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Possible Break In Princes Doe Case; Please Read-Maybe Closure is Soon
Topic Started: Apr 27 2007, 10:19 AM (827 Views)
oldies4mari2004
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Murder In A Cemetary

A caretaker at the Ceder Ridge Cemetary in Blairstown, N.J. discovered Princess Doe's body on July 15, 1982 at 8:00 a.m.


View LargerThe small town of Blairstown, N.J. was shocked when the murdered body of a teenage girl was found partially decomposed in their cemetary on July 15, 1982. Her face had been bludgeoned beyond recognition, her body discarded like trash.

Police say the body was clad in a red v-neck pullover short sleeved shirt with yellow piping on the shoulder, and blue and black piping on the neck, sleeves, and waist. The victim also wore a red, white, and blue wrap-around skirt with a strip of peacock printing around the bottom. Cops say a gold chain with small white beads and a 14-karat gold cross pendant with an ornate design was entangled in her hair. She wore no underwear or shoes.

She's Somebody's Princess

The community was horrified and baffled by the discovery. Not wanting the child to be buried in a potter's field, the entire town donated money for a proper burial. They gave her a gravesite in the same cemetary in which she was found, and a headstone marked with her new name, "Princess Doe," because she had to have been somebody's princess.

An autopsy of Princess Doe's body revealed she was 5'2" and approximately 105 lbs. Forensic odontologist reports suggested she was between 14 and 18 years old when she was murdered. Experts took swabs for toxicology testing -- labratory results came back negative for drug use, although cops say those results are not 100% reliable because they believe the body had been in the cemetary between one and three weeks before it was found. Lab results also showed there was no seminal material found, so police do not believe Princess Doe was raped before she died.

The story stayed in the media spotlight because of the mystery surrounding the horrifying murder. As the years went by, technology advanced, giving hope to the case.


Technology Steps In

In June 1984, these flyers depicting both Diana Dye and Princess Doe were distributed nationwide.
View LargerOn January 4, 1984, experts reconstructed her skull, literally piecing it together like a puzzle because of how damaged it was. After the skull was put together, specialists created a bust, depicting what Princess Doe may have looked like. Cops distributed thousands of flyers with the bust photo, hoping someone would recognize Princess Doe. In June 1984, somebody did.

Someone in San Jose, Calif. received the flyer with Princess Doe's bust pictured, and recognized it as a missing female named Diana Dye who disappeared from San Jose in 1979. New flyers were distributed with both Princess Doe and Diana Dye's faces on them to see if it helped people come forward. In July, forensic odontologists compared Diana Dye's dental records to Princess Doe's. They came to a stale mate -- some experts concluded it was a definite match, while others insisted it wasn't. The findings were inconclusive.

As time passed, the case turned cold. It seemed like it would never be solved.

New Investigator, New Developments

In 1998, Lt. Stephen Speirs, of the Warren Co. Prosecutor's Office, was assigned to the case. He immediately began looking through the evidence and information -- making it his mission to find Princess Doe.

He didn't have to look long before he got a major break in the investigation. That year, Lt. Speirs received a phone call from N.Y. authorities who had some interesting information. A former prostitute and her pimp were arrested in Calif. The cops told Lt. Speirs that the woman had been charged as an accomplice to at least one murder committed by her pimp -- and while cooperating with police, she'd told them the pimp was responsible for the beating death of a teenager in a N.J. cemetary. N.Y. cops told Lt. Speirs she'd be willing to talk to him about the murder.

Lt. Speirs traveled to Rikers Island Prison to meet with the woman. She told him the killer was a big-time pimp in Long Island who preyed on runaways and throwaways. She said he lured Princess Doe into his pimping business -- but she was naive, inexperienced, and invaluable to the pimp. Several times, he tried selling her to other pimps because she wasn't doing well as a prostitute, but no one wanted to "buy" her. Lt. Speirs says the woman's story made sense, but she was a criminal who lacked credibility -- and the pimp she named wouldn't talk to him. Lt. Speirs was at a standstill with the new lead.

Princess Doe's Body Exhumed

In the meantime, Lt. Speirs focused on a different avenue -- Princess Doe's body. In September 1999, he had Princess Doe's body exhumed from the grave the Blairstown citizens so lovingly had arranged for her. What they found wasn't great news -- the body tissue had been liquidated. Experts retrieved long bones that were needed to complete a DNA profile, and sent the samples to the lab.

