The Death of Granada Hills Jane Doe, May 1971

In the early afternoon of Saturday, May 22, 1971, three youths were out hiking in a rugged area when they discovered partial human skeletal remains in a ravine at the base of a 300 ft cliff at/south of the 18900 block of Braemore Rd in an isolated area of Porter Ranch in Northridge. The location of the body is also described as being in/near the Granada Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles.

One or more of the decedent's limbs were not recovered. Neither the COD nor an estimated DOD/PMI could be determined. However, one contemporary newspaper article stated that Jane Doe was, "believed to have been dead at least three months," placing date of death at approx. February 1971 or earlier.

A fire had passed through the area in September 1970, and there had been heavy rains as well as an earthquake since that time. Because of this, the skeletal remains — which were determined to be those of a female — may have moved from their original location as a result of these natural events, which also could have affected the availability of any evidence.

Jane Doe was a young white female who was 14 to 22 years old, though NamUs also puts her estimated age group as "Adult - Pre 20." Two contemporary newspaper clippings stated that the remains were, "that of a woman aged 15 to 25." Jane Doe's height is estimated to have been about 5'8, while her weight could not be approximated. Jane Doe had brown hair. Her eye color, as well as any clothing, jewelry, or personal items she may have had on/with her, are unknown.

Jane Doe's dental records are available for comparison, while her fingerprints and DNA are not. She has two exclusions on her NamUs page: She is not Cindy Mellin or Robin Graham.  

The NamUs and Doe Network case numbers are 1499UFCA and #UP8868, respectively. Jane Doe's NamUs page was created on June 22, 2011 and last updated November 10, 2020.

Anyone with any information about Jane Doe should contact Investigator Betsy Magdaleno of the LA County Medical Examiner's Office at (323) 343-0512 or IDUnit@me.lacounty.gov. The agency case number is 1971-05504. Any little piece of information, no matter how seemingly insignificant, is appreciated, and may be the key to recovering Jane Doe's identity.

Sources

NamUs

WebSleuths 

Doe Network 

Unidentified wiki  

LA Times 5/24/71, 5/26/71

Van Nuys Valley News 5/25/71

Note: While this write-up was originally published on July 11, 2025, I regularly revisit cases, check for updates, ensure that I have exhausted all sources, etc., and then make note of when I last did so, no matter how minor. When edits are extensive, I re-post the write-up entirely. This post was last updated on January 19, 2026