Missing Man: Brandon Swanson - MN - 05/14/2008
Started by
Lori Davis
, May 19 2008 04:51 PM
71 replies to this topic
#51
Kathylene
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Posted 07 April 2009 - 01:26 PM
http://www.marshalli.../id/508898.html
Editorial for April 7
Brandon’s law can make a difference
POSTED: April 7, 2009
Brandon's Law has made much needed progress through two key Minnesota State House and Senate committees. The law, named for Brandon Swanson, 19, of Marshall who has been missing since May 14, will speed up the process in which law enforcement gives information to parents in a non-criminal search and provide for a better exchange of resources and information on missing adults.
"It's standing up to what we wanted it to do and what we can do (now) without being a cost to the state," Brian Swanson, Brandon's dad, said.
Yet, "there's more to be done," Brian Swanson said.
There is more to be accomplished with Brandon's Law, but Annette Swanson, Brandon's mom, said what's already been passed by House and Senate committees could have already helped in a missing person reported during the weekend.
The reported story on Dan Zamlen, 18, the University of St. Thomas student who was reported missing after he left a party in anger and lost cell phone contact with a friend, "brought tears to my eyes," Annette Swanson said.
Some of the circumstances of Zamlen's disappearance Sunday are startlingly similar to Brandon Swanson's. Swanson had called his parents to tell them his car went in a ditch and asked for their help. His parents abruptly lost cell phone contact with him while they were searching. They reported him missing a few hours after searching.
Zamlen was talking with a friend, the Star Tribune said, when he said, 'Oh, my gosh, Anna where are you. Help!,'" and cell phone contact was lost.
St. Paul police spokesman Pete Panos said Zamlen is a grown man and his lack of contact doesn't rise to the concern of a missing child, the Star Tribune said. Police did not send anyone to the search area until 4:30 p.m., after friends and families had already been searching.
While Zamlen is not a child of 3 who may have wandered away from his yard, been abducted by a stranger or family member, there certainly appears to plenty of reasons for concern.
Zamlen has Type I diabetes and had been drinking. He had asked for help on a cell phone call which ended and had not called back. He was walking near the Mississippi River. No one has reported to his family seeing him since early Sunday morning after an argument.
"How much more in danger can you get before it rises to a level of concern?" Annette Swanson said.
It would seem in this age of text messages, cell phone calls, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and just the general rumor mill, plenty of people knew Zamlen was missing, and within hours, if he was hiding somewhere, someone would know. Still, even if Zamlen is hiding or is embarrassed to come forward, police response should be based more on what's known, which is that under the circumstances Zamlen could be in danger.
Brandon's Law would consider Zamlen to be in a dangerous situation and heighten the concern and the response.
One important piece of Brandon's Law that has been retained so far is the 11-item evaluation to determine if a missing adult is in danger. Zamlen would have been more quickly determined to be in danger and then the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension would have been called, Annette Swanson said. A plan to search would have been formed, she said.
While law enforcement in Lyon County responded after the Swansons reported their son was missing, it's clear to the Swansons and Rep. Marty Seifert, R-Marshall, who helped write and sponsor the bill, that doesn't always happen.
It does cost money for law enforcement to be involved in the search, but isn't that one of the jobs of law enforcement and rescue personnel? If the missing person turns out to be hiding or pulling a prank, law enforcement should consider billing the person or charging the person with a crime.
Zamlen chose to drink alcohol and left of his own free will this weekend, news reports said. But surely an angry 18-year-old, who has been drinking, who has diabetes and is walking in a dark area, apparently near a river, deserves more police attention than he has apparently received.
"I'm sitting here thinking, 'if only, if only,'" Annette Swanson said. "We could do so much better."
Hopefully, Brandon's Law can change that.
Editorial for April 7
Brandon’s law can make a difference
POSTED: April 7, 2009
Brandon's Law has made much needed progress through two key Minnesota State House and Senate committees. The law, named for Brandon Swanson, 19, of Marshall who has been missing since May 14, will speed up the process in which law enforcement gives information to parents in a non-criminal search and provide for a better exchange of resources and information on missing adults.
"It's standing up to what we wanted it to do and what we can do (now) without being a cost to the state," Brian Swanson, Brandon's dad, said.
Yet, "there's more to be done," Brian Swanson said.
There is more to be accomplished with Brandon's Law, but Annette Swanson, Brandon's mom, said what's already been passed by House and Senate committees could have already helped in a missing person reported during the weekend.
The reported story on Dan Zamlen, 18, the University of St. Thomas student who was reported missing after he left a party in anger and lost cell phone contact with a friend, "brought tears to my eyes," Annette Swanson said.
Some of the circumstances of Zamlen's disappearance Sunday are startlingly similar to Brandon Swanson's. Swanson had called his parents to tell them his car went in a ditch and asked for their help. His parents abruptly lost cell phone contact with him while they were searching. They reported him missing a few hours after searching.
Zamlen was talking with a friend, the Star Tribune said, when he said, 'Oh, my gosh, Anna where are you. Help!,'" and cell phone contact was lost.
St. Paul police spokesman Pete Panos said Zamlen is a grown man and his lack of contact doesn't rise to the concern of a missing child, the Star Tribune said. Police did not send anyone to the search area until 4:30 p.m., after friends and families had already been searching.
While Zamlen is not a child of 3 who may have wandered away from his yard, been abducted by a stranger or family member, there certainly appears to plenty of reasons for concern.
Zamlen has Type I diabetes and had been drinking. He had asked for help on a cell phone call which ended and had not called back. He was walking near the Mississippi River. No one has reported to his family seeing him since early Sunday morning after an argument.
"How much more in danger can you get before it rises to a level of concern?" Annette Swanson said.
It would seem in this age of text messages, cell phone calls, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and just the general rumor mill, plenty of people knew Zamlen was missing, and within hours, if he was hiding somewhere, someone would know. Still, even if Zamlen is hiding or is embarrassed to come forward, police response should be based more on what's known, which is that under the circumstances Zamlen could be in danger.
Brandon's Law would consider Zamlen to be in a dangerous situation and heighten the concern and the response.
One important piece of Brandon's Law that has been retained so far is the 11-item evaluation to determine if a missing adult is in danger. Zamlen would have been more quickly determined to be in danger and then the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension would have been called, Annette Swanson said. A plan to search would have been formed, she said.
While law enforcement in Lyon County responded after the Swansons reported their son was missing, it's clear to the Swansons and Rep. Marty Seifert, R-Marshall, who helped write and sponsor the bill, that doesn't always happen.
It does cost money for law enforcement to be involved in the search, but isn't that one of the jobs of law enforcement and rescue personnel? If the missing person turns out to be hiding or pulling a prank, law enforcement should consider billing the person or charging the person with a crime.
Zamlen chose to drink alcohol and left of his own free will this weekend, news reports said. But surely an angry 18-year-old, who has been drinking, who has diabetes and is walking in a dark area, apparently near a river, deserves more police attention than he has apparently received.
"I'm sitting here thinking, 'if only, if only,'" Annette Swanson said. "We could do so much better."
Hopefully, Brandon's Law can change that.
#52
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Posted 30 April 2009 - 05:50 PM
http://www.bemidjipi...gislative_tag=1
Brandon law OK'd
Senators added their approval to changing the state's missing persons law to provide quicker law enforcement organization response when young adults disappear.
"This is about speeding up filing missing persons reports," Sen. Dennis Frederickson, R-New Ulm, said.
Several 18- to 21-year-old Minnesotans have gone missing, but law enforcement agencies often rely on a state law that does not require immediate investigation in missing adult cases.
Senators approved the measure 62-0 with a minor amendment to a House-passed version. Gov. Tim Pawlenty is expected to sign the measure.
The law is named after Brandon Swanson, who disappeared in southwestern Minnesota.
Note: Brandon's Law is a part of Project Jason's Campaign for the Missing. Congratulations to everyone who worked so hard to get it passed.
Brandon law OK'd
Senators added their approval to changing the state's missing persons law to provide quicker law enforcement organization response when young adults disappear.
"This is about speeding up filing missing persons reports," Sen. Dennis Frederickson, R-New Ulm, said.
Several 18- to 21-year-old Minnesotans have gone missing, but law enforcement agencies often rely on a state law that does not require immediate investigation in missing adult cases.
Senators approved the measure 62-0 with a minor amendment to a House-passed version. Gov. Tim Pawlenty is expected to sign the measure.
The law is named after Brandon Swanson, who disappeared in southwestern Minnesota.
Note: Brandon's Law is a part of Project Jason's Campaign for the Missing. Congratulations to everyone who worked so hard to get it passed.
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#53
Kelly
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Posted 06 May 2009 - 08:49 PM
http://www.marshalli.../id/509568.html
Swanson family wants rumors squashed
By Rae Kruger
POSTED: May 7, 2009
At the same time Brian and Annette Swanson heard Gov. Tim Pawlenty would sign Brandon's Law officially as a law today, they were also dealing with a rumor that sickened them.
Annette Swanson cried Wednesday as she said her family was still dealing with the rumor her son Brandon's body had been found in a field near Taunton or St. Leo.
"It just sucks," she said.
The family was in Mankato on Wednesday to celebrate Annette's birthday and to get away.
The persistent rumor, which appears to have started Tuesday, followed them on Wednesday.
"My family is struggling with this," Swanson said.
She and her husband were getting communications about the rumor, as was their daughter Jamine.
"Jamine is getting text messages saying, 'This is what we heard,'" Swanson said. "It's not just me dealing with it, it's our whole family."
The Independent as well as at least one other medium heard the rumor Tuesday. The Independent called the sheriff's departments in Lincoln and Lyon counties and was told the same thing: Swanson had not been found.
Swanson believed the rumor would disappear once the public knew there were no news reports on finding her son.
It didn't.
"This is just painful. We need to squash this thing," Swanson said.
Brandon Swanson has been missing since May 14, 2008, after a cell phone conversation with his parents ended abruptly. His car was found in a ditch near Taunton along the border road of Lincoln and Lyon counties near the Yellow Medicine River. Multiple searches have not resulted in any of Swanson's clothes or other evidence, although search dogs have shown interest in several areas.
Swanson has been in the news recently because his parents have been working on a law that would allow a more aggressive response from law enforcement when young adults up to 21 are reported missing or when older adults are reported missing in dangerous circumstances.
The law was supported by the parents of Dan Zamlen, whose body was found in the Mississippi River in St. Paul last week. Zamlen, a college student, was reported missing in April and his parents shared with the media their frustration with the response from law enforcement.
Swanson said the media coverage of Brandon's Law, the discovery of Zamlen's body and the upcoming one-year anniversary of her son's disappearance may have caused the rumor, but the details of the rumor make her also believe differently.
The rumor includes a body found by a farmer near St. Leo or Taunton.
"I just wish people would realize what this puts a family through," Swanson said. "It just spread like wildfire."
Swanson family wants rumors squashed
By Rae Kruger
POSTED: May 7, 2009
At the same time Brian and Annette Swanson heard Gov. Tim Pawlenty would sign Brandon's Law officially as a law today, they were also dealing with a rumor that sickened them.
Annette Swanson cried Wednesday as she said her family was still dealing with the rumor her son Brandon's body had been found in a field near Taunton or St. Leo.
"It just sucks," she said.
