folieadeuxnola
70's-80's Jane Doe's
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@Madamax, Yes IMO Hazel falls in the Green category
Karen seems to me a good possibilty
Karen seems to me a good possibilty
Identified! GA - Cauca/Female, 18-25, Dixie, Brooks Co, 31 Oct 1981 - Shirlene "Cheryl" Ann Hammack
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coffeeandacig
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Amazing work folieadeuxnola!
folieadeuxnola
70's-80's Jane Doe's
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After somefurther research the girl who's dentals were being compared was undoubtly not the UID as that I found her marriage record in 1984.
coffeeandacig
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According to that woman's facebook page...A number of people took pictures of the young ladies body, to circulate to neighbors and friends. Wonder what became of all the photographs? I'm so curious to see the face of this poor girl.
PS...I 've got a feeling if the right person sees a photo of her, she will be identified.
PS...I 've got a feeling if the right person sees a photo of her, she will be identified.
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folieadeuxnola
70's-80's Jane Doe's
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Yes Coffeeandacig I completely agree a photo is needed and to me with all the information thus far is it useless without a photo or sketch. I'm still working on it unfortunately the information is not coming in at a rapid fire pace more like a snails crawl.
madamx
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Wow. If a bunch of people took photos. Someone somewhere out there has a photo still!! It's just to find out who?
Was she at a funeral home or the morgue when the people took the photos?
If she was st a funeral home, Iam wondering if the funeral home kept photos?
coffeeandacig
...
She was laid out in the funeral home, and that's where they viewed the body and took pictures. A picture survives somewhere...
carbuff
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I've been told that taking photos of a decedent in their coffin is a normal thing in many areas of the US south, whether they're unidentified or not. So quite likely someone did save photos and it's probably worth contacting the funeral home or more likely the town/county library.
Gourami Watcher
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carbuff
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The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
I think this might actually be her.
Shirlene Ann Hammack
Demographics
Missing Age: 18 Years
Current Age: 56 Years
First Name: Shirlene
Middle Name: Ann
Last Name: Hammack
Nickname/Alias--
SexFemale
Height: 5' 2" (62 Inches)
Weight: 105 - 110 lbs
Race / Ethnicity: White / Caucasian
Circumstances
Date of Last Contact: October 1, 1981
NamUs Case Created: May 6, 2019
Last Known Location Map
Location: Quitman, Georgia
County: Brooks County
Circumstances of Disappearance: Last seen in October in 1981 in Brooks County
----
The height, weight, and age all match up. The location is spot on, especially when taking into consideration the possible sighting of the UID in Quitman (where Shirlene went missing) in the weeks prior to the discovery. The fact that both Shirlene and the UID were added to NamUS within the last six weeks or so suggests to me that this connection might have already been brought up to LE. However, the NamUS profiles show that neither the UID nor Shirlene have any exclusions.
I think this might actually be her.
Shirlene Ann Hammack
Demographics
Missing Age: 18 Years
Current Age: 56 Years
First Name: Shirlene
Middle Name: Ann
Last Name: Hammack
Nickname/Alias--
SexFemale
Height: 5' 2" (62 Inches)
Weight: 105 - 110 lbs
Race / Ethnicity: White / Caucasian
Circumstances
Date of Last Contact: October 1, 1981
NamUs Case Created: May 6, 2019
Last Known Location Map
Location: Quitman, Georgia
County: Brooks County
Circumstances of Disappearance: Last seen in October in 1981 in Brooks County
----
The height, weight, and age all match up. The location is spot on, especially when taking into consideration the possible sighting of the UID in Quitman (where Shirlene went missing) in the weeks prior to the discovery. The fact that both Shirlene and the UID were added to NamUS within the last six weeks or so suggests to me that this connection might have already been brought up to LE. However, the NamUS profiles show that neither the UID nor Shirlene have any exclusions.
Al Ka
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Identified as Shirlene "Cheryl" Ann Hammack
===
Victim in 1981 Brooks Co. murder case identified as fair worker
(click on image to enlarge)
he Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced that it has identified the victim in a 1981 Brooks County murder case.
