New HBO docuseries sheds light on 1987 disappearance of Virginia teen
More than 30 years after the disappearance of Williamsburg-area teenager Jennifer Lynn Pandos, her case remains a mystery. Now, a new HBO documentary series, “Burden of Proof,” is putting the case into renewed focus.
On the morning of Feb. 10, 1987, Jennifer’s parents woke to find their 15-year-old daughter missing from her room and a note left at the end of her bed.
The note, scrawled out in messy, childish lettering, was just one of a number of things that didn’t add up, raising questions about whether she had left on her own, had been taken — or worse.
“Your daughter’s with me. She’s fine,” the note begins. “She’s having some problems and needs time away.” Then, continuing in the same handwriting but switching to first person: “I’m fine, I just need time to think.” At one point, the note instructs Jennifer’s parents not to call the police. If they do, “I may never come back home,” it reads.
The four-part documentary, which is set to premiere June 6, follows Jennifer’s brother, Stephen Pandos, as he attempts to unearth what happened to his sister. Filmed over the course of nearly eight years, the investigation takes a series of turns as Pandos and the documentary team search for answers.
“(I wanted) to give some context to the nuances and complications of trauma,” Pandos said about why he wanted to do the documentary. “And to find justice for my sister, Jennifer.”
When Jennifer disappeared in 1987 from the family’s home in the James City County neighborhood of Kingsmill, Pandos was away at college. Throughout the documentary, he attempts to uncover the mystery of what happened, spurred by the conviction that his parents, Margie and Ron, know more about what happened than they’ll admit. When the series begins, Pandos is estranged from both of his parents.
Director Cynthia Hill became involved in the project when Pandos, who now lives in North Carolina, reached out to her while seeking an avenue to tell his family’s story.
“I had just released a film about domestic violence and so he was able to find me based on that,” she said during a telephone interview. “He was interested in trying to tell the story about his sister’s case, and he thought that we would potentially be a good match because of my experience with domestic violence.”
Underpinning the investigation is a narrative that details how the family has been torn apart.
More than just a simple story about who-done-it, Hill said she was interested in exploring “the lingering effects of trauma and how this has affected this one family.”
At the beginning, “we honestly felt as though the part about who’s responsible was sort of understood,” Hill added. “We thought that the parents probably had something to do with it when we first started, just because the police seemed to think that. So we weren’t necessarily challenging that but we wanted to understand how they came to that conclusion. That was really what was motivating us initially.”
Throughout the course of the show, this conviction is tested as more information comes to light, and what had seemed like a easy answer becomes more convoluted. After beginning the series completely estranged from his mom, Pandos comes to accept that she was not involved. In the final episode, they begin to tentatively mend their relationship.
Now, months later, it’s still “going,” he said. “We’re working on it. I think that’s where I am.”
Pandos also commended the work done by the James City County Police Department and the Commonwealth’s Attorney office.
“My experience with (them) for the last 14 years or so has been excellent,” he said. “They’ve really been good to me and kind to me and I’m deeply appreciative of all their efforts.”
The case is still considered open and has an investigator assigned to it, according to county police spokesman Tayleb Brooks.
In a media landscape saturated with true crime stories, Hill said she believes their series stands out because of how much time and investment they were able to give it.
“We had a good partner with HBO, who understood that this story required that kind of investment,” she said. “It’s a really important story, and I think that (with) missing girls and missing children in general — after the fact, people sort of just abandon the story, and for these families, it’s always ever-present, and I think that’s important for us to know.”
After nearly a decade of blood, sweat and tears, Pandos said he feels “some peace” with the documentary coming out.
“(I believe) that I’ve done all that I can do,” he said, “and (there’s a feeling) of being at peace with that.”
Learn more about the case at jenniferpandos.com and the “Finding Jennifer Pandos” Facebook page.
Sian Wilkerson, 757-342-6616, sian.wilkerson@pilotonline.com