CA CA - Valencia, 2 WhtFems UP4388 & 4389, 17-35, in riverbed near I-5, Jan'80

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CarlK90245

CarlK90245

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The Doe Network:
Hot Case 1458 1367UFCA
NamUs UP Case 4388 The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
1665369227939.jpeg
Unidentified White Female

* The victim was discovered on January 26, 1980 in Los Angeles County, California
* Partial Remains

Vital Statistics

* Estimated age: 17-35 years old (born 1945-1963)
* Approximate Height and Weight: 5'5".
* Distinguishing Characteristics: Blonde/brown hair. Long dark blond hair also found with the her.
* Fingerprints: Not available
* Dentals: Available

Case History
The victim was located in Los Angeles County, California on January 26, 1980 at approx. 13.00 in a river bed, north of Magic Mountain Parkway west of the Old Road.

======================================================

The Doe Network:
Hot Case 798 1322UFCA
NamUs UP Case 4389 The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
1665369297353.jpeg
Unidentified White Female

* The victim was discovered on January 26, 1980 in Valencia, Los Angeles County, California
* Estimated Date of Death: Several months - Less than two years prior.

Vital Statistics

* Estimated age: 17 - 24 years old
* Approximate Height and Weight: 5'5"-5'9"
* Distinguishing Characteristics: Medium length, blondish/brown hair.
* Dentals: Available

Case History

The victim was one of two young females found at the same location. Both victims are possible victims of Sunset Strip Serial Murders.
Both are gun shot victims.
They were found in a riverbed South of Valencia Sewage Treatment Plant, 28185 The Old road, Valencia, CA.

<MOD NOTE: Several original links throughout the thread were broken and have been edited to include the current link (when available) and images as of October 9, 2022>
 
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Barbara Ann McClure was added to Charley yesterday.

1665369427994.jpeg

The victims are described as having Blonde/Brown hair, so her hair is probably too dark if the description of the two victims' hair is correct.

However, the one thing that catches my attention is that her driver's license was found near the junction of I-5 and I-405, which is near Sylmar, California and about 10 miles south of where the two victims were found.

Her height and age are consistent, and the timeframe is a little more than one year (i.e., consistent with the estimated "Several months to two years" postmortem interval)

ETA: Just realized that there is a I-405 and an I-5 in Tukwila Washington (Near Seattle), so they probably were referring to that I-405/I-5 intersection, not the one in Sylmar.
 
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This is an interesting place that they were dumped- I hate using that word- but there are several places just as deserted and closer to the city. Which leads me to believe that the murderers lived near that area or maybe in Ventura area (where that road leads) and he left them there on his way home.
 
deca said:
This is an interesting place that they were dumped- I hate using that word- but there are several places just as deserted and closer to the city. Which leads me to believe that the murderers lived near that area or maybe in Ventura area (where that road leads) and he left them there on his way home.
Click to expand...

Not really. The remains were left in the Santa Clarita valley, adjacent to the Magic Mountain amusement park. Even back in the late 1970's that area was populated, although not as much as it is today. And it was only about 8 or 9 miles north of the heavily populated San Fernando Valley.

Anyone who's seen the 1983 movie National Lampoon's Vacation with Chevy Chase would recognize it as Wally World. NL's Vacation was filmed only a couple of years after these two UID females were found.

I just found this clip from the movie, and realized that as they are running through the parking lot, there is a treeline in the background. The wash where the two UID females were found runs just behind that treeline.

Vacation - YouTube
 
I am pretty familiar with that area. I went to school there and also drove along that road pretty often to get to Ventura area where my grandmother lived.

I just meant that IF they were abducted around Sunset area, they have to drive a ways to drop off the bodies there. Even though that area is populated, even now there are pockets of privacy amongst the city. They had to pass ALL of the Sylmar area (a couple of washes and lots of hillside canyons there) the riverbed alongside the old road and the 5 (basically a long canyon with only a few houses), hills and gulllies all along that way, easily accessible hiking and trail heads, and other deserted areas- about 10 miles worth of that part of the Santa Clarita Valley. That isn't even counting the approx 20 miles it takes to get to the Santa Clarita valley from the strip! The Angeles Nat'l forest is also a closer isolated area to the strip.

So, this perp(s) picked up these women and drove through two valleys, 30 miles, and numerous isolated places to (party? have sex with them?) murder them or dump their bodies there. Why there? Why not somewhere else along that route?
Obviously we don't know if it they were out for a joyride and ended up there at random, but I have to wonder if the perp was familiar with that area.
 
