Jane Doe 1982

On December 26, 1982, deer hunters in Wayne County were hiking through the woods. It was 32 degrees, perfect weather for deer hunting. While moving through the woods, they made a gruesome discovery. They had stumbled upon skeletal remains, which they immediately reported to authorities. An exact location where the body was found is unknown. The body was found approximately two miles north of I-70 and fifteen miles west of the Ohio/Indiana border. One source stated the body was found near Jacksonburg Road which runs through the highlighted area on the map provided above. 

Upon Further examination it was determined that the body was female. She was between the ages of 18 to 22. She was Caucasian and approximately five feet tall and five inches tall approximately.  Due to the state of decomposition of the body at the time it was discovered, it is believed that she had been dead for 12 to 18 months before discovery.

Officers were unable to identify her. She is still a Jane Doe. What officers do know is that she isn't any of the following women: Cynthia Anderson who disappeared in 1961, Denise Beaudin in 1958, Susan Capple in 1962, or Judy Martins in 1955. These women were ruled out by DNA testing and dental records. Her dental records indicate that she has a crown on the upper left molar and that the upper incisor protrudes 10 millimeters.

Due to the state in which Jane Doe was found, police were unable to take fingerprints or estimate her weight. Foul play is suspected.

Why do we call unidentified individuals Jane Doe, what is the origin? John Doe first showed up in English Common law. This would pop in cases of ejection, what we call eviction today. In order to evict a squatter from your land, another tenant who planned to occupy the land in question had to bring the suit against the squatter. So, landlords would come up with false tenants, they often named them John Doe or Richard Roe. There is no way to know where exactly they pulled the name from. It is thought that the name came from a common species of deer.

The Jane Doe found on December 26, was found with clothing and some belongings. There was a dark blue insulated jacket, a long sleeved shirt size 12, grey maternity pants size 8, wooden clog type shoes also size 8, and gold ring with an oval opal stone and two small diamonds on her right hand. For me, the maternity pants raise an important question, was Jane Doe expecting at the time of her murder? Was she killed because of her pregnancy?

Another interesting note is that the ring had an opal stone. Opal is the birthstone for the month of October. The ring still being on the remains upon discovery indicates that the murderer was not motivated by robbery.

The bust that appears at the beginning of this chapter is reconstruction of what Jane Doe might have looked like at the time of her disappearance. Police hoped that by creating this reconstruction, it would led to identifying Jane Doe.

Anyone with any information that could led to the identification of Jane Doe of 1982 is asked to call the Indiana State Police.

Indiana State Police
District Investigative Commander
9022 South SR 67
Pendleton, IN 46064
1-765-778-2121 or 1-800-527-4752

________________________SOURCES_______________________________

Indiana State Police Website. Jane Doe 1982. Case Number 41-1029.

Missing Persons Forum. http://www.crimewatchers.net/forum/index.php?threads/wayne-county-jane-doe-1982-wf-18-22-found-in-remote-woods-26-december-1982.6560/

Private Missing Person Database. Case File 491UFIN. http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/491ufin.html

Weather History for Indiana on December 26, 1982. https://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KIND/1982/12/26/DailyHistory.html?req_city=&req_state=&req_statename=&reqdb.zip=&reqdb.magic=&reqdb.wmo=&MR=1

"Why Are Unidentified People Called John or Jane Doe?". Matt Soniak. Mental Floss. February 15, 2012. http://mentalfloss.com/article/29996/why-are-unidentified-people-called-john-or-jane-doe