GUILTY TX - Bridgett Herard, 16, Graham, 23 December 2008

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Endangered Missing BRIDGET HERARD is a 16 year old white female with blue eyes and brown hair. She weighs 110 lbs (50 kg) and is 5'5 (165 cm) in height.

She has been missing since Tue, December 23, 2008 (23 days) from GRAHAM, TX.
Please notify Young County Sheriff's Office (Texas) 1-940-549-1555 if you have any information concerning the case of BRIDGET HERARD.

Further information: Bridget is believed to be in Wichita Falls, Jacksboro, or Lubbock, Texas. Her ears are pierced.

http://beonthelookoutfor.com/modules.php?name=missing&idd=275
 
Search continues for missing teen

The search for a missing Graham teenager continued this week with no apparent break in sight.
Sheriff Bryan Walls said despite an intense media campaign over the weekend, the sheriff’s department received no tips that could lead them to 16-year-old Bridgett Herrard.
Despite not getting any useful information, Walls said the sheriff’s office was continuing to work hard to find Herrard.

“We’re working on it,” Walls said. “We interviewed four people this morning. Nobody called all weekend. We got the FBI, Texas Rangers and the DPS Missing Persons Unit involved this morning.”
Herrard went missing Dec. 23 and has not been seen or heard from since.
Herrard is listed as 5-3, weighing 100 pounds with blue eyes and dark brown hair.
Walls said the missing teen was last seen at a home on Edwards Road just outside the Graham city limits. Her family reported her missing three days later, and sheriff’s deputies began an extensive search.
Interviews with Herrard’s family and friends got investigators no closer to finding out where Herrard might be. What deputies did find out, however, made them concerned about Herrard. Investigator Tim Bay said the fact that Herrard has not answered her cell phone or even opened text messages was especially alarming.

“Everyone is saying it’s very unusual for her not to call,” Bay said. “Her cell phone is going directly to voice mail.”
Deputy Chris Isbell said like most teenagers Herrard lived on her cell phone, returning calls and answering text messages almost immediately.
“I think the cell phone is unusual,” Isbell said. “Everyone says she calls back. They’ve sent her text messages and after so long they expire.
“One guy said he sent her two text messages that came back expired. So they haven’t even been looked at.”
Isbell said deputies have no idea what may have happened to Herrard or where she may have gone, but they hope someone can help them find her.
“We just want to make sure she’s alive and OK,” Isbell said.
Deanna Warrick has been friends with Herrard for the last nine years, and she said she is not optimistic Herrard will be found alive.
“I think she went into a residence and never came back out — at least not alive,” Warrick said.
Warrick said problems with drugs have cast a shadow on Herrard for years. While the girl was not always a user, she always had to deal with the drug culture. Warrick met Herrard when the girl was 7 and almost became a mother to the child.
“Her mother would leave her with me for months at a time, and as soon as I was getting attached, she would take her away and put her with someone else,” Warrick said.
Despite the difficulties, a friendship followed with Warrick looking out for the girl whenever she could. That friendship led to a strange call a few months ago.
“When I first got involved with her again in the last few months, she had gotten arrested for drug paraphernalia and called me to see if I had some housework she could do to pay the tickets,” Warrick said.
In the week before Christmas, Warrick came to Herrard’s rescue again, letting the teenager stay at her home two nights.
During that time, Warrick said she saw glimpses of the little girl she met nine years earlier.
“She was optimistic,” she said. “She said she wanted a fresh start. She wanted to be happy and wanted to be a little girl again.”
But something happened before those dreams could come true.
“She stayed with me two evenings,” Warrick said. “Basically, she was in safe places for a week before she was allowed to babysit and disappeared.”
Initially, Warrick said she was not too worried.
“She had run away once, but she always kept in touch with people,” Warrick said.
When repeated calls and text messages went unanswered, Warrick began looking for answers.
“She didn’t always answer my calls, but she always texted me, and she always had her phone charged,” Warrick said.
What Warrick found as she began searching for Herrard has left her terrified.
“I’ve heard so many rumors,” she said. “I think that baby’s dead.”
While Warrick is expecting the worst, she remains hopeful that Herrard will be found safe.
“My prayer is that wherever Bridgett is that she’s in God’s hands, whether that’s here or there,” she said.
 
From Twitter/Missing Children

It is with great sadness and deep regret that we notify you that Bridget Herard missing from Graham, TX, has been located deceased.


1/16/09
2:32PM EDT
 
From Twitter/Missing Children

It is with great sadness and deep regret that we notify you that Bridget Herard missing from Graham, TX, has been located deceased.


1/16/09
2:32PM EDT

Can you please provide link/more info please? I can only find an 'announcement' on this twitter site. Nothing else, via news, anywhere. Moving back to missing until verified.
 
She has been taken off the NCMEC's website. :(

But my question is why is there no news reports? You get national coverage when a drunk driver crashes into a tree and breaks a finger, but when a missing child dies, nothing is told. I don't understand it.
 
