At the age 18, Dana Lenell Stidham was already an academic leader who graduated from Gravette High School, Arkansas class of 1989. She was born on March 8th, 1971 and lived in the nearby town of Hiwasse, Benton County, Arkansas. Dana had been employed by the former Phillips Grocery Store, now Harp's Grocery Store in Bella Vista, Arkansas. On July 25, 1989, Dana left to run an errand at a nearby grocery store in Bella Vista, and she never returned home.
At around 9:30 AM the next morning, Dana's brother, Larry, called the Bella Vista Police sub-station to report that his sister hadn't come home. He sensed something was wrong. Early that morning her car, a gray Dodge Omni, was found in the Northbound lane on Highway 71 N. The rear tire was low, the keys were still in the ignition, but there was no sign of Dana. Was she forced off the road, or did a "good Samaritan" stop to help her with the tire, and other questions remain a mystery. The lone piece of the investigative timeline was a receipt found in her car that was time stamped 3:17PM.
On September 17, 1989, a squirrel hunter found the remains of a young women buried in a shallow grave, scraped out of a dry creek bed. The location was in a wooded section of the County, that only a few people would know. That body turned out to be Dana Lanell Stidham. The Arkansas State Medical Examiner's Office in Little Rock, Arkansas said Dana died after being stabbed in the neck - the manner of death was Homicide, but the cause of death could not be determined. The body was badly decomposed and efforts were made to determine if she had been sexually assaulted. Her clothes were found strewn nearby. Dana's purse was found in nearby in the area of Chaucer and Hanover Roads in Bella Vista. Personal items, including her check book, driver's license and other items were found a few miles North of where her car was found along Highway 71 N.
To add insult to injury, her gravestone was stolen in December 1989 by a former classmate of Dana's, Michael Earl McMillan. He was convicted of the offense and paid a fine. However, he has retained a lawyer in the matter, so police will unlikely be able to get a crack at him and what he knows and why he stole the gravestone.
************************
This case was sent to me by a reader. I actually did a reading for her and then asked her if I could share my findings on the blog. I enjoyed doing this case because the charts were very readable and they made sense. You'll see how smoothly they fit the facts as I show you what I found.
I ran charts for the time on the receipt found in her car because this was from the store she visited and was probably the last time she was seen alive. That was for 3:17 pm on the day she disappeared. This time (3:17 pm at that location) shows her leaving a public establishment (first house ruler leaving the tenth and moving into the ninth) and heading out to a parking lot. In this same chart, the seventh house ruler, the person she is "next to meet" is in the same establishment (the seventh house ruler in the tenth house). It also looks like this event had something to do with her job (Moon in the sixth) which means she was either in a place similar to the one she worked in, or she was going there because she knew someone who worked there OR she was sent there directly by someone at her job. I am thinking it is most likely because she knew someone who worked there or was sent there directly (perhaps asked to come for some reason related to work). I say this because the Moon is disposed of by the seventh house ruler, showing her purpose to have something to do with a person, most likely the one she is "about to meet". Following the charts for the next several minutes I see this same person FOLLOWING her out of the store and into the parking lot (seventh house ruler moves along with the first house ruler into the ninth house in the chart for 3:30 pm). I am pretty sure, from what I am seeing in these first two charts, that this girl was targeted.
The placement of both the first house ruler (Mars) and the seventh house ruler (Venus) in the ninth house shows both people in cars. They are in separate cars because these planets are in different signs but they are heading in the same direction. I believe this direction to be southeast from this grocery store (the ninth house ruler, the Moon, in Taurus AND the ninth house being the twelfth from the tenth) but it also looks like they may be heading back to her place of employment for some reason (ninth house ruler the Moon in the sixth house). I am pretty sure the charts are saying that these two people (Dana and her abductor) worked at the same place or, at the very least, in the same industry and knew each other. I do not like the placement of the secondary first house ruler, Pluto, in the twelfth house. Pluto is along combust way and is in dignity in Scorpio, giving it power and a lot of negative energy in this chart. Pluto also directly opposes the chart co ruler, the Moon, and this always looks like violence to me (in the form of a personal attack). The north node in the third house disposed of by Uranus in the second looks like a "ruse" was used involving the car and money. I do not know if the car was out of gas, for instance, or if the tire repair would require money Dana did not have so I cannot say for sure that this is what the chart is referring to but it might be something like this. It could, on the other hand, have to do with money such as a paycheck or a promise of a pay raise, if she were to go along somewhere or do something. This would be especially possible if the person she was with did, indeed, work with her in a superior position. With the seventh house ruler (Venus) disposed of by Mercury (the traditional ruler of children and the ruler of the tenth house) the chart seems to indicate this person was interested in Dana because she was young or much younger than he was. She wasn't a little kid but she was certainly a young lady. Men who are attracted to big ego themes like power and authority are often also attracted to innocent and naive young women and girls. Notice in this chart that, at the same time, Mercury is under the Sun's beams, seeming to indicate that any young girl in this situation would be in danger. The tenth house also implies that this was a person in a position of authority, perhaps even her boss, which dovetails with the overall energy in the chart. From all factors considered, we can certainly assume that this person was an adult male.
