Deceased/Not Found CA - Sierra LaMar, 15, Morgan Hill, 16 March 2012 #5 *A. Garcia-Torres guilty*

[cluciano63]

I think Sierra could have been lured away by a nice-looking guy for a day away from school...I probably would have gone, at her age...

 

[BeginnersLuck]

I think Sierra could have been lured away by a nice-looking guy for a day away from school...I probably would have gone, at her age...

Teens these days can't survive without their cell phones and social media. There would have been contact back and forth between her and someone else if this were the case. It would have been tracked. Teens are very naive and trust others that they may see on a regular basis but don't necessarily know, so she may have taken a ride from someone that just happened to pull up unplanned on her part.

Her last known cell communication was right at the time she would have been leaving the house to catch the bus. She did not return the last tweet. Thats probably when the phone was tossed.

I think it was premeditated. Someone had been watching her and couldn't resist the urge anymore and the timing was just right.

Whether it started out with her willfully getting into the car because she recognized the person or someone forced her we will not know until she is found and/or they are caught.

 

[Skully]

Jennifer Odem's case was very similar to this one. She was taken at her bus stop, but she was coming home. The area was a lat like what you are describing here, but this was in Feb,1993 in FL. She lived in a secluded area, all farming and orange groves. The kids on the bus saw a blue truck slowly follow her up her road, which was actually a very long drive way to her house. There was no sign of struggle and she was found in the next county over on a horse trail. Her backpack and clarinet case and clarinet were found 2 years later, just tossed behind a hospital, but it was no where near her body or where she was taken. Her cloths, purse and boots were never recovered. To this day the family believes it was someone very close to the family. They knew when she got off the bus, where, that she walked alone (as of recently), and got her into the truck without a struggle. She has a thread here in the cold cases. I think Sierra knew this person. She knew them well enought to get into a car and he didn't have a fight on his hands until he made his intentions known. I haven't read the whole thread, but did she go to church, any outside activities from school? Any neighbors have relatives or friends that were staying with them before or during this?

 

[Skully]

I was watching Sins and Secrets on ID and one perv was snatching girls just at the roadsides. He would drive around until he would see girls at bus stops, or getting the mail at the roadside mailboxes or just at the end of a yard, near the road. Once he saw them there, he studied them, took notes and then returned. He would drive up, get out of the car and ask for directions, stating he was a sales rep and had to find an address. As the girl would look at the map, he pulled a gun and told them to get into the truck or the back seat, that had a panel that pulled down and led to the truck and told them to get back into the trunk area. He took them to his home, when his wife was out, or out of town. He later divorced and then he had the house to himself and continued on with this MO. The only reason he got caught was one girl got away. He held them days, sometimes weeks before he would kill them. He lived in the next county over to where he was getting his victims. So sometimes they are not in your county but one over, and they are married or have a girlfriend. Lots of woman work, some do over night trips and the husband can be home; this is one way they can do these things and not get caught for years if they are careful. Girl in truck, pull into garage and now you get her into the house.

 

[LucyOso]

That sounds like some weird romance novel... clearly not what is actually happening. Are you serious?

I think she was trying to say something very plausible. An older male/teen, who is a possible predator, could easily manipulate a girl who had a crush on him into skipping school and keeping a "secret" so she appears "cool" in his eyes. And she goes with him and becomes a victim.

More typically, the guy will pull up and offer a ride with something like hey don't I know you from this HS/University/Club. Remember me? And when a girl/young woman hesitates, the predator with choice words and gestures (hands in air, eye rolling, etc), makes her feel like she is doing something wrong or is insulting him by not accepting the ride or recognizing him and is manipulated into getting into the car. It happens very fast...

 

[TxLady2]

I was watching Sins and Secrets on ID and one perv was snatching girls just at the roadsides. He would drive around until he would see girls at bus stops, or getting the mail at the roadside mailboxes or just at the end of a yard, near the road. Once he saw them there, he studied them, took notes and then returned. He would drive up, get out of the car and ask for directions, stating he was a sales rep and had to find an address. As the girl would look at the map, he pulled a gun and told them to get into the truck or the back seat, that had a panel that pulled down and led to the truck and told them to get back into the trunk area. He took them to his home, when his wife was out, or out of town. He later divorced and then he had the house to himself and continued on with this MO. The only reason he got caught was one girl got away. He held them days, sometimes weeks before he would kill them. He lived in the next county over to where he was getting his victims. So sometimes they are not in your county but one over, and they are married or have a girlfriend. Lots of woman work, some do over night trips and the husband can be home; this is one way they can do these things and not get caught for years if they are careful. Girl in truck, pull into garage and now you get her into the house.

