Nancy Grace Cold Case

Amy Mihaljevic disappeared 20 years ago this week. Please consider her story.

I have added a link to your blog, onto my own. And I hope it's alright if I promote your site and recommend it by using some of the "Cold Case" examples.

I would like to bring to Nancy's attention an entire class of cases that are routinely allowed to become cold: those of U.S. citizens who disappear while traveling abroad. My brother, Joe Dunsavage, disappeared in Honduras on May 10 of this year. Ron Scheepstra disappeared in Mexico the month before that. David Gimelfarb disappeared in Costa Rica in August. Currently, two young British men - Michael Dixon and Alex Humphrey - are missing in Costa Rica and Panama, respectively. These are only the cases I know of, and they all have occurred in the past 6 months. They have two things in common: the men vanished without a trace while on vacation and their families were left to quickly educate themselves in search & rescue, international relations, and media relations because their countries have no standard operating procedures for such cases.

I have started the Missing Americans Project (www.missingamericans.ning.com) to begin helping families like ours and to lobby for transparency and accountability on the part of our State Department and Foreign Offices. Nancy, it would be wonderful if you could look into this topic, as no one else in the mainstream media seems to want to. I will hope to hear from you.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/04/02/ohio.missing.girls/index.html

I am wondering if the disappearance of these girls has anything to do with the Imperial Street Murders here in Cleveland? Just an observation.

Jeff I hope you find out what has happened to your brother!
Is there any chance that he had traveled out of Honduras to another country?

I also hope Nancy will run a segment on these disappearances.
I will visit your website.
Best of luck!

I do not miss an episode of Nancy Grace. This beautiful lady is out there for only one reason and that is to be a VOICE for our missing children. I am now a grandmother and no one knows how much I wished I could have seen Nancy in one of her court hearings. I believe this woman has more love for the lost children than any mother could have. I pray that she is going to hang in there until little Hailey Cummings is found, and bring a justice to this grieving mother and father. I will always be greatful for how she "just knew" that Casey Anthony was the killer of little Caylee. I pray that Nancy continues to have good health and can continue the work she is doing for our little ones. God bless Nancy and those BEAUTIFUL twins. Betty

Christina,

I'm no professional but I do have my degree in criminal justice and have studied behavorial patterns of criminals for over 10 years.

In my experience, serial killers tend to kill within their own racial demographic (as displayed in Sowell's known victims thus far - all black women just as he is black), they also tend to have similiar lifestyles (all drug users & "ladies of the night").

I feel like connecting the unfortunate disappearances of those three young ladies to Mr Sowell would be incorrect and off the mark.

There was a study done by the Behavioral Science Unit in the FBI that concluded that 85% of the world's serial killers are in the US. Unfortunately for us, that means there's a lot of sick people preying on innocent ones in our country.

Glenn Mattox, Jr. 1964-1982 (murdered in a hit and run) no one has been held responsible.

And although my cousin, Angelina Calabrese, cold case has been solved because he was a minor at the time he only got 5 years in prison for murder.

Please remember little Francillon Pierre, who disappeared from the Broad Acres Swap Meet in North Las Vegas, Nevada, over 25 years ago. I used to live in that neighborhood about that time, and since I had young children just a bit older than Francillon, I never forgot his sweet innocent face on TV and in the newspapers. It is hard to emphasize to my grandchildren that their parents MUST know where they are at all times. Yet, I remember the days of my own innocence as a child. I wandered miles from my neighborhood with friends, and we were never bothered by anyone. Children just can't do that any longer. Our innocence as a nation is gone.

The bloggers on Daily Kos have churned and rechurned the waters on lost boys.

I sure hope Nancy that you can get to the bottom of these child disappearances and remain well. We are all here to help you.

In response to Jeff''s comments regarding missing persons abroad. All I can say is that when traveling abroad is one of the most dangerous things one can do. Especially in a country where there are political, drug wars or poverty. There is a US Gov website that provides a list of countries along with all the warnings that need to be taken when traveling abroad including the food & Water. Oddly enough most of the victims you memtioned are men and in most cases I would say not the first to be targeted. If they were targeted then they must have left their guard down. By that I mean drank too much, jogged in an secluded area, entered an area of high crime ect..I doubt that the US will ever investicate the dissapearances of Citizen abroad because of too many factors including cost and political differences. I will pray for the safe return of your brother as I do every day for those that have been missing. I wish you the best of luck with your Organization.

I have been and still am a member of BFN we there will never for get Natalee Holloway not just she missing in Aruba because we belive tha there are those in Aruba who waht happened to her and who did it but will not let that be knowen. What I need to konw is why whom ever they won't tell unless they are in some responable why not give her mom and dad closure.

