Judy Smith was visiting Philadelphia with her husband Jeffrey. Jeffrey had a business conference in Philadelphia, and Judy had planned on sightseeing ! So, when Judy was found dead…five months later in North Carolina……You’ll have to listen to find out more !
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” The Mysterious Death of Judy Smith ” – Episode Credits
Hosted by Mark Tauriello, Jen Wilson, & Marc Bluestein.
Original episode & story concept by Marc Bluestein.
Audio & Visual production by Marc Bluestein.
Episode Show Notes by Marc Bluestein.
Original episode art by Mark Tauriello.
” The Mysterious Death of Judy Smith ” – Show Notes
What Happened to Judy Smith ?
Episode Question:
Can you both tell me something weird that has happened to you while traveling?
It can be a weird interaction, or a time that you were lost. It can also be any kind of travel, it doesn’t have to be vacation related.
( Cheryl Atlantic City story )
SECOND QUESTION:
What are some items you never leave home without, and if there are specific items you happen to forget, what would make you turn around and go home?
Intro:
Well, I can tell you that this story has an abundance of unexplained event’s. Perhaps not in the paranormal sense, but in a MYSTERY sense….An UNSOLVED Mystery sense…
Tonight we’re going to the city of Philadelphia! We’re joining our friends Judy & her husband Jeffrey Smith.
Now, whats the reason for our trip you might ask ? Judy’s husband Jeffrey had a work conference in Philadelphia, so they decided to make a little trip/vacation out it..An adventure !
They’d be spending three day’s in the city, specifically April 9th to the 11th. The year is 1997.
(Add or take out “ they were going to be there for a week”
Judy Smith has Issues Boarding her Flight
It’s April 9th, 1997. Judy and her husband Jeffrey arrive at the Logan International Airport in Massachusetts, where they reside as a couple.
There’s already issues ! At the time, airports had started requiring a photo ID to board a plane,
Jeffrey ends up boarding his 1:30 flight as planned, while Judy returns home to retrieve her ID, subsequently boarding a 7:30 flight that same day.
It’s said that Judy greeted Jeff with flowers, as a “sheepish apology “ for her “forgetfulness”.
Jeffrey Smith Fly’s to Philadelphia without Judy
So, its agreed upon between Jeffrey & Judy that they would meet at the hotel they had booked in Philadelphia later that same evening.
As the story goes….Judy arrives in Philadelphia later that same evening. They were staying at the Doubletree Hotel. Jeff’s work conference was being hosted at the hotel as well.
SIDENOTE: Some of you may or may not know, but I grew up in the Philadelphia area. One of the salons I worked at in Center City was literally the next building over from mine. I could see it from my front door…..I also used to work at a horrendous salon in the Bellevue Hotel, which was literally on the same street but the opposite side. For those familiar with the area, its Broad Street / 14th St.
April 10th ( The Next Morning )
Jeffrey wakes up the following day before his wife Judy. So, he decides to go down and take advantage of what I’d assume was a fantastic & breakfast.
After Jeff eats his free breakfast, he heads back up to the room. So, at this point its said that Judy was in the bathroom taking a shower.
Jeff carries about his business, literally. He gets himself ready and heads down to the room where his work conference is being held.
Judy Smith Goes Sightseeing
So, Jeff is busy on this trip. He suggests that Judy fill’s up some of her time by doing some touristy stuff, such as seeing the Liberty Bell, etc. She’s never been to Philly before, and her day’s would be open to explore the city since Jeff was busy for the first half of his day.
It was established that they’d meet back up at their hotel room later in the evening. There was a cocktail party being hosted by his company at about 6:00 PM that evening.
Jeffrey Finishes His Conference for The Day
Let’s fast forward to later that evening. Jeff finishes up his conference for the day, so he heads back to their hotel room around 5:30.
Judy isn’t back to their hotel room yet ! Now It’s already been established that they would both back to their room around the same time. However, Jeff isn’t concerned at this point in time. He assumed that Judy miscalculated their meet up / cocktail hour schedule, and figured that she probably came back & went downstairs to the event ahead of him.
Judy Isn’t Downstairs at The Party
Unfortunately to Jeff’s surprise, Judy wasn’t downstairs at the cocktail party as he had hoped. He proceeded to go between the party & their hotel room to periodically check if Judy was back….She wasn’t.
