TN TN - Tonetta Carlisle, 15, Chattanooga, 15 March 1989

http://www.wrcbtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=10011784

16 March 09

It has now been 20 years since a 15 year old North Chattanooga woman disappeared.

Tonetta Carlisle left her home on Hamilton Avenue around seven in the morning on March 15th 1989, on her way to City High School.

An intensive investigation by police and private citizen groups was launched after reports of an abduction surfaced. But reports of sightings both locally and in distant cities have proven invalid.

Police say a possible suspect in the case committed suicide not long after Carlisle's disappearance.

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/c/carlisle_tonetta.html
Tonetta Yvette Carlisle

Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance

Missing Since: March 16, 1989 from Chattanooga, Tennessee
Classification: Non-Family Abduction
Date Of Birth: August 28, 1973
Age: 15 years old
Height and Weight: 5'1, 90 - 95 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: Black hair, brown eyes. Carlisle's hair was curly and trimmed short on the top and sides while longer in the back at the time of her 1989 disappearance. Her ears are pierced. She has almond-shaped eyes. Several of Carlisle's teeth are capped or have fillings.
Clothing/Jewelry Description: A pink and white-striped blouse, a denim skirt and white tennis shoes.


Details of Disappearance

Carlisle was last seen walking home from City High School at approximately 2:55 p.m. on March 16, 1989 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She was headed to her family's residence in the 600 block of Hamilton Avenue at the time. A witness observed Carlisle's abduction approximately one-half block from Carlisle's home at approximately 3:00 p.m. A woman on Ruth Street near Hamilton Avenue glanced up the hill and watched Carlisle walking down the street. Several unidentified suspects jumped out of a tan and yellow van, forcibly pulled Carlisle inside the vehicle and then drove away. The witness told authorities that she and her husband chased the vehicle and called law enforcement with its license number. Carlisle's mother filed a missing child report with authorities eight hours later when her daughter failed to return home. The two cases were not connected for some time.
The license number of the vehicle involved in the abduction was traced back to Jeffrey Jones. Jones had been released from prison for a rape conviction shortly before Carlisle disappeared. He committed suicide and was found deceased inside his van on March 18, 1989, two days after Carlisle was last seen. There has been no trace of her since that time.

Carlisle enjoys pizza and fast food items. She liked rap music and the musical artist Bobby Brown at the time of her 1989 disappearance. Her case remains unsolved.



Investigating Agency
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Chattanooga Police Department
615-698-9752



Source Information
The National Center For Missing and Exploited Children
Chattanooga Police Department
America's Most Wanted
Child CyberSearch



Updated 2 times since October 12, 2004.

Last updated June 9, 2005.

Charley Project Home

https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/5929/24
Status Missing
First name Tonetta
Middle name Y.
Last name Carlisle
Nickname/Alias
NCMEC number 722063
Date last seen March 15, 1989 00:00
Date entered 04/15/2010
Age last seen 15 to 15 years old
Age now 40 years old
Race Black/African American
Ethnicity
Sex Female
Height (inches) 61.0
Weight (pounds) 95.0

The above number for Chattanooga PD is not correct. It should be 423-698-2525.

This is so sad. What a terrifying thing to have happen to her.

This looks like extra info added to her Charley Project page:

There has been no trace of Tonetta since that time, but there have been rumors that she was forced into prostitution and possibly taken to California.

Most likely she was murdered by this man Jeffrey Jones but he took her wherabouts with him to the grave.

When police finally connected the two reports, they tracked down the purported driver of the vehicle, Jeffrey Jones, who had recently served time for a rape conviction. But the search was fruitless because he committed suicide two days after Carlisle disappeared.

Sturdivant thinks Jones killed her daughter before killing himself.

Now, she wants to remind the public once again about her daughter. She and her sons have their suspicions about what happened, and they believe someone knows something that can give them closure.

"Somebody right here in Chattanooga, Tennessee, know more about what happened to my daughter," she said. "If you know anything about Tonetta, would you please come forward. We need this case closed. I need some peace of mind. My heart is empty."

On Thursday, the Hamilton County District Attorney's Office announced it will be reopening her case, hopefully bringing closure to Carlisle's family after so many years.

In a news conference, District Attorney Neal Pinkston asked the public to come forward with any information, adding that there may have been other rape victims.

Pinkston confirmed that Jones has been identified as a person of interest in the case.

Sturdivant, joined Thursday by son Darrell Stewart, said "it's been really hard" over the years.

"Help me get closure."

