NC NC - Asha Degree, 9, Shelby, 14 Feb 2000 #2

[scrimpies]

[clipped]
lastly, it's my opinion that the Dedmons felt like no one would care about a missing black girl. oftentimes, it feels like that's the truth in cases like this. but their time has come and oh how wrong they were.

I wonder if Asha's death influenced the later choices of the daughters. One became a teacher (grade level is older than Asha's) and expressed support for Black Lives Matter.

My sincere hope is that these women will recognized they were coerced into protecting their father at the cost of Asha's family. They can come clean and help secure (albeit delayed) justice. It's both the least and most they could do without a time machine to change what happened.

moo

 

[Shade13]

I'd still like to know why Asha was out on the road.

I'm probably in the minority, but I dont believe she just happened to be out on the road and got hit by one of the girls. It's just too much of a leap to believe that.

You're telling me she sneaked out for some unrelated reason and then just happen to get hit by one of the girls and hidden?

I think the most likely scenario is she was lured out, and she wasn't lured out by some random person waiting on her...only for her to not show up because she got hit by a car.

I dont know what happened, but I think this family was behind it. Maybe the dad was a perv, and the girls covered for him...or lured her out for him. Maybe the girls were just mean, and planned on playing a cruel prank on her that went too far.

But there's just too many coincidences for me.

 

[bearfossils]

Even if her body is found and the appropriate parties charged for their involvement in her death, I wonder if we will ever find out why Asha snuck out that night. To me that’s 100x more baffling than a stupid family panicking and covering up a crime.

We will probably never know. Sometimes children make impulsive choices, and sometimes those choices are driven by reasons only a child’s mind could make sense of. The ability to conceptualize long term consequences for our actions and understand risks doesn’t develop fully until we become young adults.

 

[Beachlife926]

IMO I immediately thought of sleep walking. It sounds like she doesn’t have a history of it, but this could’ve been her first major incident. The others either weren’t noticed because they were sleeping themselves, or saw it, and didn’t know she was sleeping.

When I was younger, I use to sleep talk, and walk. One time, around 10yo, I walked outside to my grandparents house right next door. Luckily my brother was awake and saw me, followed me outside and turned me around (since he knew I was sleep walking and he was told never to wake us).
My mom got worried and brought me to a dr, and I got my adenoids removed, and don’t think I sleep walk anymore.
I still sleep talk, per my boyfriend
(At first, he didn’t know I was sleep talking, since I carry on conversations)

 

[k-mac]

Asha was 9.
It was storming and the middle of the night.
This is a huge deal for me.
Why was a little girl out in the middle of the night in the middle of a storm???

She had to have had an agenda.
She must have known these girls .
It is the only thing that seems logical for such a young girl to commit to such a scary 'adventure' or runaway. There must have been back up , support for her to put herself in such a dangerous predicament.

The alternative, what was she escaping at home???
could the dedmon girls have just been joyriding and ran her over??

either way, it drives me nuts wondering what was going on with Asha that night.
She deserves her truth to be known.

 

[k-mac]

I'm probably in the minority, but I dont believe she just happened to be out on the road and got hit by one of the girls. It's just too much of a leap to believe that.

You're telling me she sneaked out for some unrelated reason and then just happen to get hit by one of the girls and hidden?

I think the most likely scenario is she was lured out, and she wasn't lured out by some random person waiting on her...only for her to not show up because she got hit by a car.

I dont know what happened, but I think this family was behind it. Maybe the dad was a perv, and the girls covered for him...or lured her out for him. Maybe the girls were just mean, and planned on playing a cruel prank on her that went too far.

But there's just too many coincidences for me.

yeah its a lot.

I wonder about the sports game that Asha played in.
Usually there is a lot of people floating around team sport activities.
I wonder if she was lurred at the game by these girls for some kind of late night fun?

 

[PawneeDew]

I have a bit of a silly theory which I haven't seen mentioned in the thread yet, so I'm going to put this out there... please be nice; I'm new lol.

I think most of us are baffled why Asha went outside in terrible weather, without a coat. It's become more of a mystery than what happened to her at this point, because nothing fully makes sense.
I wonder whether the fact it was her parents' wedding anniversary accounted for her late night jaunt. Maybe she wanted to get them something from the convenience store (I'm not sure how close it was, but I think I read it was on the highway) before they woke. Maybe something for breakfast, and it couldn't wait until morning because she had to go to school. Perhaps the lights going down affected whatever plan she initially had, or her parents had, and she thought she could save the day?

I don't think she sleepwalked - we'd have probably heard if she had history of it - and without a clock in her room, mobile phone or the Internet, she wouldn't easily be able to arrange secret rendezvous with friends. It doesn't sound as though she was trying to run away as such; her home life doesn't sound bad, and surely she'd have at least taken her coat if she was planning to be away a long time, and say goodbye to her brother or leave him a note as they were close.

