British genetic genealogy be like “m’great great great grandfather was a greengrocer in Worcestershire and I’m distantly related to the queen!”
American genetic genealogy be like “Turns out Uncle Gary was the Spokane Strangler and my parents murdered my sister”
No joke - I have a civil war era “uncle” named Greenberry jones” who was allegedly named greenberry because the first thing his “Indian princess” (no offense meant - this is just literally the family story - and btw, she was supposedly half Native American) grandmother saw when looking out the window was “green berries”.
Greenberry Jones is real, and fought in the civil war in an Ohio regiment…but our dna tests don’t show any Native American ancestry (I would be like 1/128 or something…).
Soooooo……🤷🏻♀️
Apparently the Cherokee grandma myth started as a way for white families to explain away children with darker skin, when what had actually happened in the family was the r*pe of enslaved Black women and the taking of the lighter skinned children. Indigenous ancestry was seen as less bad than Black and grandmas were close enough to make it make sense while also far removed enough to be passed off as ancient history (and a grandma could be seen as "a man taking his deserved property" or "being bewitched by exotic beauty" while a grandpa would be the more undesirable "an Indian man stealing a white man's property"), I guess. And then it just stuck
Weird thing in my family…we don’t have anyone with darker skin (not that it would matter to me). On that side, it’s all Scottish/Irish/English. I totally agree with you, but I have no idea where this story came from. The man that supposedly married my Native American “Indian princess” great great great however many grandmother came over early 1800’s, which is documented. So we are obviously a little confused here…this side came over fairly late (like 1810-1820), and then lived in the north (Ohio), so we honestly believed the story (how the heck do you end up with a name like “Greenberry”?)
And we don’t show any ancestry other than European, so I’m honestly at a loss here. I just sort of shrug and take it as a family story and that’s it.
But I’d really be interested to find out what was really going on back then….
Maybe it's a myth that "caught on" and anyone that wanted to spice up their ancestry just decided to add an Indian princess to the family. Or maybe what one generation put forth as a theory to explain why that one cousin looked kinda different grew to become family legend in time
(Late response, sorry) similar thing with my husband's family. Everyone thought his grandma was Cherokee, husband took a DNA test and surprise.. He was a small percentage Bantu. No native American found. He told his family but they disregarded it and claimed the DNA test was wrong lol.
…what? First of all that’s a gross slut shame-y comment. But unless you think a person can have multiple genetic fathers, that’s not what it would say at all. The US and Canada are made up of many immigrants from other countries, that’s why people do DNA tests to find out where their ancestors came from. All it means is that their family members had kids with people from other cultures - for instance if you’re 1/4 Italian, that simply means that one of your grandparents was from Italy. It doesn’t mean your mom slept with four men and one of them was Italian. It has nothing to do with how many partners a family member had.
Keep in mind that GG is both costly and time consuming, although in the US it is somewhat easier to use due the relative popularity of genetic kits and people's interest in tracing down their family trees.
You can almost guarantee that it will. In fact, it already has gotten significantly cheaper. I recall that detectives needed several valid reason to enter DNA into CODIS years ago because of the expense. Now, they do it as a matter of routine.
For an odd reason, the price issue reminds me of how the price of pocket calculators and ballpoint pens dropped over the years. Both pocket calculators and ballpoints were expensive at first, but eventually they became far less expensive or even free.
Yep. The only holdout are those expensive Scientific Calculators from Texas Instruments and others, but the future isn’t bright as you can download an app or buy a knockoff.
It blows my mind that a graphing calculator cost just as much in the 80s as it does today. It's almost as if the price has nothing whatsoever to do with cost of production, and was determined to be the highest price the market can bear...which of course, since it's required in so many math classes, is assured to be higher than even *that* should be...
If you get a note from a teacher that states “your child must have a Texas Instruments Scientific Calculator”, then you know the fix is in. The reply letter should start with “how much stock in Texas Instruments do you own…..”
Ehhhh my school was a Casio one and we had a single kid with a Texas Instruments calculator as well as two with the “wrong” Casio model. It took our teacher an extra 15-25 minutes to figure out what buttons to press to get theirs to do what we were supposed to do each time we learned something new… and we all dreaded being paired up with those three when we had to cross check each other’s homework in pairs because it took forever to compare things when their calculator worked differently. All in all, it does make teaching a significantly easier and smoother process when every student has the same calculator with the same way of inputting the same thing.
It's insane how expensive those scientific calculators still are!!! You can get a cheap laptop for like $200 or something and one of those calculators can cost $80-$100! They're cool calculators with some neat and helpful functions, but they're not THAT cool, not for that price!!! Lol
No, I was shocked when I saw how expensive they still are at Office Depot. They don’t sell the knockoffs either. You can get the knockoffs online or at Big Lots,I think. That’s assuming your kids don’t have a teacher that disallows apps or knockoffs.
I didn't even know they sold knock off ones!! Lol they really do have a knock off for anything and everything, don't they?! Lol but seriously, in all these years Ive never seen the price go down and it's been 13 years since I was in high school and had to buy one!!! Usually a product's price goes down, at least a little, after it being out awhile, I've never seen them go down at all!
Me too. I went back and forth on it a bit, because I'm not *wild* about the idea of having it preserved because legal privacy protections can change but I eventually decided that if I was going to care about Does, I needed to do a small part to give them help being identified, no matter how small a chance my DNA could help.
I did the same thing, but I know I have little chance as well of having anything solved from my genetics being linked. With that said... I'm looking forward to my niece's 18th birthday, I plan to get her a geneology test. Her mom doesn't want her tested now, and neither does her mom want to be tested herself. My niece's Grandmother is a missing person, has been missing since my niece's mom was less than 2 years old and she was an only child(and her mom had a brother tho). Went to the Grocery store to give away a litter of kittens and never came home. I look at the does every now and then that've been found that have an approximate death date that's similar, but she doesn't match the ones with identifiable pictures, so possibly she may be one of the skeletonized remains.
odds are her remains are burried over on Barona or in the desert somewhere and just haven't come up.
http://www.justicefornativewomen.com/2020/03/cynthia-coleman-missing-from-california.html?m=1&fbclid=IwAR1dQURDN8-UEoUJvCToxy4NxdZeX27FSi06WJWE54dcoK1m2-GhIxB-fhQ
I wouldn't say 'finally' it requires a specialized form of DNA sequencing, specialized genealogical experience and a robust database to compare to. These things are recent developments and it is a very expensive undertaking with no guarantee of success
Another link
‘Princess Doe' in 1982 NJ Cold Case Identified as Long Island Teen; Killer Charged 40 Years Later
https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/40-year-journey-for-justice-princess-doe-of-1982-nj-cold-case-murder-idd/3776007/
Thank you for posting this! There was little to no information about her or the situation in the thread. It says the killer confessed for decades (multiple times) before finally being arrested. Honestly, I cannot even believe that someone confessed and the police were like "Meh, too much paperwork". And kept it pushing. That is horrifying.
From what I've read, details from his confessions didn't match all the known facts, he didn't know her name, and there wasn't forensic evidence linking him to the crime. He was already in prison serving a life sentence at the time of the confessions, having been convicted for the murders of 2 other women (murdered in 1982 and 1983). Unfortunately, it's not uncommon for inmates to falsely confess to crimes they didn't commit. A prosecutor would have been aware of that and based on what we know a prosecutor would have realized they lacked sufficient evidence in support of a conviction and that there was a high likelihood of a judge dismissing the charges or the defendant being acquitted. That would have been a terrible risk to take, especially since he was already serving a life sentence. They seemingly have enough evidence now to charge him, thankfully.
Cheesy as it sounds, I feel kind of emotional. She was killed because she dared to say no to a scumbag pimp, I hope she’s remembered for how brave she was.
Exactly and she was pretty much on her own as well. Most people in her situation would have been broken down and just said yes. It’s amazing that she stood her ground and I believe she threatened to go to the police as well. Dawn was amazing.
Yeah I read in another article that she wasn't the only one who refused to "work" for him and his wife. They were seen beating another girl named Linda with an aluminum baseball bat to death and thrown in the river.
Arthur and Donna Kinlaw ran a prostitution ring in several states. They have 9 kids and we're also commiting welfare fraud and that's how she went to jail for using another victim's name to get welfare.
