Naked Lady Ghost?

I came across a ghost story that was featured on TV back in the 90s. In the story, a woman and her 3 year old child go missing on a dangerous stretch of Highway 50 near Sacramento. A few days later, A couple driving on the same stretch of road see a naked woman on the side of the road. They notify the police who search the same stretch of road, but no one else sees the naked woman.

The next day in the daylight, the police drive around the area where the naked woman was reported and see a child's shoe on the road. When the officer gets out to investigate, they find the wreckage of a car down a ravine, and subsequently find the dead woman and a naked 3 year old boy, still alive. The naked lady was never found.

The conclusion in the story is that the ghost of the mom was the naked woman that was spotted on the side of the road.



The problem with this conclusion, like so many other ghost stories, is that there is a much simpler explanation.

I offer up this link to the original news story that was featured in the L.A. Times:
[link to articles.latimes.com]

From the article:
"Certain mysteries remain about the case. Police were initially alerted by a motorist's report of a naked woman on U.S. 50. But no such woman was found. However, the boy was nude. His clothing was in the car, Strasser said."

I think we can safely say that the ghost woman was actually the 3 year old boy.
1) The shoe was found at the top of the highway, implying he probably climbed to the top of the ravine
2) The child was found naked
3) The mother was pinned in the card and could not get out

Humans have a horrible tendency to jump to absurd conclusions. By applying a small amount of logic, most things can be explained quite naturally.

Thoughts? Opinions?