Victim in 35-Year-Old Sacramento Cold Case Identified as Sheila Osborne Through Advanced DNA Testing
SACRAMENTO, CA — More than three decades after her life was tragically cut short, the identity of a woman found dead in a Sacramento field has finally been uncovered. The Sacramento Police Department confirmed that the victim in a 35-year-old homicide case has been identified as 34-year-old Sheila Osborne, bringing long-awaited answers to a mystery that haunted investigators for generations.
The breakthrough came after years of relentless work by detectives and forensic experts who never gave up on solving the case. It was April 10, 1991, when officers responded to a call about a body discovered in a field near 2000 North B Street. What they found were skeletal remains — a grim discovery that prompted an extensive investigation at the time.
Despite early efforts to identify the victim, including the examination of forensic evidence and public appeals for information, no leads panned out. The case went cold, leaving both investigators and the community with unanswered questions.
The Road to Identification
In 2008, authorities took a significant step forward by developing a DNA profile from the skeletal remains. This profile was entered into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), a national database that helps match DNA to known offenders and missing persons. However, no matches were found at the time, and the case remained unsolved.
Years later, as forensic technology continued to evolve, the case was reopened and reexamined. The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Cold Case Unit, working in conjunction with Othram Inc., a private forensic genealogy company, conducted advanced DNA testing on the evidence. Using cutting-edge investigative genetic genealogy, investigators were able to trace family lineages and identify potential relatives of the victim.
This meticulous process ultimately led to a standard familial DNA comparison, which positively identified the woman as Sheila Osborne, a native of Johnson City, Tennessee, who had recently relocated to Sacramento around the time of her death.
Still Seeking Justice
While the identification of Sheila Osborne marks a significant milestone, the case remains an open homicide investigation. Authorities are now turning their focus to uncovering the circumstances that led to her death and determining who may be responsible.
According to investigators, Osborne had just moved to Sacramento in 1991. It’s still unclear how long she had been in the area or whom she might have been in contact with prior to her death. Police are urging anyone who may have known her or interacted with her during that time to come forward.
“Identifying Sheila after all these years is an important step toward justice, but we still need the public’s help,” said a spokesperson for the Sacramento Police Department. “We believe someone out there knows something—no detail is too small.”
A Message to the Public
The Sacramento Police Department is encouraging anyone with information related to Sheila Osborne or her final days to contact the department’s cold case investigators. Tips can be reported by calling (916) 808-5471.
This case stands as a testament to the power of persistence, technology, and collaboration in solving long-forgotten crimes. For Sheila Osborne’s family, who may have spent decades not knowing what happened to her, this identification provides a measure of closure—but also reopens the door to finding justice.
A Broader Shift in Cold Case Investigations
The resolution of Sheila Osborne’s identity highlights the growing impact of forensic genealogy in solving cold cases. In recent years, agencies across the country have embraced this technology to identify both victims and suspects in cases that were once considered unsolvable. The use of private companies like Othram Inc., combined with public genealogy databases and sophisticated DNA analysis, is reshaping the future of criminal investigations.
For now, Sacramento police continue to dig deeper into the final chapter of Sheila Osborne’s life, hoping that someone, somewhere, will come forward with the information needed to bring her case full circle.
If you have any information about this case or knew Sheila Osborne around the time of her arrival in Sacramento in 1991, please contact Sacramento Police at (916) 808-5471. Anonymous tips may also be submitted.