CA CA - Sonoma Co., WhtFem, ~19, red hair, contact lenses, hog-tied, Jul'79

CarlK90245

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I saw this article in the PressDemocrat.com website about an unidentified female victim of a serial killer who operated in Sonoma County in the late 60's and early 70's. I can find nothing on this girl in either NamUs or in DoeNet, so I am starting a thread for her here.

The last body was found in July 1979. It has never been identified, but forensics tests indicate she could have been 19 years old with red or auburn hair. She wore contact lenses.

Read More:
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20110728/ARTICLES/110729434?p=2&tc=pg
 
Adrianne Gilliam looks like a plausible possible given the scant information available on the UID.

gilliam_adrianne.jpg

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/g/gilliam_adrianne.html.

The exact date in July 1979 is not provided for the discovery of the UID. However, Adrianne went missing in the last week of June 1979. She is from Northern California. She was a known hitchhiker, and she appears to have reddish blonde hair.

No indication of whether she wore contacts.
 
Does this have to do with the Lisa Smith case?

I think I read about that a minute ago... Maybe I will have to go back and link.
 
Does this have to do with the Lisa Smith case?

I think I read about that a minute ago... Maybe I will have to go back and link.

I found this article after reading about the Lisa Smith case. There was a link to this article next to the the article about Lisa Smith (under "Related Links").

I don't think this UID is Lisa Smith though. This Jane Doe had red hair, and Lisa appears to have dark hair.
 
Carl,
Thank you for posting this UID. They originally linked her to Jeanette Kamahele, who was a suspected victim in the SRHM's. They later used dental records to rule her out.

When I saw the Lisa Smith story, who dis-appeared in '71 in Santa Rosa, I immediately thought of this UID that was found in '79. But the hair doesn't match up with the description of Lisa Smith, or Jeanette Kamahele for that matter.

I don't know how to link these stories, but I posted the Lisa Smith missing person posting yesterday.

I'm still kind of a newbie.
 
Great site, with a lot of good information. The person that runs the site is a great resource.

Let's hope that something comes up to break this case wide open.
 
Adrianne Gilliam looks like a plausible possible given the scant information available on the UID.

gilliam_adrianne.jpg

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/g/gilliam_adrianne.html.

The exact date in July 1979 is not provided for the discovery of the UID. However, Adrianne went missing in the last week of June 1979. She is from Northern California. She was a known hitchhiker, and she appears to have reddish blonde hair.

No indication of whether she wore contacts.

Here is a really interesting website completely devoted to these killings:

http://www.santarosahitchhikermurders.com/

Here is the specific section about the Jane Doe with scans of the original newspaper articles:

http://www.santarosahitchhikermurders.com/jane_doe.html

Thanks taramarie:

The contemporary newspaper clipping about the Jane Doe indicated that the remains had been there for about 5-7 years.

This would make Adrianne very unlikely.

The timeframe was based, in part, because the contact lenses were hard lenses. By 1979, soft lenses were in widespread use, and hard lenses had been out of style for about five years.

The victim also had a healed rib fracture.


So in summary, the details of this Jane Doe are as follows:

Gender: Female
Race: Caucasian
Age: About 19 years old
Height: Approx 5'3"
Hair: Reddish/Brown
Dominant Hand: Right
Approximate Date of death: 1972 to 1974
Clothing & Accessories: Contact Lenses
Physical Anomalies: Healed Rib Fracture
 
Cindy Lee Mellin wore contacts, and was 19 years old. She is a little taller than the 5'3" estimate, and there is no mention of red tint to her brown hair. She went missing about 9 years before Jane Doe was found (only slightly outside the 5-7 year estimate).

mellin_cindy.jpg
2460406650045078242S200x200Q851.jpg

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/mellin_cindy.html

ETA: I found the second photo in the 1968 Ventura HS yearbook.
 
Cindy Lee Mellin wore contacts, and was 19 years old. She is a little taller than the 5'3" estimate, and there is no mention of red tint to her brown hair. She went missing about 9 years before Jane Doe was found (only slightly outside the 5-7 year estimate).

mellin_cindy.jpg
2460406650045078242S200x200Q851.jpg

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/mellin_cindy.html

ETA: I found the second photo in the 1968 Ventura HS yearbook.

I just spoke with Det. Freitas of the Sonoma County Sheriff about Cindy Mellin. He says that he will look into it, so apparently, he had not heard her name before.

I also suggested that he put his Jane Doe in NamUs. He said that he is currently looking into that.
 
Back in 2006 I contacted the Ventura Police Department about the possibility of Cindy Mellin being Sonoma County's 1979 Jane Doe. The woman I spoke to told me that it did not appear a Sonoma County connection had been considered and that they would check into it. She asked me to send her the articles on the Sonoma County Jane Doe, which I did. She never recontacted me so I have no idea how thoroughly that possibility was investigated.

