MISSING PERSON
CASE #: 2014-45
Jennifer Cahill Shadle
Status:
Open
Date of Last Contact:
Date of Last Contact:
Jurisdiction:
Missing From:
State College, PA
Summary:
Jennifer Cahill-Shadle, a 48-year-old mother of three, disappeared on May 15, 2014, from a shopping area in State College, Pennsylvania. Last seen leaving Don Patron Mexican Grill around 10 p.m., she vanished without a car, cell phone, or wallet. Her estranged husband is a person of interest, though he was cleared by police after an inconclusive polygraph test. She was legally declared dead on May 15, 2021, by Centre County court following seven years of no contact. Her case remains unsolved.
Vital Statistics
Circumstances of Disappearance:
At 4:51 p.m. on May 15, 2014, Cahill-Shadle was captured on surveillance video walking from the North Atherton Street Walmart across the parking lot toward the Dollar Tree store. She was supposed to meet her daughter and husband later in the day so they could give her a new credit card, but she never arrived there. She was seen later that cool, rainy night at Simply Tan and, at around 10 p.m., in the vicinity of the former Don Patron Mexican Grill. She may have been seen at Simply Tan in the same shopping plaza between 7:00 and 8:00 p.m. The business's owner stated she came in, soaking wet, and saying she had lost her wallet, and the owner and two employees tried to help her find it but they were unable to locate it. She has never been heard from again. On May 20, 2014, her mother filed a missing persons report with the Ferguson Township Police when she couldn't contact Jennifer.
Additional Details:
Cahill-Shadle had lived in Ferguson Township, Pennsylvania until November 2013, when she moved in with her mother in Orwigsburg, Pennsylvania. In late April 2014, she moved to the State College area to be closer to her three children. She didn't have a permanent address and was staying with a friend and at hotels, including the Quality Inn and the Rodeway Inn. She didn't have a car and usually walked places or took a taxi, and she used the Mega Bus for trips outside the area. Cahill-Shadle's estranged husband told the police that she had checked into a rehabilitation center for her alcoholism, something that turned out to be untrue. She also didn't have a cellular phone, credit card, extra clothes or any money when she disappeared, and her loved ones don't believe she would have left of her own accord. She was in the process of a contested divorce when she disappeared, and her husband was supposed to pay her $5,000 a month. Her husband is considered a person of interest in her disappearance and took a lie detector test, and police searched his property for her remains, but found nothing. Zmuida, who believes Cahill-Shadle was murdered, said that police waited 30 days before they classified her daughter as missing and she and others have advocated for the FBI to take over the case. Jennifer Cahill-Shadle, a mother of three, was declared dead by Centre County President Judge Jonathan Grine. He established her date of death as May 15, 2021. Nobody has been charged in connection with her disappearance and the investigation into her whereabouts remains open.
Case Last Updated:
Timeline of Events
Jennifer legally declared deceased after seven years without communication as required by Pennsylvania law
Jennifer legally declared dead by Centre County President Judge Jonathan Grine; official date of death established
Ferguson Township Police form cold case team to reinvestigate; new detectives assigned to case
One year anniversary of disappearance; case remains active but inactive status reported by family
Jennifer's mother files missing person report with Ferguson Township Police after unable to contact her daughter
Jennifer shops at Walmart on North Atherton Street, State College, PA
Last confirmed sighting: Jennifer seen walking out of Don Patron Mexican Grill at North Atherton Place Plaza
Surveillance video captures Jennifer leaving Walmart, walking across parking lot toward Dollar Tree
Jennifer possibly seen at Simply Tan tanning salon in same shopping plaza, appearing soaking wet and reporting lost wallet
Associated Persons
Sean S. (Spouse) - Living
Johanna Z. (Mother) - Living
Laura S. (Child) - Living
Family Tree
Why is this important?Missing person
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Missing Person
Missing Person
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