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Thread: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

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    Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?


    NEW YORK (CNN) -- For more than a half-century Jerry and Marilyn Damman wondered what happened to their 2-year-old boy, who mysteriously vanished into thin air outside a Long Island bakery.
    Steven Damman and his sister disappeared from outside a bakery in 1955. His sister was found safe.

    Steven Damman and his sister disappeared from outside a bakery in 1955. His sister was found safe.

    Now, 54 years later, a Michigan man claims he is the missing child whose name was Steven Damman.

    Within the last six months, the unidentified man contacted Nassau County, New York, police and said he had credible evidence that would link him to the case of the missing toddler, according to police Detective Lt. Kevin Smith. Nassau County police turned the case over to the FBI in Detroit.

    So far, authorities will not release the Michigan man's identity and won't say why he believes he is Steven Damman. The FBI is conducting DNA testing, Smith said.

    Sandra Berchtold, spokeswoman for the FBI Detroit bureau, said only, "The FBI investigates all leads in kidnapping cases, but cannot confirm or deny the existence of an investigation in this matter."

    In 1955, Marilyn Damman took her toddler, Steven, and his baby sister, Pamela, to a bakery in East Meadow. The mother went inside to do some quick shopping, leaving her 2-year-old and baby girl in the stroller outside. But when Damman returned, her children were gone. A short time later, blocks away, the baby girl was found unharmed and the stroller was intact, but Steven was missing, Smith said.

    Thousands of searchers looked for the toddler, but the boy was nowhere to be found. Hitting one dead end after the next, the Dammans packed up and moved from New York back to Iowa, Jerry Damman said.

    And until now, they thought there was little chance of ever seeing their son again.

    Jerry Damman, who lives on a farm in Iowa, told CNN, "You never give up hope, [but] things dim after all those years."

    He said he isn't ready to comment on the latest developments for various reasons. Damman says authorities have contacted him, but he has not yet given DNA samples.

    A few years back, Steven Damman's sister gave a DNA sample in connection with the 1957 Philadelphia case of a young boy's body found in a box. In that case, all indications were it was not Steven Damman.

    http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/06/16/ny.missing.boy.mystery/index.html
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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    I am glad you posted this. I wonder if this is true. He says(in the article i read yesterday) that he just had a feeling he didnt fit in with the family. I cant wait to hear if its true.

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    Wow, I can't wait to find out more about this.  What a story...

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    http://www.freep.com/article/20090617/NEWS06/90617027/Could+this+boy+be+this+man

    pics at link

    Kalkaska man says he may be boy who disappeared in 1955

    By JEFF SEIDEL
    FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

    KALKASKA — John Robert Barnes always felt different. He didn’t look like anyone in his family.

    His older brother and younger sister were short and had dark hair. Barnes is 6 feet tall with light skin and green eyes.

    “I don’t look like them,” Barnes said this afternoon. “They are small. They have brown eyes, real dark hair.”

    Now, Barnes thinks he knows the reason. He said he is almost 100% sure that he was kidnapped as a child.

    “I’m waiting on the FBI to tell me the results,” he said of DNA testing expected to determine whether he is actually Steven Damman, who disappeared just before his 3rd birthday from outside a Long Island, N.Y., bakery on Halloween 1955.

    He on his couch Wednesday afternoon, talking about the day his mother died — at least, the woman he thought was his mother.

    “She was dying of cancer and I think it was kind of like a deathbed confession,” Barnes said. “She wanted me to come over there alone.”

    Elizabeth Grundell, the woman who raised Barnes and whom he had always called mother, died in Elk Rapids in 1999, he said.

    She had lung cancer, and she was heavily medicated as she spoke to him.

    “I think she was trying to tell me something, but she wasn’t making sense,” Barnes said. “It was a bunch of gibberish.”

    Through the gibberish, through his gut feeling, he said he figured it out: He wasn’t her child.

    It was something Barnes said he had always felt. But she didn’t give him any specifics.

    “I never told anybody that she might have confessed,” Barnes said. “I said she might be trying to tell me something.”

