‘No doubt’ it was her

Age-progression photo experts aid in search for missing kids

June 25, 2006

By JOANIE BAKER
Index-Journal staff writer

It could make Steve Loftin’s job a whole lot easier, but, unfortunately, there is no such thing as a computer-generated age-progression program.
While Hollywood and crime TV shows depict an investigator who scans a photo of a person, clicks a button and watches the magic of Mother Nature age and wrinkle the face from behind the glow of the monitor screen, real life is not that easy.
Loftin is one of three forensic imaging specialists at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in Virginia.
The trio spends hours a day stretching and merging photos of children and their family members in a Photoshop program to create a “subjective interpretation” of what they think a missing child would look like at his current age.
The retired law enforcement official is also the specialist responsible for progressing the baby photo of Rebecca Ann Braun, the 12-year-old girl who had been abducted at 2 and was found June 13 in Donalds. Her father has been charged with custodial interference.
Abbeville County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Marion Johnson said that, other than Rebecca’s hairstyle being slightly different, which neighbors said had been dyed from its natural color, Johnson said the progressed photo looked almost exactly like her.
“Once we got there, there was no doubt she was the child we were looking for,” Johnson said shortly after the girl was found.
While many people are disappointed to find that there is not a magic system to progress photos, Loftin said the real process usually takes about five hours, depending on the quality of the photos he receives.
The upper two-thirds of a human’s head does not progress much after the age of 3, Loftin said. So, when a specialist first receives a photo, the first thing he does is stretch the lower two-thirds of the face, from the eye to the tip of the chin, using the liquify tool in Photoshop to keep from distorting and blurring the image.
If they are available, Loftin said it is helpful to use photos of both of the parents from when they were the age of the missing child. Using those photos, they can try to interpret dominant features and “get a ballpark figure as to what the child will look like.”
“Without any guidance or photos of parents, then it’s a guessing game,” Loftin said, adding that they do not strive to be 100 percent accurate. “We hope it’s enough likeness in the image to generate a familiarity so people will ask questions and possibly generate leads. ... There are times when we’re really close, 85 to 90 percent accurate, but we’re happy if we’re 50 percent accurate.”
Most images Loftin creates contain about 30 Photoshop layers. He said the layers can be put in chronological order in the compatible Image Ready program and run like slides to create an animation-like age progression.
The specialists go back and update the missing children’s photos every two years until the child is 18. Then they update them every five years or until courts order them to stop.
Loftin said the technology is not only used to help law officials find missing children, but it can also be used to prevent crimes against children, as well.
Age regression can be used to regress the age of law officers to make them appear as younger children.
While trying to capture a pedophile online, the person can use the photo of himself to lure the predator instead of using a real child or a “virtual” child’s photo. Loftin said the program was started when judges would throw out cases of people found alluring the virtual children because they said there was no actual human victimized. With age regression, Loftin said, the person is real.
Though there is no way of telling how many of the 655 recovered children were located through the specialists’ age-progressed photos found on the ad cards that come in the mail, Loftin said he thinks they help considerably.
Since the unit was started in 1990, the specialists have gone to facial training classes led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and often depend on the guidance of David Hunt, a forensic anthropologist from the Smithsonian.
Though Loftin has been working with the unit for almost two decades, he said he has one special memory of being involved in a recovery.
For 21 years, Arik Austin had been told by his father that his mother had fallen into a volcano in the Philippines when Austin was a baby. Though he questioned the story more as he grew older, it wasn’t until Austin was about to be deployed that he learned the truth.
Thinking it was suspicious that Austin would be taking out a very large student loan just before leaving with the military, FBI agents called him in for questioning.
They discovered that Austin’s father was using his identity to apply for loans, and upon further questioning, one investigator took her suspicions a step further.
After hearing that Austin had never met any of his mother’s family, she thought to herself that the 21-year-old could have been abducted at a young age. As she flipped through the photos on the NCMEC’s Web site, the young man sitting across from her desk was suddenly also smiling at her from the computer screen.
Loftin said Austin’s mother had just decided two months before the discovery to go through with the age-progression despite thinking it was hopeless, as she had not seen her baby since he was 47 days old.
“He was really happy to find he had this big family,” Loftin said. “It was a pretty emotional thing.”
Loftin said he would recommend having an age-progression photo done to anyone who has missing a child.
“No matter how long they’ve been gone, it wouldn’t hurt (and could spur) a long-term recovery,” Loftin said.

