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.



Missing Person Photos

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

Merlene C. Hayes
missing person case update January 2023 found new details posted
Hayes, date, approximate 1994
Date Missing 04/26/1994
Missing From
Tallahassee, Florida
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
Black
Date of Birth 06/27/1938 (84)
Age 55 years old
Height and Weight 5'7, 170 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description A purple flowered shirt, pants and Nike sneakers.
Medical Conditions Hayes requires medication for depression. She may become disoriented and not remember her identity if she does not take her medicine regularly.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics African-American female. Gray hair, brown eyes. Hayes has a mole on the bridge of her nose. She often wears wigs and was wearing one at the time of her disappearance.
Details of Disappearance Hayes was last seen leaving her residence on Pepper Drive in Tallahassee, Florida on April 26, 1994. At 7:30 p.m., she told her daughter, Angela Harris, that she wanted to go for a walk for the second time that day.
Harris did not want her to go because it was late, but Hayes left anyway. She has never been heard from again, although there were unconfirmed sightings of her in the local area in the days and weeks after her disappearance.
Harris stated her mother disappeared once before and was found in Marianna, Florida three days later. Harris did not report Hayes missing for six days after her April 1994 disappearance as a result of her going missing previously. She stated it was uncharacteristic of her mother to be out of touch with the family for this long.
Hayes's remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Leon County Sheriff's Office
850-922-3300
Other
Leon County Sheriff's Office
The Tallahassee Democrat
NamUs

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.



Missing Person Photos

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