It’s 2:00 in the morning and I cannot sleep. Do you ever have one of those nights? I don’t suffer from insomnia but occasionally I will have a night where I just cannot get to sleep right away. Finally you fall asleep only to wake up an hour or two later, your mind is racing from one thing to another.
Usually I’ll have a night like that after some big event at work or I just shot one of those golf rounds that only happen once in a great while! Since those great golf rounds are so rare it’s work that causes me to lose sleep.
Tonight I’m having one of those nights and as I’m writing this article I notice it’s after 2:15 in the morning. Our team had a video conference call earlier tonight and as I laid in bed I rehashed how the meeting. We got a lot accomplished and work assignments were talked about. After a short time I finally fell asleep but that didn’t last long. I awoke thinking about Jodi’s abduction and how could someone have gotten away with it for so long. Since I couldn’t get back to sleep I decided to get up and write some of my thoughts down.
I was thinking that if I’m have trouble sleeping after certain events in my life, I can only imagine how many sleepless nights the perpetrator(s) who took Jodi must have had and probably still do. Looking back on my law enforcement career I recall several incidents where I’d get home after my shift and I’d still be all jacked up. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one that probably lost sleep those nights of excitement. From being involved in high speed chases to stand offs with armed subjects I’ve had countless nights of lost sleep. Even some minor cases might cause me to be sleepless the night after the incident.
The view outside Jodi’s apartment shot at night, during a recreation for The Huisentruit File series in 2004. (Courtesy: Gary Peterson, FindJodi.com)
I still vividly remember one night when I was on patrol as a young patrol officer I was on my way to break when I passed a van traveling the opposite direction. As we passed each other we locked eyes. In the back of the window van I noticed a motorcycle and thought it was kind of odd. Well of course I was on my way to break so I couldn’t follow the van to try to find a reason to stop it; at least I made a note of the license plate. Wouldn’t you know it, the next night I get dispatched to take a stolen motorcycle report? Sure enough the description of the stolen motorcycle matched that of the motorcycle in the van I saw the previous night. You don’t think I lost some sleep that night, let alone that driver of the van? If you’re wondering what happened as a result of that? Well, because I had written down the van’s license plate it did lead to an undercover buy/bust on the driver and the motorcycle was recovered.
Can you imagine what Jodi’s abductor must wake up thinking at night? Thinking about that morning’s events and probably their eyes locked. He/she must still have Jodi’s look of surprise in their mind and it will never go away until that person comes forward. Wondering when the police are going to come knocking on their door or prison cell. How many sleepless hours have that person has racked up?
I can also assure you the detectives from the Mason City Police Department have racked up countless hours of sleepless nights. None of us in law enforcement like to see cases go unsolved and we will carry those cases with us for the rest of our lives. Some people may think Mason City Police aren’t concerned about solving the disappearance of Jodi but I believe there are members of the Department that are just as interested and dedicated in bringing justice for the Huisentruit as we are at FindJodi.com.
Some out there lay awake, sleepless, wondering if what they have seen or heard may help solve the case and they wonder if they should call the police. In my opinion and experience, the only way to stop those sleepless nights is to talk to someone and tell them your thoughts. We at FindJodi.com can take your information and you can remain anonymous. Please, if you think you may have information that could help solve this case, either contact us or your local police.