At this point, Jeff is concerned. Around 6:15 He decides to alert the hotel, people start calling some local hospitals, which I totally get! Silly accidents happen, and Philadelphia is an unfamiliar city to Judy.
Jeffrey Becomes More Concerned
So, now…Jeff is trying to be logical, he’s concerned, but he’s also trying to maintain logic. He knew that any number of things could have happened to delay her from returning back to the hotel….I think anyone in distress wants to attempt to calm their nerves with rational thoughts when possible.
However, Jeff couldn’t understand why she wouldn’t at least contact him.
Jeff decides to call his stepson back home, presumably to see if he had heard from her, or if there were any messages left.
There hadn’t been any contact made.
Jeff Decides to Start Searching for Judy
At this point, Jeff decides to leave the party. He pays a cab driver to follow the route he believes Judy would have taken on a local tour bus.
There was a free bus service in in Philadelphia called the Flash, I would use it all the time when I was young. They assumed that she would have taken that bus, because it would bring you to all of the landmark spots around the city.
A Phlash bus driver would later confirm that he had picked up a woman that morning who matched Judys description.
Despite these efforts to locate Judy, he comes up with nothing.
It’s 12AM the following morning at this point, so Jeff goes to the local police department to file a Missing Person’s report.
It’s said that Jeff was turned away from filing the report because Judy had not been missing for a full 24 hours yet.
Jeff was able to file the report the following morning.
Jeff did note that he felt as though they were treating him as a suspect.
The Police Become Very Skeptical
At this point in time, the police are skeptical of Jeff’s story. They honestly weren’t convinced that Judy had even arrived in Philadelphia at all.
How could she have forgotten her ID, especially since its required at this point in time for air travel.
Jeff’s Response to The Allegations
Jeff proceeded to counter this claim by stating that that this rule of needing your drivers license to board a plane had only been put into effect in the last 18 months, and that Judy hasn’t flown anywhere since this rule was put into effect.
On paper this sounds kind of logical…But, I never leave the house without my ID.
DOUBLETREE WITNESS
Let’s jump ahead. At this point, theres only one person who has claimed to have seen Judy at the Double Tree Hotel , and thats the desk clerk at the hotel.
Police still remained skeptical due to the fact that this employee had only seen who they thought was Judy, but this person didn’t actually check her in.
Some Other Strange Details
- A detective had noted that in Judy & Jeff’s hotel room, none of Judy’s clothes had really been touched. They questioned why she wouldn’t have changed her outfit the following the day.
- What this means is that she wore the same outfit she flew in, the following day.
- It was also noted that there were no cosmetics or personal items from Judy at the hotel.
- Police had also mentioned that Jeffrey refused to take a polygraph test. HOWEVER ! Jeffrey stated that he in fact WOULD take the polygraph test, but he wanted it administered by the FBI, and if he passed the test, he would want the bureau to assist in the investigation.
- Police captain John McGuiness stated that Jeffrey already knew the FBI wouldn’t be assisting in the investigation. Jeff would still refuse to take the test, even when the Philadelphia police made it possible for him to take the test in his home state of Massachusetts.
Jeff Hires Two Private Investigators
At this point, Jeff isn’t beloved by the cops. The police department later stated something to the effect of “ He gave us some of what we asked of him, but not everything”…Whatever that means.
Jeff ends up hiring his own private investigators, and continues to send Judy’s Missing Person flyers to local hospitals all over the country, essentially to keep an eye out for her.
Five Month’s After Judy Disappears
I want to bring you all with mw to North Carolina.
A body is discovered ! On September 7th, 1997. A father and son stumble upon a body in ASHVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA.
They come across a bunch of scattered bones at first, but that lead them to a shallow grave that was seemingly uncovered by wildlife in the area.
Upon examination of the bones, they determined to be female, mid to late 40’s. Extensive dental work, and severe arthiritis in their right knee.
The coroner also noted that their were cutting marks on her ribs, which lead to the conclusion that she was fatally stabbed.
But, what this essentially means is that the remains were unidentified at this point in time.
Identifying The Skeletal Remains
So, you may be thinking to yourself, what do these bones in North Carolina have to do with anything ?! OR PERHAPS YOUR RESPONSE WAS MORE POLITE, I DONT KNOW!
So, remember how I said that Judys husband Jeffrey had sent her missing person flyers to various hospitals around the country ???
