TX - 'Lori Ruff', Longview, WhtFem UP9863, *General Discussion and Theories* #5

[llywrch]

I just realized that my sister-in-law could fit some of this description. She has...man issues.

So do most of the women who remind me of LEK -- i.e., they thought if they changed their names it would help them overcome some problem they had in their lives.

And no, the problem wasn't with men. Rather, their problems with men were symptoms of the other problem.

 

[llywrch]

Warning...the video is terrible.

https://youtu.be/0reymFp2Q0E

Indeed it is. Almost as bad as the one I mentioned a few weeks before. The only useful thing is in the comments where we meet with someone who knew LEK. (And the fact that KdB's Mom initially thought LEK didn't like her is a telling sign: it confirms my theory that LEK had problems interacting with other people. She probably had problems empathizing with other people.)

Just my opinion, but I think any of the regulars to this forum could create a better video about LEK than the ones currently on YouTube. Feel free to consider this a challenge. Or a dare.

 

[BigCityAccountant]

Hello all!!!

I know I promised quite a while ago, a map with all of the locations on it. Please see attached. Since almost all the locations are centrally located in and around the area, the map was actually difficult as everything would bunch up together. I may not have all the locations (these are only the TX) but feel free to submit others and I will include them. I did my best to try to exclude info that we are all familiar with or could easily reference. For instance, the resume locations. I just labeled them by years to save space instead of trying to bunch too much information on one map. This is the information I used to compile the map.

ARIZONA
She was from Scottsdale, AZ per obituary
http://www.tributes.com/show/Lori-Erica-Ruff-90422740

CALIFORNIA
Becky Sue Turner, the child who died in a fire whose SSN was stolen by LEK was born in Bakersfield, California in 1969

IDAHO
LEK's Idaho ID card (c. June 1988 listed her address as 7101 El Caballa, Boise, Idaho 83704 (correct spelling for the address is El Caballo Dr.)

NEVADA
LEK had a PO box in Boulder City, Nevada in the late 1980s

TEXAS
Application for Lori Kennedy Social Security number (July 1988: 6102 Mockingbird #191, Dallas, Texas 75214
Passport application (March 1990): 6266 Melody Lane Apt 3079, Dallas, Texas 75231 (Same address used on GED test)
Application for Federal Student Aid (1996/1997): PO Box 810, Euless, TX 76039 817-355-0747
Before 2003, Texas Drivers License (expiration date 7/18/07): 2436 Harwood Rd, 387, Bedford, TX 76021
Resume (2003?): 1978 Oak Creek Lane #16, Bedford, Texas 76022, Home: 817-685-8401, Cell: 817-715-8578, email csengineer2002@yahoo.com
According to her resume she worked in Arlington (2002/2003), Irving (2000-2002), Dallas (1999-2000), Colleyville (1998, Grand Prairie (1998, and Fort Worth (1992-1998, Texas

The following addresses for Lori E. Kennedy with DOB 7/18/69 found on Ancestry.com:
3146 Hudnall St., Dallas, Texas 75235
14400 Statler Blvd, Fort Worth, Tx 76155
2436 Harwood Rd. Apt. 387, Bedford, Texas 76021

This one comes back as a business when googled: Lori E. Kennedy (DOB July 1969)
1111 W. Airport #147, Irving, Texas 75062 (phone number 355-0747)
200 Bear Creek Dr. Apt. 219, Euless, TX 76039 (1995)
P.O. Box 543344 #219, Dallas, TX 75354
3901 Oakridge Ct. Apt. 3815, Fort Worth, TX 76155 (1993)
P.O. Box 810, Euless, Texas 76039 (1995)

Lori E Kennedy – same??? 2913 Colter, Euless Texas 76039 (1998)
Lori L Kennedy – same?? 2913 Penny Ln. Euless Texas 7609 (2008)

WASHINGTON
Becky Sue Turner died in house fire in Fife, Washington in 1971
Becky Sue Turner was living in Tacoma, Washington at time of death
Becky Sue Turner is buried in Puyallup, Washington

Map Key: Yellow Double Faces (Documents Used as FLEK)
Green Pins: Google Searches that have been posted on WS
Blue Pins: Resume

The Mockingbird and Melody Address are a little cut off, as I don't have a bit enough screen to capture the full names (but they are in the top right hand corner). Resume from Ft. Worth is a little cut off too it should be 92-98, but you can only see 2-98. I couldn't zoom in the map, because I then lost important details like the PO Box 810 was jused for the Application for Federal Student Aid as well as found with a google search.

 

[llywrch]

I just have way too many unanswered questions about the life this woman led from roughly 1990 through her marriage to Ruff.

