IN IN - Melinda Creech, 13, Anderson, 4 Sept 1979
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theforgotten
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Jersey*Girl
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Please see the recent posts in the following thread & let me know what you guys think. Could Melinda possibly be, or maybe even know, the following Jane Doe?
LA LA - Bossier Parish - Female 61UFLA, 16-21, Jan 1981 - With braces - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community
LA LA - Bossier Parish - Female 61UFLA, 16-21, Jan 1981 - With braces - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community
Jersey*Girl
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Bumpity Bump
Jersey*Girl
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Found another article. This is from 2009. Note: The Blake House For Girls.
http://heraldbulletin.com/breakingn...woman-still-hopeful-for-missing-girl-s-return
Quote:
November 9, 2009
Anderson woman still hopeful for missing girl’s return
Detective revisits case when tips come his way
By Christina M. Wright, Herald Bulletin Staff Writer
ANDERSON, Ind. — Twelve poster-sized missing persons decals cover Patti Bishop’s car, but it’s the story of Anderson’s Melinda “Mindy” Creech that has plagued Bishop for 30 years.
The last time anyone saw Mindy, it was Sept. 4, 1979. She was 14 years old.
Thirty years later, native-Andersonian Bishop is keeping hope that she will be found, even though the detective on the case says it may be a body instead of a live person.
“There’s a lot of hope that she’s alive,” Bishop said. “You never give up that hope unless you have physical evidence.”
Bishop founded IN Hope, an Indiana nonprofit organization that searches and advocates for missing people, in 2000 after her stepdaughter’s disappearance. Since then, Mindy has been featured on her car, on her Web site and at her Squeaky Wheel concerts — put on to bring awareness about missing people throughout the nation.
According to police reports, Mindy ran away from home a few times as a child. After stealing motorcycles with another teenager, Mindy was placed in an all-girls detention home — also known as the “Blake House.” On Sept. 4, she disappeared.
“Someone here knows something,” Bishop said. “People are coming back for reunions and to help their family. Someone knows something.”
According to Detective David Callahan, of the Madison County Sheriff’s Department, Mindy’s mother told her siblings that a body found on the East Coast was matched to Mindy’s dental records. But, when their mother died a few years ago, the family found a letter from that agency stating the exact opposite. For all those years, their mother, Shirley Creech, had lied to them and no one knows why.
“It’s awfully suspicious,” Callahan said. “But, other than being suspicious, we don’t have any evidence that the mother had done her any harm.”
He added that the family claimed their mother could be abusive, but even that information cannot confirm or deny that she was involved in Mindy’s disappearance.
“It’s a possibility, but there’s no evidence that we could find,” Callahan said. A phone number for Mindy’s brother was not answered Sunday.
Over the past five years since Mindy’s case landed on Callahan’s desk, he has received about 15 requests from New York to Los Angeles for Mindy’s dental records to be compared with remains. None of them returned as a positive match.
“I revisit it whenever any new tips come in,” he said, noting that the last tip was received about a month ago.
No tips have confirmed or denied whether Mindy was still alive. According to a 1997 study — Case Management for Missing Children Homicide Investigation, abducted children are rarely murdered. However, the study said children who are murdered, are killed within three hours. But, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the chances have gotten better over the years, with 96 percent recovered in 2009.
Callahan said there has not been any activity on Mindy’s Social Security number or with any credit cards for the past 30 years. Unfortunately, he said, a body will most likely be the resolution to his longest missing-persons case.
“You always want to keep your hopes up,” he said. “But, honestly, I think that we’re just waiting for a body to be discovered.”
However, Bishop said it’s 100 percent possible that Mindy is still living. She said, for all anyone knows, Mindy is living right in Madison County with no interest in being found. If that’s the case, Mindy can contact any police agency and tell them as much. She would not face charges.
Bishop said, in that case, she’d still be ecstatic even though the agency wouldn’t tell her where Mindy is.
“It would be tears of joy,” she said. “It would give other families hope. There would just be a flurry of, ‘She’s Alive!’” Although hopeful, Bishop said any possible conclusion would provide “resolution” for the community and family. And, she said, she looks forward to that day.
“Once you’ve been touched by the missing, you just feel different,” she said with a wink.
Contact Christina M. Wright: 640-4883, [email protected].
http://heraldbulletin.com/breakingn...woman-still-hopeful-for-missing-girl-s-return
Quote:
November 9, 2009
Anderson woman still hopeful for missing girl’s return
Detective revisits case when tips come his way
By Christina M. Wright, Herald Bulletin Staff Writer
ANDERSON, Ind. — Twelve poster-sized missing persons decals cover Patti Bishop’s car, but it’s the story of Anderson’s Melinda “Mindy” Creech that has plagued Bishop for 30 years.
