April 30, 2012

12/07/11: Jimmy Slack, 25, Pittsburgh, PA

Jimmy Slack
Jimmy Slack, 25, had gone to a String Cheese Incident concert at Stage AE on the North Shore of Pittsburgh, Pa. on Dec. 6, 2011. He was last seen around 9:30 p.m., then became separated from friend, Paulette, who left with another person when she failed to find him. They finally reached Slack on his cell phone at 1 a.m. and he said, "I am still partying." They last talked to him at  3 a.m. when he said he would probably walk home.

Family members became concerned when he didn’t return or answer calls to his cell phone, and then missed his niece's birthday that weekend. Slack was getting ready to return to his job working on a barge.

His body was recovered from the Allegheny River on Jan. 23, 2012.



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Read the Full Story:
What Happened to Jimmy Slack?

After Jimmy disappeared, his family and investigators launched an extensive search that canvassed the North Side of Philadelphia. They placed fliers across the region, offered a $5,000 reward for information and raised awareness on Facebook and Twitter. 

More than 400 people attended a candlelight vigil at Bethany Presbyterian Church on Dec. 22.

According to CBS Pittsburgh, "His parents, James and Donna, and sisters, Maureen Shields and Laura Slack, greeted each of them with hugs and tears." Donna Slack told the paper, "The comfort was people looking for him and genuinely caring about him. I wouldn’t have been able to do this (without them).”

The body of Jimmy Slack was recovered the afternoon of Monday, Jan. 23 on the shore of the Allegheny River near the Carnegie Science Center. The crew on a RiverQuest boat that was pulling up to the shore noticed the body and called 911. Pittsburgh police were called to the area around 1:30 p.m. and the person's clothing matched what Slack had been wearing when he disappeared. Slack's wallet, cash and a cell phone were also found on his body.

Pittsburgh Police Lt. Kevin Kraus told CBS Pittsburgh, "We were down here with cadaver dogs and other scent dogs down on the river banks for some time and found no signs of Mr. Slack until today..."

According to the paper, Bridgeville police Chief Chad King notified the family at their Bridgeville home shortly after Slack was found.

“It was very emotional,” King said. "I think they were still holding out to hope that he would come home.”

Police are waiting for an autopsy to determine how Slack died. It’s not immediately clear if his death is considered suspicious or accidental, but investigators have said that Slack was highly intoxicated. It is also not clear to investigators how Slack entered the river, according to a press release. The investigation is ongoing.


About James Slack

James Joseph Slack II graduated from Chartiers Valley High School in 2004 and was living with his parents in Bridgeville, Pa. Julia Hoffman, a close friend of Slack's, told ABC, "He loved to dance. He always made you smile. He'd walk in and his blue eyes and blonde hair would just light up the room," she said.


Case Details

Residence: Bridgeville, Pa.
Last seen: 12/6/11, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Recovered: 1/23/12, 1 p.m., Allegheny River, Pa.
Physical Description: 5'10", 165 pounds, blonde hair, blue eyes
Investigating Agency: Bridgeville Police, 412-279-6911


Sources

Jones, Mike. (2012), January 23). Body of Jimmy Slack Found in Pittsburgh. Chartiers Valley Patch. Retrieved April 29, 2012 from: http://chartiersvalley.patch.com/articles/body-of-jimmy-slack-found-in-pittsburgh

Staff Writer. (2012, January 23). Missing Man’s Body Found In Allegheny River. CBS Pittsburgh. Retrieved April 29, 2012 from: http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2012/01/23/missing-mans-body-found-in-allegheny-river/

10 comments:

Skunky said...

Lisa, I just found out about Jimmy Slack last evo and was gonna post. You're on top of it. Thank you.

Also of note (but not 100% M.O.)are

Philip Jobst of Carbondale, IL
24 YO
Still missing...

James D, Sizemore of Noble County, IN
20 YO
Found in private pond 2/18/2012

Jesse David Zimmerman of Portland, OR
25 YO
Found 4/22/2012 in Deschutes River

Also, many limited info on drownings in...

New Haven, CT 2/11 (black male) Mill River

Essex, MD 2/28 Wilson Pond

Youngstown, OH 4/9 (male) Mahoning River

Maryland, 4/17 (Potomac River) (black male)

Schenectady, NY 4/18 (White Male in 20s) Mohawk River

Chicago River 4/26

Flint, MI 4/27 (Adult Male) Flint River

Lisa said...

@ Skunky - Oh my! Thank you for doing all that research and finding these cases. I'll get working on these, but it may take some time!

Hazel said...

Thank you both for your insights and interest. Jesse Zimmerman was a friend of mine and your blog is quite intriguing. I'm curious if/how my friend Jesse may be related to these other cases. BTW - Jesse was out of town in Bend because he was attending a Yonder Mountain String Band concert on Friday, April 20th. Hope that info helps in some way...

Skunky said...

Hazel, my sympathies to you on the loss of your friend. Thank you for the info...I was curious where he went missing.

It must be a hard time for his family and friends. I feel for you all at this tragic time.

Lisa, the body the fella found in the Iowa River was identified...

Lo Pi/Columbus Junction, IA (Myanmar National)
32 YO
(Missing since 1/19/2012)
Body found 3/31 in Iowa River

Also the fella found in the Mohawk River...

Anthony Krisanda/Saratoga, NY (Schenectady)
30 YO

Body found in Mohawl River 4/18

Dennis Lotorie Anderson/Wilmington, NC
29YO

Body found in Cape Fear River 4/29/2012

Brandon Tyler Crain/Munfordville, KY
19YO
(Missing since 1/26/2012)
Body found 4/28 in the Green River

Skunky said...

The body found in Mill River has been ID'd

William Young/New Haven, CT
27 YO
(Last seen 1/5/2012 at home)
Body found 2/11/2012 in Mill River

Anonymous said...

@Skunky, how do you know all of these cases? Great research!

Unknown said...

Are all of these cases possibly related to the Smiley Face Killer (s)??? Did you see the first episode on Oxygen on Saturday night? Very well done.

Lindsay Downs said...

There were two other similar cases in Pittsburgh: Paul Kochu and Dakota James. They are featured in a podcast: 3 Rivers, 2 Mysteries. Dakota's case is featured in episode one of Oxygen's The Smiley Face Killers.

Unknown said...

I read that they dont believe Paul's case is related to the smiley face killers ...just a Google search

S8nSt8n said...

RIP Jimmy. You are missed :'( After 10 years and you're still on my mind.