Police this afternoon were looking for a mentally ill woman who they believe abducted her 19-month-old granddaughter.
An AMBER Alert for the two was issued at 4:30 a.m. today.
Acacia Patience Bishop, 19 months, disappeared about 6 p.m. Sunday while staying with her maternal great-grandparents, Salt Lake County Sheriff's deputy Peggy Faulkner said. The child's parents had left the little girl there, expecting to be gone just an hour; the great-grandparents turned their backs for "just a minute" and the child was gone, Faulkner said.
Family members believe the child's grandmother took her, and police are now looking for 38-year-old Kelley Jean Lodmell, who was also at the residence at 455 S. 785 East.
"I know that my mother needs professional help," said the child's mother during today's noon news conference. "I'm very concerned about their well-being and safety."
Lodmell took the child once before, about a year ago, Faulkner said. But in that instance, the family was able to locate the woman within several hours and police were not called.
Lodmell, who has a criminal history that includes arrests for drug possession and aggravated assault, is described by family members as suffering from serious mental illnesses, which is one reason authorities are concerned about the girl.
"She's usually safe around others' supervision," Casey Lodmell, 22, said of her mother. "I didn't think she would go this far."
In order to issue an AMBER Alert, four criteria must be established: The child is believed to have been abducted, the child is 15 years old or younger, the child is believed to be in imminent danger, and there is sufficient information that can be distributed to the public that could result in the child's return.
Acacia, who is about 2 feet 6 inches tall and weighs about 35 pounds, has light brown hair and blue eyes. She was last seen wearing a pink sundress with white sunflowers.
Lodmell is described as 5 feet 2 inches tall, 140 pounds, with dark brown hair and hazel eyes. She has a tattoo of a rose on her right ankle and one of flames on her left thigh. She was last seen driving a gray 1985 Oldsmobile 98, license number 988LGK, Faulkner said. Police believe Lodmell may be leaving the state and headed to either California or Montana.
"Or she could still be in the valley, we don't know," Faulkner said.
Lodmell was last arrested by South Salt Lake police in January. She was booked into the county jail for investigation of intoxication and aggravated assault. Faulkner had no details on that arrest. Lodmell's address in jail records is listed as "transient."
The alert comes one day after the country recognized National Missing Children's Day.
Prior to passage of the national AMBER Alert law in April, Utah was one of nine states with a statewide alert system. The Rachael Alert — named for Rachael Runyan, a Sunset 3-year-old who was abducted and murdered in 1982 — had been in place since May 2002 and was used for the first time when Elizabeth Smart was taken from her home at knifepoint last June. It was used again in January of this year when an infant was taken from the ZCMI Center.
The national AMBER Alert is named for Amber Hagerman, a 9-year-old Texas girl who was abducted and found murdered. Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff changed the name of the local law so as to avoid any confusion when alerts are issued.
In early May, an AMBER Alert was issued for a St. Cloud, Minn., teenager who was reported missing from her home. Cindy Jeanette Bruno, 11, was found traveling on U.S. 40 near Heber City with her alleged abductor, Jose Jimenez Andrade. The van the pair were traveling in was recognized by a Utah Highway Patrol trooper. Andrade, 21, is not facing federal kidnapping charges because Bruno said she left voluntarily. Instead, Andrade has been indicted by a Minnesota federal grand jury for alleged violations of federal immigration law.
E-MAIL: jdobner@desnews.com