Little Miss Panasoffkee recent article

[justins5256]

I just watched this one again. It really made me feel depressed. My heart breaks for this young girl who still has yet to be identified. How can someone not know who she is? Even worse, I think the chances of finding her killer at this late date are slim to none.

I did some Googling in the hope of finding some sort of update. Unfortunately, there are no new developments, but I did find an article from three years ago indicating that DNA had been extracted from her bones. This can be used to match possible offspring. The article mentioned it is believed she had at least two children. UM only mentioned the possibility of one.

Sorry if this is old news...

http://www.thevillagesdailysun.com/a...ews/news02.txt

EDIT: Just did some searching and I see that Kane posted this same article in 2007. My apologies.

[Hambone2421]

Originally Posted by justins5256

I just watched this one again. It really made me feel depressed. My heart breaks for this young girl who still has yet to be identified. How can someone not know who she is? Even worse, I think the chances of finding her killer at this late date are slim to none.

I did some Googling in the hope of finding some sort of update. Unfortunately, there are no new developments, but I did find an article from three years ago indicating that DNA had been extracted from her bones. This can be used to match possible offspring. The article mentioned it is believed she had at least two children. UM only mentioned the possibility of one.

Sorry if this is old news...

http://www.thevillagesdailysun.com/a...ews/news02.txt


EDIT: Just did some searching and I see that Kane posted this same article in 2007. My apologies.

Wow, I did not realize that it had been almost 40 years since her body was found. I too feel terrible for this poor woman and for whatever family that she may have that's still out there. Hopefully, we can at least identify who she is one day.

[mozartpc27]

As soon as I saw this up on the front page again, I thought, "That body was found 40 years ago." It would be a stone-cold miracle if she were identified now.

[Mastermind]

As soon as I saw this up on the front page again, I thought, "That body was found 40 years ago." It would be a stone-cold miracle if she were identified now.

Maybe. Maybe not.

1. Her child could still be out there. That person could eventually start looking for the whereabouts of mother. If they aren't already. Keep in mind that the child hasn;t been off age for most of these critical years of the investigation. Perhaps this child may need a donor and decides that it is time to look into her family tree. The child discovers that the father was from Panasofkee and one thing leads to the next and voila the body is identified.

2. This case may correlate with another case outside the United States. There may be an unsolved disappearance in a foreign country that is waiting to connect to this. When this case was hot, communication was not what it is now. There is a missing person case out there, somwhere that is waiting to be hooked to this case.

3. There may be a serial killer who is waiting to be identified and/or a victim of his that is waiting to be discoverd. I wonder what serial killers were active at the time this body was discoverd? Granted this may not solve her identity..but it would be a huge lead in the case.

4. She was well taken care off. Her guardians had some degree of wealth . Somebody with a decent amount of money cared for. Somebody is missing her.

5. That surgery is too distinct and precise to be done by any run of the mill doctor. Somwhere there is a nurse, doctor, medical historian that recognizes the procedure and the doctors work. Somewhere there is medical paper on this girl and her surgery.
Hell there may even be a medical journal on this procedure!

[Hambone2421]

Originally Posted by Mastermind

Maybe. Maybe not.

1. Her child could still be out there. That person could eventually start looking for the whereabouts of mother. If they aren't already. Keep in mind that the child hasn;t been off age for most of these critical years of the investigation. Perhaps this child may need a donor and decides that it is time to look into her family tree. The child discovers that the father was from Panasofkee and one thing leads to the next and voila the body is identified.

2. This case may correlate with another case outside the United States. There may be an unsolved disappearance in a foreign country that is waiting to connect to this. When this case was hot, communication was not what it is now. There is a missing person case out there, somwhere that is waiting to be hooked to this case.

3. There may be a serial killer who is waiting to be identified and/or a victim of his that is waiting to be discoverd. I wonder what serial killers were active at the time this body was discoverd? Granted this may not solve her identity..but it would be a huge lead in the case.

4. She was well taken care off. Her guardians had some degree of wealth . Somebody with a decent amount of money cared for. Somebody is missing her.

5. That surgery is too distinct and precise to be done by any run of the mill doctor. Somwhere there is a nurse, doctor, medical historian that recognizes the procedure and the doctors work. Somewhere there is medical paper on this girl and her surgery.
Hell there may even be a medical journal on this procedure!

Excellent points. Especially the last one. I wonder if rather than waiting for a doctor to jump and say "hey i performed a surgery like that!", have the police already searched who performs surgeries like that? I'm not saying for them to check all over the world but at least in America. Hell, if its that rare of a surgery then there cant be many doctors that performed it. But, I may be wrong...

[Apostapler]

I would wonder if a doctor that performed the surgery back then would even be alive at this point. But yeah, checking for orthopedic surgeons would have been an area I would have looked at. I would have distributed the case files to any surgeons capable of performing the procedure.

[Mastermind]

I would wonder if a doctor that performed the surgery back then would even be alive at this point.

1. The doctor could still be alive... Let;s say he was 45 at the time..he could be alive in his 90s. If he was a young doctor like 30 he would be what... 70?
It;s a longshot, but you never know?

2. Some of his nurses and assistants should be alive. I would assume this would be a full fledged operation room surgery, no? Wouldn't she need to be checked into a large hospital? He couldn;t do this from a clinic or a small practice office, could he? Any doctors, nurses or residents on this forum?

