AMBER ALERT TN - Autistic teen Sebastian Wayne Drake Rogers, 15, missing in Hendersonville - Feb 27, 2024

[arielilane]

@NC5

Seth Rogers told NewsChannel 5 he doesn't understand why he wandered away from his Hendersonville home, but he hopes his son can somehow hear his voice or read his words.via @NC5_NickBeres

https://twitter.com/x/status/1765149668885799281

Anyone with information on the case can call 1-800-TBI-FIND.

'If someone has you, run': Sebastian Rogers' father hopes his son hears his plea

Sebastian Rogers' father has not stopped looking for his 15-year-old son, a teen with autism who is the subject of a Tennessee Amber Alert.

www.newschannel5.com

 

[arielilane]

Very curious why cameras did not capture SR leaving his home, or any cameras have captured him thus far? Is that correct info? moo

 

[SMK777]

Very curious why cameras did not capture SR leaving his home, or any cameras have captured him thus far? Is that correct info? moo

That’s what I keep reading, and it’s worrisome.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Maybe there are no cameras in the area that would have captured him. It doesn't mean he didn't walk outside and become lost, which is a scenario we have seen on Websleuths before.

 

[Occam's Zebra]

Very curious why cameras did not capture SR leaving his home, or any cameras have captured him thus far? Is that correct info? moo

Not everyone has cameras.

 

[SMK777]

Maybe there are no cameras in the area that would have captured him. It doesn't mean he didn't walk outside and become lost, which is a scenario we have seen on Websleuths before.

It just seems the residential area he is in has expensive homes and it’s puzzling that no one would have ring cams or car cams capturing him, but maybe they’re spaced out in a way that didn’t.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

It just seems the residential area he is in has expensive homes and it’s puzzling that no one would have ring cams or car cams capturing him, but maybe they’re spaced out in a way that didn’t.

Agree. Or maybe he is on camera but the footage hasn't been located yet.

I imagine he left the area either on foot or in a vehicle. I'm sure LE is also searching for vehicles on any footage.

Hopefully a break comes in this case very soon. You can tell he's just a great kid.

 

[SMK777]

Agree. Or maybe he is on camera but the footage hasn't been located yet.

I imagine he left the area either on foot or in a vehicle. I'm sure LE is also searching for vehicles on any footage.

Hopefully a break comes in this case very soon. You can tell he's just a great kid.

Yes, you just have to wonder now that it’s been over a week, how is he taking care of himself in terms of basic needs such as food, shelter, clothing? And if he’s with someone, who and why?

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“I saw that boy’s picture and knew instinctively he was autistic,” Williams said. “My stomach just had all kinds of emotions wondering what those parents must be feeling, wondering if he’s afraid somewhere.”

Sebastian's disappearance has struck a nerve with many Middle Tennessee parents living with autistic children because many worry their children could end up in similar situations, Clinical Psychologist and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Vanderbilt University Medical Center Amy Weitlauf said.

“It’s a really common fear for many of the parents I work with,” Weitlauf said of Sebastian's disappearance and the reasons that could be behind it.

There was a clear shift in the case this week in Sumner County as officials announced they would be scaling back ground searches and focusing more on the investigation into Sebastian's disappearance

“From what I have seen in interviews and read in what teachers have said, this doesn’t sound like typical behavior," said Miller, whose youngest son, Chris Miller, died unexpectedly in February 2021 at age 19.

“Everything about this case is wrong. Many parents have kids on the autism spectrum, and Sebastian reminds us of our own kids. Could he have gotten on a bus or something? There are so many ideas in my head to keep me away from the worst-case scenario

Tennessee Amber Alert: Parents of autistic children, experts fear for missing Sumner teen

Wandering is a leading concern of parents with autistic children in Middle Tennessee community.

www.tennessean.com

 

[SMK777]

There was a clear shift in the case this week in Sumner County as officials announced they would be scaling back ground searches and focusing more on the investigation into Sebastian's disappearance

I wonder how telling this is, or if it’s just the normal protocol.

 

[Chimera]

Bumping for Sebastian.
Sad there's no new updates.

 

[Chimera]

“I saw that boy’s picture and knew instinctively he was autistic,” Williams said. “My stomach just had all kinds of emotions wondering what those parents must be feeling, wondering if he’s afraid somewhere.”

Sebastian's disappearance has struck a nerve with many Middle Tennessee parents living with autistic children because many worry their children could end up in similar situations, Clinical Psychologist and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Vanderbilt University Medical Center Amy Weitlauf said.

“It’s a really common fear for many of the parents I work with,” Weitlauf said of Sebastian's disappearance and the reasons that could be behind it.

