TN - Gail Nowacki Palmgren, 44, Signal Mountain, 30 April 2011 - #6

[JBean]

I agree that this is a possibility. It could be that she was driving somewhere which noone has yet guessed to search (or has searched, but missed the vehicle). However, the longer the disappearance goes unsolved, and the more that comes out about her spouse, the less convinced I am of this scenario.

Poor lady, if this is truly what transpired. Can you imagine gearing up for a 'battle' with your cheating husband, and then just coincidentally running your jeep off the side of a cliff?

Early on I considered this theory in earnest. It made sense to me that a woman crying or distraught could conceivably run off the road. I rear ended someone once when I got some really bad news and was driving very,very upset.
But I ultimately gave up on this notion because ,imo, she would have been discovered by now.

 

[Pearl*]

Wuttup with Tizzio? (See article above. back on patrol)

Is he no longer the contact?

I don't think so. I believe this is the most recent article giving contact information. Although SMPD is named, all contact info is for the HCSO.

http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_203454.asp

 

[glorias]

Just wanted to give a head's up that the News Channel 9 article about the search last night is missing, it's a 404 page. I assume there's a technical issue there or it's been moved to another page I don't have the URL for yet. I believe this link, though, has the full text from the News Channel 9 article:

http://chattanoogapulse.com/newsfea...h-warrant-served-at-gail-palmgrens-residence/

 

[glorias]

snipped...

If AD is being honest, there was another brother she didn't speak to-wonder why?

I just want to say something regarding this. There was a situation on another website which made it clear that AD is unhappy with this brother and/or his family, and what she says may be colored by her personal feelings toward them.

There is no way I can details without causing rampant speculation, more arguments amongst ourselves than we already have, and probably violating WS TOS to boot. So I don't really know what else I can do but tell you personally that I question what AD says when it comes to talking about this brother.

For what it's worth, this brother WAS mentioned in early articles as looking for Gail and confirming that the FBI was called.

 

[justplainmetal]

I think anyone facing that much hurt would be depressed somewhat. then, if she really started to think she was being followed, etc, (I can certainly understand that with all that was going on in the relationship.) Gail being as intelligent as she is, and with her medical knowledge, could have realized she was sliding down a slippery slope. Don't string me up for this, just reaching out for possible senarios, but maybe she had had enough, and was with it enough to think to herself-I need to step back, take a break, get some help. It COULD (not saying it is, again just trying different thoughts) be that she checked herself into someplace for help, treatment. that would explain the complete lack of communication, missing vehicle, etc. it is possible if this is the case, she could have explained this to the kids...they are old enough to understand some of it, and they are also old enough to keep it quiet if their mother had asked them too.

Snip and BBM...

If I had a friend that I "thought" I knew was innocent..I am sure I would be posting here like you are. So no judgement from me...

However, with her drivers license at the house and no $ being spent.. not likely that she would be in any facilty other than Moccassin Bend. And I am sure that the police would have checked that out. Or she would have called her family by now. I don't have kids..but find about the kids to sound highly unlikely.
MOO

ETA.. All docs that I know of want a driver's license when you check in...and $.

 

[glorias]

If she was in a facility, the insurance would have been billed by now and MP would likely have gotten a statement of account from the insurance company saying so. Since he worked for BCBS, he was likely insured by them, and they're also my insurance company. (Not the same TN one but another subsidiary.) They do send statements when medical services are rendered.

If she went to a facility without ID, insurance cards, credit cards, or money, they would not have taken her in. If she was confused/lost, they would have gotten her medical help and contacted the authorities. And if a facility had her in their care, they would have contacted LE by now. I have no doubt in my mind about that.

 

[happy409]

Nice description (<modsnip>)!

The only way I can imagine this scenario would be if she had an auto accident in a location so remote that nobody has been able to find the vehicle. I don't think there's a chance she could be driving it around and nobody notice.

I think this must be considered a possibility. Friends I know in Texas and California, have never heard she is missing and they would recognize my hometown, therefore, her jeep could drive passed them and they wouldn't think a thing about it. FWIW

 

[JBean]

So what other theories are there if she was not stable and disappeared? I cannot imagine that she is holed up in a hotel just rocking and unaware that people are looking for her.
What I am trying to get to is IF it is true that she was on the mental edge, how does this or rather how could this fit into a missing scenario?