Good points. We need to remember that predators don't always stalk their victims beforehand. Some of them drive around looking for victims and when the opportunity comes along, they take it. Someone could have spotted her from a distance walking to or from the bus stop, and grabbed her that day. Sometimes it's just a crime of opportunity, doesn't have to be planned out from days of stalking their victims.
Teen girls don't necessarily always have their danger radars on high alert. The predator may look and sound perfectly fine. They don't panic when he gets out of the vehicle, and approaches them, until he shows them a gun or a knife or zaps them with a stun gun, or just grabs them in a choke hold. It can all happen in a few seconds.
Also, just because there are other houses around doesn't mean neighbors are going to be coming and going, looking out their windows. People are busy that time of the morning. And even if one neighbor sees this, from a distance it may look perfectly innocent.

 

[LisaB]

I can't imagine someone having the patience to wait for the legal system to deal with him and then do something so horrific years later. I mean, I can picture myself enraged to criminal violence if someone hurt my kids, but it'd happen during the turmoil of finding out and the legal wrangling. And if you were so outraged at your own child being violated, you'd have to be pretty messed up to be prepared to hurt another innocent child to redress the balance in your own mind. Most people realise that while not the direct victim, his children were harmed greatly by his disgusting behaviour as well. The person who would be capable of that would not need the provocation of Steve LaMar's crime IMO.

My daughter was victimized from age 8 to 10. It was not revealed until she was 15, when we filed charges. The perp was sentenced to 60 years. 45 years were suspended immediately, and after just 18 months in prison (less than the amount of time he spent molesting my child on a daily basis) he is up for parole this month. IF HE IS RELEASED, I could see my daughter wanting revenge. She's a young adult now, but has some unsavory male friends (in fact, as a result of the molestation, she has psychological issues and more than one unsavory friend) who might be more than willing to brutalize or kill this guy on her behalf.

FYI - WHILE I WHOLEHEARTEDLY SUPPORT HIS IMPRISONMENT, I DO NOT SUBSCRIBE TO THE "EYE FOR AN EYE THEORY". HE WAS SENTENCED TO PROTECTIVE CUSTODY AND I FEEL THAT WAS APPROPRIATE. IT WAS NOT THE INTENT OF THE JUDGE THAT HE BE SUBJECTED TO DAILY RAPES AND BEATINGS, JUST TO INCARCERATION. FOR 15 YEARS. LOTS OF PEOPLE DISAGREE WITH ME, BUT ANY ASSAULT ON HIM WOULD BE ANOTHER CRIME, HE'D BECOME A "VICTIM," AND SOMEONE ELSE WOULD BE ON TRIAL.

 

[IHAVENOCLUE]

I reported this to law enforcement TODAY at about 2 p.m I think maybe they asked her questions because NOW at 9:48 her wall is plastered with SIERRA LAMARS missing poster and she has tweet upon tweet upon tweet.. Kinda crazy

Very interesting!
And thank you for reporting, Annah!

 

[oceanblueeyes]

This case is so haunting just like so many we have followed for many years here. Gone without a trace.

Imo, it usually comes down to what is logical.

Is it logical that Sierra who was so social would just fall off the face of the earth and have no contact with anyone, including her best friends, and family that she is close to? Absolutely, not.

Is there evidence showing she would do something so heartless and keep the ones she loves in a state of panic, tears, and worry? No.

Is there evidence she left on her own accord with someone she knew? No. LE has stated they found no evidence on her cell phone nor her computer that would support that.

Is it logical to think that when Sierra left her home that morning to catch the bus that she was abducted in her driveway? Yes, her scent ends at the end of her driveway. Last known contact, 7:11 am on March 16th.

Sierra's morning was typical.....nothing out of the ordinary. Texting and tweeting before she caught the bus.

Is it logical to think that someone could have caught her off guard and got her into a vehicle? Absolutely. We have seen and read about other cases where the perp kidnapped the young victim right in broad daylight and there was no screaming or a struggle found.

Is it logical that Sierra would toss her cell phone out and one of her favorite purses out beside the roadway? No.

Can we know for certain that Sierra would have screamed? No, for we know of other cases where there were no screams from the nabbed victim so why should we think Sierra would scream. She was a very thin young girl who would have been scared to death of what was happening to her with no warning to prepare to flee. It only takes seconds for someone to pull a victim into a vehicle.

So, imo, the logical conclusion is Sierra was taken from her home unwillingly by a stranger who took the opportunity that presented itself that morning. Someone from that area that may have already noticed Sierra went to the bus stop alone and that Marlene and Rick leaves the home before Sierra does.

