For those of us who have taken it upon our hearts to communicate and work with family members of missing persons, there are always certain cases that one draws close to.
Help Find The Missing has always been a great source for me, and among the case information on missing persons can be found a lot of caring members. Low on drama and high on details and friendship has always been a requisite for me and they fit the bill!
One of the members there holds Samantha Smith, her case, and her family close to her heart. Living near the area from where Samantha vanished, she is able to get a first hand look at the facts and also speak to those who who were close to Samantha.
Many times waking hours are spent going over the clues, re-enacting the “what ifs” in your head, digging for anything new that might shed light on what could have happened to that person that seemingly vanished into thin air. It’s often a breath of fresh air to see that someone can make that missing person real to us, and regardless of media exposure (or lack thereof) and speculation, each missing person deserves to be more than a face on a poster.
She has made Samantha real to us just by the outpouring of her own feelings about her and her case. This is the one she wants desperately to be solved. Thanks for being the light in the darkness for Samantha!
Quoted :
Well, it’s here. November 5, 2009. Three years ago Samantha Renee Smith vanished! I can’t tell there is much difference in every day life… Few people in our area recognize her name. You never see her face on missing posters. The ones I put up are always gone within a day or two. You don’t hear Nancy Grace or any of the others for that matter, even mention her name. And believe me I have contacted many people in the media. Reminders of today and I hope, maybe one will run a story about her.
I wonder if the new police chief, or Safety Director, has ever heard her name mentioned.
You don’t see her face flashing on every other myspace you look at. Almost no one would recognize her face if it scrolled across the top of this site.
But, Someone knows. And one day we will all know.
God bless you Samantha.
Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance
Missing Since: November 5, 2006 from Clinton, South Carolina
Classification: Endangered Missing
Date of Birth: July 13, 1984
Age: 22 years old
Height and Weight: 5′3 – 5′4, 110 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: Caucasian female. Red hair, green eyes. Smith’s hair is naturally blonde, but it was dyed red at the time of her disappearance.
Medical Conditions: Smith has a history of depression and may be suicidal. She has attempted suicide multiple times in the past. In addition, Smith suffers from asthma. She was taking medication for both her conditions at the time of her disappearance and may be in need of medical attention.
Details of Disappearance Smith was last seen in Clinton, South Carolina on November 5, 2006. At the time, she was living with her boyfriend in a house in the 100 block of Leila Street. Her boyfriend stated they got into an argument about religion and Smith walked into a wooded area behind her home and never returned. Smith has never been heard from again. She left all her personal belongings behind, except her purse. There is no evidence of foul play in Smith’s case, and her boyfriend has been ruled out as a suspect in her disappearance, but it is unclear what happened to her. Smith is described as an intelligent young woman. She enjoyed photography, hiking and horseback riding at the time of her disappearance. She was a student at Piedmont Tech and made good grades; she wanted to transfer to Lander University and become an art teacher. She has dropped out of sight before, but never for this long, and her family believes she may have come to harm. Her case remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Clinton Department of Public Safety
864-833-7512
NATIONAL ROUND TABLE CONFERENCE FOR MISSING PERSONS - Coming March 2010
Who Should attended? Families of the missing, advocates, law officers, coroners, forensic specialist, search personnel (all types), non profit missing person organizations, government agencies, private investigations and more.
National Round Table Conference Goals:
- Sharing a trained and professional view for solving cold case and search there of; missing persons
- Understanding the resources available to be deployed when needed, what their capabilities are and how to obtain them.
- Exploring the relevant positive and negative experiences of people who have experienced a missing loved one.
- Creating new approaches to missing persons cases, and effectively deploying available resources; building communication and support
- Developing a high-level view of the modifications needed to our current resources and organizational community over the next five years.
Time: March 18, 2010 to March 21, 2010
Location: Holiday Inn Conference Center, Market Street
Street: Public welcome for all concerned or that has a missing loved one and or victim of crime
City/Town: Wilmington, NC
Website or Map: http://www.ncmissingpersons…
Phone: 910-343-1131 or 910-232-1687
Name: Gayle Moran
Alias: Clarkie
Date of Birth: 08/29/1939
Date Missing: 07/31/2009
Age at time of disappearance: 69
City Missing From: Lake Placid
State Missing From: Florida
Gender: Female
Race: White
Height: 5 ft 6 in
Weight: 225 lbs
Hair Color: Gray with brown undertones
Hair (other): Short/Straight
Eye Color: Hazel: Brown/Green
Complexion: Light
Identifying Characteristics: Glasses, scars from double knee replacements and right shoulder operation rotor cup. Birthmarks and numerous moles all over her body, both ears are pierced
Clothing: Dark lime green top and bottom, similar to a sweat suit or green t-shirt with elastic waist blue jeans. Brown or beige sandal type shoes, Purse, deep with strap. May have kept a red sweater in her vehicle.
