Amber Barker

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2:00have been changed or omitted per their request or for safety purposes. Listener discretion is advised. My name is Sarah Turney and this is Voices for Justice.

2:16Today, I'm discussing the disappearance of Amber Barker. On the evening of December 18, 1997, 10-year-old Amber Barker from Oklahoma City was doing something that I think almost every kid growing up in the 90s could relate to. She was making the short trip of about five blocks from her friend's house back home, racing to make it back before dark and before the streetlights came on. But Amber never made it home. This is the case of Amber Barker.

2:47Just before 6pm on Thursday, December 18th, 1997, Bonnie Parker was at her home in Oklahoma City when her youngest daughter Amber called home from her friend Katie's house. Amber's a little nervous. The rule is that she's supposed to be home before sunset, and she's running a little late. She doesn't want to get in trouble. But Bonnie tells her don't worry about that, just get home. I imagine that Amber lets out a little sigh of relief. Then she says goodbye to her friend and hops on her bike to make the about three-minute ride home. Now, this is something Amber did all the time. The route was about a half mile, really just five blocks in her neighborhood.

3:25But for Bonnie, she said something felt different this time. Call it mother's intuition, paranoia, or something else, but she says something inside her felt like she might never see Amber again. So as time began to pass, the three minutes it should have taken Amber to get home, another 10 minutes, and then 15, and Amber still wasn't home, Bonnie took action immediately. She confirmed with Katie's parents that Amber left on her bike right after making that phone call. So Bonnie began driving around the neighborhood to look for her. But she didn't see Amber or her bike anywhere. And at 7.20 p.m., Bonnie reported her daughter missing to the Oklahoma City Police Department.

4:08And they put out the following description. Amber is 10 years old, a white female, 5 feet tall, and weighed 80 pounds. She has long brown hair, last seen wearing it half up and half down. She has pierced ears. And she was last seen wearing a beige long-sleeve sweater with a brown collar, black jeans, and a pair of No Excuses brand sneakers. This was completely out of character for Amber. She had no history of running away and was close with her mom and the rest of her family. She also really didn't like being out after dark. Bonnie says that while Amber was a tough kid who liked working on cars and aspired to be a welder when she grew up, she would still get scared at night.

4:52She didn't like to sleep in her room and would usually fall asleep with Bonnie. So Amber just taking off on her bike as it's getting dark seemed very unlikely. Luckily, the Oklahoma City PD took the report seriously and began searching right away. And Amber's case sees the response that every case of a missing person should be so lucky to receive. It was a huge community effort. Officers, neighbors, and Amber's family searched. They went door-to-door, and they even stopped motorists to ask if they'd seen Amber. This initial search focused on the area bordered by Northwest 45th Street to Northwest 10th Street and Lake Hefner Parkway to May Avenue.

5:33It's about two and a half square miles. But as the minutes and then hours ticked by, another concern came to the forefront. While the weather wasn't extremely harsh that winter, it was still cold, around 35 degrees on average, and Amber was still nowhere to be found. But they did find one thing, something so small that it kind of feels like a miracle for it to have been found at all. That evening, one of Amber's sisters found a piece of her jewelry in the road. It was a small silver ring. According to reporting by Robert Medley for the Daily Oklahoman, this ring was found in the street along Drexel Boulevard, right on Amber's root home.

6:15But that was it. There was no other sign of Amber or where she may have gone. And that night, for the first time in a long time, her mother Bonnie slept without her daughter by her side. This message is sponsored by Greenlight. Money is this invisible thread that ties us all together. It's something everyone has to deal with. That's why teaching kids about money isn't just smart, It's essential. Greenlight is a debit card and money app for families. It's a safe way to teach kids and teens about money. With Greenlight, parents can send money quickly, get spending notifications, and even assign chores.

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7:38It's been about 12 hours since 10-year-old Amber Barker went missing along her half-mile bike ride home. And on Friday morning, investigators, volunteers, and Amber's family hit the ground running looking for her. They're also now joined by about 35 FBI agents. At this point, investigators aren't saying definitively that Amber was abducted, but the FBI was called in to explore this possibility. Truly, it seems like it was all hands on deck to find Amber. And these efforts really did pay off. At 10.37 a.m., they find a crucial piece of evidence. Amber's blue 10-speed bike was found next to a tree in Denison Park.

