February 11, 2009 3:34 PM
- Text
Runaway Teens Found Safe In Louisiana
(CBS/AP)
A nationwide search has ended safely for a 15-year-old boy and his 13-year-old girlfriend, who turned up in Louisiana nine days after fleeing their Michigan homes in the boy's family minivan.
Hannah McConnell and Gage Petherbridge were found Monday in Cameron Parish, Genesee County Sheriff Robert Pickell told WJRT-TV and The Flint Journal.
The boyfriend and girlfriend were playing with seagulls on a Gulf of Mexico beach, just east of the Texas state line, authorities say.
An ambulance driver recognized the teens in Holly Beach on Monday afternoon and called police. The Cameron Parish sheriff's department got a tip Monday that the teens had been spotted in the area Sunday afternoon.
Gage and Hannah apparently realized they were being watched and tried to drive away, but a police officer stopped them.
Gage's stepfather, Duane Wismer, said he was relieved the ordeal was over.
"It's awesome," Wismer told The Detroit News Monday evening for an online story. "They're safe and they're not going anywhere. That's all we can ask for."
"We've overjoyed," Hannah's mother, Julie McConnell, told the Detroit Free Press. "I don't know the details but we're told they're safe. I can't tell you how thrilled we are."
On Jan. 12, the teens left their homes in Vienna Township, about 65 miles north-northwest of Detroit. They took Gage's family van, his cocker spaniel Mandy and about $680 in cash. Gage has a learner's permit.
Pickell said authorities used clues from a phone call to a friend and a recent update to Hannah's MySpace page. Wismer said the dog also is safe.
Hannah, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder after attempting suicide, did not have her medication with her, said her mother, Julie McConnell, before the teens were found.
Hannah ominously wrote in her journal that she wanted to end it all and that she wanted to spend her last few days with Gage.
Petherbridge's mother, Mary Wismer, appearing earlier on CBS's Early Show, said that Hannah called a Michigan friend on Saturday, telling him she and Gage were at a motel in Nevada and were running low on money.
"This has been portrayed as puppy love. It's not," Veronica McConnell, Hannah's 27-year-old sister, told The Detroit News on Friday. "It's more like Romeo and Juliet. These are kids who need help because the only way they may see out is to end it all."
Before the teens were found, Gage's parents said their son was trying to protect Hannah.
"I, with 100 percent certainty, know that he's going to help her through it," Wismer told Early Show co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez. "He's tried to help her over the past months with issues she's been having, problems. And he truly believes in his heart that he is the only person who can help her through. And he's looking out for her. He's not going to let her harm herself. I can say that for certain."
Hannah McConnell and Gage Petherbridge were found Monday in Cameron Parish, Genesee County Sheriff Robert Pickell told WJRT-TV and The Flint Journal.
The boyfriend and girlfriend were playing with seagulls on a Gulf of Mexico beach, just east of the Texas state line, authorities say.
An ambulance driver recognized the teens in Holly Beach on Monday afternoon and called police. The Cameron Parish sheriff's department got a tip Monday that the teens had been spotted in the area Sunday afternoon.
Gage and Hannah apparently realized they were being watched and tried to drive away, but a police officer stopped them.
Gage's stepfather, Duane Wismer, said he was relieved the ordeal was over.
"It's awesome," Wismer told The Detroit News Monday evening for an online story. "They're safe and they're not going anywhere. That's all we can ask for."
"We've overjoyed," Hannah's mother, Julie McConnell, told the Detroit Free Press. "I don't know the details but we're told they're safe. I can't tell you how thrilled we are."
On Jan. 12, the teens left their homes in Vienna Township, about 65 miles north-northwest of Detroit. They took Gage's family van, his cocker spaniel Mandy and about $680 in cash. Gage has a learner's permit.
Pickell said authorities used clues from a phone call to a friend and a recent update to Hannah's MySpace page. Wismer said the dog also is safe.
Hannah, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder after attempting suicide, did not have her medication with her, said her mother, Julie McConnell, before the teens were found.
Hannah ominously wrote in her journal that she wanted to end it all and that she wanted to spend her last few days with Gage.
Petherbridge's mother, Mary Wismer, appearing earlier on CBS's Early Show, said that Hannah called a Michigan friend on Saturday, telling him she and Gage were at a motel in Nevada and were running low on money.
"This has been portrayed as puppy love. It's not," Veronica McConnell, Hannah's 27-year-old sister, told The Detroit News on Friday. "It's more like Romeo and Juliet. These are kids who need help because the only way they may see out is to end it all."
Before the teens were found, Gage's parents said their son was trying to protect Hannah.
"I, with 100 percent certainty, know that he's going to help her through it," Wismer told Early Show co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez. "He's tried to help her over the past months with issues she's been having, problems. And he truly believes in his heart that he is the only person who can help her through. And he's looking out for her. He's not going to let her harm herself. I can say that for certain."
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