Wimzik
05-27-2003, 09:01 AM
Search On for Missing Utah Child
Emergency personnel search along the Snake River below the Broadway bridge Monday afternoon in Idaho Falls, Idaho for a missing 19-month-old girl . (AP Photo/Post Register, Robert Bower)
By Michael N. Westley and Ashley Broughton
The Salt Lake Tribune
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho -- Police planned to resume searching part of the Snake River today for a missing Utah toddler who allegedly was abducted by her grandmother, a transient with a history of mental illness, authorities said.
Although Kelley Jean Lodmell, 38, initially told Idaho Falls police she lost her hold on 19-month-old Acacia Patience Bishop while the two were dipping their feet in the water, authorities were skeptical, Idaho Falls police Sgt. Steve Hunt said Monday.
"We have enough information to treat this as a homicide investigation," Hunt said, adding that evidence was found in the Red Lion Hotel room Lodmell had checked into Sunday. He would not elaborate.
Lodmell was taken into police custody about 18 hours after she allegedly took Acacia from another relative's home in Salt Lake County about 6 p.m. Sunday. A nationwide Amber Alert was issued for the child about 4 a.m. Monday.
An Idaho Falls Power employee called 911 about 11:45 a.m. Monday after a woman ran into the hydropower plant on the banks of the Snake River diversion.
The woman, later identified by police as Lodmell, was wet and told an operator that her baby had fallen in the river and was drowning, said dispatch supervisor Ken Lawson. "She came right in here off the river, I guess," he said.
The employee shut down the power plant so the child would not be sucked into the water grates, Lawson said.
Police dispatched 12 dive teams to search the water, along with officers and dogs to scour a nearby park. The search was called off about 8:30 p.m. because of waning daylight and poor visibility in the water, Hunt said.
Lodmell's shoes were found in two separate spots, and a child's pair of shoes and a doll were also found near the water, he said. Lodmell was emotional, Hunt said, but cooperating with authorities.
"According to the divers, the current is fast enough with the turbines running that it would be difficult for a good swimmer to swim upstream," Hunt said. "We believe, at this point, that it's likely the baby is in the water, but haven't ruled out that the baby may be somewhere else."
The last person to see Acacia was a clerk at the hotel, who "noticed nothing out of the ordinary" when the woman and baby checked in, said Salt Lake County Sheriff Aaron Kennard.
The national Amber Alert was canceled at 6:55 p.m. Monday, since Lodmell was in custody and her car was found in the hotel parking lot, said Salt Lake County sheriff's spokeswoman Peggy Faulkner.
In Salt Lake City, Lodmell's daughter and Acacia's mother, 22-year-old Casey Lodmell, said earlier Monday she had not allowed her mother to see Acacia unsupervised after a previous abduction attempt about a year ago.
On Sunday evening, Casey Lodmell had left Acacia in the care of Linda Lodmell, her grandmother and Kelley Lodmell's mother, who often baby-sat the child, authorities said. Kelley Lodmell, who relatives said was living out of her car, was doing laundry at the home near 4500 S. 700 East at the time.
Linda Lodmell said Monday she was cleaning and went to put her vacuum cleaner away. When she returned seconds later, her daughter and great-granddaughter were gone, she said.
Casey Lodmell, who lives in Holladay with Acacia's father, 28-year-old Adam Bishop, said her mother "wanted [Acacia] for herself."
When the two disappeared last year, she said, she found Acacia within a half-hour at an acquaintance's apartment. She notified police and filed a complaint afterward, she said, but her mother, who at the time was living in an apartment, never answered her door and authorities could take no action.
Casey Lodmell said Monday she did not seek a restraining order against her mother -- something she now regrets -- but tried to stay in contact with her and let her see Acacia occasionally. "She's usually safe around other people," she said of Kelley Lodmell.
When she took Acacia to her grandmother's, she said, she thought her mother was about to leave because she was cleaning out her car.
Linda Lodmell said her daughter "needs professional help. She's needed it for quite a long time. The system will not help us."
Kelley Lodmell has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, but is not currently taking medication and in the past has taken it only when she could afford it, her mother said. She said her daughter previously has received treatment but only on a short-term basis.
"It's like putting a Band-Aid on something," Linda Lodmell said. "There's people like my daughter that are getting shuffled all over and not getting the help they need."
She said she "more or less raised Casey ... I had her more than Kelley did."
Notified about 6 p.m. Sunday, authorities at first thought the abduction was a custodial issue, Faulkner said. But after interviewing family members, police decided to issue an Amber Alert.
Kelley Lodmell was to spend Monday night in the Bonneville County Jail, and was set to appear in court at 1 p.m. in Idaho Falls, Hunt said.
A search of Salt Lake court records shows Kelley Lodmell pleaded guilty in March to misdemeanor charges of threatening to use or using a dangerous weapon in a fight, intoxication and disorderly conduct. Third District Judge Dennis Fuchs gave her credit for 60 days she had served in jail and ordered her to serve 18 months of probation and 40 hours of community service.
In 2000, she pleaded guilty to third-degree felony aggravated assault, a crime which records show occurred near Linda Lodmell's home in November 1999. She was placed on probation, which was later terminated as successful.
Acacia's parents and the rest of Kelley Lodmell's family gathered at the home of Linda Lodmell's mother -- Acacia's great-great-grandmother -- to await news.
"I would like to see both of them come home safely," Casey Lodmell said earlier in the day. "We have five generations, and now two of my generations are gone."
