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3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Zwickelmania puts the taste buds to the test Neighbors fight cell tower proposal near Ashland Gov. Kitzhaber steps down, federal investigation begins Successor Kate Brown must run for election in 2016 Mt. Ashland offers shuttle service Education Levy supporters kick off campaign Bowling for knowledge Sharing black culture It's alive! SOU students create thought-provoking art Environment Mt. Ashland Ski Area celebrates snow GMO opponents can join Jackson County in defending ban Grant will help restore 'legacy' oak habitat in Southern Oregon and Northern California Mt. Ashland Ski Area crew dips to five Mt. Ashland Ski Area announces layoffs Business Ride & Drive: 2015 Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack Silvio Calabi: Range Rover Sport, the off-road GT Where do Ashland’s top chefs go to dine? Ride & Drive: The 2015 BMW M4 Silvio Calabi: Jeep’s Patriot earns respect Politics and elections Gov. Kitzhaber steps down, federal investigation begins Successor Kate Brown must run for election in 2016 Sadness, relief greet Kitzhaber resignation locally Gov. Kitzhaber announces resignation Read Gov. John Kitzhaber's statement on his resignation State News Gov. Kitzhaber announces resignation Read Gov. John Kitzhaber's statement on his resignation Legislative leaders join in call for Kitzhaber resignation (updated) Oregon secretary of state: Meeting with governor 'strange' Oregon's second in command abruptly returns from capital Nation - World Obituaries Arlene M. (Ryan) Mills Michael Wayne South Claire G. Craft Theodore F. 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Herb Rothschild Jr.: A good day for peace Guest Opinion: A message to my health care colleagues Columns Workers need more power Guest Opinion: Legal poisons in our waters Jeffrey Gillespie: Mr. Netanyahu goes to Washington Editor's Notes: More local content in the Tidings Council Corner: Transforming Ashland for the future Revels Latest Stories Community blog: Young poets need your help 'Dames at Sea' opens at Oregon Cabaret Theatre Listings for Varsity Theatre and Ashland Street Cinemas Brett Dennen plays the old Ashland Armory Cotillard embarks on a journey of hope in 'Two Days, One Night' Theater 'Dames at Sea' opens at Oregon Cabaret Theatre Looking inside yourself and finding a character is magic Classics, premiers highlight 2015 season for OSF Roy Orbison tribute hits high note Music Victor D. Infante: Just in time for Valentine’s Day, some favorite breakup songs The Farr Side: Smith dominates, Beck surprises at Grammys Frisell brings fine-tuned act to Armory The Farr Side: Trainor building a music niche A laid-back chat with Marilyn Manson Visual Art Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhibits by regional artists Movies Movie review: ‘Fifty Shades’ of boring Movie review: ‘Kingsman’ transcends spy-movie tribute status Listings for Varsity Theatre and Ashland Street Cinemas Cotillard embarks on a journey of hope in 'Two Days, One Night' Movie review: ‘Leviathan’ tells a whale of a human tale Food and Drink Cruelest Month: Poetry Blog Lifestyle Latest Stories David Murdock: Take a nice little walk Looking Up: The sky on Valentine's night Health Watch: The rise of wearable fitness tech Jimmy Smothers: Car trouble turns into a pleasant experience Marketta Gregory: We are loved Aging Happens Inner Peace Column Inner Peace Blog Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Photos Videos Blogs Business NEWS NOW Neighbors fight cell tower proposal near Ashland ... Ashland Calendar: Feb. 14 ... Workers need more power ... Neighbors fight cell tower proposal near Ashland ... Ashland Calendar: Feb. 14 ... Workers need more power ... EDITOR'S NOTES Editor's Notes: Agonizing uncertainty in runaway case DailyTidings.com Writer Posted Feb. 5, 2015 @ 12:01 am Posted Feb. 5, 2015 @ 12:01 am » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2324,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> It’s agonizing. A young Ashland woman is out there, seemingly on her own, without the help and support of family and friends. They want something, anything, done to find the one they love. The frustration at a lack of answers has ended up on the doorstep of the Ashland Police Department, at least partly because there’s no other channel for that frustration. The police department is, it says and appears, doing everything it can. Chief Terry Holderness spoke to the Ashland City Council on Tuesday to tell it and the community just that. This is what he said: Hannah Thomas-Garner, 17, left Ashland on Nov. 30, about six months after she started talking to friends about running away. On Nov. 29, the night she slipped out of the house where she lived with her mother and headed up Dead Indian Memorial Road to a teen rave, she told people she had two bags packed and was running away. She was seen at the party. Somebody took a photo of her there at about 1 a.m. Shortly before 9, she made a call from Mt. Shasta to another girl. Mt. Shasta is where her car was discovered with damage to the windshield and a rock nearby that possibly could have been used to bash the windshield. Police have previously said part of the plan she shared with others was to damage her car. About 20 minutes after she made the call from Mt. Shasta, she was seen hitch-hiking near Interstate 5, holding a cardboard sign that said “South.” She had two bags with her. And that, aside from a couple of inconclusive sightings of someone who might have been Hannah on store surveillance cameras, is the last time she was seen. Police don’t have fingerprints from her car. They do have six swabs of DNA. They’ve not been sent to a crime lab because it does not appear there was a crime committed in association with the vehicle, and crime labs won’t test unless there’s a crime involved. “We don’t think there’s evidentiary value” to the six DNA swabs, Holderness said. Investigators think it’s likely Hannah’s DNA. Even if it’s somebody else’s, odds are against getting a match from the DNA database, which has less than 1 percent of criminals’ DNA on file. Holderness said the department had located a private DNA lab in Virginia that would do the testing for $10,000, if that’s something the council thinks the city should pay for. Police are keeping tabs on social media and credit cards, but there’s been no activity there tied to Hannah. “We’ve had a tremendous amount of cooperation with California agencies,” Holderness said, in trying to locate Hannah. But there are, he said, an estimated 200,000 homeless juveniles on the streets of California. Why hasn’t Hannah reached out to let family or friends know she’s OK? Holderness said, “detectives are convinced friends are holding back.” I hope he’s right. It’s comforting to think she is OK. But at the same time, it’s maddening that, if true, so-called friends are keeping a secret that causes such pain. “It’s extremely dangerous to be a 17-year-old female runaway,” Holderness said. Ashland has about 30 runaways a year, he added. This one has gone on a long time without answers. We hope Hannah’s out there. Even if she doesn’t want to come home, it’s only right she, if she can, let someone know she’s OK, and for that someone to pass it on to those who love her. Reach Daily Tidings editor Bert Etling at [email protected] or 541-631-1313. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/betling. 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