VA - Amy Bradley - missing from cruise ship, Curacao - 1998 #3

[lebvidox]

Brad said the boyfriend "can be seen sitting in the couch during that press conference with us"

I'm not saying he made this guy up.

 

[lebvidox]

I believe Amy did not have alternating preferences, she was a lesbian. If your father writes a multi-page letter to your love based on something not a choice, but your true self, not only is it identity crushing, but if it's also been a continuing unspoken vibe, what better reason to start a 'relationship' with a man. Squash the judgment, keep the peace, do whatever to shut everyone up until you...have a new apartment, the job, new dog, fresh start to live your own life. This sounds familiar.

Pure speculation because we will never know for certain: with so much togetherness/family time on this cruise, I'd bet on several 'deeper' conversations (potentially one-way at times), including the one with Brad on the balcony. They were undoubtedly close, so maybe she valued his opinion over others, or he said something triggering (not necessarily intentionally). Amy's life is changing, and it sounds like a reconciliation was happening with letter in a bottle gf. I'd like to see the rest of the letter, but it's for the gf. And "Save Me" seems compelling enough, even figuratively.

I don't know about flat-out disowning, but maybe Amy realized her life would never be considered 'ok' with her family, and because they were close cutting off ties was not likely and even more heartbreak if she did it anyway. An outright come to Jesus talk would be a very dark cherry on top, but it's also possible this was just in her head and tormenting her none the less. She's sad, confused, and potentially not seeing an enjoyable future while sitting on a balcony with some heavy existential thoughts. We know she used alcohol to self-medicate, maybe she had more or other pharmaceuticals with her. It very well could have been an impulsive, fogged decision to jump, it just happened to also be final.

I've been thinking if I should even post this, but we should also consider that a) there's what the family chose to believe, b) there's what Amy shared with her family and friends, and c) there's how Amy could see herself and not be able to share. In the collection of pictures and some of those home videos, Amy's identity seemed more and more aligned with masculine codes: her clothes, her hair cut, even some her mannerisms, led me to wonder if she couldn't also be withholding some doubts about her gender, not just the sexuality she had publicly affirmed. Something to add to her state of mind when she went on that trip.

You can hear Elliot Page talking about how soul-crushing it was when he had to wear dresses to red carpets back when Juno blew up. I don't think we EVER see Amy wearing a dress besides that black one she used on the ship, which I doubt she bought herself. It could be her mother's doing: there will be a gala night, you should wear a dress... Plus, the parents comments all over the night, when Amy was dressed up: the waiter won't stop looking, you're turning heads, you look so pretty.

On the surface, those could be meaningless. But depending on what someone is dealing with internally, those can be devastating. Maybe she was self-assured enough to live her life as a lesbian, with or without her parents' approval. But there were other questions she was struggling with that could lead her to question her role in the world, in society as a whole, etc. And back in 1998, there would be no support system.

 

[Amy0077]

Criminal profiler Pat Brown on Amy's disappearance.

 

[GXP Sleuther]

This isn't looking good.. JMO. A lot of strange statements made after the doc aired.

 

[Amy0077]

This isn't looking good.. JMO. A lot of strange statements made after the

This isn't looking good.. JMO. A lot of strange statements made after the doc aired.

I agree, however, this video is from 2023. Just putting that out there.

 

[lebvidox]

Criminal profiler Pat Brown on Amy's disappearance.

I quite like Pat Brown's analysis as a whole. I get that her style is not everyone's cup of tea, but some of her blunt takes really serve some high-profile cases that are sensationalized over and over. I do think she's spot on about Amy's case. (And that's not a new video, it's been made way before the documentary was released)

 

[osu]

I was wondering about Amy’s camera since it wasn’t mentioned if it had been found in the Netflix documentary. Brad Bradley posted earlier this evening that they found Amy’s camera in the stateroom safe.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1947067127321522619

 

[cujenn81]

I was wondering about Amy’s camera since it wasn’t mentioned if it had been found in the Netflix documentary. Brad Bradley posted earlier this evening that they found Amy’s camera in the stateroom safe.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1947067127321522619

That’s so weird! I spent a good bit of time today reading thru the amyismissing website and it clearly states that her camera is missing. These discrepancies are the most frustrating aspect of this case — because there are so many that it’s truly impossible to determine fact from fiction.

