True Crime Obsessed

The Purple Note: Who Knew Where Linda Was


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A human skull under a bush. An anonymous note in purple ink. And a husband who knew exactly where to look. Linda Sherman disappeared on April 22, 1985, but the truth about who killed her and who wrote that note remains buried. Who was so afraid of the truth being discovered that it took six years to expose the crime?

In this episode, you will discover how a wife planning to escape an abusive marriage vanished without a trace, how a skull remained filed away without investigation for years, and how a note in purple ink reopened a case that the justice system literally lost. We will explore the contradictions pointing to a culprit, the confessions that never materialized, and the secrets that Don Sherman took to the grave when he died in 2015 denying his involvement.

Case Details
Victim: Linda Sherman, 34 years old, human resources specialist and mother
Date: April 22, 1985
Location: Bridgeton and Veleta Park, Missouri, United States
Status: Unsolved case; Don Sherman passed away in 2015; incomplete police files after departmental merger

- Employment time card shows that Linda left work at 2:16 a.m., but Don claims to have seen her leave home at 6:45 p.m. - where was she during those nearly five hours?
- A neighbor reported seeing the Volkswagen return to the street around 8:00 p.m., but admitted he could not identify who was driving - the only "confirmation" of Linda alive after 3:00 a.m. does not prove it was her.
- Don reported the disappearance two days later, but his daughter Patty contradicts his version of who took the girl to school - if Linda was dead on the couch, Don needed to make her seem alive.
- Skull found in June 1990 under a bush next to a bar where Don spent five nights a week was filed away without investigation; six years later, an anonymous note in purple ink identified the remains as belonging to L. Sherman - who knew and why did they wait so long?

How does a mother disappear in the early morning and her body not appear until six years later under a bush that her husband frequently passed by?

Linda Sherman disappearance 1985, unsolved case Missouri, purple note skull, Don Sherman confession, abusive marriage, protection order, planned divorce, crime without a body, true crime Spanish podcast

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True Crime ObsessedBy Obomedia Network