NC - Mom of 3 who vanished 24 years ago while Christmas shopping found ‘alive and well’.

[BeginnerSleuther]

She wasn't reported missing for two weeks. That's very telling to me,

Maybe she would love to have contact with her kids, but if she did that then someone else would find out where she was. I won't judge her as she could've been running from an awful situation.

But she left her kids in that awful situation. I think I'd have more sympathy for her circumstances if she had faked her death or if she had let law enforcement know she was safe but would not be returning (though I wonder if child abandonment laws would apply in that case). Basically, give the kids some resolution. She inflicted lifelong trauma on them, and while I am sympathetic to a potential awful situation, I can't help but think that she made life much, much harder for her children, both by leaving them in that situation alone without her protection (if such situation existed) and by making them wonder for 20 years whether mom was dead or alive, hurt and needing help, being beaten or tortured. I just can't get past the harm that does to a child, even an adult child, to think your parent could be out there in the world needing your help and you're not able to help them.

MOO.

 

[BeginnerSleuther]

I disagree, she has a right to disappear if she's in fear for her life. She obviously knew that her kids were safe (which they were), but it's possible that she didn't feel safe staying.
Women shouldn't have to stay in an abusive situation just because they have kids!!
Jmo

They are responsible for the safety of their children. If there was abuse in the household, it is her responsibility as the mother, to protect her kids. If she needs to disappear, then she needs to arrange for the kids to come with her or she needs to press charges to get the abuser out of the picture. Abandoning your children is not the answer, even in abuse, because you are leaving them in the situation you're escaping and you have no way of knowing how safe they will be once you're gone.

MOO.

 

[BeginnerSleuther]

She left because of "domestic issues " so it's a reasonable guess that it was because of abuse. If she had contacted her kids, she would've had a visit from him.
Maybe you don't understand the risks women face when leaving an abusive man.
Jmo

There's no evidence at all that this was a case of abuse. Domestic issues has a world of implications. It could just be that there was conflict in the home. It could also be that she didn't want to be a mom or that she didn't want to be married or that she was having an affair or that her husband was unfaithful. We don't know that she was in a DV situation. But I also will say that even if she was, it's still not an excuse to abandon your children who are helpless.

MOO.

 

[Sessiebo]

I just feel sorry for her children having to miss their mom for so long, not knowing why.

 

[lisette]

But she left her kids in that awful situation. I think I'd have more sympathy for her circumstances if she had faked her death or if she had let law enforcement know she was safe but would not be returning (though I wonder if child abandonment laws would apply in that case). Basically, give the kids some resolution. She inflicted lifelong trauma on them, and while I am sympathetic to a potential awful situation, I can't help but think that she made life much, much harder for her children, both by leaving them in that situation alone without her protection (if such situation existed) and by making them wonder for 20 years whether mom was dead or alive, hurt and needing help, being beaten or tortured. I just can't get past the harm that does to a child, even an adult child, to think your parent could be out there in the world needing your help and you're not able to help them.

MOO.

Amanda, the daughter that was 14 when she left, has said that it was not an “awful situation” for them before she left. She said their father was a good man and hoped that people would not accuse him of being something he wasn’t. https://people.com/missing-mom-found-after-24-years-said-she-left-due-to-domestic-issues-11912535
I don’t think we should assume that this woman’s “domestic issues“ comment means that he was abusive… and run with it to destroy his reputation. Maybe the “domestic issues“ had to do with her more than him.

 

[sds71]

On Wednesday, Page said, “Detective Disher and Detective Worley met with the Rockingham County District Attorney for a full case review on Michele Hundley Smith. They relayed their evidence in the case to the District Attorney. After the case review and the absence of probable cause or evidence to support a pursuit of criminal charges, the decision not pursue criminal charges by the investigators was supported by the District Attorney.”

https://myfox8.com/news/north-carolina/piedmont-triad/no-charges-to-be-filed-against-rockingham-county-woman-found-alive-24-years-after-disappearance/

 

[muddlehead]

Looking at a missing persons flyer from 2001 for Michele

Lists her height as 5'3 - 5'5

? ?

 

[Ontario Mom]

As expected, some rather unpleasant details of this missing mom are beginning to come to light.

