How Did Linda Sherman’s Car End Up Abandoned with Her Nowhere in Sight?

The story I have for you today is one. that for a long time would have fallen. into our missing category. But a strange. discovery and a mysterious letter would. reveal that this wife and mother didn't. just disappear into [music] thin air. And that truth begins to unravel a web. of [music] stories that will make you. wonder who we can trust. This is the story of Linda Sherman.

The official investigation into Linda. Sherman's disappearance began on. Wednesday, April 24th, 1985. That's when her husband, Dawn, filed a. report with police in St. Louis County, Missouri, where he and Linda live. And. he tells them he hasn't seen his. 27-year-old wife since Monday night when. she left for work. >> And it's Wednesday now, >> right? Yeah. So he says he waited this. time because she's pieced out on him. before and they've been having problems. recently. He thinks that she's been.

seeing another guy, one of her. co-workers. So at first he thought maybe. she just ran off with him. But even if. that's the case, he says that he's still. really worried about her and he's. already been checking with [music]. friends and family trying to find her. She hasn't even so much as called to. check in on their 9-year-old daughter, Patty. So, he gives police a playbyplay. of the last day that he saw Linda. Now, Linda works nights at the National. Personnel Records Center, which is. basically like this facility in St. Louis that stores US military and other.

federal files. And Don says that Linda. got home from work early Monday morning. So, this would have been around 3:00. a.m. They argued for a little bit, like. probably like an hour, and then she went. to sleep on the living room couch. >> And what did they argue about? >> What took her so long to get home? So, I. guess the drive from the record center. to their house on Monroe Avenue is like. less than 10 minutes, but he says it. took her like 45 to get there. >> And he's already suspicious, right, that. she's seeing someone else. So, I'm sure. he was just like there stewing waiting.

for her and like their fight probably. started the second she walked in the. door, [music]. >> right? >> Anyways, he does not work nights. He. works days. So, he goes to bed after the. fight and a couple of hours later, she. tries waking him up to go to work. He's. too tired, you know, from all that like. staying up and stewing. So, he called in. sick. He says that Linda drove Patty to. school that morning like she always did. since he usually was at work by then. She would do drop offs and then Linda. was sleeping when he got up in the early. afternoon and he woke her up, but she.

had drifted off again by the time that. he went to pick Patty up [music] from. school. He says that he then dropped off. Patty at his mother's house before going. to an hour-long counseling session with. this woman who I'm going to call Dr. W. She's basically the therapist that he. and Linda have been seeing both. individually and as a couple. >> Now, when he got home Monday evening. around 6:00, he says that Linda was. there and she's agitated that she'd. overslept. She had actually missed her. own counseling appointment and was.

running late for work. So, she's. hustling out the door at around 6:45. p.m. And he says that is the last time. he saw her. She's wearing blue jeans, tennis shoes, and a blue jersey with the. number 76 on it. She also had a necklace. with the same number, which was her. graduation year. He says she drove off. in her yellow 71 Volkswagen Beetle, presumably to start her shift. But, weirdly, [music]. that wasn't the last time he claims he. saw her. Kind of. So, Don says that he. went outside to talk to a neighbor at.

around 8:00 p.m. And while they're. standing there chatting, Linda's car. pulled onto the street and then just. like left. And after that, Don says that. he went to get something to eat. And. then later that night, he called Linda. at work, but then was told she never. came in. So, that's when he drove to her. job and checked the parking lot for her. car that wasn't there. And when he got. back and looked around the house, he. noticed that some [music] of her things. were missing, like a suitcase and some. toiletries and clothes and shoes. Hence. why he thought that she maybe just like.

left him on Monday. Now, the timeline. gets murky here because the information. that's available is limited. But we. pulled what we could through records. requests from like multiple police. agencies. And our reporter, Nina, interviewed everyone she could get to. But still, what we don't know could fill. a book. And I I'll get more into that. later, but I'm not sure how seriously. the agency, the Venita Park Police. Department, took [music] this at first. But according to Riverfront Times. reporter Laura Higgins, Linda's family.

begins their own search right away. And. two more days pass where they just get. nothing. So by Friday, April 26th, Linda's sister and her brother-in-law, so this is Fran and Sam Miller, they're. starting to grow desperate. They feel. like they've searched everywhere. And. that's when Don suggests that they check. this hotel near the St. Louis Lambert. International Airport. He's saying that. sometimes Linda stays there with her. boyfriend. So, I mean, again, they'll do. anything at this point. They go there.

Her car is not in the hotel parking lot. But when they come up empty there, they. figure like, "We're already out this. way. We might as well have a look at the. airport, too.". >> And lo and behold, they pull into the. airport's short-term parking, and there. it is. Linda's yellow beetle. Now, nothing appears disturbed, but they. don't want to go poking around, so they. call airport police to take over. Officers arrive and check the doors, which are locked, but the trunk isn't.

And as they lift it open, Fran and Sam. brace themselves because as they told. Unsolved Mysteries, there is this. sinking feeling in their stomachs that. Linda's body is going to be inside. The. trunk pops open and they breathe this. sigh of relief, even if it's just. momentarily because she's not in there. But now they're also no closer to. figuring out where she actually [music]. is. And here's where things get weird. While all of this is happening at the. airport, Dawn is over at a local.

