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 Case Updates with Photos
Paula Michelle Burnette
Paula, date, approximate 1996
Date Missing 09/17/1996
Missing From
Harrison, Tennessee
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
White
Date of Birth 06/15/1975 (47)
Age 21 years old
Height and Weight 5'1, 110 pounds
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, blue eyes. Paula has pierced ears. Her maiden name is Caudill.
Details of Disappearance 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 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 manager and her family hostage in November 1996. The men forced the manager 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 remains open and unsolved. Foul play is suspected in Paula's disappearance due to the circumstances involved.
Investigating Agency
Hamilton County Sheriff's Office
423-622-0022
423-209-8940
Other
Hamilton County Sheriff's Office
Chattanooga Assistant District Attorney's Office
WDEF 12
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 Case Updates with Photos