Name: Joan Marie Butler
Case Classification: Endangered Missing
Missing Since: June 18, 1989
Location Last Seen: Overland Park, Johnson County, Kansas
Date of Birth: March 28, 1965
Age: 24 years old
Race: White
Gender: Female
Height: 5'6"
Weight: 110 lbs
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Brown
Nickname/Alias: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Unknown
Dentals: Available
Fingerprints: Unknown
DNA: Unknown
Clothing: Unknown
Jewelry: 1957 Great Bend High School class ring with a black panther face on left pinkie
Additional Personal Items: Contact lenses or glasses
Joan was last seen during the early morning hours on June 18, 1989. She lived alone in Overland Park and was a buyer at a Kansas City advertising agency. She had spent the previous evening with friends. Evidence at her apartment indicates she made it home and was interrupted; the clothes she was last wearing that evening were there, along with a 1/2 eaten piece of toast, a 1/2 smoked cigarette, and one contact lens. She and her red Chevrolet Corsica rental car were missing, along with $900 from her bank account. A neighbor reported hearing a loud thud at approximately 4:30 a.m. on the morning of Joan's disappearance.
On June 25, the rental car was located in a Lawrence, KS, apartment complex. As law enforcement arrived and waited, a man approached the vehicle and opened the trunk. As the police approached him, he abruptly closed the trunk and was able to flee and escape apprehension. The car was preliminarily processed at the scene, and then further processed on June 26. Evidence from the interior of the car included fingerprints belonging to Richard Grissom, as well as a wallet containing identification for Grissom and his many aliases. The glove compartment contained an air pistol, pellets, and CO2 cartridges. In the trunk a drop of blood, later linked to Joan, was found. Evidence from the exterior of the car included scratches similar to those made by thick brush and small tree limbs, as well as a fine light dust and loose gravel on the underside. According to testimony during the 1990 trial, a close associate said he had first noticed Grissom driving the rental car on June 20.
On July 7, Grissom was apprehended in Dallas, Texas by the FBI.
In 1990, Grissom was convicted of the murders of Joan Butler, Christine Rusch, and Theresa Brown. During the investigation, he alluded that the women's remains would not be located in Missouri because Missouri had the death penalty. Despite intensive searching both locally and across the country, the women have never been located.
Agency Name: Overland Park Police Department
Agency Contact Person: Det. Kathleen Wedel
Agency Phone Number: 913-895-6300
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: 89028389
NCIC Case Number: M367078985
NamUs Case Number: 35155
NamUs
KBI
The Topeka Capital-Journal - Aug. 18, 1999
Added: 2007; Last Updated: 3/29/22 - By: Doe-NamUs-App
Questions or comments? Please contact appropriate member of the Area Team
** Listed information is from the time of disappearance.
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