DE DE - Tina Kemp, 14, Felton, 3 Feb 1979

[Bit of hope]

I agree it is totally frustrating. I have recently contacted (October 2020) the Delaware State Police and sent them irrefutable proof that the information provided to the public about Tina going missing on February 3, 1979 is WRONG. All public info provided says Tina went missing on Saturday February 3, 1979 the day before a huge snowstorm hit the area. Well I sent them documented proof backed up by several different sources that there was NO snow fall recorded in the entire state of Delaware on February 4, 1979. In my opinion she went missing on Saturday February 17, 1979 or the info about the snowstorm is wrong. After sending that info, I followed up with a few small questions like when was Tina actually reported missing, was a local search effort ever done and I have not gotten any reply and I have tried several times to contact them directly. I am gonna try going there in person and also calling in a favor to see if I can get a face to face or just a few answers to my simple questions. I am not trying to play detective or anything like that, I just want the little bit of public info about Tina that's out their to be as accurate as possible.

Although to me it's obvious the missing date is not accurate...it's still not changed...in any file. What went wrong? Can't help to think somebody is to gain by the fact there is no correction on the date. Or saying it plain....there are people who lie or not coming forward with information about what really happened. Sorry, for being rude.

 

[truthfinder2019]

I agree with you. Sth wrong with the data and the dates. Average Temp in Feb 1979 was 19F to 37 F which means noone can go out for long without proper clothing and shoes. How can you put laundry outside with that range of temperature?
Was she heading to see her BF at his house and for that it was maybe short distance so she did not take a jacket?
Major snow storm was later in the month as Was mentioned already ( I think the date was 19 Feb). Checked and this info is correct according to historical data. No information in local press until much much later and reported with different year (1975).
Census shows very small population of ca. 460 inhabitants in Felton in 1979/1980, basically everyone knows each other with that.
Some sites mention she was living 1/2 mile south of felton and was last seen there at 9am, others mention she was last seen on Main Street.
How is it possible noone saw anything on a Main Street in a Saturday morning. Or she went missing while walking from home in a rural area heading to Main Street?
I also find it strange that the local press did not look more into this, even few years later. Other missing children have much more coverage and digging of info. There is sth strange about this case that does not add up.

 

[truthfinder2019]

Reposting from before: this must be her mother:
Ruth A. Ware Kemp (1932-2011) - Find A Grave...

 

[Sweetluv]

Being from Delaware, I am very frustrated over this case. I agree, dates must be off...and it is COLD in February! I cannot imagine hanging clothes before a snowstorm and expecting them to dry. IMO, this is a cold case that needs fresh eyes to re examine what really went on the day she was reported missing.
No coat taken....odd.
Known to runaway before...but to where and for how long and with who?

 

[truthfinder2019]

Ok so let’s take what we know. Assuming it is correct she left from home and was last seen there at 9AM.
1,5 miles south of felton in a rural area meaning we need to look for houses in the middle of fields.
If you look via google earth, there is a small area with houses about 1,5/1,7 miles south of Main street. Now not sure anyone noticed but we have one pice of information from one photo: assuming the photo was taken home, which I do, she is in front of a white fence.
Google earth/street view shows at that distance a couple of houses that still exist with such a white front fence , down road 284!
The photo also tells us that Tina is looking into dirrct sun light in her eyes, meaning the person taking the photo must have the south in the back. This is confirmed by the shadows on the pic. So the house must have this fence facing full south. Thus seen the positioning of Road 284, we’re looking for a house of which the entrance is parallel to the road and not front to it. A house with a white fence and white wood boards under windows. I have found one which looks plausible a little down road 284 when it becomes Little Mastens Corner Road.
Ok so I am assuming this is from more or less where she departed, the only road to go to MAin Street is this one which then becomes Lombard Street (still n 284). Via google map I see that it would take 14 minutes on foot to reach Main Street from there, which seems plausible.
There are not so many houses now there, so I guess there have may been even less in those times. Unless looking out of the window or passing by car, not many people would have noticed a girl walking by.
I strongly believe she either hitchhiked due to cold or kept walking and was taken from road 284 .
I attach a pic of the road I assume she took, with in red the plausible trajectory
Seems an isolated road.

 

[Sweetluv]

Felton , back then, was very rural.
Main street was just that, the MAIN street.
The only thing I could find was her running away and going to horse races, but in February..dont imagine so.
I believe she met foul play too..
This case not only needs fresh eyes, but former classmates and the BF Eric should be questioned.
And why cant a PROPER date be confirmed?

 

[truthfinder2019]

Felton , back then, was very rural.
Main street was just that, the MAIN street.
The only thing I could find was her running away and going to horse races, but in February..dont imagine so.
I believe she met foul play too..
This case not only needs fresh eyes, but former classmates and the BF Eric should be questioned.
And why cant a PROPER date be confirmed?