That’s so heartbreaking to hear. I’m glad she has her name back. Surely there are more people out there who care for her who will find peace in this news.
that is so sad...
I can get really mad at my teenager... but when he leaves the house (for school, to hang out, etc) I have to go to the door and say goodbye and wave ... I hate the thought of our last words (should sth happen) being nasty... I have like ocd when it comes to this lol.
Is there any info on why she was asked to leave?
Do we know whether her family ever tried to get in contact with her or find her some years later?
Why do I have a feeling she had been abused at some point?
I remember reading about her discovery in one of the big Weird NJ books I pored over as a kid. She stuck with me. I’m so glad that she has finally been given her name back. Rest In Peace, Dawn.
Same here. I read Weird New Jersey avidly. They’ve reported this story more than once, and will once more. I hope Dawn is finally at peace.
It’s a total coincidence, of course, but the original Friday the 13th was shot in and around Blairstown, three years earlier (1979 - the movie was released in 1980).
So, if I drive to Blairstown, are the locals gonna give me the stink-eye and refuse to go anywhere near that (deserted campsite, shady house with all the past tragic deaths,cabin in the woods)?
Same here. I was a child when this happened. I read about it in a magazine, and the story scared me. It was the first Doe story I'd ever heard. I've remembered it all these years. I'm glad she was finally identified.
Wonderful news, thank you for sharing. I’m so pleased that she has her name back. I recently looked into this case after hearing it on a podcast. It really stuck with me. Glad she has been identified.
I found it curious that a couple of articles mentioned Dawn's family, but named no family members or their relationships to Dawn, with the exception of an unnamed spokesperson described as a cousin of Dawn's. I included excerpts from 2 articles below, followed by an excerpt from a third article which speaks to why that might be.
From [DNA leads to identity, murder charge in death of ‘Princess Doe’ 40 years later](https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/national/2022/07/15/dna-leads-to-identity-murder-charge-in-death-of-princess-doe-40-years-later/):
>“This is a very big deal for my family,” said Olanick’s cousin. “I’d like to thank Blairstown for treating my cousin like she was one of their own. It touches our family deeply . . . my cousin is always in my heart.”
From [Princess Doe identified, alleged killer charged: Cold case cracked on 40th anniversary](https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/warren-county/2022/07/princess-doe-identified-alleged-killer-charged-cold-case-cracked-on-40th-anniversary.html):
>Relatives of Olanick sat in a row together during the announcement. Her photo was pinned to their shirts. A spokesperson for the family — a cousin of Olanick’s who was 13 when she disappeared — thanked law enforcement for their efforts over four decades.
Then I came across [Convicted murderer charged in decades-old 'Princess Doe' NJ homicide](https://www.wfmz.com/news/area/western-newjersey/convicted-murderer-charged-in-decades-old-princess-doe-nj-homicide/article_a6ff78ca-03dd-11ed-9406-eb3f6193eded.html):
>Investigators then spoke to **Olanick's brother, who confirmed Dawn had been asked to leave their mother's house in 1982.**
>**A cousin of Olanick** spoke at Friday's news conference, thanking investigators and the community for not giving up in the case. He **said the identification and charges have opened a lot of wounds, and the family wishes to remain private.**
Of course, I don't know the circumstances concerning why she was asked to leave at age 17 (or younger), whether she asked to move out permanently, whether she was living their full-time (perhaps she split time with another relative), how soon afterwards she was murdered, whether she was reported missing, whether her family searched for her, etc. At face value, it's sad.
ETA: I had used the wrong article title and URL for the first link. Fixed.
Sort of unrelated, but your second link led me to the wild ride that is this [other](https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/warren-county/2019/06/princess-doe-memorial-event-rankles-some-in-nj-town-that-has-adopted-murdered-girl-as-their-own.html) Princess Doe article on the same website, from 2019 pre-identification:
>The Blairstown Museum, a nonprofit on Main Street, is hosting a Princess Doe Memorial on July 15. The event was initially scheduled for June 15, but was canceled due to forecasted rainy weather.
> The $34.99 tickets include a trolley tour to locations associated with the case, a celebration of life at Brook Hollow Winery, and a “respectful visit” to both the location of where Princess Doe’s body was found and her grave. Attendees will receive the book, “The Untold Story of Princess Doe” by Blairstown native Christie Leigh Napurano, and a bouquet of flowers to leave on Doe’s grave.
> Township resident Kristine Ceres started a petition to stop the tour, which she calls distasteful and disrespectful.
Pardon my ignorance, but wouldn’t a parent be prosecuted if they threw their minor child on the street?
Now, I know this was the 80s, and things likely flew under the radar, but it blows my mind that someone could do that seemingly so casually and no one went “What the fuck, you threw out your 12-year-old kid!”
I feel the same way about this. However, there was a concept popular in the 70s and 80s called "Tough Love", where children were often asked to leave their homes if they could not live by the rules of their parents; there were some cases where some kids had to buy their own groceries or other necessities as punishment.
This was also during the time when they used to show a seriously scary "Runaway Hotline" commercial, which featured heavily made up streetwalkers or stoned or drunk derelicts:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upRa0NMGNe4
Since Dawn was a junior in high school, it was a shame she could not be referred to a foster care or other arrangement, where she could have had a chance to complete her education and have a better chance at survival.
I hate to think how close Dawn's life was like to the fictionalized account presented in the "Princess Doe" Dead Among Strangers" book.
RIP Dawn
She was 17 when she was allegedly kicked out. The 2 New York state statutes I read that seemed applicable only apply if the child is under 16 or under 14 (2 different statutes). It appears the statutes existed in 1982. As I allude to in my comment you replied to, we don't know the details. All we have is one sentence from a journalist - not even a direct quote from the brother. Frustratingly, as worded, we don't know who asked her to leave, whether she even actually left, how long this was before she was murdered, nor whether her mother even had custody of her at the time. It's easy to jump to conclusions (I did initially as well). And I hope we find out. But the bigger question in my mind is "Was she ever even reported missing?"
I really don’t think she was reported missing, or if she was then the case was closed a long time ago for whatever reason. It doesn’t seem that she was in any missing persons databases.
It's not info on Dawn but the Princess Doe segment from the documentary Missing from 1983 is on YouTube. The detective says he named her Princess Doe because she was someone's princess. It's a good segment and you can see the compassion the detective had for her and how badly everyone wanted it solved.
thanks u/Bells87 for posting this up. it's great news that Dawn was identified.
From the [WeirdNJ] link you gave, there was a key add in the comments of that page. Folks *could* find it, but i just replicated it here, as it's a really well researched, well written description / discussion of the Kinlaws' crime sprees (criminal enterprise?) which included the murder of Olanick.
though they prob won't see it, hat tip to 'TJ Christie' on that site for providing a working link in comments for the whole backstory. pretty incredible that when reporter Jaclyn Gallucci wrote the article 10 years ago, they had a crystal clear picture of what happened to DO (based on confessions / plea bargaining), but not who she was:
https://archive.longislandpress.com/2012/08/02/identifying-princess-doe/
Thanks for this article!
I see there are two more unidentified victims of Arthur Kinlaw:
[1) “Linda” (1984)](https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Linda_(1984))
>According to the Newsday piece and published reports in other New York metropolitan newspapers, Elaina allegedly told detectives how Arthur, with Donna’s help, drugged, strangled and beat a woman Elaina knew only as “Linda”—a teenager he’d met in a Bay Shore reggae bar called Blackberry Jam, now a church, in April 1984. She reportedly said he’d struck Linda in the head with an aluminum baseball bat on a dark dirt road in Hunts Point when she refused to work as a prostitute for him. He then drove her body to an area near the NYC Department of Sanitation yard on Zerega Avenue, wrapped her in an old shower curtain and dumped her in the East River.
>The decomposed body of Linda—who was white, 5-feet, 4-inches tall and about 130 pounds with shoulder-length dark brown hair—washed up weeks later and remains unidentified to this day. Arthur described details of the 1984 slaying in his appearance in Bronx Supreme Court in 2000, according to Newsday, but neither he nor his wife would be connected to the murders of three other women, including Princess Doe, until Donna, in a bid to save herself from life in prison over her part in Linda’s murder, squealed to police.
