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

[BayouGypsy]

I wonder if there is a way to find out if there is a connection? I took a minute to Google James David Autry and found out that he had a brother who killed an elderly woman in 1984. She was beaten, raped and strangled and the article mentioned "bite marks". He committed suicide in prison in 1988. His name was Robert Allen Autry.

 

[Roselvr]

Is anyone here good at Google news archives? Would like to see if we can find an article from back then that describes what she was wearing because the new article says different then what we've always thought.

New - Yellow pullover shirt
Dirty white colored knit sweater with big pockets, length past the waist line

From Porch light Dec 23, 2006 - 09:04 AM East Texas Today magazine - Whose Child is This? - by Michael L. Hargraves

She had been wearing blue jeans, a yellow pullover sweater with big pockets that hung below her waist, and she was carrying high-heeled sandals in her hand.

 

[carbuff]

I'll see what I can find Friday when I get back to my laptop. Seems like I remember looking up articles on her before; hopefully I saved them.


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[coonhound]

I was looking into the mention of Ellis Prison and wondered if anyone has ever examined a possible connection to James David Autry?

Autry was sentenced to death for shooting and killing a convenience store clerk in Port Arthur, TX on April 20, 1980. He was moved to Ellis Prison on October 10, 1980 and executed on March 14, 1984.

I was hoping to read back about coverage of the trial but unfortunately, Port Arthur News is digitized for every year between 1921 and the present, except 1980.

http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth500309/m1/1/zoom/

Autry was one of 6 kids with divorced parents. He was born in Amarillo and was in youth detention (Gatesville) by age 13 as a runaway. He bounced in and out of incarceration for the next 13 years. In January of 1980 he moved to Port Arthur and worked in the propane industry. Not 4 months after his arrival he is arrested for murder. Interestingly, Autry did have 2 pen pals that attended his execution- a man from Houston and a married woman (with 3 kids) from the Dallas area.

Nevertheless, Port Arthur is quite a ways up the coast from Port Aransas/Rockport. I doubt there is connection specifically with Autry, but this is the line of thinking investigators should be pursuing.

Coincidentally, his mother, his victim and his female, married pen pal all shared the first name Shirley.

 

[Onfortuneswheel]

Is anyone here good at Google news archives? Would like to see if we can find an article from back then that describes what she was wearing because the new article says different then what we've always thought.

New - Yellow pullover shirt
Dirty white colored knit sweater with big pockets, length past the waist line

From Porch light Dec 23, 2006 - 09:04 AM East Texas Today magazine - Whose Child is This? - by Michael L. Hargraves

She had been wearing blue jeans, a yellow pullover sweater with big pockets that hung below her waist, and she was carrying high-heeled sandals in her hand.

Do we know when the police first asked for the help of the press? I'm having a hard time finding any mention in the newspapers from the 80s, although I could just be using modern terminology for my search terms and she was described differently but I left my search pretty broad.

 

[Onfortuneswheel]

Is anyone here good at Google news archives? Would like to see if we can find an article from back then that describes what she was wearing because the new article says different then what we've always thought.

New - Yellow pullover shirt
Dirty white colored knit sweater with big pockets, length past the waist line

From Porch light Dec 23, 2006 - 09:04 AM East Texas Today magazine - Whose Child is This? - by Michael L. Hargraves

She had been wearing blue jeans, a yellow pullover sweater with big pockets that hung below her waist, and she was carrying high-heeled sandals in her hand.

Here's a more recent article that is tagged as having their information provided by the Walker County Sheriff's department: http://walker.countynewstoday.com/front-page-slider/1980-murder-case-still-an-open-investigation/

They describe WCJD as such:

"Physical description:5 feet 6 inches, 108 lbs
Hazel eyes
15-20 years old
Brown hair 10 inches in length
Toenails painted pink with nail polish
Fingernails not painted
Ears pierced (no earrings or studs)
Inverted right nipple

Clothing:
Blue jeans
Yellow pullover shirt
Dirty white colored knit sweater with big pockets, length pass the waist line
Leather sandal shoes
Rectangular penchant with brown stone (some described as smoky stone) on gold chain"

 

[carbuff]

http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth500309/m1/1/zoom/

Autry was one of 6 kids with divorced parents. He was born in Amarillo and was in youth detention (Gatesville) by age 13 as a runaway. He bounced in and out of incarceration for the next 13 years. In January of 1980 he moved to Port Arthur and worked in the propane industry. Not 4 months after his arrival he is arrested for murder. Interestingly, Autry did have 2 pen pals that attended his execution- a man from Houston and a married woman (with 3 kids) from the Dallas area.

Nevertheless, Port Arthur is quite a ways up the coast from Port Aransas/Rockport. I doubt there is connection specifically with Autry, but this is the line of thinking investigators should be pursuing.

Coincidentally, his mother, his victim and his female, married pen pal all shared the first name Shirley.

Are the pen pal's three kids all accounted for?


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[Roselvr]

I'll see what I can find Friday when I get back to my laptop. Seems like I remember looking up articles on her before; hopefully I saved them.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I could have swore someone did

Do we know when the police first asked for the help of the press? I'm having a hard time finding any mention in the newspapers from the 80s, although I could just be using modern terminology for my search terms and she was described differently but I left my search pretty broad.

Not sure when LE went to the press, I always assumed there was something in the beginning. I tried a few different terms, nothing was working.

