Identified! TX - Huntsville, 'Walker County Jane Doe', WhtFem 14-16, 91UFTX, 1 November 1980 - id'd November 2021 - Sherri Ann Jarvis (14)

[Friday Fan]

What city did you use? There's a post above that shows collage station which is super close to walker county and here's a link for Houston which is an hour away from walker county: Houston, TX Weather History | Weather Underground

It was in the 40s at the lowest according to the college station weather.

Now before we get too distracted with what the weather was I started talking about it because someone thought her freckles could've disappeared with the colder months. The weather here is too warm at that time for that dark of a freckle to vanish. Its just not visible in the post mortem and I think it's not visible after the embalming due to the type of foundation they use. Since it's not visible in those photos it's not really shown in the reconstruction.

You can order here: Search | Climate Data Online (CDO) | National Climatic Data Center (NCDC)

It was free.


Sweater weather in College Station!
USW00003904 COLLEGE STATION EASTERWOOD FIELD, TX US 1980-10-31
71 35
USW00003904 COLLEGE STATION EASTERWOOD FIELD, TX US 1980-11-01
74 45

Normally, I would not wear a sweater and jeans on Halloween, but this is much cooler than average, so Sherry was dressed for the weather!

 

[Springrain]

@Springrain, I'm sorry for being confusing. It was Halloween night as we all know. I just have a vague idea of some kids trying to pull a joke/prank on her by telling her she was supposed to meet someone at/by the prison. I don't know. I could be way off. It was just a wild idea that came across my mind. That may not even be what happened.

Oh, OK! I wasn't sure if you meant that it was possible that she was pranked by being told to meet someone or send a message or if her actual murder was some prank that went really wrong.

 

[mastiphal25]

I would also investigate the "employee" who took the necklace and their relatives and friends. What if they took it to make sure her killer doesn't get caught?

 

[Friday Fan]

@Springrain, I'm sorry for being confusing. It was Halloween night as we all know. I just have a vague idea of some kids trying to pull a joke/prank on her by telling her she was supposed to meet someone at/by the prison. I don't know. I could be way off. It was just a wild idea that came across my mind. That may not even be what happened.

I've thought that maybe that was why she was looking for the Ellis Unit. It's Halloween and there is a cemetery there. The cemetery is full of former death row inmates whose families did not claim their bodies, so it would be a spooky place for teenagers to hang out on Halloween.
Unfortunately, she did not make it to the Ellis Unit.

 

[Beekarina]

Another thing to consider: the woman who mentioned Sherry staying with an older couple on her street in Aransas Pass. IF Sherry had actually come from Aransas Pass to Hunstville, a 4 hour journey for a prank seems weird?

If Huntsville is a prison town, Aransas Pass looks like it is mostly fishing and that sort of thing. Strange.

 

[mastiphal25]

Sherry had actually come from Aransas Pass to Hunstville, a 4 hour journey for a prank seems weird?

It's VERY unlikely she traveled there for a prank. She must have had a reason. Oh and I tried to find the comment yesterday. I managed to load some 3,500 comments with replies and stuff and then my PC BSOD'd and restarted. Too much data loaded to RAM. Oh and I'm pretty sure that, by "older" couple, she meant two people in their 30s or maybe 40s, not two 70 year olds. At least that's how it appeared to me

 

[Nell91]

Thank you for explaining the weather to me! Im from the UK where it is generally always cold so I'm not educated at all in other climates!

 

[fhesse]

Thank you @Friday Fan That helps clarify why the first set of directions may have been to unclear, confusing, etc.

There is a simple explanation for why she had to ask for directions several times. When she asked at the gas station for directions to the Ellis prison, she was probably told to go north on Houston Ave. That is the best way to walk on foot, plus she was seen by a witness taking that route. The problem is that to get to Ellis prison, you have to switch to a parallel road at a certain point (e.g., at the intersection with Highway 190). If you get a little confused, you can easily end up on Highway 75, which leads directly to the truck stop. I strongly suspect that's what happened to her.

 

[Beekarina]

Ok. So I do not want to be overly hung up on the directions because I do think you have all laid out reasonable explanations. Here is another thought though:

Sherry (allegedly) travels what would be at least a 4 hour drive if one of us just hopped into a car and drove ourselves from Aransas Pass to Huntsville. She was staying with people in Aransas Pass, and in good health, good condition--i.e. the nice hair cut, the Candies sandals. But for her, unless someone gave her a ride all the way there, but then dumped her off randomly (?), woul have to have involved planning, would have taken longer? This additional trip to Ellis must have been important to her for some reason we do not understand yet, and may never know. It still feels a bit odd to me that at this point that she did not set out for Ellis knowing her actual destination.

Maybe she had a lot of help getting to Texas, and was not really an experienced traveler at this point?

 

[CADwrest]

Ok. So I do not want to be overly hung up on the directions because I do think you have all laid out reasonable explanations. Here is another thought though:

Sherry (allegedly) travels what would be at least a 4 hour drive if one of us just hopped into a car and drove ourselves from Aransas Pass to Huntsville. She was staying with people in Aransas Pass, and in good health, good condition--i.e. the nice hair cut, the Candies sandals. But for her, unless someone gave her a ride all the way there, but then dumped her off randomly (?), woul have to have involved planning, would have taken longer? This additional trip to Ellis must have been important to her for some reason we do not understand yet, and may never know. It still feels a bit odd to me that at this point that she did not set out for Ellis knowing her actual destination.