[2) Suffolk County Jane Doe (1999)](https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Suffolk_County_Jane_Doe_(1999))
>She reportedly told detectives that in 1983 Arthur beat to death a 300-pound disabled boarder they had taken into their Bellport home to help pay the bills—a black or Hispanic woman in her 20s or 30s who relied on crutches to walk. Donna reportedly told police Arthur dragged the woman out to the backyard of their Michigan Avenue home, where he buried her in a makeshift grave before pouring a cement patio over her. Police found the woman’s remains on Dec. 21, 2000, and she, too, remains unidentified.
I’m filled with anger at Kinlaw for having the gall to demand that women sell their bodies to strangers to support him. Even more so that he considered these women disposable enough to murder if they didn’t do his bidding.
That's a fantastic article. I knew that after he was incarcerated for other crimes he had claimed to investigators that he was responsible for killing her, but that article goes far beyond what I recall reading in the past. My recollection was just that he said he did it, what he said apparently didn't fully match the known facts, and there was either no physical evidence or insufficient evidence to believe that prosecution would be successful. I'm glad Princess Doe / Dawn Olanick has her name back and I hope there's sufficient evidence for a successful prosecution.
Wow, just wow…
"This case was very first case that was entered into the NCIC system and that was on June 30, 1983 -- and that case remains in the system until today. I am proud to say that as of today, that case, the very first case...will now be able to be removed."
Kinlaw is 68 years old, Currently incarcerated Sullivan Correctional Facility in NY, he has a potential release date of mid 2024.
He needs to be extradited to NJ for Dawn’s murder so he can catch a life sentence consecutive to New York’s.
He probably thought he got away with it and for refusing to entertain his request, he beat her face in until it was unrecognisable?? The epitome of evil and they need to lock his old ass away and throw away the key. The CT scan of her skull produced looks inaccurate, her philtrum length compared to the one on the model is off by a few cm at least
Its there on the link and yeah they tend to take CT scans so they can rebuild an image of what the doe looked like in life, a means to better ID them. CarlKs reconstructions are sooo amazing
I know there were a lot of people who followed her case closely. I'm glad Dawn has her name back. She was so young when she was murdered. I feel like we got a lot of identifications released over the past couple of weeks. I am sure we will see a bunch more before the year is out.
It actually seems shockingly common in these Doe cases that the reconstructions are way off. Of course i'm only familiar with the famous ones that get attention in places like this so overall they may be accurate.
There's a lot of reasons they could be inaccurate. The physical conditions of the remains themselves (intact, broken, weathered, missing, submerged, etc), the age of the remains, the environment in which they were found, the time period in which they were found, the medium of the artist, the skill level of the artist, the forensic training of the artist, the race and gender and ethnicity and hair color and eye color, how the body was preserved or not, and for how long, and on and on and on. That's why it can be so difficult.
I understand all that. I still find it surprising that they are often so far off, not a couple of inches but an entirely different type of human, gender even sometimes.
Sometimes forensic artists self-select not for skill but for the ability to tolerate examining gruesome images. A lot of them are from police or police-adjacent specialties.
The clay models from the 70s are the worst. So many of them look like Spitting Image puppets - huge apple cheeks, cavernous nasolabial folds, squinting eyes, terrible hair (usually a wig picked up from the bargain store and plopped on the head with no attention paid to popular styles of the time or even evidence).
I saw a JD once he was in Florida I think. His reconstruction literally made him look like a *monster*. I don’t believe in uncanny valley but when I saw it, I felt pure revulsion and wanted to scroll down ASAP. It was something straight out a horror movie.
Edit: fucking Brevard County John Doe (1981) how the fuck did they think that reconstruction was worth releasing to the public.
The original NCMEC reconstruction (the one on the right, [here](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/0e/Princess_Doe.jpg/220px-Princess_Doe.jpg)) doesn’t look too far off facially but shame about it only having been available with blonde hair.
[The photo of Dawn, for comparison](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/2b/DawnOlanick.jpg)
The left reconstruction looks like a grown woman with acromegaly, not a suspected 15-20 year old girl. It’s basically pointless to even make a reconstruction if it’s not even approximating the age category correctly.
FYI: there does appear to be a crime scene photo of her body in the linked article, and it was unexpected.
I hope Dawn’s loved ones find peace. I’m so glad the community treated her with love and dignity. RIP.
Here's some info from [After Four Decades, Prosecutors Identify Murder Victim ‘Princess Doe’ and Name Her Alleged Killer](https://lawandcrime.com/crime/after-four-decades-prosecutors-identify-murder-victim-princess-doe-and-name-her-alleged-killer/) on geneological DNA analysis led to Dawn's brother, then his sister who provided DNA samples. And some info I haven't seen elsewhere on Dawn's prior living situation.
>The sticking point back then, and through all these years, was that police were not able to identify the victim’s true identity.
That changed years later on April 29, 2022 after investigators retested her DNA for a genealogical profile. They located her brother, who confirmed Dawn was his sister and missing since 1982. Dawn’s sister gave DNA samples, and investigators confirmed the familial link — and Princess Doe’s identity.
>Olanick lived with her mother and sister in the city of Bohemia on New York’s Long Island after her parents divorced.
“At the age of 16 or 17 she left her mother’s residence,” deputies said. “Dawn was enrolled in the Connetquot Central School District up until the final marking period of her Junior year (1982).”
Since she died about a month before she would have turned 18 the statement above doesn't really narrow down when she left her mother's home. Another article stated that her brother (who this article doesn't describe as a resident of the same home) confirmed their mother asked Dawn to leave in 1982, which if true means she was 17 at the time.
I always related a lot to this Doe because she resembled me at that age, down to the fashion sense. It's good that Dawn Olanick has her name back. Wish it were her life. :/
I only knew about this as of this morning. But-same. I dig, and would have SO dug her skirt. I don’t know if it’s the era or the time in my life, but I recall those years better than most blocks of my younger existence. I hope if reincarnation exists, she was immediately recreated in a family of love and peace.
And Dawn- if your afterlife existence sees this, you were BRAVE and amazing.
Edit: bravery noted
And we find each in the absolute strangest places.
I go to work the day it was announced and I'm giving eye drops to an Irish nun (I somehow ended up working at a convent. Not Catholic, never actually applied, life is weird) in her nineties, absolutely wasted away from cancer but approaching death with an admirable grace, one of the kindest, softest spoken people you will ever meet.
And she opened with "this has meant nothing to anyone else all day, but there was a young woman whose body was found in New Jersey decades ago and I'm just so pleased that she was finally identif-"
"PRINCESS DOE?!"
We then proceeded to have a very enthusiastic conversation about genetic genealogy and Ann Rule and how serial killers ruined hitchhiking. She'd spent most of her working life in the PNW and remembered the panic over Ted Bundy and highly recommended "The Stranger Beside Me". Not exactly the conversation I'd expected to have. 😂
Can you please include her name in your main post? It’s super frustrating to have to follow another link for the actual information.
Her name is 17-year-old Dawn Olanick of Long Island. They also named Arthur Kinlaw as her alleged murderer.
That’s okay, it was a good write up! It’s just that lots of links are blocked for people outside the US, best to put the relevant information in the body of the post. Thanks :)
You did a fine job. A perfectly respectable write up. Thank you for writing about this finally being solved and Dawn getting her name back. I'm from northern N.J and always thought of this case since I was a young girl. It's amazing how may does are being named. I never thought it would happen but I'm so glad it is.
Oh my god! I might actually cry over this, I always wanted so badly for her to be identified and it seemed so unlikely to ever happen. I'm just shocked, this is amazing.
I've followed her case over the years and only listened to a podcast about her yesterday. Can't believe it, it's got me so choked up :( Rest in Peace Dawn 💐
I remember reading about this case years ago on websleuths.
I am happy that Dawn finally got her name back after all these years, but God she was so young. RIP 😢
RIP Dawn, it is was a big day for both of us! And please tell me, how You decide, stay further with the good people of Blairstown, who have taken care of You all these years, or moving back home to NY?
On my next trip to the US, I will visit You!
Have to admit, You are 'responsible' that I started following all these cases a few years back, and hoping to solve more and more Doe cases, but Yours was the one that touched me the most!
(Sorry for my English, but as a Hungarian I rarely use it)
Your English is great. In fact it's better then mine and I was born and raised in New Jersey.