[email protected]; [email protected]
Emergency personnel search along the Snake River below the Broadway bridge Monday afternoon in Idaho Falls, Idaho for a missing 19-month-old girl . (AP Photo/Post Register, Robert Bower)
By Michael N. Westley and Ashley Broughton
The Salt Lake Tribune
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho -- Police planned to resume searching part of the Snake River today for a missing Utah toddler who allegedly was abducted by her grandmother, a transient with a history of mental illness, authorities said.
Although Kelley Jean Lodmell, 38, initially told Idaho Falls police she lost her hold on 19-month-old Acacia Patience Bishop while the two were dipping their feet in the water, authorities were skeptical, Idaho Falls police Sgt. Steve Hunt said Monday.
"We have enough information to treat this as a homicide investigation," Hunt said, adding that evidence was found in the Red Lion Hotel room Lodmell had checked into Sunday. He would not elaborate.
Lodmell was taken into police custody about 18 hours after she allegedly took Acacia from another relative's home in Salt Lake County about 6 p.m. Sunday. A nationwide Amber Alert was issued for the child about 4 a.m. Monday.
An Idaho Falls Power employee called 911 about 11:45 a.m. Monday after a woman ran into the hydropower plant on the banks of the Snake River diversion.
The woman, later identified by police as Lodmell, was wet and told an operator that her baby had fallen in the river and was drowning, said dispatch supervisor Ken Lawson. "She came right in here off the river, I guess," he said.
The employee shut down the power plant so the child would not be sucked into the water grates, Lawson said.
Police dispatched 12 dive teams to search the water, along with officers and dogs to scour a nearby park. The search was called off about 8:30 p.m. because of waning daylight and poor visibility in the water, Hunt said.
Lodmell's shoes were found in two separate spots, and a child's pair of shoes and a doll were also found near the water, he said. Lodmell was emotional, Hunt said, but cooperating with authorities.
"According to the divers, the current is fast enough with the turbines running that it would be difficult for a good swimmer to swim upstream," Hunt said. "We believe, at this point, that it's likely the baby is in the water, but haven't ruled out that the baby may be somewhere else."
The last person to see Acacia was a clerk at the hotel, who "noticed nothing out of the ordinary" when the woman and baby checked in, said Salt Lake County Sheriff Aaron Kennard.
The national Amber Alert was canceled at 6:55 p.m. Monday, since Lodmell was in custody and her car was found in the hotel parking lot, said Salt Lake County sheriff's spokeswoman Peggy Faulkner.
In Salt Lake City, Lodmell's daughter and Acacia's mother, 22-year-old Casey Lodmell, said earlier Monday she had not allowed her mother to see Acacia unsupervised after a previous abduction attempt about a year ago.
On Sunday evening, Casey Lodmell had left Acacia in the care of Linda Lodmell, her grandmother and Kelley Lodmell's mother, who often baby-sat the child, authorities said. Kelley Lodmell, who relatives said was living out of her car, was doing laundry at the home near 4500 S. 700 East at the time.
Linda Lodmell said Monday she was cleaning and went to put her vacuum cleaner away. When she returned seconds later, her daughter and great-granddaughter were gone, she said.
Casey Lodmell, who lives in Holladay with Acacia's father, 28-year-old Adam Bishop, said her mother "wanted [Acacia] for herself."
When the two disappeared last year, she said, she found Acacia within a half-hour at an acquaintance's apartment. She notified police and filed a complaint afterward, she said, but her mother, who at the time was living in an apartment, never answered her door and authorities could take no action.
Casey Lodmell said Monday she did not seek a restraining order against her mother -- something she now regrets -- but tried to stay in contact with her and let her see Acacia occasionally. "She's usually safe around other people," she said of Kelley Lodmell.
When she took Acacia to her grandmother's, she said, she thought her mother was about to leave because she was cleaning out her car.
Linda Lodmell said her daughter "needs professional help. She's needed it for quite a long time. The system will not help us."
Kelley Lodmell has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, but is not currently taking medication and in the past has taken it only when she could afford it, her mother said. She said her daughter previously has received treatment but only on a short-term basis.
"It's like putting a Band-Aid on something," Linda Lodmell said. "There's people like my daughter that are getting shuffled all over and not getting the help they need."
She said she "more or less raised Casey ... I had her more than Kelley did."
Notified about 6 p.m. Sunday, authorities at first thought the abduction was a custodial issue, Faulkner said. But after interviewing family members, police decided to issue an Amber Alert.
Kelley Lodmell was to spend Monday night in the Bonneville County Jail, and was set to appear in court at 1 p.m. in Idaho Falls, Hunt said.
A search of Salt Lake court records shows Kelley Lodmell pleaded guilty in March to misdemeanor charges of threatening to use or using a dangerous weapon in a fight, intoxication and disorderly conduct. Third District Judge Dennis Fuchs gave her credit for 60 days she had served in jail and ordered her to serve 18 months of probation and 40 hours of community service.
In 2000, she pleaded guilty to third-degree felony aggravated assault, a crime which records show occurred near Linda Lodmell's home in November 1999. She was placed on probation, which was later terminated as successful.
Acacia's parents and the rest of Kelley Lodmell's family gathered at the home of Linda Lodmell's mother -- Acacia's great-great-grandmother -- to await news.
"I would like to see both of them come home safely," Casey Lodmell said earlier in the day. "We have five generations, and now two of my generations are gone."
[email protected]; [email protected]