Found Deceased NC - Maddox Ritch, 6 w/Autism, Gastonia, 22 Sept 2018 #2

[Jordan10]

So he was NOT non-verbal after all? (To this peds nurse, non-verbal means does not talk EVER.) Not a game-changer, but definitely makes you go hmmm......

sounds like such a sweet, awesome child - but a bad description. inaccurate. Not a nonverbal child.

 

[MsMarple]

Complete GMA Interview (14:31 minutes):
FULL INTERVIEW: Ian Ritch opens up in interview with Good Morning America

 

[Jordan10]

So he was NOT non-verbal after all? (To this peds nurse, non-verbal means does not talk EVER.) Not a game-changer, but definitely makes you go hmmm......

as the mother of a teenager on the spectrum, i agree. does not sound to me what I would describe as "nonverbal". child happy and comfortable at home, not with others. that could be typical child or autism child really. i saw earlier he was skipping around the park. My son loves to skip and weave as we "walk". or i walk.

 

[Jordan10]

I seem to recall that this is what was said as well- perhaps the reporter misunderstood the father's comment and took it that Maddox was non-verbal all of the time? Sometimes facts get reported inaccurately by reporters- they're too busy trying to be the first reporter to get the scoop.

and honestly, unless you have a child with autism, work with these children/adults - its not something that can be seen or understood. i struggle daily to understand. that said, our son is amazing. his intelligence is amazing. who knows what he might do one day. but we have to keep him safe to get there. like any child.

 

[MsMarple]

Father of Maddox Ritch talks about the moment his son ran away
(Presser)

(David Begnaud Interview)

Anyone have a link to the Good Morning America Interview or any others I've missed?

Thanks for the link! Watching again helped clarify where they were when Maddox ran off. From his description they were on the south side of the lake on the walkway moving towards the office. This matches the description given by the lady who saw him. Last time I'll post this map, I promise!

 

[demetra]

The one thing i cant understand is when maddox started getting to far ahead, the father said there were 3 people in front of him he had to pass by why didn't he yell for them or anyone to help stop him? I know strangers would have freaked him out or caused panic, but being around all that water and woods i would have been screaming help me catch my son please. I am not blaming dad at all i just wonder why he did not holler for help?

 

[Miamama]

Depends on the investigation (IMO). If they have a suspect in mind they might want to try to keep that preliminary info quiet until an arrest was made so that the suspect doesn't have any reason to run or destroy evidence. And also so they don't get any false confessions. That's why people always wonder when an autopsy takes a long time if the delay is because they are trying to arrest a suspect first. If they have cleared the parents, they may tell them right away but I think most investigators error on the side of caution and not tell them anything until they are sure (and they may have to wait on the autopsy). I mean, if he was shot with a gun or something really obvious they might tell the parents that there were signs of foul play without revealing any details. But if he has injuries that are not clear like bruises and scratches it may be impossible to tell them anything without waiting for the final autopsy results.

Most the time I see them not telling anyone anything in order to protect the investigation. But this also protects innocent family too IMO. Can you imagine the extra grief and trauma it would cause to tell the parents there were signs of foul play only to have the medical examiner's final notes indicate trauma to the body was caused after death by an animal or the elements? On the other hand, if the parents have been cleared, then LE may want to tell them before the autopsy is released so that they don't hear the info on the news.

It's always a balancing act, in my opinion, because the autopsy is public record (unless sealed by a judge due to an ongoing criminal investigation) and the media have most likely already filed an FOIA request to get it as soon as it is ready. I feel like they also try to delay releasing autopsy results until after a funeral out of respect for the family. Especially with a child. MOO.

Thanks for the response. Makes sense as a case by case, I just didn't know if there was a SOP. And I honestly can't remember now where I was going with that question, but I'm sure it was important.

 

[Jordan10]

My apologies if this has been linked, or I am violating posting rules - but I post this as a mother of a child that is highly intelligent, has autism, has always loved nature and is AWESOME - but this might help - Autism, Wandering, Drowning. Another Sweet Soul Lost. RIP Maddox Ritch. -
and my husband is likely on the spectrum as well and might have reacted in a similar way.

 

[Alethea]

Thanks for the link! Watching again helped clarify where they were when Maddox ran off. From his description they were on the south side of the lake on the walkway moving towards the office. This matches the description given by the lady who saw him. Last time I'll post this map, I promise!

View attachment 149492

Thanks for the map, it's really helpful. That is...really far off.

I'm surprised LE isn't asking anyone who saw something off Old Dallas Road to come forward?

 

[TeaTime]

Thanks for the link! Watching again helped clarify where they were when Maddox ran off. From his description they were on the south side of the lake on the walkway moving towards the office. This matches the description given by the lady who saw him. Last time I'll post this map, I promise!

View attachment 149492

Thanks! It looks like he could have wandered to where he was found and fallen into the creek. It is not that far. And, I would imagine that dad thought he would see him in the wide parking lot when he got there, never thinking he would keep running into the woods. Terrifying on every level.

I am so sad for this family.

 

[Gardener1850]

The one thing i cant understand is when maddox started getting to far ahead, the father said there were 3 people in front of him he had to pass by why didn't he yell for them or anyone to help stop him? I know strangers would have freaked him out or caused panic, but being around all that water and woods i would have been screaming help me catch my son please. I am not blaming dad at all i just wonder why he did not holler for help?

