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Missing Micki Jo West 
West, approximately 1979; Marvin Irvin Date reported missing : 09/11/1979 Missing location (approx) : St. Joseph, Missouri Missing classification : Endangered Missing Gender : Female Ethnicity : White DOB : 09/25/1959 (61) Age at the time of disappearance: 19 years old Height / Weight : 5'6, 140 pounds Description, clothing, jewerly and more : A white hospital work uniform, a khaki coat and white shoes. Carrying a white purse. Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos : Caucasian female. Brown hair, brown eyes. West wears eyeglasses, which have her name "Micki" printed down the side of the right lens. She may spell her name "Mikki." Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : West was last seen in St. Joseph, Missouri at 6:00 a.m. on September 11, 1979. She left her home in the 1400 block of Oliver Street en route to St. Joseph State Hospital, where she worked as a nurse's aide. She planned to catch a bus at 15th and Messanie Street, but she apparently never made it to the bus stop and has never been heard from again. She never picked up her last paycheck. Marvin Lee Irvin allegedly threatened West prior to her disappearance, and she carried a hammer in her purse for protection as a result. A photo of Irvin is posted with this case summary. His wife was West's best friend and sister-in-law. In 1991, Irvin, a former police officer, confessed to West's murder. He had been investigated as a suspect shortly after West's disappearance and her family believed he was involved, but he passed a polygraph and there was little evidence to implicate him. Police later admitted they made mistakes in the investigation, such as by failing to search Irvin's vehicle. Irvin stated he stabbed West four times in the chest as she sat in his car, shot her twice, then buried her body in a cornfield in Highland, Kansas. He also confessed to killing two other women, Patricia Diane Rose and Crystal Lynn Simmons, and burying them in the same field. A search turned up Simmons and Rose's bodies, but there was no sign of West. Irvin pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the two cases where his victims' bodies were found. He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in West's case, on the condition that the state would not seek the death penalty against him. He was sentenced to life in prison. West's body has never been located. Other information and links : ncy St. Joseph Police Department 816-271-4701 September 2021 updates and sources The Doe Network The Kansas City Star The Wichita Eagle The Salina Journal 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 not known. 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�5% 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. Several organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and imAge at the time of disappearance: s 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. The St. Joseph News-Press The Fort Scott Tribune |