‘Touched by the hand of God’

Tearful parishioners begin to say goodbye to local priest

June 25, 2006

By JOANIE BAKER
Index-Journal staff writer

When the Rev. Richard Harris knelt to give children in his parish their first Holy Communion last month, he remembered looking at several of them and realizing he had baptized them when they were babies.
For the past seven years, the priest at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic church in Greenwood has become like family to many of the parishioners as he has baptized, married and performed the funeral services for their loved ones.
But on July 5, Harris will be taking the next step in his “universal ministry” as he is being relocated to St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Columbia, and the Rev. Timothy Timbalt, of Columbia, will become the Greenwood church’s new administrator.
Through sad tears and reminiscent smiles, parishioners recalled memories of the “compassionate” and “quick-witted” man who they say changed their church physically and their parish spiritually.
At the reception for Harris after Saturday’s Mass, Kim Sweet, of Greenwood, said she will never forget the first time she met the tall priest on the front steps of the old church. It was Ash Wednesday, and Sweet, a then non-Catholic, said her first Mass confused her as everyone kept standing up and sitting down.
“I didn’t have a clue what was going on, and when he greeted me, I said, ‘I’m not Catholic. I didn’t understand anything,’” Sweet said. “He looked at me and said, ‘Will you come back one more time?’ And I did. Nine months later, I was Catholic.”
Peg Gadagno, a “cradle Catholic” of more than 60 years, said she has never met a holier or more spiritual priest than Harris.
“He preaches, teaches and lives the Gospel message himself,” she said. “We believe we’ve been touched by the hand of God with him.”
Gadagno said Harris is the type of person who has so many talents but won’t ever let you compliment him. She said whenever you say good things about him, he shakes his head and points upward: “It’s not me. It’s Him,” Harris tells parishioners.
In addition to designing the church, which was dedicated in July 2004, church members say Harris has redesigned the closeness of the parish.
But Harris won’t hear a word of it.
“We’ve grown in numbers and we’ve grown in spirituality, but I don’t attribute that to me,” he said. “It’s their own thirst for Christ. They’ve worked hard in building their relationship with God.”
Jessica Sproch, 15, a member of the church’s youth group, said Harris has helped promote the religion to the youths by encouraging them to go to conferences and always being there for them.
“He’s just such a strong person,” Sproch said. “He always has a very positive attitude.”
Harris said he was in the Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport getting ready to fly to Rome when he received the official call telling him where he was being moved. Though he said he didn’t want to leave his parish family, the trip gave him time to center himself and realize it was God’s will for him at this point in his ministry.
“I was able to pray in the Vatican, and while there I kept asking, ‘Let me be in your will, God. Let me be in your light,’” Harris said.
Of his 13 years as a priest, the Greenwood church has been Harris’ home and family for the longest. Harris said the hardest part of leaving is saying goodbye.
“I do want to thank (the parishioners) for helping me grow in my spirituality and my relationship with God,” he said. “Their support, prayers and Christian faith has inspired me to be a better person and as good of a priest as I can be.”
There will be another reception for Harris after the 10 a.m. Mass today.

Richard Norwood Sr.