The last time anyone saw Mindy, it was Sept. 4, 1979. She was 14 years old.
Thirty years later, native-Andersonian Bishop is keeping hope that she will be found, even though the detective on the case says it may be a body instead of a live person.
“There’s a lot of hope that she’s alive,” Bishop said. “You never give up that hope unless you have physical evidence.”
Bishop founded IN Hope, an Indiana nonprofit organization that searches and advocates for missing people, in 2000 after her stepdaughter’s disappearance. Since then, Mindy has been featured on her car, on her Web site and at her Squeaky Wheel concerts — put on to bring awareness about missing people throughout the nation.
According to police reports, Mindy ran away from home a few times as a child. After stealing motorcycles with another teenager, Mindy was placed in an all-girls detention home — also known as the “Blake House.” On Sept. 4, she disappeared.
“Someone here knows something,” Bishop said. “People are coming back for reunions and to help their family. Someone knows something.”
According to Detective David Callahan, of the Madison County Sheriff’s Department, Mindy’s mother told her siblings that a body found on the East Coast was matched to Mindy’s dental records. But, when their mother died a few years ago, the family found a letter from that agency stating the exact opposite. For all those years, their mother, Shirley Creech, had lied to them and no one knows why.
“It’s awfully suspicious,” Callahan said. “But, other than being suspicious, we don’t have any evidence that the mother had done her any harm.”
He added that the family claimed their mother could be abusive, but even that information cannot confirm or deny that she was involved in Mindy’s disappearance.
“It’s a possibility, but there’s no evidence that we could find,” Callahan said. A phone number for Mindy’s brother was not answered Sunday.
Over the past five years since Mindy’s case landed on Callahan’s desk, he has received about 15 requests from New York to Los Angeles for Mindy’s dental records to be compared with remains. None of them returned as a positive match.
“I revisit it whenever any new tips come in,” he said, noting that the last tip was received about a month ago.
No tips have confirmed or denied whether Mindy was still alive. According to a 1997 study — Case Management for Missing Children Homicide Investigation, abducted children are rarely murdered. However, the study said children who are murdered, are killed within three hours. But, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the chances have gotten better over the years, with 96 percent recovered in 2009.
Callahan said there has not been any activity on Mindy’s Social Security number or with any credit cards for the past 30 years. Unfortunately, he said, a body will most likely be the resolution to his longest missing-persons case.
“You always want to keep your hopes up,” he said. “But, honestly, I think that we’re just waiting for a body to be discovered.”
However, Bishop said it’s 100 percent possible that Mindy is still living. She said, for all anyone knows, Mindy is living right in Madison County with no interest in being found. If that’s the case, Mindy can contact any police agency and tell them as much. She would not face charges.
Bishop said, in that case, she’d still be ecstatic even though the agency wouldn’t tell her where Mindy is.
“It would be tears of joy,” she said. “It would give other families hope. There would just be a flurry of, ‘She’s Alive!’” Although hopeful, Bishop said any possible conclusion would provide “resolution” for the community and family. And, she said, she looks forward to that day.
“Once you’ve been touched by the missing, you just feel different,” she said with a wink.
Contact Christina M. Wright: 640-4883, [email protected].
Jersey*Girl
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Central Christian Church supports several outreach centers & you homes/detention centers. They encompass several states, make a big positive impact. When Melinda disappeared, could she have been sent to another facility & her mother (Shirley) kept it a secret? Could she have gone to Louisiana or Texas? The link below with the office manager maybe could help us piece something together. I'm supplying this to be thorough. It looks like Cheryl took that position way after Melinda disappeared but she may be able to give us the history behind some things. I would really like to know if the Jane Doe in Bossier LA 1981 could be Melinda. If not, why does she have Goolagona shoes on with some peoples names from Anderson or Nobleville written on them? One of the names is Mike Brisco & he's a member of the Anderson Tennis Club or something like that. There is also a D. Davies - could that be Dawn Davies? When I looked at Michael's Facebook friend's list, I see several names that were supplied as Melinda's friends. Could it be that this Jane Doe is her or could she have known her?
