GA GA - Justin Gaines, 19, Duluth, 2 Nov 2007

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Pandora

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GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. -- A college student has been reported missing when he did not come home after going out to Wild Bill's in Gwinnett County.

Officials said they have started an investigation into the case of an 18-year-old missing since Thursday night. Gwinnett County authorities said Justin Gaines' mother filed a police report Sunday after he didn't return home.

According to the police report, Gaine's mother, Erika Wilson, said that her son came home Thursday and told her he was going out with friends. He was dropped off at Wild Bill's that night. Later that evening, Gaines called a friend to pick him up but the friend told him he couldn't. Gaines has not been seen or heard from since.


More at link (including picture):
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/14524895/detail.html

I wanted to add that Wild Bill's is not all that wild. It's a country music style club and is just FAN-FREAKIN'-TASTIC!!! YEEHAW!
Ahem. I'm hoping Justin is found safe and sound.
 
Two things strike me as a bit odd about this case. He didn't take his wallet with him, although he did take his driver's license and some cash. Maybe that is common practice among young party-goers today, but for a guy to leave his wallet behind just strikes me as odd. The second thing that is a bit "off" to me, is that he had recently arrived home from college and he goes out with his friends Thursday night, but isn't reported missing until after midnight on Sunday.....in other words, early Monday morning. Maybe it wasn't unusual for this guy to take off with his friends, but I would freak out if my child went out on Thursday, and I didn't see or hear from him/her on Friday, Saturday, or all day Sunday! Here is a link that I also posted over at Steve's site to a forum where local people are discussing the case:

http://tinyurl.com/2cf32n
 
I have been to Wild Bills when it's gotten a little wild. I hope they find him soon!!
 
http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=203764

November 7th 2007

Friends of the victim told police he has false i-d's in the names of Brad Allen and Brad Shewe. Justin is described as being 5”11’ and 210 lbs with a muscular build. He has blue eyes and brown hair with a short buzz cut. Both of his ears are pierced with diamond studs. He was last seen wearing a long sleeve, gray shirt with “Abercrombie” written on the front, blue jeans with holes and flip flops.

Investigators have started attempts to track Justin’s cell phone and obtain any relevant video from the area where he was last seen.

Anyone who has information on Justin’s whereabouts or if anyone has seen Justin is asked to call the Gwinnett County Police Department at 770-513-5300.

morea at link, incl pic
 
This was on Greta last night.

They didn't say if his phone has been used. I am very worried for this young man's safety. His parents looked so scared. :(
 
Yes, I saw the parents on TV and they seemed in shock, of course.

One thing they said that troubled me - they said he had a car for college but left it at his parents' house when he came home. I'm not sure if that is because the family needed the extra car or not - they mentioned six other children, which is why the boy wasn't staying at their house.

He got a ride to the club with a couple he knew, and they were all going to go in together. But the pass he had only covered himself, and the couple decided to leave rather than pay the door charge - something like that. So he was left without a ride home.

But question: if he had a car at home, according to his mother, why didn't he call home when he couldn't get a ride? I suspect it is because he was underage and using a fake ID and knew his parents wouldn't approve. Also, I'm not sure how far they lived from the club, and he probably didn't want to bother them.

He tried to call his friends back to come and get him, but they had been driving a borrowed a car and already returned it for the night. :( That's really tragic.

Also, I doubt that this club was "safe" because it was near a Mall. No mall area anywhere is totally "safe" at night, and never has been. And this is Atlanta, where people sometimes have a false sense of security, but which is a high crime area, and always has been.
 
On that Xanga, he mentions Wild Bill's alot, but usually with his girlfriend. I wonder if he thought he knew someone who was a regular there and got in the car with the wrong person?
 
Prayers that Justin is found alive and well. His friend was on one of the news shows and said that Justin drank a lot. If he's only 18, what is the legal drinking age in Ga? I tell ya, kids need to use the buddy system when they're partying.
 
ThoughtFox said:
Also, I doubt that this club was "safe" because it was near a Mall. No mall area anywhere is totally "safe" at night, and never has been. And this is Atlanta, where people sometimes have a false sense of security, but which is a high crime area, and always has been.
Click to expand...

