James Dean Johnson was found strangled on May 20, 1974. James was known as "Boy X" for 35 years as authorities were unable to make positive identification until Feb. 2009.
James had run away from the Hamilton County Childrens Home. Dayton police discovered the nude body of the boy, who was believed to be between the ages of 14 and 16, near a levy in the rear of the lot at 1353 Stanley Avenue in Dayton. The boy could not immediately be identified, so officers named him "Boy X."
In an attempt to find his family, Dayton police posted flyers with a picture of the boy around Dayton, enlisted the help of local newspapers, and sent an alert to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The case drew the attention of many families looking for missing loved ones, including the Johnson family.
The attempt to identify "Boy X" cooled throughout the years, until August 2008 when Johnson's sister, Rose Johnson of Alabama, asked crime lab investigators to take another look at the similarities between her brother and "Boy X." Investigators did, and eventually matched DNA from Rose Johnson and her mother to "Boy X."
James Dean Johnson was 13 in 1974. Rose Johnson told crime lab officials that she and her brother were in foster care that year. She said her brother ran away, and never returned.
Records show that Johnson was listed as AWOL in July, 1974, but authorities say no one ever contacted police.
James had run away from the Hamilton County Childrens Home. Dayton police discovered the nude body of the boy, who was believed to be between the ages of 14 and 16, near a levy in the rear of the lot at 1353 Stanley Avenue in Dayton. The boy could not immediately be identified, so officers named him "Boy X."
In an attempt to find his family, Dayton police posted flyers with a picture of the boy around Dayton, enlisted the help of local newspapers, and sent an alert to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The case drew the attention of many families looking for missing loved ones, including the Johnson family.
The attempt to identify "Boy X" cooled throughout the years, until August 2008 when Johnson's sister, Rose Johnson of Alabama, asked crime lab investigators to take another look at the similarities between her brother and "Boy X." Investigators did, and eventually matched DNA from Rose Johnson and her mother to "Boy X."
James Dean Johnson was 13 in 1974. Rose Johnson told crime lab officials that she and her brother were in foster care that year. She said her brother ran away, and never returned.
Records show that Johnson was listed as AWOL in July, 1974, but authorities say no one ever contacted police.
James Dean Johnson was found strangled on May 20, 1974. James was known as "Boy X" for 35 years as authorities were unable to make positive identification until Feb. 2009.
James had run away from the Hamilton County Childrens Home. Dayton police discovered the nude body of the boy, who was believed to be between the ages of 14 and 16, near a levy in the rear of the lot at 1353 Stanley Avenue in Dayton. The boy could not immediately be identified, so officers named him "Boy X."
In an attempt to find his family, Dayton police posted flyers with a picture of the boy around Dayton, enlisted the help of local newspapers, and sent an alert to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The case drew the attention of many families looking for missing loved ones, including the Johnson family.
The attempt to identify "Boy X" cooled throughout the years, until August 2008 when Johnson's sister, Rose Johnson of Alabama, asked crime lab investigators to take another look at the similarities between her brother and "Boy X." Investigators did, and eventually matched DNA from Rose Johnson and her mother to "Boy X."
James Dean Johnson was 13 in 1974. Rose Johnson told crime lab officials that she and her brother were in foster care that year. She said her brother ran away, and never returned.
Records show that Johnson was listed as AWOL in July, 1974, but authorities say no one ever contacted police.
James had run away from the Hamilton County Childrens Home. Dayton police discovered the nude body of the boy, who was believed to be between the ages of 14 and 16, near a levy in the rear of the lot at 1353 Stanley Avenue in Dayton. The boy could not immediately be identified, so officers named him "Boy X."
In an attempt to find his family, Dayton police posted flyers with a picture of the boy around Dayton, enlisted the help of local newspapers, and sent an alert to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The case drew the attention of many families looking for missing loved ones, including the Johnson family.
The attempt to identify "Boy X" cooled throughout the years, until August 2008 when Johnson's sister, Rose Johnson of Alabama, asked crime lab investigators to take another look at the similarities between her brother and "Boy X." Investigators did, and eventually matched DNA from Rose Johnson and her mother to "Boy X."
James Dean Johnson was 13 in 1974. Rose Johnson told crime lab officials that she and her brother were in foster care that year. She said her brother ran away, and never returned.
Records show that Johnson was listed as AWOL in July, 1974, but authorities say no one ever contacted police.
