At the time the police officer saw the SUV in the field, there wasn't even a crime that had occurred. Frankly, I find it amazing that she even went to the trouble of knocking on Jessica's door based on a vehicle in a field adjacent to the house. As Insp. Nicholas said, this is not that unusual a sight in farm country.
IMO, this officer should feel ABSOLUTELY NO GUILT and is to be commended for having cared enough to check in the first place. I trust she will receive all the support available to her, and I hope she gets a zillion hugs.
ITA, Billy. She did everything right, as far as I can see.
In a similar ("but not quite" situation), I've been following the case here on WS of 13 year-old Sarah Maynard in Ohio, who was found thankfully alive, although bound and gagged in her alleged abductor's home four days after she went missing. Her mother, brother, and mother's friend were found more than a week later murdered and dismembered, allegedly by the same perp.
The mother's boss reported her missing to LE on a late Wednesday when she didn't show up for work. An LEO went to the home in the early evening, saw the woman's truck in the driveway, the house lights on, and knocked on the door. When no one answered, he left. He repeated this same procedure around 11 p.m. that night and found the same situation. The next morning, he returned, the truck was gone and there was still no answer at the door.
The home was eventually entered later that Thursday by the mother's boss, who found blood at the scene. It was only then that LE began their investigation.
In this situation, with an actual missing person's report (the kids also didn't go to school on Thursday), with a vehicle in the driveway, the lights being on at 11 pm, and no one answering the door, I think there should have been a different protocol. All these factors combined with the lateness of the wellness check called for more action, IMO. There is every indication that during the first check, the perp was quite possibly still in the house and could have been caught then. (Maybe too late for all the victims, but Sarah.)
In the Williams case, there had yet been no sign of trouble, no missing person report and yet the officer took the trouble to check. She has nothing to feel guilty about and should be commended for noticing and being able to describe Williams' truck.
JMO