I have the Santa Rosa Hitchhiker Murders website and have been working on these murders for a very long time. Sonoma County Sheriff's Office was informed about Cindy Mellin at least two years ago. Part of the problem is that in those two years these cold cases were reassigned because of promotions within the department and the present detectives, who only work the cold cases as time permits between current cases, may not be quite as familiar with the cases as past detectives.
 
Back in 2006 I contacted the Ventura Police Department about the possibility of Cindy Mellin being Sonoma County's 1979 Jane Doe. The woman I spoke to told me that it did not appear a Sonoma County connection had been considered and that they would check into it. She asked me to send her the articles on the Sonoma County Jane Doe, which I did. She never recontacted me so I have no idea how thoroughly that possibility was investigated.

I have the Santa Rosa Hitchhiker Murders website and have been working on these murders for a very long time. Sonoma County Sheriff's Office was informed about Cindy Mellin at least two years ago. Part of the problem is that in those two years these cold cases were reassigned because of promotions within the department and the present detectives, who only work the cold cases as time permits between current cases, may not be quite as familiar with the cases as past detectives.

:eek:fftopic:

I was also wondering if this Jane Doe was ever checked against Cindy Mellin.

https://identifyus.org/cases/8868
 
From the SRO Sheriff's under the FOIA?

In checking news archives on the UNID'd Jane Doe, i find varied info. AND, it could change our D of D by years!

Summing up:

Female 5'3"
Brown Hair
Approx : 19 years old
Previously healed rib fracture (See caveat, below)
Contact lens found (See caveat below)

Prelim conclusion was that the remains were 5-7 years. 1972-1974. But, as I state below, I would not trust that range as gospel.

7-11-79 article from Deb Silva's SRHH website: http://www.santarosahitchhikermurders.com/jane_doe.html

"Experts have concluded that the skelton is that of a young white woman, approx 19 years old, 5'3" tall, with BROWN HAIR."

In a prior newspaper article, it stated she had red/auburn hair.

Additionally, the newspaper article states, "The contact lens may provide the clue needed to identify the victim, and it tends to confirm ...the remains are 5-7 years old because SOFT LENSES WERE DEVELOPED RELATIVELY RECENTLY"

That is patently INCORRECT. The reporter didn't do their research. B&L Soflens were introduced in the US, in 1971, and sold 100k pairs in 71. Dupont also inroduced competition in 73. (Soflens..was eagerly received by ophthalmic practitioners in a nationwide series of introductory symposia sponsored by B & L between May and November 1971....Annual earnings grew 50 percent in 1971 ... almost triple those of the same quarter in 1970. The increment was almost completely attributable to Soflens....http://webcache.googleusercontent.c...lenses"+1972+soflens&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us


Jane Doe was found in 1979. We need to find out (conclusively) if the lens(es) were HARD or SOFT, or see if a DOD was ever ascertained on this Jane Doe.

(http://webcache.googleusercontent.c...+Lomb+"soflens"+1971&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us)

The news article as states that was righthanded) HOWEVER, I would not use this, as future peer reviewed journal articles have discounted criteria used at that time to ascertain skeletal handedness. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18482374

Also, I personally, Will NOT be using the broken rib criteria, in my search for Jane Does. The reason is that MANY broken/cracked rib injuries go without a dx, and w/ NO tx. "In most cases, broken ribs heal on their own in one or two months." Mayo Clinic http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/broken-ribs/DS00939
In the 1970's, I just didn't see parents of active teens, running to hospital for x rays for a sharp rib pain (And we were active teens in the 70's, really no couch pot. kids, then ;). We didn't have 'puters/555 channels/vid. games....)

p.s., I will try to tell you when I am offering opinions, vs. facts. I am a P.I., and a Legal researcher with 30+ years experience. I spend many hours on my research, and always try to well document my facts.
 
Great work Carl and LeAnne. Thank you for your attention to this case.
 
Okay, this is kind of a stab in the dark, but how about Jackie Lynn Leslie? http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/l/leslie_jackie.html
She disappeared around the same timeframe from a neighboring state and the height is about the same. Only thing is the age and weight (is there any weight available for the uid?)
Also, sorry for posting if this thread since it's been a while since the last post :v
 
The contact lens thing is not definitive. Soft lenses may be much more prevalent, but there are still reasons why a person might wear hard contacts -- mostly related to eye structure or injury.
 
Here's a newly listed MP from Napa CA (right next to Sonoma County), and fits the height (within an inch) and age specs for the Jane Doe.

Eileen Francis Hynson
2556843000045078242S425x425Q851.jpg

https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/14520/3

No mention of contact lenses or prior bone breaks.

Does anybody know if she's been checked to this Jane Doe! http://www.nampn.org/cases/hynson_eileen.html A Possible Zodiac Victim? http://www.santarosahitchhikermurders.com/ http://www.zodiackiller.com/ShepardHartnell.html
 

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