Identified! TX - Huntsville, 'Walker County Jane Doe', WhtFem 14-16, 91UFTX, Nov'80 Sherry Ann Jarvis

[scriptgirl]

I hope they finally can find out who she was, the poor thing.

 

[leilarose68]

Kathy doesn't look unreasonably 18 though... I know the woman who interacted with WCJD felt that there was no way she was 18. I feel like WCJD seems to have a much plumper and more babyish face.

Also, can we estimate the height of Kathy based on the woman who sent in the photo? Kathy looks quite tall in the photo whereas I think WCJD is pretty short, right>?

 

[Springrain]

Kathy doesn't look unreasonably 18 though... I know the woman who interacted with WCJD felt that there was no way she was 18. I feel like WCJD seems to have a much plumper and more babyish face.

That was my first thought too, but after taking the beating and swelling into account and comparing her features side-by-side, they look very close to my non-expert eye.

On Wikipedia it said that Kathy was 5'4, but I have no idea where that info came from--probably an estimate. IIRC WCJD was 5'6, and 2 inches is a minor difference, especially with the 5'4 estimate.

 

[CarlK90245]

That was my first thought too, but after taking the beating and swelling into account and comparing her features side-by-side, they look very close to my non-expert eye.

On Wikipedia it said that Kathy was 5'4, but I have no idea where that info came from--probably an estimate. IIRC WCJD was 5'6, and 2 inches is a minor difference, especially with the 5'4 estimate.

Nobody knows how tall Kathy is. The girl sitting next to her is now a tall adult, but she was only 10 years old when the picture was taken. Anyone who says that Kathy is 5 feet 4 inches is making it up. They have no idea.

WCJD was 5 feet 6 inches tall, which is slightly taller than average for women.

 

[Springrain]

Nobody knows how tall Kathy is. The girl sitting next to her is now a tall adult, but she was only 10 years old when the picture was taken. Anyone who says that Kathy is 5 feet 4 inches is making it up. They have no idea.

WCJD was 5 feet 6 inches tall, which is slightly taller than average for women.

I noticed that part is now removed from Wikipedia. Yeah, that 5'4 seemed random.

 

[WFKS]

The low in Houston on Oct 31, 1980 was 37

 

[carbuff]

The low in Houston on Oct 31, 1980 was 37

That's pretty chilly.

 

[Onfortuneswheel]

I was looking through old newspapers and saw an article in the Galveston Daily News from May 1980 that mentions a runaway girl at a local youth shelter named 'Kitty.' She was featured in a documentary about runaways and testified at congressional hearings on the "Runaway and Homeless Youth Act."

The image isn't the best and she's wearing sunglasses, but I can see some similarities in the nose, lips, and low hairline. I couldn't find anything else about Kitty or a better image of what, I believe, is Kitty testifying before Congress. Does anyone else see similarities?

 

[Springrain]

I was looking through old newspapers and saw an article in the Galveston Daily News from May 1980 that mentions a runaway girl at a local youth shelter named 'Kitty.' She was featured in a documentary about runaways and testified at congressional hearings on the "Runaway and Homeless Youth Act."

The image isn't the best and she's wearing sunglasses, but I can see some similarities in the nose, lips, and low hairline. I couldn't find anything else about Kitty or a better image of what, I believe, is Kitty testifying before Congress. Does anyone else see similarities?

This is VERY interesting! If not WCJD, there are other Jane Does she could be--her story brings Arroyo Grande Jane Doe to my mind. Very interesting and disturbing, sad--great find, Onfortuneswheel!

Would it be possible to obtain a copy of the documentary? How would one go about doing that?

 

[carbuff]

Contact the TV station, probably. There is a resemblance, for sure.

 

[paul1980]

That's even if the documentary was kept - the masters could have been junked as a space saving measure.

 

[zelda_s]

I was looking through old newspapers and saw an article in the Galveston Daily News from May 1980 that mentions a runaway girl at a local youth shelter named 'Kitty.' She was featured in a documentary about runaways and testified at congressional hearings on the "Runaway and Homeless Youth Act."

The image isn't the best and she's wearing sunglasses, but I can see some similarities in the nose, lips, and low hairline. I couldn't find anything else about Kitty or a better image of what, I believe, is Kitty testifying before Congress. Does anyone else see similarities?

I personally see no resemblance between her and WCJD but I think she is a great lead for lots of other UID cases

 

[Flonite]

I see a resemblance. Good find Onfortune! That would be amazing if we could see the documentary, to see her without the sunglasses. I wonder if she would have given her real name to the producers.

 

[KaylaraOwl]

Maybe we can find the lady that ran the shelter then? I found her name in an article on the subject. It's June Bucy.

 

[Flonite]

I did some googling, found a way to search MacNeil Lehrer report archives to see if the documentary is still available. I didn't find anything, but I sent an email to the VP of news hour productions to see if the documentary still exists. We'll see if I get a response.

 

[carbuff]

Probably not a good idea to post links to people who aren't involved in a crime...they tend to get innundated with crazies.

 

[TooCurious]

Unless you guys are seeing something I am not, the article says she ran away from home and found everything that she was missing at the shelter. She didn't run away from the shelter, the shelter was her salvation.

 

[KaylaraOwl]

Probably not a good idea to post links to people who aren't involved in a crime...they tend to get innundated with crazies.

Thanks, I deleted it. Anyway, I can send a message to either profile asking if she was the director mentioned in that article.

 

[Onfortuneswheel]

Thanks, I deleted it. Anyway, I can send a message to either profile asking if she was the director mentioned in that article.

My first thought was to try and contact Dr. Bucy. I thought she'd probably have stayed in touch with Kitty since they traveled to Washington DC together for the Congressional hearings. Unfortunately, she passed away in 2006.

In the minutes of the hearing (pertinent part starts on page 185 of the pdf), Kitty talks about how the Galveston Youth Center paid for her hospital bills at one point. They might have an accounting record but confidentiality/HIPAA would likely be an issue. Kitty's hospital stay was related to malnutrition and Hepatitis. The Jane Doe was described as being healthy. Would they still be able to detect Hepatitis after someone has gone through treatment (I realize this also depends on the type of Hepatitis)?

 

[Flonite]

I heard back from the VP. She hasn't heard of the documentary and she says a search didn't yield any results. She did say she that her office only handles PBS news hour requests though. Maybe more digging would turn up the documentary. :sigh: