The Death of Anne Carolyn McDaniel
Anne Carolyn McDaniel was a 20-year-old seeking independence, not unlike any other young woman. She’d been living in a group home as a way to maintain independence while also living with a disability linked to cerebral palsy.
Shirley, Anne’s mother described Anne’s tumultuous first days as a newborn. She was not expected to live long, let alone walk and talk. It was remarkable how much progress she had made over the years. In fact, she’d been inquiring about bussing tables at a nearby cafe.
This all changed on September 18, 1996, when Anne left President Madison Inn, where she lived in Orange, Virginia.
Four days after Anne left her home, her body was found in Culpeper County, near Lignum and Mount Pony. Some men exercising their dogs found her remains in a rural area, just a few miles from the location where Alicia Showalter Reynolds was found. She’d died by asphyxiation and then had been burned.
After she went missing, authorities considered a man some had referred to as her boyfriend. He was also volunteer at the group home. Although the man was interrogated and police took evidence from his home, he was not charged with any crime linked to Anne’s disappearance.
Since then, authorities have turned to DNA evidence in the hope that it will bring about a stronger lead. So far, the…
