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msar-riders - Re: [MSAR] SAR ends with body found in Georgia

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  • From: una.smith@att.net
  • To: msar-riders@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [MSAR] SAR ends with body found in Georgia
  • Date: Thu, 15 Nov 2007 13:40:19 +0000


Susan Wright wrote:
> Although horses were not used in this search, I find Tim Miller's comments
> (Texas EquuSearch) very interesting.

> http://www.dailyhome.com/news/2007/dh-localnews-1114-cnorwood-7k13v4124.htm

Thanks for this, Susan. I didn't know about it. The location is in Carroll
County Georgia (USA), west of Atlanta. I hope after all the discussion here
about MSAR in Georgia someone on this list was in the loop and participated.
I notice the article mentions many horses and ATVs were brought to the search
but the search area had too many fences.

According to the article, the subject's mother said the body was found in “an
area that [Tim Miller] insisted had to be re-searched, over the objection of
law enforcement. They said it had already been physically searched by dogs
and helicopters, but he went with his experience.” Tim Miller said “there had
been a lot of searches in the area, and they were using seasoned, certified
cadaver dogs and helicopters. The canine handler said there was no point. But
a team did find him, and they did exactly what they were supposed to do. They
noticed a white baseball cap, then another piece of clothing, and then they
noticed an odor. So they backed up to about 20 feet away and they called in
law enforcement.”

TX EquusSearch specializes in searches for people who likely were victims of
crime. That means a body often will have been concealed. Which means that
in the search extra effort may need to be spent searching high probability
areas that are difficult to search. In any search, all areas close to the
subject's vehicle should be searched over and over again. If a case like
this, within that high-effort zone still more effort needs to be spent on
searching wherever a body could be concealed: water, thickets, tall weeds,
etc.

It is a very common mistake to search an area once and declare it "clear",
and put it at the bottom of the list of areas to search again. Some people
who study search methods recommend that we delete this use of "clear" from
our SAR terminology and say instead "searched with X man-hours of effort."

Susan, have I addressed what interested you in Tim Miller's comments?

Una Smith
New Mexico




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