NC NC - Sherri Truesdale, 14, Winston-Salem, 13 June 1970

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You know, for a 14-year-old, she was pretty small. Just 4'2 and 75 pounds. I remember when that creep Devlin took Ben Owenby. He seemed to be looking for a boy who fit his desires, namely a kid around 11. Ben was 13 but small. Maybe something similar happened to Sherri; someone looking for a younger girl snatched her because she fit the description, even though she was a teen.

Is there any way to find out if there were sexual offenders in that area who targeted younger girls who would be Sherri's size?
 
Mr. E said:
You know, for a 14-year-old, she was pretty small. Just 4'2 and 75 pounds. I remember when that creep Devlin took Ben Owenby. He seemed to be looking for a boy who fit his desires, namely a kid around 11. Ben was 13 but small. Maybe something similar happened to Sherri; someone looking for a younger girl snatched her because she fit the description, even though she was a teen.
Click to expand...

I can think of another long-missing, 14-year-old girl who was also tiny, but considerably larger than Sherri: Cesilia Pena. She was 4'9 and 111 pounds. http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/p/pena_cesilia.html If I went by Cesilia's pictures, I'd guess she was eight to ten years old.

Except it looks like they know who took Cesilia and he's in prison now.
 
Funny that all these girls disappeared in the seventies and on the eastern seaboard. That's not enough for a connection, however, especially considering they were different races and hundreds of miles apart.
 
Hi Everyone, just wanted to give a small update. A member (Seifsister) here at WS has informed me that Sherri's family has given DNA that was sent to Texas to be added to a database. Like Seifsister says... lets keep our fingers crossed that they will find a match for Sherri and she can be returned to her family.
 
I'm*from*Winston-Salem*and*I*remember*this*case. in*1970*there*was*no*mall*in*Winston-Salem. *if*you*read*the*news*reports*she*was*actually*taking**advertiser censored*bus*downtown *that's*where*most*of*the*shopping*occurred*during*that*time. It would*not*be*unusual*to*take*the*bus*downtown*on*Saturday*and*I*imagine*the*stores*were*pretty crowded*back*the *also*not*to*say*disparaging*things*about*other*posters*but*I*sometimes*wonder*if*people*really*read*the*story before they post *like*the*questions*about*why*she*was*buying*school*supplies. It *clearly*stated*that*she*had*been*accepted*at *advertiser censored*summer*school*program*and*that's*why she*went to*buy*the supplies. *Anyway*I*don't*have*any*details*on*this*case*but*I*just*wanted*to*clear*up**advertiser censored*couple*of*items*and*will*pray*for*her*family
 
Sherri Lee Truesdale

Missing since June 13, 1970 from Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, North Carolina.

Classification: Endangered Missing

Vital Statistics

Date Of Birth: May 15, 1956
Age at Time of Disappearance: 14 years old
Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 4'2; 75 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: Black female. Black hair; brown eyes.
Marks, Scars: A mole above her upper lip and a mole on the back of the base of her neck. She also has pierced ears.
Clothing: A blue shirt, blue bellbottem pants, a girls wristwatch with black leather or plastic band. Pentagon shaped aqua blue earrings and brown loafers.
DNA: Available

Circumstances of Disappearance

On Saturday, June 13, 1970, Sherri left her Pitts Street home about 11:30 to catch a bus downtown. Described as a quiet, studious girl, she had received a scholarship to attend a summer fine-arts program at Mount Tabor High School.

Sherri told her mother she was going to buy some supplies for school, scheduled to start the following Monday. She had also planned to buy some doughnuts for her older sister, and to make a payment on her mother's charge account at Raylass Department Store. The department-store clerk told police that she saw Sherri about 16:30. She was not seen again.

Detectives spent six weeks canvassing downtown and searching for Sherri. She was never found, and there were few clues.

Investigators

If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:

Winston-Salem Police Department
Detective Elwood Craven
336-773-7848
Email: chiefdavis@wspd.org

You may remain anonymous when submitting information.

NCMEC #: NCMC834404

NCIC Number: M-033106784


Please refer to these numbers when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.

Source Information:

The National Center For Missing and Exploited Children
Winston-Salem Journal
The Doe Network: Case File 75DFNC

LINK:

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/75dfnc.html
 
Just wanted to say that someone was thinking of Sherri today. I wish there was more attention being given to this case.
 
Well another year has gone by and not even a single posting on this thread. It appears that Sherri has been forgotten. I imagine that many of her close relatives are gone as well. It is a shame but I wonder if any trace of her will ever be found?
 
Does anyone know if her fellow classmates were questioned? I know when I was 14 if I was waiting for a bus and saw someone I vaguely knew I would catch a ride with them. It seems like she was a pretty smart girl who would not have caught a ride with a stranger, but may catch a ride with an older schoolmate.
 
Bumping, missing for 45 years now. The family submitted DNA a few years ago and that seems to be the only update on Sherri's disappearance. Is this still an active case? It's sad that there hasn't been any significant developments after all these years.
 
With regards to Sherri being seen by a clerk in the department store, was this at the store where she was supposed to make a payment for her mother? If so, was that payment made that day and at what time? If confirmed, that should indicate Sherri's whereabouts at a given place and time. Also wondering that although this was 45 years ago, was there any attempt to see if any security video might have been in use in that store or in any of the stores or other locations she might have visited? It was further noted that it rained heavily that night. Could rain have started falling earlier in the day making it harder for Sherri to wait for the bus and getting a ride with someone what would have seemed a better choice?
 
Merry Christmas Sherri. It's sad that you seem to have been forgotten. My thoughts and prayers are with those you left behind, who have had to struggle with having you taken from them.
 
I have wondered for years is Sherri was a victim of Donald "PeeWee" Gaskins. His first confessed murder was in 1970, he lived and killed in South Carolina and he didn't discriminate as to what racial group he murdered from. (unlike some of the serial killers who only murder a specific type). He claimed to have murdered over 100 people, but was executed in 1991. Just a thought.

As for why Sherri's parents didn't call the police earlier- they may well have- but unless the missing was a small child there was almost no publicity for missing teens at that point and unfortunately, less publicity if you were a person of color. The South in the 1970's was still backwards (I have spent my entire life here) and most missing persons cases weren't taken seriously until after the Adam Walsh case.
 
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