Missing mother, daughter case continues in Arkansas, turns up no major leads

Terri Russo (center), sister of Carol Davidson, is comforted by family members Dec. 14 during a candlelight vigil for Davidson and daughter RoseMarry, who were last seen Nov. 12 near Siloam Springs. Hundreds of friends and supporters participated in the vigil to give support to the family as they continue to search for answers in the disappearance of Davidson and RoseMarry.
Terri Russo (center), sister of Carol Davidson, is comforted by family members Dec. 14 during a candlelight vigil for Davidson and daughter RoseMarry, who were last seen Nov. 12 near Siloam Springs. Hundreds of friends and supporters participated in the vigil to give support to the family as they continue to search for answers in the disappearance of Davidson and RoseMarry.

Investigators say they have few firm clues about the whereabouts of a Northwest Arkansas woman and her young daughter about a month and a half after their disappearance.

"No single piece of information" has pointed in one direction over another to find Carol Davidson, 35, and 22-month-old RoseMarry, according to a Siloam Springs news release about the investigation almost two weeks ago. No additional information has been released since, and a police captain with the city didn't return phone messages late last week requesting comment.

Missing person descriptions

Carol Davidson, 35, is 5-foot-8, weighs 130 pounds and has brown eyes and hair. She has a tattoo on her left upper arm of the names “Dyllan,” “Halley,” “Summer,” with a black curved line above and below them. RoseMarry Davidson is 2-foot-6, weighs 40 pounds and has light brown hair and hazel eyes. Anyone with information about these two people is urged to call 911 or 800-843-5678, or reach the Siloam Springs Police Department at 479-524-4110 and tips@siloamsprings.….

Source: Staff report

"They are just continuing to follow leads," city spokeswoman Holland Hayden said earlier this month, referring to the city's task force continuing to work the case since searches involving the FBI and other agencies halted in late November.

The FBI office in Little Rock referred questions to Siloam Springs police.

Davidson and her daughter have been missing since Veterans Day weekend, when they were last seen at a Siloam Springs recreational vehicle park. Davidson's 1999 Dodge Caravan was found a few days later around Lookout Tower Road, an isolated stretch running through the Lake Wedington section of the Ozark National Forest. A baby bottle, a diaper bag, a box of keepsakes and documents and clothing for both people were inside, police said.

Davidson days earlier had gone to an Oklahoma state park for the holiday, investigators said. Hayden said it's unclear why Davidson was on Lookout Tower Road.

Terri Russo, Davidson's sister and a real estate agent, said the family was convinced someone forced or compelled Davidson to leave, though investigators haven't announced anything along those lines. She struggled against tears speaking to a group of about 70 people who turned out in freezing temperatures for a prayer and candlelight vigil at Arvest Ballpark on Dec. 14.

"To think she would walk away from the amount of love we gave her, it just baffles me. It doesn't make any sense," Russo said, pointing to the support her sister needed and received from friends and family. "She didn't voluntarily do this."

Russo announced on Facebook on Thursday the family set up a GoFundMe campaign and would give several thousand dollars to whoever would bring the pair home before Christmas Day.

"I can't (bear) the thought of seeing my family heartbroken and in tears on Christmas," she wrote. "Please have mercy on our family and let our girls come home."

Russo didn't return multiple messages during the past several weeks to talk about her sister's personality and circumstances. Davidson's mother didn't respond to a message, and a phone number listed under her name had been disconnected. Attempts to find contact information for RoseMarry's father, Michael Reed, were unsuccessful.

Washington County Circuit Court records show pieces of Davidson's relatively turbulent life over the past decade or so. She was sentenced to three years' probation for a 2004 possession of ecstasy charge, for example. Two years later the court gave custody of one of her daughters to her mother, ruling Davidson was unfit because of methamphetamine use.

Reed sued Davidson in late 2015 for custody of RoseMarry, claiming Davidson was a habitual alcohol abuser and lived with him until her recent arrest for felony domestic battery in the presence of a child. She pleaded guilty after the charge was downgraded to a misdemeanor and received one year of probation.

The court in August gave Davidson primary custody, and Reed received visitation rights. Hayden in November told the Siloam Springs Herald Leader that Reed and many others had been questioned during the investigation.

Russo described Davidson as funny and warm in a series of Facebook posts since the disappearance. She often shares information on other missing person cases and prays for her sister and niece's return. The last time Russo was with her sister, she was helping Davidson prepare for a date, Russo wrote, occasionally mentioning the financial and moral support the rest of the family gave Davidson.

"This behavior is not like my sister as she depended on her family on a daily basis, so we know she is in need of help wherever her and the baby are," Russo wrote Nov. 17.

Davidson's three other children and the rest of the family have been distraught at her absence, Russo said. On Dec. 9, she wrote that her father went to the hospital because of the strain and worry.

"Every time the phone rings, we all dart to the phone praying that it's Carol," Russo wrote Nov. 27. She added a week later: "We won't give up and we will make sure this monster that has you pays for the pain they are causing our family."

NW News on 12/26/2016

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