14 DAY TRIAL // Misty Upham, the 32-year-old Native American actress who starred in “Frozen River” and “August: Osage County,” was found dead in the woods in Auburn, WA, just outside Seattle. She had been missing for 10 days, with her body being found in a ravine by a search party formed by family members.
Uphan’s big break in acting was with “Frozen River,” which also earned her a nomination at the Indie Spirit Awards in 2009. She had been struggling in Hollywood for years before that and never hesitated to use her voice to bring to attention the need for more diversity in the industry, for Native American actors and actresses to get equal chances at leading roles, and stop being treated as minorities.
For the past few years, she had been struggling with mental issues, and at the time of her disappearance, she had had her medication changed.
Police refused to search for her when she was reported missing
Misty went missing as she was on her way home from friends. Right after reporting her missing to the police, members of the family spoke to the press, saying that she had had her medication for her mental issues changed and hinting that this might have turned her suicidal.
However, days later, her father Charles posted a heartbreaking message on Facebook, in which he talked about Misty’s problems and accused authorities of not helping with the search, Deadline reports.
Time was of the essence, and with no help from the police to look for her, her chances of survival were decreasing by the hour. “I think Misty may have walked into nearby woods and got hurt and can’t reach help or I think she may have had an encounter with someone who may have caused her harm. I believe she would contact us if she could. I feel that if she is found soon she may have a chance to survive. But time is slipping away,” he wrote.
Time slipped away from Misty, because the police refused to get involved in her search. Her body was found at the bottom of a deep ravine by a party of 3, comprising family members, the same media outlet reports.
“The main thing her family wants people to know is that the Auburn Police Department would not cooperate in looking for Misty,” Tracy Rector, one of Misty’s friends speaking for the family, says. “There’s a long history of police harassment and friction between the police and the Muckleshoot community here, and her family feels they dropped the ball and Misty perhaps would have been found if the police had taken it seriously.”
Auburn PD is yet to address the very serious allegations
Missy was missing for 10 days, so her family had no other choice but organize search parties when they saw that the police were doing nothing in terms of trying to find her, it is said. Finding the body didn’t even take that long, which adds fuel to the speculation that she could have been saved, if authorities had acted on the first call and went out looking for her.
As of now, the Auburn PD is yet to address the serious allegations made by Misty’s family. Whether they do or not is irrelevant at this point, because a 32-year-old woman will still be dead.
“Misty was a talented and kind soul who will be greatly missed,” Misty’s manager Richard Kerner says for the aforementioned publication. “My deepest condolences to her family and friends.”