In November 1969, a teenager birdwatching along Mulholland Drive made a horrific discovery in a dense ravine—the body of a young woman stabbed over 150 times. For nearly half a century, her identity remained a complete enigma, filing her away as one of California’s most haunting unsolved homicides. The Reet Jurvetson Jane Doe 59 cold case would span two countries, generate decades of Manson family rumors, and leave a grieving Canadian family searching for answers for decades.
For 46 years, Reet Jurvetson remained a face without a name, joining the ranks of famous cold cases like Bella in the Wych Elm where an unidentified victim’s story seemed frozen in time
Case At A Glance
| Category | Detail |
|---|---|
| Victim | Reet Silvia Jurvetson (Age 19) |
| Discovery Date | November 16, 1969 |
| Location | Mulholland Drive ravine, Los Angeles, CA |
| Official Case Tag | Jane Doe #59 / “Sherry Doe” |
| Identification Date | December 2015 (DNA match) |
| Status | Unsolved Homicide (LAPD Cold Case Unit) |
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A Free Spirit from Montreal: Who Was Reet Jurvetson?
Before she became Jane Doe 59, Reet Silvia Jurvetson was a creative, free-spirited 19-year-old living in Canada. Born in Sweden in 1950 to Estonian refugees who survived World War II, Reet grew up in a close-knit Montreal community. She sang in her church choir, made her own clothes, and loved art and music.
As she entered her late teens, Reet felt a strong desire for independence. She moved to Toronto to work for Canada Post, where she eventually met a mysterious man known only as John or the French variation, Jean.
Described as a tall, long-haired young man with a striking resemblance to Jim Morrison, Jean captivated Reet. When he relocated to Southern California in the autumn of 1969, Reet decided to follow him to Los Angeles on her own.
The Sunset on Melrose Avenue and a Final Postcard
Reet arrived in Los Angeles during a turbulent era. Just months prior, the city had been rocked by the horrific Tate-LaBianca murders orchestrated by Charles Manson’s followers.
Reet settled into Apartment 306 at the Paramount Hotel on Melrose Avenue. On October 31, 1969, she mailed a postcard written in Estonian to her parents. She described the warm weather, mentioned her small apartment near the beach, and asked them to write back.”Please write to me.”
— Reet Jurvetson, in her final postcard sent home on October 31, 1969.
Sixteen days later, Reet was dead.
The Discovery on Mulholland Drive
On Sunday, November 16, 1969, a 15-year-old boy looking through the brush off Mulholland Drive spotted a body caught in a fallen branch down a 700-foot embankment.
Investigators determined the victim had been killed within 24 to 48 hours. She had suffered over 150 stab wounds, primarily around her neck and torso, with defensive injuries on her hands. There was no driver’s license, purse, or cash found at the scene.
The only tangible clues were her clothes—including a jacket imported from Canada—and two distinctive rings. With no leads or match in missing person databases, LAPD logged her as Jane Doe 59.
The Manson Family Connection: Fact vs. Speculation
Because the crime scene was located just miles from the Benedict Canyon home where Sharon Tate was murdered, rumors quickly tied Jane Doe 59 to Charles Manson.
A caretaker at Spahn Ranch claimed the unidentified girl looked like a frequent visitor named “Sherry,” leading police to designate her tentatively as “Sherry Doe”. Prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi even noted the possibility that Jane Doe 59 was silenced after witnessing the death of Manson associate John “Zero” Haught.
Decades later, LAPD cold case detectives interviewed Charles Manson in prison regarding Reet’s murder. Manson offered no helpful details, and police ultimately concluded there was no concrete forensic evidence connecting Reet Jurvetson to the Manson cult.
Two Mysteries: Waiting Across the Border
While police in Los Angeles were trying to identify a nameless victim, Reet’s family in Canada was living out a parallel tragedy.
Because Reet was an adventurous adult who had previously moved away, her family assumed she was building a private life in California. In 1969, cross-border communication was slow, and without internet or central databases, her family had no reason to suspect she had been murdered. They never filed a missing persons report, hoping she would one day reach out.
Composite sketches released by law enforcement bore little actual resemblance to Reet, ensuring her file remained cold for decades.
The 2015 DNA Breakthrough: Giving Jane Doe 59 Her Name Back
In 2003, LAPD detectives resubmitted biological evidence from the case to national missing persons databases. Twelve years later, in 2015, a family friend browsing an online cold case database spotted Jane Doe 59’s morgue photograph and recognized Reet.
Reet’s sister, Anne, provided a DNA sample for comparison. In December 2015, the test came back positive: Jane Doe 59 was officially identified as 19-year-old Reet Silvia Jurvetson.
Who Killed Reet Jurvetson? Unsolved Clues
While her name was finally restored, the question of who killed Reet Jurvetson remains unanswered.
The LAPD continues to look for information regarding the unidentified man known as “Jean” or “John”, as well as his short-haired companion. Reet traveled thousands of miles to meet this individual, making him the primary person of interest in her final days.
If you have any information regarding the 1969 murder of Reet Jurvetson or the identity of “Jean/John,” contact the LAPD Cold Case Homicide Unit at directly at 213-486-6810.
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