Hi christine2448,

At this time, other then the NCMEC announcement, the only additional information I have is one I found in reply to a post I made on a “Topix“. Thread.
Here it is.
13 hrs ago
Peter wrote:
From Twitter/Missing Children
It is with great sadness and deep regret that we notify you that Bridget Herard missing from Graham, TX, has been located deceased.
1/16/09
2:32PM EDT
Reply from Xonphobia Witchita Fall, Texas

Yes sadly it is true, the local news in Graham hasn't released the story yet, a Graham man is supposedly being held in young country jail on suspicion for her murder. Her body was supposedly found behind E&H drilling at a residence on Edwards road. Bridgett’s short life was a sad one. Young County has a newly elected woman district attorney, that in her campaign promises said she would deal swiftly and with justice with criminals in Young and Stephens county, we shall see …

I will post news articles ASAP; as of this post nothing more has been written.

Peter

This link will take you to a picture of Bridgett and what news I have been able to compile

http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/ind...ID=143252708&albumID=2107073&imageID=30851147
 
Female Body Found
Friday, January 16, 2009

David Rubkalvis


Young County sheriff’s deputies recovered the body of a white female Friday morning, three weeks after a Graham teenager went missing.

Sheriff Bryan Walls said deputies located the body after a search and rescue dog that came to Young County to help search for Bridgett Herard hit on a pile of debris behind a house on Edwards Road, the same area where Herard was last seen Dec. 23.

"We do have the body of a young, white female," Walls said. "It was found by the cadaver dogs."

Walls said Search One Rescue from Dallas volunteered to come to Young County after seeing news reports about Herard. The all-volunteer group donates its time to find missing people and has a strong history of success. Included in the group were several dogs trained to find dead bodies.

"They started around 10:30 this morning, and they got a little hit in the general area," Walls said. "The deputies searched and found a body under a bunch of debris. There was a pool liner buried under a bunch of debris, and that’s where we found her."

After the dog hit in the area, Walls said one of his deputies pulled at the pool liner and noticed it seemed unusually heavy. A closer examination revealed a body wrapped inside.

Walls said a person of interest in the case has been located, but he declined to release the name. That person is currently in the Young County Jail on a different charge.

"A person of interest was staying at this house," Walls said.

Walls said there was no immediate sign of trauma to the body but declined to comment further.

"We’re going to finish this crime scene, call the funeral home and head to Tarrant County for autopsy," Walls said.

An autopsy was scheduled Saturday morning.

The Young County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the death with assistance from the Texas Rangers.

Walls said until the body is identified, Herrard is still considered missing. The Graham teenager disappeared Dec. 23 and has not been heard from since then.

Source:
The Graham Leader
www.grahamleader.com/news/get-news.asp?id=14653&catid=1&cpg=get-news.asp



 
When a child goes missing it is important to get as much information out there as quickly as possible, looks like Bridgett was failed in this regard.
 
Hi all,

I was contacted today on MySpace by a friend of Bridgett’s. Her name is Brittney and she has the most beautiful child. Needless to say she was heartbroken, and completely devastated, by the news. In part she had this to say;

“I wish she would of been okay. This has never happen in Graham, Texas. I cant believe this has happen to her. I am just glad she's in Gods hands. I hope the guys who did this get what they deserve.”

It is always hard, no correct that impossible, to comfort a person who has gone through this type of loss but I think we should try. Here is my reply:


Brittney,

I was very sorry to read what happened to your friend.

I have followed missing person cases for a very long time. The reason I do is because once; long ago, long before you were born, I could have been, almost was, one of those kids you see on a milk-carton. The kids who vanish without a trace.

As someone who has followed a number of missing person cases I knew the odds were long but like everyone else I was hoping for a miracle.

I know nothing I can write can take away your pain, your feeling of anger and loss. But in time I hope this poem will help;

WHEN MY LIFE IS DONE
I'd like the memory of me
to be a happy one,
I'd like to leave an afterglow
of smiles when life is done.
I'd like to leave an echo
whispering down the ways,
of happy times and laughing times
And bright and sunny days.
I'd like the tears of those who grieve
to dry before the sun
of happy memories that I leave
when my life is done.
* Author unknown *

Peter

 
Thank you for the update Peter J., if you speak to the young lady again please let her know that my thoughts and prayers are with her and Brittney's family and friends.
 
Thank you for the update Peter J., if you speak to the young lady again please let her know that my thoughts and prayers are with her and Brittney's family and friends.

I will Kat,

There are so many kids out there who I want to send that poem to; kids who at the very least should learn what really happened to their friend. Hell most of them are adults now.

I am 60 and I know most will never get that reply from me. Will never know what happened to their friend. Most will never know what happened to; the girl they played little house on the prairie with, the boy who was on their little league team.

But I believe in God, and a afterlife, and because I believe, I know that someday they will learn the truth, and that someday they will be together again.

Peter
 
This has been a tragic event in the small town of Graham. At this time they have not given confirmation to the identity of the body.Its pretty obvious to the young kids tho. I feel bad for them, and there are so many rumors flying around their heads, they are all confused. keep them in your prayers please.
 
