Parents fear their daughter’s death may become a cold case on Owatonna

MEDFORD — The day was June 9, 1990. She was born without a name.

“I quit smoking, so I bought bubble gum cigars and handed them out to all my co-workers,” said her father, Medford resident Michael Anderson. “I remember we didn’t have a name for her at the time.”

Out of the blue it came, Michael recalled: Lacey. Lacey Anderson.

Little did he know then that her life would end in just 19 years, Lacey slain and left in a grove of trees outside Pierce, Neb.

Lacey lived a short but tumultuous life. When she was about five, Michael moved from York, Neb., to Northfield after he and Lacey’s mother divorced. Both Lacey and Anderson’s older daughter, Felicia, stayed in Nebraska with their mom, Pam Hess, but the two spent summers and holidays in Minnesota.

In 2002, Lacey moved to Northfield to live with Michael and his wife Jody. When the Andersons think of Lacey they picture her as she was then — a bright, vivacious 12-year-old. Together, the Andersons sorted through memories — Lacey teaching Jody’s 2-year-old nephew how to fly kites or singing “Michael Row the Boat Ashore” at Emmaus Baptist Church in Northfield.

“She was an awesome singer,” Jody said. “She would just holler that song at the top of her lungs.”

Lacey did well at Northfield Middle School, but after a year she decided to go back to Nebraska — where her mother was living in Norfolk, a town about the size of Owatonna in the northeastern part of the state.

After she returned, the dark clouds started gathering. Her grades started falling and there were other warning signs, Michael said. The Andersons petitioned the courts for custody. A Nebraska judge ruled in her mother’s favor. After that, they had limited contact with Lacey.

“It was long time before she even talked to us again. When we did it was maybe once a month, never anything of substance,” Michael said. “Until the last time.”

This July, Michael got a phone call: Lacey was in trouble. She told her father that she was involved with methamphetamine, she said, and she was going to jail. According to a report in the Omaha World Herald, Anderson faced sentencing on “a revocation of probation for driving under the influence of alcohol and felony charges involving a drive-by shooting.” Lacey asked if she could get treatment in Minnesota and Jody, a licensed drug and alcohol counselor, began making arrangements.

But on Aug. 23, Lacey vanished from her mother’s apartment in Norfolk. At first, the Andersons hoped Lacey would return alive. Days turned into weeks. Then on Nov.14, a group of hunters discovered Lacey’s body.

“It’s intense hurt. She was beautiful. How could somebody do this to her?” Michael said. “She was a good kid. She got into trouble but she had a good heart.”

As yet, no one has been named as a suspect in Lacey’s death. Michael’s biggest fear is that this going to turn into a cold case.

Investigators have played the case close to the vest. Even the Andersons don’t know exactly what happened. All they know is that Lacey died on Aug. 24, and a week later someone turned her cell phone on.

“I asked what the cause of death is whether she was assaulted before and they wouldn’t let any of that go, ” Michael said. “That’s one of the things that keeps running through my head — what were her last moments like? Did she suffer?”

When contacted on Friday, the Nebraska State Patrol referred all questions to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, which in turn referred to the county attorney. The county attorney did not return phone calls.

In the meantime, the Andersons continue to mourn in Medford. Lacey paid too high a price for falling in with the wrong people, they said.

“I’ve worked with a lot of young kids who think that ‘The crowd I’m with they’ll never hurt me because we’re all a family,’” Jody said. “I bet Lacey never thought that any of those people would kill her.”

Clare Kennedy can be reached at 444-2376.

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Member Opinions: By: ridiculous on 12/15/09 RIP Lacey and I hope you find the sick individuals that did this...my thoughts are with you and your family. By: boudy64 on 12/15/09 My thoughts and prayers are with the family. Hopefully someday they will get the answers they are looking for. This might be too soon but Michael and Jody check out this website www.faithslodge.org - Faith's Lodge is a great place to start to heal and deal with your tremendous grief that you are feeling. I too lost a child and this place was one of the best things my wife and I did to help us deal with the pain. By: secretsquirrel on 12/15/09 It may seem lame but I forwarded a link to this story to America's Most Wanted in the hope that they can help out. Peace to you and your family Lacey. I cannot imagine how I would handle this had it happened to my family. Absolutely crushing grief is all I can even imagine. Things like this make me want to go home and hold each of my kids even more tightly.
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