Murder of Michelle Garvey

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Michelle Garvey
Portrait of Michelle Garvey
Born
Michelle Angela Garvey

(1967-06-03)June 3, 1967
Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S.
DisappearedJune 1, 1982
New London, Connecticut, U.S.
DiedJuly 1, 1982 (1982-08) (aged 15)
Cause of deathHomicide by strangulation
Body discoveredJuly 1, 1982
Baytown, Texas, U.S.
Resting placeSt. Patrick Cemetery, Montville, Connecticut

Michelle Angela Garvey (June 3, 1967 – July 1, 1982) was an American teenage girl murdered in Texas within a month of running away from her home in Connecticut.[1] Her body was quickly found but remained unidentified until a 2014 DNA test, after an amateur Internet researcher suggested a match between the Texas unidentified decedent and Connecticut missing-person data.[2][3]

Circumstances[edit]

Michelle Garvey went missing from New London, Connecticut, presumably after running away from home, on June 1, 1982, at the age of fourteen.[4] She was believed to have intended to return to her birth state, New Jersey, or to North Carolina.[1][5] She had a previous history of running away, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Initially, it was unknown what had happened to Garvey, as she may have left home to start a new life and was thought to have possibly been still alive.[6]

Discovery[edit]

Artist Carl Koppelman's impression of what the then-unidentified Garvey looked like in life

Garvey's body was found on July 1, 1982, in Baytown, Texas, one month after she went missing. Authorities were unable to identify her body, but could determine that the victim was a white female between fifteen and twenty years old with blue eyes and curly red hair.[7] The cause of death of the victim was determined to be strangulation.[8] The girl also had an inverted left nipple, O-positive blood type, a scar on one foot, was approximately five feet one inch to five feet three inches (1.60 m) tall, and had one of her ears pierced.[2][7] Her body was found wearing brown clothing, including a long-sleeved, button-down shirt with a distinct horse embroidery on the breast pocket.[8][9] Her pants were made of corduroy material.[10] The body was disposed of in a field after she died, possibly merely hours after her murder.[6] There was evidence that Garvey had been sexually assaulted. No bra or shoes were recovered and the shirt had also been unbuttoned.[11]

As a Jane Doe, Michelle was buried temporarily at the Harris County II Cemetery near two other unidentified murder victims found in 1981, who were identified in 2021 as Dean and Tina Clouse.[8][12]

Identification[edit]

The body was exhumed in May 2011 to obtain a DNA profile to compare to potential matches, including Garvey's brother.[8] An amateur online sleuth, Polly Penwell, came across the cases of Garvey and the unidentified body and suggested to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) and the Harris County medical examiner that they could be the same person after she compared both cases, while using a website known as Websleuths.[3]

Garvey was identified in January 2014, through the efforts of NCMEC and by the Harris County Police Department, who had contacted her family and obtained samples of their DNA for testing in August 2013,[13][14][15] to add to an old sample taken from her brother, which had previously been submitted to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System and analyzed by the University of North Texas.[2][16] She had remained unidentified for 31 years;[17][18] Garvey was fourteen when she disappeared from Connecticut, and was fifteen at the time of her death, more than half-way across the country.[19] Since her identification, authorities have continued their investigation, now aimed at finding Garvey's murderer.[16][17]

It was revealed that Garvey likely ran away from home, leaving through a window, then probably hitched a ride with an unknown driver. Authorities expressed interest in how the victim arrived in Texas and what the motive for her murder may have been, as well as who may have transported her to where she later died. Her case was also possibly connected to other "Texas Killing Fields" murders, although no link has been officially determined.[11]

After being returned from Texas to Connecticut, Garvey's body was reburied by her family on March 1, 2014, in Montville, Connecticut.[20]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Smith, Greg (January 11, 2014). "Police: Body found in 1982 in Texas is missing New London teen". The Day. The Day Publishing Company. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  2. ^ a b c "Resolved Cases". doenetwork.org. The Doe Network. 2014. Archived from the original on October 22, 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  3. ^ a b Sullivan, Patrick (June 2, 2014). "A one-woman CSI unit". Northern Express. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  4. ^ Tuccitto Sullo, Michelle (February 16, 2014). "Connecticut Missing Persons Unit makes progress; cases drop from 243 to 166 in 2 years, NamUs says". New Haven Register News. New Haven Register. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  5. ^ "Michelle Garvey, Connecticut runaway, 14, identified as body found Texas field in 1982". Associated Press. January 11, 2014. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  6. ^ a b "Angela Williamson / Michele Garvey case". vimeo.com. National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. February 20, 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  7. ^ a b "New Facebook page for unidentified children". blog.missingkids.com. National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  8. ^ a b c d Olsen, Lise (May 30, 2011). "'Bone detective' on an identity hunt" (PDF). Harris County Police Department. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 29, 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  9. ^ Van Olson, Cora (January 13, 2014). "Missing, now found: Michelle Garvey". Crime Library. Archived from the original on December 4, 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  10. ^ "Case File: 21UFTX". doenetwork.org. The Doe Network. October 5, 2011. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  11. ^ a b White, Grace (January 28, 2018). "Investigations: Who Killed Michelle?". KHOU. Archived from the original on January 15, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
  12. ^ "Who Killed Texas Couple Dean and Tina Clouse—and Where Is Their Baby?". The Texas Observer. March 2, 2022. Retrieved April 19, 2022.
  13. ^ Vance, Paul (January 10, 2014). "Connecticut State Police assist in Texas homicide case; victim missing from CT since 1982". ct.gov. Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  14. ^ Rizzuto, Robert (January 12, 2012). "'Jane Doe' found murdered in Texas 31 years ago identified as missing New London, Connecticut teen Michelle Garvey". MassLive.com. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  15. ^ "Michelle Garvey Identified As Teen Found Slain In '82". Huffington Post. January 11, 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  16. ^ a b Glista, Kelly (January 10, 2014). "Texas Homicide Victim Identified As Missing New London Girl". Hartford Courant. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  17. ^ a b "Teenage murder victim's body ID'd 31 years after she vanished". KHOU News. Gannett Satellite Information Network. January 10, 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  18. ^ "Teen found dead in Houston field in '82 identified as missing Conn. girl". Eyewitness News 13. ABC. KTRK-TV Houston. January 10, 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  19. ^ "Michelle Garvey, Connecticut runaway, 14, identified as body found Texas field in 1982". Colorado Newsday. Associated Press. January 10, 2014. Archived from the original on November 26, 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  20. ^ "Obituaries: Michelle Garvey". Norwich Bulletin. 2014. Retrieved November 26, 2014 – via Legacy.com.
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