These past few months I’ve had an uptick in the amount of feedback I’ve received from victims family members and loved ones, and I’ve had the pleasure of chatting with Deborah Lee Tomlinson’s sister Jean, who was kind enough to answer some questions for me.

Tell me about your sister, what was she like? What do you remember most about her?
I remember she seemed happy to go live with our biological Mother, she thought she could do whatever she wanted with no limits. She found out that wasn’t true.

How many siblings did she/you have? Do you happen to know where she went to high school?
There were at the time 4 of us and two step brothers. My Aunt Helen recently told me she ran away from Eugene and not Creswell, then we were told she was spotted in Santa Rosa, CA. With a black guy ( our Dad didn’t like people of color) they think she was maybe pregnant. But who knows.

What did your parents say about Deborah, and how would they describe her? By that I mean, what was she like? What was her favorite book, or band?
They absolutely refused to talk about her at all, with either me or my twin Joyce. I know she loved Rock and Roll. She got caught several times sneaking out at night and didn’t get along with our step mother.

How was the relationship she had with your parents? Were they close?
Our father raised us with a step mother at the time and they didn’t get along.

It’s often reported that Deb ran away with an unidentified friend. Do you know who it was?
I have no idea if its true or who she was.

What do you know about the circumstances surrounding Deborah’s disappearance? Is there anything important that stands out to you that you feel is important?
Just that she was spotted in Santa Rosa with a guy.

I know she was young but did your sister date often, that you know of?
Not allowed to date until we were 16.

There were quite a few murders and disappearances in Oregon around the time Deb disappeared. Do you think any of the cases could be related?
I’m not sure but that’s how I found your blog.

What are your current feelings or emotions regarding your sisters disappearance? The new “big thing” in the world of forensics is genetic genealogy. Have the Eugene police been in touch with you at all recently about your sister?
Never a word, but the NCMEC (or the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children) said all records were destroyed in a fire.

What do you hope to see happen in regard to the investigation? How did your sisters disappearance affect your family dynamics?
Joyce and have always been close and Debbie running away was hard for many years. We always thought once we all grew up she would make contact.

I learned about Deborah’s disappearance only because her name was included in a list of young women that could possibly be linked to Ted Bundy. Do you think he had anything to do with her disappearance?
I wish I knew, but like I said she was spotted in Santa Rosa by a close family friend but I was never told by who. Our Grandmother lived there.

I think it’s a shame that Deborah’s disappearance isn’t discussed more publicly, and that she didn’t get any news time. Do you think if it was handled differently by police the case might be solved by now?
I always thought so.

What do you think happened to your sister?
I think she fell in love with the guy and ran off with him.