Porcelain dolls left at 8 California homes resemble homeowners' daughters

SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. -- Orange County sheriff's deputies identified Thursday the woman who anonymously left porcelain dolls on the doorsteps of at least eight homes in San Clemente that resembled the daughters of the families who live in the home.

The woman told deputies that her daughters were getting older and didn't play with the dolls anymore, so she thought other girls might want them. She meant the dolls to be an act of "goodwill" and intended them to be a kind gesture, sheriff's deputies reported.

The dolls were left in the Talega community in San Clemente over the past week. Although no crime was committed, sheriff's investigators collected the dolls as evidence and worked with the families to find a connection between the homes.

Investigators discovered that a woman who lived in the community attended church with many of the families. The woman admitted to deputies that she had placed the porcelain dolls.

No further investigation was expected.