We Found Something

We Found Something

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It has been a busy weekend for KlaasKids. We facilitated a meeting between the Sierra LaMar Search Center, her family and Congressman Jerry McNerney (CA-11) on Saturday morning. Simultaneously, we participated in an important grass roots rally on behalf of Proposition 35 in Elk Grove. After that Violet and I drove to Sacramento where KlaasKids Foundation SAR Director Brad Dennis was facilitating a weekend worth of searches for missing UC Davis coed Linnea Lomax. Then we found something.

Congressman McNerney is the first member of Congress to visit search center since Congressman Mike Honda (CA-15) visited on June 6. Both members of Congress have expressed support for a legislation being considered as a result of Sierra’s disappearance. The new law would close the loophole that allows schools to wait until the end of the day before notifying parents that their children did not attend school.

Violet Klaas, Daphne Phung, Rosario Dowling & Me!

Proposition 35 continues to pick up support as Election Day approaches on November 6. Currently, U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, and Congresswoman Jackie Speier lead a list of more than 60-elected officials who publicly support the anti-trafficking ballot measure that will also bridge Megan’s Law into the 21st Century. They are joined by law enforcement groups representing more than 90,000-sworn police officers and more than 125-child advocacy organizations throughout California.

Linnea Lomax is a 19-year-old coed student who disappeared on the early afternoon of Tuesday June 26 after walking away from an outpatient mental health facility near the American River in Sacramento, California. The day before, June 25, Linnea had been released from a psychiatric facility where she was recovering from a psychological breakdown. On July 4, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department absolved themselves of any responsibility for locating Linnea, despite her fragile mental state, when they said, “Circumstances suggest she is, by all accounts, voluntarily missing and choosing to stay away from friends and family.” Potential sightings, theories and tips that initially flooded the tip line set up by Linnea’s family have since been reduced to a trickle.

Left to their own devices the family hired a private investigator to lead the search for Linnea. He focused his investigation on human sex trafficking. KlaasKids assisted this effort by monitoring known websites that advertise escort and erotic services up and down the West Coast, but nothing of consequence turned up. Despite no real evidence that she was involved in the trafficking trade valuable weeks were devoted to that singular scenario. Finally, the family let the private investigator go and eventually asked the KlaasKids Foundation to conduct a search of Linnea.

Linnea’s family runs a Christian kids adventure camp near Sacramento. She has grown up among the pristine hills, canyons, valleys, and rivers of Northern California’s Sierra foothills. She was raised near in and around nature, and has a very strong sense of natural surroundings and the environment. She would not leave an orange peel at a camp site out of a concern that the next camper might be offended.

This past Friday, Saturday and Sunday KlaasKids sent 230 search volunteers on 40-search assignments. Search volunteers were a combination of family, friends, others drawn from the faith based community, complete strangers, and KlaasKids friends from the Bay Area. The sun was shining brightly and the temperature was in the high 80-90’s range. We focused the search on the American River for two reasons. It was near the mental health facility that she was last seen at, and she was familiar with and loved the American River. It almost always makes sense to focus a search near the last place the victim was last seen.

Linnea’s Notebook

On Sunday afternoon one of the search teams found it. Linnea’s notebook, the one she was holding when last seen was there…in the bushes only two blocks away from the mental health facility. It was near a foot path heading toward the river. It seemed to have been flung into the bushes. Our team leader contacted the search center and the authorities. Linnea’s father confirmed the sighting. Now the evidence needs to be processed.

Fifty-four days after she disappeared we have developed our first solid lead. We believe that Linnea tossed her notebook into the bushes. Much can be read into that, but it is not my place to do so. What I do feel comfortable pointing out is that in the past five months we have sent out somewhere in the neighborhood of 9,000 volunteers on approximately 900 search assignments in and around Morgan Hill and we have not found anything relating to the disappearance of Sierra LaMar. Stay tuned for updates.

Posted in Brad Dennis, KlaasKids Foundation, missing adult | Tagged | %

Connecticut Justice or a Travesty of Justice?

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On Friday, August 10, 2012, Connecticut Superior Court Judge Thomas Corradino awarded $52,666 in damages to Madeline Gleason, the former girlfriend of missing person and presumed murder victim Billy Smolinski. Gleason had sued Smolinski’s family members for severe emotional distress, claiming that they had posted missing person posters about Billy near Gleason’s home and the bus route that she drove. That the Judge agreed with her is nothing less than a travesty of justice.

