My Story By Danielle Parker

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Danielle Parker said her mother's 1993 murder affects her to this day.

She cried all the way from Phoenix to Burbank.  The pain was becoming too intense.  All of the steps that could have been taken to prevent the tragedy went through her mind.  If I had...I should have...Why didn't I...?

Danielle says her mother was the epitome of warmth and compassion -- a writer with a penchant for social activism.  Gail met Danielle's father at a party in Manhattan when Gail was in her early twenties and they married soon after...Danielle says they were deeply in love.  In 1987, they moved to Tucson and built a happy life that Danielle says she always cherished. 

We spoke on the phone everyday when I left home.  It was the first time in my life that I was semi-independent, but I always called my mom for advice.  I was only gone for seven months when she was killed.

On March 5, 1993, Gail was admitted to Kino Community Hospital.  Danielle says Gail suffered from bipolar disorder and had stopped taking her medicine.  However, hours later, the hospital allowed Gail to leave wearing only a blue bathing suit and a long, white coverall.  Danielle says the hospital never called any family members to come retrieve Gail, who eventually got in a taxi.

Police say Gail was last seen around 1:30 a.m. at a convenience store at East Golf Links and South Houghton roads.  The next morning, Danielle says three bicyclists found Gail's remains on the outskirts of Tucson in a desert area south of Broadway on Barclay Park Loop.  Authorities say she died from a blow to the back of the head and hypothermia.

I will never know how my mother died.  I will never know if she was in pain, or if she went right out when they hit her.  I will never know if she had moments of comprehension, and I will never know if she said her own personal goodbye to me.

In the weeks to come, Danielle would discover that her mom's credit card had been used on the day of her murder and several traveler's checks had gone missing. One month after Gail's murder, her purse was found just over the Arizona-Utah border at a rest stop near Kanab, Utah. 

Please show people what damage murder does to a family.  It destroys lives.  When will strangers start caring about how their actions affect others?  Let me tell them what has happened to my life, my dreams, since my mom was taken away from me.

In recent months, there have been signs of hope.  Danielle tells AMW that cops submitted DNA found at the scene to two different labs and there have been some promising results.  Four DNA markers indicating one "foreign" female's DNA and 3 markers indicating a "foreign" male's DNA came back as hits.  Danielle says it's not enough to solve the case, but it's a start.

Danielle and the Tucson Police Dept. still need your help in solving the murder of Gail Parker.  If you have any information, please call our hotline at 1-800-CRIME-TV.