Although we see them going in the same direction, the planets do seem to indicate that they had different purposes. His marker, Venus, is disposed of by Mercury, which seems to indicate that his purpose was HER, this being the case especially if you consider that he was interested in her because of her age. Now, her marker, Mars, is disposed of by the Sun, which has no power or placement in the chart, meaning she was just going along with no clear purpose of her own. But the Sun represents male energy and authority in traditional astrology and she may have been unable to say no to this person because he was an older male she either feared or respected. Considering all of this and perhaps thinking this were her boss, for instance, and he had simply asked her to go somewhere or do something, I would assume she would simply do it. This chart, in that regard, is saying that she had no agenda of her own, which would seem to imply that she was, indeed, just "going along" and doing the bidding of an older man.
The chart for 4:10 pm shows some interesting activity. For instance, Uranus, the third house ruler, is just entering the first house, which means she had a surprise en route. I am not sure what kind of surprise but it could have been the tire... or it could have something else. Uranus is huddled together with the second house ruler, Saturn, and Neptune, which rules the fourth. At the same time, the first house ruler, Jupiter, has just entered the seventh house. She is in the company of her abductor and since Jupiter is disposed of by the seventh house ruler, I would guess that she was where she wanted to make this person happy. She had "gone along" and ended up with a flat tire. He had either sent her somewhere, following along as she went or he was directly responsible for the problem with her tire and then "happened along" to help her. Jupiter is in fall in Gemini and disposed of by Mercury, which indicates that she was a definite disadvantage here both for her being a woman and for being young. Jupiter in the seventh disposed of by Mercury can show us someone who is a shyster or a bit of trickster, such as Mercury can be. He was having fun with this situation, even if she were not. She just didn't have the "worldliness" to handle or even understand the ruse that was being played on her. Mercury in Leo now rules the seventh house and disposed of the Sun in the eighth house. There was a sexual component to this meeting; this person was sexually attracted to Dana. This is especially noted by the progressions in the chart as the chart co ruler, the Moon, enters the fifth house in Taurus and becomes sinister to an opposition with Pluto in Scorpio, now in the eleventh house. It looks to me that he chased her down with the Moon in Taurus conjoined the fixed star Schedir at the same time as squaring Asellus Austrel. He let her go so he could chase her and trap her. Again, the placement of Jupiter shows enjoyment and the sign Gemini indicates a game.
The charts all seem to describe a superior from her job or possibly a superior at another job, where she was interviewing at the time. This because we again have the seventh house ruler also ruling the tenth. This is consistant throughout the time frame for her abduction. Did she go to this place because she was called for a second interview? Could it be that this person called her back just so he could attack her? Or did her boss from her own job send her over to another location to deliver something or pick something up? Any of these scenarios, and many more, I might add, could have happened here.
Moon opposes Pluto from the fifth house to the eleventh. This is a strong sign of sexual activity and with Pluto it is often forced. This is why it looks like this girl was stalked and raped. After she was sent off and chased down. The tire may have been punctured in advance and then she was followed. She didn't have the money to call a tow truck or to have the tire patched so along came this man, someone she knew and had no reason to fear. He offers to drive her somewhere to get help or to get someone to fix the tire, or whatever, and once she is in his car... And I believe she got into his car and went off with him. Notice how the first house ruler, Jupiter, is in the seventh, which shows her to be in the company of this person. And Jupiter is disposed of by Mercury, which rules cars and transportation. Mercury is conjoined the Sun, which rules the ninth house and the ninth is the third from the seventh. And then also consider that the third house, which represents her car, is Uranus in the first and it is conjoined Saturn, both in the sign Capricorn. Her car is stuck somewhere and with Neptune also nearby, I would say she had no idea why or how this happened.