Judy Smiths Remains Are Identified
There was an emergency room physician in North Carolina saw an article in the newspaper about the discovery of the remains.
He then made a mental connection, remembering the flyers that Judy’s hubsand Jeffrey had sent out.
Judy’s dental records are then pulled by police, anddddddd IT’S JUDY!
NOW!
Judy has been found, unfortunately not alive, but she’s been found. BUT WHY THE FUCK WAS SHE IN NORTH CAROLINA!!??????
Thing’s are About to Get More Insane
Even though Judys remains have been found and identified, there’s still a lot of unexplained & unanswered questions.
The obvious ones being:
- Did Judy ever board that later flight to Philadelphia?
- What are the events that transpired after she went missing, provided that she DID make it Philadelphia?
- Who actually killed Judy ?
- And lastly, why was she found in North Carolina? They lived in Massachusetts, went on a trip to Philadelphia, and then her body is found in North Carolina.
We can speculate later, and I’ll share some other interesting / bizarre details as well.
Let’s Talk About the Evidence
Based off of the evidence that was found where Judys remains were discovered, it’s stated that Judy was not alone.
I’m not sure what they’re basing this off of, but it sounds like they had enough clues to assume that Judy was most likely killed in the woods where she was founds.
There’s no question about it, its a Homicide. BUT! Its noted that Judy was alive when she arrived in North Carolina…
Which means that she wasn’t killed in Philadelphia, or her home state of Massachusetts.
Let’s Talk About What Judy Was Wearing When Found
Judys remains were found dressed in jeans and hiking boots.
Let’s just make a quick call back to where we spoke about the the officer who commented on how Judy disappeared in the same outfit she wore on her flight the previous day.
It is worth mentioning, however, that Judys daughter later stated that it wasn’t out of the ordinary for her mother to wear the same outfit she traveled in multiple times.
THIS WASNT THE SAME OUTIFT SHE WAS WEARING WHEN SHE LEFT THE HOTEL IN PHILADELPHIA!
The outfit she had on when her remains were found was however an appropriate outfit someone would wear where she was found, on a hiking trail.
Other Items Found with Judy Smith
So, Judy was found in a shallow grave on a hiking trail, as we already know. There were multiple smaller holes surrounding her.
- Hole #1 – Police found a Blue backpack that contained warmer Winter Style clothing with $80 in it.
- Hole #2 – A pair of sunglasses.
- Hole #3 – Another hole contained a shirt that held $87 in the pocket.
What this means is, essentially this wasn’t a robbery driven killing. So, we can check that off the list.
It’s also noted that the sunglasses found at the crime scene weren’t recognized by the family as belonging to her.
Judy had a red backpack when she disappeared, which still hasn’t been recovered. The outfit she had on when she went missing is still a mystery as well.
The Family Doesn’t Understand Why Judy Was Found in North Carolina
Her family stated that Judy had only ever been in that part of the country, maybe twice in her life. They couldn’t come up with any reasoning, regardless of how or why she was killed, as to why she’d be THERE.
This was 600 miles away from where she lived in Massachusettes.
Residents in Asheville Claimed to Have Seen Judy Smith
There were a few people who claimed to have seen Judy, or at the very least someone who matched her description in April of 1997.
A local worker shared her story of his encounter with Judy.
She said: “ She seemed very alert to me. She was very pleasant. I didn’t see anything about her that would indicate that she wasn’t right in any way”.
NOW LISTEN TO THIS ! This same woman stated that Judy told her that her husband was a lawyer in Boston, and that he was attending a conference in Philadelphia, and during that time she decided to go to the Ashville area!!!
WHAT THE FUCK!!!!!!!!
The Campground Close to Where Judy Smith Was Found
So, there was a campground close to where Judys remains were. The owner of the property recalled encountering Judy. She pulled in a Grey Sedan, and the car will filled with boxes.
Judy had asked the owner of the campgrounds if she could park / sleep in her car on the property. Judy was denied, so she left shortly after.
Another Judy Smith Sighting
A local deli owner said that Judy came into his deli, purchased $30 worth of sandwiches, as well as a toy truck.
I’d just like to add that the investigators working Judy Smiths case deemed all three of these witnesses as credible. In theory this is great because it seemingly settles a few issues.
In my opinion, it seems to eliminate the husband as a suspect. It also shows that Judy was in North Carolina with some kind of purpose. She didn’t just show up dead after a mysterious disappearance in Philadelphia.
