GA ATLANTA JOHN DOE: WM, 20-30, found on the side of I 75 in Atlanta, GA - 20 Jul 1995 *STEVEN SHELTON*

178UMGA - Unidentified Male


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Reconstructions of the victim by Marla Lawson and Wes Neville; victim's tattoos.

Date of Discovery: July 20, 1995
Location of Discovery: Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia
Date of Death: June 24, 1996
State of Remains: Recognizable face
Cause of Death: Hit and run vehicle accident


Physical Description

Estimated Age: 20-30 years old
Race: White
Sex: Male
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 85 lbs. (after hospitalization)
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Light brown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: A serpent or dragon on the chest and stomach. The word "Virgo" in blue on the left shoulder. A red and blue flaming Star or planet in the web between the thumb and index finger. A globe surrounded by letters on the left forearm. The tattoos were somewhat recent.


Identifiers

Dentals: Unknown.
Fingerprints: Unknown.
DNA: Available.


Clothing & Personal Items

Clothing: Unknown.
Jewelry: Unknown.
Additional Personal Items: Unknown.


Circumstances of Discovery

Atlanta police picked up the unidentified man on the side of Interstate 75 late at night on July 20, 1995, and took him to Grady Hospital with severe head injuries. He was hospitalized for almost one year and died in the hospital on June 24, 1996.

Investigating Agency(s)

Agency Name: Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office
Agency Contact Person: Dumonder Dawson
Agency Phone Number: 404-613-4400
Agency E-Mail: fcme(at)co.fulton.ga.us
Agency Case Number: 96-1115

NCIC Case Number: U194513653
NamUs Case Number: 691


Information Source(s)

NamUs
FCMEO
Georgia Bureau of Investigation
Maryland Missing
 
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Autopsy Report



For some reason he presented at autopsy in the fetal position. Apparently due to muscle contractures. Which also means that his height may not be precisely accurate.
Also noted as cachectic, which basically means he had wasted away... lost a ton of body mass and muscle.
Poor guy also had a ton of pressure ulcers and had developed pneumonia (not what killed him, though).




Also, I'm NOT convinced that this tattoo says "Virgo". If it does, it looks like a cover-up of a previous tattoo. Also the dragon tattoo looks like it could be covering up something else too.

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The good news here is that his DNA is on file so hopefully there will eventually be a match!

i think the Virgo tattoo is supposed to say Virgo because it seems too thin to cover up anything else, but im 100% sure the sick chest piece is a cover-up to more than 1 previous tattoo. a very confusing piece for sure. you can see ropes, what looks like a marijuana leaf, bones, and arrows. this makes me think he was closer to 20 because he had probably gotten a lot of tattoos and changed his mind quite a bit. very common in young people.
 
NO. NO. the more i find out the more i get frustrated at authorities. im not getting caught up in being upset about that but its gonna haunt me. all i can do is search the doe network for matches, and hope he was ever reported missing. i mean, hes an interesting looking figure. tall, tattoos, sick stache, and light brown eyes. edgy looking man. someone has got to have seen him. BUT... im working on a new rendering. but im prepared for being embarrassed because i suck at sketches, but the effort is there. im going off of a mix of PM and what he looked like when he was found because they cut his hair off in the hospital. nobodys gonna recognize the hospital version of jessie doe.
 
i think the Virgo tattoo is supposed to say Virgo because it seems too thin to cover up anything else, but im 100% sure the sick chest piece is a cover-up to more than 1 previous tattoo. a very confusing piece for sure. you can see ropes, what looks like a marijuana leaf, bones, and arrows. this makes me think he was closer to 20 because he had probably gotten a lot of tattoos and changed his mind quite a bit. very common in young people.
it looks more like a dragon to me. What you see as pot leaves, I see as a dragon spiked headpiece and your ropes being it's spine. It looks like they tried to make it look knotted up??
 
I did not at first think that looked like it was meant to be Virgo as it was too messed up. I went and looked again though and I think it is Virgo. The marks at the beginning and end I think are just that marks and maybe a slip at one end so they matched it by putting a mark on the other end of the word. The little marks, the one above the I makes sense of course as the dot but what the other one is who knows maybe another slip by someone. It is a very poor tattoo even for amateur or home done. It's really hard to believe anyone couldn't have done better than that. Line thickness and all is just a mess and varies so much. Maybe drinking or drugs involved because those marks and the word I mean really there is nothing artistic about it at all.