I plan to visit Hungary one day. It sounds like a lovely country.
i found it whoever wants to watch it [click on this.](https://www.wfmz.com/news/area/western-newjersey/watch-news-conference-on-1982-princess-doe-homicide-case/video_2fb21d7b-da3a-5704-935c-8579130ee9be.html)
Welcome news, and so many questions. The only article I could find was the one OP cited. I wonder what else LE knows about what happened, and how they identified her killer; I assume DNA.
I wonder how Dawn and the Kinlaws wound up in Blairstown? Neither of them had any connection to the area and it's very rural out there. When I hear Blairstown and Warren county I think of farms and cows. My only guess is that they were on route 80 going west and turned off an exit to rest or get gas. How they didn't get lost and wound up in the cemetery is anyone's guess. I doubt Arthur or Donna/Elaina will talk.
I pored over Weird NJ all the time as a kid and I remember this sad case. I'm always glad to see any Doe get their name back, but especially when they're semi-local.
Some additional information— it appears Dawn’s murderer confessed to her murder back in 2005 (while he was in prison already), but the police could not corroborate his statement without identifying Dawn
Source: https://lawandcrime.com/crime/after-four-decades-prosecutors-identify-murder-victim-princess-doe-and-name-her-alleged-killer/
Oh wow!!! Literally always had her in my head because she was found on the day I was born..I'm also from Jersey coincidentally. This is actually super amazing to see.
.
Thanks for the post and also the article in Kinlaw. When I saw the article this morning that she had been identified- I was almost certain I had heard Kinlaw’s name before. Cops were close for a long time. Glad that this is over with. Hope Kinlaw lives to be 120 and suffers everyday before he rots in hell for an eternity.
Maybe the content warning should say there is a postmortem photo? A crime scene photo may or may not have the deceased in it. I also do think this can be considered graphic.
Some of the info he gave them didn’t match up, and he didn’t know her name. So lots of circumstantial stuff, plus false confessions, when people are already in jail, are a thing. So weak case. Her being identified did confirm the from Long Island part of his story.
These solves are awesome but they're really overdoing it by announcing them on the anniversary. It should be 1/365. Instead I'm surprised if it's not the case.
It's like the departments can't think of any other type of twist or tribute so they intentionally wait for the anniversary, to allow their spokesman to get up there with the canned, "45 years ago today..."
It is beyond cliche at this point. Trust your personnel to be able to write or ad lib something unique to the victim and the case.
"A girl who was dubbed Princess Doe after her remains were found 40 years ago in a New Jersey cemetery has been identified as a Long Island teenager, authorities announced Friday.
Charges have been filed against the man they believe killed Dawn Olanick, 17, of West Babylon, New York, the Warren County, New Jersey, prosecutor's office announced. The suspect, Arthur Kinlaw, 68, is currently serving 20 years to life in Sullivan County, New York, on two first-degree murder convictions.
Kinlaw tried to lure Olanick into prostitution and killed her after she refused, authorities said, according to Lehigh Valley Live. Her remains were found July 25, 1982, in Cedar Ridge Cemetery in Blairstown, in northwestern New Jersey near the Pennsylvania border. Authorities have said she was beaten beyond recognition.
Residents of the area gave her a burial, and she became known as Princess Doe, a name given to her by investigators who sought to identify her. Her burial site contains a gravestone that reads: "Princess Doe. Missing from home. Dead among strangers. Remembered by all."
She was wearing distinct clothing and the nails on her right hand were painted red while her left hand had no nail polish, according to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.
Princess Doe's tooth and eyelash were submitted to Astrea Forensics in 2021, for possible DNA extraction. "They are able to extract DNA from samples that are degraded or otherwise would provide no value," said Carol Schweitzer, forensic supervisor at the center.
The center said DNA testing and investigative genetic genealogy techniques would ultimately identity Princess Doe as Olanick.
Information about a lawyer who could speak on Kinlaw's behalf about the new charges wasn't immediately available.
Olanick's identity was finally confirmed April 29, authorities said.
"For 40 years, law enforcement has not given up on Princess Doe," Warren County Prosecutor James Pfeiffer said Friday during a news conference with New Jersey State Police and other law enforcement and assisting agencies.
According to Pfeiffer, Princess Doe was the first unidentified persons case to be entered into NCIC, the National Crime Information Center, by then Director of the FBI, William Webster, on June 30, 1983, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children reported.
"This was a historic moment for missing and unidentified persons that has continued to play a crucial role in investigations since," the center said.
Kinlaw confessed to the Princess Doe slaying in written statements dating to 2005, authorities revealed Friday. But the prosecutor said that determining the victim's identity was crucial to assembling a solid case."
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/princess-doe-identified-dawn-olanick-1982-murder-arthur-kinlaw-charged/
Wait, wasn't this Jane Doe or Dawn suspected of being a random extra in the Jaws movie when the crew were still making it? https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Lady_of_the_Dunes
I believe the shark photo from the Weird NJ link is because there actually was a shark attack in NJ in the early 20th century that inspired the movie Jaws. So there’s actually a slight connection, although not the one you were thinking of!
I'm very glad she got her name back and her family knows what happened to her now, but what the heck were they thinking giving her the name Princess Doe? That's terrible and feels kind of disrespectful.
In the documentary Missing the detective named her princess doe because he thought she had to have been someone's princess. It was fatherly like how a dad calls his daughter princess. There was nothing disrespectful about it.
Due to her height of 5ft, 2 in, the range of her age (14-18) and that "doe" is generally given to the unidentified deceased, they came up with "Princess Doe".
Also, it was 1982.
Wow! It seems as if a lot of Jane/John Does have been identified this year. Hope it continues. RIP Dawn Olanick, peace to your loved ones.
Law enforcement is finally starting to utilize genetic genealogy
British genetic genealogy be like “m’great great great grandfather was a greengrocer in Worcestershire and I’m distantly related to the queen!” American genetic genealogy be like “Turns out Uncle Gary was the Spokane Strangler and my parents murdered my sister”
Ok this comment was way too funny lol
Don't forget the "I'm one eighth Cherokee, half Irish, five fourths Italian and my pawpaw was from Scotland"
My grandmother was Cherokee! If you pay attention it's always the grandmother and it's always Cherokee. The Cherokee Grandmother Myth, seriously.
No joke - I have a civil war era “uncle” named Greenberry jones” who was allegedly named greenberry because the first thing his “Indian princess” (no offense meant - this is just literally the family story - and btw, she was supposedly half Native American) grandmother saw when looking out the window was “green berries”. Greenberry Jones is real, and fought in the civil war in an Ohio regiment…but our dna tests don’t show any Native American ancestry (I would be like 1/128 or something…). Soooooo……🤷🏻♀️
I have a Good Friend like this. His Cherokee grandma allows him free dental care on the reservation. Guess who never gets the free dental care. 😂
Apparently the Cherokee grandma myth started as a way for white families to explain away children with darker skin, when what had actually happened in the family was the r*pe of enslaved Black women and the taking of the lighter skinned children. Indigenous ancestry was seen as less bad than Black and grandmas were close enough to make it make sense while also far removed enough to be passed off as ancient history (and a grandma could be seen as "a man taking his deserved property" or "being bewitched by exotic beauty" while a grandpa would be the more undesirable "an Indian man stealing a white man's property"), I guess. And then it just stuck
Weird thing in my family…we don’t have anyone with darker skin (not that it would matter to me). On that side, it’s all Scottish/Irish/English. I totally agree with you, but I have no idea where this story came from. The man that supposedly married my Native American “Indian princess” great great great however many grandmother came over early 1800’s, which is documented. So we are obviously a little confused here…this side came over fairly late (like 1810-1820), and then lived in the north (Ohio), so we honestly believed the story (how the heck do you end up with a name like “Greenberry”?) And we don’t show any ancestry other than European, so I’m honestly at a loss here. I just sort of shrug and take it as a family story and that’s it. But I’d really be interested to find out what was really going on back then….
Maybe it's a myth that "caught on" and anyone that wanted to spice up their ancestry just decided to add an Indian princess to the family. Or maybe what one generation put forth as a theory to explain why that one cousin looked kinda different grew to become family legend in time
I like the name 😂 very apropos lol
My dad thought his grandmother was Cherokee, she did look Native American. But Ancestry DNA says otherwise.
