CA CA - Bryce Laspisa, 19, Castaic, 30 Aug 2013 - #8

[geevee]

Finally had a moment to stop by the area for a look-see. A few observations.

• 
  The hill at the antenna tower is very steep. The dirt is real soft. Very easily could see getting stuck....Or worse.

• 
  This is a huge are with a ton of steep hills, wash-outs, drainage cuverts, scrubb brush which would be very hard to navigate/search.

• 
  Final drop-off from hill to road below is very steep and about 20'.

• 
  Saw one poster on a pole just down from tower

• 
  Not a whole lot happening at Lagoon Dr. in Buttonwillow.

I would not want to be running around in the dark out there. I was there just around sun-up, and it was very dark. I am a tad disappointed there was no "Aha" moment. The perverbial "needle in a haystack" came to mind. Stopped by a 76 Station at LD to get a soda..It was closed due to being robbed. Saw no posters in the Lagoon Dr. area.

Thanks very much RDW, when you were there before it got light, could you see those wheel tracks in pic 2? I was just wondering if Bryce could have seen it and thought it was more of a path and couldn't tell there was such a steep drop off.

 

[Whiteorchids]

Finally had a moment to stop by the area for a look-see. A few observations.

• 
  The hill at the antenna tower is very steep. The dirt is real soft. Very easily could see getting stuck....Or worse.

• 
  This is a huge are with a ton of steep hills, wash-outs, drainage cuverts, scrubb brush which would be very hard to navigate/search.

• 
  Final drop-off from hill to road below is very steep and about 20'.

• 
  Saw one poster on a pole just down from tower

• 
  Not a whole lot happening at Lagoon Dr. in Buttonwillow.

I would not want to be running around in the dark out there. I was there just around sun-up, and it was very dark. I am a tad disappointed there was no "Aha" moment. The perverbial "needle in a haystack" came to mind. Stopped by a 76 Station at LD to get a soda..It was closed due to being robbed. Saw no posters in the Lagoon Dr. area.

Thank you so much RDW for taking the time for the pics and update. Could Bryce be hidden in these difficult to search areas you mention and overlooked in the prior searches if he succumbed? The coroner used a dog to find additional human bones in Altadena couldn't one be used here also?

 

[Lawyer for the Peeps]

No. LE called off official searches awhile back and the mom has stated the new tip line is not monitored by LE but LE doesn't close these kinds of cases without resolution.

Agreed. At least in IL, although I can't imagine that changes by state, cases become inactive or "cold," but they are never closed unless they are definitively solved.

 

[RDW]

Having been to the site now.....My opinion is.....There is no way....Make that......Absolutely no way...That he drove that car down the hill.....I also think he was on Lake Hughes Road when he saw the LE folks waiting by the gate. Then fled up away from the lake and not down. I have no clue on where the search for him was concentrated....But, I would guess it was % wise focused on below the crash site towards the lake. There is a lot of real estate above the lake.

 

[Quester]

Having been to the site now.....My opinion is.....There is no way....Make that......Absolutely no way...That he drove that car down the hill.....I also think he was on Lake Hughes Road when he saw the LE folks waiting by the gate. Then fled up away from the lake and not down. I have no clue on where the search for him was concentrated....But, I would guess it was % wise focused on below the crash site towards the lake. There is a lot of real estate above the lake.

I wonder if BL saw all those ?cop cars? and thought parents had tracked him to the lake just as he had been tracked and found in Buttonwillow?

ETA: Or, had something in the vehicle that he couldn't afford to be caught with?

 

[Whiteorchids]

Having been to the site now.....My opinion is.....There is no way....Make that......Absolutely no way...That he drove that car down the hill.....I also think he was on Lake Hughes Road when he saw the LE folks waiting by the gate. Then fled up away from the lake and not down. I have no clue on where the search for him was concentrated....But, I would guess it was % wise focused on below the crash site towards the lake. There is a lot of real estate above the lake.

