the two cases.


The new releases don't contain much new information aside from the confirmation that the cases are related, but here's the little bits I noticed (I may have missed stuff, sleep-deprived)

- The tattoo shop that Bitter Creek Betty likely received her rose tat at is/was near the "Triple T Truck Stop" in Tuscon.

- The Sheridan/I90 Jane Doe is believed to have died in early February 1992 (around the same time Bitter Creek Betty was killed) and her hair was "brown (sun-bleached)". A picture of the shirt she was found wearing is on the ViCAP bulletin. She was found in a ditch on the southbound/west side of I90 5 miles south of the Montana/Wyoming border.

I'm going to cross-post this to the other victim's thread to make sure anyone checking her case out will see this update as well. I hope that's okay.
 
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Trying to figure out if he could have left these two women on the same trip. It's plausible.

Both those locations are on a plausible route between Billings Montana and Salt Lake City Utah: https://goo.gl/maps/4HLCe . It's slightly longer than the two most common routes (shown here with a third route via US191 that truckers can't use because it takes them through Yellowstone Park and Grand Teton National Park, where commercial traffic isn't allowed: https://goo.gl/maps/ftCCD) But it's not a lot longer and would even make sense if he had a delivery or pickup in Casper.

If she was on the west side of the highway -- which would be beside the eastbound lane -- then she most likely came from Montana, northern Idaho, the Pacific northwest, or western Canada. If she was on the westbound side, heading north, then she'd be more likely to come from the southwestern states or California. That would fit with Sweetwater Doe's tattoo.
 
Two rule-outs in NamUs. Pretty big spread in birth years between the two.

Amy Gibson 1975 North Carolina
Virginia Uden 1947 Wyoming
 
Bumping for Jane Doe--found her case as it was linked to Bitter Creek Betty.

RIP to these women, and may the monster who killed them suffer forever.
 

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