The family will meet at noon this Saturday at Coolidge Park for a balloon release in honor of Carlisle's birthday.
Family of missing girl hopes public can help bring closure after reopening of 30-year-old cold case

Family and friends release balloons to honor Tonetta Carlisle, missing since 1989

FEB 9, 2021
The Hamilton County Cold Case unit is looking for new information in the 1989 disappearance of a 15 year old girl while walking home from school. If you have information, you can email authorities at: coldcases@hcdatn.org Hamilton County District Attorney's Cold Case Unit

scrambledeggs said:

This is so sad. What a terrifying thing to have happen to her.

This looks like extra info added to her Charley Project page:

There has been no trace of Tonetta since that time, but there have been rumors that she was forced into prostitution and possibly taken to California.

Click to expand...

This always gets to me when in the details there are "rumors". Rumors from whom and where did this information come from? If the case reports mention rumors, then what was the follow up? Were prostitutes interviewed?

If someone spread a "rumor" that someone was forced into prostitution, there would be a lot of questions demanding answers.

"Who told you that?" or
"Where did you get this information from?"
"How do you know she was possibly taken to California?"
"Why California? Does someone have ties there?"
Was it a prostitute who was too scared to reveal names? That would make sense.

These rumors could have valid leads. Especially considering how would these sources know this information unless they were involved in the industry somehow. I'm assuming some names were given and the police looked into it, but still, so frustrating it seemed to go nowhere as it seems there are no persons of interest.

Sex trafficking and related crimes always have many parties involved. And if this was the case, this definitely would not have been the first time it happened. I would imagine it would require some exhaustive surveillance to observe the pattern of the possible suspects to really crack down on a sex trafficking ring. Maybe 30 years ago they didn't have the knowledge and capability as we do now to handle these sorts of crimes. Unfortunate to say the least.

Tonetta Yvette Carlisle – The Charley Project

Tonetta, circa 1989; Age-progression to age 45 (circa 2018)

Distinguishing Characteristics:
African-American female. Black hair, brown eyes. Tonetta's hair was curly and trimmed short on the top and sides and longer in the back at the time of her 1989 disappearance. Her ears are pierced. She has almond-shaped eyes. Several of Tonetta's teeth are capped or have fillings.

Tonetta's profile on NamUs:
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
Height: 5' 1" (61 Inches)
Weight: 95 lbs
Clothing:Last seen wearing a pink blouse with white stripes and denim skirt.
Footwear: White tennis shoes.

Doe Network Profile:
The Doe Network: Case File 70DFTN
Dentals: Available. She has caps on her teeth and dental fillings.
DNA: Available

Tonetta Carlisle finished school around 2:30 pm on Thursday, March 16, 1989, and started making the one-mile walk to her house in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Normally, it would take her around 25 minutes to make it home. On this day, however, she never made it home.

Tonetta’s mother, Nonie Sturdivant, was surprised when she arrived home from work that afternoon to an empty house. At first, she thought her daughter might have stopped at a friend’s house and wasn’t too concerned. As hours passed by, though, Nonie started to worry. By 9:00 pm, she was convinced that something was wrong and called the Chattanooga Police Department to report her daughter missing.

Despite the fact that the 15-year-old had no history of running away, the police assumed that she had done just that. Nonie tried to explain that she and her daughter had a close relationship that would prevent her from ever wanting to run away. The police weren’t convinced. They told Nonie that Tonetta would come home when she was ready, likely within a couple of days. Nonie returned home and started her own search for Tonetta.

Somehow, investigators failed to connect Tonetta’s missing person report with an abduction report they had received earlier that day. Then, that afternoon, the police received a call from a woman who claimed she witnessed an abduction at 2:55 pm. She and her husband had been sitting at the intersection of Hamilton Avenue and Ruth Street, and the woman had glanced up the street and noticed a teenage girl walking down Hamilton Avenue. Seconds later, a tan and yellow van pulled up alongside the teenager. As the woman and her husband watched in horror, a group of men jumped out and grabbed the girl, then dragged her, kicking and screaming, into their vehicle. They then took off at a high rate of speed.

The couple chased after the van. They were able to keep up with it for a short while but eventually lost it on the streets of Chattanooga. Luckily, the woman was able to write down the license plate number of the van, which she provided to the police.

Detectives determined the license plate belonged to Jeffrey Jones, a man with an extensive criminal history. He had been released from prison the previous year after serving an eight-year sentence for rape and aggravated sexual assault. He had also been accused of another rape in January 1989, just two months before Tonetta disappeared.

Jones was located two days later, on March 18th. Unfortunately, he was found dead inside his van, an apparent suicide. The coroner confirmed that the official cause of death was carbon monoxide poisoning. Since he didn’t leave any kind of suicide note, investigators could only speculate about his reasons for killing himself.

By this time, detectives had finally realized that the teenage girl who had been forced into the van had been Tonetta, and they were gravely concerned about her safety. They conducted thorough searches of Jeffrey’s van and apartment, but they found no clues to Tonetta’s whereabouts.

