The Tragedy of Christmas Doe

7 min readApr 8, 2022

--

While the Christmas season is long over, the slight chill of the spring air reminds us of that time. A time that we share with family and friends, a time for giving to and loving your fellow humans. However, this case reminds us that Christmas can be just as cold as the rest of the winter.

On December 21, 1988 a trucker was hauling lumber when he pulled to the side of Georgia Road 82 close to Forks Road and Duncan Bridge, near Waycross, Georgia, to relieve himself. He stopped near an isolated garbage dump and saw an old tv console nailed shut with plywood. Out of curiosity he kicked it and it broke open to reveal a black metal suitcase. This was suspicious enough that he contacted the police.

Officers arrived on the scene including Detective Herbert Bond and Detective Arney Herrin Jr. They noticed that the suitcase was wrapped in silver duct tape and a plastic sheet. The suitcase contained a duffle bag, but it was also filled with cement. Inside of the gym bag, wrapped in a brown baby blanket, was the body of a little girl.

When asked to reflect on this day Detective Arney Herrin Jr. is quoted as saying “I can see her now…And I wonder what happened to her”. Detective Herrin describes how the truck driver broke down once the weight of their discovery truly hit them.

Her Doe nickname, Christmas Doe, was given to her because she was found four days before Christmas. As in most Doe cases, this name was given to distinguish her from other Jane Does.

The little girl was African American toddler between the ages of 2–4. Jane Doe had black hair that was pulled into a ponytail or pigtails with multi-colored bows, but her eye color was unable to be determined. She was around 2'8"-3'1" in height and anywhere from 23–31 pounds.

The clothes that Christmas Doe was found wearing

Christmas Doe was wearing a white knit thermal shirt with a red or pink pony emblem on the upper left corner,white thermal pajama bottoms with a maroon trim on the bottom of the pant leg, and a diaper. Her ears were likely pierced although they could only tell that her right ear was pierced, and she wasn’t wearing earrings at the time. There was also slight gap between some of her baby teeth.

The detectives couldn’t help but notice how well she seemed to have been cared for that seemed to juxtapose the lack of dignity with which she was dumped. She was disposed of in the trash but the care she seemed to have been given made detectives believe that someone out there had to love and care about her.

It is estimated that Christmas Doe had been deceased from anywhere from 1–2 months. Due to her state of decomposition her cause of death was not able to be determined. There was also no signs of abuse or neglect on her remains, which means that she had been cared about for most of her all too short life. Though, given the circumstances surrounding her discovery, it is likely that foul play was involved.

Waycross, Georgia:

Waycross is a relatively small town of around 13,300 people and is the county seat of Ware County Georgia. Like Christmas Doe around 55% of Waycross is African American. Around 37% of residents have incomes below the poverty line and the child poverty rate is around 60%. Now these are modern statistics, but it gives you an idea of life in the area. This could also give us an idea of how Christmas Doe might have lived.

While Waycross is a town, the area where Christmas Doe was quite different from the town nearest to her. The area where she was found was described as being a wild forest with roads flowing through, you could see cattle, buzzards, and hawks.

The town of Waycross seemed to be pretty close back then because officers were able to go door to door asking about this young girl. Sadly, no one knew who she was.

The officers involved in the case took this little girl’s death really personally with Detective Herrin saying “It gives you the feeling that you want to get out and choke somebody for doing that to a child…Not knowing that is really got me more than anything”.

Later Developments:

Leads in this case have been few and far between, either the police are not sharing everything with the public or there is really just a complete lack of information.

In 2009, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) case agent Daley Wiley got a lead that connected the TV console to Albany, Georgia. The police got in touch with their local NBC station to run a story about Christmas Doe on the news and ask for any leads.

In 2010, GBI agent Russell Mansfield said that anonymous tip had been submitted via the GBI’s website that Christmas Doe’s name might have been Bridget and that her family might have lived in Tifton, Georgia at some point.

Sadly, nothing else has materialized in the years since these two leads and the case went cold.

Rule-Outs and Possible Identities:

Many theories have been proposed over the years such as Christmas Doe being Kimberly Boyd, but many of those have since been ruled out. Below is the complete list of rule-outs in Christmas Doe’s case:

Despite the list of rule-outs I was able to compile a list of possible identities for Christmas Doe:

However, given Christmas Doe’s age and the fact that no one has come forward all these years later, it is likely that her family was involved in her death. This could mean that she was never reported missing because the people who should be desperately looking for her are the ones who did this to her. Whether Christmas Doe’s death occurred through abuse or neglect, we don’t know. We do know that something has been keeping her family silent for all these years, and it is likely a fear of being found out by authorities.

Conclusions:

Older clay reconstruction of Christmas Doe

Reflecting on the words of Detective Herrin “You couldn’t get no better time than now. That could really happen-it really could”. With all of the recent advances in DNA testing it could be just a matter of time before Christmas Doe is reunited with her identity. If her family is truly behind her death then it is likely that she was never reported missing, which could mean that a DNA match could be our only option. DNA is available in this case, according to the Doe Network.This case could be solved through DNA or from the family coming forward, similar to what happened in the case of Erica Green.

Detective Herrin kept working this case into his retirement and even after becoming a great grandfather. His dedication to her case seems almost unparalleled. Sadly, Arney Herrin Jr. passed away suddenly in September of 2015. While Dale Wiley is still the case agent for the GBI, it is sad to know that a man who was so dedicated to her is now gone.

After over 30 years, this little girl remains unidentified.

If you have any information that could lead to the identification of Christmas Doe or the identification of those involved in her death, please contact:

GBI: Case Agent Dale Wiley at (912)-389–4103 or at their website www.gbi.georgia.gov
NCMEC: 1(800)-843-5678 and you can remain anonymous
Ware County Sheriff’s Office: Neil Skerratt at (912)-287-4326
Ware County Coroner’s Office: (912)-283–3030

Sources:

The Tragedy of Christmas Doe

Written by Madison Tramel