The family was in Mankato on Wednesday to celebrate Annette's birthday and to get away.
The persistent rumor, which appears to have started Tuesday, followed them on Wednesday.
"My family is struggling with this," Swanson said.
She and her husband were getting communications about the rumor, as was their daughter Jamine.
"Jamine is getting text messages saying, 'This is what we heard,'" Swanson said. "It's not just me dealing with it, it's our whole family."
The Independent as well as at least one other medium heard the rumor Tuesday. The Independent called the sheriff's departments in Lincoln and Lyon counties and was told the same thing: Swanson had not been found.
Swanson believed the rumor would disappear once the public knew there were no news reports on finding her son.
It didn't.
"This is just painful. We need to squash this thing," Swanson said.
Brandon Swanson has been missing since May 14, 2008, after a cell phone conversation with his parents ended abruptly. His car was found in a ditch near Taunton along the border road of Lincoln and Lyon counties near the Yellow Medicine River. Multiple searches have not resulted in any of Swanson's clothes or other evidence, although search dogs have shown interest in several areas.
Swanson has been in the news recently because his parents have been working on a law that would allow a more aggressive response from law enforcement when young adults up to 21 are reported missing or when older adults are reported missing in dangerous circumstances.
The law was supported by the parents of Dan Zamlen, whose body was found in the Mississippi River in St. Paul last week. Zamlen, a college student, was reported missing in April and his parents shared with the media their frustration with the response from law enforcement.
Swanson said the media coverage of Brandon's Law, the discovery of Zamlen's body and the upcoming one-year anniversary of her son's disappearance may have caused the rumor, but the details of the rumor make her also believe differently.
The rumor includes a body found by a farmer near St. Leo or Taunton.
"I just wish people would realize what this puts a family through," Swanson said. "It just spread like wildfire."
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#54
Kelly
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Posted 06 May 2009 - 08:53 PM
http://wcco.com/poli....2.1002666.html
May 6, 2009 10:49 am US/Central
Missing Adults Law Ready For Governor's Signature
(WCCO)
The bill was introduced by House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, who dubbed it "Brandon's Law" after Brandon Swanson. He was 19 when his car went into a ditch near the Yellow Medicine River on May 14, 2008, and hasn't been seen since.
A bill that would revamp Minnesota's missing persons laws for young adults and adults who disappear under suspicious or dangerous circumstances is ready for the governor's signature.
The House unanimously passed the law Tuesday after the Senate had approved it in slightly different form earlier. Gov. Tim Pawlenty now has until Friday to sign it into law.
The bill was introduced by House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, who dubbed it "Brandon's Law" after Brandon Swanson. He was 19 when his car went into a ditch near the Yellow Medicine River on May 14. He made a cell phone call that ended abruptly, and hasn't been seen since.
The bill would require a more aggressive response from law enforcement for missing adults up to age 21 and older adults who disappear under suspicious circumstances.
-------
The bill was also backed by the family of Dan Zamlen, a University of St. Thomas student who disappeared in April and who's body was found in the Mississippi River on May 1, 2009.
May 6, 2009 10:49 am US/Central
Missing Adults Law Ready For Governor's Signature
(WCCO)
The bill was introduced by House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, who dubbed it "Brandon's Law" after Brandon Swanson. He was 19 when his car went into a ditch near the Yellow Medicine River on May 14, 2008, and hasn't been seen since.
A bill that would revamp Minnesota's missing persons laws for young adults and adults who disappear under suspicious or dangerous circumstances is ready for the governor's signature.
The House unanimously passed the law Tuesday after the Senate had approved it in slightly different form earlier. Gov. Tim Pawlenty now has until Friday to sign it into law.
The bill was introduced by House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, who dubbed it "Brandon's Law" after Brandon Swanson. He was 19 when his car went into a ditch near the Yellow Medicine River on May 14. He made a cell phone call that ended abruptly, and hasn't been seen since.
The bill would require a more aggressive response from law enforcement for missing adults up to age 21 and older adults who disappear under suspicious circumstances.
-------
The bill was also backed by the family of Dan Zamlen, a University of St. Thomas student who disappeared in April and who's body was found in the Mississippi River on May 1, 2009.
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#55
Kathylene
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Posted 07 May 2009 - 08:18 AM
http://www.startribu...GEP7vDEh7P:DiUs
Pawlenty to sign "Brandon's Law" today
By BOB VON STERNBERG, Star Tribune
Last update: May 7, 2009 - 10:10 AM
Gov. Tim Pawlenty will hold a ceremonial bill signing today of "Brandon's Law," which expands the state's missing children's law to include adults who are missing and potentially endangered.
The law is named for Brandon Swanson, 19, who has been missing since last May, when his car went into a ditch in southwestern Minnesota.
His parents, Brian and Annette Swanson, began pushing for a change in the law after frustrating encounters with law enforcement officials, who explained to them that adults generally have a right to be missing.
"But don't tell me that without finding out the circumstances first," Annette Swanson said in the midst of lobbying for the law earlier this spring.
It was sponsored by House Minority Leader Marty Seifert and requires authorities to take missing persons reports "without delay," and conduct preliminary investigations to see if fears appear founded.
The law would accelerate law enforcement's response if a missing person is considered "endangered." That includes situations in which the missing person needs medical attention, when the disappearance clearly wasn't voluntary or occurred in dangerous circumstances.
Minnesota is following the lead of several other states that already have bolstered their laws to find missing senior citizens and young adults.
The Swansons, their daughter, Jamine and Seifert will attend the 2 p.m. signing ceremony.
Also attending will be David and Linda Francis and their two daughters. Their son, Jon, a 24-year-old from Stillwater, disappeared on July 15, 2006, while hiking in Idaho's Sawtooth Mountains. His remains were found more than a year later.
Pawlenty to sign "Brandon's Law" today
By BOB VON STERNBERG, Star Tribune
Last update: May 7, 2009 - 10:10 AM
Gov. Tim Pawlenty will hold a ceremonial bill signing today of "Brandon's Law," which expands the state's missing children's law to include adults who are missing and potentially endangered.
The law is named for Brandon Swanson, 19, who has been missing since last May, when his car went into a ditch in southwestern Minnesota.
His parents, Brian and Annette Swanson, began pushing for a change in the law after frustrating encounters with law enforcement officials, who explained to them that adults generally have a right to be missing.
"But don't tell me that without finding out the circumstances first," Annette Swanson said in the midst of lobbying for the law earlier this spring.
It was sponsored by House Minority Leader Marty Seifert and requires authorities to take missing persons reports "without delay," and conduct preliminary investigations to see if fears appear founded.
The law would accelerate law enforcement's response if a missing person is considered "endangered." That includes situations in which the missing person needs medical attention, when the disappearance clearly wasn't voluntary or occurred in dangerous circumstances.
Minnesota is following the lead of several other states that already have bolstered their laws to find missing senior citizens and young adults.
The Swansons, their daughter, Jamine and Seifert will attend the 2 p.m. signing ceremony.
Also attending will be David and Linda Francis and their two daughters. Their son, Jon, a 24-year-old from Stillwater, disappeared on July 15, 2006, while hiking in Idaho's Sawtooth Mountains. His remains were found more than a year later.
#56
Kelly
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Posted 08 May 2009 - 09:54 AM
http://www.startribu...e/44526662.html
Adults added to missing children's law
Gov. Pawlenty signed 'Brandon's Law,' which is meant to expedite response when loved ones of any age disappear.
By BOB VON STERNBERG, Star Tribune
5/8/09
Gov. Tim Pawlenty held a ceremonial bill-signing Thursday of "Brandon's Law," which expands the state's missing children's law to include adults who are missing and potentially endangered.
The law is named for Brandon Swanson, 19, who has been missing since last May, when his car went into a ditch in southwestern Minnesota.
"We're here to lend our voice to recommit Minnesota, and, I hope, others around the country, that [law enforcement] will respond as robustly as possible when people are missing," Pawlenty said.
Swanson's parents, Brian and Annette, began pushing for a change in the law after frustrating encounters with law enforcement officials, who explained to them that adults generally have a right to be missing.
"But don't tell me that without finding out the circumstances first," Annette Swanson said in the midst of lobbying for the law this spring.
"This is a bittersweet moment for us," she said Thursday. "I would never want to be here ... but I want to make a difference for other people."
The law, which takes effect July 1, was sponsored by House Minority Leader Marty Seifert and requires authorities to take missing persons reports "without delay" and conduct preliminary investigations to see if fears appear founded.
The law would accelerate law enforcement's response if a missing person is considered "endangered." That includes situations in which the missing person needs medical attention, when the disappearance clearly wasn't voluntary or occurred in dangerous circumstances.
"No family should have to endure the additional heartache ... of a slow or inadequate response," Pawlenty said.
Minnesota is following the lead of other states that already have bolstered their laws to find missing senior citizens and young adults.
The Swansons, their daughter, Jamine, and Seifert attended the signing ceremony. Also attending were David and Linda Francis and their two daughters. Their son, Jon, a 24-year-old from Stillwater, disappeared on July 15, 2006, while hiking in Idaho's Sawtooth Mountains. His remains were found more than a year later.
Note: Brandon's Law is a part of Project Jason's Campaign for the Missing, a nationwide grassroots effort to pass procedural laws in each state regarding missing and unidentified persons.
Adults added to missing children's law
Gov. Pawlenty signed 'Brandon's Law,' which is meant to expedite response when loved ones of any age disappear.
By BOB VON STERNBERG, Star Tribune
5/8/09
Gov. Tim Pawlenty held a ceremonial bill-signing Thursday of "Brandon's Law," which expands the state's missing children's law to include adults who are missing and potentially endangered.
The law is named for Brandon Swanson, 19, who has been missing since last May, when his car went into a ditch in southwestern Minnesota.
"We're here to lend our voice to recommit Minnesota, and, I hope, others around the country, that [law enforcement] will respond as robustly as possible when people are missing," Pawlenty said.
Swanson's parents, Brian and Annette, began pushing for a change in the law after frustrating encounters with law enforcement officials, who explained to them that adults generally have a right to be missing.
"But don't tell me that without finding out the circumstances first," Annette Swanson said in the midst of lobbying for the law this spring.
"This is a bittersweet moment for us," she said Thursday. "I would never want to be here ... but I want to make a difference for other people."
The law, which takes effect July 1, was sponsored by House Minority Leader Marty Seifert and requires authorities to take missing persons reports "without delay" and conduct preliminary investigations to see if fears appear founded.
The law would accelerate law enforcement's response if a missing person is considered "endangered." That includes situations in which the missing person needs medical attention, when the disappearance clearly wasn't voluntary or occurred in dangerous circumstances.
"No family should have to endure the additional heartache ... of a slow or inadequate response," Pawlenty said.
Minnesota is following the lead of other states that already have bolstered their laws to find missing senior citizens and young adults.
The Swansons, their daughter, Jamine, and Seifert attended the signing ceremony. Also attending were David and Linda Francis and their two daughters. Their son, Jon, a 24-year-old from Stillwater, disappeared on July 15, 2006, while hiking in Idaho's Sawtooth Mountains. His remains were found more than a year later.
Note: Brandon's Law is a part of Project Jason's Campaign for the Missing, a nationwide grassroots effort to pass procedural laws in each state regarding missing and unidentified persons.
