It was a wild morning in Odessa, Texas. A nine year old girl had gone missing on foot around 7:30 pm yesterday, and early this morning the Odessa emergency personnel reached out to the community for help from any and all who could participate. And what an impressive display of volunteer spirit -- over a hundred area citizens made it out to the staging area at the Odessa College Athletic Building on this chilly morning.
Once they signed in they were taken by bus to the search area with instructions to walk the neighborhood in pairs, looking under cars, in bushes behind fences, in the trees and in dog houses. (Be mindful of the dogs!)
It turns out that she had walked several miles to a relative's house, and around 7:15 am she was found to be safe. It's not known just how long she had been at the relative's house. But she was safe, and that's the important thing. And that was a reason for all of those volunteers to be grateful, relax, and have a cup of java, a dough nut, and a sausage sandwich provided by the Red Cross.
It was a community coming together. When you need to move a couch, you might call a neighbor for help. When you have a lost child, it's time to call out the whole community. And the desire to help was extremely impressive.
The Midland Citizens on Patrol got the phone call around 3:30 am. Would you have responded to such a phone call for help? If so, there's a Citizens on Patrol training class set for Tuesday, January 9 and Thursday, January 11, 2007, in Midland. Interested persons should call the the Midland Police Department community Relations Division at 432-685-7582. While you are at it be sure to ask for an application to attend the Midland Citizens Police Academy on Tuesday and Thursday evenings beginning January 16.
Update 5:30pm: Here's the Odessa Police Department Press Release (PDF).
Update 6:15pm: Oops. Not so nice after all. Jimmy Patterson reports that a 21 year old guy was arrested for molesting her during the time she was missing.
Update 1/5/2007, 6:00 pm: What a turn of events. It was a Hitchcock movie complete with the twisted ending. If the fellow who got arrested did the things he's accused of then he certainly is a piece of work. The Odessa American (see links below) reported that he was convicted of indecency with a 4-year-old girl on Aug. 13, 1998, and served seven years and five months in the slammer. If that is correct then he got out one year ago, January of 2006. Other reports say he has been in jail more recently.
So not only does that young man have an unhealthy sex drive, apparently he has no inhibition to prevent him from acting on it. What an unsympathetic defendant he will be. Half of the potential jury pool was out helping search for his victim.
Here's a news roundup:
Midland Reporter-Telegram - Officials find missing Odessa child in home of registered sex offender .
Odessa American - Lost autistic girl found alive, Odessa man charged with sexual assault.
KMID 2 - Man Arrested After Little Girl was Found .
CBS 7 - ...the Stranger Next Door .
KWES 9 - Arrest made in connection with missing girl incident.