Found Deceased IL - Jelani 'JJ' Day, 25, ISU grad student, missed class, Bloomington, 23 Aug 2021

[oviedo]

Just started following this case, I always worry about college students and them disappearing. I hope that he didn't think he was in trouble with his teacher, or was struggling with his grades. It seems many possibilities are still on the table. But I do worry about self harm.

Back to school is always concerning to me - I just followed a case where a young man went missing and it was suicide- first week of college… I think this is foul play because of the car being concealed
IMO

 

[Babylon Sister]

I have only been in one dispensary (not at all dangerous!). There is definitely a heavy smell of fresh cannabis that kind of sticks to things. I could see not wearing the "dispensary clothes" back to school, or with a meeting with faculty, but the timing and possible places to change clothes is definitely unusual.

 

[AmandaReckonwith]

Search for missing student from Danville continues

Pastor LeStan Hoskins says he’s seen Danville citizens come together, no matter the church affiliation, color of the skin, and cultural background to support the cause of finding Jelani “JJ” Day.

One of Danville’s very own, Jelani was reported missing on Aug. 25 under unknown circumstances by his family and an ISU faculty member. The 25-year-old’s white 2010 Chrysler 300 was found in a wooded area of Peru, Ill., last week.

“As a community we are rising to the occasion to help the family seek and find him. I believe as a community when one family hurts, we should all hurt. This has become our reality. Together we have had prayer meetings in different locations, traveled to Bloomington and Peru, Illinois to assist the family in searching for him, shared information on Facebook, helped with donations. There is now a $25,000 reward for information that leads to finding him,” Hoskins says.

“This is the Danville I want to believe in. The Danville that I am seeing at this very moment, and I find it to be very moving. We are standing up for a worthy cause in helping one of our own, not passively resigning to sit back with our ‘fingers crossed’ with wishful thinking, but stepping up and standing together helping and hoping for the best. This is who were are,” Hoskins says.

 

[AmandaReckonwith]

https://pantagraph.com/news/local/p...cle_f69c20af-beee-591d-a6e8-f11d5ae08fe7.html

His mother announced a $25,000 for finding him on Facebook and his family are asking for further donations to help in the search. As of Monday evening the G*F*M had raised more than $4,300.

 

[AmandaReckonwith]

Missing ISU grad student Jelani Day's loved ones continue search in Bloomington

Carmen Bolden Day, Jelani's mother, said she last spoke to him Aug. 23. She said they were planning a family trip for Thanksgiving.

"He said 'Mama, I sent you the money to pay Aunt Ruby' and he told me he was going to class and that he will talk to me later," Bolden Day said.

"He called me, told me he put the money in my account and told me 'Mama, I just want to hear your voice," she added. "I just want to hear him call me and say that again."

The next day, Jelani was spotted at the Beyond/Hello Cannabis Dispensary in Bloomington Tuesday morning, according to surveillance footage obtained by Bloomington Police.

That's where volunteers began their search Wednesday afternoon.

They are looking for Jelani's red and white ISU lanyard, his blue iPhone 12 Max Pro and the license plate missing from his car, which was found in Peru last Thursday.

Bolden Day said they are also looking for Jelani's old black wallet and said he may have on a purple and gold Omega Psi Phi bracelet.

"At this point, all I know is that my son has on a pair of shorts and his tennis shoes," Bolden Day said.

"Because his hat and his T-shirt were still in his car that he had on from the last place that we know that he was at," she added.

 

[doyoulovemepfg]

This is a friend of a high school friend that’s in his cohort. I’m going to try and see if I am able to get any more info from her or get her on here, but I know from what I’ve seen from her that searches and posters etc are well publicized in Bloomington.

 

[SimplyCass]

Jelani Day - Google My Maps

^ I created a Google My Maps for this case.

Something that hasn't been discussed much is that he had a class at 1 p.m. that day (8/24/21).

Has it been said what he was doing at the student center? is there a particular reason why he's wearing a button-up collared shirt? Does that class at 1 p.m. require a formal dress code (or perhaps he was doing a presentation)? What I'm trying to get at, I guess, is whether he intended to be out and about until class time. If he had to wear a semi-formal shirt and pants for class, it would support the theory that he changed into the casual clothes to avoid the pungent odor of cannabis. it would explain why those clothes were found in the car and suggests he would have gone to class afterwards without stopping at his apartment.

Fall 2021 began 8/16/21. According to Speech Language Pathology coursework, it seems most likely the class was CSD 402, meeting Tues/Thurs from 1:00-2:40 p.m. 8/24 would have been the third class.

 

[MimosaMornings]

This is a friend of a high school friend that’s in his cohort. I’m going to try and see if I am able to get any more info from her or get her on here, but I know from what I’ve seen from her that searches and posters etc are well publicized in Bloomington.

