Debra Jackson

Debra Jackson
Name	Debra Louise Jackson
Sex	Female
Found	October 31, 1979
Location	Georgetown, Texas
Missing from	Abilene, Texas
Identified	August 6, 2019
Span	39 years
Age	23
Cause of death	Strangulation

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Debra Louise Jackson (September 28, 1956 - October 30, 1979) previously known as "Orange Socks", was a young woman that was found nude, except for a matching pair of orange socks, which led to her nickname. Henry Lee Lucas, who confessed to her murder, was later acquitted, as it is believed that he was untruthful. Lucas confessed to over 3,000 murders, including that of Tammy Alexander and Carol Cole.

DNA Doe Project announced in August 2019 that the victim had been identified.

Case

Jackson's body was found face-down in a culvert along a highway in Georgetown, Texas. She had been sexually assaulted and was strangled. Along with the pair of socks on her body, she also wore an abalone/mother of pearl stone on a ring.

While unidentified, Jackson was believed to have been a transient or a runaway. Strong evidence supported this, as she had keys from an Oklahoma motel, long nails, insect bites (revealed to be impetigo scars post-identification), unshaven legs and a makeshift sanitary pad. She had salpingitis, which was due to having untreated gonorrhea.

One woman called after the case was featured on television and stated she had seen a person matching Jackson's description hitchhiking in Texas. She gave no other information of the victim in life.

Henry Lee Lucas confessed to her murder and was sentenced to death. It was later discovered that police officers from the area had him look at crime scene photos and then confess during interviews, which they would use to gain recognition for solving cold cases. Lucas' death sentence was commuted in June 1998, but he remained in prison for other murders until he died of heart problems on March 12, 2001.

The DNA Doe Project took on the case in 2018. Samples were sent to a lab for analysis.

At least two males may have been involved in Jackson's murder, as DNA was discovered on the socks she wore. Law enforcement is unsure whether the profiles are strong enough for additional tests.

Gallery

Ring worn by the victim at the time of her death.

NCMEC reconstruction

Reconstruction by Natalie Murry

Sketch by Karen T. Taylor

Reconstruction by Carl Koppelman

Media appearances

• Her case appeared on America's Most Wanted
• She also appeared in Karen T. Taylor's Forensic Art and Illustration
• Her case was mentioned in a 2017 episode of Cold Case Files, but the physical depiction of the victim was inaccurate.
• Jackson's case was shown on the second and fourth episodes of The Confession Killer in 2019.

Sources

• Debra Jackson on Wikipedia
• KVUE
• DNA Doe Project
• Debra Jackson at Find a Grave