Thanks, Bannah. My brother was out on a small catamaran with an outboard motor of the shore of the island of Roatan. According to the drift assessments, he could have made landfall on mainland Honduras, Guatemala, or Belize. We had an extensive, privately funded search, as well as a brief but very thorough search by the U.S. military and the Belizean Coast Guard. Where it gets complicated is (remember, this is right before the coup), we got reports, corroborated by a doctor in Honduras that an American was being treated for dehydration in a specific Honduran hospital. Whenever anyone involved with the search contacted the hospital, though, the person changed to a Spaniard, a Honduran, wasn't being treated for dehydration, never existed in the first place... The U.S. Embassy didn't send anyone to check – they relied on "local liaisons." So, the case is suspicious, to say the least, and none of our national media care to touch it. I'm hoping now with 4 more cases (2 in Costa Rica, 1 in Mexico, 1 in Panama) there will be more interest. People need to know and understand the dangers of traveling in this part of the world.
Jeff
http://www.missingamericans.ning.com

Hi Nancy. I was wondering why haileigh cummings little brother wasn't questioned or possibly hipmotized to find out what he actually say when they said he saw a man in black? Do you know how deeply they investigated this? Do you know why they haven't addressed that the teenaged ex-stepmom woke up at like 3am an found her missing, and then just sat there until the children's father came home from work several hours later? I have been checking up on this case and found it hard to believe that the police just gave up and decided she must be dead. They need to get the truth out of that Misty. She may have traded the little girl for drugs or something. I am surprised that ron (i think his name was) -the father didn't get the truth out of misty when they were "so in love". If he found out something before the big fall out in their relationship and marrige. Has a psychic like Sylvia Brown stepped in? When my uncle was murdered the psychic help solve the murder. I hope you will keep us updated on this case.

Jeff, I am so sorry to hear about your brother. I pray he will be found safe. Maybe Nancy will air an episode on this. She is a wonderful, compassionate person and I love her show. She is a strong voice in America and I am so glad we have someone like her to help where she can. She has 2 beautiful children and if anyone deserves to be a mother she does. I pray she will help you.

Has anyone noticed the frequency of abductions in the last year or so besides me (OMG!!!!!!!!!!!! its just one right after the other . Could this be coming full circle from all the perverts our legal system has set free over the years. They are going continue to do it because there are no consequences for there actions. The prisons will fill up again and they will get a free pass out so they can hunt and rape murder and torture more children it is so scary ,while corprate America gets there bonuses and first shot at the H1N1 flu vaccine ( what a scary place to live .

Thanks, Kathy. Whatever attention people can bring to this issue is important. It's so much bigger than my family's loss – people get into trouble, it happens. But the U.S. State Department has a responsibility, through its embassies, to assist the families and to have a standard operating procedure for dealing with missing U.S. citizens abroad. That is what we're fighting for now.

Jeff
http://www.missingamericans.ning.com

Nancy,

Can't you run a segment on these missing people. I don't think people are aware of how more common these disappearances have become. And people assume that everyone will help them when a loved one is missing. But the truth is....the family is on their own most of the time. This is especially true when they are missing in another country (not their own). It is sad to see how many people really don't care. But let it be a celebrity or a well known person that becomes missing. Then everyone helps.

Nadia

My husband, Ronald Scheepstra disappeared while on a fishing trip to Xcalak, Mexico on April 11th of this year. Ronald had been to this location twice before and flyfished literally all over the world. This is not the first time he has been in a remote location. Because Ronald is a dual citizen of The Netherlands and the US, I have been able to attain assistance from the Dutch Embassy. The US Consulate has not been nearly as helpful. People need to be aware, if you are in a foreign country and something goes wrong...the US Consulate is NOT going to offer much assistance. Ronald is listed on http://www.missingamericans.ning.com
as well as Texas EqquSearch.com and findronscheepstra.com.
Nancy, I have contacted you before. I have found that there are many other families going through the hell of not knowing what happened to their loved one. Please help us by calling attention to this terrible problem and that the US Government does very little to help find their citizens. Kind Regards
Cindy Scheepstra

Ortiz – Thanks for your kind thoughts. You raise a couple of really important points around the fact that the 5 missing people we know of since Ron Scheepstra vanished are all men. You indicate your perception that men would not tend to be the most likely targets – but where does that perception come from if not from the media? By only paying attention to cases of missing women – specifically, attractive white women – the media reinforce the perception that men traveling in the Third World have little or nothing to worry about. This clearly is not the case. In my brother's case, he was tooling around in a Craig Cat catamaran less than 200 yards from shore; David Gimelfarb, a teetotaler, disappeared while visiting a national park at 11 in the morning with 300 other tourists; Ron Scheepstra was fly fishing with three buddies and left them briefly to go to his car a quarter mile away. Alex Humphrey, as far as I know, disappeared under circumstances similar to David's. The circumstances of Michael Dixon's disappearance are still a bit unclear, but there is no evidence that he was engaged in risky activity. The mistake all these guys made was being alone in the Third World, however briefly. A lot of education is needed around this issue – I sure hope Nancy Grace takes it on.

Jeff Dunsavage
http://www.missingamericans.ning.com

Three months ago today, David Gimelfarb disappeared while hiking with 300 other tourists in Rincon La Vieja National Park in Costa Rica. Seven months ago today, Ron Scheepstra disappeared while fly fishing with friends in Xcalak, Mexico. Six months ago yesterday, Joe Dunsavage vanished while boating in the shallows around Roatan, Honduras. Common elements:

1. American men who made the mistake of being alone in the Third World however briefly.
2. U.S. State Dept. and the national media care not at all about them or their families.

