[Vedderman]

Usually cases of complete facial removal like this are a result of predation from animal feeding, but the police indicated that there were cutting marks from a razor or box knife along the edges of her face so it is assumed to be deliberate.

Actual cause of death has not been determined, nor is she ID'd yet. Just found yesterday.

[SimoneFlen']

[Moloko]

Nasty stuff. Hopefully the skinning was executed post mortem. Whoever did it must have really hated her.

[Susan]

Really hated her or was just a sick motherfucker.

[Zeeta]

Getting a Leatherface mask ready for Halloween, perhaps?

[zuiram]

Maybe it's just my untrained eyes, but at first glance there's less of a mess in the hair than I'd imagine if she were alive at the time. I've never seen predation stop right at the hairline, so intentional seems likely. No obvious groin area staining, I guess it could have evaporated.

Bit of blood on the ground on the left-hand side, like she was lying on her side first and then moved/pulled to a straight position.

Looks to me like the eyes have been removed?

The shoe next to the body in the wide shot could've been kicked off during a struggle. It seems like an odd place to put it if she was killed elsewhere and dumped here, but I can picture that landing if her assailant was sitting on top of her lower body during a struggle.

Throat cut while lying on the side or held in such a position, then wrenched into the position she was found in, one arm pinned by an assailant on top, kicked the shoe off during the struggle at that point, then her face was skinned after she bled out?

Where's Will Graham when you need him?

[Susan]

Man, you just made it seem a whole lot more grim.

[zuiram]

It's pretty grim by default.

If it's any consolation, my version doesn't involve her being skinned alive, at least. Her arms are free, with no marks from ropes or tape or strips, and there isn't much spatter to indicate her being alive at the time, also the cut is fairly neat. I doubt one person can hold her head still and make the cut like that without a royal mess.

No idea as to motive, though. Lovers tend to run through whatever adrenaline they had before putting the knife down. Professionals do what they mean to do, and this doesn't send an obvious message or meaningfully obscure identity. Impulsive violence doesn't generally involve such a specific mutilation. Serial killers tend to leave more of a mess, and do less neat work, if memory serves?

I'm confused by this one.

[kellyhound]

hope for her she was dead when they started cutting

[RestlessGypsy]

Originally Posted by kellyhound ↗

hope for her she was dead when they started cutting

You took the words right out of my mouth.