You're not the only one. Welcome to the group.

Except for the mention of stripping, we don’t know where this woman worked, where she lived, how she supported herself, or anything from anybody with any sort of relationship with her, whether it be at the parachuting school, the ladies’ business club, her church, or her doctors. Which is why I get annoyed when a reporter for the Seattle Times dismisses these questions by stating that “the best information is likely to come from people who knew her long ago,” (especially in light of the fact that they appear to have been absolutely unable to find anybody who knew her long ago to give them all of this fabulous information.)

Reread the various main threads. She left a resume, so we know where she worked after graduating from college. And before that, on her passport (IIRC), she listed her line of work as "data entry". As for where she lived, we do have a list of her known addresses from 1992 forward. As well as a bit about her church affiliation. And her bankruptcy papers tells us of one of her creditors is a physiatrist, a doctor who specializes in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation; she likely saw him for chronic pain. (I detailed what PACER reveals of her bankruptcy in post #293 of the thread "TX - 'Lori Ruff', Longview, WhtFem UP9863, *General Discussion and Theories* #3".) Make of that what you will.

This whole “investigation” appears to be something of a joke—The family suddenly seems either completely uninterested in learning the truth, or overly interested in preventing the truth that they have learned from becoming public; Velling admits that the goal of his investigation is to determine whether there was some sort of identity brokerage conducting business back in the late 80’s; and the journalist who wrote the most extensive article on the case poo-poo’s the idea of actually interviewing anybody who actually knew her and dealt with her within the last two decades.

My opinion about the Ruffs have been all over the place since I started looking more closely at this case. Sometimes I find myself thinking they're the villains in the story, sometimes I think we're being unfair to them, & sometimes I wonder if seeking answers to our questions come too close to invading their privacy. They didn't ask for this mystery (or the suicide) to fall into their laps, & it's something I doubt any of us could handle significantly better if it happened to us.

My guess about the family is that they don't know much more than the rest of us -- although they may know something important they're not aware of -- & simply have decided to move on with their lives. They've spent an awful lot of effort on this -- had a private investigator do the first bit of research, then pulled some strings to find some way for the authorities to investigate this mystery, plus other efforts we haven't heard of -- & learned nada about her birth identity. At this point anyone who isn't obsessed with learning who she was would accept it might remain a mystery & move on. After all, there's a little girl who'll turn 8 next month who needs to be taken care of. (And having an 8-year-old daughter of my own, I can tell you that does occupy a lot of your time.)

Or maybe one of the rumors around LEK scared them off, & they decided they didn't want to know any more about her. (I could say which one, but I've gotten in trouble with the mods for "personalizing", so I'll just say anyone who has been following this case can guess which one.)

But we really won't know why they've remained silent about learning the truth unless someone asks them.

 

[BigCityAccountant]

What do you guys think? I know the eyes are a little off~~so please disregard that for a moment~~because I think that is explainable. Both photos are the same person.

 

[SavetheQueen]

What do you guys think? I know the eyes are a little off~~so please disregard that for a moment~~because I think that is explainable. Both photos are the same person.

In my opinion, the lady on the right has a larger mouth. However, I do see a resemblance to where FLEK could be an older version of this lady.

*All statements are that of my own opinion unless otherwise stated. *

 

[sloane7777]

YES , YES AND NO ! Where's karlK he will be able to tell .

 

[tarheelslim]

Closer than most that have been posted here, but still definitely not her IMO.

 

[tarheelslim]

My opinion about the Ruffs have been all over the place since I started looking more closely at this case. Sometimes I find myself thinking they're the villains in the story, sometimes I think we're being unfair to them, & sometimes I wonder if seeking answers to our questions come too close to invading their privacy. They didn't ask for this mystery (or the suicide) to fall into their laps, & it's something I doubt any of us could handle significantly better if it happened to us.

My guess about the family is that they don't know much more than the rest of us -- although they may know something important they're not aware of -- & simply have decided to move on with their lives. They've spent an awful lot of effort on this -- had a private investigator do the first bit of research, then pulled some strings to find some way for the authorities to investigate this mystery, plus other efforts we haven't heard of -- & learned nada about her birth identity. At this point anyone who isn't obsessed with learning who she was would accept it might remain a mystery & move on. After all, there's a little girl who'll turn 8 next month who needs to be taken care of. (And having an 8-year-old daughter of my own, I can tell you that does occupy a lot of your time.)

Or maybe one of the rumors around LEK scared them off, & they decided they didn't want to know any more about her. (I could say which one, but I've gotten in trouble with the mods for "personalizing", so I'll just say anyone who has been following this case can guess which one.)

