Found Alive KY - Douglas Middleton, 23, Knox County, 15 Feb 2017 *Arrest*

Continuing from the link:

His guardian told KSP that Middleton has a known disability and has never has left his residence alone. The guardian also stated that he has not been taking his medication.

Remains IDed; not Douglas Middleton.

The remains have been identified as by the Knox County coroner as David Farmer, 51, of Pineville. Farmer went missing on November 20, 2016. He was last seen at the Pineville Community Hospital.

It's too early to tell if foul play is suspected.

The search for Douglas Middleton continues.

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http://www.lex18.com/story/34548600...-knox-county-unrelated-to-missing-person-case

I couldn't find a thread for David Farmer, but I am glad for his family that he has been located.

Mr Middleton has been found safe after apparently wandering around the woods and mountains for two weeks. It seems so strange. I'm kind of near there, in central Kentucky, and we've had crazy weather. The temps went up into the 80's last Friday and then dipped down to almost freezing the next night and then it got warm again. Plus, there were a few days when we had extremely heavy rain statewide and bad thunderstorms.

I'm glad he's been found safe. I just wonder what he did the whole time. News stories said that he was "mentally ill," but I don't think many "mentally regular" people would be able to make it for that long out in the hills all alone. He had to have found some kind of shelter, maybe a barn or something? And somehow he surely had to find food. I'm really curious now.

After weeks missing, man found alive in Knox County woods
WYMT (Hazard, KY)
3/3/2017

Troopers said a man was walking through the woods on Friday when he found Middleton.

It is unclear how long he was in the woods.

Family members said Middleton suffers from a mental illness and it's a miracle that he was found alive.

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Man reported missing in Knox Co. found alive after two weeks in the woods
WKYT (Lexington, KY)
3/3/2017

The Knox County Sheriff's tells WKYT that a man who hadn't been seen in weeks is alive.

Someone said they saw Douglas Middleton in the woods just outside Barbourville on Friday. A deputy went out to search and found Middleton about a quarter mile in the woods.

Middleton was reported missing on February 15th. According to his guardian, Mr. Middleton has a known disability and left without his medication.

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At this point, police believe he may have just been wandering the woods this entire time. They are waiting for his examination to be completed so they can talk with him.

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Knox missing man found
The Middlesboro Daily News (Middlesboro, KY)
3/3/2017

At approximately 2 p.m. Friday, KSP received a call that Douglas Middleton, 23, of Artemus, had been found alive in the woods located off of Noeville Hollow. Noeville Hollow is located off of U.S. Hwy. 25E in Barbourville, which is on the other side of the mountain from where Middleton went missing.

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Middleton “had to be packed out of the woods by a Knox County Sheriff’s Deputy and the Knox County Sort Team,” the release states. Middleton was alert and responsive while being packed out of the woods. He was transported to the Knox County ARH and then flown to University of Tennessee Medical Center for treatment.

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I think this is from one of the stories that I linked to, but it's been slightly updated (edited).

"He has the mental capabilities of maybe five years old, so he just got our there and got lost and he's probably been scared to death," Middleton's Aunt Joyce Calhoun said.

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Calhoun said Middleton is expected to recover, but was severely dehydrated when he was found.

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OK, folks... This story didn't have quite the happy ending that we thought it did.

It turns out that there actually was foul play involved and Middleton will be (physically) crippled for the rest of his life. His frostbite was so bad that they had to amputate both of his legs.

These new details describe what actually happened to Middleton. The "Why in the Hell would anybody have done this to him?" part will probably never be answered. At least in a rational or intelligible way, as such an answer couldn't possibly exist.

Man pleads not guilty to kidnapping, holding man for two weeks in Knox Co.
WKYT (Lexington, KY)
5/4/2017

Police say James Davis kidnapped Douglas Middleton from his home on February 15th and held him in the woods for two weeks.

Doctors had to amputate both of Middleton's legs as a result of injuries and severe frostbite.

