by 2AJs and Staff
Image by Sang Hyun Cho from Pixabay
Unfortunately, no matter how hard the police try, they are not always able to solve every crime that is committed. Like so many unsolved cases in Dallas, Texas, this one involves the suspicious death of a young woman named Catherine (Catrina) Diane Mowrey. The circumstances of the case happened back in 1985, and still remains unsolved. We hope that someone reading this story may be able to help to solve a murder mystery in Dallas, TX.
Like most large metropolitan cities, Dallas back then had its share of crime and that included a significant number of murders. In this case, Catrina’s body was discovered in the trunk of an abandoned car. The car was parked in an alley behind an apartment building in a rougher area of Dallas 30 minutes away from where she lived.
The body was badly decomposed wrapped in a white sheet and no identification was immediately found in or around the vehicle. The only thing that the police who arrived on the scene initially could ascertain was that the body was of a Caucasian female, of unknown age. This was according to a report filed by the responding officers. That report was dated 06/25/1985 and it stated that the vehicle and body were found at 200 S. Lancaster Ave, Dallas, TX.
About the victim in the case
The badly decomposed body was finally identified after an autopsy was performed, unfortunately, the results of the autopsy report did not reveal too much. The coroner’s office was able to identify the deceased woman as Catherine Diane Mowery. She also had legally changed her name to Catrina. She was a young woman originally from Kansas, and she was 24 years old when she died. Before moving to Dallas she received her Real Estate license.
According to reports, she left home at 18 and she moved to Dallas to be with her sister Joann. She had five siblings that she grew up with in Kansas, she had three brothers (Jim, Michael, and Mark) and two sisters (Joann and Deborah). Up until the day she was found in the car, she was believed to have been working at a local country club ( the nature of her job is unknown).
The manner of death
Due to the amount of decomposition of the body, the coroner couldn’t determine an exact manner or cause of death. However, since it is highly unlikely she did not put herself into the trunk of the car, it is safe to say it was a homicide case. According to toxicology screening done on her body, she did consume an undetermined amount of an alcoholic substance (she had a blood-alcohol level of .07%) and she tested negative for any drugs.
Police investigation into the mysterious death
According to a news story printed in a local newspaper, the police initially suspected a drug overdose. That appears to have been disputed by the coroner and the official death certificate. Both official accounts claim that it was not an overdose, rather it was undetermined. As part of the investigation that was led by homicide Sgt. H.M. Rice, investigators found what appeared to be evidence that the deceased may have used cocaine before her death. Since they couldn’t find any additional evidence to declare it a murder, they didn’t want to handle it that way until they had more answers.
After their initial assessment of the scene and how they found the body, they believe that she was placed in the trunk of the car after she unexpectedly died. Which goes along the lines of them not suspecting it to be a murder. More like someone didn’t know what to do after she died.
Details about the crime scene and circumstances around the discovery
The body was ultimately discovered wrapped in a white bed sheet in the trunk of a 1978 Ford LTD car. The vehicle was seen by the manager of the nearby apartment building that is adjacent to the alley where the car was found abandoned. The car was believed to belong to her boyfriend who did have an alibi at the time of her death. The manager of the apartment building told police that she first smelled a foul odor coming from the area around the alley. She also said she remembers first seeing the car parked in the alley on Saturday before the body was found in the trunk. The area the car was found is considered to be a very rough part of Dallas.
Additional details about the case
According to her sister Deborah, Catrina was supposed to come to see her in Kansas at some point, but there was some type of argument on the phone and she never did end up going to see her. This phone call supposedly took place about 1 or 2 weeks before she was found dead in the back of the car. At this point, not sure if the police ever followed up on that information or not.
Summary
This case involves the mysterious death of a 24-year-old young woman in Dallas, Tx. Her body was discovered by a person managing a nearby apartment stuffed in the trunk of an abandoned car. Without a lot to go on and an undetermined cause of death according to the coroner and the official death certificate. The case remains an unsolved death according to the Dallas Police Department.
To sign the petition to support Catherine’s case go to: https://www.change.org/p/texas-state-house-why-has-this-murder-been-swept-under-the-rug