8:17This is at Northwest 25th Street and Drexel Boulevard, 1.3 miles from her home. There was no damage to the bike, and there was also no sign of Amber or where she may have gone, but it felt like they were getting one step closer to finding her. Despite these massive, immediate efforts to find Amber and the progress that they were making, her community was still rightfully scared. Amber was in the fourth grade at James Monroe Elementary School, and that Friday, the 19th, was the last day of classes before the holiday break. A kindergarten teacher at the school, Donna Dixon, who lived on Drexel between Amber's home and where her bike was found, said that there were a lot of tears at the school that day, and that no one was out riding their bike like they normally would be.

9:05The school principal, Melissa Lawson, told the media that it was hard for them to have their Christmas parties while Amber was still missing, but she encouraged the kids to have hope that Amber would be found. In addition to speaking with the kids from Amber's school, investigators even went to nearby Madison Elementary to ask their students where kids would go play. There were also police cars all over the area, at local parks, and near storm drainage canals. So while it's amazing to have the case of a missing child spread so quickly throughout the community, it was also just a really scary time for them.

9:41Especially because at this point, there was such little information, and it seemed like law enforcement wasn't ruling anything out. But as Amber's aunt, Joan Barker, was handing out flyers, she gets a new tip. A man says that he saw Amber riding her bike in front of the Drexel condominiums on Drexel Boulevard, near a boy who was selling candy in the street. Now, this is literally right around the corner from Amber's house, and again, right along her route home. But the trouble was, this man says that he saw Amber at 5.25pm, and we know that Amber didn't leave her friend Katie's house until about 25 minutes later at 5.50 p.m.

10:21Now, we know that eyewitness statements aren't always accurate, but unfortunately, we don't know if maybe he just got his time wrong or if it wasn't Amber at all. As far as I could find, this sighting has never been officially confirmed. But it is kind of backed up by another witness, they say that they saw Amber again on Drexel Boulevard near her home at 5.50pm. Either way, it seems that whatever happened, Amber probably did make it to Drexel Boulevard. Two eyewitness accounts, her silver ring found in the street, and her bike all place her along this road at this point. So Drexel Boulevard seems to be the key, and as they investigate further, they find basically a trail of Amber's things along this road.

11:06Just before midnight, one of Amber's shoes was found at Northwest 12th Street and Drexel Boulevard, 2.3 miles from her home. At 9 a.m. on Saturday, December 20th, Amber's other shoe was found at Northwest 13th Street and Drexel Boulevard, just one block from the first shoe. And at 1.40 p.m., Amber's sweater was found near some bushes at Northwest 15th Street and Drexel Boulevard, about three miles from her home. They didn't have Amber, but it felt like they were getting closer Now, just like the police and Amber's loved ones, the local media also took action immediately And Bonnie began to make public pleas for her daughter's return She said that she missed her, she wanted her home, especially for Christmas She asked that whoever had her to please not hurt her, just let her go And really, I am truly amazed at how quickly everyone came together for Amber.

12:07Shannon McCrossin, the mother of missing 8-year-old Kirsten Hatfield, stood by Bonnie's side that night. Kirsten went missing in May of 1997 from Midwest City, Oklahoma, about 15 miles from Bonnie and Amber's home. Kirsten's case isn't thought to be related to Amber's, but obviously Shannon knew what Bonnie was going through. She said, quote,

12:34Just as a quick side note, in 2015, Anthony Palma was charged with the first-degree murder of Kirsten. He was sentenced to life in prison, but he was killed in 2019 by his cellmate. Kirsten's remains have never been found. But at this time, Kirsten was still missing, and her case was unsolved. So knowing exactly what Bonnie and her family are going through, Shannon rushed to her side to offer her support. At this point, it's clear that whatever happened to Amber probably wasn't good. And it seemed like everyone came together to help find her and support her family during this time. This episode is brought to you by Rakuten.

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13:47It's the most rewarding way to shop. That's R-A-K-U-T-E-N. Rakuten.com. After Amber's ring, bike, shoes, and sweater were all found along Drexel Boulevard, law enforcement shifts a lot of their focus from physical searches to the developing investigation. They set up a command post and were using a computer program called Rapid Start to help organize the influx of tips. According to reporting by Robert Davis for USA Today, the program was used to help the FBI compare information about one crime with others, and not only helps organize tips, but really cross-reference them with other things like registered drivers in the area, vehicles, hunters, and even flights.

