https://www.toledoblade.com/news/religion/2023/05/28/controversial-pastor-epworth-united-methodist-rebuild/stories/20230514024
A church doesn’t just implode overnight.
At Epworth United Methodist Church, founded in Toledo in 1894, members felt they lost power to their pastor years ago.
The sudden March closure of Epworth Preschool was the boiling point for concerns that had been simmering since the first formal complaint against then-pastor Stephen Swisher was filed in 2021.
Two years and a wave of recent filings later, Mr. Swisher left the church on May 1. Bishop Gregory Palmer of the West Ohio Conference of the United Methodist Church confirmed that Mr. Swisher voluntarily withdrew from ministry in the UMC and is no longer a United Methodist pastor.
The Ottawa Hills church is the largest United Methodist congregation in the Toledo area, though members said regular attendance has declined in light of recent disputes surrounding the preschool and church leadership.
Mr. Swisher said in an April 23 interview that his decision was not related to the divisions within the church surrounding the preschool. He did not return phone calls and emails requesting additional comment.
Parents and congregants, however, say they see a correlation.
“Technically he's voluntarily leaving because the other option is he had to go to trial,” said Chase Peavy, a former Epworth Preschool parent.
Under the UMC Book of Discipline, if a formal complaint is filed for a chargeable offense, the bishop must conduct a review and implement a resolution.
“If a clergy person chooses, at any point, to withdraw from The United Methodist Ministry, the authority of the church ceases,” the bishop said in an email. That means the UMC can no longer adjudicate the complaints.
Formal complaints
In 2021, a group of members sent a formal complaint backed by 98 signatures to Bishop Palmer, alleging “misconduct or unsatisfactory performance of ministerial duties” of Mr. Swisher. He arrived at Epworth in April, 2020, and restructured church leadership that November.
One complaint, sent on Nov. 10, 2021, “challenge[s] the legitimacy” of a Nov. 12, 2020, meeting that served as a charge conference.
The United Methodist Church instructs that churches hold an annual charge conference, which directs the church mission, budgets, and elects council members. Church members are to be notified of the time and place of a charge conference at least 10 days in advance through at least two means of communication, according to the Book of Discipline.
The complaint states that many church members were unaware of the charge conference because it “had not been announced in the Tower [newsletter], weekly bulletin, or by mail.”
Cindy Franklin, a former office staff member of 13 years, was acting communications manager during the fall of 2020.
“I am the sole person that wrote, printed, and published all publications and I was told specifically to REMOVE ANY WORDING of ‘Charge Conference’ from all publications,” Ms. Franklin wrote in an April 10 formal complaint to Bishop Palmer.
The meeting was instead marketed as a Thursday evening service with then-district superintendent Scot Ocke as the guest speaker, according to the November, 2020, issue of the church newsletter. The December issue offers a “charge conference update,” listing issues that were voted on, including “Lay Leadership Teams/Action teams alignment and assignments.”
Ms. Franklin said Mr. Swisher dismantled a few volunteer committees and rebranded the remaining ones as action teams. She was one of an estimated 50 individuals who had been removed from a committee position. Mr. Swisher also handpicked his personal leadership team, narrowing a 54-person administrative council to a 13-person leadership team, Ms. Franklin said, noting that “every change since then is null and void because the way he got his leadership is inappropriate.”
Epworth staff declined to comment on the record.
“The November 2021 complaint was dismissed after a plan was implemented,” Bishop Palmer wrote in a statement. “The concerns in the complaint were addressed. They included but were not limited to deploying Annual Conference staff with particular skills to assist Epworth staff and congregation in dealing effectively with some internal matters.”
Lynne Saunders, who’s been an Epworth member for around 15 years, said the conference’s response was to “send in a team to coach [Mr. Swisher] and leadership on how to treat people.”
In August, 2022, letters were sent to District Superintendent Amy Haines with concerns related to Epworth Preschool finances and leadership.
The silence from UMC leadership in response to these messages, Ms. Saunders wrote in a Nov. 20, 2022, email to Ms. Haines, was “deafening.”
A number of letters and formal complaints, one of which attached 90 additional documents and exhibits, were again sent to the conference in March and April, following the sudden March 9 firing of director Jane Lyon and March 10 closure of Epworth Preschool.
Two complaints have been filed with the Ohio Attorney General, dated March 24 and April 27, alleging potential fraud and potential solicitation, according to the obtained documents. The office could neither confirm nor deny whether an investigation is or could be underway.
The United Methodist Church requires an annual audit of each of its churches. Bishop Palmer said in his joint statement with Ms. Haines that a 2022 audit is in the process of being conducted by an outside firm.
Epworth Preschool
Former members of the preschool board, which was abruptly disbanded in August, 2022, say $110,000 of preschool money is unaccounted for. They shared some financial documents with The Blade.
“It’s always been about the money, control, and power of the money,” said Ms. Saunders, who was preschool board chair.
Multiple members of Epworth’s staff declined to comment on the situation at the preschool.
Records show that the school’s account balance at the end of calendar year 2021 was just more than $63,000. Melinda Davis, former school board treasurer, said statements not provided to the board until the summer showed a starting balance of $0 for January, 2022. The account balance at the end of 2022 was $47,000, she said, with a starting balance of $0 in January, 2023.
Not seeing the money in the preschool account indicated it had been absorbed by the church, Ms. Davis said. For 40 years, the preschool had had a separate bank account from the church.
Surplus money would typically carry over to the next year, Ms. Davis said. The surplus was higher than usual these years because of federal COVID relief grant money that Epworth Preschool received through the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services. She said the grants were $22,500 in 2020, $13,000 in 2021, and nearly $23,000 in 2022.
“It is a CRIME to use federal educational grant money (which the director secured for use in the preschool) for anything but education,” a former church member wrote in the March 24 complaint to the attorney general.
In the summer of 2022, board members needed to see the school’s finances in order to make the budget for the coming school year. Ms. Saunders said she “demanded” the church turn over the records, which board members hadn’t received from the church since that January. A staff member informed Ms. Saunders and Ms. Lyon over the phone that the preschool monies were being absorbed into the church money, Ms. Saunders recalled, noting that it was never communicated in writing.
On Aug. 16, preschool board members received an email stating that Epworth’s leadership team had voted the night before “to dissolve and disband the Epworth Preschool Board, effective immediately.”
Because the board was dismantled, the email stated, Ms. Lyon was elevated to report directly to Mr. Swisher. Epworth memos to the parents state Mr. Swisher did not fire Ms. Lyon, and parents have received inconsistent messages regarding why Ms. Lyon was fired.
Ms. Lyon could not be reached for comment.
The church confirmed it is working toward reopening the preschool for the fall.
Parents confirmed they have received refunds for the remainder of the spring as well as their deposits for the coming fall.
Many former Epworth families are turning to Olivet Lutheran Church’s preschool in Sylvania, which is opening a new class for the fall to fill a need it saw in the community.
“We had people on a waitlist and then when [Epworth] families started calling, we saw the greater need for the whole community to open up another class,” said Olivet Christian Nursery School director Jennifer Crooks. “We're here to support them as new Olivet families.”
Epworth Preschool’s closure has allowed familiar faces to become friends, as parents came together both to seek truth and to plan daytime activities for their kids.
“This has been something in the right direction,” parent Christina Gondol said while one of her two sons and several other kids were in a group tutoring session.
Good has also come out of this, she added, in preventing a similar situation from happening in another community.
“If they would have gotten [Mr. Swisher] removed two years ago, they would have pushed him to another church,” Ms. Gondol said. “It had to come to this to get him all the way out.”
Healing and looking ahead
Members who had stepped away from Epworth started to come back on May 7, the first Sunday since Mr. Swisher left, according to the Rev. Stephen Bennett, who will serve as interim pastor through the end of June. He’s been attending and volunteering with the church for four years.
Pastor Bennett said there’s new excitement and positivity.
Epworth will augment its leadership teams with additional members, Pastor Bennett said, and is looking to rebuild some of the “previous committees that had been dissolved.”
He added that transparency is a “major goal” and acknowledged that “it’s been pretty opaque.”
Ms. Saunders said Epworth leadership must disclose information from the past three years in order to regain individuals’ faith in the church.
“The future of Epworth will be determined by what is revealed of the time Epworth was led by [Stephen] Swisher and the actions of those around him who had the power and responsibility to stop his misdeeds,” she wrote in an email. “Anything less will be fateful.”
As communication opens up, Pastor Bennett said, the congregation can begin to heal.
“Healing means coming back together,” Pastor Bennett said. “We’re going to get to work, and I think as people see their church returning to what they experienced previously that brought them there, that healing will begin to take place.”

