WALKER COUNTY, Texas – The identity of a 1980 cold case murder victim was released to the public on Tuesday. It took four long decades, but her family has finally learned her fate.
According to the Walker County Sheriff’s Office, on Halloween night 41 years ago, a teen girl arrived in Huntsville, Texas. She was alone and asking strangers for directions.
Several citizens reported seeing the girl talking to different people at two separate locations in town.
One of the locations was a truck stop/restaurant along Interstate 45 where the girl asked employees for directions to the Ellis Prison Farm. She told them she was from the Rockport, Aransas Pass area, investigators said.
That could have possibly been one of her last conversations. She was never seen alive again.
The next day, a citizen called the Walker County Sheriff’s Office around 9:20 a.m. to report that a body had been found on the shoulder of IH-45, north of Huntsville and one half mile south of the FM 1696 exit.
The victim was a white woman, believed to be between the ages of 15 and 20. She had been raped and left for dead. It was the young stranger from the night before, but nobody knew who she was.
The cause of death was ruled as asphyxia due to strangulation by ligature, per the Harris County Medical Examiner’s Office. The “Jane Doe” was buried in the Oakwood Cemetery in Huntsville.
The initial investigation focused on identifying the victim and determining any possible relationship she may have had with the Texas Department of Corrections.
TDC employees and inmates were interviewed at that time, but no connections could be found. A search of missing person’s reports revealed no leads, and no media reports of the case resulted in anything that could positively identify her.
Investigators traveled to the Rockport Aransas Pass area and interviewed law enforcement, as well as school officials. They came up empty on both ends.
The case seemed to go silent to many, except the dedicated law enforcement officials who never gave up.
“I never liked to refer to this case as a ‘cold case.’ It has always been a top priority and we have never forgot her, " Sheriff Clint McRae said.
Determination paid off and “Jane Doe’s” birthname was revealed. Sherri Ann Jarvis was born on March 9, 1966, and was from Stillwater, Minnesota.
So how did investigators finally uncover Sherri Ann’s identity?
According to investigators, in July 2020, detectives met with Othram Labs and authorized them to begin forensic DNA testing in an attempt to form a DNA profile from tissue samples from the original autopsy. Othram Labs was able to obtain one and used it to start building a family tree.
In March of 2021, Othram provided detectives with six people they believed were either direct relatives of the victim, or possibly aunts and uncles. They used internet resources to help finish connecting the dots. Finally, they found a match.
Detectives were able to locate information on all but one female family member and discovered Sherri Ann had run away in early 1980 and was 14 years old at the time. Sherri Ann’s family said she was removed from her home in Stillwater for habitual truancy. She wrote a letter to them shortly after being removed, telling them that she would return.
The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences made the final confirmation of Sherri Ann’s identity.
“I would like to thank the Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division as well as the lead Detective Tom Bean for his drive and determination to never give up,” McRae said. “As well as the partnerships that have assisted us; the Texas Rangers, Federal Bureau of lnvestigations Houston Field Office, Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences, Othram Tech Labs, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and all of the past Sheriffs Office Investigators that spent many hours and days never quitting to help bring Sherry home.”
The Walker County Sheriff’s Office said the investigation is continuing as a suspect has not yet been identified.