page_title: List of unidentified murder victims in the United States
section_title: "Valentine Sally"
hierarchical_section_title: List of unidentified murder victims in the United States / Arizona / "Valentine Sally"
caption_attribution_description: English: Forensic facial reconstruction of a murder victim found in 1982 in Coconino County, AZ. She is also known as "Valentine Sally"
context_page_description: Of the thousands of people murdered every year in the United States, several remain unidentified. Many of these individuals remain unidentified for years or even decades after their deaths. Cases include that of Tammy Jo Alexander, who was murdered in 1979 and remained an unidentified decedent until 2015, and Reet Jurvetson, who was murdered in 1969 and whose body remained unidentified for 46 years.
  Including murder victims and those who died via natural causes or otherwise, approximately 40,000 decedents remain unidentified in the United States.
context_section_description: The body of a white female, aged between 15 and 24, was discovered under a cedar tree in Williams, Coconino County, on February 14, 1982. She was discovered approximately 25 feet from westbound Interstate 40.
  Her death had occurred on or around February 1, and the area of her discovery area was a place where trucks were known to have regularly pulled over to cool their brakes. Because her remains were located on Valentine's Day, she was nicknamed "Valentine Sally."
  Valentine Sally was approximately five feet five inches in height and weighed 120 pounds; she had blue eyes and strawberry blond hair which was straight and approximately ten inches in length. She had distinctive scars on her right thigh and her left foot. Furthermore, the decedent appeared to have incomplete root canal surgery upon one of her molars, which may have been related to a notably discomforting infection. This surgery had been performed approximately one week prior to her murder. She also wore an earring in her left ear. It is unknown if her right ear was also pierced, as her right ear was not recovered. Due to decomposition and the activity of scavenging animals, her fingerprints could not be obtained (although her DNA and dental charts were).
  The victim had been murdered by either suffocation or strangulation and wore Seasons brand jeans with a handkerchief in one pocket. A distinctive white sweater with thin red stripes and a bra were also found near her remains, which may have also belonged to the victim.
  It is possible Valentine Sally had been seen by eyewitnesses at a truck stop in Ash Fork, Arizona in early February, as a waitress at a truck stop named Patty Wilkins recalled a young girl matching her description and aged 16 or 17 who had asked her for aspirin because of a toothache. This girl did not want any food. She was in the company of an older male—possibly a father or uncle—who had expressed concern over her teeth. Wilkins believed the girl was with a relative as normally, had a runaway entered the premises, she would call the sheriff. The pair had entered the premises at 3 a.m. and left approximately one hour later.
caption: Facial reconstruction of Valentine Sally
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