The charts for the following few hours show her in the company of this same person. She is "doing his bidding" as shown by her ruler, Jupiter in Gemini, in the seventh and disposed of by his ruler, Mercury, in the eighth house. There appears to be sexual activity. The Moon in Taurus in the fifth house directly opposes Pluto in Scorpio in the eleventh and this configuration not only shows the probability of sexual activty but also sexual activity of a deviant nature. Pluto implies violence and forced rape. There is a T square that has formed between Pluto, the Moon and Mercury. Mercury in Leo rules the seventh house and is his "signifigator" which shows us that he is the only one who could control this volatile situation. His marker is on the open end of the T, telling us that he was the one who started this sexual activity and he was also the only one who could stop it. Mercury in Leo is disposed of by the Sun, which means he had the all the power and control in this situation; the Sun being male, showing male physical strength. She was unable to fight him. She was too young and too small (Jupiter in Gemini). Moon in Taurus square Mercury in Leo also tells me he fantasized about Dana for a long time before acting on it. Pluto in Scorpio in the eleventh gives us another clue: he may be recently divorced or had a romantic breakup that has left him lonely and angry. This breakup or divorce could have been the catalyst that pushed him into his fantasy with Dana. I think, from this configuration, he may have been highly upset when she refused him or tried to fight him off and he killed her in the process of trying to control her. But this is just a guess and I just cannot be sure.
This configuration remains in place for two hours, showing these people in a struggle for some time. And then, at 7 pm, the charts begin to show us a death pattern. So this is saying that she died the same day, later in the evening. In the chart for 7 pm, you can see the first house ruler in the twelfth, the Moon entering the fourth house and tenth and fourth house rulers in the eighth. These are powerful placements and they describe death. Dana's ruler in this chart is Saturn, which depicts the dead body and the bones of the body, in particular. I don't want to get all graphic in describing her death (it tends to upset me) but I think she may have been strangled because Taurus describes the throat region. But, then again, she was stabbed in the neck so perhaps this is what I am seeing.
At the time of her abduction, the seventh house ruler was Mercury in Leo. The person who abducted and killed this girl was an old fashioned man with rigid beliefs, especially about romance. He had certain ideas about children, too, and young women. He likes order, authority, control. He is not very bright, however, is not much of a schemer. He is more lucky than anything else and likes to take chances. He might have just taken this girl on a lark. He is a rather large man with a large frame, although he is no more than average in height. He is likely dark skinned or swarthy (having an olive complexion and could be any race). Probably brown eyes or maybe hazel. The hair would be light brown or possibly blond (perhaps lightened or highlighted). This man is very vain and proud, he has a good self image and may even think he's more important than he is. He is well groomed, neat and always clothing conscious. He may consider himself a "ladies' man". He would dress neatly and with a flair. This person can be somewhat of a showoff but wants everyone to think highly of him and he would not do anything to look foolish. He cannot handle criticism and gets his feelings hurt when he hears it. He likes to win, to be the best at everything, even though he is NOT a perfectionist. He just wants everyone to overlook his flaws. He is stubborn and will not change for anyone. He always thinks he's right, even when he's totally stupid. He likes being the boss. It is very likely that he was insulted by her lack of interest in him romantically and ended up angry enough to force himself on her, killing her during the struggle.
Police released this sketch of a man they suspect may have had something to do with Morgan s disappearance Morgan Nick overview
On June 9, 1995 at 10:45pm Morgan Nick was getting ready to leave a Little League baseball game. The 6-year-old girl was at the game with her mom and had stayed a little bit later to catch some fireflies with friends.
Morgan was last seen standing near her mother's car where she had stopped to empty sand from her shoes. She hasn't been seen or heard from since.
Red Ford Seen At The Park
Morgan Nick was walking back from a Little League baseball game when she was abducted Morgan Nick overview
Officials say several witnesses saw a white male watching Morgan as she was playing in the park with her friends. Those who saw him say he was about 6 feet tall, with a medium build and had a mustache and one-inch beard. At the time, witnesses say he was between 23 and 38 years old with curly, black or salt-and-pepper, slicked back hair.