There was a clear shift in the case this week in Sumner County as officials announced they would be scaling back ground searches and focusing more on the investigation into Sebastian's disappearance

“From what I have seen in interviews and read in what teachers have said, this doesn’t sound like typical behavior," said Miller, whose youngest son, Chris Miller, died unexpectedly in February 2021 at age 19.

“Everything about this case is wrong. Many parents have kids on the autism spectrum, and Sebastian reminds us of our own kids. Could he have gotten on a bus or something? There are so many ideas in my head to keep me away from the worst-case scenario

Tennessee Amber Alert: Parents of autistic children, experts fear for missing Sumner teen

Wandering is a leading concern of parents with autistic children in Middle Tennessee community.

www.tennessean.com

Bbm.
Curious about the wording of this sentence.
What do they think happened ?

Isn't wandering away a common occurrence with kids on the spectrum ?
My neighbor babysits for a family with a teen and a younger child who are autistic and she has to be extra careful the younger one -- who has more special needs than the older one -- doesn't wander away.
It's called "elopements", iirc ?
Omo.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Bbm.
Curious about the wording of this sentence.
What do they think happened ?

Isn't wandering away a common occurrence with kids on the spectrum ?
My neighbor babysits for a family with a teen and a younger child who are autistic and she has to be extra careful the younger one who has more special needs than the older one doesn't wander away.
It's called "elopements", iirc ?
Omo.

Me too. I hesitated to include in post but knew I didn’t really know squat about autism. I defer to experts in this case… because LE has pivoted to investigating his disappearance in itself. Or that’s how I read it. It does sound a bit ominous.

 

[Mimimom]

Isn't wandering away a common occurrence with kids on the spectrum ?
My neighbor babysits for a family with a teen and a younger child who are autistic and she has to be extra careful the younger one -- who has more special needs than the older one -- doesn't wander away.
It's called "elopements", iirc ?
Omo.

Younger kids absolutely can be runners. I had extra locks everywhere. My now 15 year old high function ASD would never run off, he likes routine, keeps to himself at home. I can't speak for others...although it sounds like Sebastian was similar.

 

[ErinC]

Isn't wandering away a common occurrence with kids on the spectrum ?

It can be, but the thing is, they're generally not looking to run and hide, they just want to run. (With some exceptions of course) This means that they usually are either found wandering around, or their body is found, in a reasonably timely fashion. (Source: On spectrum myself, care provider for autistic children( The fact that there's been no trace of him this entire week leads me to think LE is wise to proceed as they are doing, I guess you could say. This isn't to say that no autistic child ever has hidden, that's certainly not true, but it would surprise me a bit to see.

 

[Rolypolyoly]

Younger kids absolutely can be runners. I had extra locks everywhere. My now 15 year old high function ASD would never run off, he likes routine, keeps to himself at home. I can't speak for others...although it sounds like Sebastian was similar.

Mine's never been a runner, I'm lucky if he's ever more than 5ft away from me lol.

 

[Mimimom]

Mine's never been a runner, I'm lucky if he's ever more than 5ft away from me lol.

Mine ran everywhere when he was younger, in stores, in the street etc. With the help of medication, as well as my getting divorced, he grew out of it. He never tried leaving the house although I put extra locks everywhere. He's so much calmer these days, no medication for years

 

[Mimimom]

Mine's never been a runner, I'm lucky if he's ever more than 5ft away from me lol.

That's the thing with ASD, there can be similarities but also many differences . Not everyone gets that. They think that those on the spectrum are all the same.

 

[Rolypolyoly]

That's the thing with ASD, there can be similarities but also many differences . Not everyone gets that. They think that those on the spectrum are all the same.

Absolutely! It's quite frustrating too. There's that saying 'If you've met one autistic person, you've met one autistic person' I wish more people understood that!.

 

[GMS]

I re-listened to the Dutchess podcast with the mom and stepdad. By all accounts and according to the stepdad, SR wasn't a runner, he rarely left the house and/or his room and was more a homebody. So what triggered this apparent change in behavior that SR would vanish - especially in the middle of the night?

In discussing the timeline on the podcast, the parents indicate he vanished between 12am and 6am. Mom states she told SR to go to bed at 9pm (which was his normal time) and he said good-night and went to his room. From 9:46pm to approx. 12am, mom (laying on the couch) is on the phone with stepdad and close to midnight she begins to fall asleep and stepdad tells her it's late, put the dogs up and go to bed. Stepdad says SR vanished before the house was locked up. So did mom lock-up the house when she went to bed around 12am, if so, does that mean SR potentially left before 12am when mom began to fall asleep on the couch? Did mom forget to the lock the house and so SR vanished after she went to bed which would fit the 12am - 6am window? If the house was locked, does that mean SR couldn't have unlocked it or didn't know how? or unlocking the house would trigger some alarm? Stepdad specifically mentioning the "unlocked" statement and then how it fits into the reported timeline stuck out to me (imo)