Dorothy Jane Scott

Podcast episode originally aired April 23, 2021.

“I have something for you,” the unknown male voice on the other end of the line stated. “Go outside.”
Doing as the man instructed, she opened the front door, stepping out of her house - which I strongly advise against if you ever have this happen to you - she soon noticed something on the windshield of her car.

A single dead red rose.

I have to admit, growing up I had kind of a weird obsession with the idea of having a stalker. I thought to have someone be THAT head over heels for you would be cool, but then hearing about the reality of actually having a stalker, the fear and anxiety that goes along with it, especially after researching this week’s creepy case, I’m good that no one has ever liked me that much.

This is the Creepy Case of Dorothy Jane Scott.

Dorothy Jane Scott was born April 23, 1948 to Jacob and Vera in Anaheim, California. She was an introvert who preferred staying home, a devout Christian, and didn’t drink or do drugs.

In 1976, Dorothy gave birth to her son, Shawn. While I didn’t find much about him, Shawn’s father lived 2,000 miles away in Missouri while Dorothy and Shawn lived with her aunt in Stanton.
Dorothy’s parents lived close and babysat while she worked backroom secretary jobs at jointly owned stores Swinger’s Psych Shop - dealing in psychedelic items like love beads, incense, and lava lamps - as well as Custom John’s Head Shop which specialized in paraphernalia used for consumption of cannabis and tobacco.
Co-workers say she was dependable and organized, a great mom, a caring friend. On May 28, 1980, Dorothy dropped Shawn off at her parents’ house per usual, and went to work.
There was a staff meeting at Swinger’s that evening, so she let them know she would be late picking Shawn up.

During the meeting, Dorothy’s co-worker, Conrad Bostron began to look a little off. He showed them a red mark on his arm and complained of pain so severe Dorothy and Pam Head left the meeting early to get him to the hospital. There were obviously no cell phones so Dorothy made a quick stop by her parent’s house to inform them of the situation, unsure of when she would be home to pick up Shawn.
Dorothy left the house, having changed her black scarf to a red one, the three then drove to UC Irvine Medical Center.

Dorothy and Pam waited while Conrad was being treated for a black widow spider bite - which…GAH!
Pam said her and Dorothy were together the entire time Conrad was with the doctor.
Once treated and feeling better - around 11 pm - Conrad was told he could go home, with a prescription. He and Pam went to have it filled. Pam went along with him to help fill out any insurance information, while Dorothy went to the bathroom. She told the others she would get her car and pull it closer so Conrad wouldn’t have to walk as far since he was still not feeling well.

This was the last time anyone would see Dorothy Jane Scott alive.

After Pam and Conrad were done, they waited for Dorothy in the lobby. After not seeing her for about twenty minutes or so, they headed out to the emergency room’s parking lot.
There, they saw her 1973 white Toyota station wagon, coming towards them at a high speed. Realizing the car wasn’t stopping, they waved to get her attention, everything happened so fast, and the headlights were blinding - they couldn’t see who was driving as the car flew by.

Confused and concerned, thinking maybe she called her parents to tell them she was coming and was told there was an emergency, they decided to wait for her, but after a couple of hours and no Dorothy, they called her parents themselves.
Upon finding out she never returned, Conrad and Pam reported her missing.
Given that she was an adult, they didn’t seem overly concerned - which irks me. Every case should be taken seriously, especially under the circumstances, and it’s out of character in this case. The car speeding off leaving them is a tell tale sign that something was wrong.
How many lives could have been saved had the police just done their job?

At around 4:30 am - five hours since Dorothy was last seen, her car was discovered in Santa Ana - about ten miles away - on fire in an alleyway.

This changed the concern factor.

Several months before her abduction, Dorothy began receiving harassing phone calls from an unknown male. While she claimed to recognize the voice, it wasn’t someone she was super familiar with.
The calls were quite different each time - sometimes he would confess nothing but his love for her, while the next call was telling her how he was going to cut her into bits and no one would ever find her. Once he took it beyond just calls, he began to describe her daily routine and even left “gifts” for her on her car, she no longer felt safe, she even began taking karate classes and considered buying a handgun.

Even after Dorothy disappeared, the phone calls didn’t end.

About a week after she was abducted, a man called her parents’ home, her mother, Vera, was alone.
The man asked if she was related to Dorothy. Upon answering “yes” the man said, “I’ve got her” and hung up. The calls continued almost every Wednesday afternoon, they were usually quick, and only happened when Vera was by herself. The same man would call and claim that he had Dorothy or that he had killed her. These calls were the first lead that police had to go on.

In April 1984, a man called. This time, Jacob answered the phone, after that the calls stopped.

Vera and Jacob were told not to go to the media about Dorothy’s disappearance, citing it would negatively impact the investigation. After a week of searching with no progress being made, they reached out to the Orange County Register about his daughter’s disappearance who ran the story.
Pat Riley, editor of the newspaper received a call that same day saying, “I killed her. I killed Dorothy Scott. She was my love, I caught her cheating with another man. She denied having someone else. I killed her.”
The caller gave details that only someone involved would know - she was wearing a red scarf, and the man - Conrad - was being treated for a spider bite. He claims Dorothy called him from the hospital, but Pam Head disputes that, saying she had been with Dorothy the entire time.

Dorothy’s family and friends were baffled, they had no inkling of one boyfriend in Dorothy’s life - let alone two - with her work schedule and son. The man was clearly not in touch with reality.

Months went by, even years, and every week, there would be a phone call, police tried to trace them, but the caller never stayed on the line long enough to get a track.

The case went cold.

On August 6, 1984, a construction worker found human remains about 30 feet off of Santa Ana Canyon Road in a remote construction site - there were dog bones also next to the body, but no one knows how they fit into the story.
Just over a week later, dental records confirmed the remains belonged to Dorothy. A turquoise ring and wrist watch found were identified by Dorothy’s parents.

While they were relieved she had been found, they were overwhelmed that she was really gone.
A memorial to celebrate her life was held on August 22nd.
Perhaps the worst part is they never received the justice they deserved. No one was officially named a suspect in the case, and no arrests have ever been named. Dennis - Shawn’s father - was looked into, but ruled out quickly as he lived in Missouri at this time.

The name Mike Butler has been heard, but no evidence has ever linked him to the case. A lot of unofficial sleuths have built a case, as he worked next door, he was the brother of Dorothy’s co-worker and have stopped in from time to time, learning her routine.
He has been defended by multiple people saying he’s an easy target due to his beliefs - occult - and by being a bit odd.

After Dorothy’s remains were found, the calls picked back up, they continued for an unknown amount of years.
It’s been over forty years, and Dorothy’s case is still unsolved.
Sadly, I feel we will never know the truth as to who abducted and murdered Dorothy.

The Westfield Watcher

Crescent Hotel