 
PTB is live!

Dead by Daylight End of Transmission Official Trailer

Patch Notes

How to Access the PTB !!PC Steam only!!
Progress & save data information has been copied from the Live game to our PTB servers on May 17th. Players will be able to progress for the duration of the PTB, but none of that progress will make it back to the Live version of the game.

Features

New killer: The Singularity.

• Power: Quantum Instantiation.
• Perks:
  
  • Genetic Limits: When a Survivor finishes the healing action, they suffer the Exhausted status effect for 24/28/32 seconds.
  • Forced Hesitation: When a Survivor is put into the dying state by any means, all other Survivors standing within 16/16/16 meters around them suffer the hindered Status effect for 10/10/10 seconds, reducing their Movement speed by 15%. This perk goes on cooldown for 60/50/40 seconds.
  • Machine Learning: After performing the damage generator action, Machine Learning activates.While this perk is active, the next generator you damage will be compromised until it is completed. The generator is highlighted in Yellow. When the compromised generator is completed, you become undetectable and gain 7% Haste for 20/25/30 seconds. Then, Machine Learning deactivates. If you break a gen while another generator is compromised, the compromised generator moves to the latest one kicked.

New survivor: Gabriel Soma.

• Gabriel's Perks:
  
  • Troubleshooter: When you are chased by the Killer, this perk activates. You see the aura of the Generator with the most progress. You see the aura of the Killer for 4/5/6 seconds after dropping a Pallet. The effect lasts for 6/8/10 seconds after being in chase, then deactivates.
  • Made for This: This perk activates while you are in the injured state. You run 1/2/3% faster. After you finish healing another Survivor, gain the endurance status effect for 6/8/10 seconds. Made for This cannot be used when suffering from Exhaustion, but does not cause the Exhausted Status Effect.
  • Scavenger: While you are holding an empty toolbox, this perk activates. Succeeding a great skill check while repairing gives the perk 1 token, up to 6/5/4. When you reach maximum tokens, lose all tokens automatically recharge the toolbox to full. Scavenger is disabled for the remainder of the Trial after recharging a toolbox. This perk grants the ability to rummage through an opened chest once per Trial and will guarantee a basic Toolbox.

New Map: Dvarka Deepwood - Toba Landing.

Killer Tweaks:

The Artist

• Ink Egg
  • Increase the maximum capacity of Dire Crows by 1. Decreases the time Dire Crows stay idle before disintegrating by 2 seconds (was 4 seconds).
• Vibrant Obituary
  • Increases the length of time a Dire Crow’s Killer Instinct reveals Survivors by 3 seconds (was 1.5 seconds).

The Nemesis

• Damaged Syringe
  • Increases time it takes Survivors to use a Vaccine by 3 seconds (was 2 seconds). Increases length of Killer Instinct when Survivors use a Vaccine by 3 seconds (was 2 seconds).
• Tyrant Gore
  • Increases mutation rate when destroying zombies with Tentacle Strike by 75% (was 50%). Decreases zombie respawn time by 7.5 seconds (was 5 seconds).
  • Zombie Heart Increases mutation rate when destroying zombies with Tentacle Strike by 75% (was 50%).

The Trickster

• Lucky Blade
  • Increase the duration of Main Event by 0.3 seconds (was 0.2 seconds) for each Blade hit while it is active.
• Waiting For You Watch
  • Increases the duration of Main Event by 0.4 seconds (was 0.3 seconds) for each Blade hit while it is active.

The Ghost Face

• Power
  • Movement speed while crouched: 3.8 m/s (was 3.6 m/s).
  • Night Shroud recharge time: 20 seconds (was 24 seconds).
  • Killer Instinct duration after being revealed: 4 seconds (was 2 seconds).
• Knife Belt Clip
  • Reduces the Terror Radius by 12 meters (was 8 meters) while crouching.
• Night Vision Monocular
  • A Survivor that reveals The Ghost Face is inflicted with Exhausted for 10 seconds (was 5 seconds).

The Executioner

• Power
  
  • When hitting a Survivor with Punishment of the Damned, that Survivor is inflicted with Torment.

Perk Updates:

Pop Goes the Weasel

• After hooking a Survivor, the next generator you damage instantly loses 30% (was 20%) of its current progress. Normal generator regression applies after the Damage Generator action. Pop Goes the Weasel is active for 35/40/45 seconds after the Survivor is hooked.

Déjà Vu

• We have noticed growing concerns surrounding excessively long matches caused by 3-genning (Killer defending a cluster of three generators). We are working on a long term solution for a future update to limit how effective this strategy can be. However, we recognize that Survivors need more options at their disposal right now to combat 3-genning. With this in mind, some adjustments have been made to Déjà Vu: The perk will now reveal the auras of 3 generators which are in close proximity to one another indefinitely (previously for 30/45/60 seconds at the start of the trial and everytime a generator was completed) and grant a 4%/5%/6% repair speed bonus on the revealed generators (previously 3%/4%/5%).

Flashbang

• After completing 70%/60%/50% progress on any generator, Flashbang activates. Enter a locker and press the Active Ability Button 1 to craft a flash grenade. (No longer requires being empty-handed)

Quality of Life

Search Bar

You can now filter your Items, Add-ons, Offerings, Perks, Cosmetics, Outfits and Charms using this textbox.
^{Please note that this feature is currently not available in custom matches, though we intend to bring Search Bar support to custom matches in a future release.}
The following text parts can be searched for:

• Name
• Description / flavor text
• Rarity
• The Collection name of a Cosmetic
• The Outfit name of a Cosmetic
• The Item that an Add-on attaches to
• For teachable Perks, the name of the character that unlocks it

Item Rules Rework

Items are now divided into categories:

• Survivor Item
  • These can return to a player's inventory at the end of a match e.g. Toolbox, Firecracker, etc
• Special Item
  • Items related to playing against specific Killers e.g. Lament Configuration, VHS Tape, etc
• Temporary Item
  • Items that do not return to a player's inventory at the end of a match e.g. the White Glyph's Pocket Mirror, Flashbang

Misc

• Added an update popup requiring players to back out to the splash screen when a backend update is deployed. This may happen with a Kill Switch change, release of new store items, or other similar changes. This popup will only appear in the Main Menu, in the Store, or before queueing as a Killer.
  
• Added protection against hackers using characters they do not own.
  
• Error messages produced by a disconnection, a timeout from the server, or a kick are now distinct and clearer.
  
• Several bug fixes.
  