7-Eleven talking with a cop and he's. asking if maybe police at the airport. can check there for Linda's car. an idea. that he says Sam gave him, not the other. way around. >> Yeah. >> And literally as they're discussing. this, dispatch radios the officer that. they found the missing woman's car at. the airport. >> Well, isn't that convenience? >> Yeah. And just in case you're not like. fully sick of me bringing up that. coroner's conference I went to, I'm just.

going to do it like one more time. because one of the things they covered. were staged scenes. >> for legal reasons. Let me put a. disclaimer. I'm not saying that this. scene is stage, just sharing interesting. info that I found. But they said that a. telltale sign of a stage scene oftent. [music] times is that someone will lead. you to the evidence they want you to. find. Like they think you're too stupid. to piece it together on your own, so. they make it overly obvious like, oh, my. wife is dead in her room and right here. in a place that no one keeps their pills.

is a prescription bottle of pills. Like. here are all the pieces. It must be. suicide. Anyways, whether this is sus or not to. [music] them, finding the beetle does. seem to light a fire under the Venita. Park PD. They finally assign a patrol. supervisor, Michael Webb, to work the. case. And in the early days, they do confirm. parts of Dawn's story. Linda's time card. shows that she clocked out at 2:16 a.m. on Monday, April 22nd. And Don's.

suspicions were right because she did. hang back after work to talk to a guy. named Randy for a few minutes. He's the. co-orker that Don says she's having an. affair with, which is probably why she. was late coming home. But Randy tells. police that the conversation was normal. And he expected to see her at their next. shift, which is later that same night. >> And even though she wasn't at work. Monday night, he actually spotted her. car out early Tuesday morning when he. left work. He saw her Beetle parked at. this strip mall less than 2 mi from her.

home. And Randy said that he recognized. it instantly because the back bumper was. missing. And he even pulled up next to. it to check it, but no one was inside. And police also talked to Dr. W. She. confirms that Linda did miss her. appointment that day, but they connected. later that Monday. Linda called sometime. between like 3:30 and 4:15 to apologize. for being a no-show. She explained that. she'd been sick. She slept through it. and like said she was heading to work. soon. And then not long after that call, Dr. W, I guess, got a second call, but.

she was busy or like her receptionist. took a message or whatever, but the only. thing the message was was just Linda's. work number. And then finally, there's. that neighbor who says that he saw. Linda's car drive back onto their street. Monday night at 8:00 p.m., more than an. hour after she supposedly left for work, just like Don said. Webb also documents. a couple of unconfirmed sightings in the. days after Linda is reported missing. Like this woman named Vicki, [music] a. neighbor of the Shermans. She apparently.

tells police that she saw Linda take off. with a suitcase and a man that she. didn't recognize wearing the same blue. jersey that Don had described. And then. Don says that he saw her riding in a van. with somebody and she ducked when he. spotted her. So, does that mean that. Dawn's telling the truth and she did. just run off with someone? >> Yeah, not so fast. I didn't say that. Yes, a lot of things on the surface look. good for Dawn. But if you go one layer.

deeper, >> always go a layer deeper. It stinks. [music] to high heaven. Starting with. the car at the airport. According to. Laura Higgins reporting, Officer Webb. pulls the parking log from the lot, which shows that the car had been. sitting there since either Tuesday, April 23rd, or maybe even Wednesday, April [music] 24th, and there is no. record of her taking a flight. So, was. it her driving from home to the mall to. the airport? And even if it was, why. park at the airport if you're not taking.

a flight? >> Also, was it even her driving? Because. that neighbor witness who was outside at. 8:00 talking to Dawn when the car her. car came and went from the street, not. as strong of a sighting of Linda as you. might think. He later tells police that. he actually couldn't see who was. driving. Didn't even know if it was a. man or a woman because I guess the. driver seemed to be intentionally like. hiding their face. So, it's probably not. her at 8. >> Yeah, we only have Don saying he saw her.

leave at 6:45. So really that last. confirmed time that she was alive at was. whenever she called her therapist when. she overslept, right? >> Well, let's talk about that call to her. therapist. If it happened as Dr. W said, then yes, Linda was fine as of late. afternoon, >> right? That was like 3:30 to 4:15, [music]. >> right? However, I don't know if that. call was even real because the whole. dynamic with this counselor, therapist,

whatever is super strange. [music]. Now, I mentioned that Dawn and Linda. weren't just seeing Dr. W like together. They also spoke to her individually. [music] And that happened in person, but.

also over the phone. They were actually. on the phone with her a lot, especially. Dawn and at like all hours of the day. and night. For instance, according to. Dawn, he was on the phone with Dr. W. from 900 p.m. to 100 a.m. the night that. he reported Linda missing. >> M that seems unorthodox. >> to say the least, but she obviously had. a front row seat to what was going on.

between them, like whatever that call. was. And she does agree to speak with. Officer Webb, at least about Linda given. the circumstances. Now, she describes. Linda as sentimental and steady, this. loving mother to Patty. And despite. Don's accusations, she says that Linda. denied having any kind of affair. >> Okay. So maybe Don is just being. paranoid. >> Well, no, he was actually right. So when. Officer Webb interviewed Randy, >> the coworker. >> Mhm. he was pretty open about the whole.

thing. He said that he and Linda had. been involved for about 4 months and he. really cares about her, but he'd been. clear with her that he wasn't planning. on leaving his wife. Even though Linda. had been telling him about her. intentions to leave Dawn. >> Oh, >> yeah. And not in like a vague, you know, maybe someday kind of way. She had a. plan in place, [music] one that her. sister Fran knew about. So, I mean, it. didn't take long for Fran's alarm bells. to start going off because she had been.

