DESOTO COUNTY, Miss — Investigators have identified a woman who had been strangled to death 39 years ago in DeSoto County, the sheriff's department announced.
Lori Ann Mealer Pennell was identified as the victim. On Jan. 24, 1985, the woman’s body was found on Highway 78 in Olive Branch. Amber Edlin — the evidence clerk and crime scene technician with the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Department — has worked since 2023 to uncover her identity.
Over the years, people have claimed the person could possibly be a missing relative. DNA evidence denied the claims.
However, Edlin received a lead on March 1, 2024, from the Othram corporation — a Houston-based company that uses various technological advances to help law enforcement agencies process and test forensic DNA evidence in cold cases.
They positively identified the victim as Pennell, who has a brother in California as her only living relative.
The sheriff’s department said it will continue to investigate until they bring Pennell’s killer to justice.
