Missing and Murdered Children

Updates:

A Wisconsin state Amber Alert was issued this afternoon for 14-year-old Katelyn Shephard.

According to an online article published on February 16, 2008 on Wisconsin station WMTV, Katelyn was last seen at approximately 7:30 a.m. the morning of the 15th leaving her home supposedly she was on her way to school.

Friday evening around 6:55 p.m. the father of a 14-year-old girl reported his daughter, Katelyn Shephard, failed to arrive back at home in Baraboo following a meeting at a local church. Katelyn’s father said his daughter had departed after a disagreement with her stepmother.¹

I am a bit confused about the last sighting of Katelyn. When did the step-mother get into the argument with her step-daughter? Was it over the telephone or was it at the church meeting? If it was at the church meeting then I am going to assume the last sighting of Katelyn has to be sometime after church and not when she was leaving for school in the morning.

Also, the NCMEC has made a huge error in the reported last sighting time. They have her last seen time in the Amber Alert at 5:45 a.m. the morning of the 15th. They also have her going northbound with an unknown adult female in the “listed” vehicle. However, they failed to list the vehicle in the Amber Alert.²

Why was this Amber Alert issued? There is no known suspect, no license number, and the description of the vehicle on the Missing Poster is a maroon Oldsmobile³

The news article referenced above refers to Katelyn as an Endangered Runaway. However, the poster released from the NCMEC lists her as an Endangered Missing.

Also, it is beyond me why the NCMEC posted the Amber Alert without photographs, but released the Missing Poster with the photograph.

OK, I know I have picked this story apart but in recent weeks the differences between what the NCMEC puts out regarding Amber Alerts and what the media puts out has been very different. It is disconcerting to have a child’s life perhaps hanging in the balance only to have the NCMEC put out information that is inaccurate or less than complete.

Katelyn Shephard is a 14-year-old white female with brown eyes and brown hair. She stands approximately 5′2″ tall and weighs approximately 112 lbs. When Katelyn was last seen she was wearing a light blue coat, blue jeans, white/blue striped shoes, and a purple shirt.

She may be in the company of an adult female, traveling northbound from Baraboo, Wisconsin in a maroon Oldsmobile. If you see Katelyn please call the Baraboo Police Department at 1-608-355-2720.

February 16, 2008 10:55 p.m. PST:

Another story from Newsline9 reports Katelyn as being an Missing and Endangered Child. The article also spells her name Katelyn Schepard. She is also supposed to be with an unknown adult female traveling in “possibly” a maroon Oldsmobile.⁴

February 17, 2008 1:20 p.m. PST:

Katelyn has been located and returned to her father. No other information is available at this time.⁵

1. ’Endangered Runaway,’ NBC 15.com, February 16, 2008. [↩]
2. ’NCMEC Amber Alert,’ National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, February 16, 2008. [↩]
3. ’NCMEC Missing Poster,’ National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, February 16, 2008. [↩]
4. ’Police Search for Missing and Endangered Child,’ WAOW.com, February 16, 2008. [↩]
5. ’Updated: Endangered Runaway Located,’ NBC 15.com, February 17, 2008. [↩]