The DNA Doe Project is a not-for-profit organization which utilizes DNA testing tools to identify: unidentified victims of homicide, victims of auto accidents, and persons who committed suicide but were living under an alias. They utilize GEDMatch, a free public genealogy website. GEDMatch allows users to upload their raw DNA profile from Ancestry DNA or 23andMe to their website to build family trees. Founders, Colleen Fitzpatrick and Margaret Press (along with many volunteers) will then begin genome sequencing to find ancestors of the victim(s) and go from there with building said family trees. Upon finding a close relative, they'll contact them for a final DNA comparison. Founded in 2017, the DNA Doe Project has already solved four identities: Marcia Lenore King (formerly The Buckskin Girl) Troy, OH, Lyle Stevik (family refusing to reveal his name to the public) Amanda Park, WA, Robert Ivan Nichols (formerly Joseph Newton Chandler III) Eastlake, OH, and more recently Sheep Flats Jane Doe (still awaiting final confirmation from the lab) Lake Tahoe, NV.
In a post to their Facebook page on July 21st, they listed upcoming cases that they are working on simultaneously, with one of those cases being Julie Doe, a transgender homicide victim from Florida, found in 1988. They didn't make a big deal out of it, (but I did; squealing in my seat with happiness!) neatly putting in their list near the bottom-I guess it's a good thing that they're not boasting about it; choosing not to single anyone out, since every case is important, BUT STILL! Either way, I'm excited.
According to the post, Julie Doe is at the lab awaiting extraction.
Standing at five-feet-ten inches tall and weighing approximately one-hundred seventy pounds, the mummified remains of an apparent homicide victim (originally thought to be a biological woman) were found clad in: a green tank top, acid wash skirt, and pantyhose in a wooded area of Green Swamp in Clermont, Florida on September 25, 1988. Although her cause of death is undetermined, the placement of her body suggests foul play. She was estimated to have been dead for eight months at the time of discovery.
The story made headlines in 2015 when it was reported that the victim with "pelvic area markings" was not in fact a biological woman who had given birth, but rather a transgender woman. It was surprising to investigators since she had laid in a morgue freezer for nearly thirty years with no one properly examining her. The discovery was made, as forensic scientists, using technology not available in the 1980's, studied Julie's DNA, finding she had the Y-chromosome; ruling out the belief that she carried at least one child during her life.
Check out the DNA Doe Project and give them a like on Facebook at DNA Doe Project
UPDATE: On September 6, 2018 DNA Doe Project let me know that Julie Doe's extraction failed the first round, but the agency approved a second attempt. We should have results within one month or so.
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