MA MA - Simone Ridinger, 17, Sherborn, 2 Sept 1977

[Sweetluv]

Refresh my memory, did Simone recently visit the BF in jail or was she suppose to the day she went missing? Wondering if he was questioned about her demeanor or if she said anything about the planned trip?

 

[Beekarina]

Boyfriend in jail? Curious where that thought came from?

I go back and forth with wondering if Simone could be Walker County Jane Doe. More recently, I decided no, but a boyfriend in jail makes me wonder what I might have overlooked.

 

[Alleykins]

Boyfriend in jail? Curious where that thought came from?

I go back and forth with wondering if Simone could be Walker County Jane Doe. More recently, I decided no, but a boyfriend in jail makes me wonder what I might have overlooked.

IIRC, the information about visiting a boyfriend in jail was in an article a few posts back.

 

[Sweetluv]

Yes, read the Cape Cod Times article...mentions BF.
Also mentions sister offering her a ride and Simone declined stating she didn't need one...?? I find this interesting

 

[Beekarina]

Ok, I found it. This is interesting:

"On Sept. 17, police visited Ridinger’s boyfriend, who was in the Billerica House of Correction at the time. He told them Ridinger had stopped writing to him and he sounded concerned, police said.
Ridinger had special visitation privileges at the jail the day police talked to the boyfriend, but she never showed up, according to police reports."

from: Cold case: Where is Simone Ridinger?

I'm going to cross post in WCJD. I wonder if Simone may have been friendly with other inmates?

 

[Beekarina]

Yes, read the Cape Cod Times article...mentions BF.
Also mentions sister offering her a ride and Simone declined stating she didn't need one...?? I find this interesting

Thank you both!

So....I wonder when the visit for the 17th would have been arranged? Prior to Simone's disappearance? Or after? It is a bit strange she would refuse a ride with her sister. Perhaps truly innocent, and she simply had an errand or two to run and felt she had transportation covered after, OR she had no intention of joining her family and saw this as an ideal time to leave the area?

 

[Sweetluv]

I wonder if Simone started seeing someone...that's why she stopped writing and didn't visit the BF. If a family member offered a ride and she declined, I cant imagine it would be because she preferred to hitchhike. If she was seeing someone, maybe they were going to give her a ride and she met foul play. It has crossed my mind that since she was a free spirit, did she leave on her own accord?

 

[Beekarina]

I wonder if Simone started seeing someone...that's why she stopped writing and didn't visit the BF. If a family member offered a ride and she declined, I cant imagine it would be because she preferred to hitchhike. If she was seeing someone, maybe they were going to give her a ride and she met foul play. It has crossed my mind that since she was a free spirit, did she leave on her own accord?

Right...It seems plausible she figured out there was a window of time where people might not realize she was missing, what with the home being off-grid, and her own schedule being somewhat flexible and free-wheeling. Maybe someone else knew and took advantage?

One thing I found interesting with the other UID mentioned a few posts prior, the girl with a guitar? Simone played piano, and played it well. She was musical.

With CODIS, should we assume automatic rule outs? Or is it manual and are they not always compared? I'm not clear how that works?

 

[Ozoner]

Ok, I found it. This is interesting:

"On Sept. 17, police visited Ridinger’s boyfriend, who was in the Billerica House of Correction at the time. He told them Ridinger had stopped writing to him and he sounded concerned, police said.
Ridinger had special visitation privileges at the jail the day police talked to the boyfriend, but she never showed up, according to police reports."

from: Cold case: Where is Simone Ridinger?

I'm going to cross post in WCJD. I wonder if Simone may have been friendly with other inmates?

I wonder whether she was friendly with any of the turnkeys who worked at the jail or any of the cops who might have frequented the jail in the course of their duties.

With CODIS, should we assume automatic rule outs? Or is it manual and are they not always compared? I'm not clear how that works?

I think we can assume automatic rule outs if both the Jane Doe and the missing person have DNA on file.

 

[Sweetluv]

Or had regular customers at the diner...maybe met someone there.

 

[Beekarina]

re: "Simone was just a teenager, known to wear bohemian clothes and turquoise rings and play the guitar. She was described as “independent” and a “free spirit” by friends and family and was also known to hitchhike."

On Teen's 60th Birthday, Detective Still Holds Out Hope

Hmmm... Simone DID play guitar. Maybe @ivonne was on to something? From reading the thread here for that UID, it looks as though details were estimated, and DNA, etc is unknown.

 

[Sweetluv]

Ok, so not sure about police "protocol" in the late 70s..the elderly man that stated he was pulled over by this cop who had Simone sitting in the back of his cruiser...why was he pulled over and would the cop not have radioed in this traffic stop? Also, if Simone was already in the cop car when the elderly man was pulled over, am I assuming correctly the cop was driving around with Simone in the backseat?

 

[Ozoner]

Ok, so not sure about police "protocol" in the late 70s..the elderly man that stated he was pulled over by this cop who had Simone sitting in the back of his cruiser...why was he pulled over and would the cop not have radioed in this traffic stop? Also, if Simone was already in the cop car when the elderly man was pulled over, am I assuming correctly the cop was driving around with Simone in the backseat?

Did the old man specifically say that Simone was in the back of the cruiser? That might suggest that she was a stranger to the cop and had been picked up for hitchhiking. If she was sitting in the front seat, that might indicate that she had some kind of personal relationship with the cop.

 

[Alleykins]

It sounds like the witness stated the trooper told him he had a girl in the back of the cruiser. I just assumed it meant she was. (BBM from the article linked below the quote):

The man said that on Saturday, Sept. 3, 1977, at about 6:45 a.m., he was driving to the Cape along Route 128. He said he was pulled over by a state trooper near the intersection of routes 128 and 109. After interacting with the trooper and explaining that he was on his way to Cape Cod, the man said the trooper told him he had a girl in the back of his cruiser who was also trying to get to the Cape.

Cold case: Where is Simone Ridinger?

 

[Alleykins]

Or had regular customers at the diner...maybe met someone there.

Ironic you should posit this. In this article, it stated one of the Sherbourne PD officers, who knew Simone & her family, was a regular customer where she worked.

Stevens said he would get breakfast at the Rainbow Restaurant almost every day.

“Basically, she waited on me every morning,” he said.

Cold case: Where is Simone Ridinger?

 

[Alleykins]

About Simone having a boyfriend in jail:

On Sept. 17, police visited Ridinger’s boyfriend, who was in the Billerica House of Correction at the time. He told them Ridinger had stopped writing to him and he sounded concerned, police said.

Ridinger had special visitation privileges at the jail the day police talked to the boyfriend, but she never showed up, according to police reports.

Cold case: Where is Simone Ridinger?

 

[cadetcallie]

This morning I submitted the Lumberton Jane Doe as a potential match for Simone to the regional specialist for her case. I'm hoping that with the active investigation I will receive a response soon, and be able to post back here with an update

 

[cadetcallie]

I didn’t receive a response from NAMUS beyond the standard system reply, which isn’t surprising considering their staff has been reduced by more than half. So I emailed Det. Godinho in charge of this case and he quickly responded, letting me know that Simone and Jane Doe will be compared by NCMEC! Hopefully we will have an answer on this match soon.

 

[cadetcallie]

Lumberton Jane Doe has been listed as an exclusion for Simone on NamUs. If anyone has another potential match for Simone I highly suggest contacting Detective Godinho as he is continuing to search for answers in her case. We are one step closer to bringing both girls home to their families.

 

[MadMcGoo]

3 Nov 1977, 12 - The Boston Globe at Newspapers.com



5 Jan 2020, B1 - The Boston Globe at Newspapers.com