One of the proven techniques for recovering missing runaway children and adults is to post flyers of those children in neighborhoods where they are thought to be hiding out, and at venues where they are known to hang out: places like malls and fast food outlets. The goals are many: to acquire credible leads; and to hopefully flush out the missing person and encourage them into returning home. An objective of this technique is to see if the flyers are removed from a particular location. If so, you may be closing in on the missing person or the person responsible for their disappearance.

Jan & Bill Sr. with their son’s missing flyer

When your child is missing, you want to get the word out. You talk about it, you post flyers and you beg for television time. If you can make enough people award of a missing child, you have a greater chance of affecting a recovery, whatever that means. In fact, that is the theory behind the Amber Alert program.

That is why missing person flyers are ubiquitous in our society. They are in storefronts in communities where children are missing, and they are a staple on cable television shows like Nancy Grace and Issues with Jane Velez Mitchell. Broadcast television features missing persons regularly on shows like Dateline, 48 Hours and 20/20. Missing person profiles, discussion groups and real crime forums have proliferated in social networking communities in recent years. Even Walmart features missing persons in all of their facilities through the United States. In fact, it is difficult to avoid missing persons in modern society, so for a judge to legitimize the convoluted claims of an ex-girlfriend, who was caught on camera tearing down those flyers, is unconscionable.

Of course, there is more to this story than missing person flyers. We know that Madeline Gleason was cheating on Billy Smolinski with another man, a married local politician, and that Billy disappeared shortly after finding this out. We know that a multi-jurisdictional law enforcement task force believes that Madeline Gleason’s son killed Billy Smolinski. Unfortunately, we also know that the Smolinski family continues to grieve and search for their beloved son.

Billy Smolinski and his dog Harley

I’ve known Jan Smolinski for many years. She is an honorable woman who is heartbroken that her son has been missing and presumed dead for nearly 8-years now. Like me, or the family of Sierra LaMar or any of the other parents of missing kids who stare teary eyed into the camera and say that, “We will never give up hope,” and defy stark realities, Jan Smolinski is a crime victim. The state should be protecting her, ensuring that she has the right to maintain her dignity and be treated with respect. Instead, because of the actions of Superior Court Judge Thomas Corradino, she and her family are being re-victimized by the power of an entire state. They have not only lost their son, but are in jeopardy of losing their life savings.

One of the fundamental functions of government is to protect the innocent and shield victims of crime. Instead Connecticut has chosen to pile indignity upon loss. This is heartbreaking and should not be allowed to happen. When a culture choses to devour the downtrodden, than that culture has lost its way.

Posting missing person flyers is protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Or is it? What kind of message is being sent if one can become liable to legal action for simply posting a flyer of a missing person, regardless of whose neighborhood or bus route it is posted in?

 

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The Glass Half Full and Child Safety

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It was expected to be 106 degrees in Patterson, CA yesterday. Packing lightly, I left my apartment to pick up Danielle [LaMar] from the BART station – ready to head down to the inferno we all call central California. Our three hour mini-roadtrip, though hilariously misdirected as we crossed Sacramento County when we were supposed to be going south, was smooth sailing as we caught up on each other’s lives and the latest in both of our family’s cases.

My first time doing a KlaasKids Print-a-thon was in Patterson nearly a year ago – the October right after we found Michelle. At that time, I was adjusting to a new normal as I started involving myself with the organization that helped find her. That October, I promised myself, Michelle and KlaasKids that I would be involved with this team for the rest of my life.

It was a strong commitment to make, to say the least. Recently, with the trial coming up, I have been reflecting on this new normal that I’ve made and how rapidly and dramatically my lifestyle, hobbies and attitude have changed as a direct result of her death.

I have always believed in optimism – making and seeing things better and brighter. Michelle’s murder presented what was possibly the most challenging situation to be optimistic about; it was senseless, cold, brutal violence that gashed into our lives and made us realize how dark and evil human nature really can be. We, as a society, see robberies and crimes every day on the news, hear about weird zombie cannibals on bath salts, maybe mingled briefly with others who have faced tragedies of their own – but until you taste the same sense of bitter anger, confusion, hopelessness and desperation for answers, you feel shielded from all the world’s woes.

