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 Photos
Toni Lee Sharpless
Sharpless, date, approximate 2009; 2002 Pontiac Grand Prix
Date Missing 08/23/2009
Missing From
Gladwyne, Pennsylvania
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
White
Date of Birth 12/27/1979 (42)
Age 29 years old
Height and Weight 5'5, 135 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description A turquoise shirt, black tights, black sandals and turquoise earrings.
Medical Conditions Sharpless suffers from bipolar disorder. She had been stable for years prior to her disappearance, but still needs to take daily medication to control her condition, and she may not have been taking it regularly. She may have had a manic episode on the night of her disappearance.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, blue/gray eyes. Sharpless's hair was dyed red at the time of her disappearance.
Details of Disappearance Sharpless was last seen in Gladwyne, Pennsylvania at 4:45 a.m. on August 23, 2009. She left her home in West Brandywine Township, Pennsylvania to go out with a friend, Crystal Johns, that night. They originally went to the Ice Nightclub, then to a house party in the 1300 block of Bobarn Drive.
At 3:00 a.m., Sharpless sent a text message to her twelve-year-old daughter. She later caused a disturbance at the party when she got angry with another guest and poured a bottle of champagne on the floor. She and Johns were asked to leave.
Both women had been drinking alcohol that evening, something Sharpless was not supposed to do because of the medication she was taking, and Sharpless had reportedly been awake for approximately 36 hours. She was angry and crying when she left the party with Johns.
They had only driven a few blocks when they got into an argument because Johns didn't believe Sharpless was sober enough to drive. (Sharpless has a 2008 conviction for driving under the influence.) Sharpless stopped the car and demanded her friend get out, so Johns exited the vehicle and then Sharpless drove away.
Johns initially assumed she would return. When she didn't come back, Johns had a relative come and pick her up instead. Sharpless has never been heard from again.
Someone ran the license plate number in Camden, New Jersey on September 8, two weeks after Sharpless disappeared. By the time Pennsylvania police were notified of this, several days had passed and they were unable to locate the car.Sharpless's cellular phone also remains missing and has been turned off since approximately 4:00 a.m. the day she disappeared.
According to Johns, Sharpless was low on gas, and it's possible she ran out of gas or turned in another direction to go get some. There were clusters of sightings of her reported in Lancaster, Pennsylvania; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Camden, New Jersey after her disappearance. All of them took place in areas known for their prostitution and drug activity. None of the sightings have been confirmed.
A private detective hired by Sharpless's family believes she may have be alive and may have gotten involved with drugs and the sex trade. She had a drug problem in the past. Johns isn't considered a suspect in her disappearance, and neither is anyone else at the party Sharpless attended that night.
Since Sharpless's disappearance, there has been no activity on her bank accounts or credit cards. She is a single mother and lived with her mother and stepfather at the time of her disappearance, and worked as an infectious disease nurse at Lancaster General Hospital. She graduated from the nursing program at Immaculata University in 2007.
It's uncharacteristic of Sharpless to leave without warning and she is described as a devoted parent who wouldn't have abandoned her child. Her remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
West Brandywine Police Department
610-380-8201
Lower Merion Township Police Department
610-649-1000
Other
Pennsylvania Missing Persons
The Pottstown Mercury
The Philadelphia News
KYW NewsRadio 1060
The Lancaster Intelligencer Journal
MyFox Philadelphia
The Chester County Daily Local News
Help Find Toni Lee Sharpless
NamUs
Investigation Discovery: Disappeared
The Unionville Times
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 Photos