He said in one of the interviews he did holler for help. And he spoke to the man on the bench who said he tried to speak to Maddox/stop him but Maddox didn't stop. Maybe the three people described were not near Maddox when he started to run? The way I understood it is the people on the "track" were between the father and Maddox and Maddox was 20 or 30 ft away already when he took off running. JMO.

ETA: I wish we had transcripts of all the interviews. I keep going back trying to find things and interviews are sort of long and rambling. It is hard to keep track of where something was said. JMO.

 

[MsMarple]

The one thing i cant understand is when maddox started getting to far ahead, the father said there were 3 people in front of him he had to pass by why didn't he yell for them or anyone to help stop him? I know strangers would have freaked him out or caused panic, but being around all that water and woods i would have been screaming help me catch my son please. I am not blaming dad at all i just wonder why he did not holler for help?

That was my first thought too. When my grandson took off at the zoo the one thing I did was yell "Stop!" But people did watch me chase after him. In fact one man stood and watched and later when we passed each other he laughed and said "Good to see you caught up with him" in a joking manner. I believe he waited to see if I would catch him and was possibly ready to help.

I also spent some time at our local park this week observing people with kids. The park is big but nothing like Rankin. There are only 3 exits and they go onto quiet streets. But there's a steep gravel path that leads down to the beach on the north part of Puget Sound. I sat on a bench near there.

Sure enough without exception when little ones ran for the path the adults yelled "Stop!" but no one actually called out to me or anyone else to catch them. So my conclusion was that in relatively safe areas people don't tend to ask others for help but many do yell to the child.

What we don't know is how Ian normally reacted when Maddox ran uncomfortably far ahead in other settings. The parking lot may have been a concern but it's a park and IMO parents are more relaxed in that type of setting than walking on a sidewalk next to a busy street.

We also don't know how Maddox responded to stimuli such as having his name called or his parent yelling "Stop!" So without that information we can't really judge if Ian's reaction was appropriate.

What puzzles me more is the distance Maddox traveled. Like Alethea said it's really far off. And muddy and covered in heavy brush according to the neighbor. How did he manage to navigate the rough terrain? But then again, kids are so unpredictable.

 

[IceIce9]

Thanks for the map, it's really helpful. That is...really far off.

I'm surprised LE isn't asking anyone who saw something off Old Dallas Road to come forward?

I wondered about that too. Someone had mentioned upthread that it was a busy road. I would think a child walking alone would be noticed by passing motorists.

 

[MsMarple]

I wondered about that too. Someone had mentioned upthread that it was a busy road. I would think a child walking alone would be noticed by passing motorists.

After watching videos of the area and doing the street walk on Google Maps I can understand how no one could have seen him. You can barely see the creek from Old Dallas Hwy overhead. I don't know how far down it is but it's enough to occlude one's view, especially with all the overgrowth.

 

[Alethea]

I'm more skeptical if we're saying a 6 year old bush-whacked through heavy brush along a creek. Wouldn't a child go for the route of least resistance?

 

[Lillymac]

I'm more skeptical if we're saying a 6 year old bush-whacked through heavy brush along a creek. Wouldn't a child go for the route of least resistance?

How far off the path was his body found?? From the path to the creek.

 

[heartgoesout]

Thanks for the link! Watching again helped clarify where they were when Maddox ran off. From his description they were on the south side of the lake on the walkway moving towards the office. This matches the description given by the lady who saw him. Last time I'll post this map, I promise!

View attachment 149492

We don't mind the map! So can you elaborate on how you came to the conclusion they came up the path south to north on the pic you posted? I'm trying to understand as best I can. thanks!

 

[heartgoesout]

Thanks for the link! Watching again helped clarify where they were when Maddox ran off. From his description they were on the south side of the lake on the walkway moving towards the office. This matches the description given by the lady who saw him. Last time I'll post this map, I promise!

View attachment 149492

Also do you have a link where the lady says she saw him specifically. I can't find where she said a location.

 

[MsMarple]

I'm more skeptical if we're saying a 6 year old bush-whacked through heavy brush along a creek. Wouldn't a child go for the route of least resistance?

How far off the path was his body found?? From the path to the creek.

We don't know the exact path Maddox took - even LE is trying to figure it out. Looking at the map there are open areas that I'm guessing he followed. But once you arrive to the area where he was found the growth is pretty dense. The map shows some open areas near the spot but even with the poor resolution it appears that he did walk through some rough areas. Videos posted help a little.
A closer look at where Maddox Ritch was found
MADDOX RITCH: Community comes together to find light in darkness after death of Maddox Ritch Bottom video
Google Maps
I can't find the other link but these should give you a good idea of the area.

ETA: For heartgoesout link to the lady's statement saying Maddox was running towards the park office:

It was on that walk, Brooke says, they ran into little Maddox. She says he came up behind them on the path around the lake, and her mom tried to talk to him.
Sheppard said he didn’t say anything back, and they kept an eye on him as he ran toward the park office.

Woman remembers day she saw Maddox Ritch at park

 

[thepinkdragon]

I just can’t shake the feeling that someone grabbed him off the path he was running on and that’s why it took so long to find him. I believe the dad told the truth. Moo