Then there are families who are brave enough to hear about the world’s woes, and not only acknowledge, but face the fact that they should be preventative about protecting their children. Not by avoiding, but embracing, the conversation about child safety.

Danielle, Marc, Violet and I headed to the Patterson festival ready to meet and help those families.

Also joining KlaasKids was Tabitha Cardenas, who lost her own 4-year-old son in early 2011 in Patterson. I had a chance to meet Tabitha last October; she is truly a strong woman with a beautiful smile that seems to defy all that happened to her and her young boy.

At print-a-thons, there is no darkness. Parents line up with their little ones whose ages range from a couple months old to 18 years old, ready to get them fingerprinted and ID-ed. We meet children and teens of all sorts of personalities – from super hyper to rebellious to autistic or with a mental disability – but all children have the same thing in common. They are all lovely, young and trusting – all with the potential to be lost or kidnapped.

These parents wait in line to do one of the best things they could do for their children – prepare to talk to them about child safety. They watch proudly as their child gets fingerprinted and laugh as their sons and daughters smile broadly at our camera. They know that it’s better to be safe than sorry, that the conversation about child safety isn’t something to avoid – that it could be fun and educational.

At the end of the day, we fingerprinted over 260 kids and met dozens of families and parents in the sweltering heat of Patterson. Over 260 kids went home with their bio sheets, safety tips and DNA kits. Hopefully, over 260 kids will have the conversation with their parents about child safety and crisis prevention.

I left the print-a-thon with a spoonful more optimism.

KlaasKids’ print-a-thons have historically helped over a million children. We can only hope our families’ stories helped 260 kids at Patterson; heck, we’d be happy if our families’ stories helped even one more family out there.

A year ago, I was in a dark place. Now I find myself in love with our organization, our searches and the volunteer heroes that we get to interact with on a daily basis. If the abductors, kidnappers and murderers expected our families to back down and whimper at our losses, I hope they know that our optimism overpowers whatever power they think they have. That our loved ones’ legacies far outweigh their pitiful, rotten existences.

Now that’s looking on the bright side of things.

As Danielle and I head back to the East Bay, the temperature drops to a thankfully cooler 88 degrees. The sun is shining brilliantly as we wish those 260 kids the happiest – and safest – futures that they could have.

Posted in KlaasKids Foundation, Krystine Dinh, Michelle Le, Print-A-Thon, Sierra LaMar, Uncategorized | Tagged | 2 Comments on The Glass Half Full and Child Safety

Vote NO on Prop 34: Judge Changes False and Misleading Statements by Prop 34 Proponents

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California killers Clarence Ray Allen, Richard Allen Davis, Richard Ramirez, Scott Peterson

Sacramento County District Attorney Jan Scully, a statewide Co-Chair of Californians for Justice and Public Safety – No on 34 – today issued the following statement following the decision by Sacramento Superior Court Justice Timothy Frawley to change false and misleading statements made by Proposition 34 proponents in official ballot arguments as part of their campaign to eliminate California’s death penalty.  Nearly every major public safety organization in the state opposes Prop 34 because it will embolden criminals and endanger California.

“We appreciate Judge Frawley’s thoughtful decision, which upholds our position that the Proponents of Prop 34 are waging a deceptive campaign in an effort to eliminate the Death Penalty.

Convincing a Judge to change ballot statements is an extraordinary action.  Judge Frawley agreed with us that Prop 34 proponents’ attempt to suggest that the measure’s $100 million appropriation was a result of alleged savings is false.  He rightly acknowledged that, if Prop 34 passes, $100 million will be taken from the State General fund, regardless of whether or not any money is actually saved. There were other assertions by the proponents in their ballot arguments that the judge labeled as ‘hyperbole” or “opinion’.  Translation – their assertions are exaggerated claims or opinions.

California voters deserve better. Consumers must get accurate and honest disclosure of what is contained in the products they buy, or District Attorneys can prosecute the manufacturers for consumer fraud.   Said another way, they can be prosecuted for false advertising and unfair business practices.

Sadly, there are no standards for honesty and accuracy for special interests and political campaigns.   If we did, Prop 34 proponents and those who have long sought to eliminate the death penalty wouldn’t get to use hyperbole or be allowed to mislead by exaggeration.  It should be noted that Prop 34 supporters did not challenge a single statement by our side.  That’s because we stick to the facts and respect voters who have consistently and overwhelmingly affirmed the Death Penalty as a just sentence in cases where a murder has been committed with special and horrific circumstances. Never, in the arguments made by those who support repealing the death penalty do you hear them talk about the victims of the killers they seek to save.