Sorry Im a little confused. So you think he pushed it over? IIRC Kslyfoxy said it wasn't as steep as it looked from the pics.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[Quester]

So ... for the sake of argument ... speculation follows:

Let's say BL sees line of ?cop cars? ... BL turns into antenna area to hide vehicle to decide what to do ... gets stuck in soft sand ... decides he has to ditch the vehicle ... BL retrieves whatever ... allows vehicle to roll down the hill ... BL flees uphill, away from the line of ?cop cars? ... he more than likely has no liquids with him ... how long could he last without water? ... does he partake in whatever "trail mix" he has and has a bad reaction? .... does he meet up with wildlife? ... did searches make flyovers of area above crashed vehicle, away from lake? ... where is this young man?

 

[gitana1]

So ... for the sake of argument ... speculation follows:

Let's say BL sees line of ?cop cars? ... BL turns into antenna area to hide vehicle to decide what to do ... gets stuck in soft sand ... decides he has to ditch the vehicle ... BL retrieves whatever ... allows vehicle to roll down the hill ... BL flees uphill, away from the line of ?cop cars? ... he more than likely has no liquids with him ... how long could he last without water? ... does he partake in whatever "trail mix" he has and has a bad reaction? .... does he meet up with wildlife? ... did searches make flyovers of area above crashed vehicle, away from lake? ... where is this young man?

They definitely did aerial searches, so I assume they searched away from the lake. I think, though, that Bryce crashed his vehicle before LE arrived, because they found his truck as they arrived and it was last spotted going toward the lake on video at around 4:20 a.m.. IIRC. The officers began arriving in the area after 5:15 a.m. and found the vehicle around 5:30 a.m.

As to the searches:

Deputies with the Sheriff’s Department have been searching for the last seven days, said Johnie Jones, spokesman for the Parks Bureau.
“They’ve been searching different areas, they’ve been searching by horseback,” Jones said. “We have all-terrain vehicles -- we’re searching everywhere we can. We’re trying to search the whole area and leave no stone unturned, so to speak.”

“He took detour at 2:08 a.m. and got off the I-5 in a suburban area and was going to sleep in his car,” said Karen Laspisa. “I told him to call me when he got up the next morning.”
Bryce never called.
Because of this and other newly obtained information, at 11:30 AM, Friday, Sheriff's Parks patrol deputies coordinated an extensive search of Castaic Lake, surrounding mountains, and the Town of Castaic for Bryce Laspisa.
Joining Sheriff's Parks patrol deputies in the search throughout and day and night were Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff's Station deputies, the Santa Clarita Valley Search and Rescue team, Sheriff's search/ scent K-9 dogs, and Sheriff's patrol helicopter.

http://hometownstation.com/santa-cl...eputies-continue-search-missing-oc-teen-37622

Volunteers and Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department investigators continued to search Tuesday in the area of Castaic Lake for an Orange County teen whose vehicle was found there more than 10 days before.

The effort to find Bryce Laspisa was persistent, even as no word had been heard from him since the early morning hours of Aug. 30, when he told his mother he was too tired to drive.

They were putting out flyers as well as going over rugged ground in their search for the teen.
“The terrain is really treacherous out there, and it’s hard to get to a lot of places, but a lot of the volunteers come back and they have holes in their jeans,” volunteer Heidi Leonardt said. “You can really tell, they’ve gone every place.”

http://ktla.com/news/stories/search-for-bryce-laspisa/#ixzz2nUDHw6Ra​

For the past 49 days, family, friends and strangers have been searching for Bryce Laspisa. They have conducted several volunteer searches all around Castaic Lake and have followed up on possible sightings.
“There is no guide to being a mother of a missing person, you just do anything you can to get the word out and find your child,” said Karen Laspisa, Bryce’s mother. http://hometownstation.com/santa-clarita-news/missing-teen-bryce-laspisa-sought-castaic-search-38475

 

[Quester]

I wish we had something to go on, as the L family appears to have, that would
help justify this wait and see approach to finding this missing young man
- more than just we’ve-tried-everything-else-so-let’s-try-the-wait-and-see-approach.

At any rate, I hope they are making some positive progress in whatever
it is they are doing!