Unfortunately, the Princess Doe's remains were so degraded and contaminated, there was not enough substance to obtain a standard DNA sample. Instead, they decided the only thing they could do was create a mitochondrial DNA (MtDNA) profile. MtDNA is found in sub-cellular organelles called mitochondria. Multiple copies of MtDNA are generated using a polymerase chain reaction to create enough DNA to make a pattern. The MtDNA profile has a catch, however. Only maternal relatives of those with a MtDNA sample can be used to compare DNA.

Knowing this, Lt. Speirs had Princess Doe's completed MtDNA profile compared to a blood sample given by Diana Dye's mother. On March 27, 2003, Diana Dye was excluded as a possible match.


Possible Killer Claims Responsibility

The witness who cops say saw Princess Doe beaten to death in the Blairstown Cemetary helped create this composite sketch.


View LargerThen, in 2005, Lt. Speirs received a copy of a letter originally sent to the Attorney General's Office. The letter was from the pimp himself, and in it, he accepted responsibility for Princess Doe's disgusting murder. Although the letter was not addressed to Lt. Speirs directly, the letter mentioned his name -- likely because the pimp had remembered it from 1998 when Lt. Speirs had reached out to him and refused to cooperate.

Lt. Speirs was thrilled by the new development, and began to correspond with the pimp by mail, then by phone. In May 2005, they made arrangements to meet face-to-face at the Wendi Correctional Facility in upstate N.Y., where the suspect was being held.

There, the pimp gave Lt. Speirs some vital information. According to Lt. Speirs, the pimp admitted to the murder in person and gave some specifics, lending credibility to his story -- but he left out some key elements. Lt. Speirs says it may be because the pimp has a long criminal history, and may be confusing parts of his other crimes with Princess Doe's murder. But that wasn't all. The pimp also revealed something new about the former prostitute Lt. Speirs had interviewed back in 1998.

A Witness To Murder

The pimp told Lt. Speirs that she hadn't been telling him the whole truth. The pimp told cops that not only did she know about the murder -- but she was there during the murder. Lt. Speirs knew he had to go back and talk to her -- this time as a murder witness.

When Lt. Speirs and the former prostitute met up later that month, she admitted she'd been at the cemetary during the murder. Lt. Speirs says she was clearly uncomfortable during the meeting -- appearing guilt-ridden, and scared to death of retaliation from her ex-pimp. But despite her fears, Lt. Speirs says she was willing to cooperate and wanted to move on with her life.

Thanks to the witnesses cooperation, Lt. Speirs learned some important details about Princess Doe. According to the witness, Princess Doe was definitely from N.Y. -- probably the Long Island area. She also agreed to meet with a forensic sketch artist to create a sketch based on her eyewitness account of what she looked like. Once the sketch was completed on September 13, 2005, Lt. Speirs recalls the witness said, "Yes, that's her!" He could tell by looking at the witness' eyes as she looked over the final product that she was clearly looking into the face of the victim.

Filling In The Blanks

Police hope national exposure of the new composite sketch will lead to Princess Doe's identification. Once Lt. Speirs knows her identity, he says he can backtrack through her life story, fill in the details of the case, and finally charge the man cops think is responsible.


http://www.amw.com/missing_children/case.cfm?id=44823

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monkalup
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The Old Heifer! An oxymoron, of course.
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Oh wow, that's some good news! Some progress!!!!
Lauran

"If you have a chance to accomplish something that will make things better for people coming behind you, and you don't do that, you are wasting your time on this earth." The late, great Roberto Clemente.


In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment for non-profit research and educational purposes only.
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terrip
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wow ain't that something... let's hope that can put some peace to this soul.
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monkalup
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The Old Heifer! An oxymoron, of course.
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Yes, please. At long last...
Lauran

"If you have a chance to accomplish something that will make things better for people coming behind you, and you don't do that, you are wasting your time on this earth." The late, great Roberto Clemente.


In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment for non-profit research and educational purposes only.
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awagner
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Porchlight's rose
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these are the closest NY matches for her.. Brenda has the same "crowded teeth" but Janice looks more like the second reconstruction. Course it could be someone not reported missing.. or someone reported missing but not listed on NCMEC. I assume by now they actually know who she is if the guy confessed to killing her and just havent released it.