I think she was intending to return, perhaps grabbed her book bag as it had her key in it (perhaps it still had pyjamas leftover from the sleepover which she was yet to unpack) and headed out thinking it was a quicker walk than it was.

Does this sound stupid? Does anyone know how far the convenience store is from her house? Was it a 24-7 kind of place?

In any event, I'm not sure we'll ever know for sure why she left, but with luck the Dedmon sisters will cave soon, and hopefully give Asha's family some closure about her last moments

No, Not stupid. That's a very good theory probably the best I've heard.

 

[PawneeDew]

yeah its a lot.

I wonder about the sports game that Asha played in.
Usually there is a lot of people floating around team sport activities.
I wonder if she was lurred at the game by these girls for some kind of late night fun?

Exactly! I've been wondering about that game, too. It was reported somewhere that Asha was upset over the game, I think....

 

[maamager]

I'm probably in the minority, but I dont believe she just happened to be out on the road and got hit by one of the girls. It's just too much of a leap to believe that.

You're telling me she sneaked out for some unrelated reason and then just happen to get hit by one of the girls and hidden?

I think the most likely scenario is she was lured out, and she wasn't lured out by some random person waiting on her...only for her to not show up because she got hit by a car.

I dont know what happened, but I think this family was behind it. Maybe the dad was a perv, and the girls covered for him...or lured her out for him. Maybe the girls were just mean, and planned on playing a cruel prank on her that went too far.

But there's just too many coincidences for me.

i agree!

fwiw, it all comes back to the fact that the only official suspects named right now are Roy and Connie.

it’s unclear what their daughters know. hell, it’s even unclear what the ex husband knew, let alone this family’s orbit. i am antsy for the breadcrumbs to fall into place.

 

[horselightning]

So what about the Dr., Seuss Book that was found asha's bag with the night gown. Who do they know who went to school with Asha and checked out that book? That is the only connection I see.

 

[Anance]

I don't know car models at all, but that is a very distinctive shade of green.

From the mid-60s, too. I imagine it's a sentimental car, for some reason. Probably the reason it was not discarded after the sighting.

 

[Anance]

I was surprised how good shape the car they towed looked, given its age. I would have expected more rust, faded paint, broken windows. Made me wonder if it had been stored indoors, like in a workshop or a barn. It would make sense, if someone was trying to hide it.

My question is why didn't they get rid of it? It must have some sentimental value.

 

[Anance]

Not much has been mentioned regarding the pic. of this UID girl which was found with the books etc., did i miss something new about her?
View attachment 530819

Asha Degree /// 475 /// 476

DO YOU KNOW THIS GIRL???

truecrimegarage.com

What a tell that picture is now. Maybe --- someone wanted the backpack to be found and connected to Asha, for reasons unknown. Not having a picture of her and the software from 25 years ago would not allow them to make one. So, they found a stock picture of a similar girl.

 

[Anance]

The documents go on to say that in May of 2023, investigators conducted interviews with an employee at Cleveland County Social Services who confirmed that Underhill resided at Cleveland Health Care and that they recalled that Roy Dedmon was involved in Underhill's care in February of 2000 and "informed investigators they were told Roy Dedmon would send his 16 to 17 year old daughter Lizzie Grace Dedmon Foster, to transport patients in an unreliable vehicle to and from Broughton Hospital in Morganton."

Investigators were able to obtain Underhill's medical records which revealed that in 1994, Connie was an administrator for Cleveland Health Care and she documented directions on medication administration for Underhill. Roy Dedmon was also listed as Underhill's emergency contact.

Since Underhill died at 54, does this mean he was a disabled adult?

 

[bearfossils]

IMO I immediately thought of sleep walking. It sounds like she doesn’t have a history of it, but this could’ve been her first major incident. The others either weren’t noticed because they were sleeping themselves, or saw it, and didn’t know she was sleeping.

When I was younger, I use to sleep talk, and walk. One time, around 10yo, I walked outside to my grandparents house right next door. Luckily my brother was awake and saw me, followed me outside and turned me around (since he knew I was sleep walking and he was told never to wake us).
My mom got worried and brought me to a dr, and I got my adenoids removed, and don’t think I sleep walk anymore.
I still sleep talk, per my boyfriend
(At first, he didn’t know I was sleep talking, since I carry on conversations)

Considering she had packed a bag with various items, presumedly locked whatever door she exited from, and ran from a witness after they tried to contact her, I highly doubt it was sleep walking. All of her actions that night seem planned (to a degree) and she seemed cognizant of her actions.

 

[MamaSleuth5]

I have a bit of a silly theory which I haven't seen mentioned in the thread yet, so I'm going to put this out there... please be nice; I'm new lol.

I think most of us are baffled why Asha went outside in terrible weather, without a coat. It's become more of a mystery than what happened to her at this point, because nothing fully makes sense.
I wonder whether the fact it was her parents' wedding anniversary accounted for her late night jaunt. Maybe she wanted to get them something from the convenience store (I'm not sure how close it was, but I think I read it was on the highway) before they woke. Maybe something for breakfast, and it couldn't wait until morning because she had to go to school. Perhaps the lights going down affected whatever plan she initially had, or her parents had, and she thought she could save the day?

