Holly Jo Glynn was a 21-yo girl who committed suicide in 1987 by jumping from a cliff in Dana Point, California. She was unidentified until 2015, when her old school friends and interested websleuths teamed up to help identify her.
Her family had tried to involuntarily institutionalize her 8 months before she killed herself, but to no avail. She was described as quiet and shy, but she liked to party, flirt and use drugs.
Holly’s life unraveled in September of 1987, when she took a taxi at 3 am to the 150 ft remote cliffs to jump to her death. She’d asked the taxi to take her as far as her last $18 would get her, then walked alone the rest of the way. The driver had described her as seeming silent and unhappy during the ride.
At the scene, police found a half consumed can of Coca-Cola (her last drink), a purse (stolen) containing small change, a packet of cigarettes, matches, and two maps. She had mid length strawberry-blonde hair, and wore a tan dress, men’s underwear and turquoise-colored canvas shoes, all of which were believed to have been second-hand clothing.
The LA times described how “standing at the ledge, she would have seen nothing–there was no moon that night–and heard only the wet smack of the Pacific against the rocks below.“
Investigators found marks on the side of the cliff that she had struck during her fall, and she was missing several teeth postmortem due to the impact. A detective described how “she was still alive for some time at the bottom of the cliff, because she had made angel wings with her arms in the sand, you know, like children do in the snow.”
Police were unable to identify her since her family had never reported her missing, and the case went cold. Holly was cremated and her ashes were scattered in the ocean. She was then forgotten until her 2015 identification.
One can only imagine what went through her head on the cold dark night of ‘87 in which she flung herself onto the jagged beach side rocks after drinking half a can of cola. It seems the loneliest death possible.
lost girl's blog 
It seems to me there was a boy involved, someone who asked her to have an abortion and rejected her. And she was feeling bad about that…may have been a partier but could not communicate outside of that scene, so people rejected her. The rejection of this guy amplified her feelings. She had untreated depression. The psych ward was not what she needed. She needed to get away…just not this way. But suicide is a permanent thing, something young people contemplate and do but don’t really understand.
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This was a very well-written piece that gives humanity to what is usually just a two paragraph mention on page 16 of the daily newspaper, if at all.
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Not accurate she wasnt a call girl and her family did report her missing and also hired a private investagator.The only drugs she did was to smoke a little pot she did do some under age drinking but everyone did back then She was loved by many and is still missed.
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The fact that she had friends who searched for her via social media means a lot. After all those years, people missed and thought of her. That was sweet. It was horrendous for them to finally find out what happened to her though.
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The private investigator would be in question because she was not that far away from home and the police had a picture of her. Maybe the PI didnt expand their search area. She was found soon after her death. Unfortunately the article leads one to believe no search was done until years later. Nice to know she was loved and not forgotten.
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It doesn’t say she was a call girl. It says lonely cali girl. Meaning lonely California girl.
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Worked in Dana Point at the time they found her. But something troubled me about the story the cab driver gave. Reportedly she was headed to “Laguna Beach” but the cab driver said he let her out in front of the Charthouse restaurant. That is odd…that location is well off PCH (the way to Laguna) and at that time it was a very secluded area. The intersection of Cove road and Green Lantern was very dark with a dirt road running towards the bluff. (now there is a paved road) Just seems like a strange place to leave a young lady in the middle of the night…leaving her on the well lit PCH would have made more sense.
Also she reportedly asked if there were any high-end hotels in the area (at the gas station). The Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel was only about another 2 miles down PCH. Not implying that it was a homicide…it just doesn’t make sense.
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How unbelievably sad. God only knows what went through her head before she jumped, and what she was thinking when she lay at the bottom of the Cliff. So so sad. I really wished that someone could have helped her, or stopped her from doing this. Suicide is such a demon, clouds one’s mind somehow. I wish that the authorities didn’t cremate and bury her ashes at sea, they should have buried her in a grave like many other John/Jane does are. That way, her family and childhood friends would have had somewhere to go and pay their respects. RIP Holly. You’re still loved and missed by the people who knew you.
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How sad ❤️ suicide is the last way out.I think many things came together.My be a little bit of understanding and talking and trying to help, would have made the situation better.Where were her parents, why did she end up dead?I just found this article and there is always a way out of problems, if there are loving parents and friends. Just a few thoughts, I do not mean it in a bad way.RIP Holly Jo 🌹
Waltraud Schnell, Germany
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