The bright side is if it is Virgo it is bound to mean his sign and birth date more likely than not. It might help in the long wrong make some possible match more likely if the birth date is in Virgo.

The other one I'd have to agree to me looks like a dragon but I can't make all parts of the dragon out, it almost looks like a dragon and a reptile or snake or something too. I don't have the eye to make it all make sense, someone else probably can/could. That one looks like it may have been done by a professional or someone with a steady hand very good at art.

It always amazes me in this and many other unidentified cases there are unique tattoos and some have very unique jewelry or clothing and yet no one recognizes these things??? It just goes to show you that LE and news and our world does not get the images out far and wide enough and that all don't see them for sure...

I can see where sometimes the closest people aren't going to want to come forward though if they were the killer. If a husband kills a wife and he knows she has a tattoo on her buttock, he doesn't want to get caught and he isn't going to call in, etc., etc. and not everyone would know she had one in such a private spot. BUT there are too many that are on arms or jewelry on fingers or around the neck, etc. that SOMEONE should recognize in some of these cases.

A thought I've often had is why not encourage tattoo artists and parlors to somewhat regularly as a good Samaritan look through sites online of pictures of missing people at their tattoos? I mean maybe they don't take or keep all info on a person but some probably do and some probably knew or would know something about the person and likely recognize some of their own work too... It might sound silly but I think a wide movement encouraging it on SM platforms etc. couldn't hurt.

Also, I haven't been on FB to speak of in years but now that I think about it people shared current Amber Alerts and such things BUT I NEVER in the years I was on it saw anyone routinely sharing either missing or unidentifieds and why not and then asking all to share to all they know and pass it on far and wide? For that matter why cant giants like FB do a daily post itself to their millions if not billions of worldwide users? Putting up one picture and all the info on one person per day?? Do you know how fast some of these would probably be recognized or solved??!!! I think most of the problem IS coverage. Not all people follow crime and not all people take the time or have the time to go look at these types of things themselves. I know I don't go actively looking for UIDs etc. But people with no time or maybe not the passion do do FB or Twitter or some platform, etc.!

It wouldn't cost such giants hardly a red cent to do this and it would be doing such a good service! And it would also likely interest more people and bring more on the bandwagon or to look for one particular individual as Ariel is doing, etc. It would bring help and more eyes. AND probably names and solve cases.

And I truly think news stations could step up too and each spend a minute or two a day spotlighting one or another.
 
it looks more like a dragon to me. What you see as pot leaves, I see as a dragon spiked headpiece and your ropes being it's spine. It looks like they tried to make it look knotted up??
yeah, i mean, its obvious by the head that its a serpent or a dragon or something like that. ive always thought that rounded part looked like a globe because it seems to be a running theme for his specific tattoos. i see some sort of crossbow at the top and i agree with the spikes but to me it looks like leaves are surrounding the spikes like a flower crown. i also see at the top on either side something that looks like wings but i think it looks more like one of those staffs that the grim reaper carries.
 
I did not at first think that looked like it was meant to be Virgo as it was too messed up. I went and looked again though and I think it is Virgo. The marks at the beginning and end I think are just that marks and maybe a slip at one end so they matched it by putting a mark on the other end of the word. The little marks, the one above the I makes sense of course as the dot but what the other one is who knows maybe another slip by someone. It is a very poor tattoo even for amateur or home done. It's really hard to believe anyone couldn't have done better than that. Line thickness and all is just a mess and varies so much. Maybe drinking or drugs involved because those marks and the word I mean really there is nothing artistic about it at all.

The bright side is if it is Virgo it is bound to mean his sign and birth date more likely than not. It might help in the long wrong make some possible match more likely if the birth date is in Virgo.

The other one I'd have to agree to me looks like a dragon but I can't make all parts of the dragon out, it almost looks like a dragon and a reptile or snake or something too. I don't have the eye to make it all make sense, someone else probably can/could. That one looks like it may have been done by a professional or someone with a steady hand very good at art.

