Emotions are seldom more pronouced than when a child disapears. Depending on the news cycle, word that a baby, toddler or even a pre-teen is missing can rally a nation in the hope that all will be well and the fear that it won't. Five-year old Jahessye (Jessie) Shockley is one such case.
The smiling, bright-eyed, little girl with a smile as wide as bright as the future she deserves was last seen at her Glendale, Arizona, apartment on a beautiful Tuesday afternoon. Her mother, Jerice Hunter, tearfully told police she had only left Jahessye for a few minutes in the care of her 13-year old sister. Police responded with a mobile command center, hundreds of officers and volunteers working a three-mile radius search of the area, canvassing homes and parking lots, asking neighbors and strangers in the area if they had seen this beautiful little girl. Their only lead, so far, is a witness report that a child matching Jahessye's description was seen that afternoon getting into a late-model dark chevy sedan, maybe a Malibu.
But the news cycle ground on and this was just not enough to keep this story going so enterprising reporters started digging, asking police about Jahessye's parents, Jerice in Arizona and George Shockley, in California. What they found would fuel another day or two of stories and speculation. Jerice was convicted, and sent to prison, in 2006, for beating her other children with extension cords and sticks. George Shockley is a registered sex offender and is currently doing time in prison. While police admit they are aware of these facts, they continue to say neither parent is a suspect in Jahessye's disappearance.
What police are saying is that they now believe Jahessye was kidnapped by a person or persons yet unknown and a $11,000 reward is now being offered. Jahessye's grandmother, Jerice's mother, is leading neighbors in vigils and is raising her voice to police and community leaders, asking why more is not being done to find her beautiful grandaughter. She's even marching on the state capitol to call even more attention to the fact that, after more than a week, no one has any idea where her Jahessye is.
It remains to be seen just how this case will be resolved. Will Jahessye be found alive? Will she be discovered to be the victim of a kidnapping? Will she be discovered dead, killed by a friend, family or a stranger as is all too often the case? One thing is crystal clear: this little girl did nothing to deserve her fate and it is tragic in the extreme that she is still missing. Someone out there knows what has happened to her and police need to redouble their efforts to find her.