Known Issues

TBD
Report Bugs Found on the PTB
Give Feedback on the PTB
Mini State of the Sub!
Design a Cosmetic Contest 2023
Follow BHVR on tiktok to help unlock community milestone rewards: tiktok.com/@deadbydaylight

I am currently trying to gather documentation and identification regarding my great-grandmother in order to prove my halachic status (prove to clergy that I am Jewish). She would have been born between 1915 and 1925 (she passed in 2013). All I know is that she had been born in an area of Russia around the Black Sea (or at least a nearby territory annexed by Russia, but most likely a place in modern Russia’s borders) and was later forcefully relocated to Germany during the holocaust. She later moved to Munich before moving to New York. (Considering that she moved around a lot I am fearful that this is will be a fruitless effort but I don’t want to give up)
I have tried google searching her name but nothing comes up. My family is also very disorganized and I am unsure if we ourselves even own any documents that could be of use regarding her. Are there any official Russian websites or archives going back that far that would have such information regarding her citizenship status, birthplace, other family, family burial sites, ethnicity? Any official websites that are in English or could easily be translated to English?
I was wondering if there would also be any sort of holocaust records available? I unfortunately do not know what camp she was held at, all I know is that it was located in Germany and possibly somewhere around Munich, and I am unsure if my mother or grandmother even knows which one, but I am going to ask them just in case.
I plan on looking on Ancestry.com, but in case I find nothing there I need alternatives.
I’m on a bit of a time crunch as I will probably be meeting with clergy in a few weeks and I’m worried that I won’t find proof in time.
EDIT 1 Her name according to American records was Musa Woronkov (unsure of middle name). I now have reason to believe she was born in Kyiv, Ukraine. She died in Toledo Ohio but did not receive a funeral in Toledo (cannot find a Toledo obituary either), and I believe her final resting place is somewhere in Columbus Ohio where one of her daughters lives. She has two daughters, Musa Steele (my grandmother), and I am unsure how to spell her name correctly but I believe my great aunt’s name is Vera (unsure of married last name at the moment), she also had a son who died as a young adult (unsure of his name at the moment). I currently do not know her husband’s name but I will find out soon. I also have a published author that she is directly related to (unsure if sibling or parent or cousin) and his work is in Russian so I’m unsure if that would be of any help. If it helps my grandmother (the one that is alive) was born in Munich.
EDIT 2 Oh my goodness thank you so much everyone. Especially u/amauberge for suggesting the Arolsen Archives, and huge thanks to u/Fredelas for finding everything and more that I was looking for. I plan on checking holocaust camp records as suggested in the comments as well to see if I can learn even more. Thank you all so much and to everyone else who commented and made suggestions.
EDIT 3 I realize now that I read one of the documents wrong, and I do not actually have the proof yet I need for my Jewish heritage. However I am still so so thankful for all the information found and I will continue to search until I’ve either found my answer or give up.