It always amazes me in this and many other unidentified cases there are unique tattoos and some have very unique jewelry or clothing and yet no one recognizes these things??? It just goes to show you that LE and news and our world does not get the images out far and wide enough and that all don't see them for sure...

I can see where sometimes the closest people aren't going to want to come forward though if they were the killer. If a husband kills a wife and he knows she has a tattoo on her buttock, he doesn't want to get caught and he isn't going to call in, etc., etc. and not everyone would know she had one in such a private spot. BUT there are too many that are on arms or jewelry on fingers or around the neck, etc. that SOMEONE should recognize in some of these cases.

A thought I've often had is why not encourage tattoo artists and parlors to somewhat regularly as a good Samaritan look through sites online of pictures of missing people at their tattoos? I mean maybe they don't take or keep all info on a person but some probably do and some probably knew or would know something about the person and likely recognize some of their own work too... It might sound silly but I think a wide movement encouraging it on SM platforms etc. couldn't hurt.

Also, I haven't been on FB to speak of in years but now that I think about it people shared current Amber Alerts and such things BUT I NEVER in the years I was on it saw anyone routinely sharing either missing or unidentifieds and why not and then asking all to share to all they know and pass it on far and wide? For that matter why cant giants like FB do a daily post itself to their millions if not billions of worldwide users? Putting up one picture and all the info on one person per day?? Do you know how fast some of these would probably be recognized or solved??!!! I think most of the problem IS coverage. Not all people follow crime and not all people take the time or have the time to go look at these types of things themselves. I know I don't go actively looking for UIDs etc. But people with no time or maybe not the passion do do FB or Twitter or some platform, etc.!

It wouldn't cost such giants hardly a red cent to do this and it would be doing such a good service! And it would also likely interest more people and bring more on the bandwagon or to look for one particular individual as Ariel is doing, etc. It would bring help and more eyes. AND probably names and solve cases.

And I truly think news stations could step up too and each spend a minute or two a day spotlighting one or another.
either way, even if it wasn't, it's still useful because that means he's a Virgo and we can use that for matching people up:) im 100% this was neglected by authorities because of the presumed drug addiction, but also 100% drugs are involved. that doesn't really matter in the end game, though. still a person.

I don't think the chest piece was done in a parlor or anything because that can cost up to 200 dollars and i just don't think he would have had the money. 200 for a tattoo of a mess isn't exactly useful. also, it looks like at least one cover-up was done and it would have had to be big and that's just more cash. and I've seriously considered finding my way into Atlanta to put up flyers, if LE isn't gonna do it then I will. i couldn't care less if its embarrassing to them because they are the ones who didn't do their jobs.

one thing i really think would be just as useful as showing photos of him would be showing photos of those tattoos. i mean, it may seem like an eternity since 95' but its not like this was done in the 50s. those tattoos were recent. There's a very good chance that the people who did those tattoos are still alive and well enough to tell us who Jessie doe really is. i mean, a first name or behavior description is the least they can do. any less would be borderline disrespectful. flyers are the oldest trick in the book but thats gonna shove the info in the publics faces and get an ID the fastest.

with the FB thing, i think that would be a good idea because the age range of people on FB is ages 30 and up. people around that age would recognize him. the problem would be to actually get Facebook to do the daily posting thing. they are a larger-than-life company and it would take millions to get the attention for them to even consider it. but, yeah, these companies can have some more compassion that's for sure. damn.
 
i think the reason nobody is coming forward is not because they don't know, but they just don't wanna get involved. what if they were ex-convicts, drug dealers/users, or had affiliations with gangs? i have to admit that i understand why they would want nothing to do with the police. i think im gonna put aside money for anyone who can give information that leads to an identification. thats really all we need because its not like we can get any information from the person who hit him. i would love to get ahold of them because they have caused me some personal stress, but thats a waste of time. we arent gonna get them. i dont think we would want police involved in the cash reward thing because people are intimidated by law enforcement, and that's not us. just a thought.
 
either way, even if it wasn't, it's still useful because that means he's a Virgo and we can use that for matching people up:) im 100% this was neglected by authorities because of the presumed drug addiction, but also 100% drugs are involved. that doesn't really matter in the end game, though. still a person.

