Found Safe TX - Michelle Reynolds - 6th Grade Reading and Language Arts Teacher - Missing Since 22 Sept 2022

[WingsOverTX]

Okay, I'll just say it, ugh. Of those who have been closely following this situation, does anyone else think it's likely that Michelle was deceased before September 23 and was never actually in New Orleans?

I have two main reasons:

(1) Lack of surveillance footage coming to light (considering that it's a highly publicized case and in a highly surveilled city).

To me, the whole Michelle being in New Orleans scenario seems less likely to be true as time goes on. We've only seen one reliable photo/video in a very well surveilled city and nothing from the 350 mile journey either.

And even that one photo/video is not completely reliable. There are a couple of things about it that raise reasonable questions and we don't know who it came from.

And, of course, no surveillance footage would even have to pass through LE's hands to be made available to the public so we can't assume they have it. As far as I'm aware, neither the first very unclear video or the later, far more clear photo (which was part of a surveillance video) passed through LE hands before being publicized. Anyone can post any videos or photos they want up on YouTube or elsewhere on the internet.

Michelle being missing in NO was highly publicized. So if Michelle was really in this highly surveilled city, where is it?

(2) Being in a mental fog and not in a mental fog at the same time is a contradiction.

Also questionable to me is the whole notion of Michelle being aware enough to be able to operate a vehicle on the road for 6-7 hours without being pulled over, while at the same time, not aware enough to know where she was or what was going on around her.

Also, she's never wandered off before and her brother said there were no indications found that she planned to leave.
---------------------
To me, that's why the facts we know are tipping the scales heavily to the first scenario at this point, unfortunately. Anyone else? I hope I'm wrong.

Is your theory that she was a crime victim soon after she left home to supposedly go to the bank & get something to eat? A criminal took her car, abandoned her or her body & left all her credit cards & ID, parking the car on a busy public street (maybe expecting it would be ransacked, leaving no evidence other than the vehicle itself)?

My argument would be I think the video still we have is Michelle, which places her in NOLA at least on Sept. 23 & the day before. Her hair is naturally dark, thick & wavy (as seen in a childhood pic on her Facebook). We can't know whether the latest photos uploaded to her page match the dates posted.

Maybe she cut her hair & did not maintain her usual flat-ironed style after her surgery in June. Maybe all of her appearance had been going downhill since then if she spent most of her time at home & was physically/mentally unwell.

Michelle is apparently an intelligent lady. Lots of people disappear more easily than expected (just peruse other frequent WS cases). It wouldn't surprise me if she chose NOLA because she thought she could hide there or use it as a means to go elsewhere. Her choices may not be healthy from our perspective but they may not be random, either.

Just because you have a mental health issue does not mean you can't plan, think, strategize, mimic homeless behaviors, hitchhike, befriend someone to help you find resources, move on to another place, etc.

Driving I-10 to New Orleans is pretty simple. Along the way, she could have been thinking about how to get off-grid. Then when she approached her first homeless folks, she wasn't rejected so the plan started working.

Personally, I don't think awareness of her disappearance is high in NOLA. I think she is still there. I don't know why she would chose to endanger herself in this particular way, but I think she did make that choice.

Pure speculation on my part. I hope someone she encounters decides to report that to authorities other than the NOLA PD. Let's face it, they will probably not take a report, much less follow through. That very much works to Michelle's advantage if she wants to stay hidden. So does the general "let the good times roll" attitude that allows someone to just hang out in a place like NOLA, no questions asked.

How does this end? I have no idea. But she is likely already a crime victim if she is living on the streets. She may have started out thinking her fate was in her control. Not so much now if she is still alive.

Neither the early crime victim scenario nor the choosing to hide scenario are optimistic outcomes. Her husband is left experiencing trauma & loss with three kids to help. Her brother is trying to get the word out but NOLA is a big place. It would take a team of undercover investigators to gain a lead in the underground life there.

And what if when found, Michelle doesn't want to go home? After a psych eval, she might be released to the care of family but if she resists?

JMHO, while wishing MR will come home, get help/treatment & find a way back into the lives to those who love her

 

[LoveXinfinity]

Very good observation. On her FB pages this past summer her hair is much longer than the one posted here. But the one they have shown of her in NO her hair is wavy. Some of her photos show wavy hair, but much longer.