Nearly 39 years after it happened, investigators were able to identify Shirlene "Cheryl" Ann Hammack as the victim of the murder.
On Halloween in 1981, the Brooks County Sheriff's Office asked the GBI Region 9 Field Office for help in a homicide investigation. The body of an unidentified white woman was discovered beside a small, dirt lane entrance to a corn field in Dixie.
The victim was covered slightly with fresh cut limbs and foliage to hide her and the crime. Deputies described the victim as a young white woman, about 5 feet and 2 inches tall, weighing around 105 pounds with shoulder-length brown hair and hazel eyes.
At the time, she was thought to be between 18 and 24 years old. Investigators determined at the time she died after she was stabbed in the stomach and choked.
---
On Halloween in 2018, exactly 37 years after her murder, the chief deputy of the sheriff's office reached out to the GBI case agent about a tip from a resident who said she had information about the identity of Doe.
---
The resident was a possible childhood friend of Doe. They believed she was Cheryl Hammack. The friend remembered her friend, Cheryl, went missing in late 1981 after traveling with a fair.
The age and description of Cheryl matched that of Doe, which peaked her friend's interest. The friend saw a Facebook post a person who lives near Brooks County made about the case. It was shared widely, so that's how the childhood friend saw it.
Following the tip, GBI agents and Brooks County investigators spoke with and met Hammack's surviving family members, which included her mother and sisters. The description of Hammack's disappearance from her family matched the facts of the investigation.
Investigators got a known DNA sample from Hammack's biological mother. The mother told them she got a letter in the mail following Hammack's disappearance with the contents of her wallet, including a Georgia driver's license. The envelope did not have a return address.
---
After extensive analysis of the DNA samples and a comparison process, it was determined that Doe was the biological child of Kathleen Hammack. Finally, Jane Doe was identified as Shirlene Hammack.
She was originally from Thomaston, Georgia. She took a job with the fair that eventually brought her to Brooks County in 1981.
Victim in 1981 Brooks Co. murder case identified as fair worker
GBI: Woman found dead in Brooks County corn field in 1981 identified
===
Victim in 1981 Brooks Co. murder case identified as fair worker
(click on image to enlarge)
he Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced that it has identified the victim in a 1981 Brooks County murder case.
Nearly 39 years after it happened, investigators were able to identify Shirlene "Cheryl" Ann Hammack as the victim of the murder.
On Halloween in 1981, the Brooks County Sheriff's Office asked the GBI Region 9 Field Office for help in a homicide investigation. The body of an unidentified white woman was discovered beside a small, dirt lane entrance to a corn field in Dixie.
The victim was covered slightly with fresh cut limbs and foliage to hide her and the crime. Deputies described the victim as a young white woman, about 5 feet and 2 inches tall, weighing around 105 pounds with shoulder-length brown hair and hazel eyes.
At the time, she was thought to be between 18 and 24 years old. Investigators determined at the time she died after she was stabbed in the stomach and choked.
---
On Halloween in 2018, exactly 37 years after her murder, the chief deputy of the sheriff's office reached out to the GBI case agent about a tip from a resident who said she had information about the identity of Doe.
---
The resident was a possible childhood friend of Doe. They believed she was Cheryl Hammack. The friend remembered her friend, Cheryl, went missing in late 1981 after traveling with a fair.
The age and description of Cheryl matched that of Doe, which peaked her friend's interest. The friend saw a Facebook post a person who lives near Brooks County made about the case. It was shared widely, so that's how the childhood friend saw it.
Following the tip, GBI agents and Brooks County investigators spoke with and met Hammack's surviving family members, which included her mother and sisters. The description of Hammack's disappearance from her family matched the facts of the investigation.
Investigators got a known DNA sample from Hammack's biological mother. The mother told them she got a letter in the mail following Hammack's disappearance with the contents of her wallet, including a Georgia driver's license. The envelope did not have a return address.