there for the whole tumultuous ride of. their relationship, which started when. Linda and Don were just high schoolers. [music] Linda got pregnant with Patty. when she was like 17, and she had to. finish high school with a baby, and her. and Don were struggling to make ends. meet, and things didn't improve as they. got older. Linda's family says that Dawn. became physically and mentally abusive, and court records show that Linda tried. to leave him multiple times. She filed. for divorce in 1977, though that ends up getting dismissed.

when they reconcile a couple of years. later. But by 1982, they reached a. breaking point and they split again. Linda even moved out with Patty that. time and according to Laura Higgins. reporting, she filed for an order of. protection that September, alleging that. Dawn had threatened her and Patty. Now, she told the court that he was mentally. unstable, but then just a few weeks. later, Linda informed the judge that she. and Don were trying to work things out. So, the two of them started seeing Dr. W. around that time. But it seems like.

Linda was finally trying to break the. cycle because she actually filed for. divorce again on April 11th. And [music]. this time, her family felt like it was. different, that Linda seemed determined. to leave him for good. And we know that. leaving is one of the most dangerous. times for people in abusive. relationships. >> And yeah, and this one was serious. I. mean, she was trying to find an. apartment. [music]. She was having her mail rerouted to her. sister Fran's house. Police also end up. finding a bunch of personal records in.

Linda's work locker. Things like Patty's. birth certificate and report cards. stretching back to kindergarten. She had. letters, momentos, family financial. paperwork. >> All things you'd want to take with you. if you were starting over. >> Yeah. I mean, it was all stuff that she. had cleared out of her and Don's [music]. joint safety deposit box. And Patty, her. daughter, thinks that Linda was stashing. things there so that Dawn couldn't get. to them. Although, I will say Don. actually knew, I guess, that she had. moved all of her stuff to the work. locker. And even after she went missing, he never tried to go get any of it back.

But all of that to say, she was being. cautious and she was planning because. she knew that Dawn wasn't going to take. her leaving. Well, but she never got the. chance to leave. Even though Patty is. pretty sure that her dad knew the split. was coming, Dawn wasn't actually served. with the divorce papers until [music]. after Linda went missing. Now, all of. this started with Randy, right? that he. told Webb about the divorce, but he also.

added some color to just how controlling. Dawn was with Linda. According to what. Linda told him, Dawn had been recording. her phone calls. And she told Randy that. she found the device rigged to a phone. line in their basement. And it didn't. even stop there. She said that Don had. been spying on the both of them, even. using this thing that he called a big. ear, which is basically like this long. range listening gadget. And when they. talk to Dr. W, Dr. W backs that story. up. In fact, she tells investigators.

that Linda had brought some of the. recording equipment that she found in. their house along with some cassette. tapes to her office. And she still has. them to turn over to police. But they. don't even need to press play to confirm. that Dawn was monitoring Linda because. when they confront Dawn about this in. late May, he just straight up admits it. >> What? Yeah. But I think in his mind, like he's very nonchalant about it. He's. just like, you know, marriage. And like. he even brings Officer Webb down to the.

basement and like shows him his setup. And at that time, he also walks Webb. through some items that he claims are. missing from the house. Items. I I. assume he's like, "Oh, look. She took. these with her.". >> But the thing that Webb notices most is. that most of Linda's belongings are. still there. And Don has already boxed. some of it up. He then pulls out this. short journal that he's been keeping at. Dr. W's suggestion [music] detailing. everything he can remember about the. days around Linda's disappearance. And.

so this is like when Web presses a. little bit. He tells Don like, "Listen, Linda's family thinks that you did. something to her. So would you take a. polygraph to prove them wrong?" Don. declines. He says that he had a bad. experience with one during a burglary. investigation. This is a charge that he. was later convicted of. Plus, he says. that his lawyer told him not to. >> I didn't even know he had a lawyer. >> I don't think investigators knew that.

either. So, working backwards, we don't. know how her car got to the airport or. who was driving because the neighbor's. sighting means pretty much nothing, >> right? >> It's TBD what we think about Dr. W's. account of getting a call from Linda. So, if we take that out of the mix for a. second, then really the last time anyone. who isn't Dawn put eyes on Linda is when. she is leaving work in the early morning. hours of Monday headed home where she. has a fight with her husband. >> Wait, didn't her daughter Patty see her.

mom that morning when she took her to. school? >> Well, kind of, but in a way that is. actually pretty disturbing in hindsight. In Dawn's version of events, he claimed. that Linda drove Patty to school that. Monday like she did most mornings, but. Patty told us that's not true. Don. actually brought her that day, which was. basically unheard of, she said. And the.

moment that is burned into Patty's mind. now is her mom on the couch as she heads. out the door to school. She says that. her mom's face was turned [music]. towards the back cushions. She didn't. stir. She didn't say goodbye. And that. is the last image she has of her because. remember when Don picks her up from. school, he takes her to his mother's. house and she ends up staying there for. a couple of nights. So by the time Patty. gets back to her own home, her mom is a. missing person. Now, as sus [music] as.