This is at least the third pair of UIDs who have been found in CA. I am starting to wonder if they are connected by the fact that the same person(s) killed all 6, because of time frames and they were buried in pairs. Also look at the time frames for UID pairs found in other states!

Links to the others: http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...-WhtFem-s-(111UMCA-amp-131UFCA)-Teens-July-79 Mendocino Does

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...ssibly-a-Nurse-Buried-w-WhtMale-UP2578-Nov-80 Female possibly a nurse.......

There is also this pair of UIDs found in TX: http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...Male-753UMTX-Both-15-25-In-Wooded-Area-Jan-81

and this pair in SC: http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...uple-murdered-in-South-Carolina-1976-2/page16

This pair was seen together alive, found deceased a day later in separate states:
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...quot-Kim-quot-Tattoo-on-Right-Shoulder-Jun-78 _Blytheville Kim
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...Connected-to-quot-Kim-quot-Doe-449UFAR-Jun-78
 
I'm curious as to why they are believed to be Clark and Bundy's victims (I only see that on Doe Network).

The MO is similar, but they aren't mentioned elsewhere in descriptions of the Sunset Strip murders. (Quartz Hill Doe is, on the other hand: 1363UFCA.) If these two women are Sunset victims, they would be Clark's alone: He didn't meet Bundy until January 1980, and their first victims supposedly weren't killed until June of that year.

I guess I bring this up because it might broaden the victim profile if they aren't related to the Sunset murders.
 
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What do you think about Judy Smithson as a match to one of these UIDs? Location, age, height, time frame look right. She was added to Namus this week & I wasn't able to find anything additional about her with a quick Google search. Circumstances only say she was last seen with her boyfriend, so not much to go on there.

Judy Lynn Smithson - California Missing Person Directory

Details and Pictures of Judy Lynn Smithson, Missing since October 1979
www.missingin.org
 
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Called the potential match into the LA County Coroner's Office in charge of both of the UID cases & left a VM for Daniel Machian, the Deputy Coroner Investigator who will be back in the office on Monday. Additionally, I left a VM for Susan Burroughs who is listed as Judy Smithson's case manager. It appears that DNA samples are complete on both UIDs & Judy Smithson.
 
Go to Namus > Click on the 'Missing Persons' icon on the left > Once you've been re-routed to <findthemissing.org>, click on the 'Search' tab at the top, then "New Search" > Check the very bottom box 'Date Entered' & enter whichever dates you'd like to look at!

Happy searching :)
 
On a side note, while this search is super helpful, it can be tricky. There have been a few instances where I remember reading that a missing person had been added to Namus awhile back but was unpublished. When the missing person was finally viewable to the public, he/she didn't show up when searching for new additions because technically he/she has already been listed on Namus for awhile.
 
Update:

I emailed the Dustin Driscoll, the Namus Regional Administrator today & he responded quite quickly. He says he will forward along to investigators, however the comparison may not be possible for Judy Smithson to 4388. He says we can rule out the match to 4389, as they both have DNA searching on the national level, but 4388 only has dentals & Judy's case does not have dentals to compare.

Sigh.
 
rainwater said:
This is at least the third pair of UIDs who have been found in CA. I am starting to wonder if they are connected by the fact that the same person(s) killed all 6, because of time frames and they were buried in pairs. Also look at the time frames for UID pairs found in other states!

Links to the others: Identified! - CA - Mendocino Co, 2 WhtFem Teens, Jul'79 *Francine Trimble & Kerry Graham* Mendocino Does

CA - CA - Ludlow, WhtFem UP2517, 17-22, buried w/ WhtMale UP2578, Nov'80 Female possibly a nurse.......

There is also this pair of UIDs found in TX: TX - TX - Houston, WhtFem UP701 & WhtMale UP703, 18-30, in woods, Jan'81

and this pair in SC: Mystery couple murdered in South Carolina, 1976 - #2

This pair was seen together alive, found deceased a day later in separate states:
Identified! - AR - Blytheville, WhtFem 449UFAR, 18-36, 'Kim' tattoo, Jun'78 - Kimberlin Mills _Blytheville Kim
Identified! - MO - Pemiscot Co., WhtMale UP14552, 18-25, JH' tattoo, Jun'78 - James Hendricks
Click to expand...

its so odd that a few of these cases are all but solved now. (mendo, Ludlow, Blytheville/Pemiscot)
 
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