Lindsey Baum
"Monsters do exist. When you tell your kids they don't, you're lying to them."
So said Melissa Baum Thursday afternoon at a press conference in McCleary. Her daughter Lindsey disappeared in 2009 at the age of 10, just blocks from home.
Her remains were discovered last fall and positively identified just last month. This was the first time the mother has spoken publicly.
She praised the work of investigators, including Grays Harbor County Sheriff Rick Scott and his deputies, FBI agent Kurt Ronnow and his team, and the many agencies, including the McCleary Police Department, for their efforts to find her daughter.
"I want to also thank anyone who ever just said a prayer for my little 10-year-old girl," said Baum.
She continued, "There's a monster out there who stole my 10-year-old little girl, killed her and dumped her like she was trash. The people who did this to Lindsey need to be punished."
The Sheriff's Office distributed a new flier asking for the public's help in identifying witnesses. On a table behind the many news cameras was a handful of black and gray wristbands reading "Justice for Lindsey." Melissa and a few others in the gallery at the McCleary Community Center were wearing "Justice for Lindsey" t-shirts emblazoned with a police badge with Lindsey's face superimposed over the center.
Lindsey's remains were discovered by hunters in the fall of 2017 in a remote area about 20 miles west of Ellensburg. The remains, as they at that time were not connected to a known crime, sat awaiting forensic testing for many months before the identity was discovered through DNA testing.
A cursory examination of the remote, rugged, wooded scene was done after the initial discovery, but soon thereafter winter snows set in making further investigation difficult.
After the identification was made and the snowpack finally receded, the Kittitas County Sheriff's Office launched a massive investigation, sifting through evidence in the search for Baum's killer. Kittitas County Sheriff Gene Dana, who was at the Thursday press conference, said about 20 law enforcement and other agencies participated in the search for evidence, along with 27 K-9 officers — including two flown down from Alaska and others from Idaho and Montana. All told, more than 7,500 manpower hours have been spent searching the site for evidence.
When asked, Dana said investigators believe because of the remoteness of the area the suspect or suspects would have to have been familiar with that region of Kittitas County, which is just east of the border of the Mt. Rainier National Park. The densely forested, steep and rugged area is popular to elk and deer hunters, hikers and, in the winter, skiers and snowmobile enthusiasts from across the state.
Because the investigation is ongoing, details about it are scant.
"It is in the interest of the investigation that we need to keep a lot of information to ourselves," said Scott. If investigators were to tip their hand even in the slightest it could compromise the investigation.
Literally no stone has been left unturned in the investigation. The investigators at the scene where Lindsey's remains were discovered were sifting shovels full of rock, dirt and leaves through mesh screens just a few weeks ago trying to find any shred of evidence that would help them find Lindsey's killer.
"We need to catch this monster," said Scott.
Scott said the investigation ramped up significantly after the May 10 announcement of the discovery of Lindsey's remains. Tips continue to come in to the investigative hotline, and Scott assured that he is confident the killer or killers will be caught.
"This is a very solvable case," he said, adding that he is sure somebody is out there who knows what may seem to be a minor detail that could be crucial in cracking the case. "You might think of something that seems insignificant to you but may be important to us."
After Melissa Baum's brief statement, she was quickly ushered off the scene by a law enforcement officer. It was her first public statement in McCleary since she left town after Lindsey's disappearance. When asked after the press conference, Scott said Lindsey's remains are still in the custody of the FBI.
If you have any information that could lead to the suspect or suspects in the disappearance and murder of Lindsey Baum, call 360-964-1799 or email baumtips@co.grays-harbor.wa.us.