First Previous Next
---
SUBJECT-DESIGNATION: Captain Marcus Miller
LOCATION: Unknown Space
DATE: EARTH-TIME [Saturday, July 23, 2186]
---
This view before me was the perfect degree of cosmic insanity.
Before the Challenger’s drive had ruptured, we were afforded the privilege of seeing faster than light travel’s effect on the fabric of space, but nothing seen then could compare to the sight before us now. Even now, we still weren’t sure what had caused the accident, and I wasn’t entirely sure we ever would.
What should have been the typical void of space became something that I wasn’t sure my limited faculties were intended to comprehend. It was an expanse of both blindingly bright light and oppressively dark shadows, limitless spectrums of prismatic colors and binary shades of light and dark, infinitely intricate geometric shapes and structures of the utmost simplicity. Space twisted, broke and bent all around us as we tore through it at speeds that shouldn’t have been possible. This beautifully paradoxical sight that was quite nearly beyond my ability to describe and even then, I could barely do it justice with my own mind.
With a degree of effort, I managed to forcibly tear my eyes from the mesmerizing sight to instead focus upon my surroundings.
The Khimrox attended to their duties with a fervor that I hadn’t yet seen. As I watched them work, I thought back to the words Saffan had spoken to me and my crew—of the trust he placed upon us by recounting the tale of his people. Why hasn’t the Aurum Alliance found Earth? What could’ve stopped them? Why the fuck’ve they gotta be such heartless bastards?
I shook my head in disbelief and turned to the data-pad held within my hands. Listed here was all the information that I had documented so far regarding the revelations provided by Saffan. Twenty-four species, each subjugated in the same way as our friends. There had to be billions, if not trillions of living beings among this empire that found themselves crushed under the Aurum boot. My blood boiled at the very thought of it. Hopefully this information would help the UEN sympathize with our avian friends.
“Marcus?” My thoughts were interrupted as Saffan spoke. “You seem terribly quiet. What is on your mind my friend?” The avian held an upbeat tone that my new translator managed to pick up on.
“Can I ask you something?”
His response was immediate. “Of course. Anything.”
“How many of you Khimrox are out there among the stars?”
For once, Saffan seemed puzzled. He paused to turn his head almost vertically. “I… I cannot say for certain. Our lords do not make us privy to such information.”
“What do you know then?”
His head turned back upright. “I am confident that it must be in the many billions now.”
I paused. “You say that, but were your people not primitive just a few centuries ago? ”
Saffan shifted at my words. “We were.” His feathers began to puff up somewhat. It was clear this conversation wasn’t going somewhere he liked, but I refused to quit my questioning. I couldn’t. Not when it had a chance of helping their people.
“What happened?”
The positive mood that had possessed my friend visibly faded. When he next spoke, his voice was leveled, flattened, and dampened. “Are you certain you wish to know?”
I furrowed my brow and narrowed my eyes. What could be worse than what he’s already told us? I nodded, ready to hear him.
Saffan sighed and looked down. “For many years after our people were first found, there were not enough of our kind—not enough for the likes of our lords. They required more wings for their ever expanding empire, so they turned their gaze to us.”
The Khimrox looked me dead in the eyes. “They took my people and bred them just as one would livestock. They purged those among us with undesirable traits and forced our brood-mothers to lay more eggs than they were often able to handle. When those same mothers could no longer fulfill their duties...” The Khimrox closed his eyes and shook his head.
“For how many years we went on this way I cannot say. But thankfully, they have since ceased their infernal practices. We do not often speak of such things aloud, but we must pass down our knowledge across the generations, lest the memory of our past be lost.”
My fists clenched at the mere mention of these deeds. How could any of this go by unpunished? Is there not an entire interstellar community to combat such things?
“Sir.” One of the many owl-folk I didn’t recognize stepped forward. “We’re approaching the planet.”
What? I knew their drives were impressive, but it had only been a few hours since we made our jump towards Earth. Just how fast are we traveling?
Both I and the captain turned to the one who spoke. “Good, inform the crew. Ensure those with hatchlings are made aware. Something tells me this is not an event any of our people, even the youngest among us will want to miss.”
I stood by Saffan’s side as he issued the order with a wave of his wing. “Hatchlings? Saffan, I didn’t know you had children aboard.”
“Yes. Normally, protocol dictates that they remain confined to the quarters of their parents.” The captain flexed his metal hands as he looked at them with narrowed pupils. “For those born shipside, they are allowed to remain aboard the vessel until they reach the proper age for the installation of their improvements.” There was venom in that voice as he spoke.
The arm lowered to his side. “After that, they are reassigned based upon to the desire of our lords. According to their reasoning, such children would only get in the way of more important matters.”
“And they do this for all of their scions?” In response, he simply nodded.
I was stunned. Each and every time I thought those bastards had reached the limits of their cruelty, they outdid themselves. No words could express my thoughts as I sat in silence. For a time, I stood silent as the idle hums and groans of the ship paired with low hoots of voices that my translator couldn’t quite detect rang through my ears.
“Thirty seconds until jump termination.” The synthetic voice called from around us.
Any sound of idle chatter had vanished. The rest of my crew gathered beside me to look out the window of the deck. “Ten seconds until jump termination.” I gave the two nearest to me, Darius and Nia, a quick look then turned back to face the window as I held my breath.
“Five. Four. Three. Two. One.”
The Ignis lurched, throwing me and the rest of my people forward. When I managed to steady myself once more, I looked out from the viewport alongside every soul that crowded around me.
A shroud of silence had fallen. We humans gazed in reverence at our mother Earth and the Khimrox stared forward, quietly taking in this new world. The perfect sphere was painted with vast swathes of blue, green, white and gold. A faint cerulean glow, like the halo of some angelic being, wrapped around her edges in addition to the sanctity of this sight. Our golden sun graced us with the familiar comfort of its beams as it looked onward from further into the system. We could even see the gray dot of our moon as it circled the Earth from what once had seemed an unsurpassable distance.
We made it.
I took in the sight of the dumbstruck crew, whose silence spoke entire novels. For what short time we had spent with our Khimroxian friends I had never seen their pupils expanded to the volumes that they now reached.
For the first time since her unlikely formation, eyes that hadn’t grown within her loving embrace looked onward to witness her beauty.
Wait, but if we’re this close to Earth, where are the…
A shout sounded out, cutting through the silence like a blade through paper. “Captain Aeax!”
The person who made the call was a Khimrox—one who I had seen earlier conversing with Saffan. “We’re being hailed by a group of six unknown vessels utilizing the human language! They’ve sent out a hail demanding we announce ourselves or they will open fire!”
Ah, there they are.
“What?” shouted the captain. A rush of worry washed over him as his brow furrowed. “Sir, the group looks to consist of four corvette class vessels as well as two destroyers.”
“Get us within line of sight immediately. I want to see these ships myself.”
The bridge was a mess of activity as I grabbed him by the shoulder of his wing. “Tell your advisor to let the call through. If anyone can talk them down it's me.”
While I waited for his response, a section of the viewport magnified to show the group of six vessels, all within a relatively close distance of one another. The rifle-shaped vessels were crude in comparison to the Ignis and nowhere near its size, but they were unmistakably a UEN patrol. The ships our Khimrox friends had considered to be corvettes and destroyers—to us humans—were two battleships flanked by four cruisers.
Saffan’s eyes shrunk and his expression softened. “You’re certain my friend?”
“They’re UEN. If there’s anybody they’ll listen to, it’d be me.”
The captain was silent. “Very well.” Saffan turned to the Khimrox who had called him. “Kifar, you heard the man. Put us through.”
“Yes sir!”
From where we both stood at the helm, a gravelly voice called through the speakers of the bridge. “Unidentified vessel, this is Admiral Derrick of the UEN Fleet Forever Forward, identify yourselves immediately.”
I cleared my voice before I spoke to the higher ranking official. “Good to meet you Admiral Derrick, this is Captain Marcus Miller of the science vessel UEN Challenger speaking.”
“What?” The voice on the other end rose in unbelief. “No… No, that shouldn't be possible. The Challenger and her crew were considered lost in space six days ago. Whoever you are, you’d better have a damn good reason for claiming something so bold.”
“I assure you Admiral, I speak the truth.”
“If that is the case, you should be able to recall the craft identifier of your vessel.”
Huh. Guess memorizing that thing actually did end up being useful. “The CIN for the UEN Challenger is UEN-HA-COP-51-F-2183.”
There was a long pause after I recited the code—the time of which was presumably spent punching my code into the UEN database. The craft identifier wasn’t exactly a secret that a captain had to keep hidden from their crew, but it wasn’t one that anyone other than me was required to know. Its sole purpose was to assist in the identification of a vessel. Back during training, it became a requirement for me to be capable of reciting it at the whim of my instructors.
“Holy hell, it really is you isn’t it?” A grin crept across my face.
“Yes sir.”
“And that ship, where on Earth did you find that leviathan?”
“That's a bit of a long story—one that I’ll explain soon enough—but for now, inform the security council of the UEN, we have a first contact event on our hands.”
Admiral Derrick proceeded to enter into a fit of coughing before eventually returning to normalcy. “Surely you’re joking, right? ”
I turned to Saffan and my smile only grew further. “No sir.”
“That's… wow. Ok. You’re entirely certain of this?”
“I’m standing right next to their captain.”
“Can I hear from him?”
I nodded my head towards the Khimrox captain.
“Admiral Derrick,” said Saffan, “I am Saffan Aeax of the Ignis. It is an honor to meet you under the watchful eye of your moon, my friend.”
“Was that an… owl?” asked the incredulous admiral.
Me and several of my own crew laughed at the question. Right, translators. “It's hard to explain but no sir, they call themselves the Khimrox.” I relayed the captain’s message following my remark and immediately, Derrick posed further questions.
“How are you able to understand them?”
“They were gracious enough to assist me and my crew in the installation of translative neurotechnology. They’re able to understand you, but without similar implants, you won’t be able to understand them.“
