Runaway Keyport girl found safe

It was a happy ending to a search for 10-year-old Jessica Case of Keyport who had been missing for a day.

Case had gotten into a dispute with her siblings and left her home at 3 p.m. on Nov. 9. The girl’s family called 911 when she didn’t return home later that evening.

According to Kitsap County Sheriff Steve Boyer, based on the circumstances, especially her age and weather conditions, search and rescue teams began combing the area at 9 p.m. that night and continued throughout the next day until the girl was discovered at about 3 p.m.

Search and rescue workers were knocking door-to-door throughout the Keyport and Brownsville areas when they found the girl at a stranger’s house about a mile from her home. Apparently Case had knocked on their door sometime during the night and they let her in and never called police.

“If a 10-year-old child showed up at my door I would call the police, and I am the police,” Boyer said. “Their motivation was good, but they could have exercised better judgment.”

An investigation as to why they didn’t call police when Case showed up at their door in the middle of the night is currently being conducted.

More than 100 people were involved in the search, including the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, Kitsap County Emergency Management, Kitsap, Mason and Pierce County Search and Rescue teams, Navy personnel (including many from the USS Pennsylvania, which Case’s father is stationed on) Seattle Mountain Rescue and German shepherd search dogs.

“The partnership between search and rescue and Emergency Management is seamless. We’re really pleased she was found and search and rescue was really ecstatic. It’s really heartwarming,” Boyer said. “I want to thank all the agencies that helped out. When it really counts people come together.”

After Case was found she was examined by paramedics and was found to be unharmed. She was

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