Patricia Marie Hicks Dahlstrom was 28 when she was last heard from in September 1982 after moving to Merced, California. Human remains linked to her were found in Yosemite National Park: a hand and forearm were discovered in Summit Meadow in 1983, and a skull missing its jawbone was recovered in 1988. No other body parts were located.

Identification came decades later when forensic DNA work in April 2021 finally matched the remains to her family. The cause of death is presumed to be homicide, but the exact circumstances remain unclear. Hicks had been a member of the San Anda Apostolic Church, founded by Donald Eugene Gibson; members of that group were implicated in earlier crimes, Gibson fled before sentencing and has never been located, and authorities have considered him a possible person of interest in Hicks Dahlstrom’s death. Investigators have also evaluated other theories, including the possibility of a serial offender, but no one has been charged.

What additional information might help explain how Patricia’s remains came to be in Yosemite or who was responsible?