The Murder of Devil's Gate Jane Doe, October 1972
On Monday, October 2, 1972, a local man was out hunting for chukar — a type of bird — in rural Elko County, Nevada, when he discovered a body in a shallow ditch — possibly a grave, according to sources — and covered with dirt and dead willows. The body, with the decapitated head nearby, was found in the area of Deeth, Elko County, NV, approx. 100 yds off of Devil's Gate Road, just north of I-80.
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| View from street of area where Jane Doe was found 100yds from the road. Location pinpointed by me. Screenshot taken from Google Maps Street View. |
The unidentified person's torso was not recovered, and the remains were partial skeletal parts only. A 1998 newspaper article indicated that a skull, some rib bones, and a leg bone were found. Only the Doe Network states that the head had been decapitated. One newspaper article implies that animals may have gotten to the remains prior to discovery.
By 1998 the Doe's sex was still undetermined. An anthropologist who was sent the bones believed that they belonged to a teenage boy, though others involved in the investigations believed the decedent was female due to clothing found in the area.
It was eventually determined that the decedent was female. Devil's Gate Jane Doe was likely 15 to 18 years old — with her age group being "Late Teen/Young Adult" on NamUs — when she died. She is believed to be white and/or Hispanic — "possibly racially mixed" according to one paper — and about 5'5 tall. Her weight and eye color could not be determined due to the condition of her remains. She had long, golden blonde hair that curled at the ends, as well as a "narrow projecting nose." Her teeth, which showed no signs of dental work, were stained brown (white mottling), indicating that the victim was raised in a flouride-rich area. There was extreme projection of her upper teeth.
Jane Doe's feet were likely size 4 to 4 1/2. She was nude when found, though there was some clothing present found in the immediate area of the body: one white nylon stocking, a portion of a blue sweater made with acrylic fiber, and one pair of clog-type women shoes with 4" heels, brand name "La Fisa."
According to NamUs, no cause of death was determined when the partial remains were sent to the FBI for analysis. However, the aforementioned 1998 newspaper article quotes a detective working on the case as saying that, "they knew the death was a homicide because of a small bullet hole in the skull, in the forehead area." It generally seems to be the consensus that Jane Doe was the victim of a homicide due to the circumstances involved.
The FBI investigation also indicated that Jane Doe died somewhere between four to twelve weeks before discovery, putting her date of death between about July 8, 1972 and September 2, 1972. Despite this, NamUs puts the estimated PMI at three months — i.e., about early July 1972 — and estimated year of death as 1971-1972.
Three months before Devil's Gate Jane Doe was found, another unidentified young woman, known as Starr Valley Jane Doe, was also found murdered in rural Elko County, about 14 mi southeast as the crow flies from where Devil's Gate JD was discovered. In fact, the upper end of Devil's Gate JD's date of death range — July 8, 1972 and/or generally early July 1972 — is only six days before Starr Valley JD was found; furthermore, early reports indicated that Starr Valley JD likely died between July 7-9, 1972.
Despite this, authorities state that there is no evidence connecting the two Jane Does beyond the similarities in time and place.
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| From west to east, the locations of the bodies of: Devil's Gate JD, Starr Valley JD, and Thousand Springs JD in Elko County, NV. Created by me using Google Maps. |
In the 2020s artist Lily Martina Lee created a woven shroud for Jane Doe to remember her and had photos taken at the discovery site. The shroud is part of Lee's art collection that she calls "The Great Basin Murders," which includes both the Great Basin Serial Killings of the 80s and 90s as well as earlier cases of femicides in the area, such as Starr Valley and Devil's Gate Jane Does.
I found out about this case from
Lee's website. Jane Doe has also been mentioned in a post from an amateur sleuth-run site that I use to find related cases: the Murder
Incorp. blog, which compiles contemporary sources about crimes in CA
from the 1960s and 70s that either have been recently confirmed to still
be, or the blogger suspects to be, unsolved. Special focus is put on
cases that bear resemblance and/or occurred somewhat in proximity to
confirmed and possible EARONS and Zodiac crimes.
Jane Doe has zero MP exclusions on NamUs. It is unknown if her dental records, fingerprints, or DNA are available for comparison, and there are no reconstructions of her. Anyone with information in her case is urged to please contact the Elko County Sheriff's Office at (775) 738-3421. The agency case number is 90-1138.
Note: There was a partial solar eclipse visible in Nevada on July 10, 1972, which is right around when Jane Doe is estimated to have died. See the Holidays & Events Reference Page for more info.
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