Summary
In December 1993, the remains of a female infant were discovered by a motorist on the side of Interstate 10 in Gulfport, Mississippi, near the Lorraine Road exit. Located on the Gulf coast, Gulfport is the county seat of Harrison County, a title that the city shares with nearby Biloxi. When the infant was discovered, her umbilical cord was still attached. It was estimated that the baby was born the day prior to her discovery and that she had been born alive. The baby’s manner of death was ruled a homicide.
Details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP15277. Authorities appealed to the public in hopes that someone with knowledge of the case would help to identify the baby or the person responsible for leaving her on the side of the highway. With no identity, the infant became known as “Mary Josephine” and was buried at Floral Hills Memorial Garden in Gulfport.
In 2023, in an effort to finally resolve the mystery around the baby’s death and identity, a court order was secured to exhume Mary Jospehine’s remains. Evidence was collected in hopes that advanced DNA testing could assist in the infant’s identification. The Harrison County Sheriff’s Office in collaboration with the Mississippi State Medical Examiner’s Office submitted the evidence to Othram’s laboratory in The Woodlands, Texas. Othram scientists successfully developed a DNA extract from the evidence and then used Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a DNA profile for the unidentified infant. Using this profile, Othram’s in-house forensic genetic genealogy team worked to develop new leads in the case.
These new leads were provided to officials with the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office and a follow-up investigation was launched. This investigation led Harrison County investigators to a woman who is now believed to be the mother of "Mary Josephine". This ends a nearly thrity-one year mystery as to the identity of Baby "Mary Josephine".
The identification of this infant represents the 31st case in the State of Mississippi solved using technology developed by Othram. View more Mississippi cases by clicking here.
Michael Vogen
Director of Case Management
Michael works with law enforcement agencies throughout the United States and Canada on “unsolvable“ cases that can benefit from advanced DNA testing methods. He helps these agencies use cutting edge DNA sequencing and new forensic techniques to develop investigative leads for their cases.