As serial killer Henry Lee Lucas’ confessions began to unravel, police became less confident that he was responsible for most of his alleged crimes — including the 1979 murder of Tammy Jo Alexander.
Wikimedia CommonsTammy Jo Alexander , pictured concisely before her disappearance .
On Nov. 10 , 1979 , a farmer discovered the body of a teenage daughter in a corn field in Caledonia , New York . incur with a gunshot lesion to the head and another injury in her back , the dupe had been stripped of identification — but her clothing remained undisturbed .
Four year later , a man namedHenry Lee Lucaswas arrested in Texas . A suspect in a local execution case , Lucas eventually fink to killing Alexander as well .
Wikimedia CommonsTammy Jo Alexander, pictured shortly before her disappearance.
But after confessing to one slaying , Lucas confess to another , and to another , and then to another . Before long , the Texas Rangers had “ clear ” more than 200 cases based on theserial killer ’s confession .
As Lucas ’ confessions became more implausible , police became less confident that he was responsible for most of his say crimes — include the execution of Alexander .
While Tammy Jo Alexander was indeed idle — though not identified until 2015 — and while Henry Lee Lucas was indeed guilty of at least some murders , a lingering query plagued police : Who really killed her ?
FBI DatabaseA poster seeking information about the murder of Tammy Jo Alexander.
Who Was Tammy Jo Alexander?
FBI DatabaseA poster seek information about the murder of Tammy Jo Alexander .
Tammy Jo Alexander had an distressed childhood , split among surrogate household , her grannie ’s station , and biography with a deep troubled female parent in her hometown of Brooksville , Florida .
agree to theNew York Daily News , Alexander was an experienced hitchhiker by the sentence she was just 15 years former . While waitressing at a hand truck stop café , she often overtake ride with long - haul teamster .
Wikimedia CommonsAn illustration of “Caledonia Jane Doe” before she was officially identified.
“ People were just drawn to her , ” said her high school friend Laurel Nowell , remember her bubbly personality and smile .
In 1978 , Nowell and Alexander briefly ran away together . The 15 - year - olds managed to hitchhike all the room to Los Angeles , but at last Nowell ’s parent end up flying both teens back home .
Nowell learned from Alexander ’s babe , Pamela Dyson , that Alexander had taken off yet again in 1979 . Only this time , she would never return .
FBI DatabaseA sketch of the man who was seen traveling with Tammy Jo Alexander shortly before she was killed.
Dyson believe that Alexander ran away to run a bad home life .
“ My mother put Joan Crawford to shame , ” Dyson later said , describing her mom as “ a screamer and a slapper . ”
According to Alexander ’s gamy schooling young man , she leave Brooksville for good in the spring of 1979 . This was just a few month before she would be found dead at age 16 , get out to rot in a cornfield more than 1,000 miles away from home .
Getty ImagesHenry Lee Lucas in the Williamson County Jail in 1979.
The Discovery Of The Girl In The Cornfield
In November of 1979 , the body of a untried woman was let out in Caledonia , New York , which is about 23 miles sou’west of Rochester . She was found wearing a plaid shirt , tan corduroy jean , and a flushed anorak with a catch label that read “ Auto Sports Products , Inc. ”
She had been murdered with a .38 caliber artillery . After being shot once in the nous , she was seemingly draw into the cornfield from the route and then shot again in the back . But since she had no shape of designation , detectives struggled to find out who she was .
For days , shewas known as “ Caledonia Jane Doe,”and then just “ Cali Doe , ” as authorities go on to enquire her case .
Getty ImagesHenry Lee Lucas is escorted to his murder trial by the police.
Wikimedia CommonsAn illustration of “ Caledonia Jane Doe ” before she was officially place .
Her corpse did offer a few clues to the constabulary . From her bikini tan lines , authority could enjoin that she had traveled to the brisk , autumnal New York from a warm mood elsewhere .
They essay pollen on her body to determine she ’d likely grown up in a place like Southern California or Florida . However , since the keychains on her belt loops were betray at New York Thruway rest stops , it was vindicated that she had recently been locomote in the local realm .
When constabulary searched the surface area , they learned that the mystifying fille had apparently stopped for dinner party at about 8:30 p.m. the former dark in nearby Lima . She enjoyed a simple meal of ham actor , white potato , and corn . Her dining companion was an nameless serviceman .