But we really won't know why they've remained silent about learning the truth unless someone asks them.

Thank you for posting this.

 

[EmiLove832]

I can't recall if we have the answers to your questions but my assumption has always been that the mail drop was in BST's name if she was pretending to be BST when she requested the birth certificate.

I have been wondering lately whether Boulder City was actually FLEK's hometown. Just stripping things back to the simplest explanation, maybe she opened a mail drop there because that's where she lived and was based while she was figuring out the ID change?

I've been thinking a lot about the Boulder City PO Box, I don't think she ever lived in Boulder City because it's too small of a town to "hide" in. The current population is just over 15,000.

There are two routes from Arizona to Las Vegas, 93 and 95. The 93 takes you over Hoover Dam then through Boulder City and the 95 avoids Hoover Dam and merges into the 93 about 5 miles from Boulder City. Maybe she felt it was a safe distance to have a PO Box without anyone knowing her?

There are truths in every lie, I'm leaning towards being from Arizona as one of her truths.

I really want to know what was on the Arizona phonebook page she kept! :gaah:

 

[Katinka]

Traveling to Boise and Boulder City really puzzles me. FLEK did an awful lot of traveling between May and July of 1988 and the visits to Boise and Boulder City make me think that she didn’t take public transportation during this period. Did she have a driver’s license, a car and how did she pay for the travel?

· We assume FLEK was in LA prior to May of 1988 because of the note page. You can get around LA without a car, but it is difficult.

· In May of 1988 she travels to Bakersfield to obtain the birth certificate. LA to Bakersfield and back by bus takes 2 ½ to 3 hours each way and driving is about 2 hours each way.

· Between May and June of 1988 she travels from LA to Boise. The trip takes 13 hours by car or 28 hours by bus. Why travel so far to get an ID? Why not take a four hour trip to Vegas if she thought it was too risky to get the ID in the same state as the birth certificate?

· She is in Boise on 6/18/88 to obtain the BST ID card and the next concrete date we have is the name change to LEK Dallas on 7/5/88. The most direct driving route from Boise to Dallas takes 24 hours and does not go through Nevada. The bus takes between 37 and 42 hours to make the trip and also doesn’t go through Nevada. To open the PO Box in Boulder City on this trip, she would have to take the bus from Boise to Vegas, disembark in Vegas, travel to Boulder City and back to Vegas using public transportation and then take the bus from Vegas to Dallas. Even if she drove she was going out of her way to stop in Boulder City. Why Boulder City?

· Here is the big puzzler. There are only 17 days between obtaining the BST ID in Idaho and the name change in TX. According to current TX name change polices, one has to be a resident of TX for at least six months prior to the name change. The TX name change policy was amended in 1995. IDK if the residency requirements were the same in 1988 or if they were changed in 1995. If they were the same, she would have to travel to Dallas on or before 01/88 to set up residency as BST prior to obtaining the birth certificate.

Overview of Process in Texas
In the state of Texas, an adult who wishes to change his or her name must be a resident of Texas for at least six months and must file a Petition in the District Court of the county where he or she resides and must be a resident of said County for at least ninety days as detailed above. The Petition informs the Court of the Petitioner's name, the name the Petitioner wishes to assume, the reasons for the change and other personal information required by statute. The Petition must be notarized.
A party filing a Petition for name change for an adult shall present to the District Court, upon filing of the Petition, a set of fingerprints of the person whose name is to be changed. The Petitioner shall be responsible for the costs of obtaining fingerprints and other costs which may be incurred upon filing.
Once you file your Petition for name change, you should schedule a time to ask the Judge to approve your name change. At this time, the Court shall proceed at chambers to hear and determine all matters raised by the Petition and to render final judgment or decree thereon. The Court may then proceed to enter an Order of approval of name change.
The granting of a Petition for change of name is discretionary with the Court, and the Court may deny a Petition on grounds, which would not constitute lawful objection. For an Order of name change to be granted, the Court must find sufficient reasons for the change and also find the name change in the interest or to the benefit of the Petitioner and in the interest of the public. A person is not allowed to change his/her name in order to avoid judgments or legal actions against him or her, or to avoid debts and obligations. A person cannot change his/her name to defraud another person.
The law which governs name changes in Texas is Texas Family Code, chapter 45. This information can be reviewed here: Texas Name Change Laws.

 

[Katinka]

I've been thinking a lot about the Boulder City PO Box, I don't think she ever lived in Boulder City because it's too small of a town to "hide" in. The current population is just over 15,000.