I don't think the chest piece was done in a parlor or anything because that can cost up to 200 dollars and i just don't think he would have had the money. 200 for a tattoo of a mess isn't exactly useful. also, it looks like at least one cover-up was done and it would have had to be big and that's just more cash. and I've seriously considered finding my way into Atlanta to put up flyers, if LE isn't gonna do it then I will. i couldn't care less if its embarrassing to them because they are the ones who didn't do their jobs.

one thing i really think would be just as useful as showing photos of him would be showing photos of those tattoos. i mean, it may seem like an eternity since 95' but its not like this was done in the 50s. those tattoos were recent. There's a very good chance that the people who did those tattoos are still alive and well enough to tell us who Jessie doe really is. i mean, a first name or behavior description is the least they can do. any less would be borderline disrespectful. flyers are the oldest trick in the book but thats gonna shove the info in the publics faces and get an ID the fastest.

with the FB thing, i think that would be a good idea because the age range of people on FB is ages 30 and up. people around that age would recognize him. the problem would be to actually get Facebook to do the daily posting thing. they are a larger-than-life company and it would take millions to get the attention for them to even consider it. but, yeah, these companies can have some more compassion that's for sure. damn.
Yeah, it is too much to hope that some MSM channel or something like FB would do something free and so full of human compassion as they don't need to but it would be great PR for some company... I also think our govt. could step up and do something similar or insist they be given air time on some major network, they sure spend enough on far less important things.

And in that respect, good old fashion flyers probably are the best to be seen by the most although one has to hope they stay up and are left up and it is hard to cover as far as quickly like something like FB would do. Do you spread his photo on places like that or photos of the tattoo and his story and ask all to pass on to all they know, etc., etc.?

I agree that the tattoos are the way to go to identify him or trigger someone who recognizes them. Since apparently his haiir was cut, he had no weight on him, etc., some may hardly recognize him but may recognize the tattoos.
 
Yeah, it is too much to hope that some MSM channel or something like FB would do something free and so full of human compassion as they don't need to but it would be great PR for some company... I also think our govt. could step up and do something similar or insist they be given air time on some major network, they sure spend enough on far less important things.

And in that respect, good old fashion flyers probably are the best to be seen by the most although one has to hope they stay up and are left up and it is hard to cover as far as quickly like something like FB would do. Do you spread his photo on places like that or photos of the tattoo and his story and ask all to pass on to all they know, etc., etc.?

I agree that the tattoos are the way to go to identify him or trigger someone who recognizes them. Since apparently his haiir was cut, he had no weight on him, etc., some may hardly recognize him but may recognize the tattoos.
ive yet to print them but im gonna go bankrupt on printer paper and ink in about a week if someone doesn't come forward. i need someone to get the one really good sketch of him where he looks somewhat alive and add longer hair and a little more mustache. i wish i could but you guys saw that rendering... disgraceful to the entire network. i think the sketch artist for the one im talking about is marla lawson and shes really talented. if i can scrape up enough cash ill ask her if she can do that for me. i might draw some of his tattoos but simplified so its easier. someone who hasnt seen him in a long time wouldn't recognize a very detailed tattoo.
 
ive yet to print them but im gonna go bankrupt on printer paper and ink in about a week if someone doesn't come forward. i need someone to get the one really good sketch of him where he looks somewhat alive and add longer hair and a little more mustache. i wish i could but you guys saw that rendering... disgraceful to the entire network. i think the sketch artist for the one im talking about is marla lawson and shes really talented. if i can scrape up enough cash ill ask her if she can do that for me. i might draw some of his tattoos but simplified so its easier. someone who hasnt seen him in a long time wouldn't recognize a very detailed tattoo.
I in the last months had to do a lot of things that would be similar to your flyer, etc. Inserting pictures on pages with print, photocopies, etc. I did a lot myself and you aren't kidding about ink and paper and the price and how fast one goes through it. I was limited on time once and took one job to our UPS Store and I was amazed at the great job they did and how quick and CHEAP imo compared to the ink I would have went through and time it would have taken. In fact I then used them several times, it was still a lot of stress for me with deadlines preparing all but I let them do the end product, etc.