The potential mortal of interest was trace as a white male person who was about 5’8″ or 5’9″ with curly hair and glass .
FBI DatabaseA resume of the humankind who was find out traveling with Tammy Jo Alexander soon before she was stamp out .
Marge Bradford , who was her waitress that night , wondered out loud : “ Why would you buy somebody dinner and then stamp out them 45 minutes afterward and discombobulate them in a corn field ? ”
law were enquire the same thing — and they were hoping to observe the perpetrator responsible for this horrific criminal offence . But for the next 35 class , little else was discovered about “ Cali Doe . ”
The victim was finally identified as Tammy Jo Alexander in 2015 . Once constabulary confirmed the victim ’s identity with a DNA trial , their next goal was to figure out who murdered her in the first spot .
And while confirmed serial killer Henry Lee Lucasconfessed to her murderin 1984 , cop had a very good rationality to doubt his title .
Did “Confession Killer” Henry Lee Lucas Kill Tammy Jo Alexander?
Getty ImagesHenry Lee Lucas in the Williamson County Jail in 1979 .
While there is no question that Henry Lee Lucas was a murderer — he even killed his own mother back in 1960 — it remains undecipherable what his genuine eubstance count was due to the unreliable nature of his confession .
finally , however , the confessions became too good to be straight . law start to theorize that Lucas had n’t been the one behind all of the murder he claimed . Perhaps he was simply trying to make a name for himself .
Getty ImagesHenry Lee Lucas is escorted to his murder trial by the police .
It all began to unravel when copper noticed that the “ detail ” Lucas offer up could be ascertain in criminal offense scene photos shown to him during interrogations .
Based on factors like the gasoline mileage on his car and true sources explain his genuine whereabouts , research worker had to disregard hundreds of his confessions .
To make thing worse , it was later on disclose that some members of the chore force assign to Lucas had on the Q.T. provided him with grounds and asked him lead head .
Today , it ’s generally accepted that he committed far less than 600 murders , although experts are still unable to trap down the precise number . For what it ’s worth , one district lawyer who prosecute Lucas say he believed the killer had mutilate anywhere from three masses to a dozen .
Could Tammy Jo Alexander have been one of them ?
The Cold Case Of Caledonia Jane Doe
We may never know who killed Tammy Jo Alexander . The casing remains unsolved to this day . While Henry Lee Lucas did lay claim responsibleness for the killing , there was no way for police to reassert whether it was the trueness .
To this Clarence Shepard Day Jr. , the only “ grounds ” unite him to the crime was the confession — which was later determined not to be credible . And , of course , the same could be order for dozens of other murders he purportedly practice .
However , it ’s deserving mention that the valet de chambre who was seen dine with Alexander shortly before her death did bear a vague resemblance to Lucas . Hypothetically , it could have been him in a disguise with glasses . But it could have also just been someone who bet somewhat like him .
One former sheriffwho investigated the casethinks her murderer may have possibly been the sadistic fling killerChristopher Wilder , who abduct and violate a dozen women and murdered eight .
Since Wilder was a race car machine driver , many people with this Falco subbuteo were hump to purchase Auto Sports Products — the same make found on the jacket that Alexander was wearing when she croak .
However , Wilder was fatally shot while fighting with a police officer in 1984 , so he died before he could ever be interrogate about “ Cali Doe . ”
In 2016 , deoxyribonucleic acid sample from three different men were test against a manlike genetical sample found on Tammy Jo Alexander ’s clothing . Though all of the men had known Alexander and were consider “ person of interest , ” the sample on the clothing did n’t tally any of them .
researcher still receive thousands of tips about this eccentric , with no clean reply yet about who dispatch the teenage hitchhiker all those years ago . However , Alexander ’s sis still hold out Leslie Townes Hope that the real grampus might be land to justice someday .
“ Somebody has to sleep together something , in just my personal opinion , ” Dyson read . “ We have n’t reached the correct person that has the firearm of information that will lead to this causa being solved . ”
She added , “ I always have hope . And I will never give up till the day I die desire that they find who killed her . ”
Next , say about some of history ’s most gruesomeserial killer duet . Then , check outPedro Lopez , a serial killer who was released from jail for good behavior — after murdering 300 mass .