ETA:

Amy Lynn Bradley is still missing

Website dedicated to spreading accurate information regarding the 1998 disappearance of Amy Lynn BradleyRhapsody of the Seas - Amy Lynn Bradley

amybradleyismissing.com

Reply #4 & 11 on April 20, 2018

It is believed that Amy went to the upper deck for coffee and to take photographs of the historic buildings along the canal. Three witnesses testified for a Federal Grand Jury that Amy was on the upper deck and Alister Douglas gave her a drink containing a dark liquid.

Amy brought 15 rolls of film with her on the cruise. Her intention was to make a project with the photographs under glass in her new apartment. The Bradleys have 14 rolls of film. Two rolls of film have been developed. They are photographs of Puerto Rico and Aruba. Amy's camera with one roll of film is missing.

 

[Danaya]

The not knowing would be the hardest part. As a mother, I would never be able to "just get on with it" and continue living my life, doesn't matter if it had been thirty years or one hundred years. If there was no body, I would spend every day, to the ends of this earth, trying to find my baby. Even if that meant just remains. I don't think we should criticize the family for wanting to continue searching.

 

[RandyMcDonald]

I've been thinking if I should even post this, but we should also consider that a) there's what the family chose to believe, b) there's what Amy shared with her family and friends, and c) there's how Amy could see herself and not be able to share. In the collection of pictures and some of those home videos, Amy's identity seemed more and more aligned with masculine codes: her clothes, her hair cut, even some her mannerisms, led me to wonder if she couldn't also be withholding some doubts about her gender, not just the sexuality she had publicly affirmed. Something to add to her state of mind when she went on that trip.

You can hear Elliot Page talking about how soul-crushing it was when he had to wear dresses to red carpets back when Juno blew up. I don't think we EVER see Amy wearing a dress besides that black one she used on the ship, which I doubt she bought herself. It could be her mother's doing: there will be a gala night, you should wear a dress... Plus, the parents comments all over the night, when Amy was dressed up: the waiter won't stop looking, you're turning heads, you look so pretty.

On the surface, those could be meaningless. But depending on what someone is dealing with internally, those can be devastating. Maybe she was self-assured enough to live her life as a lesbian, with or without her parents' approval. But there were other questions she was struggling with that could lead her to question her role in the world, in society as a whole, etc. And back in 1998, there would be no support system.

The fact that her family painted over entirely the fact that Amy Bradley was not straight is a red flag. She has been missing for almost thirty years but this did not come up before, even though she had two girlfriends?

I think we now know why Amy Bradley drank so much, and not only on the cruise: She knew that her family rejected a key part of her personality, wanting everything to seem "normal" and "moral". I personally know how shattering it can be to find that close family you think will support you will not.

I think I understand one reason why her family insists that she was abducted, that there was not tragic accident or suicide. The abduction scenario means that they do not have to consider if they had any kind of relationship to Amy's drinking issues.

 

[RandyMcDonald]

The not knowing would be the hardest part. As a mother, I would never be able to "just get on with it" and continue living my life, doesn't matter if it had been thirty years or one hundred years. If there was no body, I would spend every day, to the ends of this earth, trying to find my baby. Even if that meant just remains. I don't think we should criticize the family for wanting to continue searching.

I think we can fairly consider if this is really a good thing for the family to do, for their own sake. Convincing yourself that your daughter did not suffer a tragic accident but was instead abducted and prostituted for years does not seem like the kind of fate that would help you come to terms with the loss. (As I have said above, I suspect that they might not want to really do that because doing that means that they would have to examine how their cold reaction to Amy's coming out contributed to her fate.)

 

[TDoc72]

Im a 5'5 female who has been on many cruises. When I'm out on the balcony, I will take my shoes off and push the table up against the balcony to stretch my legs out..placing my feet on the table.

This is what I think too. And why her dad said her saw her legs.

 

[RandyMcDonald]

For many of us LGBT people back in the day, "bi" was the least "frightening" way of coming out, so it's possible Amy at some point told them that, but she was obviously open with her college friends, and had to have been honest enough about her girlfriend for the father to know where to mail that 3 page long letter.

Right. Especially if there was some sort of attraction to ken, or what she convinced herself was said, she might well have identified herself as bisexual to calm her family down.