Well that stops today. Of course the murdered victims cannot speak, but there are victims who can.  They are the families of murdered victims that lost a loved one at the hands of a cold-blooded killer.  Our campaign will give them a voice to speak out about public safety. And that’s what is important…public safety.  Justice…the right of Californians to live in a safe community.  Today is the first defeat for the Proposition 34 campaign.  The next one will be on Election Day, when voters reject the hyperbole and opinion and stand up for California by voting No on 34.”

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Sierra LaMar: Anatomy of a Search Day 120

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Beauty attracts…everyone!

With Violet at the Birds Nest Stadium

Violet and I enjoy the Olympics so much that we attended in Los Angeles in 1984 and Beijing in 2008. For two weeks every four years we try to clear our calendars so that we can spend the evening watching the amazing athletic competitions, hopefully without being undermined by smartphone or Internet spoilers.

But, truth be told, one of our favorite aspects to the Olympics is simply watching the athletes. Demonstrating dazzling displays of power and speed, Olympic athletes shine on the world stage at the peak of physical perfection, dazzling billions of awe struck onlookers with feats of unequaled athletic ability.  We can see it in their clear focus, scrubbed complexions and toned muscles. They are, simply put, beautiful!

Sierra LaMar

After the Olympics I sometimes go to bed as my thoughts drift toward the search for Sierra LaMar. Like my own daughter Polly, Sierra was doing nothing wrong. She was simply a girl minding her own business when her life was invaded by a fatal attraction that changed everything. An attraction triggered by youthful beauty and fueled by madness.

Beauty can propel you to superstar heights. It can bring you happiness and the adoration of millions. Beautiful people seem to walk a path through life that simply appears under the red carpet. They have an ease of confidence and success seems to come more readily. Beauty doesn’t even require personality as it exists of its own accord.

However, beauty does have its downside. It attracts everybody and not everybody has best of intentions. When beauty attracts the beast the consequences can be dire because sometimes the beast cannot simply admire, but must possess. And the beast cannot share, but must consume. Then beauty ceases to exist and the beast turns his attention elsewhere, seeking out more beauty. It goes on and on and on until it is stopped.

Polly Klaas and People Magazine

Polly always wanted to be on the cover of People Magazine, and to take care of her father when she grew up. I always thought that she had the all American beauty and talent to achieve that goal. Well Polly was propelled onto the cover of People Magazine by a fame that was as unpredictable as it was unwanted. Now, I sit in the back of Town Cars, or watch the Olympics and reflect on the nature of beauty.  If you are fortunate you become adored and walk life along the red carpet. If you are unfortunate and your beauty attracts the eye of evil, you may never have the chance to achieve your dreams or fulfill your potential.

Beauty is a double edged sword that can propel you to the heights of glory or drag you into the depths of some psycho’s personal Hell.

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Sierra LaMar: Anatomy of a Search Day 116

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Antolin Garcia-Tores

The recent plea hearing for the individual accused of kidnapping and killing Sierra LaMar demonstrated yet again the preferential treatment afforded to criminals. The defendant waived his right to appear in court and his lawyers asked for the hearing to be postponed while they subpoena cell phone records currently under seal. The judge granted a continuance until August 29, when a plea may be entered. This shadow maneuver only postpones the inevitable since it is guaranteed that the defendant will plead not guilty to all charges. I agree with the Constitutional guarantees that Sierra’s accused killer must treated fairly, but what about her family. Shouldn’t they have rights too?

In order to guarantee equal protection under the law the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution, otherwise known as the Bill of Rights, provides fundamental rights to individuals who are accused of crimes. Those rights include: the presumption that the defendant is innocent, the burden on the prosecution to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, the right to remain silent, confront witnesses, have a public trial by jury, be adequately represented by an attorney, not to be tried twice for the same offense, and the right to a speedy trial.

32 states have amendments in their Constitutions that guarantee some level of victims’ rights, and more than 32,000 statutes have been passed in states and at the federal level that define and protect the rights of crime victims. These rights vary from state to state, but tend to include: the right to notification of proceedings and to attend proceedings, the right to be heard, the right to compensation, and the right to protection.