As an admiral, Derrick was certain to have augments of his own to assist in the command of his fleet, but I knew for a fact that our own tech couldn’t compare to the complexity of those used by the Khimrox. Even captains often had some degree of neural implants, though I was one of the few exceptions to this rule; the comparatively sparse crew complement of the Challenger hadn’t demanded such a thing. Even though the technology had come from an oppressive regime of overlords, it was awfully impressive.
“And these Khimrox, you’re sure they’re friendly?” The flurry of questions shot one after another were beginning to become tiresome, but I endured them nonetheless.
“They saved our lives admiral. If it hadn’t been for them, we would still be floating around in the wreck of the Challenger.”
“Well, Captain Aeax, if you really can understand me, on behalf of the United Earthen Nations, I thank you and your people for returning our people unharmed.”
Saffan spoke in kind, “Please my friend, there is no need to thank us. I am certain had the circumstances been reversed, humanity would have been just as willing to offer aid. We only did what was necessary.”
Once again, I recounted the captain’s words.
“I’m glad to hear you feel that way. I will ensure we contact the security council right away. For the time being, please remain where you are. A single near-interspecies incident is one too many.”
“Very well Admiral. We shall obey your command with gladness in our hearts.”
“Good. If things go well, the security council should respond with further orders soon. For the time-being, this is Admiral Derrick signing off.”
The comms were cut and quiet tried its best to fill the bridge. Almost immediately it was drowned out in spectacular fashion. This time, it was the Khimrox that first commenced the cheers. A beautiful chorus of cries sung from their beaks as joy flooded through the throng of owl-folk. Even I couldn’t help but feel the spray from this rushing wave of emotion. Their people certainly didn’t discriminate between us humans and their fellow Khimrox when it came to sharing a warm embrace.
Amidst the celebration, I rested an arm on the shoulder of my tired friend. With those massive eyes of his, Saffan stared directly into my soul.
“Thank you, my friend.”
“Don’t thank me just yet. We’re still not out of this until the council makes their decision.”
Saffan shook his head. “If the honor that I have seen humanity display so far is anything to go by, I have no doubt that they will make the best decision for both our peoples.”
I looked down to the collection of accounts provided by the captain and his people aboard the pad held within my hands. If we were to meet with the security council, I would need more tangible evidence to prove such claims.
“Saffan, how much of what you have told me can be corroborated based on information stored on your ship’s databanks?”
The Khimrox seemed confused by the question. “Perhaps not all of it, but a good portion of it should be available. Why do you ask?”
“Do you think you could have it translated to our language and prepared for transfer?”
“Given enough time, yes.” Saffan narrowed his eyes, “What are you planning Marcus?”
----------------------
Roughly three hours after our contact with the UEN, we were escorted by the same fleet that had previously threatened us. I honestly couldn’t blame them for what they had done. A ship as large as this monster and with such powerful alien technology to boot must have certainly been a fright to behold.
The Ignis may have been able to put the best of our ships to shame, but as we followed our escort, I was glad to see the Atlantic Orbital Citadel remained impressive as always. Even in comparison to the Khimroxian vessel, it was an utter marvel of engineering.
The citadel itself was a modern testament to the power of humanity. Over one hundred nations had pooled their resources and manpower to create this ultimate hub of earth to space affairs. Dozens of battleships, with their bright orange burn that I could practically hear the hum of, moored in the station’s docking bays. Even a few carriers hung nearby space above the blue expanse of the ocean which was the station’s namesake.
After our approach of the citadel operations and docking—as requested—Saffan and I heeded the summons of the security council and were transported via Harpy-Class transport.
I was lucky the council had allowed my attendance, but then again, there was certainly a need for a translator considering the oddity of the Khimroxian language. The anticipation of the council's decision was killing me.
Sure, the Khimrox had rescued us knowing full well the potential for our enslavement, but what choice did they have? But, if the databanks of the ship didn’t lie, and it was true the Aurum Alliance had no chance of tracing our path towards earth, there was no choice but to fully welcome our friends.
Now, my boots clanked and the fellow captain’s talons clacked against the solid metal floors as we walked through the heart of UEN operations. The pair of imposing soldiers that joined us at either side thudded against the surface they stepped on, their heavy metallic exo-armor would have left indents in the ground wherever they walked had they been back on Earth. These soldiers were those that I recognized as special operatives, hand-picked from within the marine corps of the UEN. The STYX suits they wore were the cutting edge of infantry armor among our ranks.
Despite their clear status as hardened soldiers, I could sense a layer of unease between the two as a result of Saffan’s presence. Given time, I’m sure they would feel no differently than I did towards our newfound friends.
The normally bustling halls of the station had been cleared, leaving the echoes of our feet to ring wherever we went. It felt like we had walked for ages when we finally reached a familiar area of the station. A massive metal blast-door slid open from top to bottom, revealing a nearly empty auditorium.
The design was one based upon the ancient designs of the Roman colosseum. Tens of thousands could have sat among the wide rows of seating that all looked towards a circular central arena where the security council often held its sessions. Above all of it was a massive ceiling of transparent material that looked out to the surrounding fleet.
As we approached the center of the oversized conference center, I could see a massive circle of figures projected against glass panels. There had to have been at least one for every world government that was a part of the UEN.
There was dead silence as the eyes of these larger than life men and women surrounded us, glaring down upon me and Saffan like a circle of deadly spears. However, from the midst of these figures, walked a single individual who had taken the time to present themselves personally.
He was dressed in the gray dress uniform of the average fleet admiral or captain. A similarly gray combination cover hat topped the man’s head and golden epaulets were sewn upon his shoulders. His valor was rightfully adorned across his chest; almost all of it had been earned as a result of his heroics in the relatively recent Kuiper War. It was impossible to mistake him for anyone other than the current UEN Director, Lorenzo Redd.
He came to a stop before us. “Captain Miller,” he nodded, “It's good to see you safe and sound. It wasn’t all that long ago that I provided the obituary for you and your crew.” The deep voice with which Redd spoke commanded authority. It was this same voice that had once roared the commands leading to Earth’s victory amidst the belts.
I wasn’t surprised to hear me and my crew had been considered dead. Considering the nature of our expedition, assuming the worst was completely reasonable. As Redd extended his calloused hand, I gripped it with my own, giving a strong shake. Once we broke apart, he turned towards Saffan who returned the stare sent his way with inquisitive eyes.
“Captain Aeax.” Redd bowed. “It’s an honor to meet you sir. I am Director Redd of the United Earthen Nations, and on behalf of humanity, I would like to thank you for your heroic actions in rescuing our people.”
Saffan bowed in turn, and spoke as I translated for him. “The honor is all mine, Director.”
Redd nodded with a grin. “For centuries, we humans have looked to the stars. We’ve wondered, even feared whether we were alone in the universe. But now, these fears can be laid to rest.”
Pointing with a hand towards me, he said, “Captain Miller here was gracious enough to send over a detailed report regarding the situation of your people. You have my deepest sympathies for the horrors committed against your kind.”
Saffan turned to look at me with eyes of understanding as the director held both arms upward and outward, gesturing towards the many who watched in silence. “Both I and the council assure you, no such conditions will befall you during your time on earth. After careful consideration, we have agreed to grant the Khimroxian species refugee status until such a time as it is safe for the return to your home of Asharr.”
My spirits soared. YES! FUCK YES! IT WORKED! IT WORKED!
The entire time that we had been aboard the Ignis, I had done my best to obtain every account of what would be considered human rights violations—though in this case, violation of sapient rights seemed more apt a description. With news I provided of the atrocities against the Aurum Alliance’s scions, I simply knew there had to be no morally justifiable choice other than the acceptance of their people.
I did my best to maintain my composure, but struggled with every fiber of my being to do so.
Saffan, on the other hand, couldn't help himself as he flapped his massive span of wings and released a joyous cry that bounded throughout the chamber. Aboard the Ignis, the avian had been clearly subdued in his emotions. This made sense—a captain’s gotta present for their crew—but now, he made no such attempt at hiding his true feelings. Redd, and the other onlookers of the council remained silent at Saffan’s call, but many cracked smiles at the sight.
I saw the moisture collect within my friend’s eyes and slide down the disc of his face. He spun around in circles, taking in the view of each and every council member who had participated in this decision. When he finally stopped, Saffan took a step forward towards the director and practically bent over backwards to give yet another bow, though now with wings extended.
“Thank you Director Redd.” He turned to face the wide array of council members. “Thank you my friends. My people, we will forever remain indebted of your infinite kindness.”
After concluding his show of respect and as I concluded my interpreting, Saffan rushed forward in my direction, talons clacking with each step taken.
The avian pounced upon me, spreading his wide wings of soft feathers and fully leaning his weight against me for support. Though I wasn’t exactly a hugger by any stretch of the imagination, there was no way in hell I was going to turn him away, not now. I fully embraced my friend in return, squeezing him tight and pressing my head against his. I could feel the wet drops splash against back as I held him close. After what his people had been put through, after what he had been put through, I refused to allow him shame for these fallen tears.
This behavior that Saffan displayed may not have been fit for someone assigned the position of captain, but what reason did he have to care? He had never asked for such a title, and now, he didn’t need to listen to anyone. He was free.
---
