Penney Faye Cruser was about 30 when family members last heard from her in the winter of 1996, just before Christmas. On that final call she said she was deeply anxious about her toddler son being in state custody and was determined to get him back. She lived in Spokane, Washington, received disability for schizophrenia, had stopped taking her medication, used illicit drugs, and led a transient life.

Penney was known to frequent Sprague Avenue and Pittsburgh Street, including the Hoot Owl Club. She would often accept rides from strangers and carried a weapon for protection. Distinctive features included a soft voice, a butterfly tattoo inside her right ear, a cat tattoo on her pelvis, and the names Rodney and Arthur tattooed on her ankles; she had a previously broken nose and a broken right hand. Although her official last-contact date is listed as March 21, 1997, she was reported missing that month after weekly calls to her stepmother stopped. Detectives later looked into a possible link to serial killer Robert L. Yates Jr., but no solid leads have resolved the case.

Anyone who knew Penney, her movements in Spokane in 1996–1997, or has information about her whereabouts is asked to come forward.