Maybe she had a lot of help getting to Texas, and was not really an experienced traveler at this point?

IMO, whatever reason she was going, she probably had mostly worried about getting to Huntsville from Aransas Pass, since that’s such a long trip (for someone with no reliable access to transportation.) She probably figured, once she got to Huntsville, she’d just get dropped off and it’d be a relatively quick walk, since the town really isn’t that large.
I think once she got to the Gulf Coast Oil station, she was just told the street directions without a real sense of how far it was, so she just started walking. But then (after IMO making a wrong turn as described above), she got to Hitchin’ Post and got a map drawn for her, and then found out it was still a very long ways off. At that point, she probably decided to call it a night.
In the days before internet searches and Google maps, I can easily see how a relatively inexperienced 14 year old could make those sort of assumptions and mistakes.

 

[rosesfromangels]

Now that Sherry has been identified, I'm hoping LE has solid leads on her motive for going to Texas, who she was attempting to see, and why.
I'm having trouble wrapping my head around a 14 year old (even one that is an adventurous free spirit), embarking on such a journey alone.

BTW, anyone else but me think Sherry bears a striking resemblance to "Buddy" from the old t.v. show Family? Right down to the haircut. : )

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[abbey345]

Now that Sherry has been identified, I'm hoping LE has solid leads on her motive for going to Texas, who she was attempting to see, and why.
I'm having trouble wrapping my head around a 14 year old (even one that is an adventurous free spirit), embarking on such a journey alone.

BTW, anyone else but me think Sherry bears a striking resemblance to "Buddy" from the old t.v. show Family? Right down to the haircut. : )

Omg, I thought the same thing when I saw her photo!(the main one with the longer hair)..She definitely seems like she was a bit of a tomboy, but feminine side at the same time(with the pretty hair and necklace)

However, the of the other photo of her(the one with the shorter hair, smiling from side angle), reminded me of a young Julie McCoy(played by Lauren Tewes) from the tv show, "The Love Boat".

 

[rosesfromangels]

This is a very powerful read, and helps get in the head of a young hitchhiker. In this instance, the author believes she encountered Rhoades, and you will likely find this article as insightful as I did. A very worthy read:
Robert Ben Rhoades: The Truck Stop Killer

This passage really jumped out at me: ".... When you get in a truck at a truck stop, everyone notices. They chatter about it on the CB, and you are driving off in what amounts to a huge billboard advertising the name of the company."

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[rosesfromangels]

We know that her hair wasn't cut, as Rhoades often did and we know that he didn't keep for an extended period of time. But you are right that we don't know about the piercing. Still, nobody has mentioned this detail over the decades. Plus, all the things we do know about the MO of the killer (assaulted with a blunt object, left nude at the side of the rode) doesn't fit with Rhoades.

Again, I'm no expert but Rhoades doesn't seem to be our man here.

I'm sticking with my Rhoades speculation, and here's why. You are right that some of his signature wasn't present. However, that could be explained if he had a deadline to meet, and this was just a quick effort for him. I think this cretin was prolific, and likely is responsible for many more homicides than he has been pinned with definitively. But what leads me to strongly speculate Rhoades is the extreme sadism in this killing. This wasn't "just" rape and choke, this child was horribly brutalized sadistically. Right up Rhoades alley.
Eventually I think we will learn through the autopsy of some of his signature injuries he inflicted on the child.

So in summary, do to the level of sadism and brutality inflicted on the victim, I still think Rhoades should be right at the top of the suspect list.

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[rosesfromangels]

Sorry, I'm not really sure what you mean - would you mind cluing me in a bit as to what you mean?



It's up to 80 in November in Texas? Dang. If it was around that temp when Sherry got to Huntsville, I don't understand why she dressed as warmly as she did, especially with her being from Minnesota and (presumably) used to very cold weather. Maybe it was colder that day, I guess, but I have trouble understanding why a Minnesota girl would wear a blouse and a sweater and jeans in 80-ish weather?

The low that day was 34F, and the high was 72.
Weather History for Huntsville, TX

 

[luulabobss]

An additional photo of Sherry has been posted on the WWWCJD Facebook page as the new profile picture, more in line with her age / how she would have looked at the time of her disappearance.

Log into Facebook

Such a beautiful smile.

 

[luulabobss]

An additional photo of Sherry has been posted on the WWWCJD Facebook page, more in line with her age / how she would have looked at the time of her disappearance.

Log into Facebook

Such a beautiful smile.

Edit: somebody in the comments of the Facebook page enhanced the photo. Hopefully this is okay to share.

 

[fhesse]

There are lots of TDCJ facilities in Huntsville.

Yes, I noticed that as well. Huntsville seems to be strongly dominated by LE. Ellis is just the largest of the correctional facilities. This raises the question of whether she was confused about the prison her "friend" was held in.

Hopefully this is okay to share.

Always a radiant smile on her face. This photo also shows why police described her as having perfect teeth.

 

[fhesse]

This wasn't "just" rape and choke,

Yes, the perpetrator was a deeply depraved psychopath and sadist. So was Rhoades. Also, he was a truck driver, and her killer probably was too. Still, the other elements don't quite add up for me. I wonder if the police were able to check his driving schedule for the relevant time period. After all, I've never seen anyone make such a connection from the official side, although it would be easy to check something like that.

 

[Beekarina]

@rosesfromangels There is a resemblance to Kristy McNichol as a very young Buddy--say the first year or so. Loved that show!