She Seeks Justice

On November 23, 1988, six-year-old Jessica R. Leininger was staying at her maternal grandmother’s home in Bentonville, Arkansas. Her father reportedly had legal custody of her, but that day Jessica was taken by her non-custodial mother. Neither mother nor daughter has been heard from since. Thirty-seven years later, what strikes me most about Jessica’s case is how little information is publicly available. We don’t have a publicly available photograph accompanying the case information I found. We don’t have basic identifying information about her mother. We don’t know where investigators believed they might have gone or whether Jessica may have grown up under another name. If Jessica is alive today, she is 44 years old. That is why I am asking Northwest Arkansas to help. Someone remembers this family. Someone may have gone to school with Jessica, known her parents or grandmother, lived nearby, or remember hearing about the disappearance in 1988. Somewhere there may be an old school phot...

For nearly two decades, the disappearance of Madeleine McCann has been consumed by arguments about her parents. Their decision to leave three small children alone was reckless, but recklessness is not proof of murder, and the public evidence still leaves room for a far more frightening possibility: a child predator may have been watching, recognized an opportunity, and entered Apartment 5A while the adults were at dinner. In my latest Substack article, I examine the full Madeleine McCann timeline, the Smith family sighting, the pattern of sexual intrusions into Algarve holiday apartments, the investigation of Christian Brueckner, and why I believe the child-predator abduction theory fits the known facts more convincingly than a parental cover-up. This is a detailed, evidence-based look at what may have happened in Praia da Luz on May 3, 2007. Read the full article here: https://faithfireandtheforgotten.substack.com/p/what-happened-to-madeleine-mccann #MadeleineMcCann #MissingChildr...

I have spent years telling the stories other people would rather leave buried. This time, the story is mine. I grew up in the Church of the First Born, a secluded faith-healing sect that shaped how I understood God, illness, obedience, family, and what could happen when someone questioned the beliefs holding the community together. This is not simply a story from my distant past. The church still stands, it remains active, and people that I am related to continue to attend. Writing this required me to confront the complicated truth that people can be sincere in their faith and still participate in a system that causes harm. I did not write this to attack God or mock prayer. I wrote it because my faith no longer requires my silence, especially when children’s lives, family relationships, and spiritual authority are involved. This is one of the most personal pieces I have ever shared. It is about where I came from, what the historical record reveals, and why silence so often protects sys...

She was just 9 years old when she disappeared from her home in Shelby, North Carolina, during the early morning hours of February 14, 2000. Since then, her case has become one of the most recognized—and most perplexing—missing child investigations in America. Recent developments have renewed hope that answers may finally be within reach, but many questions remain. I spent countless hours researching law enforcement records, timelines, court documents, and credible reporting to create what I hope is the most comprehensive, factual account of Asha's case. This isn't built on internet rumors or sensational theories. It's a carefully documented timeline that follows the investigation from the night Asha disappeared through the major developments that have reshaped the case more than two decades later. If you care about cold cases, missing children, and the pursuit of justice, I hope you'll read it—and share it. Every new set of eyes helps keep Asha's story alive. Rea...

She was only 17 years old. She was four months pregnant. She left home expecting to return—and she never did. More than 30 years have passed since Angela Freeman vanished from Petal, Mississippi. Her abandoned car was found near Mahned Bridge. Blood evidence was recovered. Investigators believe she was the victim of foul play. Yet no one has ever been held accountable, and Angela has never been found. Behind every cold case is a family forced to live with unanswered questions. Behind every missing person's poster is a life that mattered. I take a closer look at Angela's disappearance, the investigation, the evidence, and the heartbreaking search for justice in my latest Faith, Fire & the Forgotten story. Read it here: https://faithfireandtheforgotten.substack.com/p/the-girl-who-never-came-home If this story moves you, please share it. Someone, somewhere, still knows what happened to Angela Freeman.