jul 11, 1971 - Montrose Jane Doe 1971 UID & HOMICIDE

Description:

On Sunday, July 11, 1971, the skeletal remains of a 15-25 year old female were discovered 40-50 ft down an embankment from the north side of the Angeles Crest Highway, 0.25mi west of Red Box Canyon Ranger Station in Montrose, LA County, CA. She was found about 40 ft north of what was possibly a shallow grave site.

Jane Doe's COD is unknown, though she is estimated to have died up to one year before being discovered. Due to the state of her remains, investigators were unable to determine some things about Jane Doe, including her race, weight, and eye color.

While NamUs states that Jane Doe was measured to be 5'3, NCMEC and the Doe Network list her height as 5'3-5'8. NamUs also lists Jane Doe's hair color as brown, while NCMEC and the Doe Network states that it was "multicolored" (brown, red, and black). Her hair texture was described as "kinky," and she had long, manicured fingernails.

Jane Doe was wearing a light yellow skirt, a white slip with lace trim, a white wool knit turtleneck sweater with short sleeves, a size 34A white bra, white socks, and a yellow metal 1957 Bulova brand ladies' watch, which had a yellow metal expansion band with a broken link and bore the serial number T556641. Photos of Jane Does' belongings are available in the provided sources. Doe Network notes that based on her clothing sizes, Jane Doe may have appeared tall and thin.

While Jane Doe's fingerprints and DNA are not available for comparison, her dentals are. She had a full set of teeth, with a slight gap between her top front teeth that "would have been noticeable to her family and friends." She also had torus palatinus, or a bony growth on her palate.

No MPs have been ruled out as being Jane Doe. Anyone with information should contact Betsy Magdaleno of the LA County Medical Examiner's Office at (323) 343-0512 or IDUnit@me.lacounty.gov. The agency case number is 717384. According to NCMEC, individuals can also contact the LA County Sheriff's Department's Homicide Bureau at (323) 890-5500. The NCMEC, NCIC, and NamUs case numbers are 1137966, U740004821, and #UP3002.

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I could not find any contemporary newspaper reports regarding Jane Doe.

CONFIRMATION OF COMPLETION DATE: May 31, 2025
LAST UPDATED: June 15, 2025
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