Dawn's behavior and his stories are, it's the Patty of it all that has people. so convinced that Linda didn't just walk. away. Everyone agrees that Linda was not going. to leave Patty. [music] I mean, yeah. You said that she had brought Patty with. her last time she left Dawn. She was. storing all those documents. Like, why. wouldn't she bring her? >> Exactly. Exactly. And Officer Web is. keenly aware of this after talking to. everyone. So, the more that he learns.

about Linda, the more certain he becomes. that she didn't just run [music] off and. that something is very, very wrong. And. that's what keeps him so invested in the. case even after he's promoted to. lieutenant. He follows up on tips. He. checks out anything that might lead. somewhere. [music]. He even subpoenas Dawn's phone records. Nothing really useful comes there. So, he subpoenas his bank records where he. does note that the day after Linda went. missing, Dawn filled up his gas tank and. spent almost $16 at a hardware store.

Although it's not clear what he bought, but it's like all smoke and no fire. because no matter how they try, what. they cannot find is Linda. Did they ever. get anything from searching the car or. the house? Like I imagine if something. happened to her. >> Like it had to have happened in the. house and it seems like someone else was. driving her car all around town, not. her, right? >> So as far as the house goes, Don won't. give them permission to search. I mean, he lets them inside that one time when.

he's showing them like the stuff and the. recording equipment, but he won't let. them just like have at it. >> and they must not be able to get a. search warrant or maybe they don't even. try then because like it ends up being. years before they get the chance to look. through the house. As for the car, they. never impounded it or even secured it. after it was found at the airport. So, make of that what you will. They just. like left it there like in the airport. parking lot. That That's my. understanding. I guess the next day they. let like Don, Linda's dad, and Sam just.

pick it up and drive it to the station. themselves. So, >> I'm sorry. They let her husband, the. last person to have like confirmed to. have seen her, have access to the car. >> I know. So, part of me is like, you. know, perhaps all this smoke and no fire. was a beast of their own making. >> Yeah. >> But a whole year ends up going by with. no developments because of all of this. And during that time, Dawn isn't exactly a grieving husband.

He stands firm that Linda just left him. and Patty. And so, he takes a big step. to sever ties with Linda about a year. after she disappeared. That's when he. files his own divorce petition, claiming. that Linda abandoned him. Oh, so now. he's [music] divorcing her. >> He's trying to. He's got the same guy, the same lawyer who advised him not to. take the polygraph. That guy's. representing him now. He's this. well-known local criminal defense lawyer. named Frank Analone.

>> I'm sorry, Ashley. When do criminal. defense attorneys, like local well-known. criminal defense attorneys, do divorce. cases? >> That's what Linda's own lawyer was. wondering. Now, in fairness, the guy who. helped her file for divorce before she. went missing wasn't a divorce attorney. either. Frank Vat, her lawyer, specialized in real estate. So, I guess. he took Linda on as a client through a. referral. So, we're like, you know, we're all stretching our skill set here. >> But, as he told Nah, in his experience,

criminal defense attorneys don't. typically handle divorces unless there's. some, >> you know, crime involved, >> right? Yeah. That's like I don't know, the whole purpose of a criminal defense. attorney, >> right? Or maybe they'll take the case if. they're like family friends. And I don't. know if that's what you would call. Frank, Anelone, and Dawn, but they. definitely had a connection because you.

see, Analone had represented Dawn's. mother, Audrey, when she killed his. father. >> What? >> Mhm. >> Okay, I need like a pause sign here. I. need details on that right now. >> I don't have a ton. Uh, what I know is. that in February of 1974, police were. called to the Sherman home and they. found 47year-old Charles Sherman shot to. death at the breakfast nook there in. their house. >> Audrey and the kids told officers that. they'd all been asleep, woke up to the.

sound of a gunshot. And his death. certificate says that he was shot in the. back. So, I doubt anyone even tried to. like push suicide or anything. But if. they were trying to say intruder, like. that didn't stick either because when. police searched the house, they found a. gun hidden inside of a heating duct. >> And Don was like in the house when this. happened. >> Yeah. As far as I know, all of the. Sherman kids who still lived at home. were there. So his mom Audrey got. indicted for first-degree murder. She. ended up taking a plea deal and she only. served 6 months in jail. And it seems. like prosecutors may have taken like.

possible family dynamics into account. because Don said that the shooting. happened during one of their arguments. and that they both struggled with. alcohol use disorder. >> All of that to say Don's choice of. attorney strikes Vat, Linda's lawyer, as. odd. Like he remembers Linda coming to. him scared, genuinely afraid of her. husband. But he also does have this part. of him that wonders if she really did. just take off to get rid of this guy or. get away from this guy. Either way, Vatarat is not about to let Dawn end the.

marriage while Linda is nowhere to be. found. [music] So when Dawn's lawyer, Analone, moves to finalize the case as. uncontested in 1988, Vatar pushes back. and the following year in June of 1989, the whole thing just gets tossed. So on. paper, the Shermans stay married, >> right? In practice, Don has already. moved on long before he even filed for. divorce, by the way. [snorts] And guess. who his first girlfriend is after Linda.

disappears? Vicki. You remember Vicki, right? >> Wait, Vicky who? >> Vicky is the neighbor who had the like. supposed sighting of Linda after where. she's like, "Oh yeah, I saw Linda and a. man together.". >> Oh, yeah. One and the same. But I mean, his relationship with Vicki doesn't last. long. Dawn goes through a few. girlfriends over the next few years, >> but by the late 80s, he wanted to settle. down and get remarried, which must have. made his legal tie to Linda pretty. inconvenient.