Michele Hundley Smith, 62, was photographed after being taken into custody near the South Carolina border after investigators determined she had an active arrest warrant for failing to appear in court over a drink driving charge in November 2001 — a month before she vanished while Christmas shopping, WFMY reported.

Smith told authorities she ditched her family over 24 years ago because of “ongoing domestic issues at the time,” Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page said recently. However, her daughter, Amanda Smith, previously said her mother had a drinking problem and had been fired from a veterinary practice for “drinking on the job.”

NC mom who went missing 25 years ago arrested — see what she looks like now

Michele Hundley Smith, 62, was photographed after being taken into custody in Robeson County, near the South Carolina border.

nypost.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

ROCKINGHAM, NC — A North Carolina mom-of-three who vanished in 2001 has been pictured for the first time since she was found last week after being arrested for failing to appear in court.

Michele Hundley Smith, 62, was photographed after being taken into custody near the South Carolina border after investigators determined she had an active arrest warrant for failing to appear in court over a drink driving charge in November 2001 — a month before she vanished while Christmas shopping, WFMY reported.

4
Michelle Smith was found alive and living a new life after going missing in 2001. Facebook
Her mug shot shows her now haggard, and teary eyed. after 24 years on the run from her family and the law.

She was arrested at the request of Rockingham County authorities and later posted bond ahead of a scheduled appearance in the county’s district court on March 26.


It comes just days after Smith was tracked down to a North Carolina address on Friday. almost a quarter of a century after abandoning her husband and three children in Rockingham County
4
Michelle Hundley Smith seen in a mugshot.

NC mom who went missing 25 years ago arrested — see what she looks like now

Michele Hundley Smith, 62, was photographed after being taken into custody in Robeson County, near the South Carolina border.

nypost.com

 

[parliamenth0l]

ROCKINGHAM, NC — A North Carolina mom-of-three who vanished in 2001 has been pictured for the first time since she was found last week after being arrested for failing to appear in court.

Michele Hundley Smith, 62, was photographed after being taken into custody near the South Carolina border after investigators determined she had an active arrest warrant for failing to appear in court over a drink driving charge in November 2001 — a month before she vanished while Christmas shopping, WFMY reported.

4
Michelle Smith was found alive and living a new life after going missing in 2001. Facebook
Her mug shot shows her now haggard, and teary eyed. after 24 years on the run from her family and the law.

She was arrested at the request of Rockingham County authorities and later posted bond ahead of a scheduled appearance in the county’s district court on March 26.


It comes just days after Smith was tracked down to a North Carolina address on Friday. almost a quarter of a century after abandoning her husband and three children in Rockingham County
4
Michelle Hundley Smith seen in a mugshot.

NC mom who went missing 25 years ago arrested — see what she looks like now

Michele Hundley Smith, 62, was photographed after being taken into custody in Robeson County, near the South Carolina border.

nypost.com

Not saying this based on her appearance (the word "haggard" sounds mean here) but I wonder if she got into drugs or something? just trying to think why she would do this and how she got caught (maybe asking someone for money)?

Not even really speculating here because we have no details. Idk.

 

[sds71]

Smith was arrested after the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office asked the Robeson County Sheriff’s Department to take her into custody on an outstanding warrant for failure to appear.

Smith posted bond and is scheduled to appear in Rockingham County District Court on March 26.

Mom of 3 who was found alive after going missing 24 years ago taken into custody

A mother who made headlines after authorities found her "alive and well" following her 24-year-long disappearance has been arrested.

www.wfsb.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“The Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office, after consultation with the District Attorney’s Office and further investigation, identified an outstanding Order for Arrest for Michele Hundley Smith for failure to appear,” the sheriff’s office said. “The Order for Arrest stemmed from a DWI charge issued by the Eden Police Department on a November 11, 2001. Michele Hundley Smith failed to appear in court on December 27, 2001, for this charge

Read more at: https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/state/north-carolina/article314850697.html#storylink=cpy

 

[stormymama]

So we can presume she was living in Robeson County.
I can't find her case on the NC Odyssey Portal. I looked in Rockingham and Robeson Counties. Granted, sometimes the Portal isn't up to date, but most of the time it is. The portal goes back years and years and shows criminal cases, civil cases, and special proceedings, all of which are public record. PII is redacted (sometimes.)

I did find the 2003 divorce which I'm assuming was in-absentia. I will not link it since that is sleuthing family.

moo