Identified! PA - White Haven, 'Beth Doe' & Unborn Baby 169UFPA, 16-22, Dec'76 - #2 - Evelyn Colon

[Trident]

This portion of the bedspread isn't what I remember. Years ago I believe I saw a dirty whitish chenille bedspread. Maybe I'm remembering incorrectly, but this pic looks too pristine, not something a body was wrapped in. IMO

 

[carbuff]

Maybe a piece of the blanket was cut out to wrap up the baby?
imo

The baby was full term but wasn't born yet.

I went to the authoritative source, CCJD's pamissing page, for the details about the bedspread rather than relying on my memory. Bolding by me.

"The chenille bedspread was cut into three pieces. It was worn and dirty but appeared to be a rust or coral color with an embroidered yellow flower with dark green and pink design. ... Some of the body parts had been wrapped in a chenille bedspread and the torso had been covered with a newspaper."

The additional photos include a ruler to measure the scale. It looks to me like the yellow flower is a bit over six inches square: http://www.pamissing.com/bethdoephotos.html

CCJD, do you know if the three pieces mean one piece was used in each suitcase? Or has that not been released?

 

[Roselvr]

The baby was full term but wasn't born yet.

I went to the authoritative source, CCJD's pamissing page, for the details about the bedspread rather than relying on my memory. Bolding by me.

"The chenille bedspread was cut into three pieces. It was worn and dirty but appeared to be a rust or coral color with an embroidered yellow flower with dark green and pink design. ... Some of the body parts had been wrapped in a chenille bedspread and the torso had been covered with a newspaper."

The additional photos include a ruler to measure the scale. It looks to me like the yellow flower is a bit over six inches square: http://www.pamissing.com/bethdoephotos.html

CCJD, do you know if the three pieces mean one piece was used in each suitcase? Or has that not been released?

Here are all 4 photos together. Want to get back here tomorrow to get a better look. Have to run errands so don't have time now. Glad you checked. I was there yesterday but got side tracked lol

 

[dotr]

This woman is missing from Australia, however she is from Germany and only in Australia for a short time before going missing.
She left a note stating she would return in a week. Posting just in case.
https://www.missingpersons.gov.au/who-missing/qld/notz-lydia

Lydia Martha NOTZ

 

[apearn]

These disappearances and murders were a little more than an hour south of White Haven and involved adults and children, so, I'm going to park this thought here and go double check the isotope info for Beth later. Maybe there is some connection.

CP has info on the missing cases that say that Dr. Smith was arrested at a mall with a gun(s) and a syringe of a sedative. http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/h/hunsberger_edward.html

I go to the mall occasionally......it never occurred to me to bring a gun and a tranquilizer. Interesting........

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/joe-owens/index.ssf/2009/05/jay_c_smith_is_dead_while_the.html

 

[Daisy1980]

So, I'm new here, but tried reading this topic thoroughly and have read almost every post here on WS as well as some outside links. A few questions, forgive me if these were already answered.

Could the "bedspread" be a bathrobe?

Was the infant's dna run through genealogy-type screening - which would indicate father's ethnicity further than "white"?

Suitcases - How close was the plaid pattern in the recreation - was it the best guess so people could better visualize it or is it as accurate as possible? Has it been run through the "tartan" plaid pattern - finder? Although pattern looks odd to me its more rectangular than square. Also I've looked through many images and haven't found a style with the leather corners like that or that particular metal handle style.

What are your opinions of the suitcases? Do they match in style because they are husband/wife and bought for a honeymoon? Are they discarded from the manufacturer like I saw referenced in that one link - it looks to me like the handles were actually upside-down. Wouldn't the triangular thick part of the leather be on the bottom of the suitcase?

Has the type of suitcase LE thinks it may be been publicly shared?

 

[Daisy1980]

A few more questions:

Did it appear she may have been wearing a wedding ring?

Could any medical examiner, etc, tell if she had a baby before?

How many sections were usually in the NY newspaper found in the suitcases?

was a search done at all for another suitcase containing the rest of the remains?

