NEWTON,
GA (WALB) – The name on a marble tombstone in Newton Cemetery reads the
same today as the headlines did 27 years ago - Jane Doe - Died June 1,
1985.
No date of birth, not even an inkling as to who is buried beneath the Earth.
Only the tragic circumstances in how she was discovered are known.
"See was discovered on the side of the road on Highway 91. She had been injured pretty bad." said Baker County Coroner Andy Belinc.
The death took place before he took office but it's a case he's taken an interest in.
On May 24, 1985, a school teacher driving on Highway 91 near Colquitt Ford Road found the woman in a ditch unconscious. She died a week later of severe head trauma.
"At the time, her picture was shown in the paper and on TV hoping that someone would come identify her. Of course that did not happen," said Belinc.
The case has remained active with the GBI releasing a sketch of the unidentified woman. The Baker County Sheriff's Office webpage features an enhanced photo of how she appeared. But it wasn't until recently that new interest was drawn.
"We had a family who came forward who said that possibly, this may have been their relative," Belinc said.
GBI agents exhumed the body Friday to gather a DNA sample. It will be sent to off to the GBI crime lab in Decatur for testing that could solve this decades old mystery.
"With DNA today I think that's assisting in finding those missing relatives of people and hopefully this will be the same case," he said.
Law enforcement officials reported shortly after the death that this "Jane Doe" may have fallen off the back of a truck.
There was no indication she had been raped or attacked in anyway. It's the only unidentified body on the books in Baker County.
We're told the relatives seeking those answers are from out of state.
It will be several weeks before the DNA testing is complete.
Copyright 2012 WALB. All rights reserved.
No date of birth, not even an inkling as to who is buried beneath the Earth.
Only the tragic circumstances in how she was discovered are known.
"See was discovered on the side of the road on Highway 91. She had been injured pretty bad." said Baker County Coroner Andy Belinc.
The death took place before he took office but it's a case he's taken an interest in.
On May 24, 1985, a school teacher driving on Highway 91 near Colquitt Ford Road found the woman in a ditch unconscious. She died a week later of severe head trauma.
"At the time, her picture was shown in the paper and on TV hoping that someone would come identify her. Of course that did not happen," said Belinc.
The case has remained active with the GBI releasing a sketch of the unidentified woman. The Baker County Sheriff's Office webpage features an enhanced photo of how she appeared. But it wasn't until recently that new interest was drawn.
"We had a family who came forward who said that possibly, this may have been their relative," Belinc said.
GBI agents exhumed the body Friday to gather a DNA sample. It will be sent to off to the GBI crime lab in Decatur for testing that could solve this decades old mystery.
"With DNA today I think that's assisting in finding those missing relatives of people and hopefully this will be the same case," he said.
Law enforcement officials reported shortly after the death that this "Jane Doe" may have fallen off the back of a truck.
There was no indication she had been raped or attacked in anyway. It's the only unidentified body on the books in Baker County.
We're told the relatives seeking those answers are from out of state.
It will be several weeks before the DNA testing is complete.
Copyright 2012 WALB. All rights reserved.
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