Princess Doe identified Dawn Olanick

Dawn Rita Olanick (August 5, 1964 – c. July 10, 1982),[2] previously known as Princess Doe, was a previously unidentified American teenager from West Babylon, New York who was found murdered in Cedar Ridge Cemetery in Blairstown, New Jersey on July 15, 1982.[3][4][5][6][7] Her face had been bludgeoned beyond recognition. She was the first unidentified decedent to be entered in the National Crime Information Center.[8] Olanick was publicly identified on the 40th anniversary of her discovery.

Arthur Kinlaw has been charged with first degree murder in Olanick's case.[9] Olanick's body was buried in the Cedar Ridge Cemetery, not far from where she was discovered, in January 1983.[4] Her remains were exhumed in 1999 so that samples could be collected for DNA testing, which was extracted from her femur in Baltimore, Maryland.[10] Olanick was reburied in the same grave.[8] Prior to her 2022 identification, Olanick was known as "Princess Doe" a nickname given to her by Lt. Eric Kranz of the Blairstown Police Department, who was the first law enforcement official to respond to the scene of her discovery.

Identification

In May 2021, investigators were notified by the NCMEC or National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, who were collaborating with Astrea Forensics, about obtaining DNA markers from degraded samples of Princess Doe's body using a grant. On June 18, 2021, investigators received the news that Astrea Forensics agreed to extract DNA and construct a DNA profile. On February 10, 2022, Astrea Forensics relayed to investigators that the creation of a DNA data file was successful. The results were sent to the NCMEC's consulting genealogists from Innovative Forensics Investigations. The managing officer was Jennifer Moore who agreed to perform unlimited genealogy free of charge. On February 22, 2022, Innovative Forensics announced to investigators that they had found a candidate for Princess Doe. Investigators went to West Babylon, New York where they met Robert Olanick Jr, Princess Doe's brother. They also collected a DNA sample from Princess Doe's sister which Mitotyping Technology used to build a mitochondrial DNA profile. The Union County Prosecutor's Office Forensic Laboratory assisted by creating a STR DNA profile through the victim's sister's DNA sample. Mitotyping Technology sent their results to the Union County Prosecutor's Office Forensic Laboratory who then sent both the mitochondrial DNA and STR DNA profiles to the University of North Texas Center for Human Identification.

On April 29, 2022 the Center identified Princess Doe as Dawn Olanick. She was formally announced on July 15, 2022, the 40th anniversary of her discovery. Robert Olanick Jr. said that Olanick left home at their stepmother's request and was never seen or heard from again. Arthur Kinlaw has been charged with one count of homicide as a result of the subsequent investigation, witness statements, and his confession of Olanick's murder.[2] It's believed that Olanick refused his demands to go into prostitution and was driven to New Jersey. They both ended up in Blairstown, where Kinlaw murdered her in the Cedar Ridge Cemetery. Neither Olanick or Kinlaw had a connection with the town.[23] Kinlaw remains imprisoned at the Sullivan Correctional Facility in Fallsburg, New York.[2] Investigators are now looking to piece together Dawn Olanick's movements in the time leading up to her death.[24]