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#57
Kelly
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Posted 12 May 2009 - 09:21 AM
Project Jason Profile:
Name: Brandon Swanson
Date of Birth: 01/30/1989
Date Missing: 05/14/2008
Age at time of disappearance: 19
City Missing From: Marshall
State Missing From: Minnesota
Gender: Male
Race: Caucasian
Height: 5 ft 6 in
Weight: 125 lbs
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Blue
Complexion: Fair
Identifying Characteristics: Black wire rimmed glasses; left and right ear pierced once each; legally blind in left eye
Clothing: Blue jeans (hip hop style); white short-sleeved t-shirt; blue striped polo style shirt; black hooded zip front sweatshirt with eagle emblem embroidered on back; white Minnesota Twins baseball cap; white KSwis athletic shoes (older-worn); Brandon was carrying a black Motorola SLVR cell phone, identification, wallet and keys
Jewelry: Stud earring in each ear; sterling silver chain
Circumstances of Disappearance: Brandon was last seen in Canby, Minnesota at a friends house. On his return home to Marshall, Minnesota his car went into a ditch and became stuck. He called his parents for assistance, but when they could not locate him he left his car to walk back to his friends house. While he was walking he remained on the phone with his parents for 47 minutes. The call ended abruptly at approximately 3:10 a.m. when Brandon said "Oh, (expletive)". Attempts to regain contact with Brandon failed. He never made it back to his friends home. Brandon's car was later found stuck in a ditch near Taunton, Minnesota.
Investigative Agency: Lincoln County Sheriff Department
Agency Phone: (507) 694-1664
Investigative Case #: 08-092794
Print a Poster: http://www.projectja...ndonSwanson.pdf
Name: Brandon Swanson
Date of Birth: 01/30/1989
Date Missing: 05/14/2008
Age at time of disappearance: 19
City Missing From: Marshall
State Missing From: Minnesota
Gender: Male
Race: Caucasian
Height: 5 ft 6 in
Weight: 125 lbs
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Blue
Complexion: Fair
Identifying Characteristics: Black wire rimmed glasses; left and right ear pierced once each; legally blind in left eye
Clothing: Blue jeans (hip hop style); white short-sleeved t-shirt; blue striped polo style shirt; black hooded zip front sweatshirt with eagle emblem embroidered on back; white Minnesota Twins baseball cap; white KSwis athletic shoes (older-worn); Brandon was carrying a black Motorola SLVR cell phone, identification, wallet and keys
Jewelry: Stud earring in each ear; sterling silver chain
Circumstances of Disappearance: Brandon was last seen in Canby, Minnesota at a friends house. On his return home to Marshall, Minnesota his car went into a ditch and became stuck. He called his parents for assistance, but when they could not locate him he left his car to walk back to his friends house. While he was walking he remained on the phone with his parents for 47 minutes. The call ended abruptly at approximately 3:10 a.m. when Brandon said "Oh, (expletive)". Attempts to regain contact with Brandon failed. He never made it back to his friends home. Brandon's car was later found stuck in a ditch near Taunton, Minnesota.
Investigative Agency: Lincoln County Sheriff Department
Agency Phone: (507) 694-1664
Investigative Case #: 08-092794
Print a Poster: http://www.projectja...ndonSwanson.pdf
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#58
Kathylene
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Posted 14 May 2009 - 04:39 AM
http://www.marshalli...7.html?nav=5015
1 year later, the search continues
By Rae Kruger
POSTED: May 14, 2009
Photo by Rae Kruger - Lyon County Sheriff’s Deputy Eric Wallen, left, and Yellow Medicine County Sheriff Bill Flaten look over a copy of Brandon’s Law, the new law passed named for Brandon Swanson, who has been missing since May 14, 2008. The two have been involved in the search for Swanson.
MARSHALL - There is evidence of Brandon Swanson in or near the Yellow Medicine River, it just hasn't been found yet, three local sheriffs said earlier this week.
"There is evidence of him somewhere. We just have to find him somewhere," Yellow Medicine County Sheriff Bill Flaten said.
"I can't explain why we haven't found anything," Lincoln County Sheriff Jack Vizecky said. "Recently, a week ago, the river gave up a snapping turtle shell and from a distance of 30 feet that appeared to be a bone. I have a coon skull in my office. I saw a coon skull. I'd have certainly seen a human skull."
The river has given up nothing in the year since Swanson was reported missing. Swanson of Marshall was 19 when a cell phone call with his parents ended abruptly on May 14, 2008. His car was found in a ditch along the Lincoln and Lyon County line road near Taunton. Multiple searches in the past year have focused mainly on areas near the Yellow Medicine River in parts of Lincoln, Lyon and Yellow Medicine counties near Taunton and Porter.
The last official law enforcement-led search was around May 19, 2008, but law enforcement said they've continued to follow up on tips and leads that sometimes include calls to California and elsewhere.
"We continue to explore every opportunity to find him," Vizecky said.
"If we get any information, we follow up on everything. We have to," Mather said.
"There is no indication of foul play," Vizecky said. "Every indication is that some incident put him in peril, but there is no sign or evidence to suggest anything else was involved."
The three sheriffs said their departments have been involved in the case since early after Swanson was reported missing, but the Lyon County Sheriff's Department was the first to be given the missing persons report from Swanson's parents, Brian and Annette of Marshall.
But as the investigation indicated Swanson disappeared in Lincoln County, Vizecky and his department took the lead investigative role.
Swanson had called his parents to tell them his car was in a ditch near Lynd. The Swansons agreed to pick up their son and headed from Marshall toward Lynd.
"The last call to his parents ended about 3:12 a.m. (on May 14)," Vizecky said. Swanson had first called his parents at about1:54 a.m., Vizecky said.
Lyon County was contacted at about 6:29 a.m., Mather said.
The search started near Lynd and while deputies searched, the cell phone company was contacted. Eventually, Swanson's call was traced to a tower in Minneota. Swanson's car had been found in a ditch near Taunton at about 12:30 p.m. May 14, 2008, Mather said.
Lyon County Deputy Eric Wallen said the three hours between the last cell phone call and the missing persons report means three hours were lost in the search for Swanson.
"If (the parents) had called right away, we could have traced the cell phone call to a tower sooner and at least we could have found the car sooner," Wallen said. "We found the car nine hours after that last phone call ended."
DOG USE
When Swanson's car was found, a search dog from Chippewa County was used at the scene.
Wallen said law enforcement secured the car but moved outside the immediate are "so we didn't destroy the scent."
"The first bloodhound did not take," Vizecky said. The dog did not respond to Swanson's scent on an item. The dog did respond later to a second item said to be Swanson's, Vizecky said.
"The dog went to the Yellow Medicine River in Section II of Alta Vista Township," Vizecky said.
A dog team from Codington County, S.D., joined the search May 15.
The dog team indicated interest more north to Porter in Eidsvold Township but also showed interest in Section II of Alta Vista Township, Vizecky said.
"A Codington County cadaver dog on May 22 floated down the river and that dog gave an (interest) at a location southeast of the original dog indicated on May 15. About 600 yards away. And 600 yards in a river bed is about two hours," Vizecky said.
This dog has a history in Lincoln County and has found a body in Lake Benton, Vizecky said. But it had no experience in fast-moving water in a river, Vizecky said.
The search focused on areas of Lincoln County, where the three sheriffs said they still believe Swanson disappeared.
THE YELLOW
MEDICINE RIVER
Vizecky said he walked the river June 2 and the water level is much like it is today.
But the river was high and had overflowed its banks in some locations. Heavy rains fell in the first weeks of Swanson's disappearance which changed the level of the river, the makeup of the river and the landscape surrounding it.
"The terrain is rugged out there," Flaten said. "That river is full of downed trees. Every day the river is different."
"A sand pile that wasn't there yesterday will be there today," Mather said.
"I was walking the river and saw a search dog disappear from sight into a sink hole and then appear again on the other side," Vizecky said.
"Who knows how big those sink holes are," Mather said.
Swanson could have been trapped in a sink hole in the river, they said.
His body might have covered with trees and other debris during the searches. If covered tightly enough, the debris would trap any scent he'd have, Vizecky said.
OTHER SEARCHES
Airplanes and helicopters have also been used in the search.
"We had them fly the tree tops over the river, Mather said. "Jack and I went up outside the original search area."
While deputies and volunteers worked on the physical search, other deputies continued the investigation by talking with Swanson's friends and others and following up on information.
"We interviewed a lot of people, some multiple times," Mather said.
Soon after Swanson was reported missing, his name, DNA and other information was entered into a computer network for missing persons.
"That was right off the bat," Mather said.
The network allows for law enforcement in other areas to be informed of the missing person.
The sheriff's department also had posters of Swanson made that were distributed to law enforcement and others.
"There are a lot of rumors and innuendos out there," Vizecky said. "You follow up on the information you get."
BRANDON'S LAW AND OTHER VOLUNTEER SEARCHES
Swanson's parents have worked with legislators to pass Brandon's Law, which they have said will create a uniform more aggressive response from law enforcement when a young adult or adult in dangerous circumstances disappears.
Mather said Lyon County did what Brandon's law wants law enforcement to do in terms of gathering DNA and other evidence and submitting to a network for missing persons.
The response in Swanson's case was a joint effort, Flaten said.
But law enforcement can only be as aggressive as resources allow, Flaten said.
"We've got limited resources," Flaten said. Local sheriff's departments may have 10, seven or fewer full-time deputies, Flaten said,
The Swanson family has worked with at least two volunteer search coordinators. The most recent coordinator heads a team of volunteers who have worked on various search-and-rescues in Minnesota and elsewhere.
The searches after May 19 have not been headed by any sheriff's department, the three sheriff's said, but they do work with volunteers.
Flaten said the most recent team is searching an area of Yellow Medicine County and is cooperating with the sheriff's department.
Flaten said the team is skilled and has its own method of approaching searches. "...we haven't found Brandon yet, but clearly we are identifying more areas where he's not..."
FUTURE SEARCHES
Vizecky said he can't say for certain if any more law enforcement-led searches will be conducted for Swanson.
Each day Swanson is missing, "it increases the possibility the evidence will be more spread out," Vizecky said.
While he is uncertain of an organized search, law enforcement will continue to monitor the river and continue to investigate, Vizecky said.
"We want to work together to bring this to an end," Mather said.
"There is not one deputy or law enforcement here that does not want to find him," Flaten said.
1 year later, the search continues
By Rae Kruger
POSTED: May 14, 2009
Photo by Rae Kruger - Lyon County Sheriff’s Deputy Eric Wallen, left, and Yellow Medicine County Sheriff Bill Flaten look over a copy of Brandon’s Law, the new law passed named for Brandon Swanson, who has been missing since May 14, 2008. The two have been involved in the search for Swanson.
MARSHALL - There is evidence of Brandon Swanson in or near the Yellow Medicine River, it just hasn't been found yet, three local sheriffs said earlier this week.
"There is evidence of him somewhere. We just have to find him somewhere," Yellow Medicine County Sheriff Bill Flaten said.
"I can't explain why we haven't found anything," Lincoln County Sheriff Jack Vizecky said. "Recently, a week ago, the river gave up a snapping turtle shell and from a distance of 30 feet that appeared to be a bone. I have a coon skull in my office. I saw a coon skull. I'd have certainly seen a human skull."