When did she cut her hair?

On the Facebook post from yesterday by her brother Chris he answered many questions people had about his sister and her disappearance. There were many questions about her hair length, which he did not answer. Michelle’s husband did respond to someone in the thread regarding her hair length and he responded “they are not certain if she cut her hair, but it looks shorter”.

 

[SherryLock]

Is your theory that she was a crime victim soon after she left home to supposedly go to the bank & get something to eat? A criminal took her car, abandoned her or her body & left all her credit cards & ID, parking the car on a busy public street (maybe expecting it would be ransacked, leaving no evidence other than the vehicle itself)?...

You make some good points. To answer your question above, my post was only focused on considering the evidence presented so far of Michelle being alive and in New Orleans on Sept. 23, as we've been going with on here, or not. If not, then what might have happened up to that point would be another question.

 

[caradana]

More interesting perhaps than what led to this disappearance (my theory: pure mental health crisis, for which I feel tremendous empathy) might be brainstorming on methods and approaches to find her now. The blessing of this new information from the homeless camp is that it dramatically increases confidence that she is still alive; she didn’t walk directly to the water.
A couple of potential places I hope her family reaches out to:

Get Help | New Orleans Mission is just a few blocks away from where she spent that first night, in the direction she was walking. It’s as a walker would emerge from underneath the highway across from Calliope, and I speculated she headed toward the homeless communities under the overpasses.

Welcome to Ozanam Inn | Ozanam Inn also not far and a viable option for shelter and a shower for a woman in mental health crisis and without access to funds.

Hopeful that Websleuthers with more firsthand knowledge of NO also share ideas.

 

[sasha17]

BBM.

Well, that certainly takes some bravery doing that! I would be too scared to barge into a homeless encampment in New Orleans and say I need to stay in one of their tents!! Oh my!!

Thank goodness they were kind to her!

But her behaviour there says to me that either she:

a) has no sense of danger

b) is desperate to try and cut it on the streets and not go back.

Could be both.

MOO.

It would be interesting to know if Michelle's personality type is such that she would typically converse with homeless folks on the streets, might feel comfortable talking to people she didn't know and asking for a place to stay, etc. Or is she more reserved and careful, and would have never do that kind of thing in her normal life?

 

[nannymo]

On the Facebook post from yesterday by her brother Chris he answered many questions people had about his sister and her disappearance. There were many questions about her hair length, which he did not answer. Michelle’s husband did respond to someone in the thread regarding her hair length and he responded “they are not certain if she cut her hair, but it looks shorter”.

If you look closer, it could be layered and just the top layers are sitting on her shoulders, with the longer layers being behind her shoulders, down her back, making her hair look shorter. Does that make since?

 

[nannymo]

I personally would have never moved her car. What if she decided to return home and no vehicle? If I couldn't do it myself, I would hire someone I trusted to park behind (or across) from her parked car and see if she returned. Her husband could notify LE what he is doing so the cars would not receive parking tickets. If there is surveillance of her leaving the vehicle, it seems there would be surveillance if she returned.

 

[Colbica]

Hi all, 1st time posting, so bear with me. After following MR's case, I felt compelled to write the following info as it could potentially give insight as to MR's mindset. Of course, everyone is different, but figured I would share. A close relative of mine had suffered from intermittant mental health issues for several years. Following my relative having a hysterectomy (which Michelle had recently) my relatives mental health declined worse than previously. What I would eventually refer to as "episodes" were very uncharacteristic of this persons normal behavior/personality BUT to someone on the outside it could (and many times) went unnoticed. During these episodes, my relative could function doing every day tasks. They could drive and were so convinced by their own psychosis, that they could easily fool/convince someone who didnt know them well. For example, my relative believed her husband was poisoning her toothpaste. There was no truth to this and no incident that happened to make her believe this. When my relative reached out to a mutual friend telling them that she believed her husband was poisoning her toothpaste, the friend (not knowing my relatives history and that she was experiencing an episode) believed her. Not knowing what to do, the concerned friend reached out to me. Again, this is just an example to provide some insight as to how complex mental illness can be. In addition, the current laws in most states don't allow for one's family to intervene unless you can prove they are a danger to themselves or others. I can't begin to tell you how many times we've tried to have my relative hospitalized during one of these episodes but unless they are willing (which usually means they understand that they are in crisis-which is rarely the case) it doesn't happen. If you google hysterectomy and mental health there have been numerous studies about the correlation between the two. From the info provided about MR, it sounds as though she is experiencing some type of episode. From my personal experience, my relative would become extremely paranoid, perhaps MR is in hiding due to a similar reason. I.E. she could believe people are following her and could have convinced innocent bystanders to help hide her etc... Sorry for the novel, just wanted to share some insight in case it could somehow be helpful. Perhaps MR's family should try to put more emphasis on her mental health possibly being a contributing factor in turn making her high risk/endangered.

