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Tuesday, April 22, 1997

Police compare body with description of missing Friendswood girl

PASADENA, Texas (AP) - Authorities hoped an autopsy Monday on a body found in a retention pond could determine if the remains are of a 12-year-old Friendswood girl who has been missing since April 3.

The decomposed body, described as a female between the age of 7 and 15, had been in the water at least five days, police said.

Laura Kate Smither has not been seen since she left her home to go jogging more than two weeks ago. Pasadena is about 10 miles northeast of Friendswood.

Her disappearance has caused an extensive search that involved hundreds of volunteers and some 550 Marine reservists who scoured Friendswood, a suburban area about 20 miles south of Houston.

Police and FBI searched the area where the body was found Sunday by a man training his dog. Some investigators dug by hand through muddy silt.

"What they're searching for is anything of evidentiary value, or perhaps, even body parts," Pasadena police Capt. A.H. Corbett said. "The body was not intact. We found some body parts up inside the culvert and part of the body was at the mouth of the culvert."

He said animals and the water flow in the pond may have scattered the remains. Several bayous run into the pond.

The body was partially submerged and wearing only one tube sock, police said.

When she disappeared, the girl was wearing a black T-shirt, navy blue shorts and white sneakers. She has braces on her teeth and curly brown hair.

Her parents, Gay and Bob Smither, were in seclusion Monday at their home. They were told of the discovery by Friendswood Police Chief Jared Stout.

"The kind of news that I brought was a severe test, but they are still the gracious, faith-filled people they were," Stout said.

Volunteers at the Laura Recovery Center, which was set up to serve as a base for the search, awaited word on the body's identification. They continued to answer phones and put out information about the missing girl.

"We're not going to stop until it's time to stop," said volunteer coordinator Mandy Albritton.

Friendswood Mayor Evelyn Newman had proclaimed Sunday as "Search for Laura Day" and urged people to check their property and surrounding areas for any clues to the girl's disappearance. Send a Letter to the Editor about This Story | Start or Join A Discussion about This Story
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