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

Shirley Theresa Moon Atwood






Shirley, date, approximate 2006; Cheryl Murdoch; Shannon Atwood
Date Missing 07/15/2006
Missing From
Canaan, Maine
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
White
Age 35 years old
Height and Weight 5'2, 105 pounds
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, green eyes. Shirley has a tattoo of a heart with leaves on her right shoulder. She has previously broken her neck, and she's missing her right ring finger.
Details of Disappearance Shirley was reported missing in on July 15, 2006. She has never been heard from again. Her vehicle was found abandoned after her disappearance. Shirley was estranged from her husband, Shannon Roy Atwood, at the time of her disappearance, and had moved out of their home on Route 23 in Canaan, Maine. Shannon was still living in the home with another woman, Cheryl Murdoch.
Photograph of Shannon and Murdoch are posted with this summary. Murdoch disappeared on July 27, twelve days after Shirley. Her body was found in a wooded area off Scott Road in Canaan on August 11. She had been murdered.
When authorities went to Shannon's home to question him about Murdoch's and search his property, he barricaded himself inside, threatened the officers with a bow and arrow and threatened to blow the house up. They arrested him for criminal threatening, reckless conduct and terrorizing. He was sentenced to nine months in jail.
In February 2007, shortly before he was scheduled to be released from jail, Shannon was additionally charged with both Murdoch and Shirley's murders. Authorities believe Shirley was murdered sometime between March 15 and July 15, 2006.
Shannon has a criminal history for burglary and theft, and was also convicted of aggravated assault on a previous girlfriend. The girlfriend stated he attacked her and threatened to murder her and bury her body in an isolated field.
Authorities wanted to try Shannon for both women's murders at the same time, but a judge ruled there had to be two separate trials. In November 2007, prosecutors dropped the murder charge against Shannon in Shirley's presumed death. They stated there was insufficient evidence to proceed to trial. The charge could be refiled at a later date, however.
In July 2008, Shannon was convicted of Murdoch's murder in a bench trial. He was sentenced to 55 years to life in prison.
Shirley was having financial problems at the time of her disappearance. She had inherited a sizable amount of money and property from her grandfather when she was a teenager, including her Route 23 residence, but in 2006 the government placed a lien on the residence for back taxes. Authorities never believed she left voluntarily as a result of the lien, however.
Foul play is suspected in Shirley's due to the circumstances involved.
Investigating Agency
Maine State Police
800-452-4664
Other
The Kennebec Journal
The Morning Sentinel
The Bangor Daily News
Maine Missing Adults
The Portland Press Herald
The Bangor Daily News
WCSH 6
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.

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