Anna Christian Waters (Missing 1/16/1973 from Half Moon Bay, CA)

[Dr. Doogie]

Many of you have suggested that a website be created in an effort to publicize the search for Anna. After careful consideration, Annasmom and I have decided to not persue that avenue at this time. This forum is serving the purpose of getting people aware of her ongoing disappearance and we are concerned that an additional website would at least be a duplication of what is occuring here and at worst be a distraction from the work at hand. We recognize that other families of missing children have chosen to go that route and respect their decision, but Annasmom does not feel that it is the right answer in Anna's case at this moment.

One avenue that is being explored is the logistics of Annasmom publishing her manuscript of the search for Anna so far. This would create some publicity (at least in the local SF Bay Area media) that could develop new avenues of investigation. We are looking into either going the usual route of having the book produced by a publishing house or perhaps self publishing a small quantity for media distribution. I am a printing manager by day, so I have access to various tools that would help us through the self-publishing process.

One advantage of self publishing is it would reduce the "lead time" for getting the book out and in circulation much soon than the standard publishing model. Another advantage is that large publishing companies do not produce books out of the goodness of their heart - they are in it to make money (this is why you see more books about Britney Spears than you do about missing children). Self-publishing would allow Annasmom the ability to keep the focus on finding Anna, not producing a profit.

 

[HeartofTexas]

Dr. Doogie, I think that's a great idea. I've heard the 300 page manuscript mentioned a couple of times but wasn't sure what Annasmom intended to do with it. I think self-publishing it, and especially since you know something about the subject, is a good idea for getting the information out to the public ASAP. Once it's printed, you might also put something about it here on WS (perhaps in the Websleuths book forum) because there may be posters that would like to buy it.

The only thing I can see against not doing a webpage for Anna would be the further opportunity to advertise the book to whoever visits the site. I also understand, though, any personal decisions made along those lines because it's quite possible that a website would create more emails and solicitations than anyone would be interested in dealing with.

Best of luck to both of you in your new pursuit.

 

[Kelly]

Has anyone in Anna's family considered contacting this agency? I know very little about it but it certainly appears to be a legitimate agency. Their services are all volunteer so I assume there are no charges. You have to submit an application to be accepted so there is no guarantee they will accept Anna's case, but it might be worth a try.

Here's the url for the website:

http://www.missingkin.com/

They are legit. I have worked with one of their PI's myself. There is another one as well that you can submit an ap to in the hopes of getting a pro-bono PI. These links are in my packet of resources I give to families if they have the need. I will send the other one to Anna's mom.

 

[gardenmom]

Good luck and God Bless Annasmom whatever she decides. I live near Sacramento and there is a teacher here at Sierra College that published a book on Japanese interred people. I know they published a very small amount of books that were mainly distributed locally to the college and Japanese community. If you are interested I can contact her and ask her about the process, or I can put you in touch with her if you both agree. I don't think she can help other than let you know what the process is. They may have done everything on campus, but that may also be a cheap route and a good project for someone to work on for college credit.

 

[Annasmom]

Kelly I LOVE the idea of the "Tell me who I am" series!!! I think it would be great if Anna was featured! Anna's Mom, what do you think?

Pondering: I've been in touch with Kelly and she plans to include Anna in her postings. Thanks for the suggestion (Kelly had mentioned it before, but I got distracted and didn't get back to her right away.)

 

[Annasmom]

Good luck and God Bless Annasmom whatever she decides. I live near Sacramento and there is a teacher here at Sierra College that published a book on Japanese interred people. I know they published a very small amount of books that were mainly distributed locally to the college and Japanese community. If you are interested I can contact her and ask her about the process, or I can put you in touch with her if you both agree. I don't think she can help other than let you know what the process is. They may have done everything on campus, but that may also be a cheap route and a good project for someone to work on for college credit.

Gardenmom (love the name), Doogie has contacts for printing, but it would be helpful to have some advice on distribution, if he/we decide to take this route. Thank you for your offer.

 

[Annasmom]

They are legit. I have worked with one of their PI's myself. There is another one as well that you can submit an ap to in the hopes of getting a pro-bono PI. These links are in my packet of resources I give to families if they have the need. I will send the other one to Anna's mom.

