Sara Smart 19 Missing January 2006 OK/ Murdered
Searches Continue For Missing While Spotlight Is Fading Sunday May 07, 2006 11:03pm Reporter: Burt Mummolo Posted By: Kevin King Seminole - What do you do when a loved one is missing and the spotlight fades away? Two local families are dealing with that now. Nine-year-old Colton Clark went missing last month. And, 19-year-old Sara Smart has been missing since January. NewsChannel 8's Burt Mummolo spoke with both families Sunday to get an update on their searches. Between them, they have printed some six-thousand flyers, dozens of t-shirts and a billboard for Colton Clark is set to go up Monday. They have conducted searches and continue to search. And, both families have sifted through rumor after rumor. The only truth -- their loved one is still missing. There are no local news trucks in downtown Seminole. The sheriff's department has resumed normal patrols. But, the flyers are still on the store fronts. It's going on three weeks since Rebecca Clark has seen her son. "We believe that somebody has our son," she says. Seventy-five miles away, Christene Smart is going on three and a half months since seeing her step-daughter. She wears a t-shirt of Sara, who is 19. "She's never done anything like this," Smart says. "And, really didn't have a reason that we know of to do that." Two mothers, searching for their children long after the public spotlight has faded. "I don't feel like law enforcement has been doing enough personally," Smart says. "Denial, grief, shock," says Clark. "I'm in anger right now. I'm really mad." Both feel law enforcement could have done more. Both have entered a world of flyers, and billboards, and even psychics. "They say that he is safe, he's with someone," says Rebecca Clark. "He does want to come home, but he doesn't. He's afraid to contact the police." "They've all been been fairly consistent in saying that they believe she's alone and that she's hiding out for her life because she's afraid for her life," Smart said. There is the possibility that Colt and Sara each left on their own. But, neither of their families believe that as their searches continue. "We have a lot of people out there praying for us and thinking about us, and just having the faith that we have that we're gonna find her just keeps us going." "Everything's been done locally, now its God, prayer and professionals." The Clark family has been contacted by the Polly Klaas Foundation, an organization which helps find missing children. Meanwhile, the Smart family is organizing a fundraiser in order to hire a private investigator. http://www.ktul.com/news/stories/0506/325746.html

Body identified as missing Haskell woman From Phoenix staff reports Authorities identified the body found Sunday stuffed inside a 55-gallon barrel that had drifted onto the banks of a farm pond as Sarah Kendall Smart. Smart, 19, was reported missing Feb. 1. According to a report filed with the Muskogee Police Department, the teen was last seen the morning of Jan. 30. The teen’s mother, Laura Raney, said Smart caught a ride that morning from the family’s home in Haskell to Muskogee, where she had a doctor’s appointment and a scheduled court appearance. Smart appeared for neither. Smart’s skeletal remains were discovered Sunday by James Groover, who retrieved the steel barrel from a farm pond about five miles west of Haskell. The medical examiner used Smart’s dental records to confirm the missing teen’s identity. Smart’s family members said the dental records were provided by the teen’s mother, Laura Raney. Originally published August 7, 2006 http://www.muskogeephoenix.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060807/NEWS03/60807012

Family And Friends Remember Murdered Muskogee Teen KOTV - 1/30/2007 9:37 PM - Updated 1/30/2007 9:39 PM One year ago Tuesday, 19-year-old Sara Smart of Muskogee disappeared. Her body was discovered last August; it had been stuffed into a barrel and thrown into a pond. News on 6 reporter Chris Wright says Smart’s family and friends gathered near the Muskogee County courthouse Tuesday night for a candlelight vigil, to both celebrate Sara's memory and ask for justice. With candles and signs in hand, those who knew Sara Smart marked a painful anniversary. It was exactly one year ago that she vanished. Any hope Sara would return disappeared when her body was found in this Haskell pond last August. "There's what's left of my daughter, our daughter, and we would like to see justice for her murder,” said Sara’s father Brian Smart. “She was beaten, strangled and stuffed in a five gallon drum and thrown in a pond." Sara was last seen with her stepfather Jerry Raney. Family members are awaiting the results of DNA testing they say could lead to a big break in the case. But until that break comes, they say closure will elude them. During a candlelight vigil Tuesday night family and friends said things haven’t gotten any easier. "It's hard to lose anybody, but a child is indescribable,” Christine Smart, Sara’s stepmother said. “Today brings back a lot of feelings I felt a year ago today." Sara also left behind her own child, Julian, who is now two years old. Her family says Julian was the love of Sara's life, and for his sake, as well as their own, they hope her killer is caught. "I want justice for my grandson. He's only two, he doesn't talk very much, but I know that he will in years to come,” said Sara’s mother Susan Hensley. “He'll want to know what happened, why, and have some answers. I want some answers for him.” The Muskogee County Sheriff's Department is conducting the investigation into Sara's murder. Family members say while they are frustrated that no arrests have been made, they believe the department is doing everything in its power to solve the case. If you have any information in Sara’s death call the Muskogee County Sheriff’s office at 918-687-1275. http://www.kotv.com/news/local/story/?id=119296

Target In Sara Smart Case Could Go Free Decision Due On Charges Against Stepfather POSTED: 12:26 pm CDT August 3, 2008 UPDATED: 12:48 pm CDT August 3, 2008 MUSKOGEE, Okla. -- A man police have linked to the slaying of his 19-year-old stepdaughter could soon be freed unless he is charged by Friday. Jail inmate Jerry Raney became a suspect after Sara Smart's body was found on Aug. 6, 2006, in a steel drum that had been floating in a pond near Haskell. Smart had been missing since Jan. 30, 2006, after Raney said he dropped her off at a McDonald's in Muskogee. Raney has not been charged with the slaying but he has been charged with other violent crimes that have landed him in jail without the hope of posting bond until recently. Muskogee County Assistant District Attorney James Walters said authorities are reviewing the evidence and will decide by Friday if it is sufficient to proceed. A judge has denied bond, considering Raney a danger to the community. http://www.koco.com/news/17079915/detail.html?rss=okl&psp=news