SC SC - Dail Dinwiddie, 23, Columbia, 24 Sep 1992

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Dail's case haunts me. I have several questions and wonder if any of you know the answers.

1) Did anyone related to this case take a poly and if so what were the results?

2) Was the home ever inspected as a crime scene (not accusing family, she could have been abducted out of the home after she arrived)

3) Were the dogs ever brought in to search her trail in 5 points?

Thanks in advance,
 
s_finch said:
Dail's case haunts me. I have several questions and wonder if any of you know the answers.

1) Did anyone related to this case take a poly and if so what were the results?

2) Was the home ever inspected as a crime scene (not accusing family, she could have been abducted out of the home after she arrived)

3) Were the dogs ever brought in to search her trail in 5 points?

Thanks in advance,
Click to expand...

Those are all really good questions. The answers should be available too. Do we know if this case is still being worked as a cold case by LE in Colubmia? I am really close to Columbia and would be willing to schedule a meeting with any detective working the case and compare notes with what we have here. S Finch, aren't you in SC too? Where are you located - I am near Aiken in North Augusta, SC.
 
Reannan said:
Those are all really good questions. The answers should be available too. Do we know if this case is still being worked as a cold case by LE in Colubmia? I am really close to Columbia and would be willing to schedule a meeting with any detective working the case and compare notes with what we have here. S Finch, aren't you in SC too? Where are you located - I am near Aiken in North Augusta, SC.
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I'm about an hour from Columbia...go there a lot! give me a shout if you set something up!
 
Hi Monk and Reannan,

I'm an hour from Columbia in Barnwell County. I've read that the detective who worked this case for so long, Harold Chamber, was willing to talk with anyone that had questions and worked the case until his death. Sadly at that point I wasn't into sleuthing. I don't know what the status is now with the case but someone in LE should, IMHO, be willing to meet and discuss with us. I wonder also if we could file for an Freedom of Information Act. Here's SC's link to their law on FOIA http://www.scattorneygeneral.org/newsroom/pdf/foia.pdf
and below is snippet of what it says regarding LE cases:


Records of law enforcement and public safety agencies not otherwise available by state and federal law that were
compiled in the process of detecting and investigating crime if the disclosure of the information would harm the agency by:
(A) disclosing identity of informants not otherwise known;
(B) the premature release of information to be used in a prospective law enforcement action;
(C) disclosing investigatory techniques not otherwise known outside the government;
(D) by endangering the life, health, or property of any person; or
(E) disclosing any contents of intercepted wire, oral, or electronic communications not otherwise disclosed
during a trial.

So, should we file an FOIA or just go to Columbia and see what they will provide?

One thing I don't want to do is upset the family so I'd like to proceed delicately. I've read Dail has a younger brother and wish we would be interested in talking. Here's where I found out about him (if it is him, I'm always skeptical until something is confirmed) http://www.crimerant.com/?p=213 scroll down to the bottom to read.

I have bookmarked all info about Dail I've been able to find on the net (it's not much) but if you want the links I'll share them.
 
Hi all,

I e-mailed the contact for Doe Case File 530UFKY about the possibility of her being Dail and get a reply that Dail has already been eliminated. Well, at least we know they're working on the various cases.




 
You guys, I work in downtown Columbia. What do you need me to do? I used to work at The State so I know a bit about FOIA and how you proceed in getting information released. (not a LOT, but I'm familiar with it somewhat.) Could we perhaps e-mail the detective in charge of the case, introduce ourselves, and ask for any information that's allowed to be released to the public?

ETA: I know at The State we had a letter written by a lawyer that outlined what we wanted and why we were alllowed to have it under FOIA. And I'm glad the KY Jane Doe isn't Dail, although it would've been nice to have this case resolved.
And I know this sounds nearly impossible but--is there even a ghost of a chance that Dail may be alive? I know we hear a lot about sex rings now but back then I don't remember it being talked about that much. The circumstances would not preclude this possibility, I don't think.
 
Wow, this is amazing that we have this many of us WS's so close by!! I definitely think it would be worthwhile to email the detective, introduce ourselves, and maybe even ask if we could get about 15 minutes of his time. I would definitely be willing to make the one hour trip to Columbia from here in North Augusta to just ask him where the case sits, explain what we do, and just see if there is anything else we can learn. For me, personally, I think one of the biggest questions I would like to know more about is the bouncer who spoke with her and who is officially the last person to see her alive. What is he doing today??
 
This is my first post, but I have been a lurker since the Tiffany Sauers case. I live in Augusta, Ga., but I was born and raised in Aiken. It really is amazing how many people from our area are on this website. I have been haunted by Dail's disappearance. I used to make road trips to visit my friends at USC, and I remember that area very well. It is hard to believe that this case hasn't been solved after all of these years.
 
Aphra, I doubt Dail is still alive because I read on one of the sites that she had asthma very bad and took shots several times a week and always had her inhaler with her and used it daily. I would think just a day or two without medicine, especially during a big stressor, would have been more than her body could handle, but that's jmo. Of course I would love for Dail to be alive but if she isn't, then I'd life for the Dinwiddie family (and us) to have answers and closure.

I definitely would be glad to drive to Cola to meet with the detective. I don't mind contacting him (whoever he is) and seeing about meeting, unless one of you would rather do it.

