CLALLAM COUNTY, Wash. (KOIN) – A foot found in Port Angeles, Washington has been identified as a woman who went missing in 2018, according to the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office.
Authorities say they compared a DNA sample from the foot to the surviving members of Sequim resident Jerilyn L. Smith, who was 68 at the time she was first reported missing Jan. 7, 2018.
In December 2021, police said Smith’s foot was discovered near the mouth of the Elwha River in a size eight New Balance shoe, but the case went cold without a determination of her age, height, weight, etc.
Using a DNASolves crowdfund, Clallam County Sheriff’s Office said it partnered with the DNA software Othram Labs to compare forensic DNA with one of Smith’s surviving family members.
According to a press release sent from the office, the case “ultimately helped a family with having some semblance of closure during the grieved loss of their loved one.”
The cause of her death has not been determined.