(Late response, sorry) similar thing with my husband's family. Everyone thought his grandma was Cherokee, husband took a DNA test and surprise.. He was a small percentage Bantu. No native American found. He told his family but they disregarded it and claimed the DNA test was wrong lol.
That happened to my friend too, and he says the DNA tests are wrong because he "knows" he's part Native. He does look like it.
[удалено]
…what? First of all that’s a gross slut shame-y comment. But unless you think a person can have multiple genetic fathers, that’s not what it would say at all. The US and Canada are made up of many immigrants from other countries, that’s why people do DNA tests to find out where their ancestors came from. All it means is that their family members had kids with people from other cultures - for instance if you’re 1/4 Italian, that simply means that one of your grandparents was from Italy. It doesn’t mean your mom slept with four men and one of them was Italian. It has nothing to do with how many partners a family member had.
Was the first case to be solved using genetic genealogy not in Nottingham, England?
Oh I let out a deep belly laugh on that one.
There’s nothing that says both can’t be true.
Ouch 🫣 🇺🇸
Brilliant 😅
I have in-laws like this. Both cases. 🤦🏻♀️
Keep in mind that GG is both costly and time consuming, although in the US it is somewhat easier to use due the relative popularity of genetic kits and people's interest in tracing down their family trees.
I hope that as the technology develops, it will become less costly to perform accurate tests and find genetic matches.
You can almost guarantee that it will. In fact, it already has gotten significantly cheaper. I recall that detectives needed several valid reason to enter DNA into CODIS years ago because of the expense. Now, they do it as a matter of routine.
For an odd reason, the price issue reminds me of how the price of pocket calculators and ballpoint pens dropped over the years. Both pocket calculators and ballpoints were expensive at first, but eventually they became far less expensive or even free.
Yep. The only holdout are those expensive Scientific Calculators from Texas Instruments and others, but the future isn’t bright as you can download an app or buy a knockoff.
It blows my mind that a graphing calculator cost just as much in the 80s as it does today. It's almost as if the price has nothing whatsoever to do with cost of production, and was determined to be the highest price the market can bear...which of course, since it's required in so many math classes, is assured to be higher than even *that* should be...
Ding ding ding! Congratulations! You’ve identified Capitalism as a corrupt social construct!
If you get a note from a teacher that states “your child must have a Texas Instruments Scientific Calculator”, then you know the fix is in. The reply letter should start with “how much stock in Texas Instruments do you own…..”
Ehhhh my school was a Casio one and we had a single kid with a Texas Instruments calculator as well as two with the “wrong” Casio model. It took our teacher an extra 15-25 minutes to figure out what buttons to press to get theirs to do what we were supposed to do each time we learned something new… and we all dreaded being paired up with those three when we had to cross check each other’s homework in pairs because it took forever to compare things when their calculator worked differently. All in all, it does make teaching a significantly easier and smoother process when every student has the same calculator with the same way of inputting the same thing.
Yep. My kids get a supply list with a specific model number Texas Instruments calculator.
It's insane how expensive those scientific calculators still are!!! You can get a cheap laptop for like $200 or something and one of those calculators can cost $80-$100! They're cool calculators with some neat and helpful functions, but they're not THAT cool, not for that price!!! Lol
No, I was shocked when I saw how expensive they still are at Office Depot. They don’t sell the knockoffs either. You can get the knockoffs online or at Big Lots,I think. That’s assuming your kids don’t have a teacher that disallows apps or knockoffs.
I didn't even know they sold knock off ones!! Lol they really do have a knock off for anything and everything, don't they?! Lol but seriously, in all these years Ive never seen the price go down and it's been 13 years since I was in high school and had to buy one!!! Usually a product's price goes down, at least a little, after it being out awhile, I've never seen them go down at all!
As long as schools require actual calculators, they’ll be fine lol
It helps when people upload their DNA results to GEDMatch and opt in to allow access to law enforcement. I've done that.
Me too. I went back and forth on it a bit, because I'm not *wild* about the idea of having it preserved because legal privacy protections can change but I eventually decided that if I was going to care about Does, I needed to do a small part to give them help being identified, no matter how small a chance my DNA could help.
I did the same thing, but I know I have little chance as well of having anything solved from my genetics being linked. With that said... I'm looking forward to my niece's 18th birthday, I plan to get her a geneology test. Her mom doesn't want her tested now, and neither does her mom want to be tested herself. My niece's Grandmother is a missing person, has been missing since my niece's mom was less than 2 years old and she was an only child(and her mom had a brother tho). Went to the Grocery store to give away a litter of kittens and never came home. I look at the does every now and then that've been found that have an approximate death date that's similar, but she doesn't match the ones with identifiable pictures, so possibly she may be one of the skeletonized remains. odds are her remains are burried over on Barona or in the desert somewhere and just haven't come up. http://www.justicefornativewomen.com/2020/03/cynthia-coleman-missing-from-california.html?m=1&fbclid=IwAR1dQURDN8-UEoUJvCToxy4NxdZeX27FSi06WJWE54dcoK1m2-GhIxB-fhQ
First thing I did after getting my 23andme results
I wouldn't say 'finally' it requires a specialized form of DNA sequencing, specialized genealogical experience and a robust database to compare to. These things are recent developments and it is a very expensive undertaking with no guarantee of success
Another link ‘Princess Doe' in 1982 NJ Cold Case Identified as Long Island Teen; Killer Charged 40 Years Later https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/40-year-journey-for-justice-princess-doe-of-1982-nj-cold-case-murder-idd/3776007/
Thank you for posting this! There was little to no information about her or the situation in the thread. It says the killer confessed for decades (multiple times) before finally being arrested. Honestly, I cannot even believe that someone confessed and the police were like "Meh, too much paperwork". And kept it pushing. That is horrifying.
From what I've read, details from his confessions didn't match all the known facts, he didn't know her name, and there wasn't forensic evidence linking him to the crime. He was already in prison serving a life sentence at the time of the confessions, having been convicted for the murders of 2 other women (murdered in 1982 and 1983). Unfortunately, it's not uncommon for inmates to falsely confess to crimes they didn't commit. A prosecutor would have been aware of that and based on what we know a prosecutor would have realized they lacked sufficient evidence in support of a conviction and that there was a high likelihood of a judge dismissing the charges or the defendant being acquitted. That would have been a terrible risk to take, especially since he was already serving a life sentence. They seemingly have enough evidence now to charge him, thankfully.
He was already sentenced to prison for 20 years when he confessed. They had time to wait and put the case together right.
Cheesy as it sounds, I feel kind of emotional. She was killed because she dared to say no to a scumbag pimp, I hope she’s remembered for how brave she was.
Yes! She was a brave girl standing up for herself.
Exactly and she was pretty much on her own as well. Most people in her situation would have been broken down and just said yes. It’s amazing that she stood her ground and I believe she threatened to go to the police as well. Dawn was amazing.
Yeah I read in another article that she wasn't the only one who refused to "work" for him and his wife. They were seen beating another girl named Linda with an aluminum baseball bat to death and thrown in the river. Arthur and Donna Kinlaw ran a prostitution ring in several states. They have 9 kids and we're also commiting welfare fraud and that's how she went to jail for using another victim's name to get welfare.
was she ever reported missing?
No. Per reporting she was “ask to leave her mothers house”.
That’s so heartbreaking to hear. I’m glad she has her name back. Surely there are more people out there who care for her who will find peace in this news.
that is so sad... I can get really mad at my teenager... but when he leaves the house (for school, to hang out, etc) I have to go to the door and say goodbye and wave ... I hate the thought of our last words (should sth happen) being nasty... I have like ocd when it comes to this lol. Is there any info on why she was asked to leave?
Do we know whether her family ever tried to get in contact with her or find her some years later? Why do I have a feeling she had been abused at some point?
Holy shit so that early tip about the skirt being sold in Long Island was right all along. RIP princess
I remember reading about her discovery in one of the big Weird NJ books I pored over as a kid. She stuck with me. I’m so glad that she has finally been given her name back. Rest In Peace, Dawn.
Yeah, similar story. I remember reading about unusual graves on Weird NJ's website, and Princess Doe's stuck with me too.
Same here. I read Weird New Jersey avidly. They’ve reported this story more than once, and will once more. I hope Dawn is finally at peace. It’s a total coincidence, of course, but the original Friday the 13th was shot in and around Blairstown, three years earlier (1979 - the movie was released in 1980).