The major distinction between defendants’ rights and victims’ rights is that the United States Constitution guarantees the rights of defendants, while the rights of victims are guaranteed by either statute or a state’s constitution. The word victim does not exist in the U.S. Constitution and victims of crime have virtually no legal standing in the ultimate law of the land. This means that there is no equity under the law. The rights of defendants will always trump the rights of victims.

The only way that crime victims will ever receive equal treatment in the criminal justice system is through the passage of a crime victims’ amendment to the United States Constitution. Amending the U.S. Constitution is a difficult process. Amendments must be proposed to the states by a two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress, and then be ratified by three-fourths of the states before it becomes law. Currently, there are 27 amendments to the United States Constitution.

It is an unfortunate irony that constitutional rights created to protect the innocent now shield the guilty. In 2010, U.S. residents age 12 or older experienced an estimated 18.7 million violent and property crime victimizations. That is down from 2001, when we suffered 24.2 million violent and property crime victimizations. When millions of American citizens’ lives are forever impacted by the violent actions of others, we need to take steps to protect their rights as we do the rights of the accused.

What can we do to rectify this imbalance? A bi-partisan effort to create a Victims’ Rights Amendment fell short about a decade ago. Sponsored by Senators Diane Feinstein (D-CA) and Jon Kyl (R-AZ), and with the support of Presidents Clinton and Bush, the proposed amendment never made it to the states for ratification.

However, House Joint Resolution 6, currently before the United States Congress would establish a Victims Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. If passed, H. J. Res. 106 will give victims of crime the right to fairness, respect, and dignity. Victims will further have the right to reasonable notice of and ability to attend public proceedings relating to the offense; the rights to be heard at any release, plea, sentencing, or other such proceeding. My sources tell me that 100 co-sponsors will bring House Joint Resolution 6 to the House Floor for a vote! We need to act now before the legislative session draws to a close. Your voice matters!  Visit www.congressmerge.com/onlinedb to find your Representative, call him or her now and ask him or her to co-sponsor H. J. Res. 106.

Thomas Jefferson

We should never lightly amend the United States Constitution. However, victims of crime will never be fairly treated by a system that does not afford them equal fundamental rights, and that can only be achieved through constitutional amendment. Thomas Jefferson eloquently stated the need to occasionally modify the ultimate law of the land: “I am not an advocate for frequent changes in laws and constitutions, but laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind. As that becomes more developed, more enlightened, as new discoveries are made, new truths discovered, and manners and opinions change; with the change of circumstances, institutions must advance also to keep pace with the times.”

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Sierra LaMar: Anatomy of a Search Day 115

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Anger and forgiveness have been on my mind lately. Not that I carry unfettered anger against any person, place, or thing. Indeed, my anger is directed toward those things that I cannot change. Neither do I want to forgive or be forgiven by anyone. Rather, it is in the context of the Sierra LaMar mystery that my musings wander. It is only a matter of time before the question so often asked of Sierra’s parents and sister, “How are you feeling,” morphs into “Can you let go of your anger”, and “Are you ready to forgive”.

I am inevitably taken to task for my failure to forsake anger and my unwillingness to offer forgiveness to Polly’s killer.  Such criticism is borne of inexperience and a lack of knowledge.  Losing a child, like having a child is an epiphany.  The miracle of birth underscores and highlights unconditional love like no other experience can.  When that connection is broken by unrestrained violence it becomes a boundless, cosmic betrayal that tests every emotional, spiritual and physical value.

Anger is not the negative emotion that is so often portrayed.  We need not deny or stifle anger.  Instead we can use anger to make the world a better place in which to live.  If used correctly and divorced of violence anger can be an enlightened agent of change.  I believe that anger motivated Gandhi, King, Mandela, and many other agents of change throughout history. These men were very angry about the injustice heaped upon their constituency and it was anger that drove them toward the peaceful strategies that enabled them to change the world and return the gift of equality to more than a billion oppressed humans.

There are those who suggest that we should forgive, that forgiveness makes us better people and that forgiveness is a necessary component of an evolving society.  However, to forgive for sins committed against others is presumptuous and disingenuous.  It would be like me forgiving Hitler for murdering six million Jews during World War 2.  Forgiveness for murder is not ours to give.  The only ones in a position to forgive murder are the victims and, by definition, the victims are dead, which makes murder the unforgivable sin.