    John Barnes’ younger sister, Cheryl Barnes, doesn’t believe the story.

    “Maybe in his head, he thinks this is true,” the 50-year-old Kalkaska resident said. “I’m not saying he’s doing this to be vindictive. Maybe, he thinks this is true. But I don’t.”

    For almost 20 years, Barnes said he had been trying to uncover his real background, going through old newspapers and searching the Internet because he didn’t look like his other family members. He said he was looking for children, around his age, who had been kidnapped.

    “It was a lot of time,” he said. “I had been doing it before” his mother’s deathbed confession. “It was a lot of time and patience.”

    A few times, he followed a few leads that were dead ends.

    “I was looking for a needle in a haystack,” he said.

    He said he was told his birthday was in August 1955.

    “I saw my birth certificate one time, but I don’t know if that was real,” he said.

    As a child, Barnes said, he never saw any baby pictures of himself. “When you get older, you start to realize things like that,” he said.

    He grew up in several Michigan cities, including Kalkaska, Flint and Detroit.

    Barnes is unemployed. “I’ve done factory work, worked on a farm,” he said. “Stuff like that.”

    About a year ago, he learned about a case that had baffled police for years. In 1955, a toddler named Steven Damman was kidnapped while waiting with his infant sister outside a bakery in Long Island, N.Y. The mother of the children had gone inside to get bread.

    To Barnes, it made sense. He might be Steven Damman.

    He located and contacted Damman family members.

    Last December, he met Pamela Damman Horne, who might be his sister.

    “I drove out to Kansas City,” he said. “We both agreed on it. My gut tells me we are related. It was great. I walked up to the door and knocked on it. I said, ‘Hi, I’m John,’ and we got to know each other.”

    Barnes said he was raised by Richard Barnes Sr. who lives in Kalkaska.

    When asked who might be behind what he believes was his kidnapping, Barnes said he is “waiting for the FBI to tell me what happened.”

    He said he hasn’t talked in about a year to the man who raised him. “We aren’t close at all,” he said.

    He said he felt like he was different from other family members and was treated differently as a child, almost as an outcast. He emphasized he is not angry at the man or woman who raised him.

    Barnes said her brother made different accusations before because he felt like he didn’t fit in because he had blond hair.”

    John Barnes wouldn’t give many specifics about the man who raised him. “There are some things I can’t talk about because the investigation is still going on.”

    Barnes said that he hasn’t talked to the older brother or sister he grew up with and is estranged from them.

    He said he doesn’t know if his father was ever in New York.

    “My dad told me that he’s never been to Long Island," Cheryl Barnes said, adding that John Barnes was born in Pensacola, Fla., in a naval hospital.

    “My dad was in the Navy,” she explained.

    As he sat on his couch, he was surrounded by a producer from the NBC “Today Show” and one from CBS. “It’s overwhelming,” he said.

    A short time later, Barnes couldn’t talk any longer. He was being whisked away to New York City to appear Thursday morning on the “Today Show.”

    “We have to go now,” NBC producer Christiana Arvetis said in his kitchen. “We’ll put you up. All expenses paid. Just agree to talk to NBC exclusively, and after that, then you can talk to every other network.”

    Barnes and his wife, Kim, have been married 20 years.

    They never had children.

    Contact JEFF SEIDEL: 313-223-4558 or jseidel@freepress.com
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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    Dude was on the Today show this morning, along with his father, who denies that his son was kidnapped and said that the dude is his biological son. 

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    I feel so sorry for John.  Regardless of if he is really the Barnes' son, or if he is Steven, or someone else.  It's obvious he feels alienated from the family he was raised by. Sad.
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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    Wow.

    He doesn't feel like a member of his own family, does he?  I can't wait to hear about the DNA test results.  Sounds like his father and sister don't believe him at all and are making him out to be full of drama. 

    I am 50/50 on it.  It's a very interesting case!!

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    [quote author=winters_footsteps link=topic=20466.msg1309146#msg1309146 date=1245340126]
    Wow.