But, lets get controversial…Do you think its possible that the husband knew she wouldn’t be coming with him on the trip? Could he have killed her when he returned from his trip?
Is it possible that he made it look like she went with him, but knew she was going to North Carolina ? Could he have had her killed?
The issue still remains, however, that there was someone in Philadelphia who claimed to have seen her, or someone who closely resembled her.
We’ll get deeper into this.
( did the husband know of her plans and kill her when he got home ?)
More Strange Events That Happened In Philadelphia
Since we’re on the topic of people who claimed to have seen Judy, let’s add some more strange details from the notorious Philadelphia trip. It’s about to get even more weird up in here!
There’s a hotel in Philly called the Society Hill Hotel.
(SIDENOTE) It’s where I met Jen for the first time, outside of our mutual friend group!
An employee at the Society Hill Hotel claimed to have interacted with someone matching Judy’s description. The employee stated that Judy, or the person who was believed to have been Judy, seemed psychologically unwell.
The dates actually match up in this case, the dates she was alleged to have been there was April 13th & the 15th. The woman was a reported to have spoken in tongues, argued loudly with invisible people…
Also, when she was asked about her payment for the room, she said that “ The Emperor” would be sending the money VIA Western Union.
Best Western Sighting Of Judy Smith
There was another sighting of someone who was believed to have been Judy at a Best Western. The employee stated that this woman came into the hotel around 4:30 and asked to use the phone.
This particular instance was debunked and confirmed to have not been Judy, however..There were lots of other calls in regards to possible sightings of Judy.
- A homeless man claimed to have seen Judy sleeping on a park bench on April 14th.
- There was a report of her sitting in front of a grocery store.
- Another report of her being seen at a Greyhound Bus Terminal.
- Even at a Macy’s department store in Deptford, New Jersey !
(Sidenote: Which was a mall I went to all the time because it was minutes from where I grew up. )
Someone reported seeing Judy at Ballys ( A casino in Atlantic City) Judys husband Jeff didn’t put much value into this, as he said that Judy hated gambling.
- The department store sightings were deemed more reliable, because each report mentioned this woman having a Red backpack, which Judy took with her everywhere.
It should be noted that that no records were ever found of Judy purchasing a bus ticket, renting a car, or anything else that would show her attempting to leave Philadelphia.
Jeffrey Smith is No Longer a Suspect in Judy Smiths Death
Regardless of possible theories, the police removed Jeffrey Smith from their possible suspect list. His attendance at the conference in Philadelphia was in fact verified.
I dont know…First they went from thinking he was THE SUSPECT, to not a suspect at all. Part of their claim as to why they believed he had no involvement was because he was a larger man who wouldn’t have been physically able to essentially “ dump her body”.
But don’t forget, Judy was wearing an outfit that was “ Appropriate for hiking”…That doesn’t sound like a person who was “dumped” to me.
This sounds a bit messy to me…. Three credible witnesses saw & interacted with Judy in North Carolina. Judy herself even verified where her husband was while being a “ Missing Person”
Sam Constance
There was a detective who worked on the case by the name of Sam Constance. Sam did not believe that Judy was abducted, flat out. Sam believes that Judy Smith went to North Carolina voluntarily. He also didn’t believe that Judy was killed and dumped on the hiking trail, pretty much what we were just talking about.
He said that even someone who was in incredible shape would have severely struggled to carry her body up the slope of the trail she was found on.
Did Judy Plan Her Disappearance?
One of her friends seems to think so ! The quote from this friend states :
“ At the time this happened, Jeff and Judy’s marriage was very tenuous”.
“ I believe that something did happen that triggered her to want to have some time away from Jeff. “
But, to close this out…The story of Judy Smith and how she ended up in North Carolina is still a mystery….And I truly believe that no one will ever know the exact events that transpired leading up to the discovery of Judy Smiths body.
Theories
- Early on in the investigation, the police thought that maybe Judy was suffering from a Mid-Life Crisis & just wanted OUT….The family disagrees with this theory.
- There’s the theory of Judy potentially going to meet a new love interest, obviously unaware of who she was actually meeting, thus being killed.
- Some think that she may have been taking some time for herself, away from Jeffrey, since it was stated that their relationship wasn’t doing so well…It’s possible that she could have encountered her killer during this time.
The Killing of Judy Smith ( Photo’s used in episode )