Thank you, Kelly. I need to check with Doogie to see whether he thinks this is appropriate, since there is already a PI on the case pro-bono at this time.

 

[Annasmom]

someone mentioned the pictures of the keys what if you posted them online asking locksmiths to identify the keys a good locksmith could probably tell you where they were manufactured or where they were sent out to

Good idea. I'll look for the pictures.

 

[altruist1000]

Hello, I have read through this thread & have the same question as Mary Green did, regarding the friend who came to visit the house, meeting Anna at the front door.

This appears to be the last person who SAW Anna on the day of the disappearance, it is gathered (speculated by Annasmom) that Anna went to the front mailbox ( was the mail brought into the house? )what caused this speculation?, although it is speculated that Anna disppeared from the backyard. Was the friend still at the home when it was realized that Anna was no longer playing in the back yard? Could the sound of the friends car arriving have caused Anna to leave the back yard? Do you think that adequate attention was paid to the friend that day? Was the friends automobile ever searched? I doubt it as an abduction was not thought about it until the physical search of the immediate area had been performed. I like Mary Green, after reading the thread, find the friend to have many areas of question, to my minds eye. Did the friend remain a friend after Anna's disappearance?

Thanking you, in advance, for your patience in addressing the above concerns & questions.

 

[Annasmom]

Hello, I have read through this thread & have the same question as Mary Green did, regarding the friend who came to visit the house, meeting Anna at the front door.

This appears to be the last person who SAW Anna on the day of the disappearance, it is gathered (speculated by Annasmom) that Anna went to the front mailbox ( was the mail brought into the house? )what caused this speculation?, although it is speculated that Anna disppeared from the backyard. Was the friend still at the home when it was realized that Anna was no longer playing in the back yard? Could the sound of the friends car arriving have caused Anna to leave the back yard? Do you think that adequate attention was paid to the friend that day? Was the friends automobile ever searched? I doubt it as an abduction was not thought about it until the physical search of the immediate area had been performed. I like Mary Green, after reading the thread, find the friend to have many areas of question, to my minds eye. Did the friend remain a friend after Anna's disappearance?

Thanking you, in advance, for your patience in addressing the above concerns & questions.

Altruist: I'll try to answer all your questions. Anna went to the back yard to play, but she had seen our neighbor opening mail, and it is possible she went around to the front yard to collect our mail (which had not yet been delivered; the neighbor was opening mail from the day before.) The friend who saw Anna at the front door was questioned extensively since, as you said, he probably was the last person to see Anna. He helped in the initial search of the property and was in touch with the family for some time after that. I believe the law authorities also questioned him. I am certain that this person had nothing to do with Anna's disappearance. Yes, it is true that the sound of the friend's car approaching may have caused Anna to open the gate and go into the front yard; however, she did not come into the house when the friend did, and it was about fifteen minutes later that we realized she was missing. No, his car was not searched. This was a young guy who was dating (I think) my neighbor, who was talking to us in the house at the time Anna disappeared. The last time I saw Anna was when she went out the back door of the house into the (fenced) back yard, but the friend told us he had greeted her in front of the house as he was coming to visit. Hope this answers some of your questions and gives you a better picture. Thanks for your concern.

 

[itsreenw]

This was a young guy who was dating (I think) my neighbor, who was talking to us in the house at the time Anna disappeared. The last time I saw Anna was when she went out the back door of the house into the (fenced) back yard, but the friend told us he had greeted her in front of the house as he was coming to visit. Hope this answers some of your questions and gives you a better picture. Thanks for your concern.

Annasmom, I'm confused. Was your neighbor visiting with you inside your house when her boyfriend came to visit her and as he was approaching he saw Anna in the front yard? Or was it the neighbor's boyfriend that came to visit you? You mentioned he was younger-I assume your neighbor was too. Was it common that the neighbor or her boyfriend to come visit at your house? Just trying to determine if there was any odd behavior on the neighbor's /neighbor's friend's part.

Was the gate to the back yard a high fence or one that Anna could see over, like a picket fence?

 

[Annasmom]

My (female) neighbor was in the house, talking to me, and her friend came to the front door. I have been in contact with the neighbor all these years; the boy friend was questioned, gave statements, stayed with us the whole day that Anna disappeared, and stayed in contact with the family for some time. There is not an iota of suspicion attaching to either of them. The fence was a picket fence and Anna could have looked through it; also, the gate may have been open, as it often was.