    He doesn't feel like a member of his own family, does he?  I can't wait to hear about the DNA test results.  Sounds like his father and sister don't believe him at all and are making him out to be full of drama. 

    I am 50/50 on it.  It's a very interesting case!!
    [/quote]They said on Today that the preliminary DNA that he and Stephen's sister took said they could be siblings.  Now I don't know a lot about it, but I think the odds are highly against 2 random strangers taking a DNA test and coming back with that good a match.  But who knows.

    I would think the father at least has to know the truth.  It's not like he was taken as an infant.  But of course it could be in the father's best interest to deny deny deny.

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    [quote author=puzzld link=topic=20466.msg1309148#msg1309148 date=1245340341]
    They said on Today that the preliminary DNA that he and Stephen's sister took said they could be siblings.  Now I don't know a lot about it, but I think the odds are highly against 2 random strangers taking a DNA test and coming back with that good a match.  But who knows.

    I would think the father at least has to know the truth.  It's not like he was taken as an infant.  But of course it could be in the father's best interest to deny deny deny.


    [/quote]

    Totally.

    Maybe the family he grew up with were not the ones who kidnapped him?  Someone else took him and then gave him to that family because they could provide a better home, in other words lied?

    There are so many "what-ifs."

    I hope we get to know the truth, but more importantly I hope Steven Damman gets to know the truth.

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    I just dont understand why the man that raised him wont take a DNA test.  Simple quick done with instead of this whole investigation.  If it comes back that the old man is lying I think he deserves to pay the bill.  What a jerk, both for not taking the test and for alienating the kid he raised.
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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    [quote author=SSchlange link=topic=20466.msg1309227#msg1309227 date=1245346444]
    I just dont understand why the man that raised him wont take a DNA test.&nbsp; Simple quick done with instead of this whole investigation.&nbsp; If it comes back that the old man is lying I think he deserves to pay the bill.&nbsp; What a jerk, both for not taking the test and for alienating the kid he raised.
    [/quote]

    I agree.

    He has to understand that he won't be able to hide the truth.&nbsp; Better to come clean than make it worse on everyone.

    I wonder who snatched the kid?&nbsp; The father who raised him?&nbsp;

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    Can you imagine this actually turning out to be this missing kid? (somehow I doubt it but...)

    I read somewhere(in this thread?) or another online news source that the mother(or supposed mother) said he wasnt her bio kid on her death bed. This is just weird.

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    It's not him.

    FBI: Michigan Man Isn't Toddler Who Vanished in 1955
    DNA tests conducted by the FBI ended the bizarre drama today of a 54-year-old Michigan man who believed he was really Steven Damman, a toddler who was stolen in 1955 and never heard from again.

    A Michigan man believes he was kidnapped as a toddler in 1955.The FBI was called into the case when John Barnes of Kalkaska, Mich., approached police in East Meadow, N.Y., to say he suspected he was the missing boy.

    Initially tests comparing blood samples between Barnes and Damman's sister Pamela Horne did not rule him out as a possible relative of the Damman family, so the FBI conducted a more sophisticated DNA test. The results of the tests ruled Barnes out as a member of the Damman family, the FBI announced today.

    &quot;DNA samples analyzed by the FBI Laboratory in Quantico, Va., show John Barnes and Pamela Damman Horne do not share the same mother,&quot; the FBI said. &quot;All interested parties have been notified of the DNA test results.&quot;

    Barnes' suspicions about his origins began in March, but became the subject of nationwide speculation as word leaked out about his efforts to prove who his parents really are. Barnes even rejected his father's insistence that it was all &quot;foolishness.&quot;

    Steven's father, Jerry Damman, told the Associated Press, &quot;It's too bad we had to go through all of this for actually nothing in the end.&quot;

    Earlier this week, Jerry Damman hadn't made up his mind about whether Barnes is his son and said today that he was disappointed by the DNA tests.