And also, imo, LE and the searchers think Sierra has died from foul play and are in a recovery mode looking for Sierra's body. No one looks for an alive victim in brambles, brush, and waterways unless they are looking for a body.

This is not going to end like some bad romance novel.

IMO

 

[IHAVENOCLUE]

Stretching it for new scenarios is getting tougher. How about this...cute guy Sierra has seen around at school stops her in the school yard for a chat. He casually looks around, walking her to a corner of the building where there are no students milling around. He talks first about how he can't wait for warm weather, and then gets on to asking her if she gets rides to school from her parents. Finds out she is the only one home when it is time for her to leave to catch the bus for school. They talk about how they can’t wait for summer.
Then, as if it just occurred to him he says He says, "Sierra, Hey, listen. Tomorrow I can borrow my brother's new ??? car. We could skip school for the day and go to ????." (Feel free to fill in the ???.’s) Sierra doesn't answer immediately, then he seals the deal by saying, “Whoa. We can have an early Spring picnic lunch: I'll pick up sour dough and rye bread, ham, roast beef, chips, and stuff. And, I'll borrow a few bottles of champagne and wine coolers from my bro's stash, he'll never miss it. It will be great, we can kick back and enjoy the day." Sierra says, "Well, that's tempting but....." Nice guy says, "tell you what, if you decide you aren't having a good time, I will bring you right back, I promise. I never break promises." Sierra can't resist after that, says okay.
Nice guy says, "Just to make it more fun, our little early get-away, promise you won't tell a soul. This will be our little secret, so no fair letting anyone, not even your best friend know beforehand. Promise?" Sierra agrees, gives him her address, and he asks her to meet him outside her home about seven am. He gives her his cell phone number, and an extra cell phone he happened to have on him, just in case she needs to reach him privately, he tells her. They turn to leave, and he says, “Oh, by the way, do you like to listen to ???. Sierra’s nods and her lovely eyes light up at the names, and he says “Great. I’ll bring my ??? and we can listen to them on the drive down/up there”.
Please forgive me for the "unlikely language choices" I used, and feel free to laugh. I know I would. I am a grandmother, my beloved oldest granddaughter is 23 and she would laugh her head off if she knew I wrote like this. I can't speak todays "teen's text twitter plus the effen" language.
The what-if scenario I tried to depict was that there didn’t need to be any record of text messages. She had his extra cell phone to use. Leaves no record on hers. Makes a big difference, verbal plans, secrets, and an unknown private cell phone sweetens the “deal”..
(The music idea was an afterthought. I’m listening to some of Chris Botti’s CD’s. His talented trumpet calms me down when I get down from reading and discussing the latest on our disappearing children.)

Hey Caligram!
This does sound like a doable scenario.
And your dialog is perfect! I prefer leaving out the "effens", too!:what:
It could explain the lack of messages on Sierra's other techno communicators.
And considering she may be lonely in a new location, without friends in the close vicinity, this would explain her vulnerability to someone who sweet talks her.

 

[IHAVENOCLUE]

The school does have a way for parents to check in during the day to see if their kids are present in their various classes throughout the day.

Someone posted in one of the earlier threads that their child's high school doesn't send out notices until 6 pm or so to reduce the chance that a kid who cut school might intercept it.

Which is far, far more likely than for a kid to be abducted.

I tend to agree with you, GrainneDhu!
While acknowledging the necessity for organized communication between home and school, there are times when it becomes a distraction to the main purpose of school..which is learning!
After working in education since I was 14 (teacher aides to teacher), I found there is a point where there can be TOO much interaction between home and school.
It's like shooting a fly with a bazooka....overkill!
(Sorry for the choice of words)

 

[LisaB]

[(snip) Her mother should be able to determine if any cloths were missing. (snip)

:floorlaugh: I always knew my daughter had a huge wardrobe, and that she frequently swapped items temporarily or permanently with friends. It was NOT until we moved at the start of her senior year and I was unpakcing her clothes and putting them away that I realized HOW MUCH. It took me (literally) 6½ HOURS to fold it all. There were over 80 T shirts and between 50 and 60 pairs of jeans, plus about a dozen more pair of pants with chains and straps and skirts, shorts, hoodies, etc. If anything was "missing" I'd never have been able to tell you what items. :floorlaugh:

 

[houndstooth]

Teens these days can't survive without their cell phones and social media. There would have been contact back and forth between her and someone else if this were the case. It would have been tracked. Teens are very naive and trust others that they may see on a regular basis but don't necessarily know, so she may have taken a ride from someone that just happened to pull up unplanned on her part.

Her last known cell communication was right at the time she would have been leaving the house to catch the bus. She did not return the last tweet. Thats probably when the phone was tossed.