I would point out an asymmetry here: Mostly gay or lesbian people are often pressured to identify as bisexual on the basis of relatively marginal straight interests, while heterosexuals with some attraction towards the same sex might easily pass their lives without paying attention to this personality trait of theirs.

 

[RandyMcDonald]

Falling overboard is rare and most people don’t put themselves in a position where it is possible.

According to Google, in 2019 25 people fell overboard, but 29 million went on cruises. That sums up the likelihood of her falling that morning. It’s not impossible but the likelihood is slim to none.

But reality is not uniform. Most people have at least some experiences that differ substantially from the norm, even in unusual ways. Most people do not have friends who trained as medievalists at the University of Toronto and who converted to Anglicanism, for instance, but I have three. (They did all convert in the same ceremony, to be clear.)

 

[RandyMcDonald]

Yeah, I knew a couple gay kids in the 90s/early 00s and while their peers may have been accepting, parents were not. This was the midwest in the 90s/00s. Heck, when I was in college in the 00s/10s, people were out and accepted but there was still violence against gay people on campus (again, the midwest).

The other posters providing anecdotal evidence opposite to ours may be forgetting how big of a time the 90s were for the LGBTQ+ community. The first lesbian kiss on TV was in 1991, Ellen DeGeneres came out as lesbian in 1997- gay people were visible, yes, but they were also extremely controversial. Especially with older generations.be taken as seriously. MOO.

It is worth noting that Ellen coming out destroyed her career at the time. Her second life was a bit of a surprise.

 

[RandyMcDonald]

Her children probably wouldn't know their grandmother's birthdate or too many details of Amy's family.

I suspect that seeing the website is part of a "reward" manipulation her captors use to keep her in line. That she gets to see it on negotiated days like Xmas etc. I bet Amy can't touch the keyboard or mouse and someone navigates it for her.

What would be the point of any of this? If Amy Bradley was so dangerous to her captors, why would they allow her to live? What bargaining power could she possibly have to persuade her captors to let her witness her family's site about her, and why would they have any interest in letting her do this?

What would even be the point of keeping alive as captive a 50-something woman who, we can presume, had been put through hell as a drug-addicted and prostituted woman in a foreign land?

 

[TizerisT]

If she is browsing the site, I imagine it to be with a secret phone she uses while locked in the bathroom. I can't imagine any world where the captor would allow that.

 

[katykat]

I just finished the documentary. I thought it was really informative and also well balanced in terms of exploring her sexuality and possible motives for suicide.

This case (and particularly that infamous photo of "Jas") has haunted me for a long time. I can't help but find the trafficking angle in this case to be credible in light of the photo and witness sightings.

The IP address intel is a really good lead - I almost wish Netflix had omitted that information (although I understand the FBI have no use for it jurisdictionally and/or don't value it enough materially). The exact correlation of the Barbados addresses to the family dates is the key thing though because regional interest in the case wouldn't be unexpected.

PS - were there not reports recently about new leads in the case (or have I dreamt this?) If so, is it the IP address stuff or is it as yet undisclosed?

 

[RandyMcDonald]

If she is browsing the site, I imagine it to be with a secret phone she uses while locked in the bathroom. I can't imagine any world where the captor would allow that.

And if she had that secret phone, why would she not be messaging people, anyone, for help?

I am reminded of the alleged mystery of the Sodder family children, especially the note with a photograph that was supposedly sent by someone who looked like what they thought one of the children might have looked like in adulthood. If that photograph had been sent by the child, why on Earth would he not have said more, proof that he was alive, even ask for help? If he was alive and kept captive, it would stand to reason that he would actually try to communicate with his family.

The only thing that this web history says about Amy Bradley is that someone on Barbados is interested in a famous decades-old kidnapping in their region of the world. Saying that this is actually Amy Bradley being tormented/gifted by her captors with a glimpse of her family seems really contrived an unlikely.

 

[katykat]

If she is browsing the site, I imagine it to be with a secret phone she uses while locked in the bathroom. I can't imagine any world where the captor would allow that.

I can't pretend to understand how Caribbean criminals operate but it does strike me as a possibility that she is no longer under anyone's control and is technically "free", but is simply too irreparably changed to ever want to go back. Or her captivity may now be more informal than that - she's beholden to people financially or in terms of accessing drugs, etc. Not that she is literally restricted.

The idea that she would still be in those conditions thirty years on doesn't seem likely to me.