The river has given up nothing in the year since Swanson was reported missing. Swanson of Marshall was 19 when a cell phone call with his parents ended abruptly on May 14, 2008. His car was found in a ditch along the Lincoln and Lyon County line road near Taunton. Multiple searches in the past year have focused mainly on areas near the Yellow Medicine River in parts of Lincoln, Lyon and Yellow Medicine counties near Taunton and Porter.
The last official law enforcement-led search was around May 19, 2008, but law enforcement said they've continued to follow up on tips and leads that sometimes include calls to California and elsewhere.
"We continue to explore every opportunity to find him," Vizecky said.
"If we get any information, we follow up on everything. We have to," Mather said.
"There is no indication of foul play," Vizecky said. "Every indication is that some incident put him in peril, but there is no sign or evidence to suggest anything else was involved."
The three sheriffs said their departments have been involved in the case since early after Swanson was reported missing, but the Lyon County Sheriff's Department was the first to be given the missing persons report from Swanson's parents, Brian and Annette of Marshall.
But as the investigation indicated Swanson disappeared in Lincoln County, Vizecky and his department took the lead investigative role.
Swanson had called his parents to tell them his car was in a ditch near Lynd. The Swansons agreed to pick up their son and headed from Marshall toward Lynd.
"The last call to his parents ended about 3:12 a.m. (on May 14)," Vizecky said. Swanson had first called his parents at about1:54 a.m., Vizecky said.
Lyon County was contacted at about 6:29 a.m., Mather said.
The search started near Lynd and while deputies searched, the cell phone company was contacted. Eventually, Swanson's call was traced to a tower in Minneota. Swanson's car had been found in a ditch near Taunton at about 12:30 p.m. May 14, 2008, Mather said.
Lyon County Deputy Eric Wallen said the three hours between the last cell phone call and the missing persons report means three hours were lost in the search for Swanson.
"If (the parents) had called right away, we could have traced the cell phone call to a tower sooner and at least we could have found the car sooner," Wallen said. "We found the car nine hours after that last phone call ended."
DOG USE
When Swanson's car was found, a search dog from Chippewa County was used at the scene.
Wallen said law enforcement secured the car but moved outside the immediate are "so we didn't destroy the scent."
"The first bloodhound did not take," Vizecky said. The dog did not respond to Swanson's scent on an item. The dog did respond later to a second item said to be Swanson's, Vizecky said.
"The dog went to the Yellow Medicine River in Section II of Alta Vista Township," Vizecky said.
A dog team from Codington County, S.D., joined the search May 15.
The dog team indicated interest more north to Porter in Eidsvold Township but also showed interest in Section II of Alta Vista Township, Vizecky said.
"A Codington County cadaver dog on May 22 floated down the river and that dog gave an (interest) at a location southeast of the original dog indicated on May 15. About 600 yards away. And 600 yards in a river bed is about two hours," Vizecky said.
This dog has a history in Lincoln County and has found a body in Lake Benton, Vizecky said. But it had no experience in fast-moving water in a river, Vizecky said.
The search focused on areas of Lincoln County, where the three sheriffs said they still believe Swanson disappeared.
THE YELLOW
MEDICINE RIVER
Vizecky said he walked the river June 2 and the water level is much like it is today.
But the river was high and had overflowed its banks in some locations. Heavy rains fell in the first weeks of Swanson's disappearance which changed the level of the river, the makeup of the river and the landscape surrounding it.
"The terrain is rugged out there," Flaten said. "That river is full of downed trees. Every day the river is different."
"A sand pile that wasn't there yesterday will be there today," Mather said.
"I was walking the river and saw a search dog disappear from sight into a sink hole and then appear again on the other side," Vizecky said.
"Who knows how big those sink holes are," Mather said.
Swanson could have been trapped in a sink hole in the river, they said.
His body might have covered with trees and other debris during the searches. If covered tightly enough, the debris would trap any scent he'd have, Vizecky said.
OTHER SEARCHES
Airplanes and helicopters have also been used in the search.
"We had them fly the tree tops over the river, Mather said. "Jack and I went up outside the original search area."
While deputies and volunteers worked on the physical search, other deputies continued the investigation by talking with Swanson's friends and others and following up on information.
"We interviewed a lot of people, some multiple times," Mather said.
Soon after Swanson was reported missing, his name, DNA and other information was entered into a computer network for missing persons.
"That was right off the bat," Mather said.
The network allows for law enforcement in other areas to be informed of the missing person.
The sheriff's department also had posters of Swanson made that were distributed to law enforcement and others.
"There are a lot of rumors and innuendos out there," Vizecky said. "You follow up on the information you get."
BRANDON'S LAW AND OTHER VOLUNTEER SEARCHES
Swanson's parents have worked with legislators to pass Brandon's Law, which they have said will create a uniform more aggressive response from law enforcement when a young adult or adult in dangerous circumstances disappears.
Mather said Lyon County did what Brandon's law wants law enforcement to do in terms of gathering DNA and other evidence and submitting to a network for missing persons.
The response in Swanson's case was a joint effort, Flaten said.
But law enforcement can only be as aggressive as resources allow, Flaten said.
"We've got limited resources," Flaten said. Local sheriff's departments may have 10, seven or fewer full-time deputies, Flaten said,
The Swanson family has worked with at least two volunteer search coordinators. The most recent coordinator heads a team of volunteers who have worked on various search-and-rescues in Minnesota and elsewhere.
The searches after May 19 have not been headed by any sheriff's department, the three sheriff's said, but they do work with volunteers.
Flaten said the most recent team is searching an area of Yellow Medicine County and is cooperating with the sheriff's department.
Flaten said the team is skilled and has its own method of approaching searches. "...we haven't found Brandon yet, but clearly we are identifying more areas where he's not..."
FUTURE SEARCHES
Vizecky said he can't say for certain if any more law enforcement-led searches will be conducted for Swanson.
Each day Swanson is missing, "it increases the possibility the evidence will be more spread out," Vizecky said.
While he is uncertain of an organized search, law enforcement will continue to monitor the river and continue to investigate, Vizecky said.
"We want to work together to bring this to an end," Mather said.
"There is not one deputy or law enforcement here that does not want to find him," Flaten said.
#59
Kelly
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President and Founder
- LocationRenton WA
Posted 14 May 2009 - 09:01 PM
AAN Poster Notify Sent to AAN Subscribers Code 37
Help us find the missing: Become an AAN Member and receive notifications about missing persons via email.
Click here to become a part of the solution: http://www.projectja.../awareness.html
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#60
Kelly
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President and Founder
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Posted 05 July 2009 - 05:31 PM
http://www.latimes.c...0,1102797.story
New laws in effect July 1 in many states
7/5/09
Minnesota is compelling police and sheriffs to start searching right away when adults disappear under suspicious circumstances. Some law enforcement agencies now wait 24 or 48 hours to look into such cases.
The law is named for Brandon Swanson, a 19-year-old who disappeared last May after he ran his car off the road in rural western Minnesota.
"We don't want to waste law enforcement's time, but on the flip side, in some of these situations it's life and death," said Minnesota state Rep. Marty Seifert, a Republican.
Note: There was more to the story, but this was the only law mentioned which is relevant to our cause.
New laws in effect July 1 in many states
7/5/09
Minnesota is compelling police and sheriffs to start searching right away when adults disappear under suspicious circumstances. Some law enforcement agencies now wait 24 or 48 hours to look into such cases.
The law is named for Brandon Swanson, a 19-year-old who disappeared last May after he ran his car off the road in rural western Minnesota.
"We don't want to waste law enforcement's time, but on the flip side, in some of these situations it's life and death," said Minnesota state Rep. Marty Seifert, a Republican.
Note: There was more to the story, but this was the only law mentioned which is relevant to our cause.
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#61
La Vina
La Vina
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- Guests
Posted 16 August 2009 - 02:24 PM
NamUs - National Missing Persons Data System-Brandon Swanson -# 2471
https://www.findthem...eport_html/2471
https://www.findthem...eport_html/2471
#62
Kelly
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President and Founder
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Posted 05 September 2009 - 11:35 AM
These are photos provided by Brandon's family, which are favorites of theirs:
[img width=366 height=400]http://img.photobuck...i/BrandonS2.jpg[/img]
[img width=366 height=400]http://img.photobuck...i/BrandonS2.jpg[/img]
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#63
Kelly
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President and Founder
- LocationRenton WA
Posted 17 October 2009 - 07:33 PM
Brandon has been placed on Project Jason's 18 Wheel Angels campaign. A special poster has been made for him and can be downloaded and printed for placement. More information about the program, and the link for the poster can be found here:
http://projectjason.org/18wheel.shtml
In addition to the campaign, Brandon was also featured in a national trucking publications, either Independent Contractor or TruckJobSeekers. These free magazines are distributed in truck stops nationwide and have a circulation of about 150,000.
Independent Contractor and TruckJobSeekers are two of Target Media Partner's many publications. In partnership with Project Jason, they each feature two missing persons each per month. You can pick up your free copies at a local truck stop, but if it's far from you, you may want to call and ask if they carry that magazine. These are NOT with the regular for purchase magazines.
We hope this helps in the search for Brandon. Please consider printing and placing a poster in businesses in your community.
Thank you.
Kelly, Project Jason
http://projectjason.org/18wheel.shtml
In addition to the campaign, Brandon was also featured in a national trucking publications, either Independent Contractor or TruckJobSeekers. These free magazines are distributed in truck stops nationwide and have a circulation of about 150,000.
Independent Contractor and TruckJobSeekers are two of Target Media Partner's many publications. In partnership with Project Jason, they each feature two missing persons each per month. You can pick up your free copies at a local truck stop, but if it's far from you, you may want to call and ask if they carry that magazine. These are NOT with the regular for purchase magazines.
We hope this helps in the search for Brandon. Please consider printing and placing a poster in businesses in your community.
Thank you.
Kelly, Project Jason
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#64
Kelly
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- Administrators
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President and Founder
- LocationRenton WA
Posted 17 October 2009 - 07:41 PM
A story written for the 18 Wheel Angels campaign by Brandon's mother, Annette:
About Brandon
Brandon Victor Swanson was born January 30, 1989 to Brian and Annette Swanson in Spencer, Iowa. Brandon is the older of two children. His younger sister, Jamine, is just 17 months younger; and although they fought – as siblings do – Brandon was very protective of his sister and they were just beginning to develop a wonderful adult bond between them.
Brandon lived at home with his parents and sister in Marshall, Minnesota. He had worked at the local Hy-Vee Food Store in Marshall for four years – the last two in the bakery.
Brandon graduated from Marshall Senior High School in May, 2007. In August, 2007 he began attending classes at Minnesota West Technical and Community College in Canby, MN in the Wind Energy Program. Brandon is an avid believer in natural renewable resources, feeling that we should harness their power and be respectful of our land and resources rather than taking them for granted. Although he loved climbing the wind towers, something more was calling to him and he made plans to attend Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, Iowa in August, 2008. Brandon was enrolled at IWCC with intent to take general courses that would lead him to a four year university to major in a science program.
Brandon enjoys a good debate. A friend of his said there was no point in arguing with Brandon because he always won – he always knew his position, the facts and how to make his case. Brandon enjoys politics, history and music. He often watched CNN, the History and Discovery Channels. He is also an avid reader with a mind like a sponge – everything he took in he retained. We would find him sitting on the couch for hours reading – everything from gnomes and string theory to religion and science fiction. He also enjoys sports – and has a special liking for the MN Twins, whether they are winning or not.