 

[DocBrew]

Perhaps I'm just a washed up old cynic, but I tend not to assume that last sighting eyewitnesses are of the altruistic variety. Particularly those living in tents on the streets of a relatively dangerous city with an oft-dangerous homeless population who also happen to possess the shirt that she was wearing on video.

JMO.

 

[nannymo]

Welcome @Colbica. Your insight is very helpful. Unfortunately I don't think she is going to be found unless her family or Texas Equuasearch locate her. Then, I am not sure she will co-operate. I so hope she finds help and comes out of whatever state is scaring her into hiding. Thank you again!

 

[LoveXinfinity]

According to her brother Chris, they let the car sit there for 5 days and they watched the car in hopes of her returning. The reason they moved the vehicle was because the police were going to impound the car at $200 a day so they had the car towed to a Lexus dealership to have a key fob programmed and to access the navigation for clues.

 

[Meligator]

Wouldn’t there have to be other surveillance images after the night she stayed in the tent? Cameras are everywhere these days. She wasn’t in some remote area of the world.

 

[LuckE0303]

Okay, I'll just say it, ugh. Of those who have been closely following this situation, does anyone else think it's likely that Michelle was deceased before September 23 and was never actually in New Orleans?

I have two main reasons:

(1) Lack of surveillance footage coming to light (considering that it's a highly publicized case and in a highly surveilled city).

We've only seen one clear photo (that was a still pic from a video) in a very well surveilled city and nothing from the 350 mile journey either.

And even that one photo/video is not completely reliable. There are a couple of things about it that raise reasonable questions and we don't know who it came from.

And, of course, no surveillance footage would even have to pass through LE's hands to be made available to the public so we can't assume they have it and just decided not to make it public for some reason. As far as I'm aware, neither the first very unclear video or the later, far more clear photo (which was part of a surveillance video) passed through LE hands before being publicized. Anyone can post any videos or photos they want up on YouTube or elsewhere on the internet.

Michelle being missing in NO was highly publicized. So if Michelle was really in this highly surveilled city, why haven't we seen more than just the one mentioned above?

(2) Being in a mental fog and not being in a mental fog at the same time is a contradiction.

Also questionable to me is the whole notion of Michelle being aware enough to be able to operate a vehicle on the road for 6-7 hours without being pulled over, while at the same time not aware enough to know where she was or what was going on around her. I guess it's possible but is it likely.

Also, she's never wandered off before and her brother said there were no indications found that she planned to leave.
---------------------
To me, that's why the facts we know are tipping the scales to the first scenario at this point, unfortunately. Anyone else? I hope I'm wrong.

No....I don't feel like this is anything like that. LE does very little when it comes to missing person's cases.....esp when it appears the missing person initiated the move themselves. If she had been thru episodes like this in the past or had been held inpatient due to mental health then LE would be a little more inclined to take action....but fortunately or unfortunately Michelle hasn't seemed to ever done anything that brought into question her own safety.

In regards to the fog/non-fog I don't see that as so either. People can be delusional and confused and capable of a task yet incapable of another. It doesn't necessarily mean they are safe doing it but it is registering as a "need" at that point in time...therefore it is getting her attention. People experiencing a psychotic break or even a manic state may not brush their hair or shower or even eat....but if you give them a brush they still can use it ....hand them food they will eat it, etc. It all comes in varying degrees of severity and the thought process that is impacted most does vary from person to person.

I guess just my experience with caring for patients with mental illness and knowing complexity of it makes it a little easier for me to see this as a situation that is exactly as it appears. I think her recent hysterectomy and losing a parent had exacerbated whatever mental health problems she is struggling with.

I sure hope she is found soon. She has 3 children and a husband that adore and miss her.