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Hello! This is my first writeup here. Due to personal privacy concerns I have chosen to use this account instead of my main, but trust that I spend a lot of time in this subreddit. I tend to include too much information all the time so this is extremely long! Would appreciate some constructive criticism - I literally discovered this case on Wednesday before I went to bed, and now here I am, 5:30pm on Friday, posting it.
A more succinct timeline is available here.
I found no similar writeups about this case and it was truly difficult to find any information online. I did find a single WebSleuths thread, but most of my information came from old newspapers. Links to the articles I could find, as well as my newspaper clippings, are at the bottom of the post.
The only known photo of Maurice Miles.
Maurice Lorenzo Miles was born in Baltimore, MD on October 3rd, 1986. Maurice was the only child of Jacqueline Louise Bouknight, born June 15, 1966, and Terrance Maurice Miles, whose date of birth was sometime in 1966.
Jacqueline, who is sometimes called Jackie, grew up in the foster care system of Baltimore. Later, she would cite the mistreatment and abuse she faced in various group and foster homes as her reason for refusing to comply with court orders compelling her to produce her child in front of a judge.
I was unable to find any information on Terrence's life - the only information I found on him was that he died on March 11, 1988, at age 22 or 23 (I found reports that stated both). Terrence was shot twice in the head, and four times in the body, and was found dead by police at the scene - in the middle of the street in the 1600 block of N Washington St in Baltimore. A vial of "suspected narcotic" was found near his body. Terrence's murder does not appear to have been solved, and I was unable to find any obituary or grave for him online, but he was survived by his grandmother, Lorraine Dean.
Back to Maurice. Only a month after his birth, in November of 1986, he was hospitalized with pneumonia. Cursory x rays showed Maurice was also suffering from fractures in his right arm, right shoulder blade, and right shoulder socket. He was released back to Jacqueline Bouknight. On January 23, 1987, when he was 3 months old, he was hospitalized for a second time, with his left femur broken, and possible spinal injuries - these were never confirmed, so I'll operate under the assumption that he did not have spinal injuries.
Paul Duggan reported in the Washington Post (07/10/1989) that this was the second hospitalization for Maurice, and the details of his broken arm, shoulder, and socket. Duggan reported this before anyone else - I was unable to find another mention of these details until the Baltimore Sun's timeline on 02/25/1990. As such, any information relayed in Duggan's Washington Post article that I could not find elsewhere, I consider dubious.
This article reports that Maurice was in a full body cast following his femur break (also reported in The Sun 10/31/95), and, according to a court petition, "his mother was observed throwing him into a crib on one occasion and shaking him profusely on another." I was unable to verify that information anywhere else, and am unsure who or what Duggan's source for this was - as far as I have been able to determine, Maryland law dictates that DSS proceedings can only take place in a civil court. Additionally, per Maryland state law, juvenile proceedings and court papers are confidential, and are opened to the public only at the judge's discretion. There have been some court documents released, but not many. This law was the reason cited for officials being unable to discuss the case.
After his broken femur was discovered, Maurice was removed from his mother's care and placed temporarily in a foster home on, February 11, 1987. No child abuse charges were filed. On May 19th of that year, Bouknight was ordered by the Juvenile Court to be psychologically evaluated. Maurice would be returned to Jacqueline on July 17 after just 5 months in foster care, under the conditions of monthly case worker visits, counseling, and parenting classes for Bouknight - before she had even received her court ordered evaluation.
Bouknight was finally evaluated on July 23, 1987. On August 18th, the Juvenile Court Master ruled that Maurice would be permanently returned to Bouknight. The court had not obtained the psychological evaluation yet. In fact, the psychological evaluation was not received by the court until September 8, 1987 - four days after the last confirmed sighting of Maurice. The evaluation advised against returning Maurice to his mother.
Maurice's last confirmed sighting was by his case worker, Philip Maguire, on September 4th, 1987. In the report, Maguire described Maurice as "well fed with good affect and hygiene". Maurice wouldn't be reported missing until April 12, 1988, seven months later.
Per Duggan's Washington Post article (07/10/1989), the psychologist's evaluation stated "[Bouknight] is not now able to relate constructively to her child, since the child is seen as fulfilling her needs rather than the reverse. She becomes totally frustrated and enraged to find herself unable to gain from her child what [. . .] she lacked in her own childhood. When her frustration mounts, she is likely to act out towards the child."
Maurice's paternal grandmother Lorraine Dean claims that she contacted Maguire in March, after her son died, and told him that she hadn't seen him since the previous summer. Lorraine said Maguire told her he hadn't seen Maurice since September, and didn't know where he was. John Brown, Bouknight's former foster father, said he had asked Bouknight to move out of his house in fall of 1987, and that since then, he hadn't seen Maurice. In fact, when he tried to surprise Bouknight at her new home, she wouldn't answer the door. Brown apparently let Bouknight return to his home around Christmas 1987, but she returned without Maurice, and told him she had given him away, stating there "Wouldn't be no more trouble because she had given the baby to someone else".
Unconfirmed sightings of Maurice include: an In Home Aide working with Bouknight claimed to have seen Maurice on September 8th, 1987. Some neighbors reported seeing Maurice sometime in "Late Fall" 1987, outside, being held by a "large woman", with Bouknight packing Maurice's things into a blue station wagon with wood paneling and out of state plates.
On April 18, 1988, Baltimore Circuit Court Judge David B. Mitchell ordered Bouknight to produce Maurice before the court on April 20. Bouknight failed to do so, and the judge issued an arrest warrant for civil contempt. After a week of searching for her, Baltimore Police apprehended Bouknight on April 27, 1988.
Jacqueline Bouknight seemed to like to tell stories, and over time, told police many different stories, including that she had given Maurice to her sister in Dallas, Texas. Other stories include Bouknight's Aunt somewhere in Baltimore, unspecified relatives in North and South Carolina, as well as New Jersey and Florida. Detectives stated that they went door to door in a relative's South Carolina neighborhood with a photo of Maurice. Bouknight also claimed to have given him to a friend named Rachael. Police told Maurice's paternal grandmother Lorraine Dean that they checked with known relatives of Bouknight in other states, but none of them had seen him.
Weeks passed. An article in The Baltimore Sun (06/13/1988) reported that police had "torn up" Bouknight's East Baltimore neighborhood, interviewing as many neighbors as possible in a several block radius, but nobody knew anything, and they had, "in a sense, gone nowhere". It is reported that Bouknight had already appeared before Judge Mitchell twice, and continued to refuse to cooperate.
In a May 12, 1988 interview, Bouknight's former foster parent John Brown (who was 72 at the time) stated she was refusing to talk to a lawyer. At some point that changed, because the June 13, 1988 article stated that both of Bouknight's appearances before the judge had been arranged by her public defender.
On Bouknight's legal team were a total of four lawyers - one whose name i could not locate. The other three are Stuart Cohen, George E Burns Jr, and Christina Gutierrez - who would later go on to represent Adnan Syed. Bouknight's legal team argued that compelling Bouknight to testify to where Maurice was would violate her Fifth Amendment right against self incrimination. The Maryland Department of Social Services (DSS) says that Maurice's welfare comes first. The case would have to be sent to the Supreme Court.
She remained in jail on the civil contempt ruling. At this time, Bouknight was told she didn't have to testify; her lawyer or someone else could produce the child. The state even tried to persuade her by stating they would not prosecute her unless a murder charge was warranted. Bouknight stayed silent.
On September 28, 1988, Jacqueline Bouknight had a warrant issued for a misdemeanor theft charge. The event, stealing a check, forging a signature, and then cashing that check, allegedly took place before Maurice was reported missing in April. This charge was initially forgery, and was reduced to theft. On November 28, 1988, Bouknight was found guilty of this charge. She was sentenced to 18 months in jail by Judge Martin Kircher on November 28, 1988, in addition to her contempt sentence. This sentence was ordered to be backdated and start on the day Bouknight was charged, September 27, 1988.
On December 20, 1988, The Baltimore Court of Appeals Chief Judge Robert Murphy ordered Bouknight's release from jail as they ruled that Bouknight's Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination could not be violated by compelling her to produce her son to the courts. This decision was immediately appealed to the US Supreme Court. The next day, Chief Justice William Rehnquist ordered Bouknight to remain in jail while he considered whether the SCOTUS should review the case. Regardless, even if the SCOTUS hadn't ordered this, Bouknight still had to serve 16 more months for her misdimeanor theft charge.
Per a blurb (09/25/1989), published in many papers (my screenshot is from the Binghamton, NY Press and Sun), Maurice's case appeared on the Supreme Court fall docket for 1989. It was argued November 07, 1989.
On February 20, 1990, the SCOTUS ruled the following: Jacqueline Bouknight may not invoke the Fifth Amendment to resist complying with the court order to produce Maurice. This ruling also meant that, once her misdimeanor theft sentence was completed, Bouknight would remain in jail on the civil contempt ruling.
"Even when criminal conduct may exist, the court may properly request production and return of the child, and enforce that request through exercise of the contempt power, for reasons entirely to the child's well being and through mesaures unrelated to criminal law enforcement or investigation", the courts opinion said.
A civil contempt ruling like this is meant to coerce someone, not punish them. Bouknights attorneys argued that the court had done everything in its power to coerce Bouknight to reveal her sons location, and nothing had worked - it was clear it wasn't going to, and the attorneys argued that any further jail time would be punitive. They urged the courts to release her, and, if they saw fit, bring criminal charges against Bouknight for violating the court order.
Baltimore state attorney Stuart O. Simms was unwilling to promise any additional immunity or protections for Bouknight, and per the Baltimore Sun on February 21,1990, could not comment on the courts discussion of possible limitations on prosecutions in similar cases, as he had not yet fully reviewed the SCOTUS ruling.