They do jobs on both high quality paper and copy paper. AND have huge copy machines that will also copy in color. I'd say get yoursself a good prototype and head straight there and just do some decent copies. Maybe buy just 100 at a time or something or less or more... Even if you get people to donate it is something I'd recommend for cost, time, etc.

Your sketch looked good to me but I have NO artistic ability or eye so I'm not a great judge. I know what I like like in paintings or decor and that's about it :)

I have a daughter who is very artistic (don't know WHERE she gets it). Many are, some are better with animals, some with people, etc. Could you maybe find someone in school or art class that is known to be good who might be able to do what you want adding the hair and all? I mean it wouldn't have to be a "known" professional... But then again, yours looked good to me but I'm no judge...

I would put the info there is even if not the best, like the pics here about him at the top of the thread, etc. and I would regularly at least once a month or more pass it on FB, Twitter, all the other things you can think of and ask people to pass it on to all they know. Make it publicly shared for a setting... And when you have a flier I'd do it with that too...

Just some thoughts. I'm sure not the one here that is the best at this kind of thing or even finding the right networks or podcasts, etc. but I know like any of us how fast things can be shared on the internet, etc. and websites and so forth...
 
I in the last months had to do a lot of things that would be similar to your flyer, etc. Inserting pictures on pages with print, photocopies, etc. I did a lot myself and you aren't kidding about ink and paper and the price and how fast one goes through it. I was limited on time once and took one job to our UPS Store and I was amazed at the great job they did and how quick and CHEAP imo compared to the ink I would have went through and time it would have taken. In fact I then used them several times, it was still a lot of stress for me with deadlines preparing all but I let them do the end product, etc.

They do jobs on both high quality paper and copy paper. AND have huge copy machines that will also copy in color. I'd say get yoursself a good prototype and head straight there and just do some decent copies. Maybe buy just 100 at a time or something or less or more... Even if you get people to donate it is something I'd recommend for cost, time, etc.

Your sketch looked good to me but I have NO artistic ability or eye so I'm not a great judge. I know what I like like in paintings or decor and that's about it :)

I have a daughter who is very artistic (don't know WHERE she gets it). Many are, some are better with animals, some with people, etc. Could you maybe find someone in school or art class that is known to be good who might be able to do what you want adding the hair and all? I mean it wouldn't have to be a "known" professional... But then again, yours looked good to me but I'm no judge...

I would put the info there is even if not the best, like the pics here about him at the top of the thread, etc. and I would regularly at least once a month or more pass it on FB, Twitter, all the other things you can think of and ask people to pass it on to all they know. Make it publicly shared for a setting... And when you have a flier I'd do it with that too...

Just some thoughts. I'm sure not the one here that is the best at this kind of thing or even finding the right networks or podcasts, etc. but I know like any of us how fast things can be shared on the internet, etc. and websites and so forth...
oh yeah- i think i have a friend that can do a sketch. i think my best bet would be marla lawson. she is incredibly talented, but im not sure how easy she would be to get ahold of. i wouldn't think of it as impossible, but for sure challenging. I've been wondering why they have sketched a smile on every one of his renderings. they don't really do that unless it's digital. i think my sketches wouldn't be so bad if i knew how to draw eyes, so maybe i could do it if i worked on that. and the UPS thing is a good idea! im gonna have to write that one down haha
 
oh yeah- i think i have a friend that can do a sketch. i think my best bet would be marla lawson. she is incredibly talented, but im not sure how easy she would be to get ahold of. i wouldn't think of it as impossible, but for sure challenging. I've been wondering why they have sketched a smile on every one of his renderings. they don't really do that unless it's digital. i think my sketches wouldn't be so bad if i knew how to draw eyes, so maybe i could do it if i worked on that. and the UPS thing is a good idea! im gonna have to write that one down haha
I can't draw a stick figure where one would recognize what it was so I'm in awe of anyone who can draw. And you can.