14:31It's been used to help solve cases of serial child predators, and they even used it in the 9-11 attacks. For 1997, it's pretty advanced technology. And investigators immediately honed in on 24-year-old Daniel John Smith. He was the common-law husband of Amber's older sister, Debbie, who was 22 at this time. Now, just for some context, Amber comes from a very large family. She's the youngest of Bonnie and Robert Baker's eight children. They have six girls and two boys. Bonnie and Robert got divorced about a decade ago after 36 years of marriage while Bonnie was pregnant with Amber. And while the entire custody agreement for each child isn't crystal clear, Amber was living with her mom at the time.

15:19And Debbie was older. She'd moved out and had a child with Daniel John Smith. In 1996, the year before Amber went missing, Smith was found guilty of kidnapping after carjacking a vehicle and attempting to sexually assault the woman inside outside of an Oklahoma City nightclub. Now, thank goodness she was able to fight him off and run to safety. He was facing a 10-year maximum sentence, but through a plea deal, Smith was only sentenced to five years and a four-month boot camp program for young adults at the William S. Key Correctional Center. Now, this is actually despite him catching another charge for telling the security guard at his hearing, quote, as soon as I get out, you're a dead man, end quote.

16:04But apparently because he did so well in this boot camp, this charge was dropped, and the five-year sentence was deferred. So he was back on the streets after four months, and it wasn't long before he had another encounter with police. The month before Amber went missing, police were called to dismiss home because Amber's sister Debbie, reported that he hit her after she refused his sexual advances. Smith was given a citation for this incident but was not arrested. After that, Debbie took their child and moved to Oregon. But Daniel Smith was still a frequent visitor at the Baker home, according to some reporting, because he didn't believe she'd actually left the state.

16:46And this is really where the investigation seems to take a very odd and disturbing turn. At this point, investigators are interviewing pretty much everyone in and around the family and giving everyone polygraph tests. When investigators speak with Smith shortly after Amber went missing, he tells them that he was actually at the house when Bonnie got that last phone call from her. It looks like he came over to talk about Debbie taking their child out of state, something I think is safe to assume he probably wasn't happy about. According to court records, after the call ended, Smith immediately left the house in a direction that, quote, would have put him in line to have met up with Amber as she was headed home, end quote.

17:30But Smith and Bonnie weren't the only people present for that phone call. 19-year-old Joseph Bishop, who was dating Amber's other sister, Brandy, at the time, was also at the house when Amber called. He confirms that Smith left immediately after the phone call, and left in the direction that Amber likely would have been traveling home. But he adds more. He says Smith left the house in a different direction than he normally did when going home. He says Smith went west instead of east. But Smith says that he can explain this. He says that he wasn't actually headed home. Instead, he tells investigators that after leaving Amber's house, he went to look for Debbie's car.

18:10He couldn't find it. So he went to a club, drank beer, and then just drove around drinking more. It's unclear if this alibi has ever been confirmed And for some reason, despite many witnesses placing Smith in the Barker home during that phone call Amber's mom Bonnie told reporters for the Oklahoman That Robert Smith wasn't at her home when Amber called She said he left before she even got there So we have Robert Smith and Joseph Bishop telling investigators that Smith was present for the phone call and we have Bonnie saying that that didn't happen. Whether Bonnie just misremembered the timeline or was for some reason being deceptive is unclear.

18:54But if all this wasn't enough to put Smith on police radar, Amber's father Robert told investigators that Amber was afraid of Smith because he tried to force her into his truck on the 17th, the day before Amber went missing. And this is confirmed by Amber's brother Eddie. he tells investigators that Amber told him the same thing, adding that Amber had to run inside the house to get away. So it appears that, according to Amber, Smith tried to kidnap her the day before she went missing. Now, obviously, at this point, investigators want to speak to Smith again. They ask him to come back down for a polygraph test, and he doesn't show up.

19:37He also misses a mandatory AA meeting, which was a violation of his parole. So while he's not an official suspect in Amber's disappearance, a warrant for his arrest is issued. On Sunday, December 21st, investigators find his truck at a local convenience store about 16 miles from Amber's home. And the following day on the 22nd, Cynthia Chung with the Daily Oklahoman even publishes an entire article about their search for Smith. It's titled, Police Seek Missing Girl's Relative. The article details Smith's history and a lot of what I already told you. There are quotes from law enforcement stating that Smith isn't a suspect and Amber's sister was cooperating with the investigation.

