DNA Doe: Murder Victim Identified By Genetic Genealogy After 30 Years

Williamson Co., TX – The DNA Doe Project (DDP), in conjunction with the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office, announces the identification of a Jane Doe found in September 1989 as Sue Ann Huskey, from Sulphur Springs, Texas. She was dubbed “Corona Girl” based on her T-shirt bearing “Cinco de Corona” and “Celebrate Corona” beer logos. Attempts by the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) to identify the victim, who had been shot multiple times, failed, and she remained unnamed for 30 years.

In April 2018 WCSO contacted the DNA Doe Project for assistance in identifying Corona Girl. Early attempts to extract DNA from her remains failed. In July 2019 bone and tooth samples were sent to the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) in The Hague. ICMP was able to extract sufficient DNA to allow DDP to create a GEDMatch-compatible kit and to proceed with genetic genealogy analysis. In December 2019 Kevin Lord, DDP Team Leader for the Corona Girl case, notified WCSO of a tentative identification which was confirmed by a DNA sample provided by members of the victim’s family.

DDP wishes to acknowledge the contributions of Sheriff Robert Chody, Sgt. John Pokorny, Det. Jason Cox and the rest of the WCSO Cold Case Unit; Hudson Alpha Discovery; Justin Loe, Full Genomes Corp.; Dr. Greg Magoon, Research Scientist, Aerodyne Research Corp. (contracting through Full Genomes Corp.); and GEDMatch for their assistance in solving this case.

The DNA Doe Project, Inc. is an all-volunteer 501(c)3 non-profit organization whose mission is to identify John and Jane Does and return them to their families. To date DDP volunteers have made over two dozen confirmed identifications. Although the genealogy research is pro bono, DDP relies on donations to fund the lab costs when agencies cannot afford them.