>> Hard to plan a wedding when your wife is. still missing. >> If only she could turn back up, even if. it was just part of her, that would sure. be helpful for Don, right? >> And what do you know? After more than 5. years of Linda being considered a. missing person, a skull pops up in the. strangest of places. But you won't. believe people's reaction to it. On. Thursday, June 28th, 1990, two TWWA.

flight attendants are having lunch at. this restaurant called Kasa Gallardo, which is this Mexican restaurant in. Bridgeton, which is 20 minutes away from. Bonita Park. And that's when they notice. something outside the window laying. under a bush. Clear as day, it is a. skull. The restaurant manager calls the. Bridgetton PD, but according to police. records, he also moves the skull. I know. because customers are like crowding. around it. >> Oh, okay.

>> So, he shows officers the original site. about 3 ft from the window on the east. side of the building. Everything looks. neat and undisturbed. And the landscaper. who like works that area tells police. that he was there 9 days ago. Definitely. didn't notice any skull. >> You would remember that. >> Yeah. So, it seems like someone wanted. this to be found. It's not buried. [music] It's barely even tucked under. the bush that it's found by. I mean, it's so deliberately placed that. officers wonder if it's some kind of. youthful prank. Like maybe somebody dug.

it up and set it up there just to mess. with people. >> Wait, do they think it's fake? >> No, no, no. They definitely know that. it's real. There's even dirt on it. Like. they can tell that it had been dug up. >> Okay. >> But a police official told reporters at. the time that I guess bodies were being. exumed from a nearby cemetery to make. way for a Lambert airport extension. project. And so seemingly because of. that, everyone just decides that there's. no reason to suspect foul play.

Okay. And the problem I have with that. explanation is that from everything we. could find, which like a ton of media. reports, that airport project that he's. like writing this off for, the one where. like supposedly graves from the cemetery. were being uprooted, that didn't. actually start until 1993. >> We're in 1990. >> Oh, yeah. And I mean, to be clear, Washington Park, the cemetery, was in. trouble long before the airport project. I guess it's one of St. Louis's oldest.

historically black cemeteries and it had. been the center of complaints about. neglect and mismanagement for years. In. fact, according to St. Louis Post. Dispatch reporter Yvon Samuel Kirkwood, bones had resurfaced there the year. before the skull was found. So, like not. out of the picture, but the weird part. is nobody seemed to like like frame that. as a prank. If anything, what was. happening there was very serious. Families were raising alarms about. everything from overturned markers to. bodies getting dumped in unmarked plots.

The then state attorney general ended up. filing a civil fraud suit against the. cemetery owner who ended up taking her. own life before any of it could be. resolved. >> Okay. All of this background only makes. this feel like less of a prank. Ashley, >> I know. And I didn't find anything in. official records or reporting that. supports the idea of a prank. I mean, unless I'm missing something, this just. seems like a huge leap to take to like. >> huge leap. >> Someone must have dug this up. No, it's.

a prank. It's not even worth looking. into to find out who this is, how this. got here, or if there's a mystery here. to be solved. >> And like the this prank like didn't. happen before, didn't happen after, just. a oneoff silly prank with nothing to go. Okay. Either way, they at least do the. bare minimum and officers canvas the. area to see if, you know, is there. anything like anything else they can. find? Did anyone see anything? But there. is nobody who saw who left the skull or. even when exactly it got placed there.

So, they photograph it, they bag it, they send it off to the St. Louis County. Medical Examiner, who is really only. able to determine that it is the skull. of a female of quote recent origin. But. that is pretty much all they can tell. So it gets shelved at the morg, unclaimed, unidentified. Nobody connects it to a missing woman. from Venita Park until September 1991. That's when someone is clearly tired of.

waiting. If police can't see what was. put right in front of them, then. someone's going to make them see it. So, on the morning of Friday, September 6th, this clerk at the Bonita Park Police. Department is flipping through the mail. when she notices something odd. It's. this unsealed envelope with no return. address on it. And, you know, curious, isn't like the normal mail she gets. She. peaks inside and she sees this bright. orange flyer. It's from the Kasagardo. restaurant advertising Super Bowl Sunday.

specials for the 1991 game back in. January. Like the kind of promotional. thing you'd find sitting on a table next. to chips and guac. >> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So on one side, happy. hour deals, drink promos, whatever. >> On the other side, there is just one. sentence stamped in purple ink. In all caps, it reads, quote, "The. Bridgeton police have L. Sherman's.

skull.". End quote. >> What? When Lieutenant Webb sees this, he. is blindsided because as he told Laura. Higgins, he hasn't heard a word about. Bridgen police recovering a skull. So, he honestly figures that it must be a. mistake. But he heads over to their. station to ask them anyways, [music]. thinking that they're going to look at. him like he's lost his mind. And. instead, they're like, "Oh, yeah, that. skull that was found last year outside. that restaurant. Like, come right this. way. We'll show you.". So, Lieutenant Webb brings Linda's.

dental records in for comparison, and. the very next day, it is confirmed that. skull is Linda's. Their case is now a. homicide. Can they tell how she died. from her skull? >> No. I mean, the Emmy, like I said, was. only able to tell that it was female and. like of recent origin. So, her death. certificate just lists homicidal. violence as the cause. Actually, an. anthropologist said that parts of the. skull were broken, but it's not clear. whether that damage came before or after. death. And if police know more than.

that, they're not sharing. Now, by the. time this is all happening, Patty is a. teenager. So, during the week, she lives. with her paternal grandmother, so she. can go to a school in a different. district. And on the weekends, she stays. with Don, who still lives in the same. Bonita Park house that he once shared. with Linda. Same address, same. furniture, new serious girlfriend there, but not the woman that he was with when. the skull was initially found. So maybe. he wasn't trying to get remarried.

