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Agencies clash over search report

09:45 AM PST on Wednesday, March 7, 2007

By kgw.com Staff

An investigation into a missing Beaverton woman who was found dead outside her car on a road in rural Washington state turned up no evidence that correcting any mistakes made during the search period could have prevented her death.

Beverly Johnson

The report by Aberdeen Police came out Tuesday.

Beverly Johnson, 69, was missing since January 27th. Her friends and family had been searching for her car and hoping for a miracle until her body was found along a remote logging road near Aberdeen, Washington.

Johnson's death was ruled as "accidental with probable hypothermia" according to authorities.

Read the report (PDF)

In mid-February, the Grays Harbor County, Wash., sheriff’s office began investigating whether Johnson’s purple Honda Accord was spotted just hours after she disappeared.

According to a review by Aberdeen Police, dispatchers acted according to procedure and there was no evidence that if a general broadcast about Johnson would have been made, it would have made the search any easier for law enforcement.

“Any conclusion would be complete speculation,” the report said.

Johnson's husband disagreed with the report.

Delbert Johnson, said, “They made a decision not to save my wife’s life.”

A 9-1-1 call about the incident came five hours after Johnson was last seen on January 27th. An explorer scout from Vancouver, Wash. noticed a car matching Johnson's being driven erratically west of Olympia and made the call, reporting it as a possible drunk driver.

Raw: Listen to the dispatch calls

Later in Portland that same night, he saw a television news report about Johnson, who was listed as missing and endangered, because it was learned she did not have her anti-seizure medication.

Background: Probe into search for missing Beaverton woman

Beaverton's Police Chief David Bishop said Tuesday, "If they had followed this with good common sense, this would not be an issue today."
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