The Disappearance of Sherry Jean "Sonny" Pickle, May 1972

Sherry Pickle, who also went by the nickname Sonny, was born on September 14, 1956 in LA County, CA. Her mother, Jeanette Marie Pickle (nee Broeker), was 18 years old at the time of Sherry's birth.

Sherry Pickle. Photo from NamUs.

Sherry, 15, was last seen on Tuesday, May 16, 1972, though one source — CA DOJ — indicates that she went missing two days earlier, on May 14th. Sherry was last seen at Coronado Ave and Broadway in Long Beach, LA County, CA. She has never been seen or heard from since.

Sherry is believed to have traveled to Borrego Springs, San Diego County, CA — 150 mi southeast of Long Beach — after that time. Because of this, some sources list her as missing from Borrego Springs.

Sherry may have traveled to meet with a male companion, or hitchhiked to the Los Angeles area. NamUs lists her transportation as "none," i.e. she did not have a vehicle.

On Wednesday, July 18, 1973, the Time Press Recorder in Arroyo Grande, San Luis Obispo County, CA, published a short article regarding Sherry's disappearance. The article began, "PISMO BEACH — Desperate parents are seeking the whereabouts of Sherry Jeane [sic] Pickle who may have come through this area. Sherry has been missing for more than a year. [...]"

Pismo Beach — which is located in San Luis Obispo County — is about 165 mi northwest of Long Beach. According to the same article, Sherry's parents were living in West Covina, LA County, CA — about 24 mi northeast of Long Beach — at the time. This is the only contemporary source that I could find about Sherry's disappearance.

From west to east: Pismo Beach (red), Long Beach (yellow), West Covina (blue), and Borrego Springs (gray). Created by me using Google Maps.

Few details are available in Sherry's case. Foul play is suspected in her disappearance, and it is feared that she may have been the victim of a homicide. She is classified as Endangered Missing on both the Charley Project and Doe Network.

Sherry is a white female who was 15 years old and 5'4 at the time of her disappearance. Some modern sources, such as NamUs, state that Sherry was 110 lbs at the time, while others like CA DOJ state she was 100 lbs. The Arroyo Grande Times Press Recorder mentioned that she was 110 to 120 lbs.

Sherry had light brown hair, hazel eyes, and freckles. Her ears were pierced, and she had a scar on her right foot from bicycle spokes. According to some sources, one of her ankles — though it is unknown which one — was fractured; it is unclear from this description whether her ankle was fractured at the time of her disappearance, or if it had previously been fractured but had healed before she went missing.

Sherry reportedly had perfect teeth. Her DNA is available for comparison, while her dental x-rays are not. It is unknown whether her fingerprints are available. It is unknown what she was wearing when she disappeared.

There are twenty UID exclusions on Sherry's NamUs page: one each from CT, FL, NV, and OR; two from OH; four from CA; and ten from VA. Sherry's exclusions include La Habra Heights Jane Doe 1973, Finley Creek (OR) Jane Doe 1978, and one that has since been identified as Mary Silvani.

On February 28, 2025, user AirForceVet24 commented the following in the WebSleuths thread dedicated to Sherry:

"So this morning I got word that their [sic] was a tip in the Sherry Jean Pickle case. UP#17490 needed to be checked. Soon after looking at it and conferring with my colleagues at MPIA, I have submitted a Doe Network request for the two and I have contacted law enforcement. On the Doe Network the case is 1525UFCA and their [sic] is no comparisons to Sherry Jean Pickle yet."

On May 17, 2025, the same user then commented the following:

"Kind of an update to this case. According to The Doe Network . UP#17490 and Sherry Pickle were both in Codis. No match."

NCMEC progression to age 59, c. 2015.

The UID mentioned by the above user is Sonoma County Jane Doe 1979, a victim of the SRHM. If AirForceVet24 is being truthful, then they are likely correct in stating that Sherry and Jane Doe are exclusions, as, according to a personal email from Mary Bell of the Doe Network, "Unfortunately, listing NamUs exclusions is not a high priority. We get exclusions all the time that never show up on the NamUs exclusion list." If this is the case, then Sherry would have twenty-one rule-outs total.

Along with a color photo posted by all sources, the Charley Project has a few additional black&white photos. Various age progressions of Sherry are available: one at age 45, c.2002, on NamUs; one to 54 years old, c.2010, on CA DOJ and DN; and one to age 59, c.2015, on NCMEC and DN.

Sherry's NamUs case, #MP6528, was created on April 15, 2010, and was last edited on June 10, 2025. Her Doe Network page, created prior to 2011, and her Charley Project profile were last updated October 7, 2023 and December 20, 2022, respectively.

There is a memorial plaque for Sherry in the family niche at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, LA County. Her mother passed away in 2017.

Anyone with information regarding Sherry should contact the West Covina Police Department at (626) 939-8500 (according to NamUs) or (626) 939-8557 (according to NCMEC). The agency case number is 7206881. The NCMEC and NCIC case numbers are 604028 and M291278972, respectively.

Sources

International Missing Persons wiki

WebSleuths

Arroyo Grande Times Press Recorder 7/18/73

FindAGrave

MPIA

RCCCMCC