>> Oh, no. Patty told us that he definitely. wanted to get married to that woman that. he was with at the time the skull was. found. >> Okay. >> Something must have happened. The. relationship fell apart. Whatever. In my. mind, that woman dodged a bullet. But. he's with someone new now. >> Okay. Now, Patty stayed connected with. her mom's family, but it's like a. complicated situation. They can't stand. her father since they think he killed. Linda. [music] And Dawn's relatives. won't talk about Linda. >> at all. So, Patty's really caught in the.

middle in all this. >> Totally. And like by this point, she. said she really had learned just to like. keep her feelings to herself. When she. was younger, she said she used to like. run to the mailbox, hoping that this. letter was going to come from her mom. and she would look for Linda everywhere. she went. But every time she tried. asking her dad about this, all he would. say is that he didn't know where she was. or he would imply that she just ran off. with a boyfriend. And so, it didn't take. long for her to realize that mentioning. her mom made things tense. >> But she never let go of the hope that.

one day Linda would come back to her. But that hope got shattered on Sunday, September 8th of 1991. That is a weekend where Patty is at her. [music] dad's house for a visit and. there's this knock on the door. And the. moment that she sees police standing. outside, she said this wave of dread. just washed over her. >> So instead of answering it herself, she. like runs to wake up her dad and his. girlfriend from a nap. And after Don. talks to the officers for a few minutes,

he comes into Patty's room and basically. tells her they found your mom. And then. he turns around and goes back to his. bedroom. >> That's it. >> That's it. That's all he told her. >> No explanations, no comfort. I mean, nothing. >> He doesn't even tell her that the only. thing recovered was Linda's skull. Patty. actually has to learn that from her. cousin who picks her up and brings her. to Aunt Fran and Uncle Sam's house where. there like for the first time she hears.

the full story and she is angry because. in her mind she knows exactly why Dawn. left out the detail about where her. mother was found. You see, Kasa Gallardo. isn't just some random restaurant. It is. like Dawn's second home. Patty told us. that he went there five nights a week. He knew all of the staff. [music] They. literally had a hat rack set up for him. with his name on it. And Patty spent. much of her childhood there, like looked.

after by bartenders while her dad drank. just a few feet away. And get this, police learn that Dawn was at the. restaurant on the same exact day that. Linda Skull was found. But he denies. having [music] anything to do with her. death. He tells reporters that someone. might be just trying to frame him, that. whoever [music] left the school there. must have known that he was a regular. And he maintains that Linda just left. with someone else and that whatever.

happened to her happened to her after. that and it wasn't his doing. Okay, genuine question here. If he's trying to. get away with murder, why leave her. skull somewhere that points directly. back to him? I mean, that's practically. gift wrapping an arrest, right? Yeah. I. don't. Again, I go back to this like this idea. of like you you have an intention, right? Like if you if you wanted her to. be found, you make sure it goes. somewhere where you like know it will be. found, you can like witness it being.

found, you know, >> can confirm it. >> Yeah. I mean, like maybe that's it. If. it's just all too contrived. >> Well, and also there's like the like the. red herring that's too obvious, right? Like how could it have been? Like he. goes here all the time. Like there's no. way it could be him cuz he wouldn't have. left it here, right? Like it feels too. stupid to be calculated. Like yeah, it. it feels. like too. >> maybe maybe it's arrogant. Like nothing. has happened so far and it feels pretty. obvious that like he is lying about some.

like major points in seeing Linda, right? He has this girlfriend who. potentially gave a a sighting of her. that may or may not have been real. and. he hasn't been caught so far. Why would. it happen now? >> I don't know. I keep coming back to the. fact that like. usually like in cases where someone goes. missing and then they're found, all the. detectives I've ever talked to have. always said like look at where the thing. happened or where they're found because. that's where someone feels most. comfortable.

>> like a regular hangout. >> So, I don't know why it's found there. I. don't know like again it could mean a. million things but instead. >> it could mean nothing. >> Yeah. But instead of getting lost in the. whatifs or trying to psychoanalyze Dawn, what investigators do then is they try. to focus their attention on something. more tangible. Webb believes that the. note was sent by somebody who really. wanted police [music] to connect the. dots between the skull and Linda. Sherman. So he sends the note and the.

envelope to the FBI lab, hoping that. there's some evidence on it that might. tell them who sent it. But according to. Laura Higgins, [music] nothing useful. comes back. No fingerprints, no saliva. Even the stamp kit used to mark the. message is like the kind anyone could. buy at any office supply store. Then I. think you still have to like keep. looking backwards like who wins, if. that's even the word you want to use. Like if Linda is dead versus just.

missing. >> Yeah. I mean the only one that it. changes things for is Dawn. >> Mhm. but only in the sense that he could. get remarried, which he ultimately does. a couple of years later. And then he. goes on to have another daughter. But. police still aren't letting go of things. just cuz they don't have anything. physical. Nothing like no physical. evidence. They at least now have proof. that she was murdered. More than just. their suspicions, more than even the. stories they'd heard in the years before. her skull was found.

>> Wait, what stories? >> Yes. So, at one point there was this ex. of Dons's who told investigators this. bizarre story. She says that when they. were living together, she had asked him. to box up Linda's photos and belongings. because, right, he's telling everyone. she ran off and she didn't want there to. be any drama if Linda ever came back. I. guess she figured like having everything. ready to go would just make it easier. But Dawn told her, "You don't need to. worry about that because I know that.

