This story mentions this Jane Doe as part of a series of (related/unrelated?) murders in the SE US.
It has probably been posted (didn't have time to check) on the board for The Redhead Murders (also linked), which "Superwoman" (this Doe) was likely a part of. She is sometimes called Superwoman because of a sticker on the refrigerator she was found in.
http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...,4728169&dq=body+refrigerator+knoxville&hl=en
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=92500&highlight=redhead+murder
And, physical appearance aside, I still don't think Melody Jones (
http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/j/jones_melody.html) would be a super-strong match for our Superwoman.
Jones was likely killed much closer (in time/distance) to the murder of her husband (a couple years before this Doe's death). I just can't see whoever killed Mr Jones taking and keeping his wife alive for that amount of time. And releasing her after a while, as Doe was hitching rides up and down the interstate (without a companion) that far east of OK a couple years after her disappearance.
The main characteristic I can see for including Mrs Jones would be her height (exact match, 4'11"). There aren't many missing women that I can find that match any of the other aspects of Doe that are that short. M Jones also had extremely poor vision. Whether that could possibly be concluded at autopsy, I don't know, as there is not a specific deformity/condition listed for her vision trouble. It just says that she would be "legally blind without her glasses."
I think Peggy Alt (
http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/a/alt_peggy.html) would be a closer (albeit still not extremely strong) match for this Doe. She went missing a lot closer to the discover of Superwoman/JD so she wouldn't have had to be "off the radar" for so long while missing (like the 2-yrs with Melody Jones). And she went missing from a little bit closer to Kentucky than Jones. But I don't know about her hair. It has kind of an auburn-ish tinge but is not the "red" red hair of Superwoman. Also, due to the angle of the morgue photo, Superwoman's hair doesn't necessarily look as long (11") as listed in the report. Alt had a scar on her arm, whereas Superwoman had one on her abdomen.
While in the midst of typing this, I came across Martha McNiel (
http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/mcniel_martha.html). I think she could be a good match. Hair (though described as "blonde") is a decent match. Height/weight are close. She went missing from an area somewhat close to where Jane Doe was found. She has drug/alcohol issues and was possibly fleeing from domestic violence. I would think that those could lead to wandering (ie hitchhiking, etc) but could be wrong. She likely wandered for a while after last seen (perhaps the year b/w disappearance and JD's discovery?). It's not an interstate, but US-421 connects N Wilkesboro to the Gray area. The most direct route to I-75 from the Harlan area (where US-421 enters KY from VA) would take you past Gray. If this is her, she wasn't killed immediately so lends credence to some wandering. But she is from lot closer (or "easier" taking the mountain roads into account) than some of the other possible matches I've seen.