On Thursday, Davis faced a judge in Knox County. He entered a not guilty plea to a charge of kidnapping. The judge presiding over the case set Davis's bond at $50,000 and appointed a public defender to handle his defense.

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Arrest Made In February Kidnapping Case
WLEX-18 (Lexington, KY)
5/2/2017

Kentucky State Police say James Davis, 21, kidnapped Douglas Middleton on Feb. 15 and kept him in a shed for 17 days.

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Middleton was found in a wooded area suffering from frostbite. He was found by a homeowner on the other side of the mountain. Middleton was taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center where both of his legs had to be amputated.

"I think that's the hardest part about it, is trying to adjust to that. But I think he's doing pretty good," said Cain [Middleton's aunt].

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Middleton knows the man arrested for his kidnapping, a neighbor considered a friend, James Davis.

"He knows James is he one that hurt him, that James is he one that held him there. And that's the reason he lost his legs. He knows James is responsible," said Middleton.

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wow, I am bumping this because I know there are people that will want to know about this man and what happened. And of course, there are still a lot of questions that may go unasked and unanswered and that's ok too. The inhumanity is just baffling. May Mr. Middleton still find things that bring him joy and laughter every day, no matter how small.

I skimmed over the headlines while looking over the Lexington news and skipped reading the stories because I didn't know they were about this guy. There's been a lot of meth/opiate addicts doing dumb things to each other lately and I assumed that was what the stories were about.

I was kind of surprised to learn these new details. I thought that "mentally challenged man found alive after wandering around Knox County for weeks" sounded a bit weird.
But all of the stories from when he was found seemed to all be saying that he was found and was safe and everything is A-OK.

At least we now know that someone did indeed harm him and that they will (hopefully) be severely punished for what everything they did to him.

I wonder if they were trying to weasel disability money out of him. Keeping a disabled guy captive in a shed in winter just doesn't make sense. I wanna see what the dude's excuse/reasoning is. I can't think of a single thing.

This is a story that I found from WKYT's "sister station" (WYMT) in Hazard that covers the mountain areas of Eastern KY. They often have similar stories on both of them, but occasionally one will say a tidbit more about "this" and the other will have a tidbit more about "that."

Not really much new info, but his aunt notes how all of this BS has changed him.

And it says that his nickname is "Bub," which I thought was kind of cute. I don't know how common of a nickname is, but it made me think of the friendly/smart zombie in Day of the Dead that tries to shave and knows how to load a gun.

Man pleads not guilty to keeping man in woods until his legs had to be removed
WYMT-57 (Hazard, KY)
5/4/2017

Police said Davis kidnapped Middleton from his home and forced him onto an ATV.

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“Bub's personality has changed. Now he doesn't trust anybody. Before he was very trusting and very loving now he's totally changed, he's very guarded with people,” said Calhoun. [Middleton's aunt Joyce Calhoun]

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Middleton said a second person was also involved, but police have not released that man’s name and have not been able to find him.

Police say Davis admitted to playing a role in the kidnapping but claims he was just the lookout for the another man yet to be charged.

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Everyone involved in the poor fellow's ordeal needs to get everything that the law can throw at them.

I hope the perpetrators were having some kind of meth-induced psychosis leading up to this.
It's scary to think that two or more "everyday people you pass on the street" could just get together, plan and then carry out such a strange and sadistic crime.

What they did to him just doesn't make a bit of sense any way you could possibly look at it. Even if you look at it as though the kidnappers had profound mental illness. WHY?

Judge denies Knox County kidnapping suspect's bond request
WKYT (Lexington, KY)
5/9/2017

...the judge also denied Davis's request for a reduction in bond on Tuesday.

Police are still searching for at least one other person they believe was involved in the kidnapping.

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Middleton's family tells WKYT he's being fitted for prosthetic legs on Tuesday and so far, is doing well in his recovery.

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Wow! I'm afraid of the answer to why?