Sometime in 1992, after nearly a year of negotiating, a court order was issued - Bouknight agreed and signed it. The order stated that if Bouknight were to reveal the whereabouts of her son, who she claimed was alive, and he was found in a safe and appropriate home, he would not be returned to DSS/foster care custody. Despite agreeing and signing the order, Bouknight failed to reveal Maurice's location.
Bouknight remained in jail, and she remained silent - even an order from the highest court in the United States didn't sway her. Her attorneys continued to file motions to free her. On January 25, 1995, a hearing was held on these motions, which Judge Mitchell allowed to be opened up to the press. During this hearing, Bouknight claims she gave Maurice to her friend, "Rachael Anderson", who she met in the foster care system. Police scoured foster care and school records for Baltimore and North Carolina, and were unable to find Ms. Anderson. During this hearing, when discussing the 1992 agreement, Bouknight said "It's a paper. It's lies." Previously, she had a solid rapport with Detective Tyrone S. Francis, but stated she no longer trusted him.
The Baltimore Sun published (01/26/1995) a digitally enhanced age progression photo of Maurice, where they incorrectly reported his last name as Bouknight. This created another beaurocratic problem - Judge Mitchell immediately halted all media access to the hearings. Judge Mitchell stated that by publishing the photo, even with an incorrect last name, The Sun had compromised the confidentiality of the juvenile court system, as they had specified that the child would only be referred to as Maurice or Maurice M. The Sun argued that no last name was meant to be reported, and it was an accident. They also argued that they had obtained the photo from Baltimore PD, who had been using it to try to find Maurice, and besides - it wasn't a real photo of him, it was an age progression.
Judge Mitchell said those facts did not make up for the possible harm posed to Maurice by publishing the name and photo, and still violated the principle of protecting children's privacy. Mitchell proposed this: reporters were allowed to stay in the courtroom under some more strict conditions - no likenesses or photos of Maurice would be published, regardless of where they were obtained.
Mitchell also required The Sun to publish the exact wording of his court order in their January 27, 1995 paper. An attorney for The Sun said that the sun would not consent to these terms, stating that they cannot agree to an order from a government agency regarding what they can and cannot publish, and that he did not believe that the judge's order had barred them from running a photo obtained outside of the courtroom. Judge Mitchell denied access, even after attorneys met privately to discuss the matter in his chambers.
The Sun would go on to report on 02/09/1995 that Judge Mitchell had reopened the media access for hearings on February 8th - but did not allow Sun reporters inside, citing their "deliberate editorial decision to violate a court order". The Sun filed a petition regarding this decision with the Maryland Court of Appeals.
On October 31, 1995, there was another hearing for a motion requesting to lift Bouknight's contempt order. In this hearing, Maurice's attorney Mitchell Mirviss, appointed by the court to advocate for Maurice, begged Bouknight, "Jackie, it's a tragedy you have let this go on so long." She still refused to speak.
Bouknight's legal team successfully argued that the civil contempt ruling jailing Bouknight had not successfully coerced her into revealing Maurice, and should be lifted. The Baltimore Police department investigated Maurice's disappearance as a homicide investigation, but no evidence of foul play was ever found. With no evidence, DSS had to assume that Maurice was alive. Though Bouknight's refusal to talk was still considered criminal due to the SCOTUS ruling, the state could no longer argue that keeping her in jail would be conductive to finding Maurice.
Maryland state officials acknowledged that they may never know if Maurice was dead, or if Jacqueline had just successfully hidden him from the foster care system.
Assistant Attorney General Ralph S Tyler III requested Judge Mitchell to order Bouknight to have no contact with her son as she could still present a danger to him. Tyler also asked Judge Mitchell to strike DSS' legal obligations for Maurice's safety, since he could not be found. Bouknight's attorney Christina Gutierrez argued that no conditions should be placed upon her release, and that she posed no danger to her son. Judge Mitchell approved Bouknight's no contact order with Maurice, and said Bouknight would be jailed again if she contacted him.
Mirviss and Tyler, as well as Bouknight's attorneys, all stated they believed that Maurice was alive. Judge Mitchell disagreed. "We earnestly hope that Maurice is alive, but our fears are that he is dead." Mitchell said the court would retain custody of the child, but would consider allowing Bouknight to see him if she passed another court ordered psychological evaluation.
All of this culminated in Jacqueline Bouknight being released from jail after seven years. Maurice had not been found, but the state couldn't hold her without charges forever, and there was no evidence of foul play - the police had nothing to charge her with.
The Sun reported (10/31/1995) that the FBI had another age progression photo of Maurice, this time to 6 years old. I was unable to locate this photo. This article also reports that John Brown, Bouknight's foster father, had told police he had seen the child in March, around when his father Terrance died. I was unable to find any other mention of this March sighting, and am unsure if Brown ever confirmed it or not.
On November 13, 1995, the Maryland Court of Appeals made a decision regarding The Sun's appeal. As I mentioned previously, Maryland state law requires confidentiality in juvenile court proceedings unless ruled otherwise by a judge. Since Judge Mitchell allowed media to be present at the proceedings, the Maryland Court of Appeals ruled that he did not have a right to tell The Sun not to publish things from sources outside of the courtroom as a condition of accessing the hearing. Chief Judge Robert C Murphy wrote regarding the ruling, "A court cannot order the media to refrain from publishing material lawfully obtained from sources outside of the judicial proceeding as a condition of granting access to a juvenile proceeding."
The enire Judge Mitchell vs. The Sun part seems especially strange to me, especially considering The Sun published Maurice's last name on 05/10/1988 and 05/12/1988, and on 05/16/1988 - accompanied by the only known photo I have found of Maurice. The Sun also published Maurice's full name, including middle name, on 02/25/1990. I suppose those were mostly before the case garnered national attention, and at the time, it was much harder to access past newspapers.
Sadly, the article discussing this ruling (11/14/1995) is the last article specifically about Maurice's case - though there was an editorial in 2004, and he was mentioned in an article on a similar case in 2005. Somehow, amid Supreme Court rulings, Fifth Amendment arguments, and years of conflicting and frustrating stories, little Maurice got lost in the shuffle. He became a symbol of something greater, and lost his personhood as a result.
As for Jacqueline, she was arrested again in Baltimore on November 22, 2002, for drug possession. She eventually plead guilty and received a suspended prison sentence and probation. She was arrested again on April 29, 2005 for prostitution. She plead not guilty and it went to trial. I was unable to find any other information on that charge. Finally, Bouknight and another woman, named Markita Davis, were both arrested for second degree assault on January 04, 2007. 3 months later, on March 07, 2007, she received 3 years of supervised probation. Since then, in Baltimore at least, she has remained under the radar.
On February 28, 2004, an editorial piece was published in The Baltimore Sun, titled "Where's Maurice?". This piece states that Maurice's face remained a mystery, leading me to my belief that I uncovered the only known photo of him. This piece also briefly interviewed Bouknight, saying she was "spinning stories of her computer-literate son who she says is alive and well". In this interview, Bouknight claims to visit Maurice several times a year. Ann LoLordo, the journalist who wrote the editorial, says Bouknight would describe his likes and dislikes, but not specifically enough to be believable. Maurice would have been 17 at the time this article was written. Even then, Bouknight refused to give any information. "It's too risky. They'd try to snatch him. [...] He's alive. Just like you and me."
Maurice Lorenzo Miles is the very definition of a child who slipped through the cracks. Today, he would be 36 years old. April 12 last month marked 35 years since he was reported missing. At some point, the missing persons report seems to have been closed - there is no missing persons case in NAMUS for Maurice - his disappearance predates the system by decade, but that doesn't account for why he isn't included in it. After all, there are many pre-NAMUS cases that still appear on NAMUS, Maryland included. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children was founded in 1984, two years before Maurice was born, and yet he doesn't appear there either. I found very little information on him, and I actually only stumbled upon him by accident while researching something else.
Nowadays, thanks to Caylee's law, in many states it is a felony to not report your child missing. How, despite a Supreme Court ruling, did Maurice's case fall by the wayside? Why was his missing persons case closed? Why isn't he in NCMEC or NAMUS? Why isn't anyone looking for him? Today, Jacqueline Bouknight is 56 years old. She will be 57 next month. It has been 36 years since anyone but her has seen Maurice.
Where is Maurice? If he is alive today, he almost certainly has no idea of his true identity. I feel that despite those close to Jacqueline swearing she wasn't capable of hurting him, it's likely he is dead. If he is dead, and if his death was caused at the hands of his mother, then Jacqueline found the ultimate loophole - refuse to comply, stay silent, and only serve 7 years in prison. Wherever Maurice is, I hope he is at peace.
Links:
Imgur album containing screenshots of every article I could find on Maurice's case: https://imgur.com/a/tWnD7Fv
WebSleuths thread on Maurice: https://www.websleuths.com/forums/threads/md-maurice-miles-18-months-baltimore-april-1988.297490/
Source on Bouknight's other arrests: https://casesearch.courts.state.md.us/casesearch/inquiry-index.jsp
Reading on the SCOTUS ruling: https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/493/549/ https://www.oyez.org/cases/1989/88-1182
A few article links - the printed version of these is available in screenshot form.
Washington Post, 07/10/89: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1989/07/10/high-court-to-weigh-rights-of-md-mother-missing-child/0bb88e74-bc06-42fe-8703-47cc516c4a9a/
LA Times, 07/16/89: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-07-16-mn-5745-story.html
Washington Post, 02/21/1990: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1990/02/21/jailed-mother-loses-ruling-on-divulging-sons-location/9dbce9a2-7518-494f-91e0-0d2861618ca2/
Baltimore Sun, 10/31/95 (paywalled - view in screenshots): https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1995-10-31-1995304049-story.html
Baltimore Sun, 02/28/04 (paywalled - view in screenshots): https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2004-02-28-0402280178-story.html

