Tammy A. Vincent was a teenage runaway who was murdered in September, 1979.[1][2][3][4] Her body was not identified until 2007, twenty-eight years after her death.[1][4] It was previously believed she may have been a victim of the notorious Green River killings.[2] Vincent's case has not been officially solved.[1][2][5] NCIS cast member Pauley Perrette collaborated with the popular television show America's Most Wanted in 2009 to work on solving the case.[6]
Tammy Vincent | |
|---|---|
 Reconstructions of Vincent prior to her identification compared with an actual photograph (bottom right) | |
| Born | Tammy A. Vincent c. 1962 |
| Disappeared | September 10, 1979 Seattle, Washington |
| Died | September 25, 1979 (aged 17)[1] |
| Cause of death | Homicide by stabbing, fire and firearm |
| Body discovered | September 26, 1979 |
| Resting place | Ephrata Cemetery, Washington, United States (formerly Valley Memorial Park, Novato, California) |
| Nationality | American |
| Citizenship | United States |
Circumstances
editTammy Vincent grew up on a farm in Okanogan County, Washington roughly 140 miles northeast of Seattle. She was described as a headstrong girl with an adventurous streak.[1][7] In her teenage years, Vincent fought with her parents, often running away from home and disappearing for weeks at a stretch.[1][7] She left home in the fall of 1978, ending up in a foster home in Spokane and then as a prostitute in Seattle.[1][4] In August 1979, she was picked up during a vice raid along with several others; in exchange for immunity, she agreed to give testimony in the prostitution and racketeering case against her employers - five men who were under investigation in King County, Washington for operating businesses which were fronts for prostitution and "tease and rip joints".[1][5][8]
Two days after the raid, she was relocated from SeaTac to Spokane in an attempt to keep her safe, but a lawyer working for the five defendants tracked her down and turned her over to his clients.[9] She was last seen in Seattle on September 10, 1979, at a motel in the 19200 block of Aurora Avenue North, getting into a silver Lincoln Continental owned by one of her employers.[1] One day later, a King County Superior Court judge signed a protective order that identified Vincent as a material witness and ordered her held to testify in the case against her employers. She never showed up in court.[1] The last time her family saw her was in the summer of 1979, when she arrived at the family home in a car with someone else.[1] Her family heard from her again that summer when she called on the phone; she indicated that her life was in danger and that she wanted to come home. Her family never heard from her again.[1] It is believed that she was driven to California and put to work at the Palace Theater in San Francisco's Tenderloin District.[2] A salesclerk at a Woolworth's near the Palace Theater remembered seeing a girl who matched Vincent's description on the evening before the murder. With the girl was a man described as Caucasian and wearing a white leisure suit. The salesclerk told police that the man bought acetone, paint, and an awl.[5][7][10]
Murder
edit
A group of joggers discovered the body on the morning of September 26, 1979, on a beach at Blackie's Pasture in Tiburon, California.[2][5] There was gravel embedded in Vincent's face, suggesting she may have been knocked down in a nearby parking lot.[7] Her attacker began with an awl, inflicting 43 stab wounds in Vincent's chest and back as she tried to escape. The killer then doused her with paint and acetone, and set her on fire, burning her face beyond recognition. Vincent was still alive, however, and even got up and ran 20 feet across the beach before collapsing.[3][7] She was then shot once, fatally, in the back of the head.[7] A witness reported seeing a bonfire on the beach shortly after 3 a.m., then a blue van speeding away. An awl, two containers of acetone, and a can of black paint were left at the crime scene, as well as a cigarette lighter. A nearby receipt indicated that the awl, solvent containers, and paint had been purchased the night before from a Woolworth's in San Francisco.[7] Upon the discovery of the remains on the beach, examiners could not identify the body,[3][4] and could only determine her eye color, height, weight, gender, and dental characteristics. At the time of death, she wore a black shirt, beige pants decorated with blue and red, and high heels.[1][9][11]
Identification
editIn efforts to identify Vincent, the body was exhumed in 2002 and was transported to Richmond, Virginia for further examination. The Center for Missing and Exploited Children created a composite image from her skull, which has been done on countless other unidentified decedents.[10] Various other reconstructions have been created prior to the work done by the Center for Missing and Exploited Children.[5][10] In 2007, DNA samples from Vincent's mother and sister were matched to the DNA of the remains.[4][5][10]
Because Vincent's head was severely burned, detectives were unable to collect hair samples; instead, hair from the pubic region was used to carry out the DNA test.[2][5] She was cremated on August 7, 2007 and was laid to rest by her family later that month.[3][5] Her ashes were flown from California to her family in Washington by detective Steve Nash, who had worked on the case since 2001.[3][5]
See also
edit- List of unsolved murders
- Murder of Anjelica Castillo, where the victim went 22 years unidentified
- Barbara Ann Hackmann Taylor, who went 31 years without identification
- Murder of Tammy Alexander, unidentified for 35 years until January 2015.
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Whitely, Peyton (30 September 2007). "Detective work in 2 states identifies '79 slaying victim". Seattle Times. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f Wolfcale, Joe (29 September 2007). "Victim in 1979 Tiburon murder finally identified". Archived from the original on 7 February 2015. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
- ^ a b c d e Wolfcale, Joe (29 September 2007). "Detective tenacious in pursuing 1979 murder case". San Jose Mercury News. Archived from the original on 12 March 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
- ^ a b c d e "This week on America's Most Wanted 2/21/09". 20 February 2009. Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Rafael, San (1 October 2007). "DNA Solves 28-Year-Old Marin Murder Mystery". ktvu.com. Archived from the original on 10 April 2014. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
- ^ "America's Most Wanted". Fox Nebraska. 22 February 2009. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g Education of a Coroner. ASIN 1501168223.
- ^ "Murder victim from 1979 finally identified as Washington teen". San Francisco Chronicle. October 2007.
- ^ a b Brown, Robert (22 February 2009). "Unknown Tammy Vincent Killers". amw.com. America's Most Wanted. Archived from the original on 31 August 2011. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
- ^ a b c d "Timeline of 1979 Tiburon murder case". Marin Independent Journal. September 30, 2007. Archived from the original on 14 May 2014. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
- ^ "Case File 324UFCA". doenetwork.org. The Doe Network. Archived from the original on 13 August 2007. Retrieved 27 August 2014.