Jarita Naistus was 20 years old when she was found dead in a Lloydminster hotel room in 2006. She had been strangled and beaten to death. Naistus was from Onion Lake First Nation, Saskatchewan. Her case has gone to trial twice. The first time, there was a guilty verdict. That verdict was appealed, it went to trial again and this time the accused Alberta trucker was found not guilty of second-degree murder. The family told CBC at the time that they hoped the police would continue to look for new evidence.

Jean Virginia Sampare, 18, was one of six kids in her family. Her family calls her Ginny. On Oct. 14, 1971 her cousin Alvin saw her for the last time. She was standing near a bridge on Highway 16, outside her hometown, Gitsegukla, British Columbia. More than 40 years later, New Hazelton RCMP have not solved the missing persons case, and it’s been a decade since they gathered DNA samples from Sampare’s siblings.

Jeanenne Chantel Fontaine, 29, was a mother of three who lived in Winnipeg but was originally from the Sagkeeng First Nation, north of the city. People who knew her said she could light up an entire room with her bubbly and lively personality. Her family said Jeanenne was in the middle of turning her life around for herself and her children. On March 14, 2017, she was shot and killed inside her home before her house was set on fire. In May 2017, three men were charged in the death of Jeanenne. Christopher Mathew Brass and Jason Michael Meilleur have both been charged with manslaughter and Malcolm Miles Mitchell is charged with second-degree murder. Brass and Mitchell have also been charged with arson-disregard for human life. According to the police, her death was connected to the drug trade, however, Jeanenne was not the intended victim.

Jeanette Basil was a 33-year-old single mother to one son. On August 1, 1985 she was robbed and stabbed to death on Hastings Street in Vancouver while visiting from Prince George, British Columbia. Her son was with his father at the time. The Vancouver Police Department is investigating the homicide, and have made no arrests in the case.

Jeanette Marie Cardinal, 40, was a mother of five children. She moved to Edmonton in late 2010 from Slave Lake, Alta. On Feb. 7, 2011, the Beaver Lake Cree Nation woman’s body was discovered by a repairman inside her eldest daughter’s apartment. In December 2016, Dana Fash, 38, was charged with second-degree murder. His next court date is on October 28, 2014.

Jeanine Marie St. Jean, 42, was last seen alive in Schreiber, Ontario, with two men. It’s perhaps an innocuous detail, but not after a 911 call led police to find her body in November 2006. There have been rumours about why she turned up dead, but Ontario Provincial Police never laid any charges.

Jeannette Jean Chief, 48, was an outgoing woman who loved going on walks and spending time with family, she was just shy of turning 49. On June 2, 2007 she went missing after leaving a bar in Lloydminster, Sask. Four days later, the mother of seven was found dead in a rural area about 16 kilometers north of the city. Gordon Alfred Rogers, 61, of Red Deer, Alta., pleaded guilty to second degree murder in the death of Chief and another First Nations woman, Violet Heathen who was killed in 2009. In January 2018, he was sentenced to two life sentences with no eligibility of parole for 17 years.

Jennifer Catcheway, 18, phoned her mom on June 19, 2008 to say she would be home in Manitoba’s Portage la Prairie that night to celebrate her 18th birthday, but she never arrived. Her parents say they have not spoken to officers in years, but continue to search for Jennifer themselves. In October 2017, her family spoke at the MMIWG inquiry hearings in Winnipeg and they believe the RCMP never handled the case correctly and don’t even know who the detective is assigned to her case. On June 19, 2018, Jennifer’s 28th birthday and 10 years since she disappeared, her family celebrated and mourned. “She would’ve had a chance to have a family, be married, because she would have been 28 now,” said Bernice, Jennifer’s mother. Each year the family has an annual fundraiser to raise money for their summer and fall search efforts. To mark the anniversary, this party had a fireworks show and the Portage la Prairie mayor and council and First Nations leaders were in attendance.

Jessica Cardinal’s sister Tamara says she “didn’t belong [on the street.] She was a really good person.” On June 14, 1997, Jessica, 24, was found strangled to death in an alley behind a commercial building in Edmonton’s North End. There have been no arrests or charges in her homicide, but Tamara believes she was killed in retaliation for a drug theft. Cardinal’s case is being investigated by Project KARE. Tamara believes if police had acted quickly on a tip they received, they could have located her sister’s killer.

Joanne Ghostkeeper was a generous and kind woman who would give you her last dollar if you needed it, her mom, Mary Willier, said. She was found dead in her Edmonton apartment on Dec. 25, 1996. The 24­-year-­old mother of two had been strangled with a telephone cord. Her death is considered a homicide, but there have been no arrests or charges. The Edmonton police historical homicide unit has the case and says any new information received will be investigated.

Josephine Chakasim, 17, was from Moosonee, Ont. She went out for the night on April 21, 1977 and never returned home. Her body was found in the water next to a railway track one day later. A coroner determined she had died of exposure and the Ontario Provincial Police closed the case. In October 2017, police announced they were reopening her case. Det. Insp. Gilles Deparatto said they requested a review of the forensic pathology which said they could not rule out homicide. A case manager is expected to review persons of interest and DNA. Her family alleges that evidence in her case, including bruises and cuts on her body were originally overlooked because she was Indigenous.

Joyce Hewitt was 22 when she was seen for the last time in Edmonton, Alberta. Her body was found in Sherwood Park, Alberta on Oct. 19, 1997. According to Alberta RCMP spokesperson Roxanne Beaubien, Hewitt had a high-risk lifestyle. Her case is being investigated by Project KARE, an RCMP unit that investigates the death of and strives to prevent the murder of vulnerable persons in Alberta.