There are two routes from Arizona to Las Vegas, 93 and 95. The 93 takes you over Hoover Dam then through Boulder City and the 95 avoids Hoover Dam and merges into the 93 about 5 miles from Boulder City. Maybe she felt it was a safe distance to have a PO Box without anyone knowing her?

There are truths in every lie, I'm leaning towards being from Arizona as one of her truths.

I really want to know what was on the Arizona phonebook page she kept! :gaah:

I agree. Boulder City was far enough away that she felt safe opening a PO Box in that location. I wonder how she accessed her mail once she was settled in Dallas? I sent a few pictures of BST/FLEK and a link to this site to a mail service in Boulder City that has been in business since 1976. Maybe someone will recognize her.

 

[SavetheQueen]

I agree. Boulder City was far enough away that she felt safe opening a PO Box in that location. I wonder how she accessed her mail once she was settled in Dallas? I sent a few pictures of BST/FLEK and a link to this site to a mail service in Boulder City that has been in business since 1976. Maybe someone will recognize her.

Good thinking!

*All statements are that of my own opinion unless otherwise stated. *

 

[Laughing]

If this was so important to FLEK, I do hope the Ruffs visit with the daughter.

The picture of FLEK in the pink dress and the hat, holding the baby on her lap-- was that taken here in Chelsea's Boutique?

Lord, lead the Mom & son to clearly describe this Not-From-Texas accent, and quick!

:seeya:

 

[Sherwood Park]

Wow, I don't know what to think about his claims. The info about the tea room and his mom knowing her when she went to UT Arlington is very interesting. I'm going to take the parts about her acting like she was 10 and liking disney princess stuff with a huge grain of salt. I looked this kid up and he was only 8-10 years old himself (if I have the right one). It could be she acted like a kid while talking to him because HE was a kid. I know some people that do that--talk like little kids when talking to kids-- and they come off as creepy because kids can tell when you are not talking like an adult. I want to hear from his mom. If his story is true, his mom would be the first we have heard who knew Lori during her college days. Although that tea house seems like it's only for kids today, I wonder if back in the 90's they had more average adult women tea-room clientele. Can anyone look up their website on archive.org and see what the site looked like in the 90's? (for some reason archive isn't loading for me). Maybe Lori went there to study like some students go to coffee houses to study?

It might not be a good idea to "look up" certain people who come forward as having known FLEK. I have always had a feeling that this might be one of the reasons why people who knew FLEK, prior or post identity change, haven't come forward. People who have nothing to do with this case probably don't want to be sleuthed.

 

[EmiLove832]

I agree. Boulder City was far enough away that she felt safe opening a PO Box in that location. I wonder how she accessed her mail once she was settled in Dallas? I sent a few pictures of BST/FLEK and a link to this site to a mail service in Boulder City that has been in business since 1976. Maybe someone will recognize her.

I believe the Boulder City mailing business offered mail forwarding, she could've utilized that service.

 

[newfiedee]

I think if they didn't, they would have done the same as the guy who came on here before .......saying he knew her. i dont think this person knows enough about Flek to help identify her but it does prove that she was in arlington as that is where the boutique was and in lori's resume she was apparently in arlington 2002

 

[awillis0513]

I think if they didn't, they would have done the same as the guy who came on here before .......saying he knew her. i dont think this person knows enough about Flek to help identify her but it does prove that she was in arlington as that is where the boutique was and in lori's resume she was apparently in arlington 2002

He says to have known her in the early 1990s.

I will say my interest in his comments was actually more as a way to understand her actions better. I don't think she was downright crazy. I think her actions were driven by circumstances that were horrible enough, at least to her, to make her want to totally throw away her identity. To me, that's the mystery.

I'll be super honest...I don't think we will find out who she is from missing persons reports. I think, especially given the timeline of this case, she has gone unclaimed for a reason. I don't think anyone is looking for the person she was before she was BST/LEK. That is the worst part of this whole thing and, I think, what drives us to solve it. We all can imagine how horrible it would be to go missing and have no one interested in finding you.

So, that's my two cents, for what they're worth. That's where my interest is...it also made me put in the public records request to see what more is out there. The part of me that fears not being remembered wants to figure out her story.

 

[llywrch]

Lord, lead the Mom & son to clearly describe this Not-From-Texas accent, and quick!

From what the "son" said, I understand it was a neutral accent, &primarily characterized by the careful & precise pronunciation. Which means she could have come from any where. And unless she used some words that clearly localized her -- which he may not remember after 20+ years -- it's doubtful we'll ever get closer to where she came from than "not from Texas".

 

[FrankieB]

I think his comments are more insightful and genuine than what spring88 said, which basically said nothing and could have described anyone. On a completely different note, can't she just be Lori or Lek? I don't see why it has to be flek.