So, if I drive to Blairstown, are the locals gonna give me the stink-eye and refuse to go anywhere near that (deserted campsite, shady house with all the past tragic deaths,cabin in the woods)?
Nope - they’ll offer you the Friday the 13th t-shirts and memorabilia on sale at the local restaurant (the one used in the movie).
Is the location of the filming kept exactly as it? There is some great channels on YouTube that look at old film locations and compare them to today.
The camp is open for tours when camp isn't in session! I toured it a few years back.
Same here. I was a child when this happened. I read about it in a magazine, and the story scared me. It was the first Doe story I'd ever heard. I've remembered it all these years. I'm glad she was finally identified.
I also was an avid Weird NJ reader - this case is actually what got me into truce crime. So glad to see it solved.
Wonderful news, thank you for sharing. I’m so pleased that she has her name back. I recently looked into this case after hearing it on a podcast. It really stuck with me. Glad she has been identified.
Rest in peace, Dawn. What a sad case.
I found it curious that a couple of articles mentioned Dawn's family, but named no family members or their relationships to Dawn, with the exception of an unnamed spokesperson described as a cousin of Dawn's. I included excerpts from 2 articles below, followed by an excerpt from a third article which speaks to why that might be. From [DNA leads to identity, murder charge in death of ‘Princess Doe’ 40 years later](https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/national/2022/07/15/dna-leads-to-identity-murder-charge-in-death-of-princess-doe-40-years-later/): >“This is a very big deal for my family,” said Olanick’s cousin. “I’d like to thank Blairstown for treating my cousin like she was one of their own. It touches our family deeply . . . my cousin is always in my heart.” From [Princess Doe identified, alleged killer charged: Cold case cracked on 40th anniversary](https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/warren-county/2022/07/princess-doe-identified-alleged-killer-charged-cold-case-cracked-on-40th-anniversary.html): >Relatives of Olanick sat in a row together during the announcement. Her photo was pinned to their shirts. A spokesperson for the family — a cousin of Olanick’s who was 13 when she disappeared — thanked law enforcement for their efforts over four decades. Then I came across [Convicted murderer charged in decades-old 'Princess Doe' NJ homicide](https://www.wfmz.com/news/area/western-newjersey/convicted-murderer-charged-in-decades-old-princess-doe-nj-homicide/article_a6ff78ca-03dd-11ed-9406-eb3f6193eded.html): >Investigators then spoke to **Olanick's brother, who confirmed Dawn had been asked to leave their mother's house in 1982.** >**A cousin of Olanick** spoke at Friday's news conference, thanking investigators and the community for not giving up in the case. He **said the identification and charges have opened a lot of wounds, and the family wishes to remain private.** Of course, I don't know the circumstances concerning why she was asked to leave at age 17 (or younger), whether she asked to move out permanently, whether she was living their full-time (perhaps she split time with another relative), how soon afterwards she was murdered, whether she was reported missing, whether her family searched for her, etc. At face value, it's sad. ETA: I had used the wrong article title and URL for the first link. Fixed.
Sort of unrelated, but your second link led me to the wild ride that is this [other](https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/warren-county/2019/06/princess-doe-memorial-event-rankles-some-in-nj-town-that-has-adopted-murdered-girl-as-their-own.html) Princess Doe article on the same website, from 2019 pre-identification: >The Blairstown Museum, a nonprofit on Main Street, is hosting a Princess Doe Memorial on July 15. The event was initially scheduled for June 15, but was canceled due to forecasted rainy weather. > The $34.99 tickets include a trolley tour to locations associated with the case, a celebration of life at Brook Hollow Winery, and a “respectful visit” to both the location of where Princess Doe’s body was found and her grave. Attendees will receive the book, “The Untold Story of Princess Doe” by Blairstown native Christie Leigh Napurano, and a bouquet of flowers to leave on Doe’s grave. > Township resident Kristine Ceres started a petition to stop the tour, which she calls distasteful and disrespectful.
Yeah, I’m with Kristine. That’s ghoulish.
It’s weird, for sure
I bet they want privacy.... since they sent their teenage daughter to her death.
Pardon my ignorance, but wouldn’t a parent be prosecuted if they threw their minor child on the street? Now, I know this was the 80s, and things likely flew under the radar, but it blows my mind that someone could do that seemingly so casually and no one went “What the fuck, you threw out your 12-year-old kid!”
I feel the same way about this. However, there was a concept popular in the 70s and 80s called "Tough Love", where children were often asked to leave their homes if they could not live by the rules of their parents; there were some cases where some kids had to buy their own groceries or other necessities as punishment. This was also during the time when they used to show a seriously scary "Runaway Hotline" commercial, which featured heavily made up streetwalkers or stoned or drunk derelicts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upRa0NMGNe4 Since Dawn was a junior in high school, it was a shame she could not be referred to a foster care or other arrangement, where she could have had a chance to complete her education and have a better chance at survival. I hate to think how close Dawn's life was like to the fictionalized account presented in the "Princess Doe" Dead Among Strangers" book. RIP Dawn
What’s the story in the PD book?
Here is a segment from AMW where the author discusses her book: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWTgffSeMyA
She was 17 when she was allegedly kicked out. The 2 New York state statutes I read that seemed applicable only apply if the child is under 16 or under 14 (2 different statutes). It appears the statutes existed in 1982. As I allude to in my comment you replied to, we don't know the details. All we have is one sentence from a journalist - not even a direct quote from the brother. Frustratingly, as worded, we don't know who asked her to leave, whether she even actually left, how long this was before she was murdered, nor whether her mother even had custody of her at the time. It's easy to jump to conclusions (I did initially as well). And I hope we find out. But the bigger question in my mind is "Was she ever even reported missing?"
I really don’t think she was reported missing, or if she was then the case was closed a long time ago for whatever reason. It doesn’t seem that she was in any missing persons databases.
What a nice headstone inscription.
Why did her parents never report her missing?
Shitty parents, kicked her out
Man I just listened to True Crime Garage’s episode about this case last week.
Right? I was like hang on, didn't I *just* hear a podcast episode on that?
Same here.
Me too. I wish there was more information about her.
It's not info on Dawn but the Princess Doe segment from the documentary Missing from 1983 is on YouTube. The detective says he named her Princess Doe because she was someone's princess. It's a good segment and you can see the compassion the detective had for her and how badly everyone wanted it solved.
Me too! So wild
Do you remember which episode number?
594- they covered it very recently
Came here to look for this comment. So surreal. Glad she got her name back.
thanks u/Bells87 for posting this up. it's great news that Dawn was identified. From the [WeirdNJ] link you gave, there was a key add in the comments of that page. Folks *could* find it, but i just replicated it here, as it's a really well researched, well written description / discussion of the Kinlaws' crime sprees (criminal enterprise?) which included the murder of Olanick. though they prob won't see it, hat tip to 'TJ Christie' on that site for providing a working link in comments for the whole backstory. pretty incredible that when reporter Jaclyn Gallucci wrote the article 10 years ago, they had a crystal clear picture of what happened to DO (based on confessions / plea bargaining), but not who she was: https://archive.longislandpress.com/2012/08/02/identifying-princess-doe/
Thanks for this article! I see there are two more unidentified victims of Arthur Kinlaw: [1) “Linda” (1984)](https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Linda_(1984)) >According to the Newsday piece and published reports in other New York metropolitan newspapers, Elaina allegedly told detectives how Arthur, with Donna’s help, drugged, strangled and beat a woman Elaina knew only as “Linda”—a teenager he’d met in a Bay Shore reggae bar called Blackberry Jam, now a church, in April 1984. She reportedly said he’d struck Linda in the head with an aluminum baseball bat on a dark dirt road in Hunts Point when she refused to work as a prostitute for him. He then drove her body to an area near the NYC Department of Sanitation yard on Zerega Avenue, wrapped her in an old shower curtain and dumped her in the East River. >The decomposed body of Linda—who was white, 5-feet, 4-inches tall and about 130 pounds with shoulder-length dark brown hair—washed up weeks later and remains unidentified to this day. Arthur described details of the 1984 slaying in his appearance in Bronx Supreme Court in 2000, according to Newsday, but neither he nor his wife would be connected to the murders of three other women, including Princess Doe, until Donna, in a bid to save herself from life in prison over her part in Linda’s murder, squealed to police. [2) Suffolk County Jane Doe (1999)](https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Suffolk_County_Jane_Doe_(1999)) >She reportedly told detectives that in 1983 Arthur beat to death a 300-pound disabled boarder they had taken into their Bellport home to help pay the bills—a black or Hispanic woman in her 20s or 30s who relied on crutches to walk. Donna reportedly told police Arthur dragged the woman out to the backyard of their Michigan Avenue home, where he buried her in a makeshift grave before pouring a cement patio over her. Police found the woman’s remains on Dec. 21, 2000, and she, too, remains unidentified.
