Found Deceased CA - Blaze Bernstein, 19, Lake Forest, 2 Jan 2018 #1

[UCLAEigenguy]

People have said a few times in this thread that the park was a 5 minute walk from his house. This is incorrect. It would be 25-30 minutes to walk that, and the walk back from the park is up hill. Not that hard to do (especially if he didn't have any other way home), but I think asking why he had someone drive him is likely to lead down a dead end. It's not weird to want to drive/ride for what would take nearly an hour to walk round-trip at night.

If we knew where they lived, and assuming 5 mins is precise and it's by car:

5 mins at 50mph is 4.2 miles.
5 mins at 20mph is 1.7 miles.

The average person walks between 2.5-3 mph which yields maybe a 30-40 min walk one way. I think a lot of people think the drive is less than 5 mins. If he was fearless enough to walk into a dark park in the middle of the night, I don't think a one-hour walk would deter him. Personally, I'd rather do that than wait for a ride.

 

[luckylis]

I can't find it now, but I thought I read that Mr. B. said they did not know the friend. Meaning, after the investigation got rolling and they found out who the friend is, they had not previously been acquainted with him. But, consider that my opinion since I can't find where I read that.

You are correct. The parents were not previously familiar with the driver friend, but now know his identity thanks to finding messages (per an article I read).

Sorry if my earlier statement was unclear.

 

[darmela]

I think what the poster wants to know, and so do I, for that matter, is did the friend who was with him that night voluntarily go to the police themselves?

I sincerely doubt it, because his family didn't even know he was missing until a missed dental appointment the following day, which was in the early afternoon, I believe I read? So, he was missing for at least 12 hours or a little bit more, before the parents and the rest of the family even knew he was gone.

I doubt the kid came forward on their own, but you never know.....

YES, thank you!

It was either him going to the police himself (or family) or they tracked him down through text messages. BUT.... I guess my biggest question is which phone the texts came from. I'm confused as to why he had a loaner phone and where his own phone was. He DID take the loaner phone with him, correct? If so, then the texts must have been made on his OWN phone. Oiy! I'm confused!

 

[hip2bl7]

You need to read his moms post on FB. He was very happy and looking forward to his new apartment and going back to school

I have two university student children who are, fortunately, within easy commuting distance from home. But I can confidently say that many of their friends are struggling at being away from home, especially out of state. These kids like their classes, friends and clubs, but are really missing the safety net of home. I know several kids that are not returning to school after winter break for this very reason. Young adults feel pressured to say they are enjoying independent college life when they're just not ready for it.

 

[houndpounder]

It's already been stated by both LE and the dad that they know who drove BB to the park. They're just not disclosing his name publicly, for whatever reason.

Also, OCSD have already stated this driver friend is not a person of interest or suspect, which I get they can lie about and actually have him under radar, but is unlikely. I live in this town and have not heard of OCSD saying something publicly like this only for it to be the opposite. They're usually just very tight lipped about a person of interest.

Well they certainly are not going to say he is a "person of interest" if in fact he is.

 

[Jinkasaurus]

I am feeling confused about Blaze's cell phone. It seems odd that a 19yo who is in college across the country would not have his cell phone with him when he was on break. That age group seems to prioritize their phones above all else. While there are logical explanations for that (a couple of posts have listed some possibilities), it still seems odd.

The other part that confused me is how this kid was using a relative's phone while he was back in California. I don't use FB, but I'm wondering - would he be able to log in to his FB account on his relative's phone and then use that to make contact with his local friends in CA?

If that's the case, then it would not be difficult for him to connect with his friends. But there has been mention of using another app to communicate with the local friend. Maybe that is another case where Blaze could be logging in as himself on the app on his relative's phone?

 

[JaimeSommers]

Eh, I'm a SoCal native (Orange County like Blaze) and can't wait to move out of this state. The sooner the better. The weather is nice, but that's about it at this point IMO.