    &quot;Yes, this was a big let down,&quot; he told ABCNews.com. &quot;You do have hope that this would work out, but I'm kind of glad this is all over.&quot;
    http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=7869083&amp;page=1

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    Kid's Dead
    Oh God, Stop The Voices *SCREAM*

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    [quote author=MrBoddy2005 link=topic=20466.msg1309578#msg1309578 date=1245367682]
    Kid's Dead
    [/quote]More than likely.

    Now what the need to do is do a DNA test on Barnes's relatives and put his mind at ease.&nbsp; The mother's deathbed statement could have just been a result of drugs or illness.
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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    [quote author=puzzld link=topic=20466.msg1309585#msg1309585 date=1245368060]
    More than likely.

    Now what the need to do is do a DNA test on Barnes's relatives and put his mind at ease.&nbsp; The mother's deathbed statement could have just been a result of drugs or illness.
    [/quote]

    This guy's father needs to do a DNA test and put this whole thing to rest once and for all.&nbsp; I can't understand why he wouldn't agree to it unless he had something to hide.&nbsp;

    It kind of sucks that it wasn't Steven.&nbsp; That family deserves some peace, and this brought it all back to the surface.&nbsp; What a nightmare for them... one... long... nightmare.&nbsp; And just when they think they are getting some answers... nothing.&nbsp; My heart goes out to them.

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    DAMNIT. I was really hoping it was him.&nbsp;

    This is from the Doe Network website:

    Steven Craig Damman
    Missing since October 31, 1955 from East Meadow, Nassau County, New York.
    Classification: Missing

    Vital Statistics

    Date Of Birth: December 1952
    Age at Time of Disappearance: 2 years old
    Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 3'2&quot;; 32 lbs.
    Distinguishing Characteristics: White male. Blonde hair; blue eyes.
    Marks, Scars: Small scar under chin. Healed fracture on left arm. Molelike birthmark on back of right calf.
    Medical Conditions: Steven had been under treatment for a kidney growth at the time he went missing.
    Other: Footprints available
    Circumstances of Disappearance
    Steven Damman's mother left her home in East Meadow, New York on October 31, 1955 to go to a supermarket a block and a half away.
    She had her son Steven, age 34 months and her daughter Pamela, age 7 months with Pamela strapped into a baby carriage with her. She left her daughter in the carriage out in front of the store with her son standing beside it while she did her shopping. When she came back ten minutes later, both the carriage and her children were gone.
    Her daughter and the carriage were later recovered unharmed by a family friend a block and a half away.
    Despite a massive search involving more than a thousand persons, Steven was never seen again.



    You'd think that they could've checked to see if he'd ever had kidney problems, or maybe the scar or mole. I dunno.

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    I feel bad for this guy still.&nbsp; I hope he gets some help and becomes comfortable in his family.[quote author=winters_footsteps link=topic=20466.msg1309634#msg1309634 date=1245371827]
    This guy's father needs to do a DNA test and put this whole thing to rest once and for all.&nbsp; I can't understand why he wouldn't agree to it unless he had something to hide.&nbsp;

    It kind of sucks that it wasn't Steven.&nbsp; That family deserves some peace, and this brought it all back to the surface.&nbsp; What a nightmare for them... one... long... nightmare.&nbsp; And just when they think they are getting some answers... nothing.&nbsp; My heart goes out to them.
    [/quote]ITA he thinks he is just proving he is right and he is proving that something could be wrong.&nbsp; Maybe he was a family adoption or something.
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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    [quote author=SSchlange link=topic=20466.msg1311132#msg1311132 date=1245533185]
    I feel bad for this guy still.&nbsp; I hope he gets some help and becomes comfortable in his family.ITA he thinks he is just proving he is right and he is proving that something could be wrong.&nbsp; Maybe he was a family adoption or something.
    [/quote]

    He has the right to know IMO.&nbsp; Honesty is a good thing.&nbsp; Maybe it was an illegal adoption?

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    Re: Steven Damman missing 54 years. Found?

    Well maybe the one who raised him isn't his father and knows it. Back then a woman was disgraced to have slept with another (not very dif now except now a days its not really something to shame the whole family). Maybe he doesn't want to find out what his biggest fear is, that the son is his mother lovers and not his.

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