But yeah, checking for orthopedic surgeons would have been an area I would have looked at

I can;t imagine there are that many orthepedic surgeons of this skill around back then? I wonder if there is any way to get some medical directory or something back then. I've got to assume they checked every foot doctor in the state of Florida.

[Apostapler]

Originally Posted by Mastermind

I can;t imagine there are that many orthepedic surgeons of this skill around back then? I wonder if there is any way to get some medical directory or something back then. I've got to assume they checked every foot doctor in the state of Florida.

Even that's not impossible. We'd have to search for surgeons who obtained their license/specialization prior to 1971, and more importantly, are still alive, because if they're dead there's probably no way to obtain their records, and certainly no way to jog their memory.


FYI, I just realized someone has made a myspace for Little Miss: http://www.myspace.com/littlemisspanasoffkee

[dks64]

I just watched this segment and it breaks my heart that she was never identified.

Judging by the fact that she had children and speciality surgery done leads me to believe she was likely married and it's possible her husband did this to her. The kids may have no idea that their Mom was murdered, they might have been told by their father that she ran away or she died years ago. That could be why no one has stepped forward to identify her. Just a theory.

[egswanso]

Originally Posted by Mastermind

I can;t imagine there are that many orthepedic surgeons of this skill around back then? I wonder if there is any way to get some medical directory or something back then. I've got to assume they checked every foot doctor in the state of Florida.

The Watson-Jones procedure LMP had is now a fairly standard procedure; some quick googling shows that it seems to have been invented right after WWII and doesn't appear to have been terribly uncommon, if perhaps not "standard," at the time LMP was found, so I doubt that it alone would be much of a clue.

[egswanso]

Originally Posted by dks64

I just watched this segment and it breaks my heart that she was never identified.

Judging by the fact that she had children and speciality surgery done leads me to believe she was likely married and it's possible her husband did this to her. The kids may have no idea that their Mom was murdered, they might have been told by their father that she ran away or she died years ago. That could be why no one has stepped forward to identify her. Just a theory.

I don't think you can conclude she was married based upon the evidence presented; you certainly can conclude that she, at some point, was well-cared for and had the money and ability to obtain extensive dental work and orthopedic surgery. As to why these same people wouldn't claim the body, who knows - we can only speculate.

One thought that crossed my mind, given her age, location, and her stated appearance - maybe she could have been cuban and her family and medical records are/were back on the island.

These sorts of cases are always depressing, insofar as they deal with a person so unloved and/or unknown in life that no-one seems to even care when they die. I think that's why (some) people spend so much time comparing Jane and John Does to missing person reports on Doe network and the like, since we want to believe people do care, the connection just hasn't been made, not that someone just lived a throw-away life...

[MegtheEgg86]

Originally Posted by egswanso

I don't think you can conclude she was married based upon the evidence presented; you certainly can conclude that she, at some point, was well-cared for and had the money and ability to obtain extensive dental work and orthopedic surgery.

Very good points.

Since you've brought up the Cuba angle, maybe the medical and dental work is in fact indicative that's where she originated (isn't some dental work engraved or emblazoned occasionally with the name of the person who performed the procedure, or at least the initials/name of the person it was performed on?). I'm unsure of the fine particulars of medical system there 40-50 years ago, but since it is state-owned, it's not entirely inconceivable that the Cuban government had (has?) those records. There is a very large Cuban community in Miami as well, so maybe she was traveling north for some reason, or a party dumped her body there from that area. Of course, that's all wide speculation.


Last December I was in Tampa over Christmas coming from Georgia, and I rode over the Lake Panasoffkee bridge on I-75 on both the northbound and southbound sides. I can tell you it's a miracle she was even found. The lake is very swampy and even though it's a heavily trafficked thoroughfare, the bridge is rather forgettable. I'm certain it seldom receives much foot traffic, especially nowadays.

[egswanso]

Originally Posted by MegtheEgg86

Since you've brought up the Cuba angle, maybe the medical and dental work is in fact indicative that's where she originated (isn't some dental work engraved or emblazoned occasionally with the name of the person who performed the procedure, or at least the initials/name of the person it was performed on?). I'm unsure of the fine particulars of medical system there 40-50 years ago, but since it is state-owned, it's not entirely inconceivable that the Cuban government had (has?) those records. There is a very large Cuban community in Miami as well, so maybe she was traveling north for some reason, or a party dumped her body there from that area. Of course, that's all wide speculation.

My understanding is that dentists in different countries do perform work in different ways, so yes, it might be possible. I certainly don't know the specifics, however, and I'd imagine that it's only 'possibles' not certainties.

LMP would have been a little young for a pre-Castro Cuban (maybe 10 or so at the Revolution), but that would explain the evidence of good care (pre-Revolution, when the family had money) and why she hasn't been claimed (she either has no family in the US or her family was never communicated with).

[Cori aka ChrisSCrush]

Originally Posted by egswanso

The Watson-Jones procedure LMP had is now a fairly standard procedure; some quick googling shows that it seems to have been invented right after WWII and doesn't appear to have been terribly uncommon, if perhaps not "standard," at the time LMP was found, so I doubt that it alone would be much of a clue.

Seeing the X-rays from my surgery the other day made me remember this case and wonder how rare and distinctive this procedure was. If she was American, here was a person who could afford medical and dental procedures. If not from America, well someone had to have brought her there from somewhere else.

[Cori aka ChrisSCrush]

Anyone wanting to find her should enter their DNA in a national/international database. Then a DNA test can be run on her remains and checked against a relative finder.