Linda's not coming back since [music] I. killed her with my bare hands.". He just like came out and said that. >> That's what she said. Claims he even. showed her this like green and white. aerial photo map thing and he pointed to. a spot near a river or stream and said. that Linda was buried there under a. concrete slab. [music] And listen, back. then, police did even have this woman. like try and wear a wire, have her go to. Dawn to get a confession,

>> but when she did, Don wouldn't confirm. or deny anything. >> And unfortunately, she couldn't tell. police exactly where it was that he. pointed to. >> But in that time, investigators had. started focusing on this stretch of. land, which was about 90 mi south of St. Louis. And it's where Dawn's mother's. side of the family is from. You know, it's a place that he spent plenty of. time hunting like turkey and deer, like. a remote wooded terrain. And.

interestingly, when Lieutenant Webb paid. Don's aunt and uncle a visit down there, they mentioned that Don had actually. showed them the exact kind of map, this. detailed aerial view of the area, which. included their property. So they've. always kind of wondered, is that somewhere in there where the. rest of Linda is? So now that her skull. has been found, investigators have like. at least like some like momentum by.

right like proof, right? We're looking. for something real here. So they make a. few trips to the area, even search it. with cadaavver dogs, but they never end. up finding anything, which like it kind. of got me wondering going back to like. is Don too stupid to do this? Like for a. second I was like, do you think there's. a chance that someone else I mean he's. he's talking about this. He's showing. people that someone else knew where she. was and put it there like knowing he. would be there that day. Like I don't.

again nobody wins but like did someone. just like was this their way of getting. people to know but then like nobody. nobody knew. It would literally be like a quiet nod. only to Dawn. Yeah. But like bringing up like a different. person also makes me think about like I. know it's it's very unsure but like the. sighting of her car on the street like. he isn't driving the car there. So, who.

like we can't confirm it was Linda. We. can't confirm it wasn't Linda, but. >> is there someone else that he was like. ever working with? Because. >> right like is there a second person? >> I'm not saying it I'm not saying not. him. But what about plus someone? >> Yeah. Like I I actually this kind of. like unravels later. I don't like I. don't 100% believe this, but I do wonder. if there's someone else. Even if there. was though, police are confident that. like Don's at the heart of this, right? Like Don's responsible. Yeah. But in an. interview with Laura Higgins, Don.

insists that he's innocent still. He. insists that he loved Linda. He mentions. an ex-girlfriend who told police he. confessed, but he's like, "Oh, she just. wanted the reward money." And bottom. line, he's like, "I just have no idea. what happened to Linda." Although, he. does throw out that he heard this rumor. that she was killed because of a cocaine. ring at her workplace. Which, >> hold up, did I miss something? Like, >> what cocaine ring? Everyone is like, "Where did this even [music]. come from?" Lieutenant Webb has never. heard of a cocaine ring. Dawn has never.

said anything like that to him, the lead. investigator. So, it sounds like. nonsense. Now, >> they're not finding the rest of Linda. They do eventually have to release her. skull, but Don doesn't even want it. So, it gets released to Linda's mother, and. the family arranges a burial, which. Patty isn't invited to. Oh my god. Why? >> She said that like she still isn't sure. Like maybe it was the tension between. like Don's family and Linda's family.

Maybe they thought it would just be too. painful for her. >> I mean, it's going to be painful. It's. her mom. >> Yeah. Well, you wouldn't know it was her. mom from the gravestone, though. I guess. it only identifies Linda as a daughter. And somehow even like the birth year is. wrong. >> But Linda doesn't even stay buried for. long. Webb is desperate for a real. break, which isn't surprising. Like he. has this suspicion that she the rest of. her is probably buried somewhere in this. like general area, but like no.

specifics. Like every search they've. done hasn't turned up anything. So when. he learns about this new advanced type. of soil testing at this crime scene. archaeology conference in the late '9s, >> so specific. >> Yeah. Like it's one that might actually. help pinpoint a specific burial site. He. just jumps [music] on it. So, in August. of 1999, Linda's skull is exumed and. shipped to a college in Pennsylvania. along with soil samples collected from. places that police think Linda might. have been buried.

>> Now, the first batch of samples is. examined that fall, and it helps like to. start at least narrowing down the scope. of where they're looking. Although, web. won't say to what extent it narrows down. in the media interviews, >> but they're at least eliminating areas, right? That that that's like progress. Yeah. But it's slow and it's. frustrating. And all the while, Patty. has been living with her own growing. suspicions about her dad. Over the.

years, she does end up becoming. convinced that her father killed her. mother. And it's beyond just the like. obvious bright red flags that we've. already talked about. There's something. about the anonymous letter and more. specifically the materials used, the. purple individual letter stamp text pad. and the like pre-stamped envelope. She. says that those are the same kinds that. her father kept. And she also learned.

that some of Linda's personal belongings. that Dawn swore Linda took with her, like that 76 necklace, were actually. still in the house. And what really. haunts Patty is that morning, the last. time she saw her mother, she started. having dreams that dragged that scene. back into focus. Linda laying silently. on the living room couch, perfectly. still, her face pressed into the. cushions. An account that Dawn doesn't. contradict when he even appears on.

unsolved mysteries later. But Patty now. believes that Linda was already dead. before she walked out the door for. school. So, who do we think called Dr. W. that afternoon? Then. >> we asked Patty. She suspects that maybe. either Dr. W either had the dates mixed. up or straight up lied. And like and. Patty got the same weird vibe from the. whole situation of like like her, as you. called it, unorthodox relationship as we. did. And if what Don relayed about their.

communication is true, like the frequent. phone calls at all hours, the level of. involvement, Patty thinks that their. relationship was she what she would say. is abnormal. [snorts]. >> So what does Patty think happened? >> So Patty thinks or her theory is that if. Linda was killed at home that it [music]. was quick and it was quiet. Maybe Dawn. strangled her during the argument and. then she thinks that maybe he got some. of his relatives to help cover it up.