 

[altruist1000]

Thank you Annasmom.

 

[Joe Ford]

Here are a few pictures of the canyon where the ranch we lived on is located. This will give you some idea of just how rural it is. Hope the URL works.
(click on pictures to enlarge)
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0BYs2jJoxYsXJw

 

[HeartofTexas]

Thanks for the pictures, Joe. The area certainly is remote (albeit beautiful!). Seeing the pix certainly takes away the idea that anyone would have spotted, and planned Anna's abduction, while strolling through the area. It seems highly probable that Anna was observed at another location than the property. I don't know what the family's lifestyle was at that time but school, church and shopping areas are all that I can think of. I know this question was probably asked many times in 1973, but do any of you remember someone being particularly taken with Anna while out in the public? If someone planned her abduction, it certainly seems like they would have talked with Anna and tried to engage her in some way. Do any memories stand out?

 

[altruist1000]

I am familiar with Half Moon Bay, its beauty & ruralness & is why the odds are, to me, so high that the perpetrator(s) are known to you. Unfortunately. The Necrosearch entity I have seen in the news before & it was on a really old cold case, where they were conducting a search & in that particular case I believe that they did indeed locate the person who had been missing for so long. It was a rather large piece of property that they conducted the search of, if my memory is operating properly.

The Curley tragedy in Boston, MA comes to my mind, where one of the murderers was coming around the family home speaking directly with the parents & assisting with the search, all the while knowing exactly what he & his co-conspirator had done to that beautiful little boy. The Curley family, of course, had no inkling that was a possibility.

Just this past week, I believe, there was a story here at W/S about a person who was arrested for the killing of a child, who at the time was a friend of the family, from memory I think it had taken place like 13 - 28 years ago.

This is just heartbreaking that there are so many evil beings amongst us. If only their external appearance would give us some indication but this is not the case.

 

[HeartofTexas]

This is just heartbreaking that there are so many evil beings amongst us. If only their external appearance would give us some indication but this is not the case.

I agree. We are no match for sociopaths or criminals. Sociopaths are superficially charming and know all the right things to say in order to ingratiate themselves. It's only after prolonged exposure to them that the chinks in their armor begin to show.

 

[mysteriew]

It is certainly a beautiful area. My question would be, how unusual would it be to have someone going around with a camera, shooting scenic pictures in the area. Would that be something that would have stood out, and neighbors would remember or is it a pretty common occurance?

 

[Mr. E]

I know this is horrible to contemplate, but is it possible she fell into the creek and was washed into the ocean? The details of the case seem to suggest abduction, and I know the creek was searched, but what if she went into the ocean?

I'm sorry to say such a thing. I don't want anybody to feel bad. I just feel like it shouldn't be discounted.

 

[Annasmom]

I know this is horrible to contemplate, but is it possible she fell into the creek and was washed into the ocean? The details of the case seem to suggest abduction, and I know the creek was searched, but what if she went into the ocean?

I'm sorry to say such a thing. I don't want anybody to feel bad. I just feel like it shouldn't be discounted.

Mr. E: You are good to be sensitive to our feelings, but don't worry about making us feel bad. It is precisely because the creek was searched so many times and so thoroughly that we have all but ruled out this possibility. Within a half hour of Anna's disappearance, the creek was searched by divers and helicopters flew over the length of the creek. Divers continued to search for a very long time. There were many logjams between the farm and the ocean and all these were carefully pulled apart, one by one. A geologist gave us a report on silting which showed it was almost impossible for a body to go into the creek and never be found. In addition to this, Anna was wearing over-sized rubber boots which would have come off, would not break down with time, would not be chewed by animals, would have been found at some point over the many years people have searched the area. No sign of the boots or other clothing or human remains has ever been found. The search was at first directed to the creek only because it seemed the most immediate danger. You can read about the dog searches in earlier posts (I realize that with almost 500 posts on this thread, it is pretty daunting to go through them all.) Because of all this, I believe Necrosearch is inappropriate in this case and would prefer to explore other possibilities. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has listed Anna's case as a probable non-family abduction. Thanks for your interest and your sensitivity.