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The first article says he was between 17-22, the article posted by law enforcement says 20-22. Looking at the composite drawings, I don't see it, then again what do I know? With the doe network down there is a reason, they don't usually pull them for just comparisons...but that goes back to the what do I know? I wish someone would post something, so we would know....
From the article SheWho posted above:
At 2 p.m. Monday, Dermot's jacket and boots were found on an icy bank of the Vermilion where that river fed into the Illinois River. A set of bare foot prints in the snow led from the bank 20 feet out onto the partially frozen river. There were no return prints. An impression of a rifle was also present in the snow.
The above is very similiar to what the detective handling Dermot's case told me sometime ago when I spoke with him regarding the possibility Dermot might be one of the unidentified Gacy victims. I wasn't aware those foot prints were from bare feet until I read the article.
Also from the article SheWho' posted above:
Dermot was a junior at the then all boys St. Bede Academy between Peru and Spring Valley. He was in class the Friday before, but had missed several weeks in the fall, while he was receiving medical treatment in the Chicago area, the school's head said at the time.
I wonder if Dermot was being treated for mental health issues while in Chicago. Especially because if he had a different type of illness perhaps that would have been included in the article.
Very sad details in this MSM article. I do also wonder why Dermots remains would not have been found in 40 years if he fell into the river. I don't know enough about this particular river to say either way.
I do pray the answers to Dermots disappearance are found one day and that where ever he is he is at peace.
I too didn't know his boots and coat were found. When I spoke to the detective sometime ago all he said were footprints leading to the river were found but there were none leading back.
It makes me wonder about hypothermia. It was bitterly cold the day Dermot disappeared. One of the things I have read about the effects of hypothermia is the person experiencing it feels overheated and often remove clothing. This may have been the case with Dermot if he wasn't dressed properly for the weather. And at 16 that wouldn't surprise me. I often went out at 16 not dressed properly for cold weather, even in below zero windchills.
Plus the ice along the river would have been very slippery. I imagine some waves would have overlapped where ice had formed along the shores. The constant water overlapping ice and freezing would have made it very very slippery. Slippery enough that I do believe the above evidence is indicative of possible hypothermia and this being a tragic accident rather than something intentional.
Below is a link to a weather history almanac, and I remember typing in the zip code for Ogelsby and getting some weather information.
I got this weather data from the site below:
http://www.farmersalmanac.com/weather-history/
On January 30th, 1972, the closest available weather station to Ogles by, IL (PEORIA GREATER PEORIA AP, IL), reported the following conditions:
High Temp: 12.9F
Low Temp: 0F
Average Temp: 7.2F
Dewpoint: -1.4F
Wind Speed: 8.3 Knots
Precipitation Amount: 0 Inches
Snow Depth: n/a
Observations: n/a
See more historical weather results for Ogles by, IL
I found the address from where Dermot went missing upthread.
Here is a google map with the location. To the right or East, I believe is the Vermilion River. North is the larger river, the Illinois River. If I understand the msm article it is where these two rivers met that the footprints were found.
817 Swift, Oglesby, IL - Google Maps
If he started experiencing hypothermia, I think it is possible he became disoriented and lost his sense of direction heading North towards the Illinois River when he thought he was heading back South back towards home.
ETA: I would think with blue jeans on, even if he was wearing long johns, given the distance between his residence and where the foot prints were found, in 12-13 degree weather (without considering the wind chill factor) he would have certainly been experiencing some symptoms of hypothermia. I can't imagine walking that distance in 12 degrees.
The more I look at the information in the most recent article along with the weather, I'm more and more convinced this was a case of accidental drowning due to the effects of hypothermia.
Boy Interrupted
What happened to Dermot F. Kelly?
The 16-year-old Oglesby boy hasn't been seen since Sunday, Jan. 30, 1972.
At 1:15 p.m. that bitterly cold day, Dermot left his home on Point Lookout, a wooded neighborhood near the south bank of the Vermilion River. The boy was clad in a black-and-white jacket and blue-jeans. An Accutron watch was strapped to his wrist and a .22-caliber rifle was in his hands, as he told his parents he was going to go target shooting. Dermot headed east along the river.
[snip]
The Center for Missing and Exploited Children was established in 1984. On Feb. 9, 1985, Kevin Kelly contacted the Center with information about his son. The Agency continues to list Dermot as missing. In fact, it is one of the Agency's oldest cases.
Melinda Stevens, Director of the Center's Missing Children Division, said there have been leads over the years that Dermot is dead, including a report a body was found, but which could not be identified.
"We keep hope here," Stevens pointed out.
Stevens said her agency did not know Dermot's jacket, boots and rifle were found soon after he disappeared, until informed by The Times.
More: http://mywebtimes.com/archives/ottawa/display.php?id=449448
What UID are you refering to? (what unidentified body?) I don't recall information on one found in the area.
"Melinda Stevens, Director of the Center's Missing Children Division, said there have been leads over the years that Dermot is dead, including a report a body was found, but which could not be identified.
"We keep hope here," Stevens pointed out."
I did not know until now that any of Dermot's belongings were ever found. Sadly, I think it sounds like he either went deliberately into the water or else he suffered from hypothermia or some other condition that made him unaware of what he was doing. If there were bare footprints going toward the water, but none coming back, I don't think he was faking his death. Plus I can't imagine anyone running away without their boots and jacket in that kind of weather, not unless this was preplanned and he had other clothing hidden there, but then we still have the problem of the footprints going to the water. If he intended to commit suicide one would think the coldness of the water would have led to very quick hypothermia and death. This is very sad. This is a case I have wondered about and always hoped he really was alive somewhere under another name.