Kathy Lynn Hemphill
Hemphill, circa 2017; John Lee
- Missing Since 10/01/2017
- Missing From Tulsa, Oklahoma
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Sex Female
- Race White
- Date of Birth 10/12/1965 (58)
- Age 51 years old
- Height and Weight 5'7, 165 pounds
- Clothing/Jewelry Description Unknown, but she usually wore western style jeans, including the Rockies brand. She preferred to wear sandals or flip-flops, and when she did wear sneakers they were always white.
- Associated Vehicle(s) White 2005 Chrysler PT Cruiser with Oklahoma license plate number 113HFG (accounted for)
- Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Blonde hair, green eyes. Hemphill may use the last names Dowdy, Hardesty and/or Trammell. She has a scar on the right side of her nose and a gunshot wound scar in the middle of her upper back. She has numerous tattoos, including a Pegasus horse on her calf, and the name "Joe" and a rose. Hemphill may wear eyeglasses.
Details of Disappearance
Hemphill was last seen arguing with her common-law husband outside at her home in the 5900 block of west 4th Place in Tulsa, Oklahoma sometime in October 2017. She has never been heard from again. Her car, a white 2005 Chrysler PT Cruiser with Oklahoma license plate number 113HFG, disappeared with her.
Hemphill's friends and family repeatedly tried to contact her by phone, but her husband would always give different stories about why she could not be reached. One of her family members finally reported her missing in February 2018, telling the police that it would be uncharacteristic of Hemphill to abandon her dog and all her personal belongings.
When the police questioned her husband, he said she'd gone to California, a story investigators said didn't make any sense. Hemphill's daughter stated there was a history of domestic violence in the couple's relationship.
That same month, John David Lee II was spotted driving Hemphill's car, and authorities announced they were seeking him as a witness and person of interest in Hemphill's disappearance.
A photo of Lee is posted with this case summary. He was arrested on unrelated auto theft charges a few days later, and the day after that, police found Hemphill's missing vehicle. Curiously, Lee is also a person of interest in another Oklahoma missing persons case, the 2014 disappearance of Richard Horn. He is the last person known to have been with Horn.
No charges have been filed against anyone in Horn or Hemphill's disappearances; both cases remain unsolved.
Investigating Agency
- Tulsa County Sheriff's Office 918-596-5601
Source Information
Updated 5 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated November 7, 2020; clothing/jewelry description added, distinguishing characteristics updated.