 

[dotr]

So, I'm new here, but tried reading this topic thoroughly and have read almost every post here on WS as well as some outside links. A few questions, forgive me if these were already answered.

Could the "bedspread" be a bathrobe?

Was the infant's dna run through genealogy-type screening - which would indicate father's ethnicity further than "white"?

Suitcases - How close was the plaid pattern in the recreation - was it the best guess so people could better visualize it or is it as accurate as possible? Has it been run through the "tartan" plaid pattern - finder? Although pattern looks odd to me its more rectangular than square. Also I've looked through many images and haven't found a style with the leather corners like that or that particular metal handle style.

What are your opinions of the suitcases? Do they match in style because they are husband/wife and bought for a honeymoon? Are they discarded from the manufacturer like I saw referenced in that one link - it looks to me like the handles were actually upside-down. Wouldn't the triangular thick part of the leather be on the bottom of the suitcase?

Has the type of suitcase LE thinks it may be been publicly shared?

Welcome to WS Daisy1980 !
Great questions about the suitcases.
:welcome:

 

[dotr]

http://pennsylvaniamissing.com/bethdoephotos.html

The three suitcases that the dismembered remains of Beth Doe and her unborn child were stuffed into, then thrown off of I-80 to land on the banks of the Lehigh River, 300 feet below.

http://standardspeaker.com/news/new-images-released-in-1976-beth-doe-case-1.1881892
By Jill Whalen / Published: May 15, 2015

“Those suitcases were pretty damaged, just by the fall from the bridge. They were also spray-painted black, and it was hard to see what they looked like. Back in ’76, when the pictures were released, most everything was black and white,” Schweitzer said.

The new images show how the suitcases would have appeared before they were painted. Two are blue with single red, white and blue stripes, and one is green plaid trimmed with brown. The inside pattern is also shown, as is a section of the pink patterned bedspread.
“We don’t know if these items belong to the victim or belong to the offender. We’re trying to put out as much information as we can,” Schweitzer said. “In many cases, suitcases are used for years and years by people, so maybe someone will recognize them.”
Schweitzer said it would also be “helpful” to determine the suitcase manufacturer, since investigators haven’t been able to determine that information

 

[Daisy1980]

thanks for the warm welcome

so, in 2011 LE said that they had found a manufacturer that cut off handles of pieces that were discarded, in 2015 the public release said they were still looking for manufacturer? is that correct? if so did they rule out that manufacturer or was it still a possibility? Or had they meant in general in might have been a manufacturing reject? makes sense with 3 suitcases of same size.

Also, the pink bedspread again - is there somewhere that shows the shapes of the three individual pieces?
And, I feel like the composite shows straight up and down lines when in the photo of the pieces, its a slight wavy pattern. what do you think?

what about this bedspread? http://d2ydh70d4b5xgv.cloudfront.ne...ers-dots-3c7f1f585b078ecfce568a8054273598.jpg
http://www.terapeak.com/worth/vinta...cutter-blue-yellow-flowers-dots/181980592386/

 

[CountEveryMoment]

I would say the the handles had the family's last name and possible first name written on them. My father said that my Grandmother had a habit of labeling everything with last names, and or first names because then there would less than likely be mix ups. So it could be the handles were taken off because of their names being on them. I think that it could be possible with a mixture of the spray painted suit cases it could be that the murderer said that she had left and didn't want anyone to recognize the suitcases knowing that someone could suspect or know that it was her. It could be sadly possible that she wasn't ever reported missing.

 

[Daisy1980]

I would say the the handles had the family's last name and possible first name written on them. My father said that my Grandmother had a habit of labeling everything with last names, and or first names because then there would less than likely be mix ups. So it could be the handles were taken off because of their names being on them. I think that it could be possible with a mixture of the spray painted suit cases it could be that the murderer said that she had left and didn't want anyone to recognize the suitcases knowing that someone could suspect or know that it was her. It could be sadly possible that she wasn't ever reported missing.

I go back and forth between thinking they were owned by the victim/family or the assailant. It seems like a set (like the stripe) would contain one larger and smaller suitcase - or even a set of three. But then I also think the style of handle would have been pretty flat, ideal for labeling with a name.