Richard Eston Norwood, 81, of Greenwood, formerly of Norwood, NC, died Friday, June 23, 2006 at Self Regional Medical Center.
Born in Greenwood, he was the son of the late Ernest Pierce and Leo Golding Norwood. After graduating from Greenwood High School, he began his studies at Clemson University. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II and returned to Clemson to complete a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering.
Mr. Norwood began his career in textiles with Milliken and Co. in Abbeville, SC and was later employed by Collins and Aikman in Troy, NC as a plant manager. He loved working with people and made it his priority to know all the employees in the plant. After retirement, Mr. Norwood achieved a dream by attaining a Masters in Business Administration Degree from Pfeiffer University.
Mr. Norwood’s wife of 50 years, Edith Coleman Norwood, preceded him in death. For over ten years he cared diligently and lovingly for her as she suffered with Alzheimer’s disease. He considered this as one of his greatest accomplishments.
Surviving are a son Richard Eston Norwood, Jr. of Palm Bay, Fl; a daughter, Elizabeth Norwood Peele, and her husband, Leon, of Albemarle, NC; and five grandchildren, Maximiliane Norwood, Betsy Peele, Charlie Peele, Catherine Peele and Molly Peele.
As a member of Memorial Baptist Church, Mr. Norwood participated in many different areas. He was also active in the Lion’s Club and was a Gideon. A favorite hobby was attending Clemson ball games. He was an AVID Tiger Fan. Mr. Norwood made a life long habit of taking an interest in other people. He was known as an encourager.
Funeral Services will be 12:00 noon Monday at First Baptist Church Chapel of Greenwood. Burial will follow in Magnolia Cemetery. Memorials may be made to Memorial Baptist Church, 12957 Indian Mound Road, Norwood, NC 28128 or to Gideon’s International, PO Box 771, Greenville, SC 29602.
Harley Funeral Home & Crematory are in charge of arrangements.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.harleyfuneralhome.com
PAID OBITUARY

Charles Scurry

SALUDA — Charles “Bittie” Scurry, 51, died, Sunday, June 18, 2006 from injuries received after being hit by an automobile.
Born in Saluda County, he was a son of the late Clyde Brown and Jennie V. Scurry. He was a former employee of Cromley Ford, Inc. and was of Baptist faith.
Survivors include a son, Zachary Antwan Perry of Saluda; daughter, Shawanda Etheredge of Saluda; four brothers, Willie Scurry of Saluda, Albert Scurry, Zonnie Scurry and Isaiah Scurry all of Columbia; three sisters, Lillie Mae Tolen of Pelion, Lizzie Zimmerman and Daisy Scurry both of Columbia; a grandchild.
Memorial services are 5 p.m. today at Mount Moriah Baptist Church Cemetery.
Butler & Sons Funeral Home is in charge.

Joseph Webb

Joseph Harold Webb, 78, of 1548 Parkway Drive Apt. 4C, widower of Ethel Harvley Webb, died Saturday, June 24, 2006.
Born in Greenwood, he was a son of the late Ralph Wilson and Mattie Barton Webb. A retired employee of Greenwood Mills, Harris Plant, he was a member of the Quarter Century Club and Bethleham Union Church, Waterloo where he attended the Senior Adult sunday school class.
Survivors include a step daughter, Jean Butler of Greenwood; two sisters, Opal McAllister of Laurens and Mildred Andrews of Greenwood; two step grandchildren; and four step great-grandchildren.
Services are 3 p.m. Monday at Bethlehem Union Church conducted by the Rev. Bobby Davis. The body will be placed in the church at 2. Burial is in the church cemetery.
Pallbearers are nephews.
Honorary pallbearers are the Senior Adult sunday school class and the Helping Hands of Bethlehem Union Church.
Visitation is 6-8 p.m. today at Harley Funeral Home.
Memorials may be made to Bethlehem Union Church, 2819 Highway 246 South Ninety Six, SC 29666.
The family is at the home of a sister, Mildred Andrews, 1548 Parkway Drive Apt. 4E.
Harley Funeral Home & Crematory is in charge.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.harleyfuneralhome.com