Yeah, not sure all UPS stores would be as great at knowing various things but ours was stellar and you would just need basically photocopies or a number of prints from your original, not a difficult task for them.

I'm not as familiar with others but of course there is Kinko's and other places that do such either but I found UPS knowledgeable, reasonably priced to cheap and a quick turnaround too.

Also they sell things like reams of copy paper and we found they were cheaper on various qualities of paper than Walmart, another surprise. Way cheaper than options on Amazon too. WM may beat them on the thinnest cheapest type, unsure, as UPS doesn't carry that poor of quality paper. LOL.

Anyhow, not sure if you have the "store" but something to keep in mind or try if you do. You could even go just try them out with a small job for something else, etc. and see how they do...
 
okay, so- as time flies by without a name ideas hit me pretty hard. i think I'm going to get ahold of a prison near Atlanta and ask if I can send flyers over there to put on a bulletin. i feel like this is kind of mean, but I'm going to try and get the post-mortem on those flyers along with all sketches and tattoos. i think post-mortem would be a harsh thing to see, but it IS a prison. if those tattoos were gang-related someone could know exactly where they are from and somebody could have known him. he looks very recognizable in the PM which is a good thing. it's really sad but I can almost say he looks alive. his eyes and the skin on his face hadn't even really lost color yet. that can work as an advantage, though. i would think it would be harder to identify someone who was deceased.
 
Autopsy Report



For some reason he presented at autopsy in the fetal position. Apparently due to muscle contractures. Which also means that his height may not be precisely accurate.
Also noted as cachectic, which basically means he had wasted away... lost a ton of body mass and muscle.
Poor guy also had a ton of pressure ulcers and had developed pneumonia (not what killed him, though).




Also, I'm NOT convinced that this tattoo says "Virgo". If it does, it looks like a cover-up of a previous tattoo. Also the dragon tattoo looks like it could be covering up something else too.

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The good news here is that his DNA is on file so hopefully there will eventually be a match!

I agree. The original tattoos have been covered up. Just MOO, but i think that the g in Virgo was originally an a. Someone extended the tail of the a downward to make it look like a g. Forget the V , that was added later as part of the cover up. Maybe originally it was an R or r? Again, MOO.
The dragon is a cover up. Is that a boat behind it, or an animal skull, like maybe a horse skull? Still staring at it.
 
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I agree. The original tattoos have been covered up. Just MOO, but i think that the g in Virgo was originally an a. Someone extended the tail of the a downward to make it look like a g. Forget the V , that was added later as part of the cover up. Maybe originally it was an R or r? Again, MOO.
The dragon is a cover up. Is that a boat behind it, or an animal skull, like maybe a horse skull? Still staring at it.
i mean- if he covered it with "virgo" it means he was a virgo which is useful. but if we ever figure out the name behind it thats good because it means someone knew who he was and they possibly reported him missing.
 
it looks more like a dragon to me. What you see as pot leaves, I see as a dragon spiked headpiece and your ropes being it's spine. It looks like they tried to make it look knotted up??
I see a dragon that is serpent like. I do see the pot leaf at it's neck. Looks like dragon is reaching for a round crystal ball or the like.
 
The following is old- it was posted on reddit in 2015. Posting it here in case Ariel has not seen it yet. No new info, but goes into great detail. Ears were not pierced, his gallbladder was there, his appendix was there, he had been circumcised, kidney stone and gallstones were in the process of formation , no dentures or replacement teeth, his " natural teeth were in fair repair-may indicate some level of dental care in the past"

 
The following is old- it was posted on reddit in 2015. Posting it here in case Ariel has not seen it yet. No new info, but goes into great detail. Ears were not pierced, his gallbladder was there, his appendix was there, he had been circumcised, kidney stone and gallstones were in the process of formation , no dentures or replacement teeth, his " natural teeth were in fair repair-may indicate some level of dental care in the past"


HOLY ****
 
thank you, @Sunburst. ive been on this one for a couple years. i just recently joined Reddit and thats probably why i never saw this. after a long time without details, you have no idea how happy i am to see something new! ill update if i find anything scrolling through the doe network or NamUS:)

im gonna go and give the nearest pedestrian a smooch out of joy, now.
 

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