You are right, maybe he didn't own another pair of shoes.
Maybe I've been too enthusiastic, but I wrote NamUs about this possible match. It's the first time I've done that, I'm nervious.
You are certainly right to submit Donald as a possible match to the Unidentified person found in 1981.
Several things stick out to me in this case.
- First is that Donald Emerson's case summary indicates he is missing from Tucson, Arizona - but that Phoenix police are the investigating agency. What agency had jurisdiction at the time?
- Could use more information regarding where he was from, where he attended school, etc. One site says that he was from Illinois. What brought him to Tucson, Arizona?
- The summary indicates that the boys had a metal detector and and inhaler with them. What make and model? What prescription info? Were these items ever found?
Where did the boys enter the Mountain area? Where did Brian exit it? If this information was known, perhaps a contour map of the region could give some clues. Did they just wander in or did they have a map and a plan?
Regarding the Unidentified person, it was indicated that a Draft Card was found with or near the body. If that is the case, what name and information is on that card? Seems like a good clue...
The “draft card” was a card that the local Selective Service office issued to each man at the time he registered (at age 18). For many years there were in fact two cards: the Registration Certificate and the Notice of Classification. When Selective Service began to store records on computer tapes in the early 1970s, the two cards were combined into one computer-generated Status Card. At no time was the card officially titled “draft card,” but it was by this colloquial name that the proof of registration was usually known.
Selective Service regulations in force in 1969 required each registrant to have his card in his possession at all times.
Here is some information regarding "draft cards":
Draft Cards | Selective Service System
Here is some information regarding Mount Lemmon, near Tucson, AZ:
Mount Lemmon - Wikipedia