http://www.central-christian-church.com/the_staff.htm
Snipped:
Cheryl was born into a Disciples of Christ family and, beginning with her great-grandparents, they were members of Central Christian**Cheryl holds*life licenses to direct child care centers in Texas, Washington, and Indiana and has done so.* In Anderson she*worked for Madison Superior Court 2, Director of Bronnenberg Home, and Director of Support Services where she supervised the Children's Home, Blake House for Girls, Boys Residential Unit, Juvenile Detention Center, Counseling Services, Alternative Education Center, and educational, medical, and food service contracts.* Cheryl continued her work in the area of child abuse and neglect as Director of Court Improvement for the State Supreme Court of Wisconsin.* For the past few years, she has been a volunteer for several teams of Central Christian and is delighted to be a part of the office staff.*
http://www.central-christian-church.com/the_staff.htm
Snipped:
Cheryl was born into a Disciples of Christ family and, beginning with her great-grandparents, they were members of Central Christian**Cheryl holds*life licenses to direct child care centers in Texas, Washington, and Indiana and has done so.* In Anderson she*worked for Madison Superior Court 2, Director of Bronnenberg Home, and Director of Support Services where she supervised the Children's Home, Blake House for Girls, Boys Residential Unit, Juvenile Detention Center, Counseling Services, Alternative Education Center, and educational, medical, and food service contracts.* Cheryl continued her work in the area of child abuse and neglect as Director of Court Improvement for the State Supreme Court of Wisconsin.* For the past few years, she has been a volunteer for several teams of Central Christian and is delighted to be a part of the office staff.*
I'm affraid the real sad thing about Melinda is, that nobody cared enough for her to buy her such an expensive thing as braces.
Jersey*Girl
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BuMpItY bUmP
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Could this possibly be Melinda Creech? The following Jane Doe died as a result of being hit by a tractor trailer in 1982 in or near Ft Lauderdale, FL. This Jane Doe died on August 3, 1982. The estimated age at death coincides with near closeness to Melinda's proposed birthday. The year of death was 1982 & Melinda's mom Shirley mentioned this year as being when Melinda died, even though Shirley could have been lying. The resemblance is remarkable.
Melinda Creech when she went missing and age progression:
This is Jane Doe's composite:
Jane Doe's file info from NCM&EC:
http://www.missingkids.com/missingk...NCMU&seqNum=1&caseLang=en_US&searchLang=en_US
JANE DOE1982
Case Type:*Unidentified *
DOB:*Jan 1, 1966 Sex:*Female
Found: Aug 3, 1982 Race:*White
Age Now:*46 Height:* 5'2" (157 cm)
Missing City:*FORT LAUDERDALE Weight:* 110 lbs (50 kg)
Missing State :* FL Hair Color:*Brown
Missing Country:*United States Eye Color:*Brown
Case Number:*NCMU1106920
Circumstances:*On August 3, 1982, this unidentified female died as a result of injuries sustained when she was struck by a tractor-trailer on Interstate 95 in Fort Lauderdale, FL. The decedent is estimated to be between 14 and 17 years of age and had dark blonde or brown hair. She was wearing blue jeans, a dark blue blouse, and brown sandals at the time of her death. The decedent was thought to be a hitchhiker and may have used the name "Donna" during her travels. She was believed to have been in Oklahoma City, OK; Canutillo, TX; and West Monroe, LA prior to her death, and may have been a runaway. The image above is a computer-assisted facial reconstruction created by a forensic artist at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Items such as hairstyle and complexion are the artist's estimations to complete the image, and should not be used as significant markers for identification. The "DOB" and "Age Now" fields are approximations.
Melinda Creech when she went missing and age progression:
This is Jane Doe's composite:
Jane Doe's file info from NCM&EC:
http://www.missingkids.com/missingk...NCMU&seqNum=1&caseLang=en_US&searchLang=en_US
JANE DOE1982
Case Type:*Unidentified *
DOB:*Jan 1, 1966 Sex:*Female
Found: Aug 3, 1982 Race:*White
Age Now:*46 Height:* 5'2" (157 cm)
Missing City:*FORT LAUDERDALE Weight:* 110 lbs (50 kg)
Missing State :* FL Hair Color:*Brown
Missing Country:*United States Eye Color:*Brown
Case Number:*NCMU1106920
Circumstances:*On August 3, 1982, this unidentified female died as a result of injuries sustained when she was struck by a tractor-trailer on Interstate 95 in Fort Lauderdale, FL. The decedent is estimated to be between 14 and 17 years of age and had dark blonde or brown hair. She was wearing blue jeans, a dark blue blouse, and brown sandals at the time of her death. The decedent was thought to be a hitchhiker and may have used the name "Donna" during her travels. She was believed to have been in Oklahoma City, OK; Canutillo, TX; and West Monroe, LA prior to her death, and may have been a runaway. The image above is a computer-assisted facial reconstruction created by a forensic artist at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Items such as hairstyle and complexion are the artist's estimations to complete the image, and should not be used as significant markers for identification. The "DOB" and "Age Now" fields are approximations.
