Are we focusing on the Grateful Dead Fan theory too much?

[Earthbound Misfit I]

What if Jason Doe wasn't a Grateful Dead Fan/Follower? Is that still our best lead? What other theories or leads do we have? Was he a runaway or was he close to home? If he was close to home, was he just out of school for the summer or had he graduated from high school and did he work somewhere nearby? What are your thoughts?

ETA: I guess we could break these up into even smaller threads such as possible locations where Jason attended school, possible locations he may have worked, dentists in the area, etc.?

 

[Kat]

RK, I haven't had the time to read this subforum completely. I do apologize in advance for that and will find the time to read all the threads so far on here.

Could it be that this young man was a ward of the state? Could that be why he hasn't been reported missing as of yet by any families? Just a thought to consider.

 

[Earthbound Misfit I]

Kat, I do agree that there is a possibility that Jason may have been a ward of the state, at this point, nothing would surprise me. There has got to be some good reason why he hasn't been claimed yet. It is up to us to find out his identity. I believe we can do this....

RK, I haven't had the time to read this subforum completely. I do apologize in advance for that and will find the time to read all the threads so far on here.

Could it be that this young man was a ward of the state? Could that be why he hasn't been reported missing as of yet by any families? Just a thought to consider.

 

[missy_g]

I don't exactly know what you mean by follower. Do you mean that he traveled around going to GD shows? I would find it really really odd if JD didn't attend those GD shows. It would be really weird to have the ticket stubs and a tour shirt, and not be a true fan of Grateful Dead.

Are there any pictures of his shoes at all? I'm wondering if they are new or slightly worn or REALLY worn. If the pictures that I've seen are in fact pictures of his jeans those did look a little worn. The shirt in the reconstruction looks relatively new as it didn't look faded and the color is very vibrant.

I can't get over the fact that he hasn't been claimed yet because of the little details like his clothing and his teeth. I know that somewhere out there, someone has the rest of his belongings. I can't believe that he was traveling with nothing in his possession.

Wasn't there a post somewhere about someone who said that they met someone at one of the shows who left tools in their car? I wonder how clean this JD was, like if he had dirt under his nails. Even though this may sound gory, I wonder how badly his face was messed up after the accident and how accurate the reconstruction really is.

I also wonder if anyone has confirmed the Jason Kennedy that was in the yearbook picture. I mean really confirmed it and had photographic proof that the Jason in the yearbook picture is the same Jason Kennedy that was actually "confirmed".

Sorry, it's 3am and I'm rambling

 

[missy_g]

Oh and another thing...

Do go back to you asking if he was a follower....

Could it be possible that Jason did indeed have belongings that he left with friend's and hitched a ride back to where he lived to get more cash/meet family with intentions of getting a ride back to go to the next show?

I read that the next show was somewhere in the midwest (correct me if I'm wrong) Does anyone know where the show AFTER that show was?

Maybe he made plans with the driver of the van to go to NC for a day or so, then get a ride back to the DC area..

 

[KarlK]

What if Jason Doe wasn't a Grateful Dead Fan/Follower? Is that still our best lead? What other theories or leads do we have? Was he a runaway or was he close to home? If he was close to home, was he just out of school for the summer or had he graduated from high school and did he work somewhere nearby? What are your thoughts?

ETA: I guess we could break these up into even smaller threads such as possible locations where Jason attended school, possible locations he may have worked, dentists in the area, etc.?

Good call. There's also the possibility that Jason wasn't reported missing simply because he was neither American nor Canadian. AFAIK those are the only two countries whose missing persons files have been thoroughly probed for a match.

 

[Salem]

We have submitted at least one AU case. The AU missing dept. doesn't give out any info once the submission is made though. I check up on it every now and then to see if the missing person from AU has been removed from the missing list. So far he hasn't, so I don't think it is a match.

Salem

 

[Helper]

To answer Missy's question, after the DC shows, The Grateful Dead played at The Palace, Auburn Hills, MI (June 27 and 28), then Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, PA on June 30. July 2 was Deer Creek, Noblesville, IN, then July 5 at Riverport in Maryland Heights, MO. The Dead's final concerts were at Soldier Field, Chicago on July 8 and 9.

 

[JasonFutchLakeCityFL]

I thought Jerry Garcia had died and Grateful Dead was disbanded around this time? I must have had my facts wrong all along...

 

[RRW]

Jerry died on August 9th, 1995, which was about 5 weeks after this incident.

 

[Spacemonkey1975]

Just to add my 2 cents here, others have indicated a "hardcore" head wouldn't be sporting a tour shirt from the current tour, that is true. There's a good chance these were some of the first Dead shows he'd been to. The picture of the guy in the drum circle really creeped me out. If there was not tatoo then I guess it is conclusive but it sure resembles the artist drawing.

 

[missy_g]

He may not have been hardcore but I would think that he would have been some kind of fan. The shirt might not indicate he was a huge fan (I had a grateful dead shirt in highschool and I wasn't a huge fan like some people) but he had ticket stubs in his pocket. Typically you don't carry around ticket stubs if you haven't been to that concert.

If it is the case that he is NOT a fan then why would he have tickets for 2 days? If he was borrowing clothes from someone else, then that means he would have probably known someone from that concert.

 

[KarlK]

I don't exactly know what you mean by follower. Do you mean that he traveled around going to GD shows? I would find it really really odd if JD didn't attend those GD shows. It would be really weird to have the ticket stubs and a tour shirt, and not be a true fan of Grateful Dead.

Indeed. I doubt anyone but a deadhead would wear such a tie-dyed t-shirt in the 1990's, attend the same show two nights in a row, and then hitch-hike long-distance, assuming he was hitch-hiking of course.

