Chain of Custody & The Beach Discovery
On November 26, 1983, beachcombers walking along the remote shoreline near Pillar Point Harbor, north of Half Moon Bay in San Mateo County, California, discovered human remains partially exposed in sand dunes above the high tide line.
Deputies from the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office and the Coroner's Division secured the coastal perimeter. The body was clothed and had been concealed beneath driftwood, brush, and a shallow layer of coastal sand. Forensic examination established that the postmortem interval was relatively brief—estimated between three and seven days prior to discovery.
Autopsy Findings & Forensic Pathology
An autopsy performed by the San Mateo County Coroner determined the decedent was an adult White or Hispanic female, estimated between 35 and 50 years of age, measuring approximately 5 feet 2 inches to 5 feet 4 inches and weighing between 110 and 125 pounds. She possessed dark brown hair cut in a medium-length style with graying roots.
The cause of death was definitively ruled homicide resulting from manual strangulation and multiple crushing blunt force injuries to the head and face. The victim was clothed in a yellow cable-knit sweater, dark slacks, and leather shoes, but possessed no purse, wallet, or identifying paperwork. The case was entered into NamUs as UP10333.
Investigative Genetic Genealogy Partnership
In 2021, the San Mateo County Coroner's Office initiated forensic genomic analysis in partnership with the DNA Doe Project. Skeletal and preserved biological samples were processed to develop a high-density SNP profile, which was uploaded to public genealogy databases to reconstruct maternal and paternal ancestral lineages.