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Europe will Introduce a Reusable Launch Vehicle in the 2030s, says Arianespace CEO
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• JustAnotherAviatrix

Sam Durrance, astronaut who flew with telescope he built, dies at 79.
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• iboughtarock

The first clear evidence of active volcanism on Venus is presented, based on a reanalysis of old images from the Magellan spacecraft. The new research suggests that Venus has at least 85,000 volcanoes on its surface, and potentially even more smaller ones.
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Futurology

• Gari_305

An Entire Generation is Studying for Jobs that Won't Exist
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• lughnasadh

A leaked internal Google document says the future of AI may be dominated by free & open-source AI - & that open-source AI is now superior to Google or OpenAI's efforts.
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• JamesAsher12

Oregon Issues License to Nation's First-Ever Psilocybin (Magic Mushrooms) Service Center
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AskReddit

• AdRealistic03

What are some NSFW secrets about the military?
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• Equivalent_Signal545

What is the biggest NSFW green flag in a partner?
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• Anxious_Childhood310

What is one thing you regret doing in life?
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todayilearned

• RighteousFoundation

Today I Learned Roman physician Galen would use wine as a disinfectant for all types of wounds, and even soaked exposed bowels before returning them to the body only 5 Gladiators died under his watch
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• Maytree

TIL of a courtier, Jeffrey Hudson, in the court of King Charles I of England who was only 18 inches tall. He challenged a normal-height man to a duel with pistols over an insult. His opponent came to the duel armed with a water squirt gun. Hudson shot him in the head with a real gun, killing him.
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• GingerNutt

TIL Soccer legend Diego Maradona used a fake penis to pass drug tests at the height of his cocaine use. The phoney phallus was stolen from a Buenos Aires museum in 2003 and has never been recovered.
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dataisbeautiful

• latinometrics

[OC] A timeline of Latin America's coups d'état.
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• shoelacerobinson

[OC] Longest & Shortest MLB Outfield Walls Mash-up
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• jcceagle

[OC] The US Regional Bank Crisis Visualised
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Cooking

• pot_of_hot_koolaid

How to make broccoli as appealing as possible to a kid?
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• I_need_a_plan-t-

To those that helped me with choosing broth French onion soup: thank you so much it was the best French onion soup I’ve ever made. Here’s what I did :)
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• TehAsianator

PSA: Don't be afraid to break from the traditional and try mixing cultures.
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food

• Salty-Syrup4225

[Homemade] Shakshuka
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• Atl123420

[Homemade] Carne asada and chicken thigh street tacos
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• CompoBBQ

[I ate] Birria Tacos
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movies

• MarvelsGrantMan136

Official Poster for Christopher Nolan's 'Oppenheimer'
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• MarvelsGrantMan136

Marvel Hits Pause on ‘Blade’ Due to Writers Strike
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• indig0sixalpha

Henry Cavill, Jake Gyllenhaal & Eiza González To Reunite With Guy Ritchie For His Next Movie; Black Bear International To Heat Up Cannes Market With The Action Pic
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Art

• scenesepic1

Liquid Sunshine, Michael Alfano, Metal, ink, 2023
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• Tyromonium

Bottle cap dragon, Me, Bottle caps, wire and paper, 2023
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• Shirelord

༼ つ ╹ -╹ ༽つ , Me, Digital, 2023
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television

• indig0sixalpha

‘Doctor Who’: ‘Glee,’ ‘Frozen’ Star Jonathan Groff Joins Cast in Guest Role
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• mikexmachina

‘Psych 4’ Release Date on Peacock: James Roday Rodriguez Offers Update
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• indig0sixalpha

Disney Demands Showrunners Work During Writers Strike
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pics

• ikareaboutyou

I am being forced into competing in a office Fitbit step challenge.
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• Scared_Can9063

A steam train after a boiler explosion
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• bengjisims

Bottom half of my grinder was stuck for over a year.
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gifs

• LadyAbraxus

Leaf Mode 🍂
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• lnfinity

Piggies playing on their slide at an animal sanctuary
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• LadyAbraxus

Leap Attack!
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educationalgifs

mildlyinteresting

• PianoCharged

My library is displaying an archive from our local newspaper predicting a new high schooler in town, Taylor Swift, will rise to stardom
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• FlocklandTheSheep

The bus I just rode was donated to my country by the people of Japan.
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• fatalninja64

I found a dog's name tag in a bag of mulch I was putting down
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interestingasfuck

• TayTay13S

Mirror Hand Syndrome
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• longsanks

Lioness climbs into safari vehicle
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• xXboxPlaysx

Beating Heart At 30,000 Feet Looking For A New Home
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funny

• _indian_curry

India is not for beginners
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• Capital-Scar

Decided to watch a movie in the living room...
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• Patient_Island_2080

I think the baby is SCARED!
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aww

• pandabatron

Cat vs. Corn
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• MiloticM2

Two years ago I bought my sister her first cat. Today she sent me this
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• Lostiniowabut713irl

16 years together
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Local news has devolved significantly in recent years. What cover less than ever before; the depth of what is covered is less than ever before; and most of the details are buried behind a paywall. Now in addition to all of those things, we can't even get coverage in a timely manner.
Exhibit A:
• Tuesday, February 28 - TPS board votes to purchase Scott Park from UT. In a separate measure, they vote to redevelop the former Libbey High School property into a youth recreational site • Tuesday, March 7 - 13ABC publishes a story about it (7 days later) https://bit.ly/3H8C74z • Thursday, March 9 - Toledo Blade publishes story about Scott Park sale (9 days later) https://bit.ly/3mUHD4g • Saturday, March 18 - Toledo Blade publishes a story about Libbey High School redevelopment (18 days later) https://bit.ly/3Ndeyf8
Exhibit B:
• Monday, April 10 - Lucas County Democratic Party elects State Senator Paula Hicks-Hudson to be its new chair • Monday, April 24 - Toledo Blade publishes a story about it (14 days later) https://bit.ly/3oLE5BB
Exhibit C:
• Friday, April 14 - Governor DeWine announces that he is awarding $1,064.143.49 to the City of Toledo to fund violence intervention programs • Monday, April 24 - Toledo Blade publishes a story about it (10 days later) https://bit.ly/3Le5HHs

I have a few questions about building on a three acre plot in North Port Estates. I was hoping to get some insight before having to call the County.
Short backstory for context: My daughter has bought a home in the Estates. Three acres, home, pool and barn. They would like to build a small mother in law home on their property. I believe they are unrestricted and/or Agriculture, near The NW corner, not far from Toledo Blade.
Will the county (not sure if they are in the city of NP), allow for a 900-1000 square foot additional home to be build here? If so, how difficult is the permitting process? Will this be a multi year ordeal to get in process?