Cops say, at the time of the crime, a witness saw a suspicious car parked nearby that disappeared around the same time as Morgan. The witness described the vehicle as a white camper, with rear damage on the passenger side, hooked up to a red Ford pick up truck. According to the witness, the pick up looked odd with the camper, since the camper was around five inches too short for the truck. Cops say the truck had Arkansas plates.
Hope Still Prevails
Cops created this composite sketch of how they believe Morgan Nick would look now at 16 years old
Morgan Nick overview
It has been ten years since the disappearance of Morgan Nick. However, Alma, Ark. police have not given up in their search. They released a composite sketch of the suspected unknown abducter and produced an age-enhanced photo of Morgan, who would now be 16 years old.
In 1995, at the time of her disappearance, Morgan Nick was about 4-feet tall, around 55 pounds and had blone hair and blue eyes. She had five distinctive silver caps on her molar teeth. Morgan was last seen wearing blue denim shorts, a green Girl Scout t-shirt and white tennis shoes.
******************
I have heard a lot about this case over the years, a lot of people have been trying to find this child. It is a sad and scary story for most parents; the idea that your child can walk away for a short period of time and be within shouting distance and still be abducted is unnerving, to say the least. It is no wonder that this story has lasted this long, sort of a cautionary tale. Morgan Nick has, of course, not been found. There is no proof that she has died or that she is alive, her body has not bee found, there have not been credible sightings. This is another one of those "dark holes" that people seem to keep falling into. So I thought I'd look at the charts and see what they had to offer. Here is my best attempt to figure that out.
The first chart I created was for the time she was last seen, 10:45 pm, at the ballpark. Because she was a child in the care of her mother, I used the fifth house to describe her and her activities. The fifth house is ruled by Mercury and Mercury, the natural ruler of children, is placed in the the fifth house, a house assigned to children. So I am pretty sure that Mercury is Morgan's marker. Notice how close Mercury is to the Sun, placing it directly under the beams, which is a traditional sign of grave danger. The seventh house ruler, which marks the person she is "about to meet" is ruled by Cancer with the Moon in the ninth house. The ninth house, the natural home of Sagittarius, rules sports and sporting activities. The Moon is conjunct the node, showing us a plan of sorts. So this person goes to the ballpark looking for children? There is no doubt, from this placement, that this person had planned to be at the ballpark with a specific purpose in mind. Notice that the Moon is disposed of by Pluto and Mars, with Mars placed in the eighth house. This, along with the sixth house, shows depravity and desperation. This person had some strong desire of a sexual nature that could not be ignored. Continuing our dispositions we see that Mars is disposed of by Mercury, the natural ruler of children. It seems as if he was there looking for a child.
I think it's interesting that there's so much activity involving the tenth house. The Moon, the seventh house ruler, is within a few degrees of the midheaven with Pluto, a co dispositor of the Moon, inside the tenth. Mars, the other dispositor of the Moon, rules the tenth. This emphasis describes some specific traits. This is a person who has children of their own, who is a father or a mother. I am willing to say that this is most likely a man, due to the placement of Mars, but I cannot say this for absolute sure. The Moon on the seventh house cusp leaves the possibility that this was a female. And she would have been a mother, as well. This person no doubt had children. This person was also a supporter of the teams, either as a coach, a cheerleader, an equipment sponsor or supplier, etc... There was some public involvement in the games. This person was not a stranger to the people at the park that night. He had a public persona, either good or bad; they would know him if he were pointed out.
The next chart I created was for 11:15 pm, a half hour after Morgan was last seen. Here you see Mercury leaving the fifth and entering the fourth house. This shows us Morgan being taken from the ball park and away from the other children and into a home in a nearby neighborhood. The fourth house, the home, is ruled by Taurus and Venus is in the fourth house. This was the home of a woman or a home with females living in it. Venus in Taurus is extremely strong so the woman ran the home, was in charge, was a strong influence over the home life. Notice how the Sun is following after Mercury, with Leo now ruling the seventh house. He has presented the child to the woman and is bringing them altogether in the home. The Sun and Mercury are both in Gemini while Venus is in Taurus, which tells us that he is attached to Morgan and that the child is for HIM and not for her. She was not directly involved in this scheme. Now, I am safe saying this is a male. It is a man who took Morgan.
