Circumstances of Disappearance
Campbell was last seen by a pay phone outside the 7-11 on Highway 190 in Copperas Cove, Texas on April 25, 1988.
In 1988, Elizabeth was 20 - and thinking about leaving home for the first time. She had decided to attend Texas A&M University the next fall to study marine biology.
In the meantime, she was attending Central Texas College near Killeen and was working in a 7-Eleven store there. On April 25, 1988, Elizabeth went to class at the junior college, then to work at the 7-11 store on Rancier Avenue in Killeen, Texas by the East Gate of Fort Hood Army Base.
She left work and went to her boyfriend's house to begin studying for the last final exams. Sometime during the group study, an argument had broken out, and sometime after 9:30pm to about 10pm, Elizabeth started to walk, the 30-mile trip home to Lampasas. Her most direct route was down Highway 190 - a road that is dark and desolate for long stretches.
Police suspect somebody gave her a ride from Killeen to a spot near Central Texas College, about six miles down the road, but no one ever has come forward.
At 10:48 p.m., near the exit to the college, Elizabeth was spotted by a fellow student walking along the highway. The young man offered her a ride, and, at her request, dropped her off at a 7-Eleven store in Copperas Cove.
Elizabeth arrived a little after 11pm at the 7-11 in Copperas Cove. Elizabeth used the payphone outside the 7-11 to call her family to come and pick her up. Her mother was awakened by the telephone ringing in the dining room, a little after midnight. By the time she got up, the phone had stopped ringing.
Elizabeth's purse was later found and turned into the Crockett County Sheriff in Ozona, Texas off I-10. Employees could not recall when the purse was brought to the office in Ozona, 225 miles west of San Antonio. The purse, in good condition, apparently had been in the Sheriff's Department property room for years, unnoticed and unexamined. Keys, a hairbrush and lipstick were missing from the purse, which contained Campbell's driver's license, Social Security card and a credit card.
Elizabeth is described as very bright, with high moral standards. She had a good upbringing. And she was obedient to her parents. She was described as naive, and not knowledgeable about dangers in society.
The boyfriend was immediately cleared as a suspect.

A sketch of a possible suspect is shown below.

Left : Campbell's purse Right : Sketch of possible suspect