Here's a more recent article that is tagged as having their information provided by the Walker County Sheriff's department: http://walker.countynewstoday.com/front-page-slider/1980-murder-case-still-an-open-investigation/

They describe WCJD as such:

"Physical description:5 feet 6 inches, 108 lbs
Hazel eyes
15-20 years old
Brown hair 10 inches in length
Toenails painted pink with nail polish
Fingernails not painted
Ears pierced (no earrings or studs)
Inverted right nipple

Clothing:
Blue jeans
Yellow pullover shirt
Dirty white colored knit sweater with big pockets, length pass the waist line
Leather sandal shoes
Rectangular penchant with brown stone (some described as smoky stone) on gold chain"

I don't trust it. Why is it now the clothes have changed? Could it be to separate NCMEC's recon from Carl's?

 

[BayouGypsy]

carbuff, I know we aren't really supposed to, but I did find the pen pal on FB. I kind of peeked around but I'll have to go back and see, I remember seeing she has contact with one of her daughters. If you search her name, you should find her easily.

 

[Tony1902]

When did the pendant (penchant) get in?

 

[Onfortuneswheel]

I'm thinking the sheriff's department didn't reach out to the media until recently. An article in the Huntsville Item from Nov 2015 says:

Employees and inmates at the Ellis Unit were asked about Jane Doe, but no one said they knew her. A search of missing persons reports and news coverage didn't yield any results and schools and law enforcement agencies around Rockport and Aransas Pass could not identify her either.

The quote kind of implies that the sheriff's department reviewed media reports but didn't ask for their help in engaging the public.

 

[BayouGypsy]

Does anyone know how long after the discovery of WCJD were the inmates and employees of Ellis questioned?

 

[Vital Forces]

Does anyone know how long after the discovery of WCJD were the inmates and employees of Ellis questioned?

I'd say probably within a week and almost certainly within two weeks.

Ellis isn't a minimum security prison by any means. It's not somewhere you go for a short time. Releases wouldn't be frequent.

 

[BayouGypsy]

Yea, I'm wondering if, going on the connection with James David Autry idea, what if our girl was with the brother and they were going to visit James? From what it seems, if the brothers had a rough upbringing, maybe she did, too and that was why nobody has looked for her? Any way to see if the Autry's had a car matching the description of the car the witness said she got out of? Maybe he dropped her off to ask directions and met up with her later? Went to visit his brother and told him what he did, brother denied knowing who she was to save his brother's hide? Can anyone find out if James had any visits from his brother in that time frame?

 

[Kimm11]

Has tina kemp been ruled out?

 

[zelda_s]

Has tina kemp been ruled out?

I dunno if she was officially ruled out, but it was pointed out earlier on in the thread that there are dental differences between Tina and WCJD

 

[Onfortuneswheel]

Yea, I'm wondering if, going on the connection with James David Autry idea, what if our girl was with the brother and they were going to visit James? From what it seems, if the brothers had a rough upbringing, maybe she did, too and that was why nobody has looked for her? Any way to see if the Autry's had a car matching the description of the car the witness said she got out of? Maybe he dropped her off to ask directions and met up with her later? Went to visit his brother and told him what he did, brother denied knowing who she was to save his brother's hide? Can anyone find out if James had any visits from his brother in that time frame?

There's also the possibility that WCJD was going to visit someone else (someone not on Death Row) and Robert Allen Autry was either going or coming from visiting James "Cowboy" Autry.

Finding out James' visitor logs would be interesting. I wonder if the Department of Corrections keeps that information even after an inmate has been executed? Does anyone know if Death Row only has certain visiting days and hours? If the prison/the different units had restricted visiting schedules we could narrow down who WCJD might have been going to visit.

EDIT: I think I just answered my own questions. It's rather complicated and is possibly unlikely that Autry would be allowed two visitors in the same week: https://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/documents/cid/Offender_Rules_and_Regulations_for_Visitation_English.pdf

 

[zelda_s]

I worry that even if we found who she was visiting, he wouldn't admit to knowing her not that we shouldn't try, it just makes me sad poor little Ruthie

 

[Springrain]

A minor and off-topic point, but I think it is more likely she was wearing the pantyhose under her jeans than the pantyhose being left over from another murder or a girlfriend (but of course that is possible).

If they were left in the vehicle from a previous murder, then it seems he would use them to stop the bleeding, as with WCJD--although he very well may not have. Also, some people were pantyhose under pants.

Yesterday, while on an out-of-city trip for my business class, I was wearing slacks and was about to put on my shoes. I realized I forgot to bring socks (I packed last minute, LOL) and one of my friends said "Just wear your hose under your pants. I do it."

 

[Onfortuneswheel]

A minor and off-topic point, but I think it is more likely she was wearing the pantyhose under her jeans than the pantyhose being left over from another murder or a girlfriend (but of course that is possible).

If they were left in the vehicle from a previous murder, then it seems he would use them to stop the bleeding, as with WCJD--although he very well may not have. Also, some people were pantyhose under pants.

Yesterday, while on an out-of-city trip for my business class, I was wearing slacks and was about to put on my shoes. I realized I forgot to bring socks (I packed last minute, LOL) and one of my friends said "Just wear your hose under your pants. I do it."

If she were wearing the hose on under her pants and she was raped, why would the perpetrator take the time to remove the hose? Pantyhose are likely to rip if you bump into a wall the wrong way. Why take the time to remove them instead of ripping them?