Jewelry: Two gold rings, 1 wedding, 1 engagement, several bracelets, and wore two or three on each wrist. 24″ long necklace with a baby Jesus charm, Seiko gold watch, half circle gold rope earrings.
Circumstances of Disappearance: Gayle was last seen at home in bed at approximately 2:30am by her daughter, who was checking on her. Gayle seemed disoriented and was asked by her daughter if she wanted medical attention. Gayle indicated she was ok. Her daughter checked on her again at 3:45am, and found that both Gayle and her vehicle were gone. It is assumed that she woke up, dressed, and left in her 2006 red Nissan Murano with FL tags TO7-2XC. She has not been seen or heard from since. At the time of Gayle’s disappearance, her husband was terminally ill and was receiving in-home care. He passed away on 8/12/2009. There is a yellow paint scratch on the passenger side of Gayle’s vehicle where the front and back doors meet.
Medical Conditions: Limited mobility due to two knee replacements, right shoulder rotor cup surgery. Gayle has high blood pressure and diabetes. She takes medication, but does not have it with her.
similar vehicle:
Investigative Agency: Highland County Sheriff’s Office
Agency Phone: (863) 402-7200
Investigative Case #: HCSO090FF005471
NCIC# M278269797
CUE Center for Missing Person
PO Box 12714
Wilmington, NC 28405
(910) 343-1131 or (910) 232-1687
by Elizabeth Dunbar, Minnesota Public Radio,
Phil Picardi, Minnesota Public Radio,
Ambar Espinoza, Minnesota Public Radio
St. Paul, Minn. — It’s been 20 years since 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling, his younger brother and a friend set off on their bikes to rent a movie in St. Joseph one night.
As they rode back home in the dark, a masked man with a gun stopped them and told them to get off their bikes and lie face down in a ditch. After telling the man how old they were, 10-year-old Trevor Wetterling and 11-year-old Aaron Larson were told to run away.
Then the man took Jacob, who hasn’t been seen since.
Thursday’s anniversary, like past anniversaries, will likely come and go for Jerry and Patty Wetterling without them finding out what happened to their son. The Wetterlings and their three other children have learned to survive and cope through the years while never losing sight of the possibility that Jacob could turn up alive.
“That’s the grandest hope, and it’s certainly there,” Jerry Wetterling said this week.
The Wetterlings find hope in recent cases in which kidnapped children were miraculously found alive years later. They also know that anniversaries also often trigger new leads as law enforcement officials and the public hear about the case again through news media reports.
“It just seems to trigger more calls and people kind of researching their memory,” Wetterling said.
“Each time it’s emotional because you’re hoping for the one. And you’re waiting and yet it’s hard to get too into that particular lead because repeated, repeated disappointments of it not being the one can dampen your spirits,” he said. “You learn not to get too swept up into one particular lead.”
Despite the regular leads the Stearns County Sheriff’s Department still gets each week, little has changed in the Jacob Wetterling case. What has changed is how law enforcement officials handle missing children cases and track those who might kidnap or otherwise harm children.
States have established and toughened sex offender registries, and the national AMBER alert system was put into place to broadcast urgent bulletins when a child is abducted.
“The changes are dramatic,” said Ernie Allen, president and CEO of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. “More missing children come home safely today than ever in American history.”
Allen said AMBER alerts, sex offender laws and eliminating mandatory waiting periods for law enforcement to search for a missing child have all helped keep more children safe. So has increased awareness among parents, he said.
But there’s still room for improvement, he said, adding that sex offender registries must come with enforcement and consequences for those who violate the terms of their release.
“Our view is that at a minimum, we need to know where these offenders are,” Allen said. “Two thirds of these offenders are not in jails or prisons, they’re in our communities.”
The Wetterlings and Aaron Larson learned the hard way that a boy from a small town in Minnesota could be taken away so quickly. On the other hand, such incidents remain few and far between: Only in about 100 cases a year are children abducted and never seen alive again.
“This whole situation with witnesses there at night in the dark and with a gun and mask and all that — that’s very rare…kind of haunting,” Jerry Wetterling said.
The incident left Jacob’s best friend, Aaron Larson, troubled. He became scared of the dark, didn’t sleep well and worried the masked man would return.
“You would lay in bed and think about these things,” Larson told the St. Cloud Times.
Through the years, Larson has also thought about how things could have been different.
“That’s hard for me sometimes,” he told the newspaper. “Why am I still here and he’s not?”
