ST AUGUSTA, Minn. — Stearns County officials announced they're closing a decades-old cold case after a recent review of DNA evidence.
According to a statement from the Stearns County Sheriff's Office, the case stems from the discovery of an infant's body just feet off a roadway in St. Augusta, Minnesota, on April 3, 1980. Sheriff's officials said investigators were able to use DNA taken from the full-term, live-born baby, identified as Baby Jane Doe, and finally determine the identities of both of her parents.
Further, officials decided criminal charges would not be warranted in this case.
"You have to be that voice for somebody that can't speak," said Sheriff Steve Soyka. "You take them personal."
The sheriff's office said Baby Jane Doe was exhumed in 2018 to gather DNA evidence, but for unknown reasons, they did not obtain a profile. Two years later, investigators reexamined various organ samples taken from the baby during her autopsy in 1980 and were able to collect a sufficient DNA profile from the baby's spleen.
"By no means am I the catalyst behind the movement of it, but at the same time, it was a priority of mine to work on old cases and see if we could advance them in any way," said Sheriff Soyka.
In 2021, Parabon NanoLabs was asked to assist in the investigation, leading authorities to a search for Baby Jane Doe's potential grandparents.
That same year, officials compared DNA taken from a woman's autopsy that had previously taken place in Hennepin County. The results, according to the sheriff's office, showed the woman and baby were linked genetically. Authorities said they found "strong evidence" to support the notion the link was that of a biological mother-daughter relationship.
"Once that kind of hit, then we really took off on some momentum," said Sheriff Soyka.
The case took another turn earlier this year, as Parabon NanoLabs found a potential link to the baby's biological father. Authorities collected the man's DNA with his consent and compared his profile to Baby Jane Doe. According to the sheriff's office, the DNA again showed "strong evidence" to support the relationship between the man and baby as a biological father-daughter relationship.
It was sometime in May or June of this year, that the sheriff's office said investigators spoke with the man and determined he didn't know about Baby Jane Doe.
Following the discovery of the baby's parent's identities and the completion of interviews relevant to the case, the sheriff's office said it could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a particular person committed a crime. The mother's death also played a factor in deciding to close the case without charges.
"Unfortunately, because of certain circumstances, we got to the point where there's nothing else we can do and there's no crime that we can say somebody did," said Sheriff Soyka. "It's just nice to have a conclusion to a case that's been sitting there plaguing our agency for numerous years."