So he hasn't been reported missing in neither the US or Canada? I'm sure it's been brought up before, but maybe the kid was a foreigner from outside these two countries. Not having money or a passport could simply indicate he had his possessions stolen or had lost them. I mean, the guy had literally nothing and even the most destitute of drifters usually carries a few essentials on the road.

 

[Spacemonkey1975]

He may not have been hardcore but I would think that he would have been some kind of fan. The shirt might not indicate he was a huge fan (I had a grateful dead shirt in highschool and I wasn't a huge fan like some people) but he had ticket stubs in his pocket. Typically you don't carry around ticket stubs if you haven't been to that concert.

If it is the case that he is NOT a fan then why would he have tickets for 2 days? If he was borrowing clothes from someone else, then that means he would have probably known someone from that concert.

Not saying he wasn't a 'fan' or getting into the Dead, but the point others are trying to explain is that there is a travelling subculture that followed the Dead from show to show and these folks tend (tended) to know one another at least by nicknames and faces. Based on his attire and looks it doesn't appear we was a part of that scene. It is not uncommon to catch the whole run of shows at any given venue for bands like the Dead even if you are a casual fan.

My first Dead show was a few days after these shows, at the time I would probably be in the same "grouping" as our Grateful Doe, probably the same age too. That's why this haunts me, I've been able to grow into full appreciation of the band, travel the country chasing great music, getting a good job, having a great family, even a picket fence. This poor guy doesn't even have family looking for him or willing to claim him and give him a proper burial.

 

[Mels3kidz]

Kat, I do agree that there is a possibility that Jason may have been a ward of the state, at this point, nothing would surprise me. There has got to be some good reason why he hasn't been claimed yet. It is up to us to find out his identity. I believe we can do this....

BBM. I seem to recall somewhere in this thread that investigators mentioned that they had recieved a phone call asking very *specific* questions about Jason. The investigator believed that in all likelihood this was a family member.

Mel

 

[marysawol]

BBM. I seem to recall somewhere in this thread that investigators mentioned that they had recieved a phone call asking very *specific* questions about Jason. The investigator believed that in all likelihood this was a family member.

Mel

WOW, I never read that, where did you see that at? I'd love to find out if that's true. Maybe we can look into it further somehow.

 

[Lisa Medgaus]

Indeed. I doubt anyone but a deadhead would wear such a tie-dyed t-shirt in the 1990's, attend the same show two nights in a row, and then hitch-hike long-distance, assuming he was hitch-hiking of course.

So he hasn't been reported missing in neither the US or Canada? I'm sure it's been brought up before, but maybe the kid was a foreigner from outside these two countries. Not having money or a passport could simply indicate he had his possessions stolen or had lost them. I mean, the guy had literally nothing and even the most destitute of drifters usually carries a few essentials on the road.

This is my first post after lurking here for some months. But I strongly agree with Karl and have to say something! I just found out about Jason yesterday. My husband, who was/is quite a Deadhead, and I discussed this at length last night. We both agreed that Jason was a Deadhead, or at least starting to love and follow them. If you love the Dead, you definitely keep your stubs from the shows. You try and attend each show in a particular venue, even for 3 nights in a row, because each show is different. You also can travel quite light, because people barter items back and forth and give each other charity (aka "miracles") as a part of being with the Dead community.
Also, we both came to the conclusion that the Dead community is key to helping identify him. Those shows at RFK on June 24-25th, 1995 became immensely significant to the Dead community. Jerry Garcia died that summer, on August 9, 1995. The last shows of that summer, have become iconic shows for that reason. I bet there are more pictures, more memories, recordings, etc that are saved by Deadheads all across the country, because of Jerry's death shortly thereafter. That is the way we are going to figure out this mystery.
One of the things we can do is post the links and brief synopsis on the Grateful Dead Facebook page every so often and directly ask for people who have been to that show to post pics and any memories. The link is: https://www.facebook.com/gratefuldead?sk=wall&filter=1

 

[ebbie]

So many people keep wondering why no family has come forward. Even speculating he might have been a ward of the state. There are many possible scenarios if you accept that he could have come from a dysfunctional family.

For example...

1. He was raised by a single mother alcoholic who can't ever get her act together enough to deal with finding him.

2. His family disapproved of his lifestyle and disowned him.

3. He gave his family a hard time growing up and they became used to him disappearing for stretches of time. They might feel that something bad happened to him but can't handle the emotional nightmare of admitting he is missing.

This is just couch speculation but I think it's important not to get stuck in the idea that there is a mother anguishing over her lost son somewhere.

 

[Karanjeff]

Just throwing this out there... dunno if anyone has added this theory but maybe this guy came from an Amish community?
They have that practice of letting kids at the age of 16 going out into the real world like a test of religion. Maybe he was one of them and just decided to stay out of the Amish way of life?
Would explain why no one is looking for him.....
Just a thought....

 

[KLCD620]

Just throwing this out there... dunno if anyone has added this theory but maybe this guy came from an Amish community?
They have that practice of letting kids at the age of 16 going out into the real world like a test of religion. Maybe he was one of them and just decided to stay out of the Amish way of life?
Would explain why no one is looking for him.....
Just a thought....

That's very good question. He could walk out of (likely from central PA) Amish community and prefers to live in modern ways after he see it differently from 1800's amish culture. The community might not welcome him back once he crossed that path. That explains us that he doesn't have ID, financial, trip bag & car to be his own world. He just wandering around the states as homeless guy but as Grateful Dead follower.

It's worth for the case detective to check in Amish community to see if they recognize the UID from the sketch.