Shela Polly, 32, was found murdered along Dry Creek in Modesto, California, on December 30, 2000. She had been staying at the Modesto Gospel Mission and intended to apply for work at a Labor Ready agency that morning. Witnesses saw her speaking with a man named Ronald James Ward between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m. A passerby walking a dog discovered her partially unclothed body covered with leaves at the base of an oak tree around 11:30 a.m.

An autopsy determined Polly had been stabbed and strangled. Saliva recovered from her breast yielded a DNA profile the California Department of Justice matched to Ronald Ward, with a reported random-match probability of 1 in 43 billion for Caucasians. Ward was tied by DNA to at least two other murders and, according to this account, later pleaded guilty in California and received life sentences. Authorities continue to investigate possible additional victims linked to Ward.

If anyone knew Shela Polly, saw her that morning, or has information about contacts she had around Dry Creek on December 30, 2000, please come forward.