Jennifer Cahill-Shadle disappeared one year ago Friday and dead-end leads have left police, family and friends still desperate to find out what could have happened to her.
As the anniversary of her disappearance arrives, Cahill-Shadle’s cousin Amy Mekelberg says, “The only thing that we hope for is that there is some sort of progress and new leads.”
Cahill-Shadle – who authorities describe as having brown hair, blue eyes and 5 feet 4 inches tall – was last seen at around 5 p.m. on May 15, 2014, leaving the Walmart on North Atherton Street in Ferguson Township.
Cahill-Shadle had returned to the State College area the month before her last sighting to live closer to her children and was last known to be staying at the Roadway Inn in State College, according to the Facebook group dedicated to finding her.
Laura Shadle, one of Cahill-Shadle’s three children, says she was the last person to speak with her mother. After that conversation, she and her family are left with only unanswered questions.
“No one is entirely sure where the investigation is going,” Laura Shadle says.
With the case’s limited information, Shadle believes that police are doing everything they can do within their legal capacity.
Ferguson Township Detective Jonathan Mayers, who is heading the investigation, says there is still no proof that there was a crime involved in Cahill-Shadle’s disappearance, which has made it hard for police to obtain search warrants.
Cahill-Shadle was believed to have been sighted in both Ohio and Pennsylvania but after further investigation it was discovered that those sightings were not Cahill-Shadle, according to Mayers.
Mayer’s says the department has reached out to several people in the community that she interacted with but none of those conversations have brought police any closer to finding out what happened to her.
Shadle believes her mother is still alive and Mekelburg says she is not the type to disappear voluntarily or cut off contact with her family.
“The most frustrating part in the hope of finding Cahill-Shadle is continuing to keep it alive in the media and keep the story out there in the public’s mind,” Mayers says. “I believe there is someone out there with information and we are hoping that they are brave enough to come forward.”
Kenneth Mains, who is the founder of the American Investigative Society and Cold Cases, agrees that the most important thing to do after the first 48 to 72 hours is keeping the case in the public.
“With the advent of social media, it is very easy to do that,” he says.
The AISOCC is an organization that specializes in missing persons and cold cases providing comprehensive reports back to law enforcement, Mains says, although, the AISOCC is not involved in Cahill-Shadle’s case.
Ferguson Township police have entered Cahill-Shadle into various databases including the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.
The database allows police agencies to connect missing persons with unidentified remains.
“I’m not saying that is what is occurring in this case,” Mayers says, but in the pursuit of discovering what happened to Cahill-Shadle the department continues to look through these databases for leads.
Mekelburg says that Cahill-Shadle’s mother, Johanna Zmuida, has also put new posters up in the State College area. Shadle says she and others will continue to circulate posters and reach out to anyone who may have information on the case.
“Hopefully someone will see her face and have something to bring forward, because she is missed and we want her back,” Mekelburg says. “There has to be a witness.”
The family is also working with a private investigator and is constantly seeking out new leads, Mekelburg adds.
Mains says the best thing detectives in missing person cases can do is continue talking to families, friends, establishments and anything else related to the missing person.
“That’s the only thing you can do to solve the case,” he says. “You just can’t wane in the desire to solve the case.”
THE CAHILL-SHADLE FILE
Age: 48
Sex: Female
Height: 5-foot-4
Weight: 115 pounds
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Light brown, curly
Race: White
Last seen: May 15, 2014 in North Atherton Walmart parking lot
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