This is a post from someone named Susan on another blog site. It pretty well sums up the issues on SAR side of things:
1. Wednesday: Detective Mike Weinstein of the Portland police missing persons detail was out sick. So the Portland search did not even start until the next day. How can there not be someone assigned to handle Mike Weinstein’s responsibilities when he is not there? Especially since he heads a missing persons department.
2. Thursday, a Portland hotel refuses to cooperate. And Weinstein can’t make them cooperate and protects their identity?
3. Friday: Sara Rubrecht’s deputies from Josephine county, drive past the fork where the logging road takes off to the right. The logging road that is supposed to be gated and locked and is not. The logging road that the reason it is gated and locked is because its COMMON for travelers to take that wrong turn. So did those deputies not check the gate? Did they see it was vandalized and open and not report it? Did they report it and no action was taken?
4. Friday: Sara Rubrecht is told, in person, by the owner of the Black Bar Lodge that he had seen tire tracks on that logging road and hadn’t been able to follow them in his snowmobile once he hit bare ground. She took no action?
5. Friday: John Rachor, the private pilot that finally located Kati and the girls, also thought they’d turn off on that logging road, a very common mistake, but didn’t go looking that day because authorities said they’d cleared that road.
6. Sunday: John Rachor decides to go look anyway, sees the tire marks in the snow, they had not cleared that road, but he is running low on fuel and has to go back. Did he tell any authority? Did they ignore him as well?
7. Sunday: Sheriff’s Lt. Pat Rowland said his crews asked about the back logging road, but were told — incorrectly — that the owner of the Black Bar Lodge had “cleared” it himself. Who told him that? Shouldn’t there be some way to verify what’s been cleared and what hasn’t?
I realize that many of the above “facts” can be wrong, they came from the media. But Weinstein and Rubrecht are not hard working volunteers, they are paid public professions. I think its reasonable to expect answers.
The #1 consideration here that has been overlooked is that it isn't against the law for adults to "go missing." It's also standard for LE not to get involved before 24 hours has passed.