With the Missouri Grace Doe case stalled, Texas-based Othram Inc. reached out to Sheriff’s Deputy Michael Hall of the McDonald County Sheriff’s Department in 2020. Othram is a private state-of-the-art forensic DNA testing service able to better identify DNA relatives from skeletal remains, according to the company’s website. Early the next year, Othram supplied law enforcement with a list of Grace Doe’s potential relatives, Hall said. Among them was Danielle Pixler of Kansas, who had a half-sister she lost touch with and was trying to find, according to McDonald County Press. Pixler agreed to further DNA testing, and the Grace Doe was confirmed to be Shawna Garber.
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According to Pixler, Garber was abused by her biological mother, and she spent time in foster care as a child in Garnett, Kansas. Pixler said Garber’s teeth were damaged from that abuse, and in addition to DNA evidence, the Missouri Grace Doe’s remains revealed dental work. Pixler told McDonald County Press that as a child, “[Garber] was burned and had to redo all her teeth.”