Please keep these men and all other who've disappeared and who will disappear (because there will be more) in your prayers and ask your senators and representatives what they're doing to bring about accountability and transparency in these situations from the State Department.

Jeff Dunsavage
http://www.missingamericans.ning.com

There are literally hundreds of Cold Cases, missing Persons, and Unidentified John and Jane Does all across this country. Everyday there are regular, everyday people working on thier own time to help Law Enforcement resolve these cases.

The online forum that I belong to, http://www.websleuths.com, has been instrumental in helping give numerous unidentified bodies their rightful identities back, and help provide Law enforcement information that they may not otherwise have the time to dedicate to individual cases, especially cold cases. I invite everyone to come to Websleuths, look around, and even join us. You can also add threads on cases close to your heart if we don't already have one.

As a nation, we have to come together, or the evils in society will win.

her mother was very irresponible for leaving her daughter with this idiot, he is just a boyfriend, wow what a title...and why would he leave her (only a whopping 2) in the car alone....they are probably responsible.

On behalf of Joe Dunsavage, David Gimelfarb, Ron Scheepstra, Michael Dixon, Alex Humphrey, and all of the other people we don't yet know about who have vanished without a trace in Central America I implore you to devote a segment to these cases that are permitted to "go cold" because the U.S. and U.K. governments can't be bothered to pursue them. You truly ever know who will see them and perhaps help.

Dear Nancy: Both my husband and I love your show and watch it faithfully. You do such a wonderful job at getting the news out to find the lost children. We were saddened to hear the news about Shaniya. Such a beautiful little girl. It makes one wonder how people could do such things. We were wondering if you could have a follow up show the odd time to let people know about updates on the children who have not been found yet and what is still being done to find them. (children like little Haleigh and Trenton Duckett) Thank you so much for all you do. Your twins are beautiful. Bill & Heather

The Missing Americans Project (www.missingamericans.ning.com) is growing in membership and traffic. We now have members in the U.K., Australia, and Honduras, as well as traffic from all over the world. I have requested a Congressional investigation into whether and to what extent the political situation in Honduras immediately prior to the coup affected U.S. embassy willingess to quickly and appropriately become engaged in the search for Joe Dunsavage and follow up on actionable leads provided by the family. Stay tuned.

In October of 2000, Kristen’s Act was passed unanimously by the 106th United States Congress, and signed into law by then President Clinton. As a result – The National Center for Missing Adults (NCMA) was created to assist and provide resources to the families of missing adults. In 2005: Kristen's Act Reauthorization of 2005, H.R. 2103, was left unaddressed by the United States Congress, cutting the funding to the NCMA and forcing them to close their doors. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) receives over $35 million dollars per year to assist with missing children cases. But their is no funding to assist with the cases of missing adults. The families are left to search and find resources on their own. I believe this is a little known fact and is something that should be changed.

HI NANCY,

HOW ARE YOU? I WATCH YOUR SHOW ALL THE TIME! I THINK YOUR GREAT. THE TWINS ARE ADORABLE!
I WAS WONDERING WHAT HAPPENED WITH HALEIGH CUMMINGS.
HAS SHE BEEN FOUND? IF SO HOPEFULLY ALIVE.

PLEASE LET ME KNOW.
THANK YOU , DIANA

Another missing American in Latin America – this one Leo Finley of Columbia, Mo., who disappeared early Christmas morning from the island of Roatan, Honduras. The Missing Americans Project (www.missingamericans.ning.com), sadly, continues to grow. Local authorities are not equipped to investigate, the U.S. State Department does not want to get involved, and yet another family is left to try to piece things together. The State Department needs standard operating procedures that will ensure accountability and transparency when U.S. citizens disappear or are murdered outside our borders.

Every since I saw this beautiful little girl on CNN I have been wondering if there was any update on her where about. I am very frustrated that the boyfriend left her to go in the store and then didn't say anything until he drove to pick up the mom. Women do stupid things and this child should not pay for it. I do believe he did something to this little girl. If he was so concerned about picking up late, which I do not buy. If he was he would have tried to find her first before he left and I truley believe he had some help.I read on another website that her race and ethnicity background is not correct in the missing children database. They have her listed as white and she is not. I know you have alot of things to do and many stories to correct. I hope that somone actually reads these blogs and can relate this information. Working on becoming a Social Worker and reading stories like this is the main reason for my career change. I hope to help as many as I can because the world talks the talks but doesn't walk the walk and she shoudn't have a door closed on her. Please Please Please look into this case again. Thanks

With the latest disappearance of healthy American males (this time, two at once: Miami residents Richard Alicea and Edwin Pritchard, in the Bahamas), traffic to and membership in The Missing Americans Project (www.missingamericans.ning.com) has increased markedly. Eight men missing in the region in 10 months with a boatload of suspicious similarities. Why American, European, and Australian males between the ages of 28 and 49? Why no ransom requests? And, most important, why do their governments not care? You can follow the Missing Americans Project on Twitter (@MissingAmerican – note, no "s" at the end). Help us in our search for people and for answers.