"Part of this involvement started six years ago when Gladys and I became certified on an international level by the American Board of Medico/Legal Death Investigators," Gary Peterson said.
Residents of Spring Valley, the Petersons are one of three investigators in Fillmore County. They are called upon for all deaths outside of nursing homes or hospital. Their job is to collect information and order an autopsy if necessary.
"We come upon some difficult and interesting scenarios," Gladys Peterson said. Usually, the couple works with family members, emergency medical technicians and law enforcement.
How it all began
It was the disappearance of Iowa news anchor Jodi Huisentruit that led the Petersons to a new vocation, that of volunteer search coordinators for the nonprofit organization Texas Equusearch. When Huisentruit disappeared in 1995 in Mason City, Peterson was the news director at KAAL television in Austin. He and reporter Josh Benson went to Mason City to report on the investigation.
"One thing led to another, and Josh and I have been involved in the Huisentruit case ever since," Peterson said. After three years of research, Peterson and Benson produced a 14-part report, "The Huisentruit Files," which won the Eric Sevareid Excellence in Journalism Award in 2004 and an Emmy in 2005. They also established and maintain a Web site, FindJodi.com, that receives 50 or 60 hits a day on average.
The Petersons have been called upon for many missing person cases. Some are high-profile cases, such as the Caylee Anthony case in Florida, which was recently resolved, and the Stacy Peterson case in Chicago. The couple is working on open cases in New York, Texas, Vermont, Iowa and Illinois.
"As search manager, we are a communication liaison between family and law enforcement, help organize a ground search, ride with police, firefighters and search teams," said Gladys Peterson. "Families are vulnerable in these horrible situations. They feel alone, and our job is to give them a first-hand, honest report. ... It doesn't take much to give them a glimmer of hope, to keep them encouraged."
Rewarding, yet draining
Involvement in missing person cases has led to a first-hand investigation for Gary Peterson. Troubled by the deaths of 140 college students during six years in river cities in the U.S., Gary has put the dates and locations of the incidents on a spread sheet.
"The results are chilling," he said. There is almost a direct geographical line in the location and sequence of the missing person reports of men who left a bar and were not seen again. He hopes to spur further investigation into these cases by computing similarities.
The Petersons believe their service is worthwhile, though many cases are frustrating They volunteer their time, though they might get help with travel expenses from the nonprofit organization or from families or other volunteers. The work can take a toll physically and emotionally.
"Thank God we are both involved in this," Gladys Peterson said. "Talking through it helps relieve the burden."
Their goal is to find the missing person regardless of the outcome.
"Even when they have solved the case, you have to accept the fact that 'why' may never be answered," Gary Peterson said.
Debi Neville is a Rochester freelance writer.
