Found Safe WA - Sara McNease, aka Sara Gracelyn Vincent, 17, autistic, Spokane CC parking lot, 8 Oct 2019

[sasha17]

She’s likely petitioning for emancipation and is going to be 18 soon. I think she’s got outside support.

This article from when she first went missing says: "They have reason to believe she is with an unknown man, but said the exact circumstances are not known."

17-year-old Spokane girl still missing two days after disappearance

My own suspicion is she IS with the unknown man and he is the one assisting/supporting/influencing these things. If that is the case, I sure hope LE follows up and checks that man (and his intentions) out well.

 

[bykerladi]

Especially if she's mentally a 12 year old.

 

[doyoulovemepfg]

Especially if she's mentally a 12 year old.

I wouldn’t call her mentally a 12 year old - the initial article said she drives and was taking college classes. A lot of people with higher functioning ASD are intellectually beyond their years but struggle with understanding people’s intentions and in stressful situations. I have a cousin around this age who has a similar diagnosis and, I’m assuming, functioning level to SGV. You’d never know he was on the autism spectrum unless he’s frustrated or stressed - he’s just a smart, quiet kid that can sometimes come off a bit naive in complicated social situations but absolutely has the majority of situational know-how that most college students have. If SGV is petitioning for emancipation and has retained an attorney, based on what’s been described of her and sleuthing her social media a bit I would assume that there’s something going on at home that might not be ideal that she’s trying to get out of. FWIW the find SGV group had a lot of heavy religious undertones in some of the posts and there was evidence on her own social media that SGV could be LGBTQ. That there is a red flag IMO.

 

[MissMalowe]

I wouldn’t call her mentally a 12 year old - the initial article said she drives and was taking college classes. A lot of people with higher functioning ASD are intellectually beyond their years but struggle with understanding people’s intentions and in stressful situations. I have a cousin around this age who has a similar diagnosis and, I’m assuming, functioning level to SGV. You’d never know he was on the autism spectrum unless he’s frustrated or stressed - he’s just a smart, quiet kid that can sometimes come off a bit naive in complicated social situations but absolutely has the majority of situational know-how that most college students have. If SGV is petitioning for emancipation and has retained an attorney, based on what’s been described of her and sleuthing her social media a bit I would assume that there’s something going on at home that might not be ideal that she’s trying to get out of. FWIW the find SGV group had a lot of heavy religious undertones in some of the posts and there was evidence on her own social media that SGV could be LGBTQ. That there is a red flag IMO.

She is said to function emotionally as a 12-13 year old. I don't believe the previous poster was trying to degrade her or devalue intellectual abilities aside from that.

“She has autism with bipolar and PTSD,” Vincent said. “She functions very high until it’s an emotional aspect, and then she functions at 12 or 13 years old.”

Police seek 17-year-old who went missing at Spokane Community College

 

[bykerladi]

no, I certainly wasn't trying to degrade her at all. My cousin is very similar to her. I simply mean that I don't feel like society should treat her as a regular neuro-typical 17 year old. Can she really make the decision right now to go to California with someone on her own?