Missing Person Photos
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are unknown. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2 to 5 percent of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
A number of organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and images of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
Resources for Missing Persons
According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day.
Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends.
Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.
Missing Person Photos
Acacia Patience Bishop
Acacia, date, approximate 2003; Age-progression to age 11 (date, approximate 2012); Sketch of man possibly involved in the ; Kelly Jean Lodmell; Lodmell's car
Date Missing 05/25/2003
Missing From
Salt Lake City, Utah
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
White
Date of Birth 10/29/2001 (20)
Age 1 year old
Height and Weight 2'6, 30 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description A pink sundress printed around the bottom with white daisies or sunflowers.
Associated Vehicle(s) Beige, cream or gray four-door sedan (accounted for)
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Acacia has a birthmark on the side of her abdomen, about the size of a tennis ball. Her ears are pierced.
Details of Disappearance Acacia was abducted by her grandmother, 38-year-old Kelley Jean Lodmell, from her great-grandparents' Salt Lake City, Utah home at 6:00 p.m. on May 25, 2003. Photographs of Lodmell and her car are posted with this summary. She had previously taken Acacia without permission and hid her in a basement, and she was on supervised visitation with the baby when she abducted her in May 2003. They escaped when the supervisor, Acacia's great-grandmother, left the room for a moment.
Acacia and Lodmell were last seen together in Idaho Falls, Idaho on May 26, close to the Broadway overpass and green belt, next to the Snake River.
That same day, Lodmell went to a hydroelectric plant near the overpass and told employees there that she had dropped Acacia into the river while they were dangling their feet off the bridge. The plant was immediately shut down so Acacia would not get sucked into its turbines.
Divers searched the murky river for several days, but Acacia was not found there. However, a pair of baby shoes and a doll were found on the riverbank. One of Lodmell's shoes was also found on the bank; the other one was in the water.
Authorities believe Acacia drowned in the Snake River; they have classified her as a homicide. They do not feel that Acacia accidentally fell into the river.
Lodmell was soaking wet when she ran to the power plant for help, and the police believe she intentionally jumped in the water with Acacia in her arms in a murder/suicide attempt. She admitted this to authorities and was charged with kidnapping and murdering Acacia. She stated that she believed the baby made it out of the water and is still alive somewhere.
Lodmell has a criminal record; she has been charged with many petty offenses including drunk driving, threats with a dangerous weapon, and disorderly conduct. Her most serious offense was aggravated assault; she served sixty days in jail for shooting a child with a pellet gun.
She has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, and has a history of substance abuse as well. She has occasionally lived on the streets or in her car, and she took her medication only when she could afford to pay for it. She was not taking it at the time she abducted Acacia.
Acacia's parents hope that Lodmell is lying about her granddaughter's presumed death in an effort to conceal her from the rest of the family, and that she possibly passed Acacia over to one of her friends and would find her after she was released from prison. She had reportedly always been possessive of the child.
Acacia's parents say Lodmell has never had suicidal tendencies before, and had never indicated that she might harm Acacia. They characterize Lodmell as a habitual liar and suggested her confession of murder was a fabrication, and that she had been planning Acacia's abduction for months.
Acacia's parents claim Lodmell sent them a letter from jail, writing that Acacia was alive and being cared for by others. She never referred to Acacia in the past tense in her letters. They also point out that Lodmell purchased diapers and milk for Acacia shortly before the baby allegedly drowned, which would not make sense if she had been planning to murder her.
Police investigated the possibility that Lodmell gave or sold Acacia to other individuals, but they could find no evidence to support this theory. Nevertheless, her parents are convinced she is still alive.
Acacia's mother and father are offering a reward for their daughter's safe return. They have issued a sketch of a man they think may be helping hide Acacia. The sketch was not made by a professional sketch artist and is not endorsed by the police. It is posted with this summary.
The man was allegedly seen checking Lodmell and Acacia out of the Red Lion Hotel on May 26. He was described as being in his late forties or early fifties with rough, weathered tan skin, graying sunbleached hair, hazel eyes, large hands with carrot-shaped fingers, and a small build. He was about 5'6 tall and smoked Basics cigarettes. Police detectives do not think the man, if he exists, was involved in Acacia's disappearance and presumed death.
Lodmell was tried for kidnapping in federal court. In January 2005, a judge acquitted her, ruling that she was insane at the time of her crime. The judge decided Lodmell was delusional when she abducted Acacia and believed the baby was in an abusive situation and she had a duty to save her.
Lodmell was determined to be a danger to the community, based on her mental illness, past criminal behavior, and history of violence and substance abuse. She was committed to a mental hospital for an indefinite period. She may be released from the hospital at a later date if psychiatrists determine she is no longer dangerous, but her prognosis is poor, as she has repeatedly refused to follow through with treatment programs for her schizophrenia and does not even believe she is mentally ill.
It is unlikely that Lodmell will ever be released from federal custody; therefore, Idaho prosecutors dropped the murder and kidnapping charges against her. If she ever is released from the hospital, she may face the state charges again.
At the time of her disappearance, Acacia she was able to walk, run, and say one-syllable words. Foul play is suspected in her due to the circumstances involved.
Investigating Agency
Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office
801-743-7000
Other
The Polly Klaas Foundation
Code Amber
Utah Department of Public Safety
CBS News
KTVB: Idaho News on Demand
The Casper Star-Tribune
The Salt Lake Tribune
NW Cable News
Acacia Patience Bishop: Kidnapped May 25, 2003
Child Protection Education of America
The Child Seek Network
The Deseret Morning News
KIFI Local News
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
Missing Person Photos
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are unknown. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2 to 5 percent of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
A number of organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and images of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
Resources for Missing Persons
According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day.
Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends.
Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.
Missing Person Photos