20:19The article gives a description of Smith along with his vehicle, a 1987 silver Mitsubishi pickup with black pinstripes and a blue interior. But unfortunately, police weren't able to find him. And on that same day the article ran in the Daily Oklahoman, volunteers searching Ray Trent Park in Dell City, Oklahoma, found him hanging from a tree over a creek at 11.30 a.m. There were paper bags around his hands, and the medical examiner found amphetamines and an antidepressant in his system. His death was ruled a suicide. Christmas, Amber's favorite holiday, came and went without any definitive answers.

21:02But the investigation was still ongoing, and after months of waiting, the results of testing Amber's items found along Drexel Boulevard came back and they painted a very disturbing picture of Amber's possible last moments. It's Huluween on Disney+. Watch frightful family favorites like Hocus Pocus and Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas on Disney+. I am the Pumpkin King! Then take the terror to 10 with a thrilling new remake of The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, Scream, and more with Huluween on Disney+. All these and more screaming this Halloween season with Hulu on Disney+. Bundle subscription required.

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22:15After forensic testing was completed on Amber's belongings found along Drexel Boulevard, this is what they find. There was a small amount of blood on one of Amber's shoes, but the sample was so small they weren't able to confirm who it belonged to. and I just want to warn you that this next part is really hard to hear. Vomit, possible ejaculate, and foreign blue fibers were found on her sweater. Amber's pants and underwear were never found.

22:46Despite all the circumstantial evidence seemingly linking Smith to Amber's disappearance, like the blue interior of the truck and blue fibers on her sweater, his location while she went missing, his criminal history, Amber telling people about this attempted kidnapping, they never found physical evidence linking Smith to Amber. Amber's sister Debbie did say years later that she didn't believe Smith kidnapped Amber, or that he took his own life. She added that she knows who did, but she won't name them. Bonnie, on the other hand, maintained that she believed Smith at least knew something, but unfortunately, anything he may have known about Amber, he took with him to his grave.

23:29Bonnie ended up moving out of their home in 1998, saying, quote, I always drive by there, just thinking maybe she's been by there. I love some kind of clue, or maybe somebody else has. I think about her constantly. She was my little angel. I just wish someone would come forward with something. End quote. Life for the Barkers would continue to be full of tragedy. Robert Barker passed away in 2007 at 60 years old. and in 2013, Amber's 40-year-old sister, Brandy K. Perry, allegedly drowned in a series of storms that swept through Oklahoma. She was found in a ditch 20 feet from where she was living, but the ditch had no water in it and there was no flood damage to the area.

24:17So many people disagreed with the claim that she drowned, even going as far to say that there was no storm on the day that Brandy died. And this is backed by police. Chief Deputy Chris Kahn said, quote, she had some kind of head injury or something like that. Looks like she slipped and fell and hit her head. We just don't believe she's a storm victim, end quote. Bonnie also didn't believe that her daughter was a storm victim, saying that Brandy, who allegedly struggled with mental health and substance use disorder, was experiencing domestic violence from her ex-boyfriend. Bonnie said, quote, She's not a storm victim.

24:55I don't know if she committed suicide. I don't know if somebody killed her. I don't know what happened. But she didn't die in a storm. End quote. Bonnie passed away in 2014 at 64 years old, never knowing the truth about what happened to either of her daughters. But just the next year, in 2015, Amber's case saw some movement. Investigators with the Oklahoma PD Crimes Against Children Unit were assigned to Amber's case and looking over it with fresh eyes and really fresh new technology. In 1997, they weren't able to extract a DNA profile from Amber's items. But over a decade later, the vomit and possible ejaculate on Amber's sweater was used to form a partial DNA profile for an unknown man.

25:43And this led investigators right back to Daniel Smith. Or really, Daniel Smith's friend, Forrest J. Rice. He also goes by the name Stephen Brent Henley, among a slew of other aliases. But for simplicity's sake, I'm just going to use the name Rice. Early in the investigation, Rice told detectives that he was with Daniel Smith the night Amber went missing. It seems that they were just hanging out at Rice's apartment. and Rice also admitted that he was with Smith the day he died. Rice has an extensive criminal history for things like burglary, drug trafficking, possession of a controlled substance, threatening acts of violence or bodily harm, eluding police, and a ton more.