 

[Quester]

They definitely did aerial searches, so I assume they searched away from the lake. I think, though, that Bryce crashed his vehicle before LE arrived, because they found his truck as they arrived and it was last spotted going toward the lake on video at around 4:20 a.m.. IIRC. The officers began arriving in the area after 5:15 a.m. and found the vehicle around 5:30 a.m.

As to the searches:

How can we be sure that there wasn't a line up of cars [or ?cop cars?], like we saw in the video posted sometime ago prior to a fishing event, and that BL didn't pass by them / see them / get freaked out by them? Crash could have occurred while cars were lined up waiting for the gate to be opened. If motors were running, they may not have even heard the crash. JMO

From the timeline:

F 8/30/13 btw 4:20 & 5:15am Castaic Lake SUV CRASHED: The crash had to happen between 4:20 a.m. and 5:15 a.m. when law enforcement arrived for a training exercise, KL said. It had gone down a 15-foot ravine nose first and landed on the passenger side. BL (or someone) used an emergency tool to break the back window. Or, back window shattered as a result of the crash.
KL: Airbag/s did not deploy.
DRZ: Keys were in the SUV/ignition.
http://hometownstation.com/santa-cl...eputies-continue-search-missing-oc-teen-37622
Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community - View Single Post - CA CA - Bryce Laspisa, 19, Castaic, 30 August 2013 - #3
Photos: Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community - View Single Post - CA CA - Bryce Laspisa, 19, Castaic, 30 August 2013 - #3

 

[geevee]

"KL: Airbag/s did not deploy."

In that model vehicle, do airbags only deploy if someone is sitting in the seat?

I just find it very odd that with the incline the vehicle went down that neither airbag deployed, unless they won't if there isn't a person in the seat.

 

[Quester]

"KL: Airbag/s did not deploy."

In that model vehicle, do airbags only deploy if someone is sitting in the seat?

I just find it very odd that with the incline the vehicle went down that neither airbag deployed, unless they won't if there isn't a person in the seat.

BBM - Interesting idea! I don't think we explored that in past threads.

Vehicle was described as: 2003, Sand colored Toyota Highlander

 

[RANCH]

"KL: Airbag/s did not deploy."

In that model vehicle, do airbags only deploy if someone is sitting in the seat?

I just find it very odd that with the incline the vehicle went down that neither airbag deployed, unless they won't if there isn't a person in the seat.

Isn't there some kind of threshold of impact/inertia that has to be met before airbags deploy? Otherwise they could go off when hitting a pothole and cause an accident. I would think that a car slowly going down a steep incline and rolling over on it's side may not reach the threshold that's required for airbag deployment. MOO.

 

[CurlyQ]

Isn't there some kind of threshold of impact/inertia that has to be met before airbags deploy? Otherwise they could go off when hitting a pothole and cause an accident. I would think that a car slowly going down a steep incline and rolling over on it's side may not reach the threshold that's required for airbag deployment. MOO.

BBM:
Rate of speed for typical deployment is 15 mph, and usually requires 2 of 3 sensors to be "activated".

 

[Quester]

2003 Toyota Highlander - Specs

Dual front airbags SRS*; Available driver and front passenger side-impact airbags SRS*

* The Toyota driver, front passenger and front seat-mounted side-impact airbags are Supplemental Restraint Systems (SRS). The driver and front passenger airbags are designed to deploy in severe (usually frontal) collisions where the magnitude and duration of the forward deceleration of the vehicle exceeds the design thresholjd level. The side-impact airbags are designed to inflate in severe sideimpact collisions. In all other accidents, the airbags will not inflate. To decrease the risk of injury from a deploying airbag, always wear seatbelts, sit upright in the middle of the seat as far back as possible from the airbag modules and do not lean against the door. Do not put objects in front of an airbag or around the seatback. Do not use rearward-facing child seats in any front passenger seat. The force of a deploying airbag SRS may cause serious injury or death. Please see the Owner’s Manual for further instructions.

http://www.new-cars.com/2003/toyota/toyota-highlander-specs.html

 

[Quester]

2003 Toyota Highlander Owners Manual
http://justgivemethedamnmanual.com/toyota/toyota-highlander-owners-manuals/

Pg 53: The front passenger airbag is activated
even with no passenger in the front
seat.

