Missing
Paula Michelle Burnette
Paula, approximately 1996
Date and time person was reported missing : 09/17/1996
Missing location (approx) :
Harrison, Tennessee
Missing classification : Endangered Missing
Gender : Female
Ethnicity :
White
DOB : 06/15/1975 (46)
Age at the time of disappearance: 21 years old
Height / Weight : 5'1, 110 pounds
Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: Caucasian female. Brown hair, blue eyes. Paula has pierced ears. Her maiden name is Caudill.
Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : Paula was last seen at approximately 6:00 a.m. in her hometown of Harrison, Tennessee on September 17, 1996. She was estranged from her husband, Donald Ray "Donnie" Burnette, at the time. The couple have two children together. There is a history of violence within the marriAge at the time of disappearance: as well.
The day before she disappeared, Paula had called the police to have Donald removed from the house. She asked her father to stay overnight with her because she was afraid Donald would return and harm her.
Donald called Paula's father on September 17 and asked him to pick up their children, saying Paula needed a vacation. Paula's father reported her as a missing person when she failed to make contact with loved ones by September 21, four days after she was last seen.
Paula has never been heard from again. Her driver's license was discovered in the 9500 block of Harrison Bay Road in Harrison sometime during October 1996, approximately one month after she disappeared.
Donald and an accomplice, James Travis White, took an AmSouth Bank branch manAge at the time of disappearance: r and her family hostAge at the time of disappearance: in November 1996. The men forced the manAge at the time of disappearance: r to rob her own bank after driving around with her family overnight. Both suspects were arrested one month after in the incident in December 1996. Donald was ultimately sentenced to 39 years in prison for his role in the crime.
Paula's purse and her address book washed into the backyard of a Chattanooga, Tennessee residence in April 1997 after a flood. Her case remains open and unsolved. Foul play is suspected in Paula's disappearance due to the circumstances involved.
Other information and links : ncy
Hamilton County Sheriff's Office
423-622-0022
423-209-8940
September 2021 updates and sources
Hamilton County Sheriff's Office
Chattanooga Assistant District Attorney's Office
WDEF 12
October 12, 2004. May 31, 2018; two pictures added.
Interactive Missing Person Search Map
