Overview

Missing: Michael Lawrence “Mike” Griffin
Date Last Seen: March 1, 1958
Age: 18
Last-Seen Location: Reported as either San Pedro, California, or Las Vegas, Nevada
Traveling With: Donnis Marie “Pinky” Redman, age 14
Case Status: Endangered missing / unresolved
Key Evidence: Griffin’s white 1950 or 1951 Dodge Clipper was discovered abandoned in Williams, Arizona several days after the couple disappeared.
NamUs #: MP11219

Michael and Donnis reportedly left Southern California intending to travel to Las Vegas, possibly to elope. Neither was heard from again. The discovery of Michael’s abandoned vehicle hundreds of miles away in Williams, Arizona, became the most significant known physical clue in their disappearance.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Michael Lawrence Griffin Disappearance: The 1958 Cold Case From San Pedro to Las Vegas and Williams, Arizona

Brief Case Summary

Missing: Michael Lawrence “Mike” Griffin
Date Last Seen: March 1, 1958
Age: 18
Last-Seen Location: Reported as either San Pedro, California, or Las Vegas, Nevada
Traveling With: Donnis Marie “Pinky” Redman, age 14
Case Status: Endangered missing / unresolved
Key Evidence: Griffin’s white 1950 or 1951 Dodge Clipper was discovered abandoned in Williams, Arizona several days after the couple disappeared.
NamUs #: MP11219

Michael and Donnis reportedly left Southern California intending to travel to Las Vegas, possibly to elope. Neither was heard from again. The discovery of Michael’s abandoned vehicle hundreds of miles away in Williams, Arizona, became the most significant known physical clue in their disappearance.

Michael Lawrence Griffin and Donnis “Pinky” Redman Disappear in 1958

Michael Lawrence Griffin was 18 years old when he vanished on March 1, 1958, while traveling with his 14-year-old girlfriend, Donnis Marie Redman, known as “Pinky.”

Michael was described as 5 feet 3 inches tall and approximately 120 pounds, with red hair and hazel eyes. He had undergone orthodontic treatment to straighten his teeth, and two or more teeth may have been removed during that treatment.

The couple lived in the San Pedro area of California. According to longstanding case summaries, Michael and Donnis traveled from San Pedro toward Las Vegas, Nevada, reportedly intending to elope.

There is an important inconsistency in the historical record. Some databases describe Las Vegas as the couple’s last-known location, while others list San Pedro, California as the location from which they disappeared. Because the surviving public documentation is limited, it is unclear exactly where or by whom the couple was last independently seen.

Michael Griffin’s Car Is Found Abandoned in Williams, Arizona

Several days after Michael and Donnis disappeared, Michael’s vehicle was located in Williams, Arizona.

The car was described as a white 1950 or 1951 Dodge Clipper with twin exhaust and loud mufflers.

Williams is east of Las Vegas and near the Grand Canyon region. The car’s appearance there significantly widened the geographic scope of the mystery. If Michael and Donnis reached Las Vegas as believed, something subsequently brought Michael’s vehicle more than 200 miles east into northern Arizona.

No confirmed public account establishes who drove the car to Williams, when it arrived there, why it was abandoned, or where Michael and Donnis went afterward.

Neither Michael nor Donnis has been confirmed alive since March 1958.

The Grand Canyon and “Little Miss X” Connection

One of the most discussed theories surrounding the couple involves unidentified human remains discovered in northern Arizona.

In October 1958, female skeletal remains were discovered in the Grand Canyon area. The unidentified teenager became known as “Little Miss X.”

Items found in connection with the area included a nail-file case bearing the letters “P” and “R.” Because Donnis was known as “Pinky” Redman, the initials and the proximity to Williams led to speculation that the unidentified girl could have been Donnis.

Published case material has subsequently reported Donnis as excluded from the Little Miss X identification. However, the history of the unidentified remains is complicated, and online researchers continue to discuss what testing or evidence formed the basis of various exclusions.