Brandon has a strong sense of family. He purposefully made time to be with his grandparents and parents whether he was helping reside a garage or just going along for the ride. He helped out his family as much as he could – even when he wasn’t sure they deserved help – saying, “they’re family and that’s what you do for family.”
Brandon’s future was bright and full of promise but in the early morning hours of May 14, 2008 it all changed. He was last seen in Canby, MN visiting a friend. His car was found stuck in the ditch and abandoned that afternoon. He has not been seen or heard from since. He is dearly missed and always in our thoughts.
We continue to hold out hope that we will find Brandon. But until then we have focused our grief into making a difference for families in Minnesota who will unfortunately face the same tragedy. The Minnesota legislature passed and the governor signed Brandon’s Law into law on May 7, 2009. Brandon’s Law is Minnesota’s Missing Persons’ Act which went into effect July 1st. On September 1st the work group established by Brandon’s Law released a model policy and standardized missing person form to all law enforcement agencies in the state of Minnesota.
Thank you for taking time to get to know our Brandon. As you travel please consider distributing Brandon’s poster. Wishing you safe travels so that you may return home safely to your family.
Brian, Annette and Jamine
Keep searching, keep hoping, keep praying . . . to bring Brandon home
www.thesearchforbrandon.blogspot.com
September, 2009
Note: Brandon’s Law and the efforts to pass it are a part of Project Jason’s Campaign for the Missing.
About Brandon
Brandon Victor Swanson was born January 30, 1989 to Brian and Annette Swanson in Spencer, Iowa. Brandon is the older of two children. His younger sister, Jamine, is just 17 months younger; and although they fought – as siblings do – Brandon was very protective of his sister and they were just beginning to develop a wonderful adult bond between them.
Brandon lived at home with his parents and sister in Marshall, Minnesota. He had worked at the local Hy-Vee Food Store in Marshall for four years – the last two in the bakery.
Brandon graduated from Marshall Senior High School in May, 2007. In August, 2007 he began attending classes at Minnesota West Technical and Community College in Canby, MN in the Wind Energy Program. Brandon is an avid believer in natural renewable resources, feeling that we should harness their power and be respectful of our land and resources rather than taking them for granted. Although he loved climbing the wind towers, something more was calling to him and he made plans to attend Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, Iowa in August, 2008. Brandon was enrolled at IWCC with intent to take general courses that would lead him to a four year university to major in a science program.
Brandon enjoys a good debate. A friend of his said there was no point in arguing with Brandon because he always won – he always knew his position, the facts and how to make his case. Brandon enjoys politics, history and music. He often watched CNN, the History and Discovery Channels. He is also an avid reader with a mind like a sponge – everything he took in he retained. We would find him sitting on the couch for hours reading – everything from gnomes and string theory to religion and science fiction. He also enjoys sports – and has a special liking for the MN Twins, whether they are winning or not.
Brandon has a strong sense of family. He purposefully made time to be with his grandparents and parents whether he was helping reside a garage or just going along for the ride. He helped out his family as much as he could – even when he wasn’t sure they deserved help – saying, “they’re family and that’s what you do for family.”
Brandon’s future was bright and full of promise but in the early morning hours of May 14, 2008 it all changed. He was last seen in Canby, MN visiting a friend. His car was found stuck in the ditch and abandoned that afternoon. He has not been seen or heard from since. He is dearly missed and always in our thoughts.
We continue to hold out hope that we will find Brandon. But until then we have focused our grief into making a difference for families in Minnesota who will unfortunately face the same tragedy. The Minnesota legislature passed and the governor signed Brandon’s Law into law on May 7, 2009. Brandon’s Law is Minnesota’s Missing Persons’ Act which went into effect July 1st. On September 1st the work group established by Brandon’s Law released a model policy and standardized missing person form to all law enforcement agencies in the state of Minnesota.
Thank you for taking time to get to know our Brandon. As you travel please consider distributing Brandon’s poster. Wishing you safe travels so that you may return home safely to your family.
Brian, Annette and Jamine
Keep searching, keep hoping, keep praying . . . to bring Brandon home
www.thesearchforbrandon.blogspot.com
September, 2009
Note: Brandon’s Law and the efforts to pass it are a part of Project Jason’s Campaign for the Missing.
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#65
Kelly
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President and Founder
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Posted 12 November 2009 - 04:17 PM
http://www.reflector...ged-948804.html
Cleveland's handling of missing people challenged
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
The Associated Press
CLEVELAND — The discovery of 11 victims of an alleged serial killer, most of them poor, drug-addicted black women, has prompted calls for Cleveland police to respond faster and devote more resources to missing-persons cases.
Police, however, say they already have a comprehensive system for finding the lost and can't be held accountable for people they don't know are missing. Confounding the current tragedy, only three of the victims had been reported missing.
The case has raised anew the issues of how and how fast police should react when adults are reported missing — especially departments stretched thin by slashed budgets and stymied by the likelihood that many people go missing voluntarily and have not met foul play.
Encouraged by the U.S. Justice Department in 2005, some states have passed stronger laws requiring police to be more aggressive in searching for missing adults. Just Thursday, authorities in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, home to Cleveland, said they are considering creating a countywide missing-persons unit, in response to the serial killer case.
Authorities say Anthony Sowell lured women into his house in a tough Cleveland neighborhood with the promise of getting high, then strangled them and left their bodies inside or buried in the backyard.
Prosecutors have indicated they may seek the death penalty against Sowell, who remains in jail on five preliminary charges of aggravated murder.
Advocates in Cleveland say a missing-person's bureau might encourage people to come forward when someone disappears. They say some disappearances may go unreported out of a community perception that police wouldn't take seriously the disappearance of a black woman, especially a person struggling with poverty and drugs.
"Maybe black women are not the most important thing in this community to them," said Donnie Pastard of the group Black on Black Crime. "Something's wrong with the police attitude."
Cleveland police dispute such allegations and point to their detailed missing person's policy, updated in August, and say they hope to expand it to a countywide system.
Of the three women reported missing, one was reported to police in suburban Warrensville Heights.
Ohio has systems in place for quickly transmitting statewide all reports of missing children and elderly persons considered at risk.
Steve Loomis, president of the Cleveland Police Patrolman's Association, said that unless a crime is suspected, there's not a lot police can do, especially in a city that has seen dozens of officers laid off in the past few years from budget cuts.
Those cuts eliminated numerous units devoted to street crime, burglaries and community policing, all of which could potentially have helped in the Sowell case, Loomis said.
"I don't know in this world that we live in that we could, at least here in Cleveland ... devote a whole bunch more time to those very general missing-persons reports," Loomis said.
Several states have toughened laws in the last five years requiring police to do more about missing adults, among them Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Nebraska and New Jersey.
Police sometimes resist such efforts, saying the requirement taxes already strained departments and many adults often disappear by choice.
"Some people go missing, not because they've been abducted, but because they've abandoned family members and don't wish further contact," said Douglas Dortenzio, chief of the Wallingford Police Department and president of the Connecticut Police Chiefs Association.
Nationwide, mandates range from compelling departments to take reports immediately to requiring timely DNA testing on family members and any material from the missing, such as hair.
The new laws grew in part from a 2005 Justice Department conference aimed at creating common missing-persons procedures for all states.
Drew Kesse of Bradenton, Fla., ran into police resistance after his daughter Jennifer, 24, disappeared in Orlando three years ago. The responding officer said it was likely she'd just had a fight with her boyfriend.
That didn't sit well with Kesse, who pushed for a 2008 law requiring departments to take missing-persons reports on adults between 18 and 25 and submit to police databases within two hours.
"Everyone is someone's child — I don't care what age you are," said Kesse, 52.
Jennifer Kesse has never been found and Kesse says he has to assume she's dead.
Advocates for stronger laws are also pushing legislation in several more states, including Alabama, Louisiana, Virginia, Wisconsin and South Dakota, according to Kelly Jolkowski, founder of Nebraska-based Project Jason, named for her missing son.
In July, Minnesota began compelling police and sheriffs to start searching right away when adults disappear under suspicious circumstances. Some law enforcement agencies in Minnesota had waited 24 or 48 hours to look into such cases.
The law is named for Brandon Swanson, 19, who disappeared in May 2008 after his car ran off a rural road in western Minnesota. He remains missing.
In Cleveland, Barbara Carmichael filed a missing-person's report Dec. 2, 2008 on her daughter, 52-year-old Tonia Carmichael, with suburban Warrensville Heights police. She told police her daughter was a crack cocaine addict; her family claims that police didn't pursue her disappearance because of her drug history.
Police conducted follow-up searches on Dec. 4, Dec. 23, Feb. 9 and Feb. 10, including checks at several houses, bars and motels, according to a Warrensville Heights police report. Chief Frank Bova said he's satisfied the agency took Tonia Carmichael's case seriously.
Cleveland's handling of missing people challenged
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
The Associated Press
CLEVELAND — The discovery of 11 victims of an alleged serial killer, most of them poor, drug-addicted black women, has prompted calls for Cleveland police to respond faster and devote more resources to missing-persons cases.
Police, however, say they already have a comprehensive system for finding the lost and can't be held accountable for people they don't know are missing. Confounding the current tragedy, only three of the victims had been reported missing.
The case has raised anew the issues of how and how fast police should react when adults are reported missing — especially departments stretched thin by slashed budgets and stymied by the likelihood that many people go missing voluntarily and have not met foul play.
Encouraged by the U.S. Justice Department in 2005, some states have passed stronger laws requiring police to be more aggressive in searching for missing adults. Just Thursday, authorities in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, home to Cleveland, said they are considering creating a countywide missing-persons unit, in response to the serial killer case.
Authorities say Anthony Sowell lured women into his house in a tough Cleveland neighborhood with the promise of getting high, then strangled them and left their bodies inside or buried in the backyard.
Prosecutors have indicated they may seek the death penalty against Sowell, who remains in jail on five preliminary charges of aggravated murder.
Advocates in Cleveland say a missing-person's bureau might encourage people to come forward when someone disappears. They say some disappearances may go unreported out of a community perception that police wouldn't take seriously the disappearance of a black woman, especially a person struggling with poverty and drugs.
"Maybe black women are not the most important thing in this community to them," said Donnie Pastard of the group Black on Black Crime. "Something's wrong with the police attitude."
Cleveland police dispute such allegations and point to their detailed missing person's policy, updated in August, and say they hope to expand it to a countywide system.
Of the three women reported missing, one was reported to police in suburban Warrensville Heights.
Ohio has systems in place for quickly transmitting statewide all reports of missing children and elderly persons considered at risk.
Steve Loomis, president of the Cleveland Police Patrolman's Association, said that unless a crime is suspected, there's not a lot police can do, especially in a city that has seen dozens of officers laid off in the past few years from budget cuts.
Those cuts eliminated numerous units devoted to street crime, burglaries and community policing, all of which could potentially have helped in the Sowell case, Loomis said.
"I don't know in this world that we live in that we could, at least here in Cleveland ... devote a whole bunch more time to those very general missing-persons reports," Loomis said.
Several states have toughened laws in the last five years requiring police to do more about missing adults, among them Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Nebraska and New Jersey.
