On August 30, 1990, a transient woman was arrested by police in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, for littering. The woman bore a resemblance to Meehan, and the arresting officer initially believed it to be her. On September 1, the woman appeared in a Kootenai County court, where she claimed before the judge to be a missionary traveling between Montana and Washington. Although the reported sighting made news in The Seattle Times, it was confirmed through fingerprint analysis that the woman was in fact not Meehan. Speaking to the media and law enforcement, Fletcher noted there was a "strong resemblance" and that the woman had a similar voice to Meehan's.