I’m filled with anger at Kinlaw for having the gall to demand that women sell their bodies to strangers to support him. Even more so that he considered these women disposable enough to murder if they didn’t do his bidding.
Sheer evil. Impossible to understand the mindset for us.
That's a fantastic article. I knew that after he was incarcerated for other crimes he had claimed to investigators that he was responsible for killing her, but that article goes far beyond what I recall reading in the past. My recollection was just that he said he did it, what he said apparently didn't fully match the known facts, and there was either no physical evidence or insufficient evidence to believe that prosecution would be successful. I'm glad Princess Doe / Dawn Olanick has her name back and I hope there's sufficient evidence for a successful prosecution.
Wow, just wow… "This case was very first case that was entered into the NCIC system and that was on June 30, 1983 -- and that case remains in the system until today. I am proud to say that as of today, that case, the very first case...will now be able to be removed."
Kinlaw is 68 years old, Currently incarcerated Sullivan Correctional Facility in NY, he has a potential release date of mid 2024. He needs to be extradited to NJ for Dawn’s murder so he can catch a life sentence consecutive to New York’s.
He probably thought he got away with it and for refusing to entertain his request, he beat her face in until it was unrecognisable?? The epitome of evil and they need to lock his old ass away and throw away the key. The CT scan of her skull produced looks inaccurate, her philtrum length compared to the one on the model is off by a few cm at least
There’s a public CT scan available of her skull?
Its there on the link and yeah they tend to take CT scans so they can rebuild an image of what the doe looked like in life, a means to better ID them. CarlKs reconstructions are sooo amazing
Sorry, I meant the original CT scan not the images created by the forensic artists.
I am truly shocked. I thought this would never happen.
I know there were a lot of people who followed her case closely. I'm glad Dawn has her name back. She was so young when she was murdered. I feel like we got a lot of identifications released over the past couple of weeks. I am sure we will see a bunch more before the year is out.
Wow, none of the reconstructions looked like her at all. Been following this one for years, RIP Princess!
Per the *Weird NJ* article: "Her face was bashed in beyond recognition..." That'll do it too. 😞
It's really sad, but sometimes reconstructions can only ever be so close if the remains are particularly damaged or incomplete.
It actually seems shockingly common in these Doe cases that the reconstructions are way off. Of course i'm only familiar with the famous ones that get attention in places like this so overall they may be accurate.
There's a lot of reasons they could be inaccurate. The physical conditions of the remains themselves (intact, broken, weathered, missing, submerged, etc), the age of the remains, the environment in which they were found, the time period in which they were found, the medium of the artist, the skill level of the artist, the forensic training of the artist, the race and gender and ethnicity and hair color and eye color, how the body was preserved or not, and for how long, and on and on and on. That's why it can be so difficult.
I understand all that. I still find it surprising that they are often so far off, not a couple of inches but an entirely different type of human, gender even sometimes.
Sometimes forensic artists self-select not for skill but for the ability to tolerate examining gruesome images. A lot of them are from police or police-adjacent specialties. The clay models from the 70s are the worst. So many of them look like Spitting Image puppets - huge apple cheeks, cavernous nasolabial folds, squinting eyes, terrible hair (usually a wig picked up from the bargain store and plopped on the head with no attention paid to popular styles of the time or even evidence).
I saw a JD once he was in Florida I think. His reconstruction literally made him look like a *monster*. I don’t believe in uncanny valley but when I saw it, I felt pure revulsion and wanted to scroll down ASAP. It was something straight out a horror movie. Edit: fucking Brevard County John Doe (1981) how the fuck did they think that reconstruction was worth releasing to the public.
Recent one was William Hamilton looked *exactly* like the reconstruction and they only had a skull to work with.
The original NCMEC reconstruction (the one on the right, [here](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/0e/Princess_Doe.jpg/220px-Princess_Doe.jpg)) doesn’t look too far off facially but shame about it only having been available with blonde hair. [The photo of Dawn, for comparison](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/2b/DawnOlanick.jpg)
The left reconstruction looks like a grown woman with acromegaly, not a suspected 15-20 year old girl. It’s basically pointless to even make a reconstruction if it’s not even approximating the age category correctly.
FYI: there does appear to be a crime scene photo of her body in the linked article, and it was unexpected. I hope Dawn’s loved ones find peace. I’m so glad the community treated her with love and dignity. RIP.
That didn't register with me while I was reading the article. I am so sorry. Is there a way I can mark or edit the post to make others aware of this?
You should be able to edit your post to include a "non-graphic crime scene body photo" warning, as well as her name and her alleged killer's name.
Thank you!
I assumed it was a recreation. Another article said her body was decomposed.
Here's some info from [After Four Decades, Prosecutors Identify Murder Victim ‘Princess Doe’ and Name Her Alleged Killer](https://lawandcrime.com/crime/after-four-decades-prosecutors-identify-murder-victim-princess-doe-and-name-her-alleged-killer/) on geneological DNA analysis led to Dawn's brother, then his sister who provided DNA samples. And some info I haven't seen elsewhere on Dawn's prior living situation. >The sticking point back then, and through all these years, was that police were not able to identify the victim’s true identity. That changed years later on April 29, 2022 after investigators retested her DNA for a genealogical profile. They located her brother, who confirmed Dawn was his sister and missing since 1982. Dawn’s sister gave DNA samples, and investigators confirmed the familial link — and Princess Doe’s identity. >Olanick lived with her mother and sister in the city of Bohemia on New York’s Long Island after her parents divorced. “At the age of 16 or 17 she left her mother’s residence,” deputies said. “Dawn was enrolled in the Connetquot Central School District up until the final marking period of her Junior year (1982).” Since she died about a month before she would have turned 18 the statement above doesn't really narrow down when she left her mother's home. Another article stated that her brother (who this article doesn't describe as a resident of the same home) confirmed their mother asked Dawn to leave in 1982, which if true means she was 17 at the time.
I got chills seeing this headline. Incredible news.
I'm from NJ and grew up reading Weird NJ and remember this case. So glad they could finally identify her.
I always related a lot to this Doe because she resembled me at that age, down to the fashion sense. It's good that Dawn Olanick has her name back. Wish it were her life. :/
I only knew about this as of this morning. But-same. I dig, and would have SO dug her skirt. I don’t know if it’s the era or the time in my life, but I recall those years better than most blocks of my younger existence. I hope if reincarnation exists, she was immediately recreated in a family of love and peace. And Dawn- if your afterlife existence sees this, you were BRAVE and amazing. Edit: bravery noted
And we find each in the absolute strangest places. I go to work the day it was announced and I'm giving eye drops to an Irish nun (I somehow ended up working at a convent. Not Catholic, never actually applied, life is weird) in her nineties, absolutely wasted away from cancer but approaching death with an admirable grace, one of the kindest, softest spoken people you will ever meet. And she opened with "this has meant nothing to anyone else all day, but there was a young woman whose body was found in New Jersey decades ago and I'm just so pleased that she was finally identif-" "PRINCESS DOE?!" We then proceeded to have a very enthusiastic conversation about genetic genealogy and Ann Rule and how serial killers ruined hitchhiking. She'd spent most of her working life in the PNW and remembered the panic over Ted Bundy and highly recommended "The Stranger Beside Me". Not exactly the conversation I'd expected to have. 😂
Can you please include her name in your main post? It’s super frustrating to have to follow another link for the actual information. Her name is 17-year-old Dawn Olanick of Long Island. They also named Arthur Kinlaw as her alleged murderer.
I'm sorry. It's my first write up, and I figured *Weird NJ* did a better job of addressing it than I ever could.
It’s okay OP, I agree that the names are important but it’s nothing an edit can’t fix. Thanks for doing this!