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Sierra LaMar: Anatomy of a Search Day 112

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The Kitchen Ladies: MA, Loretta, Margaret, Vivian, Mary

Everybody loves the kitchen ladies because they take good care of the volunteers. They make sure that there is breakfast in the morning, and lunch in the afternoon. They always have a smile on their faces, they never complain, and they work very hard to ensure that everybody eats often and well. And really, don’t we all want grandma to serve us a well prepared meal after a hard day’s work?

For lunch today we had MA’s cheese enchiladas and pinto beans, tostadas, Roger’s spaghetti, Vivian’s stuffed bell peppers, green salad, fresh vegetables from Loretta’s garden and Vivian’s dessert buffet. Yumm!!!

I learned an important lesson about food and volunteers shortly after Polly was kidnapped in 1993. One day about a month after Polly disappeared; a television reporter named Doug Murphy, who was covering her case at the search center, directed my attention to the food line where the original kitchen ladies were facilitating lunch. When he said, “You know that if you stop feeding people they will stop coming,” I knew instinctively that he was right. “You have to feed volunteers,” he said. If they’re out looking for your daughter all day they need nourishment when they come in from the field.” Now we make sure that meals are covered whenever KlaasKids conducts a search for a missing person.

Polly Klaas Search Center

KlaasKids works with an online true crime forum called Websleuths to feed volunteers in the early days of the search. Our good friends at Websleuths pool their resources if they cannot find any local restaurants to donate breakfast and lunch. We usually go with pizza, sandwiches or burritos, because they’re affordable and delicious. However, once local businesses realize that we are conducting a serious search effort for a missing person in their community they almost always find a way to contribute to the food effort.

It’s really about more than providing nourishment though. There is a profound comfort quality to food that is universal. We associate it with friends, family, and fellowship. We anticipate a good meal. Hmmm! Sometimes I anticipate a mediocre meal, but that’s another story altogether. We experiment with recipes, and take solace in creating something that will stimulate the senses as it puts a smile on the faces of others. Food lets us forget trial, tribulation and stress for short periods of time and has the power to catapults our minds to foreign shores. It brings us together around dinner tables, restaurants and picnics in the park. Food helps to define our identity. A good meal can also be a solitary adventure, although it is always better to have somebody to share the love with.

When Violet and I first met Sierra’s family back in March we showed up at her mom’s house with a picnic meal. We knew that the family was freaked out about Sierra’s disappearance and wanted to remind them to eat and know that we really cared. Once we went inside we weren’t surprised that Marlene’s house was already full of meals donated by friends, neighbors and well-wishers. Food is comfort as food is love.

With Sierra’s family and the kitchen ladies

Like so many others they showed up early in the search effort and asked what they could do to help. They quickly gravitated toward the kitchen and started putting the pieces of their department together. During the first couple of months it was about rationing food prepared and donated by others. But more recently they have been anticipating volunteer numbers and doing much of the cooking themselves. They even make sure that there are no onions in the chili so that Danny can have some.

Theirs is not a thankless job because everybody loves food and everybody loves the kitchen ladies. However, it is a difficult task. Thus far 8,400 volunteers have helped to search for Sierra and none of them have gone home hungry. In fact, each and every volunteer has been served a filling and yummy meal. It may be a small gesture, but the kitchen ladies make sure that it is one from the heart.

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Sierra LaMar: Anatomy of a Search Day 98

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Genaro Garcia Fernandez & Antolin Garcia Torres

As the seasons change the fresh hope of spring yields to the dog days of summer, yet missing 15-year-old Sierra continues to elude our grasp. Unpicked summer fruit falls from trees, bushes and vines’, spoiling in the unyielding heat of late July, but it is the putrid stench of rotten fruit that commands our attention. A pair of child rapists, a father and his son, resides in the Santa Clara County Jail, protected from other prisoners who jeer, threaten and, given a chance, would possibly slit their throats.

The father, Genaro Garcia-Fernandez, crimes spanned a decade, as he lurked within the walls of his home sweet home and serially raped his pre-teen daughter with regularity and certainty. His boy, Antolin Garcia-Torres, preferred a blitzkrieg strike against unsuspecting females. He’d rather prowl for victims in a supermarket parking lot at night or the blustery storm shrouded early morning roads in his hometown of Morgan Hill, CA.