Jersey*Girl
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Dang - Melinda blue eyes vs Jane Doe brown eyes.
carbuff
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Yeah, it looks like Darryl Creech filled out the form so he could request any information they have about his sister.
amber1
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A message from Melissa or "Mindy's" family:
http://www.oocities.org/mindyscandle/latestFindings.html
http://www.oocities.org/mindyscandle/latestFindings.html
annegrete
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I want to think the best of Melinda's mother and say that her telling the kids Melinda was eventually found dead was her way of putting closure to such an open, painful wound. BUT, other posts in this thread have made me reconsider.
Did something happen to Melinda at the Browning House? Maybe the mother transported Melinda's body back to the home and buried her under the tool shed?
OR, perhaps after Melinda was released, she had an altercation with her mother, and mom killed her. Melinda's friend's intuition about the shed - how it was like Melinda was screaming- cannot be ignored. Either Melinda was murdered in the shed and moved elsewhere, OR she is buried in the shed, OR tools from the shed were used in the murder (murder and burial took place elsewhere).
Regarding Melinda's lack of orthodontics- maybe the family made plans to get her braces, but she went missing before that happened. Maybe the dentist was waiting for her mouth to finish growing before putting on braces.
Did something happen to Melinda at the Browning House? Maybe the mother transported Melinda's body back to the home and buried her under the tool shed?
OR, perhaps after Melinda was released, she had an altercation with her mother, and mom killed her. Melinda's friend's intuition about the shed - how it was like Melinda was screaming- cannot be ignored. Either Melinda was murdered in the shed and moved elsewhere, OR she is buried in the shed, OR tools from the shed were used in the murder (murder and burial took place elsewhere).
Regarding Melinda's lack of orthodontics- maybe the family made plans to get her braces, but she went missing before that happened. Maybe the dentist was waiting for her mouth to finish growing before putting on braces.
amber1
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I have always thought what you just wrote! It is just such a weird situation, and I also agree-that information can't be ignored. With the recent developments in the case of Coral Pearl Hall (Her grandmother was the last to see her. It has been found out she killed Coral, but made her look like a runaway to evade suspicions), this theory cannot be ignored, as painful as it is.
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bbm: I'm still trying to figure out what exactly was said about a shed, and where. I saw that someone on this thread referred to her mother not letting people near a shed, but I have looked at the family's website, and all her profiles on the missing person sites and never saw any mention of a shed.
Without knowing where that information came from, I wouldn't put too much weight on it. It may just be that someone was confused with a different case.
annegrete
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Thanks for clarifying, Odyssey.
So, removing the shed, let's go back to the House. Maybe Melinda crossed paths with some tough girls during her stay? There can be some rough girls in such places- girls who will do much worse than steal motorcycles (like Melinda and her friend).
First scenario- One of girls has some beef with Melinda. Things get out of hand. Melinda is murdered. Staff covers it up.
Second scenario- Melinda pisses off one of the girls. The girl becomes a "frenemy" while waiting for the opportunity to strike back. After Melinda is released, she meets up with the girl, thinking they will iron things out. Instead, the girl kills her or has someone else kill her.
So, removing the shed, let's go back to the House. Maybe Melinda crossed paths with some tough girls during her stay? There can be some rough girls in such places- girls who will do much worse than steal motorcycles (like Melinda and her friend).
First scenario- One of girls has some beef with Melinda. Things get out of hand. Melinda is murdered. Staff covers it up.
Second scenario- Melinda pisses off one of the girls. The girl becomes a "frenemy" while waiting for the opportunity to strike back. After Melinda is released, she meets up with the girl, thinking they will iron things out. Instead, the girl kills her or has someone else kill her.
annegrete
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Through google, I discvoered another forum where Melinda's brother posted about the case. He said the police picked her up. He said the police report is "fuzzy" regarding what happened next. Either Melinda ran away upon arrival at the House or while en route.
So that nullifies my theories on mom maybe killing her or other girls from the House.
New theory- met some bad person, died at their hands. Perhaps she was hitching a ride home or away and the driver killed her. Or maybe she went away to clear her head but met with bad people.
If she is alive, then surely she must have been on the streets during her teen life.
So that nullifies my theories on mom maybe killing her or other girls from the House.
New theory- met some bad person, died at their hands. Perhaps she was hitching a ride home or away and the driver killed her. Or maybe she went away to clear her head but met with bad people.
If she is alive, then surely she must have been on the streets during her teen life.
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bbm
It is still possible.
A letter was found in the mother's belongings, which was informing her that Melinda had some sort of legal conference coming up, and that Melinda's mother could be present and/or bring an attorney if she wanted to. This letter was dated AFTER Melinda supposedly went missing. That could mean Melinda was still at the home and did not run away.
Nobody knows if Melinda's mother went to the meeting, or if Melinda even appeared at it.
The thought has been that possibly Melinda's mother signed away her parental rights and Melinda was adopted out, and that Melinda's mother made up the runaway story.
It's also possible that Melinda was released to her mother...
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