Police sometimes resist such efforts, saying the requirement taxes already strained departments and many adults often disappear by choice.
"Some people go missing, not because they've been abducted, but because they've abandoned family members and don't wish further contact," said Douglas Dortenzio, chief of the Wallingford Police Department and president of the Connecticut Police Chiefs Association.
Nationwide, mandates range from compelling departments to take reports immediately to requiring timely DNA testing on family members and any material from the missing, such as hair.
The new laws grew in part from a 2005 Justice Department conference aimed at creating common missing-persons procedures for all states.
Drew Kesse of Bradenton, Fla., ran into police resistance after his daughter Jennifer, 24, disappeared in Orlando three years ago. The responding officer said it was likely she'd just had a fight with her boyfriend.
That didn't sit well with Kesse, who pushed for a 2008 law requiring departments to take missing-persons reports on adults between 18 and 25 and submit to police databases within two hours.
"Everyone is someone's child — I don't care what age you are," said Kesse, 52.
Jennifer Kesse has never been found and Kesse says he has to assume she's dead.
Advocates for stronger laws are also pushing legislation in several more states, including Alabama, Louisiana, Virginia, Wisconsin and South Dakota, according to Kelly Jolkowski, founder of Nebraska-based Project Jason, named for her missing son.
In July, Minnesota began compelling police and sheriffs to start searching right away when adults disappear under suspicious circumstances. Some law enforcement agencies in Minnesota had waited 24 or 48 hours to look into such cases.
The law is named for Brandon Swanson, 19, who disappeared in May 2008 after his car ran off a rural road in western Minnesota. He remains missing.
In Cleveland, Barbara Carmichael filed a missing-person's report Dec. 2, 2008 on her daughter, 52-year-old Tonia Carmichael, with suburban Warrensville Heights police. She told police her daughter was a crack cocaine addict; her family claims that police didn't pursue her disappearance because of her drug history.
Police conducted follow-up searches on Dec. 4, Dec. 23, Feb. 9 and Feb. 10, including checks at several houses, bars and motels, according to a Warrensville Heights police report. Chief Frank Bova said he's satisfied the agency took Tonia Carmichael's case seriously.
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#66
Lori Davis
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- Moderators
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Posted 18 January 2010 - 06:07 PM
http://www.cnn.com/2...ldcase.swanson/
Teen drove into ditch, vanished as parents searched
By Alexis Weed, Nancy Grace Producer
January 18, 2010 8:12 a.m. EST
New York (CNN) -- It was the last day of classes, and Brandon Swanson, a 19-year-old freshman at Minnesota West Community and Technical College, was celebrating with his friends.
Swanson called home shortly after midnight May 14, 2008, telling his parents he needed a ride because he had driven into a ditch in the neighboring town of Lynd, Minnesota. Annette and Brian Swanson immediately set out in their pickup to look for their son and his green Chevy Lumina sedan.
"We got in the pickup to go to this spot where he felt he was," Brian Swanson recalled. He thought he knew exactly where his son was, about 10 minutes from their home in Marshall.
"He was absolutely positive he knew where he was," Brian Swanson said. The parents stayed on the phone, talking to their son as they headed to pick him up.
But when they arrived, there was no car and no Brandon. They turned around and flashed the lights on their truck.
"We were saying, 'We're flashing our lights!' " Annette Swanson said. Over the phone, they could hear their son working the light switch in his car. Click-click, click-click.
"Don't you see me?" he asked.
"There was nothing," his father said, "absolutely nothing."
Everyone grew frustrated.
"At one point, he hung up on me, so I called him back and apologized," his mother said.
Swanson told his parents he would walk back to his friend's house in Lynd. His father drove home to drop Annette off and then headed back to look for the teen. They exchanged calls just before 2 a.m. and eventually carried on a long conversation while the younger Swanson was walking, trying to direct his father to where he was.
He told his father to look for him at a nightclub parking lot that was a popular meeting spot in Lynd. But at the 47-minute mark, the call ended abruptly. The teen shouted an expletive, and the phone went dead.
We called at least five or six more times. He never picked up the phone again.
--Brian Swanson, missing teen's father
It was the last time anyone heard from him.
"We called at least five or six more times," his father said. "He never picked up the phone again."
The Swansons turned to their son's friends for help. They searched all night, driving down dirt roads and through farmland. There was no sign of him.
At 6:30 a.m., Annette Swanson called the Lynd Police Department to report Brandon missing, and officers eventually joined the search. They, too, came up with nothing, and a countywide request was dispatched to expand the search.
The response was delayed because, officers pointed out, it was not that unusual for a 19-year-old to stay out all night after finishing college classes, Annette Swanson said.
One remark stayed with her: An officer said that at his age, her son "had a right to be missing."
Phone records later showed that the teen was nowhere near Lynd, where he told his parents he was. His cell phone calls were traced to a tower 20 miles away in Minnesota.
That afternoon, Lyon County police found Swanson's vehicle in Porter, approximately 25 miles from Lynd.
"It was off the side of a field approach, and the vehicle was hung up," Lincoln County Sheriff Jack Vizecky said. "It's sort of a sharp incline, nothing major but enough that the car would get hung up so the wheels are too high off the ground to get any traction."
Nothing else unusual was found at the site, and officers could not determine which direction the teen had headed after he left the vehicle.
"There's grass in the ditch and gravel on the road, so it's possible to leave that vehicle and not leave any tracks," Vizecky said.
Investigators brought in search dogs, and they led investigators to woods by the bank of the Yellow Medicine River. The river's depth ranges from knee high in certain areas to 15 feet in others. At the time Swanson went missing, it was flowing high and fast.
"There are two miles of the river in that area, and it took six hours to walk it," Vizecky said. He said he personally walked the river every day for 30 days.
"At the time, the dogs indicated, and it was believed, that he must have fallen in the river in that area," he added. "So we searched that area, on the premise that he'd be washed downstream."
But investigators are not convinced that the teen fell into the river. Vizecky said Swanson should have been found in the river or downstream, had he fallen in.
Annette Swanson said she is not convinced her son drowned, either.
The dog actually jumped in the river, jumped back out, worked the trail ...
--Annette Swanson, missing teen's mother
"There really is nothing to indicate that he's in the river," she said. According to her, one bloodhound followed a scent from the stranded car down a gravel road to an abandoned farm.
"It was a long trail ... about three miles," she added. The new trail path also led to the Yellow Medicine River. "The dog actually jumped in the river, jumped back out, worked the trail up to another gravel road and then lost the scent," she said.
Vizecky leaves open the possibility of foul play.
"The only thing would have been if someone was in the shadows, and they got him that way," he said. "I can't say there wasn't someone else there, but I can't find any evidence of it."
Cadaver dogs and searchers, he explained, should have found a body or some evidence if Swanson had succumbed to the elements.
"I can't explain why clothing, belongings wouldn't surface," Vizecky said. "I can't explain why after searching for three weeks, [the dogs] could not smell anything."
The Swansons want to know what happened to their son.
"You know people don't vanish into thin air, but it sure seems like he did," Annette Swanson said.
The couple is responsible for the enactment of Brandon's Law, which became effective in Minnesota on July 1, 2009.
The law requires authorities to conduct a preliminary investigation without delay when a missing persons report is received.
Brandon Swanson has brown hair and blue eyes, stands 5'6" and weighs 125 pounds. When last seen, he was wearing blue jeans, a white or black hat twisted to the side, and a white short-sleeved shirt
Anyone with information that could lead to the whereabouts of Brandon Swanson is asked to call the Lincoln County sheriff at (507) 694-1664.
Teen drove into ditch, vanished as parents searched
By Alexis Weed, Nancy Grace Producer
January 18, 2010 8:12 a.m. EST
New York (CNN) -- It was the last day of classes, and Brandon Swanson, a 19-year-old freshman at Minnesota West Community and Technical College, was celebrating with his friends.
Swanson called home shortly after midnight May 14, 2008, telling his parents he needed a ride because he had driven into a ditch in the neighboring town of Lynd, Minnesota. Annette and Brian Swanson immediately set out in their pickup to look for their son and his green Chevy Lumina sedan.
"We got in the pickup to go to this spot where he felt he was," Brian Swanson recalled. He thought he knew exactly where his son was, about 10 minutes from their home in Marshall.
"He was absolutely positive he knew where he was," Brian Swanson said. The parents stayed on the phone, talking to their son as they headed to pick him up.
But when they arrived, there was no car and no Brandon. They turned around and flashed the lights on their truck.
"We were saying, 'We're flashing our lights!' " Annette Swanson said. Over the phone, they could hear their son working the light switch in his car. Click-click, click-click.
"Don't you see me?" he asked.
"There was nothing," his father said, "absolutely nothing."
Everyone grew frustrated.
"At one point, he hung up on me, so I called him back and apologized," his mother said.
Swanson told his parents he would walk back to his friend's house in Lynd. His father drove home to drop Annette off and then headed back to look for the teen. They exchanged calls just before 2 a.m. and eventually carried on a long conversation while the younger Swanson was walking, trying to direct his father to where he was.
He told his father to look for him at a nightclub parking lot that was a popular meeting spot in Lynd. But at the 47-minute mark, the call ended abruptly. The teen shouted an expletive, and the phone went dead.
We called at least five or six more times. He never picked up the phone again.
--Brian Swanson, missing teen's father
It was the last time anyone heard from him.
"We called at least five or six more times," his father said. "He never picked up the phone again."
The Swansons turned to their son's friends for help. They searched all night, driving down dirt roads and through farmland. There was no sign of him.
At 6:30 a.m., Annette Swanson called the Lynd Police Department to report Brandon missing, and officers eventually joined the search. They, too, came up with nothing, and a countywide request was dispatched to expand the search.
The response was delayed because, officers pointed out, it was not that unusual for a 19-year-old to stay out all night after finishing college classes, Annette Swanson said.
One remark stayed with her: An officer said that at his age, her son "had a right to be missing."
Phone records later showed that the teen was nowhere near Lynd, where he told his parents he was. His cell phone calls were traced to a tower 20 miles away in Minnesota.
That afternoon, Lyon County police found Swanson's vehicle in Porter, approximately 25 miles from Lynd.
"It was off the side of a field approach, and the vehicle was hung up," Lincoln County Sheriff Jack Vizecky said. "It's sort of a sharp incline, nothing major but enough that the car would get hung up so the wheels are too high off the ground to get any traction."
Nothing else unusual was found at the site, and officers could not determine which direction the teen had headed after he left the vehicle.
"There's grass in the ditch and gravel on the road, so it's possible to leave that vehicle and not leave any tracks," Vizecky said.
Investigators brought in search dogs, and they led investigators to woods by the bank of the Yellow Medicine River. The river's depth ranges from knee high in certain areas to 15 feet in others. At the time Swanson went missing, it was flowing high and fast.
"There are two miles of the river in that area, and it took six hours to walk it," Vizecky said. He said he personally walked the river every day for 30 days.
"At the time, the dogs indicated, and it was believed, that he must have fallen in the river in that area," he added. "So we searched that area, on the premise that he'd be washed downstream."
But investigators are not convinced that the teen fell into the river. Vizecky said Swanson should have been found in the river or downstream, had he fallen in.
Annette Swanson said she is not convinced her son drowned, either.
The dog actually jumped in the river, jumped back out, worked the trail ...
