ACTIVE SEARCH SD - Serenity Dennard, 9, Children’s Home Society, Pennington County, 3 Feb 2019 #3

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I have mixed opinions on this case. I have not ruled out foul play; nor have I ruled out she found a place to hide and succumbed to the elements.

I know several think she couldn’t have got that far, and several think kids don’t like getting cold. I’ve mentioned before, I have an adopted child who has issues. When he gets into “flight” mode, it’s like his brain shuts down. He doesn’t think about simple things, such as temperatures, safety, etc. This last winter he even ran out into the snow barefooted. No, he didn’t immediately turn around and come back in. We had to coax him.

Based on my experiences, I think if Serenity was in flight mode, she would have never thought about temperatures, until it was too late. I think her adrenaline would be pumping and she would get as far away as she could as fast as she could. With this mindset I believe she could easily get lost, unable to find her way back, once she started thinking clearly.

Very sad situation. I’m glad the residential center did an internal investigation and pin pointed their inadequacies. I pray they take that seriously and make the necessary changes.

JMO, MOO
The problem is, she may have concentrated on getting as far away as fast as she could, which could be some distance. But her history at the Home was more of a "find a hiding place" type, so she may have searched for a hiding place and burrowed down there. So she could be close. Hard to tell, given her history. I lean toward her getting as far away as possible, but we just can't look into her mind or know exactly what she was thinking.

And I agree, nothing can be entirely ruled out.
 
She was seen by the gate by a couple who had dropped off another child. They reported it. When they then drove to find her, she had completely disappeared. Did she walk or run up the road? Nobody knows. Did she dart into the woods, up a hill, or along a side road? Nobody knows. So far, she hasn't been found anywhere. In that weather she wouldn't have gotten very far, at least that is the accepted belief.
Do you have a link to an updated report that they were there dropping off another child? The only report I've seen states they were in the area chopping wood.

"Investigators are looking to speak with a couple who may have been the last to see a missing 9-year-old Pennington County girl.

Authorities said a man and woman were cutting wood in the area of Foster Gulch and South Rockerville Road and spoke with Children’s Home staff on Sunday between 10:30 a.m and 11:30 a.m."

UPDATE: Investigators speak to couple who saw missing 9-year-old
 
Do you have a link to an updated report that they were there dropping off another child? The only report I've seen states they were in the area chopping wood.

"Investigators are looking to speak with a couple who may have been the last to see a missing 9-year-old Pennington County girl.

Authorities said a man and woman were cutting wood in the area of Foster Gulch and South Rockerville Road and spoke with Children’s Home staff on Sunday between 10:30 a.m and 11:30 a.m."

UPDATE: Investigators speak to couple who saw missing 9-year-old

That is a different couple. I don't have links, but there are two sets of people: wood choppers (1 set) and center visitors dropping off a child (2nd set). IIRC, the wood choppers were questioned by searchers but did not actually see Serenity. As I do not have links handy, this is MOO.
 
That is a different couple. I don't have links, but there are two sets of people: wood choppers (1 set) and center visitors dropping off a child (2nd set). IIRC, the wood choppers were questioned by searchers but did not actually see Serenity. As I do not have links handy, this is MOO.
That is correct. The couple that was chopping wood never saw Serenity.
 
That is a different couple. I don't have links, but there are two sets of people: wood choppers (1 set) and center visitors dropping off a child (2nd set). IIRC, the wood choppers were questioned by searchers but did not actually see Serenity. As I do not have links handy, this is MOO.
Thanks for clearing that up. Much appreciated.
 
Thanks for clearing that up. Much appreciated.

I would add though that there was reason for this. It is exactly what was said and thought in the beginning days. Only a woodcutting couple was mentioned that "saw" her or we were at least led to believe that, and they were looking for them. In later days we start hearing about a car dropping someone off which had never once been mentioned. Then we were all totally confused. I guess it turned out the people in the car saw her, the wood cutters did not, etc.

It was confusing. It was either as seems to be normal these days, incorrect reporting, poor clarity of information provided by the home and/or LE to reporters and now it seems maybe it was due to the employees being on three different radio frequencies during a search for a missing child if I understand that correctly...

One last thought is it was also said later that the wood cutters now did not see Serenity but that they were seen by an employee searching who asked if they had seen her. Maybe LE was actually trying to verify the employee's statement that the employee had talked with said woodcutters and was out looking for her and that they truly existed. A possibility anyhow.

This is to the best of my recollection.
 
I would add though that there was reason for this. It is exactly what was said and thought in the beginning days. Only a woodcutting couple was mentioned that "saw" her or we were at least led to believe that, and they were looking for them. In later days we start hearing about a car dropping someone off which had never once been mentioned. Then we were all totally confused. I guess it turned out the people in the car saw her, the wood cutters did not, etc.

It was confusing. It was either as seems to be normal these days, incorrect reporting, poor clarity of information provided by the home and/or LE to reporters and now it seems maybe it was due to the employees being on three different radio frequencies during a search for a missing child if I understand that correctly...

One last thought is it was also said later that the wood cutters now did not see Serenity but that they were seen by an employee searching who asked if they had seen her. Maybe LE was actually trying to verify the employee's statement that the employee had talked with said woodcutters and was out looking for her and that they truly existed. A possibility anyhow.

This is to the best of my recollection.
It was very confusing, because the headlines said that they were looking for the couple out chopping wood who last saw Serenity, at Foster Gulch, which is 5 or 6 miles to the southwest. But Serenity was last seen heading north along S. Rockerville Rd., so that didn't make sense. They did find the couple, but it turns out that (1) they never saw Serenity, only a searcher, and (2) it was actually on Foster Gulch Rd. That makes more sense, because Foster Gulch Rd. intersects S. Rockerville Rd. a mile or so north of the Home. So if the wood cutters were at or near that intersection, and if Serenity has stuck with the road and headed north, it is conceivable that they could have seen her.