Five-way logjam

Five players tied for first place at men’s Festival golf tournament

June 25, 2006

By JIM JOYCE
Special projects editor

Thank goodness, a golf tournament takes 36 holes to decide the champion.
At least, that’s what five players are thinking after Saturday’s first round of the Festival of Flowers Invitational Tournament played at the Greenwood Country Club.
Five players, including Greenwood’s Ben Martin, tied at 5-under-par 67 after the first 18 holes. They were also among 29 players who matched par, 21 who shot better than par, and eight players in the 60s.
Martin, who just finished his first year on the Clemson University golf team, managed to be only one under at the turn, but turned it around on the back nine.
“I birdied three in a row at 13, 14 and 15 and had one at 17 to go four under on the back,” Martin said.
His only bogey for the day was at No. 5, where he said he was in front of the green in two, but hit a bad chip and three-putted for a bogey six.
Otherwise, he said, “I hit it pretty solid all day. My putter wasn’t going on the front, but it started on the back.”
That included 16, where he said he had to get up and down from the back bunker.
Tied with dustin Barr, of the College of Charleston, Frank Wrenn, of Greenville, Paul Woodbury of Lake City and Phillip Mollica, of Anderson, Martin said he would like to keep making birdies during the final round.
“I was pretty satisfied with my game overall,” he added.
Trailing that group by one shot is Chip Whitt, of Greenwood, who won the 2004 tournament.
“I started with two birdies in a row, then three-putted the third,” said Whitt, who had 35-33. “I never got anything going after that.
“I made a lot of pars, but didn’t make a lot of putts. I know that sounds odd with a 68, but I didn’t putt well. I made a few coming in to get the 68, but I bogeyed No.3 with three putts.”
Whitt said the key for him during the final round is to play the course that way he normally does — since it’s his home course.
“It could work out to be at our advantage by being one group back,” he said. “I need to go out and make a couple of birdies early. If I can have a chance when I get to 14 or so, that’s all I can ask for.”
Back yet another shot at 69 is Greenwood’s Vince Hatfield, the defending champion who had a superb year at Clemson University this year.
“I shot 69 with no bogeys,” Hatfield said.
“I had birdie chances all day and didn’t get in trouble too much. I was in trouble at nine and 16, but got up and down.
“I hit it about as good as anybody, but missed seven putts inside 10 feet for birdies.”
Only two shots behind the leaders, Hatfield said his plans for the final round are “to make putts.”
“Two shots back is not that much out here,” he added.
Today’s final round starts at 7:45 a.m., with the higher-scoring players going off first.

Where’s celebrity outrage when Americans tortured?

June 25, 2006

South Carolinians are, without doubt, strong believers in the freedom of speech granted each of us by the First Amendment to the Constitution. They realize that if that freedom is denied to one. one day it just might be denied to all.
Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean we have to agree with everything or anything anyone says.
Likewise, we don’t have to like what others might say, whether it’s on the war in Iraq, terrorism in general, education, health care or anything else. And, fortunately, we have the right to speak our own minds.
Many of us have disagreed with the celebrities who have managed to trash President Bush and his supporters. To them, anything goes. Their litany of negativity - at least by some - has even been critical of the United States and its role in the world.

AMONG THE COMPLAINERS have been actors Alec Baldwin, Sean Penn, Whoopi Goldberg, Barbra Streisand, George Clooney and a conglomeration of others. Some even crowed that if Bush won the presidency they would leave the country. None has, and they have particularly been vocal on how we treat prisoners of war. Outrageous! they accuse.
Now consider a recent situation in Iraq. Two American soldiers were kidnapped by insurgents and a third was killed at the capture site.
A huge search was launched for Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker. That ended, however, when their dead bodies were found. Reports are that both had been tortured so badly identification had to be established through DNA tests.

CONSIDER THAT, WEIGH IT against how our prisoners are treated at Guantanamo Bay. They are living under much better conditions than they did before they were captured. Sure, there may be some psychological pressures or physical challenges used while seeking information. However, they are not - repeat, not - tortured the way our soldiers were.
Now, there’s an obvious question. Where are the voices of outrage of those same celebrities over the brutalizing of American prisoners. They are strangely silent about that. More than anything else, that makes a revealing statement about their agenda. Political? Ideological? Whatever it is, it speaks directly to their intentions and credibility.