The search for Tonetta Carlisle is ongoing.

DEC 1, 2022

Tonetta Carlisle​

Tonetta Carlisle was 15 when she was last seen walking home from her school in Chattanooga on March 16, 1989. Carlisle’s mother filed a missing person’s report when she did not return home from school that day.


According to a 2019 issue of the Chattanoogan, an eyewitness told police they saw a group of unidentified suspects jump out of a tan and yellow vehicle and forcibly pull Carlisle into the car before driving away. She was about a half a block away from her home.

A possible suspect traced to the vehicle died only days before Carlisle’s alleged abduction. However, investigators are continuing to search for answers. Carlisle was last described as 5’1″ tall with black hair and brown eyes. She would be 49 years old today.

If you have seen Tonetta Carlisle, contact the Chattanooga Police Department at (423) 698-2525, or the TBI at 1-800-TBI-FIND.

Staff photo / From inside the District Attorney's Office library in 2019, Nonie Sturdivant says she needs closure concerning the 1989 disappearance of her daughter, Tonetta Carlisle.

Fifteen-year-old Tonetta Carlisle was walking home from school March 16, 1989, when she went missing.

Her mother called police that night after she didn't come home from the North Chattanooga school then known as Chattanooga High School.

Police believed Carlisle was with a boyfriend and didn't ask the community for help finding her until a week later. But her mother said she didn't have a boyfriend, the Chattanooga Times Free Press previously reported.

The day Carlisle went missing, a couple reported seeing a young Black woman being forced into a vehicle by a group of men shortly before 3 p.m. near the intersection of Hamilton Avenue and Dallas Road, less than a mile from Chattanooga High. The couple gave police a license plate number.

By the time police connected the two cases, the owner of the vehicle, Jeffrey Jones, was dead in an apparent suicide. He was found March 18 in his vehicle, and a medical examiner ruled his death a suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning, according to reports.

Carlisle's mother, Nonie Sturvidant, believes Jones killed her daughter before committing suicide.

Former Hamilton County District Attorney General Neal Pinkston's cold case unit revisited the case 30 years later in 2019, but the case remains unsolved and Carlisle's body has never been found.

monkalup said:

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/c/carlisle_tonetta.html
Tonetta Yvette Carlisle

Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance

Missing Since: March 16, 1989 from Chattanooga, Tennessee
Classification: Non-Family Abduction
Date Of Birth: August 28, 1973
Age: 15 years old
Height and Weight: 5'1, 90 - 95 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: Black hair, brown eyes. Carlisle's hair was curly and trimmed short on the top and sides while longer in the back at the time of her 1989 disappearance. Her ears are pierced. She has almond-shaped eyes. Several of Carlisle's teeth are capped or have fillings.
Clothing/Jewelry Description: A pink and white-striped blouse, a denim skirt and white tennis shoes.


Details of Disappearance

Carlisle was last seen walking home from City High School at approximately 2:55 p.m. on March 16, 1989 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She was headed to her family's residence in the 600 block of Hamilton Avenue at the time. A witness observed Carlisle's abduction approximately one-half block from Carlisle's home at approximately 3:00 p.m. A woman on Ruth Street near Hamilton Avenue glanced up the hill and watched Carlisle walking down the street. Several unidentified suspects jumped out of a tan and yellow van, forcibly pulled Carlisle inside the vehicle and then drove away. The witness told authorities that she and her husband chased the vehicle and called law enforcement with its license number. Carlisle's mother filed a missing child report with authorities eight hours later when her daughter failed to return home. The two cases were not connected for some time.
The license number of the vehicle involved in the abduction was traced back to Jeffrey Jones. Jones had been released from prison for a rape conviction shortly before Carlisle disappeared. He committed suicide and was found deceased inside his van on March 18, 1989, two days after Carlisle was last seen. There has been no trace of her since that time.

Carlisle enjoys pizza and fast food items. She liked rap music and the musical artist Bobby Brown at the time of her 1989 disappearance. Her case remains unsolved.



Investigating Agency
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Chattanooga Police Department
615-698-9752



Source Information
The National Center For Missing and Exploited Children
Chattanooga Police Department
America's Most Wanted
Child CyberSearch



Updated 2 times since October 12, 2004.

Last updated June 9, 2005.

Charley Project Home

Click to expand...

Do you think this girl I found unidentified in NAMUS could be Tonetta?

HBR0722 said:

Do you think this girl I found unidentified in NAMUS could be Tonetta?

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

Click to expand...

she looks quite similar but there must be so many girls similar to her.. the features of people of color are very similar wide nose very little eyebrows very curly hair etc. but hope is the last thing to die..
anyway rest in peace