I wonder if any current technology could detect initials on the suitcase underneath the spray paint.

I also found this: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/2618948/acme-delivery-service-v-samsonite-corp/
Later than the events in this case, but shows other possibilities exist than intentional discarding by manufacturer for someone to get their hands on suitcases

 

[alliemay]

Long ago I asked my son why someone would spray black paint on a zipper of a suitcase. He told me if the paint was like black tar paint it would be used to seal the suitcase so nothing could get in or out. I thought about that some. The person who did this expected these suitcases to float down the river away from where they were thrown in. Black tar paint on the zipper would prevent the water from seeping in and the suitcases would remain floating. Now I am wondering if the zipper part was painted with a brush which is how you would use the tar paint, I think I'm not sure. Then maybe the rest of the suitcase was spray painted black. Why would it matter to the killer if her parts where found there under the bridge or found in another location down the river. I also though the handles might have been cut off so the suitcases handles would not get caught up in tree debris along the river bank. Again if that were true why would it matter what part of the river she was found in. Why suitcases, there had to be reason otherwise why not just put everything in garbage bags and throw them over the bridge.

 

[apearn]

I saw a show once about John McCain when he was a POW and he said that he tried to find shiny things to reflect the sun and signal planes. He said that most things in nature are not reflective so military pilots check out things that are. It just made me wonder if the killer here had some military knowledge like that.

It could just be that he wanted it to blend into the bottom of the river also.

 

[dotr]

Long ago I asked my son why someone would spray black paint on a zipper of a suitcase. He told me if the paint was like black tar paint it would be used to seal the suitcase so nothing could get in or out. I thought about that some. The person who did this expected these suitcases to float down the river away from where they were thrown in. Black tar paint on the zipper would prevent the water from seeping in and the suitcases would remain floating. Now I am wondering if the zipper part was painted with a brush which is how you would use the tar paint, I think I'm not sure. Then maybe the rest of the suitcase was spray painted black. Why would it matter to the killer if her parts where found there under the bridge or found in another location down the river. I also though the handles might have been cut off so the suitcases handles would not get caught up in tree debris along the river bank. Again if that were true why would it matter what part of the river she was found in. Why suitcases, there had to be reason otherwise why not just put everything in garbage bags and throw them over the bridge.

The person must have thought the suitcases would be recognized, and probably pleased that they have not been.....yet.
Somehow thinking it takes a certain kind of person to use spray paint, i don't think it was as common in 1976 as it is in these days of graffiti and diy projects.imo

 

[carbuff]

It was around though. But that's a very heavy coating. Commercial sprayer?




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[alliemay]

Thinking this luggage was manufactured before 1970. From what I am reading on google "wheeled" luggage came about in the "70's", and I am not seeing any wheels on this luggage.

 

[Nikon]

The person must have thought the suitcases would be recognized, and probably pleased that they have not been.....yet.
Somehow thinking it takes a certain kind of person to use spray paint, i don't think it was as common in 1976 as it is in these days of graffiti and diy projects.imo

Spray painting was very common then, like today.

 

[Alleykins]

Spray painting was very common then, like today.

I agree, spray paint was widely used back then, too.

 

[CCJD]

Several years ago, I was involved in a project that entailed liquidating old stock (household goods, apparel) for a particular retailer. For items deemed unsellable (imperfections, recalls, etc.) we were instructed to put them into the dumpster and spray paint them for no other reason than to prevent dumpster divers from salvaging the stuff and trying to "return" them to the retailer for cash.

I suspect the same is true for the suitcases. Maybe it was the manufacturer that used this method to discard unsellable items, maybe the retailer. Maybe they were taken from a dumpster or from their eventual destination, a landfill aka, as we used to call it back in the day, the local dump. Dumps were a treasure trove for scavengers back then. I can still remember trips to the dump on a Saturday where there would be a line of cars going in to dispose of any manner of unwanted, but not necessarily unusable, household goods and an equal amount of folks picking through the stuff to find usable items to take home. One man's junk is another man's treasure. True today, true back then.