And then I move to midnight and draw the next chart. Here, you see Venus leaving the fourth house and moving into the third, telling us that the woman has left the house. The Sun, the seventh house ruler, is alone with Mercury in the fourth. This shows us the man alone with Morgan; the woman has left them alone. I wonder about this woman. Was this her husband and this was some "side affair" that she tolerated? She was obviously not involved with what happened to the child because she left the home but had he done this before? How many times had she allowed this? And why? It's interesting to note that as Venus leaves the fourth for the third, it enters Gemini at that same hour. This makes her complicit on the one hand but also shows that she left in car, on the other. I love how Astrology "kills two birds with one stone" all the time. She has left in a car, no doubt, but she is also complicit in whatever happens to Morgan, whether she stayed for the end of the story or not. Another thing I would like to propose. Since Venus rules the third house here it is telling us that this car is hers. So was there a car involved in the abduction? I return to the chart for 10:45, the time when she met her fate, to see if I see a car. The only link I can find here is that the Moon, his marker, is disposed of by Mars and Mars rules the third house. Although this is sort of "roundabout" and rather vague, I might suppose he was driving his own car, being that Mars is his marker and Venus is the marker for the woman in her own car. So let's take this supposition one step further and suggest that Mars in Virgo defines the car. This would mean that the car was small in size, utilitarian, perhaps used in his work. Mars, by tradition, describes a scarlet red or firey red color. Virgo, by tradition, would add black. So perhaps we are looking for a black and red car. Black paint with red interior? Red car with black interior? Or, perhaps, a red car with black piping? Any of these and any other combination are all possibilities. This supports the sighting given elsewhere for a red Ford seen at the park that night.
Let's take tradition one step further and try to pinpoint the direction they went after leaving the ball park. For this exercise, I am moving forward to the next chart, the 11:15 pm chart, to show where they were in relation from whence they came, which is shown by the 10:45 chart. At 11:15, the ball park is shown by the ninth house, where the Moon is placed. Mars, which represents the car, is placed in the chart's seventh house with is actually the eleventh house from the ninth, showing it's location from the ball park. The eleventh house gives a south by southeast direction, according to tradition. The ninth house ruler, Venus, is also the fourth house ruler and this obviously shows us that they left one place and went to another. In the chart for 11:15, Mars is separated from Venus by 22 degrees from angular houses. This may show that they actually traveled 22 minutes from the ball park. So consider that he must have traveled south by southeast for about 22 minutes to reach his destination.
Just after midnight, in the chart for 12:30 am, you can see that the chart co ruler, the Moon, has moved into the eighth house along with the node. Here the plan comes to fruition. This is what the abduction was all about. He wanted to have sexual relations with a child. Especially when you note that Cancer is moving onto the fifth house cusp as well. Mars in the seventh shows us he is using force to get what he wants. Notice that Mars is disposed of by Mercury as well! This chart is amazingly clear, concise and to the point!
As far as the possibility of violence leading to murder, I have to note the presence of a T square. This T square involves Mercury opposing Jupiter with both square to Mars. Mars is on the short leg of the T. This shows an outlet of energy through physical action, which can include violence. Jupiter will eventually tell us when this happens. Why do I say that? Because Jupiter is the only benign planet in this configuration; it does not rule any angles, it does not dispose of any angular planets and it has no power in the chart except that it is in dignity, which means it will have tremendous influence when it does arrive on an angle or otherwise claims power in the chart. And what do we see? That it takes over the midheaven, an angular placement, just after midnight. This is line with the other aspects showing rape and physical violence through force. This position of Jupiter in opposition to Mercury from the angles with Mars sitting in the seventh house, also an angle, kicks the power of the T Square into action. Mars is the outlet. This is where the violence begins.
The child resists and he exerts the power of his adult masculinity (tenth house) in a flagrant display of physical prowess (Mars) over her, his "partner" (the seventh house). I must note one more time that this is underscored by the fact that Mars is disposed of by Mercury in the fourth house. She is trapped in his house, under his control, at the mercy of his demands. I do not wish to go into any more detail or conjecture than this, only going this far in the hopes of supporting my findings. So let's leave it at that. The charts show that he abducted her, molested her, assaulted her and probably killed her. So now it's our duty to locate the death pattern and that's what I will try to do. And then, from there, try to discover what he did with her body.
