Cold case investigators positively identified a 16-year-old girl who was found strangled to death in a northern California hotel room nearly 60 years ago.
In announcing the development on Thursday, October 1, the Oakland Police Department and the FBI revealed DNA testing confirmed that the unidentified person known for decades as “Jane Doe” was teen Joanne Yvonne Burdick, who her family called “Joanie.”
Burdick’s body was found in the former Hotel St. Louis in downtown Oakland on October 2, 1969, according to a news release.
Investigators learned she had been strangled to death shortly after witnesses and hotel employees said they saw her walk into a hotel room with a man described as white or Native American, authorities said.
Within 30 minutes, employees said they heard a scream from the room, according to police. Burdick’s alleged killer fled the hotel before police made it to the scene.
“The victim had no identification, and her identity remained unknown for decades,” police said.
Authorities had initially identified a man named Taylor Morris Teaford as the possible suspect in Burdick’s killing, according to police. Teaford was also suspected of killing his grandmother in northern California about two years earlier.
Teaford’s whereabouts and whether he’s alive today remains unknown, Oakland police Chief James Beere said on Thursday, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Teaford had been previously convicted of rape and was once appeared on the FBI’s “Most Wanted” list.
Burdick’s identification was ultimately confirmed after the FBI found and met with one of her relatives, who gave a DNA sample that helped reveal her identity.
“Today’s announcement is about Joanie — about restoring her identity, honoring her life, and bringing long overdue closure to her family after nearly sixty years,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Scott Schelble said in a statement. “This outcome reflects the unwavering collaboration between the FBI, the Oakland Police Department, and the Alameda County Coroner’s Office.”
The investigation into Burdick’s killing is ongoing, according to the Oakland Police Department.
In a statement, Burdick’s family said, “Thank you to every single individual who worked on this case, past and present, for caring enough to give Joanne her name and to give her family closure.”
The Oakland Police Department encourages anyone with information related to the case to call the agency’s Homicide Section at (510) 238-3821 or the Homicide Tip Line at (510) 238-7950.
