Dawn Marie Smith was 14 and a Parkland High School student when she ran away from home after a family argument in June 1987. She kept in touch with her family until all contact stopped after August 28, 1987. On October 20, 1987, hikers northeast of El Paso found a shallow grave holding her remains and those of 15-year-old Desiree Wheatley; several other missing young women were later recovered in the same desert area.

Investigators focused on David Leonard Wood, who had been paroled in January 1987. A survivor of an assault identified Wood and led police to the desert site. Witness statements, fiber evidence, and testimony from two cellmates who said Wood confessed were part of the case that led to his arrest on October 22, 1987. An El Paso County grand jury indicted Wood on July 13, 1990, for the murders of Dawn and five other young women; moved because of pretrial publicity, the trial in Dallas ended in a guilty verdict for capital murder in November 1992 and a death sentence on January 14, 1993.

The killings left a deep mark on El Paso. Does anyone have memories or information about Dawn’s last weeks of contact with family that could shed light on her disappearance?