After going over all the charts for the rest of the morning, I believe that the 2 am chart is the time of death. The Moon is now the ruler of the fifth, the natural house of children and it is placed in the eighth. The eighth house ruler, Pluto, is in the eighth. Saturn has backed into the twelfth. Mercury rules the fourth. Here you have Mercury in the third, showing that he might have put her in a car and drove her somewhere. I believe, because Mercury moves into the third around 1 am, that he put her in a car at that time and took her somewhere alive and killed her elsewhere. Perhaps he did these to keep evidence out of the home. So, she was alive, it does appear, when she got into the car. This is shown by the chart for 1 am, where Mercury first moves into the third and, at the same time, takes over the seventh house. This makes Mercury the marker for the abductor as well as being the marker for the child. And as the planets move from the fourth house back towards the twelfth, it shows them traveling in a south by southeast direction. The third is the twelfth house from the fourth and it rotates back toward the east. So they are traveling south by southeast. One thing not to forget is that since Mercury has assumed the seventh house cusp and become a marker for the abductor, the chart displaces a lot of the child's energy to the Moon, which is the co ruler in every event chart. In this chart, as well as the one for 2 am, the Moon is still in the eighth house. The difference in the chart for 2 am is that Pluto has joined it there while taking rulership over the eighth house, the house of death. This creates an image of violence, rape and subsequent death. That just seems to be the pattern.
But we can see by comparing the charts for 1 am and 2 am that the child survived until after getting into the car. When Saturn enters the twelfth house, it usually describes the lifting of the soul from the mortal body. Saturn is the bones it leaves behind while the twelfth house shows the passage of spirit from this world. This occurs at just around 2 am. Saturn is disposed of by Neptune while Saturn and Neptune are in mutual reception from the twelfth to the eleventh houses. Since Neptune in Capricorn rules the twelfth, this will show the manner of death. Mercury in Gemini shows the actions of the killer. Both Mercury and Gemini rule the airways. Neptune rules the water and Pisces, the twelfth house ruler, also rules the water. Capricorn describes a bushy dark place close to the ground; it also defines the grave. So I think, from these directions, that she was drowned or suffocated somehow and also drowned. There is no doubt in my mind that she is in a body of water near lots of bushy growth that creates dark places and shadows and the water is shallow enough to be close to the ground rather than deepset into the earth like a big river. Saturn in Pisces describes the destruction of the flesh by water and fish and the bones being left in something wet. Neptune in Capricorn describes muddy ground. Capricorn also describes lumber and timbering operations so this may be in an area where trees are harvested. There may be a cemetary nearby or an old church with a graveyard. The graves may be mostly underwater or on muddy ground.
The eleventh house, where Neptune resides, is where I believe he left her. The eleventh house is the eighth house from the fourth, showing where he took her after leaving his house and then after she died. The eighth house traditionally reads as west with a southernly lean and the sign Capricorn shows south. So I think they went southeast from his home until he realized where he wanted to take her and then they swung back west, still traveling south. So he drives her around from the time he put her in the car, which is first shown in the chart for 1 am, until he kills her, which is shown by the chart for 2 am. Since times in charts like these rarely correlate directly to real time, we have to extrapolate using degrees. Using the nadir as a guide, I can see that the nadir is placed at 15 degrees of Gemini at the time they got into the car. At the time when Saturn passed into the twelfth, at 2 am, the nadir inhabits 28 degrees of Gemini. This is a 13 degree difference within an angular placement. This means about 13 minutes in real time. So he traveled south and then southwest for a period of about 13 minutes, give or take a minute or two. Degrees are never exact in their translation to real time. But 13 to 15 minutes is a realistic guide.
Forensic Astrology is the art of using charts to determine the nature of events as they occurred in unsolved crimes and missing persons cases. The method I use is uniquely mine as I have over 35 years experience in Astrology, both Forensic and in general.
ARE YOU FASCINATED BY WHAT YOU ARE READING? Do you want to learn Forensic Astrology? Then you need to check out my new paperback, Forensic Astrology for Everyone
If you are interested in taking online classes in the subject, message me on Facebook (Link Above)
