Missing Since: 1983-11-14 Location: Napa, California
McDowell was last heard from on November 14, 1983. She called her sister and said she was at a bar in Napa, California and someone was “trying to get” her. The line went dead. The call was later traced to the Chatter Box Bar in Clear Lake, California. McDowell never contacted her family again, but her mother got her address book in the mail a few days later. There was a note enclosed, reading, “Joyce, you don’t know me but I found this on the beach in Lucerne and thought you might want it. – Dave”. After receiving the address book, McDowell’s family tried to find her. They learned she was been out with friends in Napa when she got out of the car after an argument. She has never been heard from again. Investigators were later able to track down the man who mailed the address book and he was ruled out as a suspect in McDowell’s case. They went to the area where he’d found it, and found a woman’s sock, tied at both ends and filled with rocks and sand. There has been no indication of McDowell’s whereabouts since 1983. Her case remains unsolved. Winters, California police are investigating. Investigating Agency Winters Police Department 530-795-4561 Source Information California Attorney General’s Office Winters Police Department Updated 2 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated September 4, 2018; date and place of disappearance corrected, distinguishing characteristics and details of disappearance updated.