Connecticut Woman Identified 18 Years After Body Found in Tennessee

This article digs into how, nearly twenty years after a woman’s body turned up in rural Tennessee, advanced DNA tech and some serious genealogical sleuthing finally gave the victim a name: Mary Alice Maloney, a Connecticut native.

From the woods outside La Vergne to family ties winding through Connecticut—Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport, Stamford, Waterbury, Norwalk, Danbury, and New Britain—this is a story where science and dogged persistence finally cracked an 18-year-old mystery.

Find Your Ideal Getaway in Connecticut
Explore top-rated stays with no booking fees and instant confirmation. Your dream trip starts here!
Start Exploring Now

A Connecticut Native Lost Far From Home

When police officers outside Nashville found human remains in 2007, they couldn’t have guessed the investigation would drag on for nearly two decades—and eventually lead all the way back to New England.

The victim, nameless for years, became just another Jane Doe as investigators in Tennessee and volunteers across the country searched for answers.

It turns out the woman was Mary Alice Maloney, originally from Connecticut, who’d moved to the Nashville area before vanishing.

Her identification brings some closure for family members and highlights just how many families, in Connecticut and beyond, still wait for news about missing loved ones.

The 2007 Discovery in La Vergne, Tennessee

On November 14, 2007, a La Vergne police officer, just southeast of Nashville, came across a woman’s body in a remote, wooded spot.

The area was isolated, and nothing at the scene gave away who she was or how she ended up there.

Investigators took note of several details:

The victim was likely between 25 and 49 years old.
She seemed to be African American or multiracial.
No clothing turned up nearby.
Some jewelry was found close to the remains.

But these clues didn’t match any missing person reports. No ID, no fingerprints, no dental records—nothing led anywhere.

The case stalled and joined the long list of unsolved deaths that haunt police files from Tennessee to Connecticut.

DNA Technology Steps In

After traditional methods hit a wall, detectives decided to try newer scientific tools.

DNA had been around in criminal cases for ages, but the newer field of genetic genealogy offered a glimmer of hope for cold cases like this.

The La Vergne Police Department reached out to the DNA Doe Project, a nonprofit that specializes in identifying unknown remains with advanced DNA analysis and genealogical research.

Overcoming Degraded DNA and Distant Matches

Working with old remains is never easy. The DNA from the victim had broken down a lot over 18 years, so scientists had to be extra careful just to pull out usable data.

Once they managed to build a genetic profile, they uploaded it to two major public databases:

GEDmatch Pro
FamilyTreeDNA.com

At first, the only matches were distant relatives—genetic connections scattered far and wide, hinting at Puerto Rican and African American ancestry.

That wasn’t enough to put a name to the victim, and building a solid family tree felt almost impossible. Still, volunteer genealogists kept digging, tracing one branch at a time, hoping for a break.

The Breakthrough and Identification of Mary Alice Maloney

Everything changed in April 2021, when a closer DNA match finally appeared in one of the databases.

That new match narrowed things down fast, giving genealogists a real starting point to work backward through family lines and forward to living relatives.

Using public records, old documents, and family connections, the DNA Doe Project crew slowly pieced together a detailed family tree.

All that careful work led them to one person who fit the DNA, the age, and the circumstances: Mary Alice Maloney, with deep Connecticut roots but living in the Nashville area before she disappeared.

What This Means for Families and Investigators

Maloney’s family—scattered between Tennessee and the Northeast—finally has confirmation of what happened, though a lot of questions about her death still hang in the air.

For investigators in Tennessee and communities back in Connecticut—Hartford, New Haven, New Britain, Danbury, and more—the case shows what can happen when you mix old-fashioned detective work with genetic genealogy. Even cases that have been cold for years can still find answers.

The Growing Role of Genetic Genealogy in Cold Cases

Maloney’s case fits into a bigger trend in law enforcement these days. Police departments in Tennessee, Connecticut, and plenty of other places now turn to public DNA databases when their usual leads hit a dead end.

This approach leans on science. It also depends a lot on everyday folks who decide to upload their genetic data for comparison.

The work of the DNA Doe Project and similar groups really depends on a few things:

Volunteers who know their way around genealogical research.
People willing to let law enforcement check their DNA for matches.
Local departments teaming up with specialized labs.

As more families in places like Bridgeport, Stamford, Waterbury, and Norwalk try out consumer DNA testing, the pool of possible matches just keeps growing. That means more chances to finally put names to unknown victims—or even identify suspects.

The identification of Mary Alice Maloney really shows how much forensic science has changed since 2007. A quiet, wooded spot in La Vergne, Tennessee, somehow ties back to families and communities here in Connecticut who never gave up hoping for answers.

Here is the source article for this story: Cold Case Break: CT Woman Identified 18 Years After Body Found in Tennessee

Discover Your Perfect Stay in Connecticut
Find available hotels and vacation homes instantly. No fees, best rates guaranteed!
Check Availability Now