Here's a report of the extreme weather conditions in 1979 in an adjacent area
1979v004no04-Foster-Leffler.pdf (nwas.org)

 

[Bit of hope]

If we could go one step forward.....we can recycle all the info out there once again...it doesn't get us any further in finding her. I looked into the sisters FB sites.....It looks like they have happy lives and I guess Tina does come across in a dream sometimes...or they think about her in more darker hours....nothing is making me see they actually search for her. IMO sad but realistic and they are entitled to.

 

[Alleykins]

Felton , back then, was very rural.
Main street was just that, the MAIN street.
The only thing I could find was her running away and going to horse races, but in February..dont imagine so.
I believe she met foul play too..
This case not only needs fresh eyes, but former classmates and the BF Eric should be questioned.
And why cant a PROPER date be confirmed?

I wouldn't discount the race track being her destination though it was winter. Our harness racing track is in use and maintained all year round by the city, even if there's no actual racing going on. Some head south to race in our off season, but local owners who don't race in the off season use the track to exercise the horses, and the barns to board their horses in the winter. Not as active as in the spring and summer, but not shuttered, either.

 

[truthfinder2019]

If we could go one step forward.....we can recycle all the info out there once again...it doesn't get us any further in finding her. I looked into the sisters FB sites.....It looks like they have happy lives and I guess Tina does come across in a dream sometimes...or they think about her in more darker hours....nothing is making me see they actually search for her. IMO sad but realistic and they are entitled to.

Indeed, I agree. And when you read the obituary of their mom of 2011 it mentions her as still alive, hinting they of course still hope for that. So maybe really all locals thought she had run away as before.. which is a shame as so so many girls of her age and younger disappeared in the 70s (human trafficking and pedophiles, but also some known serial killers). Knowing from locals where exactly she was seen last time would help, because disappearing from village centre on a main road, or from a rural even more isolated road hints at different patterns of kidnapping. Even if she was hitch hiking. I guess you are right there is no way to move one step forward without any information even in the local press which is simply appalling.

 

[truthfinder2019]

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/newszapde/name/ruth-kemp-obituary?id=20701880

 

[Sweetluv]

Where are you Tina!!??

 

[Beekarina]

I think it has come up previously, but some people did/likely do, hang laundry out in all kinds of temps. I grew up in rural New England and remember frozen clothes. We usually used drying racks inside by the wood stove, but not always. You basically "freeze dry" haha your clothes. The moisture evaporates.

 

[Sweetluv]

It is cold here during February in Delaware. If Tina was planning to walk and go somewhere, why not grab your coat? Or, did someone pull up in a car and she got in, not planning to leave the warmth of the vehicle for long.....feels like this case is missing an accurate timeline of events that morning IMO.

 

[Beekarina]

I refreshed my memory as to what Tina was described as wearing and it does say: " A white sweater, a red and white flannel shirt..."

So, the combination may have been warm enough (at least in a teen's mind) for the day? Also thinking of how some flannels are heavy/quilted? I think it is a good observation though. Hopping into a car for a quick chat or a ride somewhere makes a lot of sense.

 

[True Crime Verified]

I'm not a local to the case, but my advice would be finding whatever library in the area has a section that contains periodicals and dig back to the timeframe from when she went missing. One could also shoot out a FOIA request to the initial agency that took on the case. Sometimes you need to request specific information, so you may need to play phone tag and find a case number. However, some departments aren't super worried about the case number, and can provide you with records just based off of a name and general time frame.

 

[Bit of hope]

The now registered sex offender that has been discussed, was not registered or convicted of any child abuse crimes as of February 1979, but he was accused not much after that in the early 80s (which in my opinion means he just didnt get caught until then because he was an adult in 1979). Whether or not he was in the area is a question we are trying to get answered now. The accusation is that this sex offender had a neice who was good friends with Tina and that he was in Felton because his father had just passed away. This neice says that this sex offender allegedly sexually abused her and her sisters relentlessy and she thinks he is involved in Tina Faye Kemp's abduction.
These are all just allegations that we are in the process of trying to validate, but some of them have been validated. For instance...he was know to frequent and even live in Felton and surrounding areas for years before and after Tina's disappearance. Also he was charged with child abuse in the early 80s (I do not know if he was convicted) in the area of Felton, DE. Then finally he was convicted of a sex crime against a child in the early 00s in Kent County DE which is the county that Felton is in. I am hoping that I can validate some of these accusations, so that this guys can either be definitively ruled out or be added to the suspect list...maybe even officialy if we get really lucky.

Anything new on this?

Also Tina has a cousin (son of her uncle on mothers site) who is also a registered sex offender, since 1997 (It's prohibited to link this particular file here, but this is the general website Sex Offender Registry - State Bureau of Identification - Delaware State Police) He was around 18 when Tina went missing and from Felton. Could he have anything to do with her missing?

 

[Sweetluv]

Bit of hope...I agree, this Cousin, IMO, is a great lead!

 

[Bit of hope]

Bit of hope...I agree, this Cousin, IMO, is a great lead!

I wonder what closer family members, who have been posting here, have to say about this. I'm just not up for (still) the serial killer angle...this must have been closer to home.

 

[Sweetluv]

Feb 3, 1979
Where is Tina?
What happened to her?