I don't think she sleepwalked - we'd have probably heard if she had history of it - and without a clock in her room, mobile phone or the Internet, she wouldn't easily be able to arrange secret rendezvous with friends. It doesn't sound as though she was trying to run away as such; her home life doesn't sound bad, and surely she'd have at least taken her coat if she was planning to be away a long time, and say goodbye to her brother or leave him a note as they were close.

I think she was intending to return, perhaps grabbed her book bag as it had her key in it (perhaps it still had pyjamas leftover from the sleepover which she was yet to unpack) and headed out thinking it was a quicker walk than it was.

Does this sound stupid? Does anyone know how far the convenience store is from her house? Was it a 24-7 kind of place?

In any event, I'm not sure we'll ever know for sure why she left, but with luck the Dedmon sisters will cave soon, and hopefully give Asha's family some closure about her last moments

I think this a good theory JMO

Welcome to Websleuths, @Joslyn !

 

[cckp72]

What a tell that picture is now. Maybe --- someone wanted the backpack to be found and connected to Asha, for reasons unknown. Not having a picture of her and the software from 25 years ago would not allow them to make one. So, they found a stock picture of a similar girl.

If i remember correctly, the picture was found at the shed not in the backpack. I think the latest (from a couple of years back) was that the shed evidence which was found was not conclusive it was Asha's. There was also a hair tie and some candy wrappers found there.

As far as I can remember the little girls picture was never identified. However, her likeness to Asha is definitely curious.

 

[Anance]

just curious on what the context Asha had for being outside at 2 am while it was storming.

Nobody knows. We need to just accept this and stop wondering. She was out there, for reasons.

Could this be a racially motivated crime of opportunity?

 

[sunflowermomma]

I've been thinking a lot about the fact that Asha was 9, and out in a storm in the middle of the night.

This is purely anecdotal and MOO. I used to nanny for a family with a 9 y/o and 11 y/o albeit in a more urban area. They lived a few doors down and would stay at my house when their mom worked late. The 9 y/o was terrified of the dark. I would be in the next room visible through the open door and he would try and sneak out and sit with me because just being in a dark room alone was scary!

However, when mom got home around midnight, he was totally comfortable walking down the block to his house by himself and it made him feel like a big boy to go by himself (mom and I would be watching on our porches, don't worry lol).

I think that to a little kid, being afraid of the dark can be about monsters in the closet or under the bed, but maybe the fear doesn't apply the same to a familiar outdoor space you've seen a million times with mom or dad in the daylight. I wonder if Asha's fear of the dark is sort of a red herring when it comes to the fact that she was outside at night.

 

[bearfossils]

I've been thinking a lot about the fact that Asha was 9, and out in a storm in the middle of the night.

This is purely anecdotal and MOO. I used to nanny for a family with a 9 y/o and 11 y/o albeit in a more urban area. They lived a few doors down and would stay at my house when their mom worked late. The 9 y/o was terrified of the dark. I would be in the next room visible through the open door and he would try and sneak out and sit with me because just being in a dark room alone was scary!

However, when mom got home around midnight, he was totally comfortable walking down the block to his house by himself and it made him feel like a big boy to go by himself (mom and I would be watching on our porches, don't worry lol).

I think that to a little kid, being afraid of the dark can be about monsters in the closet or under the bed, but maybe the fear doesn't apply the same to a familiar outdoor space you've seen a million times with mom or dad in the daylight. I wonder if Asha's fear of the dark is sort of a red herring when it comes to the fact that she was outside at night.

I couldn’t agree more. I think the fallacy we have to recognize with this case is approaching the possibilities of why Asha left the house from an adult mindset. As a child, I was a well-behaved, straight A student with extracurriculars, much like Asha. I also had night terrors, and often needed a television or a small light on at night, even when older, because of the anxiety I had about nightmares and sleeping. Even still, there were a few times where I snuck out of my window in the middle of the night, just to walk around the block. I couldn’t give you a good reason why I did it, other than it made me feel a little older and more independent. Never did it occur to me that something bad could happen to me. Our brains operate differently at that age, and children have an internal logic all their own.

That being said, it’s worth noting that before her disappearance, Asha’s class read a book (The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman) where children run away from their home and go on an adventure. IIRC, she also was upset about her performance in a recent basketball game. Maybe she felt adventuring out into the night would make her feel brave. Maybe she didn’t know it would storm that night, but she went out anyway, so she could feel more mature than she was. It’s hard to put ourselves into her shoes when most of us haven’t been children for many years.

I’m not saying I don’t believe she could have been lured or enticed out in some way, but I think it’s just as possible that she left the house that night for completely innocent reasons of her own and run into foul play in the course of the night.