I think it was premeditated. Someone had been watching her and couldn't resist the urge anymore and the timing was just right.

Whether it started out with her willfully getting into the car because she recognized the person or someone forced her we will not know until she is found and/or they are caught.

Yes, I'm a little puzzled about this.
How come there weren't any tweets about her not being in school posted?
Why wouldn't there be something like, "hey, did you ditch today?", or "missed you in school", or "where are U?", or maybe, "why aren't you answering my text?, queries?
Did no one really notice or care that she hadn't texted them, or tweeted something, or texted back?

Like at lunch, I'm sure her friends grabbed for their phones first opportunity.
So did no one, send her a text or tweet to ask where or how she was?
And right after school when she still hadn't answered?

 

[LisaB]

Respectfully, I believe the point could have been made without the "cheap dime store novel" approach. I found it lacking in taste and sensitivity to the victim or the situation, and clearly I'm not the only one. Then you did it again so I'm not sure you understood the objections.

I don't think I understand your objections. If there was a "Theories" thread, this would have been a perfectly acceptable post. However, there is just a general discussion thread. I think the idea of illustrating the oft-repeated "she could have skipped school with a friend/cute guy who offered her a ride" with a dialog to show more specifically what the vulnerabilities of a 15 year old "new girl" are and how easy she might be to exploit. Of course the "lines" sound cheesy and corny to us. But we are adults with life experiences and wisdom that Sierra (hopefully) will one day have.

At 15, I'd probably have been terrified to skip school, but would have been really flattered if a cute guy had asked me to, especially if he made it sound romantic and above-board (not a sex thing, but a nice picnic).

 

[liltexans]

MHUSD has two systems currently in place to notify parents of an absence at the high school level: an automated voice call that goes out about 6 p.m. and a system called the Home Access Center.
The Home Access Center is a website where parents can log on online and see in real-time if they're child did or did not show up to a class that day. They can see, for example, if their child cut class during fifth period, or check on their grades. The system can also notify them by email in real-time.

http://www.gilroydispatch.com/artic...cle_8a29c47b-d072-5fcc-a2da-2538daaadc36.html

 

[trigger]

Jennifer Odem's case was very similar to this one. She was taken at her bus stop, but she was coming home. The area was a lat like what you are describing here, but this was in Feb,1993 in FL. She lived in a secluded area, all farming and orange groves. The kids on the bus saw a blue truck slowly follow her up her road, which was actually a very long drive way to her house. There was no sign of struggle and she was found in the next county over on a horse trail. Her backpack and clarinet case and clarinet were found 2 years later, just tossed behind a hospital, but it was no where near her body or where she was taken. Her cloths, purse and boots were never recovered. To this day the family believes it was someone very close to the family. They knew when she got off the bus, where, that she walked alone (as of recently), and got her into the truck without a struggle. She has a thread here in the cold cases. I think Sierra knew this person. She knew them well enought to get into a car and he didn't have a fight on his hands until he made his intentions known. I haven't read the whole thread, but did she go to church, any outside activities from school? Any neighbors have relatives or friends that were staying with them before or during this?

ITA. Sierra knew this person and if he said to her I'll take you to school (or where ever) and once he drove in the opposite direction an argument ensued and she knew she should have never got into the car and fought him. IMO.

 

[liltexans]

Another community-wide search is planned for Saturday, which is why the Burnett School Search Center is staying intact and hundreds of volunteers are saying they will return for new search assignments.

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/south_bay&id=8605409

 

[sarx]

I think it's important to remember that just because we've heard nothing about a device connection (phone, computer) and records, doesn't mean they don't exist. If there is a log, there are very good reasons for LE NOT to disclose that to the public.

 

[houndstooth]

I think it's important to remember that just because we've heard nothing about a device connection (phone, computer) and records, doesn't mean they don't exist. If there is a log, there are very good reasons for LE NOT to disclose that to the public.

Is this in reference to my post?

What log are you talking about?

Device connection and records?

I'm not sure I understand what you mean?

Are you saying the "last post" on Twitter might not be the last post?

So are you saying that LE removed some from public view perhaps?

Why would they remove something innocuous like "where were U today?"
kind of stuff?

We've never had access to her text so...what are you talking about here?

TIA

 

[oceanblueeyes]

I think it's important to remember that just because we've heard nothing about a device connection (phone, computer) and records, doesn't mean they don't exist. If there is a log, there are very good reasons for LE NOT to disclose that to the public.

If that were the case, I dont think LE would have come out and said they found no evidence on her cell phone or computer that makes them think she left willingly with someone.

They would have simply said "no comment.", imo.

IMO