The Little Miss X theory therefore remains an important part of the historical discussion surrounding the Griffin-Redman disappearance, but it should not be presented as proof that the unidentified girl was Donnis.

Unidentified Male Remains Were Investigated as Possible Michael Griffin

Another major development came decades after Michael disappeared.

Unidentified skeletal remains belonging to a teenage male had reportedly been discovered in a crate at a Flagstaff-area funeral home. Investigators eventually considered whether the remains might belong to Michael because of the estimated age and the connection between Michael’s abandoned car and northern Arizona.

The remains were exhumed in 2010 so investigators could conduct additional forensic testing.

Later published accounts state that DNA comparison excluded Michael Griffin as the unidentified male.

That exclusion was significant: a promising northern Arizona lead apparently did not provide the long-awaited answer to Michael’s disappearance.

Other unidentified-remains cases have also been discussed in connection with Michael. Public NamUs-derived material concerning another Flagstaff-area unidentified male, UP9861, lists Michael Griffin as a missing-person exclusion.

Why the Williams, Arizona Evidence Remains So Important

The abandoned Dodge remains one of the strongest known pieces of evidence in the case.

If Michael and Donnis voluntarily left California for Las Vegas, the couple’s original disappearance could initially have appeared to be a teenage runaway or elopement. But an abandoned vehicle in Williams without any subsequent confirmed communication from either person creates a very different picture.

There are several unanswered questions.

Who last saw Michael and Donnis together? Did anyone independently confirm their arrival in Las Vegas? Who last saw Michael driving the Dodge? Exactly where in Williams was the vehicle located? Was anything missing from or left inside it? Were fingerprints or other evidence recovered? Was the vehicle searched using the forensic techniques available at the time?

The limited public record does not provide definitive answers.

Latest Investigation Information

Michael Griffin remains publicly listed as missing, and no confirmed resolution of his disappearance was located in current publicly accessible case information.

The Charley Project continues to classify him as endangered missing and identifies the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department as the investigating agency. NamUs-derived case information identifies Michael as MP11219.

A newer missing-person database entry created in March 2025 also continues to list Michael Griffin, age 18, as having disappeared from San Pedro, California on March 1, 1958. This supports the conclusion that the case remains unresolved rather than closed by an identification.

The case also continues to receive public attention. In 2025, The Path Went Chilly revisited Michael and Donnis while examining the Little Miss X mystery and described their disappearances as unsolved.

Public discussion continued into February 2026 on Websleuths. Researchers raised questions about the historical basis for the reported elopement and whether Michael and Donnis explicitly told anyone that they intended to elope or whether that explanation developed after they disappeared. Those discussions are independent research and should not be confused with official investigative findings.

No reliable public announcement located as of August 2026 indicates that Michael has been found, that his remains have been identified, or that anyone has been charged in connection with the disappearance.

Questions That Remain Unanswered

More than six decades later, the central questions remain remarkably simple.

Did Michael Griffin and Donnis Redman actually reach Las Vegas?

Did they voluntarily drive from Las Vegas to Williams?

Was Michael still driving his Dodge when it reached Arizona?

Did the couple encounter someone during their trip?

Were they victims of an accident in the remote northern Arizona landscape?

Or did something criminal happen after they left California?

Without locating Michael, Donnis, or additional physical evidence, none of these possibilities can currently be established as fact.

Michael Lawrence Griffin’s Case Remains Unsolved

Michael Lawrence Griffin was only 18 when he disappeared.

What apparently began as a trip involving two young people from San Pedro became a mystery stretching across three states and nearly seven decades. The abandoned Dodge in Williams remains a critical clue, but it has never publicly yielded a definitive explanation for what happened to Michael or Donnis.

Modern DNA analysis, forensic genealogy, digitized newspaper archives, unidentified-remains databases, and renewed examination of historical evidence have solved cases once considered impossible.

Michael Griffin’s disappearance remains one of the cases still waiting for that breakthrough.

Anyone with information concerning Michael Lawrence Griffin or Donnis Marie Redman should contact the appropriate investigating authorities.