Posted on my MySpace page for Bridgett: It broke my heart.

January 21, 2009 2:42 PM

Hi my name is Robyn,

I have known Bridget all her life. She was a great kid who loved people and would do anything for anybody. I last saw Bridget on Dec 20, 08. I had not seen her in 2 yrs so as always I hugged her kissed her on the check and told her I loved her. I gave her my cell number and told her if you ever need anything give me a call anytime day or night.

Now all I have are memories of her.

She loved to come over to my house and play with my kids. She spent days, weeks, sometimes months at my house. We would play dress up, paint each others nails, put on make up, listen to music just do what little girls do. She was there when my little boy and my little girl were born. She was my helper, if I needed anything she would be there. She never acted like a little girl.

I am 33yrs old and she acted like she was my age. I would always tell her Bridget your a kid go outside and play, be a kid, get dirty. She never would; she always was right by my side watching everything I did. Even when I was at work she would come in and stay the whole 8 hours with me talking and helping me do whatever needed to be done, instead of being a kid.

I miss her a lot, those times will never be forgotten. When she was little we always told people we were sisters because we were always together. As she got older we would say I was her Big little sister because she was taller then me.

Well Bridget, I hope you always remember the last thing I got to tell you that day; I love you, and one day I will get to see you again, and it will be just like old times.

Hugs and Kisses
Your Big Little Sister
Robyn
 
Just heartbreaking... Prayers for Bridgett and her family.

Mom Planning for Funeral
[FONT=Arial, Vendana, SansSerif]For the last month, Mary Herard has lived a mother’s nightmare. While most people were celebrating Christmas and a new year, she was desperately looking for her daughter. As the first month of 2009 draws to an end, Herard is planning a funeral for her 16-year-old daughter, Bridgett[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Vendana, SansSerif]While Herard has not officially learned whether the body found outside Graham on Jan. 16 is her missing daughter, she said she is virtually certain it is. Herard said she knew something was wrong the minute the door closed at a residence on Edwards Road where Bridgett went to babysit Dec. 23. “I was on the phone with her when she was dropped off,” she said. Bridgett was taken to the house by a girlfriend from Jacksboro she had stayed with the night before and went shopping with earlier that day.

Herard said her daughter was called while shopping by the boyfriend of a long-time family friend who asked Bridgett to babysit his girlfriend’s daughters. Although Herard did not know the man, she thought Bridgett would be safe because of the 12-year relationship she had with his girlfriend.
[/FONT]
The full article is available here.
 
http://www.grahamleader.com/news/get-news.asp?id=14866&catid=1&cpg=get-news.asp

snipped from article above:

"Bridgett Herard is no longer missing.
Sheriff Bryan Walls confirmed Thursday that a body found Jan. 16 was the missing Graham teen who disappeared Dec. 23.
"DNA has positively identified the body of Bridgett Herard," Walls said."


and:

"Walls said a Graham man was arrested for the 16-year-old’s murder. Jeremiah Justin Craft was arrested late Thursday and charged with the sexual assault of a child and murder of Herard. Craft is being held on a $1 million bond on each count. Walls said Craft was already in the Young County Jail on an unrelated charge when the new charges were announced.
While Walls confirmed Herard was the victim of a homicide, the final autopsy results have not been released, he said."

http://texomashomepage.com/content/fulltext/?cid=32351

"Court documents show a pretty lengthy arrest record for 30-year-old Jeremiah Justin Craft. He's the man authorities say sexually assaulted and murdered 16-year-old Bridget Herard disappeared just before Christmas. Craft has been serving time in the Young County Jail for about a month on drug charges, not connected with this murder case. Yesterday, he was charged with sexually assaulting and murdering 16-year-old Bridget Herard.

Court documents show in 1998 -- Craft was convicted of stealing a gun. He later violated his probation by failing a drug test and headed back to jail. That's when he was assigned to a work crew. Court documents show he escaped from that work crew in May 1998. He was later convicted of escape and sentenced to 8 years in prison."

There is a very pretty picture of Bridget in the link to the article above. May she rest in peace. God bless her family.

Jeremiah Justin Craft myspace page:

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewProfile&friendID=191125940
 
This poor child was lured to her death by a total . I take comfort in the fact that it happened in TX. The DP is still quite popular there.

:behindbar
 
From March 2010:

http://www.newschannel6now.com/stor...pect-strikes-plea-deal-to-avoid-death-penalty

Jeremiah Justin Craft pleaded guilty to charges of Murder, Sexual Assault of a Child, and Tampering With Physical Evidence - Human Corpse. He admitted to killing 16-year-old Bridgett Herard...

By reaching a plea deal, Craft will serve three concurrent sentences of 45 years for murder, 45 years for sexual assault, and 25 years for tampering.

"Jeremiah and his family both knew the deck of cards were really stacked against him in this case," said Chuck Smith, Craft's attorney. "He didn't have any illusions about what was likely to happen if he were to go to trial. And I mean that not only on the guilt-innocent phase, but the punishment phase of the trial."
 

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