We don't know exactly where the couple was, but it makes sense that they were close by, since they did see a searcher.

But MSM was wrong. Even their headline reported they had seen Serenity, when in fact they had not.

For example:
UPDATE: Investigators speak to couple who saw missing 9-year-old

That headline reads: "UPDATE: Investigators speak to couple who saw missing 9-year-old" but it was later revealed that they never saw her. There were other similar headlines.
 
It was very confusing, because the headlines said that they were looking for the couple out chopping wood who last saw Serenity, at Foster Gulch, which is 5 or 6 miles to the southwest. But Serenity was last seen heading north along S. Rockerville Rd., so that didn't make sense. They did find the couple, but it turns out that (1) they never saw Serenity, only a searcher, and (2) it was actually on Foster Gulch Rd. That makes more sense, because Foster Gulch Rd. intersects S. Rockerville Rd. a mile or so north of the Home. So if the wood cutters were at or near that intersection, and if Serenity has stuck with the road and headed north, it is conceivable that they could have seen her.

We don't know exactly where the couple was, but it makes sense that they were close by, since they did see a searcher.

But MSM was wrong. Even their headline reported they had seen Serenity, when in fact they had not.

For example:
UPDATE: Investigators speak to couple who saw missing 9-year-old

That headline reads: "UPDATE: Investigators speak to couple who saw missing 9-year-old" but it was later revealed that they never saw her. There were other similar headlines.

I totally agree. Those mistakes help nothing.

For someone doing what is suggested and reading about this from the start to get up to speed, the articles and incorrect statements such as those help nothing.

I would also add that these kind of errors in more than a few cases help nothing either. A missing child with time of the essence and the info provided is incorrect, wow. Whether by who or the media, is debatable and possibly different in each instance/case but it is no wonder there are questions, they are created by such misleading, incorrect or conflicting information.

imo.
 
I am curious if the home does routine head counts? They didnt train for runaway situations. Are we absolutely positive Serenity went missing that morning? Are we sure the child this person saw was not the other kod that took off? Im just thinking outside of the box (or trying) i see all this pics and vehicles of searchers & wonder...have they checked their trunks? Did she climb into a hiding spot in a vehicle, some even have compartments along the bottom. Some have easily accessible trunk pops or pull down from the back seat that leads to the trunk. I think of tht & the possibility she traveled like tht to somebody's home/office & realise she could be anywhere (or still in there unfortunately)
 
I am curious if the home does routine head counts? They didnt train for runaway situations. Are we absolutely positive Serenity went missing that morning? Are we sure the child this person saw was not the other kod that took off? Im just thinking outside of the box (or trying) i see all this pics and vehicles of searchers & wonder...have they checked their trunks? Did she climb into a hiding spot in a vehicle, some even have compartments along the bottom. Some have easily accessible trunk pops or pull down from the back seat that leads to the trunk. I think of tht & the possibility she traveled like tht to somebody's home/office & realise she could be anywhere (or still in there unfortunately)
Interesting ideas. But Serenity was seen up on the road, not in the parking lot. Unless you mean later in the day, when the searchers were there. I don't think that is very likely, either, as that was a good three or more hours later.
And I'm pretty sure they knew it was Serenity, not the other child. When the first child ran, there was a staff right on the child's tail to retrieve him. It was then that Serenity ran, when there was only one other staffer, who had to stay with the other children.
 
Interesting ideas. But Serenity was seen up on the road, not in the parking lot. Unless you mean later in the day, when the searchers were there. I don't think that is very likely, either, as that was a good three or more hours later.
And I'm pretty sure they knew it was Serenity, not the other child. When the first child ran, there was a staff right on the child's tail to retrieve him. It was then that Serenity ran, when there was only one other staffer, who had to stay with the other children.
That clears up my concerns a bit. Thank you!
 
I would add though that there was reason for this. It is exactly what was said and thought in the beginning days. Only a woodcutting couple was mentioned that "saw" her or we were at least led to believe that, and they were looking for them. In later days we start hearing about a car dropping someone off which had never once been mentioned. Then we were all totally confused. I guess it turned out the people in the car saw her, the wood cutters did not, etc.

It was confusing. It was either as seems to be normal these days, incorrect reporting, poor clarity of information provided by the home and/or LE to reporters and now it seems maybe it was due to the employees being on three different radio frequencies during a search for a missing child if I understand that correctly...

One last thought is it was also said later that the wood cutters now did not see Serenity but that they were seen by an employee searching who asked if they had seen her. Maybe LE was actually trying to verify the employee's statement that the employee had talked with said woodcutters and was out looking for her and that they truly existed. A possibility anyhow.

This is to the best of my recollection.

Very good recollection, if I might add a wee bump here for Serenity :)
 
Property owners in the area should really take a second, third look of their outbuildings (sheds, pool barns, under porches, detached garages, etc.).
I often wonder if her family still goes back out there and searches on their own. During the interviews, some of the family mentioned that when they first learned of her being missing they went out to look for her. No fanfare, no media watching, just quietly looking for their baby girl. I can imagine just being in the place where she was last seen could bring them some measure of comfort. I hope they find her soon. I still believe crevices, caves or outcroppings are the likely places she would be found.
 
I assume there was no further search done over the weekend because of the weather. Hopefully all that snow will quickly melt off. The weather looks pretty good to that end this week.

I have heard it is disappearing fast so hopefully they can get things coordinated again to get back out. Happy to hear the forecast looks good, I had not looked at nor heard that. Thank you for the info.
 
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