Lost for Decades: The Indigenous Woman Who Was Murdered, Nameless, and Then Found Through DNA
For 40 years, she was just another Jane Doe—a nameless, faceless victim buried in cold case files. But in 2020, after relentless detective work and a revolutionary DNA breakthrough, she finally reclaimed her name: Shirley Ann Soosay. This is the haunting story of how a brutal murder erased her identity for decades, and how science—and her family’s unwavering love—brought it back.
A Life Stolen, A Name Forgotten
In July 1980, the body of an unidentified woman was found in an almond orchard in Kern County, California. She had been raped and stabbed 27 times—18 wounds to her chest, nine defensive cuts on her hands and arms, evidence of a desperate fight for survival. Authorities had no name, no suspects, no leads. She was simply labeled “Jane Doe Kern County.”
Three days later, another woman’s body was discovered in a Ventura County high school parking lot. She had also been raped and viciously stabbed—16 times. Even more horrifying, she was 20 weeks pregnant at the time of her murder.
Despite their eerily similar fates, the connection between the two cases went unnoticed for years. Law enforcement tried everything to identify them, even analyzing the tattoos on the Kern County Jane Doe, visiting tattoo parlors in hopes of a lead. But the trail went cold. The two women became ghosts in the system, lost to time.
DNA Cracks the Case—But Without a Name
For decades, the two Jane Does remained in their unmarked graves. But science was catching up to the secrets of the past.
In 2008, forensic advancements allowed investigators to extract DNA from Jane Doe Kern County’s remains. A match came back—Wilson Chouest, a serial rapist who had been in and out of prison since the late 1970s. His history was chilling:
- 1977: Chouest abducted, raped, and strangled a woman—who survived. He was convicted but received a plea deal that dropped the rape charge.
- 1980: Released on parole in June.
- August 1980: Just a month after Jane Doe Kern County’s murder, he robbed a woman at knifepoint.
- September 1980: He kidnapped, raped, and robbed another woman.
- 1981: Sentenced to 12 years to life in prison.
But the DNA evidence wasn’t enough to charge him immediately. It wasn’t until 2013—when DNA from Jane Doe Ventura County also matched Chouest—that prosecutors finally pursued him for the murders.
The Trial That Gave Justice—But Not Closure
In 2015, authorities arrested Chouest for the murders of both Jane Does, as well as the unborn child. Despite decades passing, prosecutors fought to convict him, even though the victims remained nameless.
Chouest, who had denied ever having sex with either woman, was put on trial in 2018. Three women who had survived his past attacks took the stand, painting a horrifying picture of his predatory nature. A former acquaintance even testified that Chouest had once admitted to killing a woman and dumping her body.
On May 31, 2018, the jury found him guilty of both murders. The fetus’s death charge, however, did not stick. In July, Chouest was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences—justice served, but the victims were still nameless.
A Family’s Search, A Name Restored
Convicting Chouest didn’t bring Jane Doe Kern County her identity. But a cold case investigator, inspired by the recent breakthrough in catching the Golden State Killer through DNA genealogy, believed the same technology could help.
The DNA Doe Project (DDP), a volunteer group specializing in forensic genealogy, took on the case. But it wasn’t easy—Jane Doe Kern County’s DNA had degraded over the years, making extraction difficult. Finally, in 2019, they got a breakthrough: She was Indigenous, likely from Maskwacis, Alberta, Canada. But that still wasn’t enough to identify her.
Desperate for answers, investigators made a bold move: They took to social media, urging Indigenous communities to submit DNA samples. That’s when Violet Soosay saw the plea.
For decades, Violet had searched for her missing aunt, Shirley Ann Soosay. She had no idea her aunt had died so violently, so far from home. Desperate for answers, she submitted her DNA. And in February 2020, science confirmed what Violet had long feared—Jane Doe Kern County was Shirley Ann Soosay.
The Forgotten No More
Shirley Ann Soosay was one of the first Indigenous women to be identified through forensic genealogy. But hers is just one of thousands of cases involving missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit people (MMIWG2S), a crisis that continues to devastate communities across North America.
Trish Hurtubise, an Indigenous genetic genealogist who helped identify Shirley, hopes more families will submit DNA to help solve similar cases. “The greater Indigenous population hasn’t realized yet the benefits of DNA for missing persons cases,” she says.
Violet Soosay finally brought her aunt home, ensuring Shirley’s story would no longer be lost in the void of cold case files. “She was loved. She was missed. And now, she is remembered.”
Shirley Ann Soosay’s name, once erased by violence, will never be forgotten again.