 

[caradana]

Offer $2K cash to anyone who provides specific info that leads to a confirmed finding. Alive or not. Provide a number to call or text.
Saturate the homeless shelters with that offer. All the recent pix you’ve got on them.
Saturate the local convenience stores and drug stores with that offer, ask them to put it in break rooms. At some point she will try to buy menthol cigarettes. Put that on the convenience store version of the poster. $2K cash for a confirmed find. No ID or citizenship check to collect the reward.
Launch digital advertising banner ads targeting zips 70130, 70113, 70112, 70116. Her pic, $2K cash reward if found, land the ads on www.findmicheller.com and put a form there. That domain is available. Ask for help specifically here. For example, this firm is local to Alvin, TX and I bet would do it inexpensively, pretty close to cost, if the family asked and if they could get the resultant benevolent publicity. https://wisechoiceadvertising.com/portfolio (there are at least 10 other similar firms in that area).

 

[Colbica]

I believe I read that she recently stopped taking her medications which were related to her mental health, please correct me if I am wrong. There are mental ailments in which the person suffering from a mental break will purposely stop taking their medication for various reasons. Unless due to certain circumstances (i.e. finding out your pregnant) one should never abruptly stop taking these types of medication, they are usually weened off of them. If MR was experiencing a mental health episode, the fact that she is no longer on her medication is very concerning as it could contribute negatively to her already compromised mental health. Also considering she is a smoker, she is either somehow getting ciggarettes or is also going through nicotine withdrawal. I truly hope she is somewhere safe and the people around her just arent familiar with her being a missing person. Poor Michelle. Im thinking perhaps she can be found in a shelter or another homeless camp.

 

[wnk]

IMO, her footwear rules out the possibility of this being a pre-meditated plan to go start a new life somewhere. The sandals she's wearing are "going out to grab some food" shoes, not "going to get a fresh start somewhere else" or even "going to walk around the city" shoes. They make me believe that, when she left her home, she had every intention of doing exactly what she said: getting food, maybe stopping for a few more errands, and then coming home.

After she left, obviously something changed to make her continue driving east, but the sandals make me think it was spontaneous and NOT something she'd planned ahead of time.

 

[SherryLock]

Offer $2K cash to anyone who provides specific info that leads to a confirmed finding...

Someone else suggested this awhile back in the thread. I think it is an excellent idea and hope we'll see a reward offered soon.

 

[Kudzu]

Someone else suggested this awhile back in the thread. I think it is an excellent idea and hope we'll see a reward offered soon.

I agree… My worry is that she met with a terrible fate from someone in that population on her first night there. I don’t buy the sharing of cheese and crackers bit, not with her shirt found there. She had literally just gone into a restaurant to get water, and I don’t believe she went straight from a restaurant to a homeless camp. Willingly.

 

[Meligator]

If you look closer, it could be layered and just the top layers are sitting on her shoulders, with the longer layers being behind her shoulders, down her back, making her hair look shorter. Does that make since?

Also possible that she typically ironed/straightened her curls/waves, which would create length. Absent a hair iron, her hair maybe curled up & appeared shorter.

 

[wnk]

<snip>

As I said above, for those who have followed this whole case closely, all we really have that's solid EVIDENCE that she is/was in NO is the ONE photo (a still from a video). AND we don't know the date of that photo or who provided that photo. We don't know FOR SURE if that ONE and ONLY piece of evidence even IS actually from NO at the time stated.

AND there are also couple of things that imo could lean toward it being more LIKELY that she MAY not have actually been in New Orleans, which my post detailed.

</snip>

For clarification... Are you suggesting that someone wishing to harm MR somehow

1) kidnapped (or killed?) her, and then
2) forced her (or someone who looks just like her and is wearing her clothes?) to walk around a particular street in New Orleans to get obtain fake security footage,
3) then on Sep 23, parked her car within blocks of that filming location,
4) then pretending to be a local business(?), released the "fake" footage to Texas Equusearch with a different timestamp,
5) planted false witnesses at the restaurant to state that she'd ordered a water and used the restroom around that same time, and
6) planted more false witnesses among the homeless to state that she'd asked to stay in their tent around that same time

all to cover up their crime? IMO, that would be a highly complicated cover-up, with multiple points along the way where things could go wrong and many possible ways that it could backfire and point directly back to the culprit.