--Annette Swanson, missing teen's mother
"There really is nothing to indicate that he's in the river," she said. According to her, one bloodhound followed a scent from the stranded car down a gravel road to an abandoned farm.
"It was a long trail ... about three miles," she added. The new trail path also led to the Yellow Medicine River. "The dog actually jumped in the river, jumped back out, worked the trail up to another gravel road and then lost the scent," she said.
Vizecky leaves open the possibility of foul play.
"The only thing would have been if someone was in the shadows, and they got him that way," he said. "I can't say there wasn't someone else there, but I can't find any evidence of it."
Cadaver dogs and searchers, he explained, should have found a body or some evidence if Swanson had succumbed to the elements.
"I can't explain why clothing, belongings wouldn't surface," Vizecky said. "I can't explain why after searching for three weeks, [the dogs] could not smell anything."
The Swansons want to know what happened to their son.
"You know people don't vanish into thin air, but it sure seems like he did," Annette Swanson said.
The couple is responsible for the enactment of Brandon's Law, which became effective in Minnesota on July 1, 2009.
The law requires authorities to conduct a preliminary investigation without delay when a missing persons report is received.
Brandon Swanson has brown hair and blue eyes, stands 5'6" and weighs 125 pounds. When last seen, he was wearing blue jeans, a white or black hat twisted to the side, and a white short-sleeved shirt
Anyone with information that could lead to the whereabouts of Brandon Swanson is asked to call the Lincoln County sheriff at (507) 694-1664.
Lori Davis, Project Jason Forum Moderator
www.projectjason.org
Help us for free when you shop online or do a websearch:
http://www.goodsearc...harityid=857029
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#67
Kelly
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President and Founder
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Posted 18 October 2010 - 05:55 AM
http://www.marshalli...g.html?nav=5015
Still searching
Search teams are still looking for evidence of Brandon Swanson, who disappeared in 2008. Volunteers at a search in the Porter area this weekend say a mix of determination and hope keeps them going.
October 18, 2010 - By Deb Gau
PORTER - It's been more than two years since Brandon Swanson went missing somewhere between Canby and Marshall. But the search is far from over, say the men and women who gathered in Porter to keep looking for signs of Brandon.
"We keep getting clues," in the form of responses from dogs trained to detect human remains, said search manager Jeff Hasse. Search teams won't quit before they follow those clues.
More than 20 people, including some local volunteers, dog handlers, and volunteers from Search, Rescue and Recovery Resources of Minnesota, a non-profit organization, went over an area near Mud Creek northwest of Porter Saturday and Sunday. Although no physical evidence was found, Hasse said search dogs indicated the presence of human remains somewhere in the area.
Swanson, a Marshall resident, was 19 when a cell phone call to his parents ended abruptly on May 14, 2008. Swanson's car was found in a ditch along the Lincoln and Lyon County line road near Taunton. However, multiple searches in Lyon, Lincoln and Yellow Medicine County near the Yellow Medicine River and the towns of Taunton and Porter turned up no other evidence of him.
Hasse said searchers are trying to systematically eliminate areas where it is unlikely Swanson will be found. Team leaders are equipped with GPS units, and Hasse collects the information along with the search teams' reports during debriefing sessions at the Porter fire hall. The fire hall served as search headquarters, where radio communications among the search teams were coordinated, Hasse turned search data into detailed maps, and volunteers returned for rest and food.
Conditions in southwest Minnesota present many challenges for the search, especially for dogs, said Hasse and Deb Doering of SRRRMN. The winds make it hard to pinpoint the source of a scent, and planted fields are off-limits for search teams. Thick vegetation is a problem for both canine and human searchers. Early Saturday morning, volunteers with machetes and brush trimmers waded knee-deep into portions of Mud Creek to cut down thick clumps of cattails.
The cattails had to go before search dogs could check parts of the creek, Doering said.
"It's just like with people. If you come up to some really thick brush, you're going to go around it, not through it," she said.
The pheasant season opener posed a potential risk to search teams, Hasse said, but there were no hunters in the search area Saturday.
Many of this weekend's volunteers had been part of multiple searches for Swanson. Allan Hoseck and Larry Schaffran of Marshall said they had volunteered with past with search efforts, Schaffran since last year and Hoseck since 2008. Hope, and knowing the Swanson family, kept them coming back.
"It would help find an end to this," Hoseck said.
Michael Davis, a search volunteer from Clearbrook, said his decision to volunteer was a matter of, "Do unto others as you'd have done unto you."
"I know if I was the one who was lost, I would want people to look for me," Davis said.
Brandon Swanson's parents, Brian and Annette Swanson of Marshall, were present for this weekend's search. Brian Swanson said the family appreciated all of the volunteers' efforts with the search.
Search teams weren't alone in the field over the weekend. A cameraman followed volunteers as part of a documentary project. Hasse said the search for Brandon Swanson will be one of the stories featured in a film, "Project Jason: A Voice For the Missing." Project Jason is a non-profit organization founded by Kelly Jolkowski, a Nebraska mother whose son Jason has been missing since 2001. One of the group's missions is the passing of state legislation that would improve the response to reports of missing adults.
Brian and Annette Swanson have worked to help create similar legislation for Minnesota. Brandon's Law, which speeds up the investigation process for missing adults, and calls for the release of information that could help find them, was passed in 2009.
Hasse said it's unusual for a search mission to continue as long as the search for Brandon Swanson has. But, he said, the scent clues keep coming, and search teams have to keep following them. There are two possible reasons Swanson hasn't been found yet, Hasse said.
"Either we haven't found the right areas yet, or we have found the right areas and we missed him," he said.
"I think we will be looking at coming back at least one more time this fall," Hasse said. "We'll wait until the crops are out of the fields."
Still searching
Search teams are still looking for evidence of Brandon Swanson, who disappeared in 2008. Volunteers at a search in the Porter area this weekend say a mix of determination and hope keeps them going.
October 18, 2010 - By Deb Gau
PORTER - It's been more than two years since Brandon Swanson went missing somewhere between Canby and Marshall. But the search is far from over, say the men and women who gathered in Porter to keep looking for signs of Brandon.
"We keep getting clues," in the form of responses from dogs trained to detect human remains, said search manager Jeff Hasse. Search teams won't quit before they follow those clues.
More than 20 people, including some local volunteers, dog handlers, and volunteers from Search, Rescue and Recovery Resources of Minnesota, a non-profit organization, went over an area near Mud Creek northwest of Porter Saturday and Sunday. Although no physical evidence was found, Hasse said search dogs indicated the presence of human remains somewhere in the area.
Swanson, a Marshall resident, was 19 when a cell phone call to his parents ended abruptly on May 14, 2008. Swanson's car was found in a ditch along the Lincoln and Lyon County line road near Taunton. However, multiple searches in Lyon, Lincoln and Yellow Medicine County near the Yellow Medicine River and the towns of Taunton and Porter turned up no other evidence of him.
Hasse said searchers are trying to systematically eliminate areas where it is unlikely Swanson will be found. Team leaders are equipped with GPS units, and Hasse collects the information along with the search teams' reports during debriefing sessions at the Porter fire hall. The fire hall served as search headquarters, where radio communications among the search teams were coordinated, Hasse turned search data into detailed maps, and volunteers returned for rest and food.
Conditions in southwest Minnesota present many challenges for the search, especially for dogs, said Hasse and Deb Doering of SRRRMN. The winds make it hard to pinpoint the source of a scent, and planted fields are off-limits for search teams. Thick vegetation is a problem for both canine and human searchers. Early Saturday morning, volunteers with machetes and brush trimmers waded knee-deep into portions of Mud Creek to cut down thick clumps of cattails.
The cattails had to go before search dogs could check parts of the creek, Doering said.
"It's just like with people. If you come up to some really thick brush, you're going to go around it, not through it," she said.
The pheasant season opener posed a potential risk to search teams, Hasse said, but there were no hunters in the search area Saturday.
Many of this weekend's volunteers had been part of multiple searches for Swanson. Allan Hoseck and Larry Schaffran of Marshall said they had volunteered with past with search efforts, Schaffran since last year and Hoseck since 2008. Hope, and knowing the Swanson family, kept them coming back.
"It would help find an end to this," Hoseck said.
Michael Davis, a search volunteer from Clearbrook, said his decision to volunteer was a matter of, "Do unto others as you'd have done unto you."
"I know if I was the one who was lost, I would want people to look for me," Davis said.
Brandon Swanson's parents, Brian and Annette Swanson of Marshall, were present for this weekend's search. Brian Swanson said the family appreciated all of the volunteers' efforts with the search.
Search teams weren't alone in the field over the weekend. A cameraman followed volunteers as part of a documentary project. Hasse said the search for Brandon Swanson will be one of the stories featured in a film, "Project Jason: A Voice For the Missing." Project Jason is a non-profit organization founded by Kelly Jolkowski, a Nebraska mother whose son Jason has been missing since 2001. One of the group's missions is the passing of state legislation that would improve the response to reports of missing adults.
Brian and Annette Swanson have worked to help create similar legislation for Minnesota. Brandon's Law, which speeds up the investigation process for missing adults, and calls for the release of information that could help find them, was passed in 2009.
Hasse said it's unusual for a search mission to continue as long as the search for Brandon Swanson has. But, he said, the scent clues keep coming, and search teams have to keep following them. There are two possible reasons Swanson hasn't been found yet, Hasse said.
"Either we haven't found the right areas yet, or we have found the right areas and we missed him," he said.
"I think we will be looking at coming back at least one more time this fall," Hasse said. "We'll wait until the crops are out of the fields."
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#68
Jenn
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Advanced Member
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Posted 18 November 2010 - 10:04 AM
Jennifer, Project Jason Forum Moderator
www.projectjason.org
Help us for free when you shop online or do a websearch:
http://www.goodsearc...harityid=857029
Help us find the missing: Become an AAN Member
http://www.projectja...awareness.shtml
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
www.projectjason.org
Help us for free when you shop online or do a websearch:
http://www.goodsearc...harityid=857029
Help us find the missing: Become an AAN Member
http://www.projectja...awareness.shtml
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#69
Lori Davis
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- Moderators
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Forum Team Leader
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Posted 15 May 2011 - 03:57 PM
3 Years Later, Search Continues For Swanson
By Hailey Higgins
Published: May 15, 2011, 5:25 PM
PORTER, MINN. - This weekend marks three years since a Minnesota teenager went missing. Search crews are closer than they've ever been to find Brandon Swanson, but they're still coming up empty handed.
The 19-year-old's car got stuck outside Porter, Minnesota in the middle of the night on May 14th, 2008. While trying to walk towards the glow of city lights on the horizon, he called his parents on his cell phone and told them he was lost.
Read more: http://www.keloland....2.cfm?Id=115242
By Hailey Higgins
Published: May 15, 2011, 5:25 PM
PORTER, MINN. - This weekend marks three years since a Minnesota teenager went missing. Search crews are closer than they've ever been to find Brandon Swanson, but they're still coming up empty handed.
The 19-year-old's car got stuck outside Porter, Minnesota in the middle of the night on May 14th, 2008. While trying to walk towards the glow of city lights on the horizon, he called his parents on his cell phone and told them he was lost.