Having said that, I can certainly see how he could have missed CA and been homesick, especially being all the way out at Penn State. How long has he been in college there?

RBBM ... Getting caught up. Apologies if this has already been corrected.

Penn State and the University of Pennsylvania (a.k.a., Penn) are two completely different universities. I worked at Penn State (in State College, PA) for 25 years, so take my word for it. Blaze is a student at Penn in Philadelphia.

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[kdg411]

LA Times

“Blaze left the house around 10:30 p.m. or so, but exactly why he left is a big mystery,” he said, adding that “we didn’t know the person he met up with.

“We’re hoping he comes back, or we find him,” he added.

...

“There are so many unknowns to deal with,” Annee Della Donna, a friend of the family, said. “We’re talking about a brilliant kid who goes to a small park five minutes from home, then disappears.”

NY Daily News

Gideon said he did not know his son’s friend, but learned they had known each other “for a while.”

“We talked to this person after the fact and they were helpful,” he said.

 

[luckylis]

Now another article is quoting the attorney-friend saying that the reason BB met up with the third party was to "discuss" something. ?? Is this misreporting by Daily Mail or did attorney-friend lend more information?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5243749/Ivy-Legaue-student-19-goes-missing-family-visit.html

 

[Seajay]

I don't know how anyone expects people to help them find their lost loved one if they are unwilling to let people know who they are, what their habits are, what their interests are and what were the circumstances and reasoning behind their disappearance. Who were they with? Where were they going? How did they leave?

These are all natural questions and I'm sure if they wanted to help someone else find a loved lost one, they would ask those same questions,

So in my opinion, the HUFBB FB page is just to get the word out to have people look for their son anywhere and everywhere and to do it without knowing anything but what he looks like. And to send prayers.

If foul play has occurred because of a secret in their life, then unless a body is found, they could never get answers and are going to have to be okay wth that.

Bryce Laspisa's family found that out the hard way. They kept it from the general public that he had been in trouble for drugs in Illinois. It later became relevant when we discovered he had been up for days on Vyvance/Aderall before taking the drive down to the OC and had been acting irrationally.

FWIW.

 

[HastingsChi]

LA Times

“Blaze left the house around 10:30 p.m. or so, but exactly why he left is a big mystery,” he said, adding that “we didn’t know the person he met up with.

“We’re hoping he comes back, or we find him,” he added.

...

“There are so many unknowns to deal with,” Annee Della Donna, a friend of the family, said. “We’re talking about a brilliant kid who goes to a small park five minutes from home, then disappears.”

NY Daily News

Gideon said he did not know his son’s friend, but learned they had known each other “for a while.”

“We talked to this person after the fact and they were helpful,” he said.

These are exactly the type of quotes from Gideon and Annee Della which I had mentioned earlier as being interesting if not curious... They seem to have initial talking points but the manner they respond to questions strikes me as very muddy -- as if there is an elephant in the room that they are avoiding but doing so in a manner that one is left asking 'What are they hiding and why?'

Strange...

 

[HastingsChi]

I am feeling confused about Blaze's cell phone. It seems odd that a 19yo who is in college across the country would not have his cell phone with him when he was on break. That age group seems to prioritize their phones above all else. While there are logical explanations for that (a couple of posts have listed some possibilities), it still seems odd.

The other part that confused me is how this kid was using a relative's phone while he was back in California. I don't use FB, but I'm wondering - would he be able to log in to his FB account on his relative's phone and then use that to make contact with his local friends in CA?

If that's the case, then it would not be difficult for him to connect with his friends. But there has been mention of using another app to communicate with the local friend. Maybe that is another case where Blaze could be logging in as himself on the app on his relative's phone?

There is a possibility that his parents disciplined him by taking his cell phone away from him and the relative let him borrow their old cell phone to connect via wi-fi without the parents knowledge.

Just a thought, not a fact. I could be completely wrong.