If we should meet with a detective we would need to get a list together of questions and be organized.

Also, my gut feeling is that whoever did this has probably (statics show) committed similar crimes before or after Dail. I've been looking at similar cases in the southeast trying to find a pattern.

I'm going to look more at the MO of Rivera, I don't think he's ever been totally eliminated. I've even thought of writing him in prison just to see if I could get anything out of him IF he is the perp in this case.

Also, please remember Paula Merchant disappeared without a trace from Cola in 1999.

AND I found this which has me puzzled http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=4015733&blogID=132731397 If you scroll down it says about Dail "she ain't the only girl that never made it home from 5pts." Any of you have a myspace account and can contact this poster and ask her what she knows about other missing girls from 5pts????

Sorry to keep adding so much, but I went to the myspace site of Willie, the guy who made the above one for Dail, and it's creepy---he's from Columbia, lives in Chicago now, is really into music and obviously drugs. I don't know, Dail doesn't seem like someone who he would have hung out with so why does he have a myspace page on her? Weird. And, on his myspace page of her it's just a picture, not a mention at all that she is missing. Again, weird. If he were someone concerned for her wouldn't he have mentioned that she is missing?
Let me know what y'all think. Here's the link to his myspace http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=4015733

AND Willie writes in another myspace account that "There is no place more beautiful in the world than Edisto Avenue, Columbia, SC in Spring. Waccamaw is a close second."
Edisto Avenue runs parallel to Harden Street which is where Dail was last seen and Waccamaw is between them. Both of these roads end not far from 5 pts.
 
See, though, I think that whoever did this to Dail was someone she knows, perhaps someone she was at the concert with and trusted. Maybe it was a male, and he wanted more than she wanted to give, and tragedy ensued. She was so tiny, it would be so easy to overpower her.

I really think her friends may know more than they're telling. (Who leaves a true friend somewhere without asking if she needs a ride home?) Sure, there are skeevy guys at the bars in Five Points, but Dail was in a crowd. I think it was someone in her extended circle. So I'd really like to know how thoroughly they investigated her friends, co-workers, former co-workers, etc., and ESPECIALLY how thoroughly they investigated everyone she was at the concert with that night. Did she pay for the ticket? Did someone else pay for it, perhaps, and then maybe feel "entitled" to something? Who knows. But I'm pretty sure of one thing: somebody's not telling the whole story.
 
Aphra said:
See, though, I think that whoever did this to Dail was someone she knows, perhaps someone she was at the concert with and trusted. Maybe it was a male, and he wanted more than she wanted to give, and tragedy ensued. She was so tiny, it would be so easy to overpower her.

I really think her friends may know more than they're telling. (Who leaves a true friend somewhere without asking if she needs a ride home?) Sure, there are skeevy guys at the bars in Five Points, but Dail was in a crowd. I think it was someone in her extended circle. So I'd really like to know how thoroughly they investigated her friends, co-workers, former co-workers, etc., and ESPECIALLY how thoroughly they investigated everyone she was at the concert with that night. Did she pay for the ticket? Did someone else pay for it, perhaps, and then maybe feel "entitled" to something? Who knows. But I'm pretty sure of one thing: somebody's not telling the whole story.
Click to expand...

Good point about who paid for the ticket.

There is a theory in sleuthing that if more than two people "know" something, one of them will eventually spill the beans.....for example, one may tell out of fear that another one tells first and gets some amount of limited immunity.

I don't believe more than two people know what happened and really I think only the perp knows. Dail was small, would have been very easy to grab and overpower. I guess the only four possibilities are:
1) she accepted a ride from someone she knew and thought she could trust,
2) she was abducted by someone driving by
3) an accident occurred and rather than report it the other party disposed of her
4) she attempted to walk home and was abducted on the way ( the last is the most doubtful theory in my opinion).
 
I've been reading the Richland County Sheriff's website, and apparently you can put in a request for a police report. I don't know if this means accident report (like for insurance purposes), or an investigation report, but it doesn't specifically say "accident" so I'm not sure.

ETA: I forgot it would be the Columbia PD, not the Richland County Sheriff, who'd be handling this. Off to see what the Columbia PD says.
 
It doesn't look like we're going to be able to get a copy of the police report:
****************************************************
(snipped from the Columbia PD website)
Obtaining copies of police reports
For a copy of a police report you filed, you must visit the Records Unit in person with a picture ID and $3 to cover the administrative costs. The more information you can give to a Records Unit employee -- including your name, the location of the crime, and the nature of the crime – the easier it will be to find your record.
Generally, you cannot have a copy of a police report for a crime reported by someone else, as this might compromise the privacy of the victim and witnesses.
******************************************************************************
 
clemsongrad said:
This is my first post, but I have been a lurker since the Tiffany Sauers case. I live in Augusta, Ga., but I was born and raised in Aiken. It really is amazing how many people from our area are on this website. I have been haunted by Dail's disappearance. I used to make road trips to visit my friends at USC, and I remember that area very well. It is hard to believe that this case hasn't been solved after all of these years.
Click to expand...

Welcome Clemsongrad! I also live in the Augusta area, and I grew up in Clemson. Small world, huh?
 
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