Read more: http://www.keloland....2.cfm?Id=115242
Lori Davis, Project Jason Forum Moderator
www.projectjason.org
Help us for free when you shop online or do a websearch:
http://www.goodsearc...harityid=857029
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#70
Lori Davis
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- Moderators
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Forum Team Leader
- LocationSoutheastern Ohio
Posted 25 November 2011 - 05:26 PM
http://news.blogs.cn...ple-in-50-days/
50 people in 50 days: Teen drove into ditch, vanished as parents searched
Minnesota college freshman Brandon Swanson, shown with his sister, Jamine, disappeared in May 2008.
March 8th, 2011
03:35 PM ET
"Editor's note: Nancy Grace's new show on HLN, "Nancy Grace: America's Missing," is dedicated to finding 50 people in 50 days. As part of the effort, which relies heavily on audience participation, CNN.com's news blog This Just In will feature the stories of the missing.
This is the 37th case, and it will be shown Tuesday night on HLN.
Brandon Swanson called his parents shortly after midnight on May 14, 2008, to ask them for a ride after driving his car into a ditch. His parents set out in their pickup truck to find him in the nearby town of Lynd, Minnesota. Brandon became frustrated as their efforts to find him turned fruitless. They exchanged several calls just before 2 a.m. and eventually carried on a long conversation while the younger Swanson was walking, trying to direct his father to where he was.
He told his father to look for him at a nightclub parking lot that was a popular meeting spot in Lynd. But at the 47-minute mark, the call ended abruptly. The teen shouted an expletive, and the phone went dead.
It was the last time anyone heard from him.
At 6:30 a.m., Annette Swanson called the Lynd Police Department to report Brandon missing, and officers eventually joined the search. They, too, came up with nothing, and a countywide request was dispatched to expand the search.
Phone records later showed that the teen was nowhere near Lynd, where he told his parents he was. His cell phone calls were traced to a tower 20 miles away in Minnesota.
Anyone with information that could lead to the whereabouts of Brandon Swanson is asked to call the Lincoln County Sheriff at (507) 694-1664.
50 people in 50 days: Teen drove into ditch, vanished as parents searched
Minnesota college freshman Brandon Swanson, shown with his sister, Jamine, disappeared in May 2008.
March 8th, 2011
03:35 PM ET
"Editor's note: Nancy Grace's new show on HLN, "Nancy Grace: America's Missing," is dedicated to finding 50 people in 50 days. As part of the effort, which relies heavily on audience participation, CNN.com's news blog This Just In will feature the stories of the missing.
This is the 37th case, and it will be shown Tuesday night on HLN.
Brandon Swanson called his parents shortly after midnight on May 14, 2008, to ask them for a ride after driving his car into a ditch. His parents set out in their pickup truck to find him in the nearby town of Lynd, Minnesota. Brandon became frustrated as their efforts to find him turned fruitless. They exchanged several calls just before 2 a.m. and eventually carried on a long conversation while the younger Swanson was walking, trying to direct his father to where he was.
He told his father to look for him at a nightclub parking lot that was a popular meeting spot in Lynd. But at the 47-minute mark, the call ended abruptly. The teen shouted an expletive, and the phone went dead.
It was the last time anyone heard from him.
At 6:30 a.m., Annette Swanson called the Lynd Police Department to report Brandon missing, and officers eventually joined the search. They, too, came up with nothing, and a countywide request was dispatched to expand the search.
Phone records later showed that the teen was nowhere near Lynd, where he told his parents he was. His cell phone calls were traced to a tower 20 miles away in Minnesota.
Anyone with information that could lead to the whereabouts of Brandon Swanson is asked to call the Lincoln County Sheriff at (507) 694-1664.
Lori Davis, Project Jason Forum Moderator
www.projectjason.org
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If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#71
Kelly
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President and Founder
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Posted 11 June 2013 - 10:38 AM
http://www.twincitie...ce-porch-lights
Five years after Brandon Swanson's disappearance, the porch light's still on
By Mary Divine
Posted: 05/13/2013 12:01:00 AM CDT
Updated: 05/13/2013 10:11:13 PM CDT
It's been five years, but Brian and Annette Swanson parents still keep the porch light burning for their missing son.
The Swansons turned on the light May 14, 2008 -- the night Brandon Swanson disappeared while driving home to Marshall, Minn.
"There's no reason to turn it off now," Brian Swanson said Monday, May 13. "I'm pretty sure we're not going to find him alive, but I still want to believe that we will find him. That's probably a stretch, but I still want to believe that."
Brandon Swanson, who was 19 when he disappeared, went into a ditch on a gravel road. He called home at 1:54 a.m. and asked his parents to pick him up near Lynd, a small town southwest of Marshall. He said he would walk toward town.
As Brian and Annette Swanson drove toward Lynd, Brian talked to Brandon on his cellphone. "I talked to him for 47 minutes, and all of a sudden, he said, 'Oh, s---!' and the phone went dead," Brian Swanson said. "There was nothing after that."
Authorities originally suspected Brandon Swanson had fallen into the Yellow Medicine River but later concentrated on an area near Mud Creek, a few miles northwest of Porter. The last official search was conducted in October 2011.
Since becoming the lead law-enforcement agency on the case in 2010, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has received 75 tips about Brandon, said Drew Evans, assistant superintendent for the BCA. The agency has received three tips since April 1, including one just two weeks
ago, he said.
"We continue to follow up on any and all tips we receive," Evans said. "Our goal is the same goal as everybody else: we want to see Brandon brought home, and we want to find him. We will continue to keep this as an active investigation until we have answers."
More than 500 volunteers, including 34 dog handlers from nine different states, spent more than 120 days searching for Brandon and covered part of 120 square miles, said Jeff Hasse, the search manager.
"It's by far the biggest search I've ever been involved in terms of length of time, number of missions and number of searchers involved," said Hasse, founder of Midwest Technical Rescue Training Associates, a nonprofit organization that teaches technical rescue skills to public-safety providers."I think time favors the search," Hasse said. "I think eventually something will be found. I am hopeful."
Brandon graduated from Marshall High School in 2007 and spent a year studying wind energy at Minnesota West Community College in Canby.
He was last seen wearing baggy jeans, a blue-striped polo shirt, a black hooded sweatshirt, a white Twins baseball cap, wire-rimmed glasses and a sterling-silver chain necklace. His green Chevy Lumina was found near Taunton, between Marshall and Canby, not anywhere near where he told his parents he thought he was. His parents believe he became confused wandering around in the dark.
Officials say there is no evidence of foul play. There also is no indication that Brandon staged his own disappearance. Brian Swanson agrees. "We were very close, and that's not something he would have done," he said.
A year after Brandon's disappearance, the Minnesota Legislature passed a law requiring law-enforcement authorities to respond more aggressively to cases in which adults disappear under suspicious or dangerous circumstances. Brandon's Law requires a more aggressive response for missing adults up to age 21 and older adults who disappear under suspicious circumstances.
As for the five-year anniversary on Tuesday, Brian and Annette Swanson have nothing major planned, he said.
"I know that we'll give each other a long hug," he said. "It's not that we have forgotten Brandon or anything like that. It's just that we searched extensively for 3-1/2 to 4 years ... It hurts."
TO HELP
Anyone with information about Brandon Swanson's disappearance is asked to call the BCA Tip Line at 1-877-996-6222 or email bca.coldcase@state.mn.us.
Five years after Brandon Swanson's disappearance, the porch light's still on
By Mary Divine
Posted: 05/13/2013 12:01:00 AM CDT
Updated: 05/13/2013 10:11:13 PM CDT
It's been five years, but Brian and Annette Swanson parents still keep the porch light burning for their missing son.
The Swansons turned on the light May 14, 2008 -- the night Brandon Swanson disappeared while driving home to Marshall, Minn.
"There's no reason to turn it off now," Brian Swanson said Monday, May 13. "I'm pretty sure we're not going to find him alive, but I still want to believe that we will find him. That's probably a stretch, but I still want to believe that."
Brandon Swanson, who was 19 when he disappeared, went into a ditch on a gravel road. He called home at 1:54 a.m. and asked his parents to pick him up near Lynd, a small town southwest of Marshall. He said he would walk toward town.
As Brian and Annette Swanson drove toward Lynd, Brian talked to Brandon on his cellphone. "I talked to him for 47 minutes, and all of a sudden, he said, 'Oh, s---!' and the phone went dead," Brian Swanson said. "There was nothing after that."
Authorities originally suspected Brandon Swanson had fallen into the Yellow Medicine River but later concentrated on an area near Mud Creek, a few miles northwest of Porter. The last official search was conducted in October 2011.
Since becoming the lead law-enforcement agency on the case in 2010, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has received 75 tips about Brandon, said Drew Evans, assistant superintendent for the BCA. The agency has received three tips since April 1, including one just two weeks
ago, he said.
"We continue to follow up on any and all tips we receive," Evans said. "Our goal is the same goal as everybody else: we want to see Brandon brought home, and we want to find him. We will continue to keep this as an active investigation until we have answers."
More than 500 volunteers, including 34 dog handlers from nine different states, spent more than 120 days searching for Brandon and covered part of 120 square miles, said Jeff Hasse, the search manager.
"It's by far the biggest search I've ever been involved in terms of length of time, number of missions and number of searchers involved," said Hasse, founder of Midwest Technical Rescue Training Associates, a nonprofit organization that teaches technical rescue skills to public-safety providers."I think time favors the search," Hasse said. "I think eventually something will be found. I am hopeful."
Brandon graduated from Marshall High School in 2007 and spent a year studying wind energy at Minnesota West Community College in Canby.
He was last seen wearing baggy jeans, a blue-striped polo shirt, a black hooded sweatshirt, a white Twins baseball cap, wire-rimmed glasses and a sterling-silver chain necklace. His green Chevy Lumina was found near Taunton, between Marshall and Canby, not anywhere near where he told his parents he thought he was. His parents believe he became confused wandering around in the dark.
Officials say there is no evidence of foul play. There also is no indication that Brandon staged his own disappearance. Brian Swanson agrees. "We were very close, and that's not something he would have done," he said.
A year after Brandon's disappearance, the Minnesota Legislature passed a law requiring law-enforcement authorities to respond more aggressively to cases in which adults disappear under suspicious or dangerous circumstances. Brandon's Law requires a more aggressive response for missing adults up to age 21 and older adults who disappear under suspicious circumstances.
As for the five-year anniversary on Tuesday, Brian and Annette Swanson have nothing major planned, he said.
"I know that we'll give each other a long hug," he said. "It's not that we have forgotten Brandon or anything like that. It's just that we searched extensively for 3-1/2 to 4 years ... It hurts."
TO HELP
Anyone with information about Brandon Swanson's disappearance is asked to call the BCA Tip Line at 1-877-996-6222 or email bca.coldcase@state.mn.us.
Kelly Murphy, Mother of Missing Jason Jolkowski
President and Founder,
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Please help us in our mission as a 501 c 3 nonprofit: http://projectjason....y-campaign.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
#72
Deborah
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Posted 03 May 2016 - 04:35 PM
Deborah Cox, Volunteer
Case Verification
Project Jason
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If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
Case Verification
Project Jason
www.projectjason.org
Help us find the missing: Become an AAN Member
http://www.projectja.../awareness.html
If you have seen any of our missing persons, please call the law enforcement agency listed on the post. All missing persons are loved by someone, and their families deserve to find the answers they seek in regards to the disappearance.
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