#chicagolawn

 Karalynn (who also went by the name Kara) McNicholas, 18, was found dead outside a home on the 6000 block of South Maplewood Avenue, in the Chicago Lawn neighborhood on Friday, May 11th 2018. She was last seen leaving her home near 111th Street and Central Park in Mount Greenwood around 8:30 p.m. Thursday.

The 18-year-old nursing student had plans to go out with a friend, but McNicholas never met up with them. Her parents filed a missing person’s report Friday afternoon after she never came home.

Around 7 a.m. Friday, a resident in the 6100 block of South Maplewood called 911 after finding a woman's body in their backyard. It was later identified to be Karalynn.

Her purse and cell phone were missing, along with her car.

 Kara’s car, a 2014 silver Kia Sorento (license plate AC54906), was spotted at 39th Street & Michigan Ave heading northbound around noon Friday (five hours after her body was discovered).

The autopsy did not rule on the cause and manner of death pending further investigation, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. Chicago police say she had no visible signs of trauma.

The Chicago Police Department continue to investigate her death. 

About Karalynn:

Kara was a Reavis High School alum

She worked at Bria Healthcare in Palos Hills as a Certified Nursing Assistant

My Questions/ Considerations:

Motive

Was this a crime of opportunity? Or was Karalynn targeted specifically

Could Karalynn have been the victim of a gang initiation? 

Location

Reviews of Mount Greenwood are overall positive. Many stating that Mount Greenwood is a safe, family-oriented and close-knit community with a large presence of police and firefighters. 

She has been known to visit the areas of 3900 South Michigan Avenue, the 6300 block of South California Avenue and the 7200 block of North Sheridan Road.

According to google maps, the distance between where Kara was last seen and where the body was discovered is about 7.6 miles, which is about 23 minutes by car. 

The location where her body was found has homes in very close proximity to one another. Why was this spot chosen? It is unclear if she was found near the home of the friend she was going to meet up with.

Autopsy findings

‘Pending’ is not the same thing as ‘inconclusive’. Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office did not rule on the cause or manner of death, pending further investigation. This does not mean they do not know how Karalynn died. 

An article from ForensicMag.com sheds some light on what it means when autopsy results are pending investigation, stating that “In many news reports when the autopsy is complete but the medical examiner has sent out specimens for additional testing, or needs more time to review the police reports or medical records, the preliminary determination after the autopsy will be that the case is "pending.” 

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