I am starting a square one and taking what her dh says at face value. How would this work?

 

[fedfan4life]

Early on I considered this theory in earnest. It made sense to me that a woman crying or distraught could conceivably run off the road. I rear ended someone once when I got some really bad news and was driving very,very upset.
But I ultimately gave up on this notion because ,imo, she would have been discovered by now.

Agreed!

 

[MacGyver]

If nothing else, this senario gives me hope that Gail is ok, just getting needed peace for herself, Matt did not do anything sinister, and even that maybe the kids are not suffering as much as we might think, because they have knowledge of what is happening. It may seem far fetched, but it fits as well as anything else we have heard and it gives hope that all could be ok.

Personally, I hope and pray everyday that this is the real scenario, confused. I miss my friend and I am so worried about her, just like so many of you on here. This scenario means she is alive and well!

 

[believe09]

To me everything comes back to the kids. Would she walk away from them knowing the suffering that they would endure? I was not inside her marriage, and none of us were. But I would also think that had she confided her whereabouts to the children, or intentions, they would have shared it with a trusted person. Certainly PD. Unless they have been made unavailable to PD for some reason.

I dont know her, but to a person people have described her as being loving and focused on her children.

And why did she bring them back? I am stuck here.

 

[glorias]

So what other theories are there if she was not stable and disappeared? I cannot imagine that she is holed up in a hotel just rocking and unaware that people are looking for her.
What I am trying to get to is IF it is true that she was on the mental edge, how does this or rather how could this fit into a missing scenario?

I am starting a square one and taking what her dh says at face value. How would this work?

I'm not sure it does. There are so many reasons why it doesn't make sense to me:

1. If she was mentally ill, then her disappearing often as MP claimed would have been a huge issue, especially with kids around. Her illness would have been a problem in regards to supervising the kids, especially around lakes and boats and driving the roads on those mountains. Illness and/or medication could have made all those activities very problematic.

2. Her friends and family and LE all stated there was no evidence that she had mental/emotional issues.

The only scenario that could possibly fit would be that she had mental issues, drove off in a panic, and either the illness or the meds caused an accident. But if that were the case, what are the odds that neither she nor her Jeep would have been seen yet? Especially considering the phone ping on May 2 which would mean her accident would have been at the base of the mountain where people have been looking.

 

[lalalu]

And why did she bring them back? I am stuck here.

They only had one month left in the school year. A parent likely wouldn't sacrifice a school year, (unless the children were in danger) when the summer was right over the horizon.

 

[JBean]

I'm not sure it does. There are so many reasons why it doesn't make sense to me:

1. If she was mentally ill, then her disappearing often as MP claimed would have been a huge issue, especially with kids around. Her illness would have been a problem in regards to supervising the kids, especially around lakes and boats and driving the roads on those mountains. Illness and/or medication could have made all those activities very problematic.

2. Her friends and family and LE all stated there was no evidence that she had mental/emotional issues.

The only scenario that could possibly fit would be that she had mental issues, drove off in a panic, and either the illness or the meds caused an accident. But if that were the case, what are the odds that neither she nor her Jeep would have been seen yet? Especially considering the phone ping on May 2 which would mean her accident would have been at the base of the mountain where people have been looking.

I agree Glorias.
Sometimes to figure out what did happen, we have to rule out what didn't happen KWIM? So, my thought process is if we kind of review the different scenarios and really put our minds to coming up with scenarios that fit the theory(even if we don't buy it) we may get closer to the right path.
So, let's say she was agitated, maybe got off the phone with MP and he really upset her, and she tossed that phone right out the window.

I feel pretty confortable ruling out the had an accident and is a jane Doe in a hospital/morgue,because that would cause people to try and figure out who she was and it wouldn't take too long.

So, is there any way being mentally unstable would explain her disappearance? Is she just living somewhere on cash and just not thinking right and doesn't really understand what has happened? That would be a pretty significant mental illness wouldn't it?

 

[carolinagirl56]

So what other theories are there if she was not stable and disappeared? I cannot imagine that she is holed up in a hotel just rocking and unaware that people are looking for her.
What I am trying to get to is IF it is true that she was on the mental edge, how does this or rather how could this fit into a missing scenario?

I am starting a square one and taking what her dh says at face value. How would this work?