 

[IHAVENOCLUE]

I can't find it now, but I thought I read that Mr. B. said they did not know the friend. Meaning, after the investigation got rolling and they found out who the friend is, they had not previously been acquainted with him. But, consider that my opinion since I can't find where I read that.

Mr. Bernstein states he, himself, did not know the friend...
But that Blaze had known him for a while...

in an article from:

[nydailynews.com] - 1-6-18...

I do not have the actual link at my fingertips...

Hope this helps...

:seeya:

 

[mom2four717]

Blaze is a young looking nineteen year old!
Just my opinion and I don't think adds anything.
I'm reading along trying to catch up.

 

[HastingsChi]

You are correct. The parents were not previously familiar with the driver friend, but now know his identity thanks to finding messages (per an article I read).

Sorry if my earlier statement was unclear.

I'm curious if this individual is actually "a buddy from high school" and, if he is not, why did the family feel the need to mislead the media & public...

 

['Ailina]

These are exactly the type of quotes from Gideon and Annee Della which I had mentioned earlier as being interesting if not curious... They seem to have initial talking points but the manner they respond to questions strikes me as very muddy -- as if there is an elephant in the room that they are avoiding but doing so in a manner that one is left asking 'What are they hiding and why?'

Strange...

It's possible, if BB and/or other family members were very visible community leaders or carried a lot of community responsibility in a public way, sure -- someone may go to great lengths to avoid "sensational" subjects. Maybe not because of shame or personal disapproval, but because certain subjects can certainly have a negative impact on real aspects of a person's life: friendships, relationships, employment, position, etc. I'm not implying anyone involved is shallow or anything less than honorable. Not at all. The elusiveness could just be precautionary -- after all, Blaze is STILL missing.

Edited to add: Just being in the news for something like this will flip a person's professional life upside down. Not because if any wrongdoing, but because of the nature of "the public."

 

[anonypotomous]

RBBM ... Getting caught up. Apologies if this has already been corrected.

Penn State and the University of Pennsylvania (a.k.a., Penn) are two completely different universities. I worked at Penn State (in State College, PA) for 25 years, so take my word for it. Blaze is a student at Penn in Philadelphia.

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Ok.. my thoughts still stand, apologies for getting the two mixed up. Just read what I wrote and replace “Penn State” with “Penn in Philadelphia.”


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[Deleted member 121463]

These are exactly the type of quotes from Gideon and Annee Della which I had mentioned earlier as being interesting if not curious... They seem to have initial talking points but the manner they respond to questions strikes me as very muddy -- as if there is an elephant in the room that they are avoiding but doing so in a manner that one is left asking 'What are they hiding and why?'

Strange...

I think they are hiding a history of depression / mental illness. Perhaps also a history of meet ups with people that he met online.

 

[HastingsChi]

It's possible, if BB and/or other family members were very visible community leaders or carried a lot of community responsibility in a public way, sure -- someone may go to great lengths to avoid "sensational" subjects. Maybe not because of shame or personal disapproval, but because certain subjects can certainly have a negative impact on real aspects of a person's life: friendships, relationships, employment, position, etc. I'm not implying anyone involved is shallow or anything less than honorable. Not at all. The elusiveness could just be precautionary -- after all, Blaze is STILL missing.

Edited to add: Just being in the news for something like this will flip a person's professional life upside down. Not because if any wrongdoing, but because of the nature of "the public."

Not referring to anything sensational or overly personal -- rather, their initial remarks are fine but when they are answering reporter's questions their statements are muddy and strange.

Gideon Bernstein IS both a good member of his community and professionally he's quite accomplished. Mr. Bernstein is on the Boards of both community organizations and at least one company everyone has heard of. Which is why the muddy responses are perplexing to me.

 

[HastingsChi]

I think they are hiding a history of depression / mental illness.

Until someone can share a credible source for the lupus medication claim, I would wager that you're right @brookesmith