He was a good student though. His father’s crimes taught him that it is best to strike in isolation and to leave no witnesses behind. In a rational world, one would hope that the son would atone for generational perversion by coming clean with his God and the authorities. Unfortunately, the psychopath is not rational: his only God is instant self-gratification; and the authorities will only learn the details that advance his needs. Now, it is only a matter of time before the sins of the father establish the foundation for the defense of the son.

Danielle, Marlene, Krystine & Violet

Enough about the dark side: the Sierra search has demonstrated that hope reigns eternal, and that the powers of good can triumph over the power of evil. On Saturday, more than 70-volunteers showed up to search for Sierra. The morning prayer circle gave thanks for the cloudy skies and temperature that hovered in the low sixties. As usual, the search teams left hopeful that this would be the day that the case was resolved. In the meantime, we prepared for the child ID Program, requested by Sierra’s mother Marlene, which was scheduled from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Making Kids Safe

The KlaasKids Print-A-Thon has traveled the country since the mid 90’s. We have fingerprinted and photographed more than 1,000,000 children without charging a family for the service or data basing personal and private information. We provide a suite of child safety tools in hopes of providing families with information they can share to avoid a victimization in the first place. However, if there is an emergency we provide a 9-point plan on what to do in case of an emergency.

The weather did not fully cooperate. When the teams returned later in the afternoon, the skies were blue, the sun was beating down and we had fingerprinted and photographed more than 130 children. It is our hope that we have provided young families with a viable path to child safety. Unfortunately, Sierra’s whereabouts remain unknown.

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Sierra LaMar: Anatomy of a Search Day 91

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Car Wash

Car wash baby!!! Last Saturday the Sierra Search Center better resembled the Sierra Social Center. 70 search volunteers signed up to find Sierra. They ate a good nutritious breakfast and set out in the rapidly warming day to see if they could finally crack this case. For all intents and purposes, it was shaping up as another routine day in the search for the missing teenage girl whose pretty, smiling face looks back at us from virtually every telephone pole and storefront window in Morgan Hill.

The car wash began at 10:00 a.m. under the supervision of Sandina and Cassie, two teen aged search center regulars. Plenty of kids showed up to help, and Sierra’s dad Steve brought soap, sponges, and towels. Cars began arriving right on time so the kids broke up into teams: two teams washing and two teams drying.

Roger’s Birthday Party

The amazing kitchen ladies passed out: no, wait, they didn’t pass out, they distributed some donated ice cream bars to the kids washing cars. Many declined and worked through the increasing heat. We even had to force some of the kids to take a break for lunch. Danny Domingo and Peggy Chou, Violet and Marlene LaMar joined in to help out. While they were no match for speed, their efficiency and good humor put them right in the groove. Returning searchers put their cars in line before debriefing. By the time the last car passed through the lot at around 3:00 p.m. more than 100 had been washed and $1,300 had been raised.

As this was going on a monster birthday card was being distributed among the volunteers. Longtime volunteer and search team briefing ace Roger Nelson was about to have a birthday party and he didn’t have a clue. When the cake and card were presented to him with a barely recognizable rendition of happy birthday he had the most bewildered look on his face, but accepted his surprise with grace and good humor. Then he ate two pieces of cake.

Unification Project

Finally, Danny and Peggy posted their unification project on a rare blank space on one of the auditorium walls. Volunteers who had only met in passing could finally put a name to the face. They were also able to learn why we had been brought together for this higher calling. The unification project will continue to grow until we find Sierra. Collectively I like to think of the auditorium walls as the walls of wonder, because in the face of harsh reality, they scream a message of hope and redemption.

KlaasKids Print-A-Thon

Next week we continue our team building with a free Child ID Program. KlaasKids will provide this valuable free service in the Search Center auditorium between 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. We have providing Print-A-Thon’s throughout the country since 1994. Thus far we have fingerprinted and photographed more than 1,000,000 without ever charging a family for the service or data basing any personal or private information. Because we use the most sophisticated equipment we can capture viable fingerprints on children as young as 4-months old. We are hoping that the community turns out in large numbers because this valuable service provides a comprehensive suite of child safety tools at no cost. It will also give everybody an opportunity to see the walls of wonder for themselves.

Posted in missing children, Print-A-Thon, Sierra LaMar | Leave a reply