Could she have just given up and walked away from her life of loss? Maybe she was threatened with having to give up her children in the divorce. She was unemployed and he was not kind of thing. Could she have thought that the kids would be better off with their father in the nice SMtn home and school? Gotten rid of the car and started over in small town USA.

This case is just heartbreaking to me.

 

[Pearl*]

I believe this question was asked in a previous thread but I don't recall an answer. Do we know anything about how Gail spent her time in general? What sorts of things did she do while the kids were at school and Matt was at work? I assume he had the typical 9-5 schedule? What hobbies might have kept her busy? Was she more likely to be at home all day or "on the go"? And how much time did she spend in Alabama?

I'm having a lot of trouble with the mental instability trail we are trying to follow.... I really AM trying, but I just keep coming back to the modsnip.

fftobed:

 

[happy409]

From Pearl*; I hope it's okay for me to re-post this. It took quite a while to put together and I wish I'd waited for the new thread. I'd also like to request a repost of post #798. I just wonder how many people go back to the old threads...

Pearl, thanks for your hard work. I speculate the reasoning for all these discussions is to keep Gail's name out there. IMHO, Signal Mountain doesn't need this negative PR of husbands, mistresses, and disappearing mother's. They want to continue to draw a professional base, offering the finest schools (comparing them to private schools) and nothing bad happens here. Basically, most of that is correct. GP and MP's story does not fit into the norm, many locals express their concerns (but do not want to get involved);

Neighbors in this upscale subdivision have been intrigued and perplexed by Gail Palmgren's disappearance. All of them declined formal interviews, but one described her as an "articulate, polished, soft-spoken" woman.

from http://www.newschannel9.com/news/palmgren-1002374-home-search.html

Everyone discussing this case from the beginning have gotten the idea that Signal Mountain has NO resources to handle cases of anything largely investigative. Hamilton County being brought in to assist is dealing with an abnormal amount of shootings, riots, deaths, a CPD officer murdered, and most recently a week long music festival, keeping their plate overflowing.

I believe the ONLY reason that SMPD requested assistance from HCSO is from those demanding they DO something..IMHO

Also, hopefully, like some have stated that possibly the TBI and the FBI (covering several states) have been brought in, and possibly a secret, do they do that?

In reference to DV, this article was interesting and possibly explains a little more (from a Signal Resident perspective) by being tactful, FWIW.

http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_186353.asp

 

[glorias]

Well, I thought of a couple more scenarios.

One is that she was mentally distraught to the point of harming herself and hasn't been found. That seems a little implausible since she hasn't been found. Plus she was planning so much for the future by handing items to others and investigating things for the impending divorce.

Or she could have been in a situation where someone carjacked her or something. That wouldn't be something that happened because of any alleged mental issues though, just more like bad luck. C's sighting kind of points to that, like someone carjacked her and made her drive around for various things. A friend of mine had that happen to him in New Orleans in the 1990s, but the carjacker let him go when he was done with the car. I think that's definitely possible, but it would be a strange coincidence that the victim of a carjacking would have been someone afraid for her safety and whose husband has now hired so many people to defend him.

 

[Columbo]

I'm sorry to say I can't think of any scenario that doesn't point toward Gail being harmed somehow, whether by a person or in an accident.

If she were residing somewhere she would have to have money so there would have to be a trail of some kind--bank records, etc, and she would have actually withdrawn the funds that we've been discussing here. For any health care facility she would have to use insurance and there would be records of that somewhere.

Is there some reason why she would have to go into the Witness Protection program? That is just about the only thing I can think of where she'd have to disappear and not tell family where she was.

I just can't get past the fact that she left her children, and has been gone all this time without money, credit cards, driver's license (?) etc. She just would not leave her children. Period. Not without telling them where she was going and being kids, they would have told someone.

 

[Pearl*]

Pearl, thanks for your hard work. <snip>

Thanks, Happy409. I just didn't want it to get lost in the old thread. It was one of the very last posts on there! I'll be honest. It's a one-time deal. If I'd had ANY IDEA how hard it would be to get that thing formatted, I NEVER would have started the darn thing! Once so far though, it just didn't make sense to stop.

I think the presentation speaks for itself, and most people probably don't have an hour to sift through the recording to have the "full experience." That's why I did the transcription.

And now I think MacGyver's duct tape would come in handy for some folks!