And strangulation is significant here. [music] in my mind because Patty told us. that around the time Linda's remains. were exumed, Dawn's second wife, who was. Patty's stepmother, got a restraining. order against Dawn because she alleged. that he strangled her. And remember how. I said that police couldn't actually. search the Venita Park house for years, like a long time? It is this incident, this assault that finally opened that. door. Literally, once investigators. heard about it and realized that Dawn.

was out of the house, they figured that. this second wife might be willing to let. them in. >> They were right. They ended up. collecting a few things like the living. room couch cushions. >> What? He still had the same couch after. all those years. >> Girl, he did not change a thing about. the place. But, you know, they collect. it. Nothing comes of anything that they. collect. Nothing incriminating. I mean, the most incriminating thing that they. could find would be Linda's remains. But.

Patty doubts that those will ever be. found. She believes that her father. eventually dug up the skull from. wherever he originally buried Linda and. planted it outside the bar. And she. thinks that he either moved or scattered. the rest of her remains, which could. explain why searches keep coming up. empty. But that is all just speculation. The only people who really know what. happened are whoever killed Linda and. anyone else who helped them. And the. investigator who basically devoted his.

life to trying to solve this, Lieutenant. Webb, he died of pancreatic cancer in. 2009. While Dawn maintained his. innocence until his own death in 2015. So, both the lead detective and the only. suspect are gone along with Dawn's. lawyer and the Bridgton investigator who. chocked that whole skull thing up to. like cemetery relocations and probably a. whole lot of other people are gone, too. >> Mhm. >> The only people left fighting for Linda. are her family and more recently us.

>> because we actually tried reaching out. to police for this episode, but right. away we hit a wall. And it's a wall I'm. really concerned about because no one is. claiming this case. >> What do you What do you mean no one's. claiming it? It's an unsolved homicide. Like it's listed as a homicide now. Like. there must be some police agency in. charge of it. You think, but apparently. about a decade ago, Venita Park PD was.

absorbed into the North County Police. [music] Cooperative, which is this like. shared department that serves multiple. small cities. And for some reason after. that, jurisdiction over Linda's case. just becomes murky. The co-op says that. they can't find a full case file. Their. attorney insists that the co-op is not. the lead agency. And in fact, against. all evidence to the contrary, he told us. that he would be surprised if Venita. Park was ever the lead agency because a. department that small wouldn't have the.

resources. Okay. How would it basically. be Lieutenant Webb's life's work with. two drawers full of files like his. passion project he worked on this his. like even after he got like promoted to. Lieutenant like his whole career. >> Yeah. With Venita Park PD. >> and but but there's no. >> but but it wasn't theirs. >> It's like. >> that doesn't make any sense. >> It's infuriating. Patty has even tried. going to the Venita Park mayor. She. tried going to the Missouri Attorney. General's office and everyone would meet.

with her and tell her they cared, they. wanted to help, >> and then communication would just stop. after that. >> Which is to Patty like this slap in the. face like her mother has just been. forgotten. >> or maybe worse, like doesn't even matter. to people. And the fact is this case. should still be open. Yes, the prime. suspect is dead, but no one was ever. charged. And most of Linda's body was.

never recovered. So even if it's too. late to get justice in a courtroom. and like Patty's like, I still deserve. answers. >> Yeah. So she's hoping like the goal of. this and talking to us and still pushing. for her mother, she is hoping that. someone close to Dawn, maybe an aging. relative, a friend who has kept this. secret for decades, will finally speak. up. Now, normally this is when I would. tell everyone which police agency to. contact if you know anything about. Linda's murder, but as everyone just.

heard, that's complicated. A co-op. captain suggested routing tips through. St. Louis Regional Crimestoppers, but. like. >> we know how Crimestoppers works. >> That's how I got here, folks. Like, Crimestoppers is a conduit. Like, what. they do is they take the tip and then. they're supposed to pass it along to law. enforcement to investigate. They are not. an investigating agency. So, I don't. know how helpful that will be. >> I'm still going to put their info in the. show notes, but I also think it's worth. reaching out directly to the co-op's. general number if you know anything.

That is 314-4287374. [music]. I mean, maybe even just a few calls or. emails or letters showing them that. people are still paying attention to. Linda's case and you care about Linda's. case will convince them to take it up. even if they don't believe it's their. responsibility. Like, someone just needs. to care enough. And you guys can always. email us tips@auudiochuck.com. And just a reminder, if you or anyone. you know is experiencing abuse, help is. available. You can contact the National. Domestic Violence Hotline at 18007997233.

or text start to 88788. You can find all the source material for. our episode on our website. crimejunkkey.com. [music]. And if you want to listen to more. episodes like this, you want all of our. episodes completely adree, [music]. be sure to join our fan club. You also. get early access to new episodes every. single week and bonus content every. single month. >> And you can follow us on Instagram @. crimejunkie podcast. We'll be back next. week with a brand new episode.