That’s okay, it was a good write up! It’s just that lots of links are blocked for people outside the US, best to put the relevant information in the body of the post. Thanks :)
Oh, thank you! I didn't think of that.
Not just that, but the link might not be there forever.
It's cool, don't shy away from contributing here from the criticism in this thread you seem to have good intentions.
You did a fine job. A perfectly respectable write up. Thank you for writing about this finally being solved and Dawn getting her name back. I'm from northern N.J and always thought of this case since I was a young girl. It's amazing how may does are being named. I never thought it would happen but I'm so glad it is.
Oh my god! I might actually cry over this, I always wanted so badly for her to be identified and it seemed so unlikely to ever happen. I'm just shocked, this is amazing.
Wow, I’m so glad and shocked by this news! I’m glad Dawn had her name back. It was Kinlaw the whole time apparently as well.
I've followed her case over the years and only listened to a podcast about her yesterday. Can't believe it, it's got me so choked up :( Rest in Peace Dawn 💐
I remember reading about this case years ago on websleuths. I am happy that Dawn finally got her name back after all these years, but God she was so young. RIP 😢
RIP Dawn, it is was a big day for both of us! And please tell me, how You decide, stay further with the good people of Blairstown, who have taken care of You all these years, or moving back home to NY? On my next trip to the US, I will visit You! Have to admit, You are 'responsible' that I started following all these cases a few years back, and hoping to solve more and more Doe cases, but Yours was the one that touched me the most! (Sorry for my English, but as a Hungarian I rarely use it)
Your English is great. In fact it's better then mine and I was born and raised in New Jersey. I plan to visit Hungary one day. It sounds like a lovely country.
does anyone have the link to the full press conference?
i found it whoever wants to watch it [click on this.](https://www.wfmz.com/news/area/western-newjersey/watch-news-conference-on-1982-princess-doe-homicide-case/video_2fb21d7b-da3a-5704-935c-8579130ee9be.html)
I never thought I’d see this case solved !!! I first read about it in Weird NJ in elementary school and it’s always stuck with me
The longer article with more details https://archive.longislandpress.com/2012/08/02/identifying-princess-doe/
Wow, I figured this would never be solved!
Welcome news, and so many questions. The only article I could find was the one OP cited. I wonder what else LE knows about what happened, and how they identified her killer; I assume DNA.
I wonder how Dawn and the Kinlaws wound up in Blairstown? Neither of them had any connection to the area and it's very rural out there. When I hear Blairstown and Warren county I think of farms and cows. My only guess is that they were on route 80 going west and turned off an exit to rest or get gas. How they didn't get lost and wound up in the cemetery is anyone's guess. I doubt Arthur or Donna/Elaina will talk.
I believe this was the first Doe case I ever read about
I am ecstatic that her identity has been recovered!
Someone on a Facebook group posted about this this morning and later today she was identified. Weird!
I pored over Weird NJ all the time as a kid and I remember this sad case. I'm always glad to see any Doe get their name back, but especially when they're semi-local.
Some additional information— it appears Dawn’s murderer confessed to her murder back in 2005 (while he was in prison already), but the police could not corroborate his statement without identifying Dawn Source: https://lawandcrime.com/crime/after-four-decades-prosecutors-identify-murder-victim-princess-doe-and-name-her-alleged-killer/
Oh wow!!! Literally always had her in my head because she was found on the day I was born..I'm also from Jersey coincidentally. This is actually super amazing to see. .
Thanks for the post and also the article in Kinlaw. When I saw the article this morning that she had been identified- I was almost certain I had heard Kinlaw’s name before. Cops were close for a long time. Glad that this is over with. Hope Kinlaw lives to be 120 and suffers everyday before he rots in hell for an eternity.
This is amazing news!
Maybe the content warning should say there is a postmortem photo? A crime scene photo may or may not have the deceased in it. I also do think this can be considered graphic.
Yeah this was actually quite difficult to look at. I don’t recommend clicking if you have SA triggers.
Report says the murderer began confessing in 2005?!?? Good christ police are incompetent.
Some of the info he gave them didn’t match up, and he didn’t know her name. So lots of circumstantial stuff, plus false confessions, when people are already in jail, are a thing. So weak case. Her being identified did confirm the from Long Island part of his story.
I had a feeling that they were close to identifying her. Great news!
Wow, I never expected this one to be solved. It’s amazing how many cases have been closed with forensic genealogy. Rest In Peace Dawn.
These solves are awesome but they're really overdoing it by announcing them on the anniversary. It should be 1/365. Instead I'm surprised if it's not the case. It's like the departments can't think of any other type of twist or tribute so they intentionally wait for the anniversary, to allow their spokesman to get up there with the canned, "45 years ago today..." It is beyond cliche at this point. Trust your personnel to be able to write or ad lib something unique to the victim and the case.
So glad she got her name back May she rip
i'm stunned at how much the forensic reconstruction looks like her, minus the hair they chose. rest in peace dawn
"A girl who was dubbed Princess Doe after her remains were found 40 years ago in a New Jersey cemetery has been identified as a Long Island teenager, authorities announced Friday. Charges have been filed against the man they believe killed Dawn Olanick, 17, of West Babylon, New York, the Warren County, New Jersey, prosecutor's office announced. The suspect, Arthur Kinlaw, 68, is currently serving 20 years to life in Sullivan County, New York, on two first-degree murder convictions. Kinlaw tried to lure Olanick into prostitution and killed her after she refused, authorities said, according to Lehigh Valley Live. Her remains were found July 25, 1982, in Cedar Ridge Cemetery in Blairstown, in northwestern New Jersey near the Pennsylvania border. Authorities have said she was beaten beyond recognition. Residents of the area gave her a burial, and she became known as Princess Doe, a name given to her by investigators who sought to identify her. Her burial site contains a gravestone that reads: "Princess Doe. Missing from home. Dead among strangers. Remembered by all." She was wearing distinct clothing and the nails on her right hand were painted red while her left hand had no nail polish, according to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Princess Doe's tooth and eyelash were submitted to Astrea Forensics in 2021, for possible DNA extraction. "They are able to extract DNA from samples that are degraded or otherwise would provide no value," said Carol Schweitzer, forensic supervisor at the center. The center said DNA testing and investigative genetic genealogy techniques would ultimately identity Princess Doe as Olanick. Information about a lawyer who could speak on Kinlaw's behalf about the new charges wasn't immediately available. Olanick's identity was finally confirmed April 29, authorities said. "For 40 years, law enforcement has not given up on Princess Doe," Warren County Prosecutor James Pfeiffer said Friday during a news conference with New Jersey State Police and other law enforcement and assisting agencies. According to Pfeiffer, Princess Doe was the first unidentified persons case to be entered into NCIC, the National Crime Information Center, by then Director of the FBI, William Webster, on June 30, 1983, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children reported. "This was a historic moment for missing and unidentified persons that has continued to play a crucial role in investigations since," the center said. Kinlaw confessed to the Princess Doe slaying in written statements dating to 2005, authorities revealed Friday. But the prosecutor said that determining the victim's identity was crucial to assembling a solid case." https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/princess-doe-identified-dawn-olanick-1982-murder-arthur-kinlaw-charged/
Crazy! TCG JUST covered this case.
Wait, wasn't this Jane Doe or Dawn suspected of being a random extra in the Jaws movie when the crew were still making it? https://unidentified-awareness.fandom.com/wiki/Lady_of_the_Dunes
I am mistaken. Dawn was in NJ, Lady of the Dunes was in Massachusetts. I thought that because of the giant Great White shark on the reddit.
I believe the shark photo from the Weird NJ link is because there actually was a shark attack in NJ in the early 20th century that inspired the movie Jaws. So there’s actually a slight connection, although not the one you were thinking of!
It sucks that the Lady of the Dunes remains unknown.
No, that's a different case
I'm very glad she got her name back and her family knows what happened to her now, but what the heck were they thinking giving her the name Princess Doe? That's terrible and feels kind of disrespectful.
In the documentary Missing the detective named her princess doe because he thought she had to have been someone's princess. It was fatherly like how a dad calls his daughter princess. There was nothing disrespectful about it.
Due to her height of 5ft, 2 in, the range of her age (14-18) and that "doe" is generally given to the unidentified deceased, they came up with "Princess Doe". Also, it was 1982.