---
After extensive analysis of the DNA samples and a comparison process, it was determined that Doe was the biological child of Kathleen Hammack. Finally, Jane Doe was identified as Shirlene Hammack.
She was originally from Thomaston, Georgia. She took a job with the fair that eventually brought her to Brooks County in 1981.
Victim in 1981 Brooks Co. murder case identified as fair worker
GBI: Woman found dead in Brooks County corn field in 1981 identified
Last edited:
Lucy's mom
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Great job, Fuuro! You called it back in June 2019!
Al Ka
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Just to add from an article:
Shortly after the murder, George Newsome, a white man who was 52 at the time, was arrested. He was part of a traveling fair that was making a stop in the town of Quitman.
Investigators believed Doe was part of the traveling fair too, but it was unknown at the time.
When Newsome was arrested, he had a stolen motor home from another state. After investigators searched the home, they found the rope that was used to strangle Doe. They also found the knife that was used in the murder.
At first, Newsome refused to cooperate with investigators and he said he knew nothing about the murder. About a week after he was arrested, he escaped from the Brooks County Jail and remained a fugitive until he was arrested again in Alabama on January 13, 1983.
He admitted to the murder after his second arrest. He told investigators he met Doe at the Fair Grounds in Tallahassee before he left for Quitman. Newsome said he got in an argument with Doe about another man, and that argument led to her death.
He pled guilty and was sentenced to life in prison for her murder. Newsome died at the Augsta State Medical Prison on August 10, 1988, from natural causes.
Victim in 1981 Brooks Co. murder case identified as fair worker
Shortly after the murder, George Newsome, a white man who was 52 at the time, was arrested. He was part of a traveling fair that was making a stop in the town of Quitman.
Investigators believed Doe was part of the traveling fair too, but it was unknown at the time.
When Newsome was arrested, he had a stolen motor home from another state. After investigators searched the home, they found the rope that was used to strangle Doe. They also found the knife that was used in the murder.
At first, Newsome refused to cooperate with investigators and he said he knew nothing about the murder. About a week after he was arrested, he escaped from the Brooks County Jail and remained a fugitive until he was arrested again in Alabama on January 13, 1983.
He admitted to the murder after his second arrest. He told investigators he met Doe at the Fair Grounds in Tallahassee before he left for Quitman. Newsome said he got in an argument with Doe about another man, and that argument led to her death.
He pled guilty and was sentenced to life in prison for her murder. Newsome died at the Augsta State Medical Prison on August 10, 1988, from natural causes.
Victim in 1981 Brooks Co. murder case identified as fair worker
I'm glad Cheryl has her name back. I figured that they had already put two and two together by the time they'd uploaded Cheryl's missing persons information to NamUS, and it looks like that's the case, seeing as they'd apparently been aware of this potential match since 2018.
Al Ka
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Other news articles are popping up. Recon which I have not seen till now was also made by well known forensic artist Kelly Lawson (love her work)
Social Media, DNA, GBI Solve Quitman Cold Case
(click on image to enlarge)
Social media, DNA held solve 1981 Quitman, GA cold case | Valdosta Today
Social Media, DNA, GBI Solve Quitman Cold Case
(click on image to enlarge)
Social media, DNA held solve 1981 Quitman, GA cold case | Valdosta Today
Al Ka
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Facebook post helps solve 38 year old cold case in Brooks Co.
A social media post was the reason family, Brooks County Law Enforcement, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigations Officials filled the Brooks Co. Office building today to bring closure to a tragic story.
The GBI special agent on the case, Jamy Steinberg says it was social media that helped figure out the unsolved mystery.
Someone had posted the victim in hopes someone recognized her sketch and story that occured over three decades ago.
"A facebook post. Someone was just trying to keep the case alive, and it was seen by a childhood friend of the victim."
Facebook post helps solve 38 year old cold case in Brooks Co.
YaYa_521
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https://www.websleuths.com/forums/threads/ga-shirlene-ann-hammack-18-quitman-october-1-1981.444572/
Rest peacefully, Cheryl.
Rest peacefully, Cheryl.