Police ID murder victim who became known as 'Woodlawn Jane Doe'
Baltimore County police have identified the teenager who was known as "Woodlawn Jane Doe."
County police announced Wednesday that Margaret Fetterolf, of Alexandria, Virginia, was 16 when she was killed. Her body was found on Sept. 12, 1976, in the 5600 block of Dogwood Road near the Lorraine Park Cemetery in Woodlawn. She had been strangled and sexually assaulted.
Over the years, the victim became known as "Woodlawn Jane Doe," named after the area of the county where she was found.
"We believe that she was drug into the woods -- maybe from a van that had been seen in the area. We're not 100% sure on that," Baltimore County police Cpl. John Wachter said in 2016.
Police said detectives initially relied on simple sketches of the victim to generate leads in the case. That began to change as advancements in DNA testing were made.
In 2006, detectives requested evidence in the case be tested. In 2015, with the assistance of The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, pollen testing took Baltimore County detectives to the Boston area. The following year, which marked 40 years since the girl's killing, The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children released a new facial reconstruction image of Jane Doe.
The biggest break in the case came earlier this year, police said. With assistance from The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and Bode Technology, additional DNA testing was conducted and the results helped to identify "Woodlawn Jane Doe."
"Obviously, we want to go back to where she came from and try to figure out who she may have been with, who may have seen her last. If anybody knows who she may have left that area with because she had to get here to the Baltimore area somehow," Baltimore County police Cpl. Dona Carter said.
Fetterolf's family told police she had been reported missing one year before her remains were even found.
"This is so significant. This is a really big break in the case because without knowing who she is or where she came from, we really don't have too much to go on because we needed to know who she may have been with in order to get some leads for this case," Carter said.
Now, police with compounding evidence are aiming to give closure in the case.
"Because so much time has elapsed, because it's been 45 years, it might jog somebody's memory to see a picture of her. They might not remember her name or too much about her, but maybe seeing a picture, they could remember certain things about what led up to her going missing," Carter said.
Anyone who may have information about this case is asked to call detectives at 410-307-2020.