Just an FYI about the area. It barely qualifies as "Atlanta." It is WAY out in the 'burbs in a serious soccer mom mall area. I didn't even know there was a big bar there. Please don't get the image in your mind of this kid partying in Buckhead. Doesn't change the fact that he used a fake ID and was drinking underage, but it isn't the high crime "shoot 'em up" area that downtown or Buckhead has been in the news for at times.

philamena said:
Prayers that Justin is found alive and well. His friend was on one of the news shows and said that Justin drank a lot. If he's only 18, what is the legal drinking age in Ga? I tell ya, kids need to use the buddy system when they're partying.
Click to expand...

21.

Sounds like he planned to be with friends and then they couldn't get in. Unfortunately he chose to stay alone. I'm sure he assumed that he'd know plenty of people inside and would have no trouble catching a ride.

This is NOT a high risk area. Honestly, I wouldn't think twice driving around at night alone. I wouldn't walk, but then again, there's nowhere to walk TO. Everything is driving distance. We are in car country. Not an urban area (or even a well-planned suburb or town) where you can walk from place to place. Even biking somewhere is pretty much out of the question.

Also, I need to download the fliers. I would like to put them up at the restaurant, even though we aren't all that close to his last known location.
 
I pray that this young man is found safe. :(
 
On Thursdays, Wild Bills is a 18 to party 21 to drink kinda thing too. My nieces used to go every Thursday night in the summer. So it's not like he needed the fake ID to get in. But you get your hand stamped or something at the door if you're over 21. The bar is in front of the mall right down from a main road - Pleasant Hill which is like 6 or 8 lanes across and is usually jam packed. It's surrounded by other stores and such, but all those close by 9pm. They also have bouncers and security guards, so when he left, imo, he wasn't causing ruckus or someone would have checked on him.

A friend of mine was in Wild Bills one Thursday when someone came in with a gun and fired several shots inside the building. All the kids were in the parking lot calling parents and it was on the news and everything. BUT the place is usually tame.

I've gotten several bulletins with his missing poster on Myspace which I have fowarded to all my friends there. I hope they find him soon.
 
If any has found the flier, can you please post a link or PM me? I am actually having a hard time finding it. Not sure if it is really this difficult or if I am just low on caffeine. :blushing:
 
Uh oh. . . .
Quote from Link:
Gwinnett County police Cpl. Illana Spellman said there have been reports that Justin Gaines got into an altercation with another patron at the bar. However, details remain sketchy about the altercation because the two friends who were with Justin Gaines that night have refused to cooperate with police requests, Spellman said.


http://www.chroniclet.com/2007/11/14/north-ridgeville-mans-son-missing-in-georgia


Anytime friends refuse to cooperate with police there's a problem. :(
 
Why wouldn't they cooperate? :confused:

On another note, in his Xanga, Justin mentions going to Ohio to visit his father, so the man who appeared on Greta must be Justin's stepfather. I see that the article Pandora quoted is actually from an Ohio paper and is about Justin's father:

http://www.chroniclet.com/2007/11/14/north-ridgeville-mans-son-missing-in-georgia

NORTH RIDGEVILLE — A North Ridgeville man has endured many sleepless nights since learning his son has not been seen or heard from for more than a week after partying with friends at a bar in Georgia.

...Richard Gaines of Wallace Boulevard said his 18-year-old son, Justin Gaines, has been missing since 1 a.m. Nov. 1, when he was last seen at a bar called Wild Bills.

...“The hardest part is the not knowing,” Gaines said. “Nothing makes sense because he wouldn’t just walk away from everything. He’s got a lot going on in his life.”
Click to expand...

So sad.

I should say that I have a 17-year-old son, and I know how easy it is for a kid that age to get into something over his head, especially when drinking is involved. He may look like a grown-up, but his judgment isn't totally mature - and I'm writing that as a Mom who has seen alot of my son's friends get into trouble for really stupid things. It frightens me to think of what could have happened to this boy.
 
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