The good thing about this case being solved is that it will free TRAVIS up to take on another one for his website :) This poor girl.. hooking and not being good enough to make money enough to be "valuable" to the pimp... sounds like a nice girl who was stuck in a bad bad situation. Wonder how many more the ba***rd killed.

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/872dfny.html
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/757dfny.html
Missing Persons and ResourcesPosted Image
M&U Database group
Dead Men Tell No Tales: an interactive guide to the missing and the unidentified
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oldies4mari2004
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Hi everyone

I am sure this bas'''' has killed more girls and women.They hunt for them and lure them into this disgusting way of life and if they do not meet up to their expectations then they kill them.I do not understand for the life of me how this woman could have possibly witnessed this and kepy quiet all these years[did she not feel awful about it.What this poor girl went thru and I hope he rots in prison forever and we get these pimps off the streets all over because alot of young girls and even boys have fallen victim to them.I really believe they go looking for victims and even take them against their will and another reason why alot just disappear.So very sad my heart goes out to Princee Doe's family and may they finally get the closure they need.
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pdoe
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Just to clarify one thing, they are still seeking the identity of the victim. From what I can tell, a name might have been given but it was an alias and dead end. So that part of the investigation is the major focus right now. A memorial service is being planned for July 15th for the 25th anniversary of the body being discovered. Details on princessdoe.org Thanks!!
Princess Doe Website
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Cheryl
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pic Princess Doe has she been ruled out for Lori Lloyd?

Cheryl
Tarot Canada

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"The Queen of Cups"
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Cheryl
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Lori Lloyd - AP
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Tarot Canada

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Cheryl
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Lori Lloyd
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Tarot Canada

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Cheryl
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Lori Lloyd
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pdoe
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Cheryl,May 13
2007 - 11:04 PM
Lori Lloyd

I do not think Lori Lloyd has been looked at. I will go ahead and add her to the possible matches list when I do the next update.
Princess Doe Website
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pdoe
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If you live in or near the area please join us for a memorial service at 12pm, July 15 at the Cedar Ridge Cemetery. This will be the 25th anniversary of the Princess Doe's body being discovered.

http://www.princessdoe.org/memorial.html
Princess Doe Website
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pdoe
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pdoe,Jun 13
2007 - 05:09 PM
Cheryl,May 13
2007 - 11:04 PM
Lori Lloyd

I do not think Lori Lloyd has been looked at. I will go ahead and add her to the possible matches list when I do the next update.

Lori Lloyd was added to the possible matches list this morning.
Princess Doe Website
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luvmycat
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Sneezy!
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pdoe,Jun 13
2007 - 05:11 PM
If you live in or near the area please join us for a memorial service at 12pm, July 15 at the Cedar Ridge Cemetery. This will be the 25th anniversary of the Princess Doe's body being discovered.

http://www.princessdoe.org/memorial.html

How did the Memorial Service go, Travis? Fill us in.
Albert Einstein:
The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.
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burnsjl2003
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FYI everyone:

If you go to http://www.princessdoe.org/memorial.html there is an update on how the memorial went.
Lisa

“Thou shalt not be a victim.
Thou shalt not be a perpetrator.
Above all, thou shalt not be a bystander.”

(On a plaque at the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C.)
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pdoe
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luvmycat,Jul 17
2007 - 12:54 PM
pdoe,Jun 13
2007 - 05:11 PM
If you live in or near the area please join us for a memorial service at 12pm, July 15 at the Cedar Ridge Cemetery.  This will be the 25th anniversary of the Princess Doe's body being discovered. 

http://www.princessdoe.org/memorial.html

How did the Memorial Service go, Travis? Fill us in.

Not sure why I did not see this earlier and apologize for the delay. The easy answer is that the memorial service went very well. About 100 people attended and we even had a few that attended the original memorial service back in January of 1983.

I'm in the process of producing a new media packet and getting that back out to all of the major shows. We finally obtained the HBO footage from 1984.
Princess Doe Website
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luvmycat
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Sneezy!
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Wow! That is great news. Sounds like your efforts are paying off like mine. We met some great people with the Delta Dawn memorial and they have reopened the case. I believe this would have never happened if the memorial had not taken place.
Albert Einstein:
The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.
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http://icaremissingpersonscoldcases.yuku.com/
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