Favorite hangouts?
Places he frequented?
Employment?
(Wondering how he’s supporting himself)
JMO

 

[scriabina]

Employment?
(Wondering how he’s supporting himself)

Many grad students have RA or TA (research or teaching assistant) positions which cover tuition and monthly stipend, so I'm guess that's how he's supporting himself.

 

[doyoulovemepfg]

Many grad students have RA or TA (research or teaching assistant) positions which cover tuition and monthly stipend, so I'm guess that's how he's supporting himself.

My friend has a fellowship that has a decent stipend, but I know that in many cases at ISU tuition is either covered through scholarships/working another job or the positions mentioned above.

 

[swanniee11]

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Log In or Sign Up to View recent news . Still missing

 

[LotusPawprint]

Jelani Day - Google My Maps


Has it been said what he was doing at the student center? <rsbm>

He made a purchase at Starbucks with his bank card.

 

[davehead21]

Jelani Day - Google My Maps

^ I created a Google My Maps for this case.

Something that hasn't been discussed much is that he had a class at 1 p.m. that day (8/24/21).

Has it been said what he was doing at the student center? is there a particular reason why he's wearing a button-up collared shirt? Does that class at 1 p.m. require a formal dress code (or perhaps he was doing a presentation)? What I'm trying to get at, I guess, is whether he intended to be out and about until class time. If he had to wear a semi-formal shirt and pants for class, it would support the theory that he changed into the casual clothes to avoid the pungent odor of cannabis. it would explain why those clothes were found in the car and suggests he would have gone to class afterwards without stopping at his apartment.

Fall 2021 began 8/16/21. According to Speech Language Pathology coursework, it seems most likely the class was CSD 402, meeting Tues/Thurs from 1:00-2:40 p.m. 8/24 would have been the third class.

He was supposed to meet with the Director of Clinical Education that morning. I have read that the meeting was supposed to be at 7:45 AM but I can't seem to find it in any article now. So it seems like he was on campus for that meeting, used his card at Starbucks, but left without going to the meeting or contacting his professor.

Police in Illinois seek information on ISU grad student missing nearly a week

 

[bykerladi]

Are we sure it was him at the Starbucks?

 

[Hope32]

J.J. on any social media sites?

According to using the FB #FindJelaniDay tag his sister DB (different last name) has said that they were able to hear back from apple for assistance per her FB.

He is a recent grad of Alabama A&M

 

[LotusPawprint]

Are we sure it was him at the Starbucks?

It makes sense that it would be him. He was seen on surveillance in the building and then he was seen a couple of hours later on video at the dispensary.

 

[LotusPawprint]

There is a search tomorrow in Peru.. The Find Jelani FB page references it and says THEY will not be there, they still need people going door to door.

The LaSalle-Peru High School page has posted that tomorrow their parking lot will be used as a staging area as police continue their search for Jelani.

 

[GuyfromCanada]

A bit of new info.

Carmen Bolden-Day said she’s seen speculation on social media that Day may have been struggling with depression, and that he may have run off to “take a break.” She said that simply doesn’t square with Day’s character.

“He is a young man that loves his family,” said Bolden-Day. “He cares so much about what his grandma would think about anything he does. And he wouldn’t want her to worry.”

Bolden-Day said her son also loved his late grandfather, whose car Day was driving the day he disappeared. That car – a white 2010 Chrysler 300 – was found two days later in a wooded area of Peru, Illinois, about an hour's drive north from Bloomington-Normal.

Bolden-Day said Day would’ve never abandoned his grandfather’s car.

Missing ISU Student's Mother Searches For Answers

 

[inmyhumbleopinion]

Jelani’s NamUs profile:
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

“Circumstances of Disappearance:
Jelani Day is a resident of Bloomington, IL, who was in a graduate program at Illinois State University when he went missing. His family contacted police on Wednesday, 08/25/2021, reporting that they had last spoken with him in the evening hours of Monday, 08/23/2021. Further, Jelani's instructors at ISU reported that he had missed class on Tuesday, 08/24/2021, and described this as abnormal for him. Jelani's last known location was at Beyond Hello, a cannabis dispensary in Bloomington, IL, on Tuesday, 08/24/21, at about 9:15 AM. On Thursday afternoon, 08/26/2021, at about 4:20 PM, Jelani's white 2010 Chrysler 300 was located in a wooded area south of 300 Walnut, Peru, IL. The license plates had been removed from the vehicle. Jelani was not located in the area.”

 

[StacyMarie83]

Post from LP High School.

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ANNOUNCEMENT REGARDING EMERGENCY VEHICLES IN THE EAST GYM LOT SATURDAY MORNING.....
Dear L-P Community –
FYI…..
We are going to have a number of emergency vehicles in the East Gym parking lot tomorrow morning (Saturday, 9/4/21). Our local police are assisting in the search of the missing ISU student. Our parking lot will be their staging area.
We hope and pray that this person is found soon.
Sincerely,
Dr. Steven R. Wrobleski
Superintendent