Since the abduction, Patty Wetterling and her family have put their efforts into pushing for legislation to help keep children safe. The federal law requiring states to maintain sex offender registries has been in place since 1994 and is named after Jacob. Patty now directs a program on sexual violence prevention for the Minnesota Department of Health.
“The interest, the response, and I really believe the essence of Jacob himself and how he has captured the hearts of so many people … it’s kind of spurred us on to really try to make this better,” Jerry Wetterling said.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report)
Image by wallyg via FlickrNo more excuses, no more waiting, the time is NOW to take action to ensure that families with missing persons are taking this seriously. This is the help that so many have been waiting for. Don’t make them wait any longer! They deserve a voice and they deserve to have this bill passed into law.
You can read all of the details HERE then please copy and paste this letter and send to all of your elected officials! Then follow up with them by phone, fax or email until you get an answer! We NEED sponsorship and support NOW or this will die where it is. Please do your part~!
Thank you from all families with missing loved ones and those who care about them.
TO: Congressmen XXXX
FROM: Name – Address – City/St/zip
RE: H.R. 3695, The Help Find the Missing Act (Billy’s Law)
Dear Congressmen XXXXX:
Thank you, in advance for reviewing my letter and the information below. As a Representative of our district, I am hoping that you will support H.R. 3695. This is very important to me and as a member of our community I believe this is important to all, and hopefully to you as well.
It is no longer a rare occasion in which one may become a missing statistic, rather it happens more often than we would like. The growing number of citizens with Alzheimer’s and other cognitive disabilities also has shown a tremendous increase in missing loved ones, which also includes those with other cognitive disorders such as autism.
Your support, and those of your colleagues, are desperately needed. We feel if we do not gain support the bill will just die off. This bill is very necessary. We only want to have the gaps closed that will enable families of missing to have one source to be able to search for their loved ones.
Some recent published examples are:
* 200 unidentified bodies,in Florida, right now from 60’s and 70’s lying in wait in county morgues, unidentified. http://micurl.com/lyewu
* In Los Angeles, there are 4815 unclaimed. http://coroner.co.la.ca.us/htm/ucplist.cfm
Every year tens of thousands of Americans go missing, never to be seen by their loved ones again. Additionally, there are also an estimated 40,000 sets of unidentified human remains that are being held or disposed of across the country. Sadly, because of gaps in the nation’s missing persons systems, missing persons and unidentified remains are rarely matched. The Help Find the Missing Act (Billy’s Law) is an effort to fix these gaps. We want to help families to have the resources so that we can lessen the burden on the system as well as bringing loved ones home for a proper burial.
Please review the below and help by supporting H.R. 3695
Filling in the Gaps of the Nation’s Missing Persons Systems
Endorsed By: Connecticut Department of Public Safety, National Forensic Science Technology Center, National Center for Forensic Science, Doe Missing Persons Network, Center for Hope, Families of Homicide Victims and Missing Persons, Inc.
Sponsored by Representatives Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Ted Poe (R-TX)
This legislation is named after Billy Smolinski of Waterbury, Connecticut who went missing on August 24, 2004 at the age of 31. Billy’s family knows all-too-well the systemic challenges in trying to find the missing. They quickly learned that while federal law mandates law enforcement report missing children, there are no such requirements for adults – or unidentified bodies. Compounding this problem is the fact that local law enforcement agencies, medical examiners, and coroners, often don’t have the resources or training to voluntarily report these cases. Finally, even when missing adults and remains are reported, the wide-range of unconnected federal, state, local, and non-profit databases to help match the missing with unidentified bodies, makes finding a match an often insurmountable challenge.
Billy’s Law builds upon recent efforts to address these issues by:
* Authorizing, and therefore helping to ensure funding for, the National Missing Persons and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs), which was created in July 2007 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to provide a missing persons/unidentified database that the public could access and contribute;
* Connecting NamUs with the FBI’s National Crime Information Center (NCIC) in order to create more comprehensive missing persons and unidentified remains databases and streamlining the reporting process for local law enforcement;
* Creating an incentive grants program to help states, local law enforcement and medical examiners/coroners report missing persons and unidentified remains to NCIC, NamUs, and the National DNA Index System (NDIS);
* Calling on the DOJ to issue guidelines and best practices on handling missing persons and unidentified remains cases in order to empower law enforcement, medical examiners and coroners to help find the missing.
In closing, I thank you again for your review and hopeful support. Should you have any questions or needs, I am sure that Representative Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Ted Poe (R-TX) would be honored to respond to your inquiries.
Respectfully,
XXName
XXAddress
XXCity/State/Zip
XXPhone Number
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