Dakota James was a 23 year old graduate student attending Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, born on June 21, 1993 in Frederick, Maryland, to Jeffrey Lynn James and Pamela Dawn (Meadows) James. Dakota was a sincerely loved young man with a unique personality, a beautiful smile and made friends so easily. He graduated from Brunswick High School in June 2011 and then got a bachelor’s degree in Economics/Logistics from West Virginia University in May 2015. He was on his way to getting an MBA with a bright future ahead as he planned to pursue law school after.
Dakota was last seen alive as he walked through Katz Plaza in the Cultural District, walking towards Fort Duquesne Boulevard around midnight on January 25, 2017, after going out with co-workers. There were no other signs or video footage of him after that.
Several stories that rolled out said that Dakota may have been drunk at the time and ruled his death as accidental, but everyone, including his parents, weren’t convinced.
“Our son Dakota did not get drunk, cross four lanes up a highway, a cement barrier, walk down approximately 30 steps to urinate to then accidentally fall in the river,” his mother, Pamela James said during a news conference Thursday in Pittsburgh. “To us, this is a homicide.”
If you aren’t familiar with Pittsburgh, Katz Plaza is just a couple blocks away from the Allegheny River, which meets the Monongahela River and flows Northwest into the Ohio River, where Dakota’s body would later be found. For someone to get to the Allegheny River from where Dakota was last seen, he would have needed to cross a four-lane highway Fort Duquesne Boulevard onto the 7th Street Bridge and make his way down to the river from up there. It would be very hard for someone to navigate all the way down to the river intoxicated. If he did in fact make it all the way across the 7th Street Bridge towards the Northside, where he lived, he would have had to navigate his way down a path and several steps that would lead him to the river, but this would be pretty difficult doing drunk.
Let’s not forget that the video footage caught of Dakota showed him walking and looking down at his phone. He did not appear intoxicated or under the influence in this footage, although that’s never a certain answer.
Dakota’s body was found on March 6, 2017, over a month later (40 days).
He was wearing the same clothes he was wearing the night he went missing: a red hoodie, jeans and a Columbia jacket. The police would not disclose any signs of trauma or foul play, nor would they confirm or deny that his phone or wallet was on him when found.
A few pieces of information that may be small facets of Dakota’s lifestyle or could play a big part in his murder:
There are a few pieces of evidence that talk about Dakota being gay- used Grinder, a gay, bisexual, trans and queer-focused dating app
Before Dakota was found, his family released a statement calling for the makers of Grinder, a dating app, to release more information that could have helped his case.
It's possible Dakota could have been targeted because he was gay, targeted from someone using the app that he was talking to, and knew he was gay, or it may not have been either of those things. However, further investigation into the Grinder app could have been helpful in the case.
His mother, Pamela, believed that Dakota was using Grinder prior to January 25th and wanted the company to release more data and information to aid in finding her son. Information such as location data and message logs between specific users could have been helpful.
Why wasn't the Grinder dating app pressed further to release information that could have been helpful in the case?
When Grinder refuses to give access to its sensitive information, this makes it so much easier for other people to partake in suspicious activity and behavior on the app, knowing that private information will not be given forth, regardless of the crime.
Were all of the security cameras checked around Katz Plaza to under the Highway 79 overpass and around the 7th St Bridge for suspicious persons or activity?
The biggest piece of information that was most chilling and confirmed to me that this was a murder and not just an ‘accidental drowning’ was the smiley face that was found under the Highway 79 overpass, right below the Fort Duquesne Highway that is closest to the Allegheny River. This smiley face was spray painted in a spot where there was incredibly easy access to the river.
If you’re not familiar with the Smiley Face Killers theory, it is sought to be a group of people, rather than just one person because there have been so many similar cases spread out around the country. There have been hundreds of related cases across 25 cities in 11 different states, all or most to be classified as ‘accidental drowning.’
Most of the victims all have a particular set of things in common:
College-aged men
Notably successful in academics, athletics or both
Reported missing after a night out (usually after drinking)
Found in a body of water
The first victim of the Smiley Face Killers was found in 1997. Patrick McNeill was a 21-year-old student at Fordham University and his body was later found in the East River in New York City. There were no signs of foul play or druge use reported after his autopsy, but had some alcohol in his system.
In a recent article published in December 2018, it states that: Mr. and Mrs. James were joined by former Allegheny County coroner and renowned forensic pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht and retired New York City Police Detective Sgt. Kevin Gannon, who are working with them to investigate their son’s death. In doing so, they reviewed autopsy photos and said they discovered the appearance of ligature marks that were inconsistent with a drowning death and are not postmortem injuries.
Dr. Wecht said,” interestingly and surprisingly” from a forensic pathologist standpoint “there is absolutely no mention at all of the external furrow markings, areas of clear linear discoloration or of the hemorrhage area at the base of the neck above the collarbones. No mention of that at all.”
“We believe Dakota’s death to be a homicide and that he died by the actions of others,” Mr. Gannon said.
Oxygen released its new docu-series- Smiley Face Killers: The Hunt for Justice yesterday, Saturday, January 19, 2019, featuring Dakota James.
What's your take on the case? Let's discuss below!
I encourage everyone to do some of their own research, because like with any case, there is usually so much information, which is really hard to all fit into one post, video or article.
Sources
Family of Dakota James unveils a foundation in his memory. https://www.post-gazette.com/local/city/2017/06/21/Family-of-Dakota-James-unveils-a-foundation-Pittsburgh-surveillance-cameras-bridges-safety/stories/201706210160
Here Are 6 Of The Alleged Victims Of The 'Smiley Face Killings? https://www.oxygen.com/crime-time/six-alleged-victims-smiley-face-killings
Dakota James' family want more info from dating app Grindr. https://www.wtae.com/article/dakota-james-family-want-more-info-from-dating-app-grindr/9082223
Family of Dakota James announces new evidence, TV documentary. https://triblive.com/local/allegheny/14402881-74/family-of-dakota-james-believes-he-was-murdered
Smiley Face Killers: The Hunt For Justice examines possible serial murders in Pittsburgh. https://www.pghcitypaper.com/pittsburgh/smiley-face-killers-the-hunt-for-justice-examines-possible-serial-murders-in-pittsburgh/Content?oid=13192278