Pg 54: Your vehicle is equipped with a crash
sensing and diagnostic module, which will
record the use of the seat belt restraint
system by the driver and front passenger
when the SRS airbags are inflated.
...
The SRS front airbag system is designed
to activate in response to a severe
frontal impact within the shaded
area between the arrows in the illustration.

The SRS front airbags will deploy if the
severity of the impact is above the designed
threshold level, comparable to an
approximate 25 km/h (15 mph) collision
when impacting straight into a fixed barrier
that does not move or deform.

If the severity of the impact is below the
above threshold level, the SRS front airbags
may not deploy.

Pg 55: It is possible that in some collisions at the
lower zone of airbag sensor detection and
activation the SRS airbags and front seat
belt pretensioners will not operate all together.
...
The SRS front airbags are not designed
to inflate if the vehicle is involved in a
side or rear collision, if it rolls over, or
if it is involved in a low−speed frontal
collision.

* * *

Nothing noted about activation of driver's seat airbag if seat is not occupied.

 

[cluciano63]

Whether he was in the car, or not, is the thought process that there is a greater chance he could be in the lake in one scenario than the other?

 

[Quester]

Whether he was in the car, or not, is the thought process that there is a greater chance he could be in the lake in one scenario than the other?

If he was not in the vehicle when it went down the slope and crashed, we're exploring the possibility of BL having fled uphill, away from the lake.

So ... I suppose there would be a greater chance he could be in the lake if he were in the vehicle when it crashed ... however, IMO, if he was in the lake someone would have found him by now, except if weighted down. JMO

 

[gitana1]

How can we be sure that there wasn't a line up of cars [or ?cop cars?], like we saw in the video posted sometime ago prior to a fishing event, and that BL didn't pass by them / see them / get freaked out by them? Crash could have occurred while cars were lined up waiting for the gate to be opened. If motors were running, they may not have even heard the crash. JMO

Because one of those people in the line of cars would've remembered him, I think and no one ever mentioned a line of cars waiting for a gate to open that morning.

But it is possible that he saw cops and freaked out and tried to hide, or get rid of his vehicle. I have believed from the beginning that he was in precisely the state of mind that would allow for that kind of behavior.

 

[nikb]

2003 Toyota Highlander Owners Manual
http://justgivemethedamnmanual.com/toyota/toyota-highlander-owners-manuals/

Pg 53: The front passenger airbag is activated
even with no passenger in the front
seat.

Pg 54: Your vehicle is equipped with a crash
sensing and diagnostic module, which will
record the use of the seat belt restraint
system by the driver and front passenger
when the SRS airbags are inflated.
...
The SRS front airbag system is designed
to activate in response to a severe
frontal impact within the shaded
area between the arrows in the illustration.

The SRS front airbags will deploy if the
severity of the impact is above the designed
threshold level, comparable to an
approximate 25 km/h (15 mph) collision
when impacting straight into a fixed barrier
that does not move or deform.

If the severity of the impact is below the
above threshold level, the SRS front airbags
may not deploy.

Pg 55: It is possible that in some collisions at the
lower zone of airbag sensor detection and
activation the SRS airbags and front seat
belt pretensioners will not operate all together.
...
The SRS front airbags are not designed
to inflate if the vehicle is involved in a
side or rear collision, if it rolls over, or
if it is involved in a low−speed frontal
collision.

* * *

Nothing noted about activation of driver's seat airbag if seat is not occupied.

I happen to be short enough that I'm pretty much terrified of old school airbags, so I remember reading about this quite a bit in the early days of Bryce's crash. IIRC the driver's side airbag almost always goes off *IF* the impact is at the right angle - but the angle is critical. I thought they found that his mostly rolled, which wouldn't cause the airbags to go off. Passenger seat only goes off if there's a certain weight to indicate the seat was occupied at the time.

I hope I'm remembering correctly.