NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A proposed bipartisan bill in Tennessee would create a dedicated cold case division within the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, offering hope to families who have spent decades searching for missing loved ones.
Under the legislation, the TBI would establish a cold case division spanning three regions, led by a director and at least five detectives. The bill would require local law enforcement agencies to submit cases to the division after 10 years without a resolution.
The bill outlines specific conditions under which family members of a missing person or homicide victim could request the division review their unresolved case.
A review could be requested if the local law enforcement agency with jurisdiction lacks a dedicated missing persons or homicide division, if the victim resided or the offense occurred in a municipality of fewer than 5,000 residents, or if the case has been unresolved for 10 years or more.
Casey Robinson has fought for answers for 22 years.
"My sister and my niece, Jennifer and Adriana Wix, disappeared in Springfield, Tennessee, Robertson County, in 2004," Robinson said.
"Our case has gone many years without any new information, new leads, any updates from law enforcement," Robinson said.
Robinson is helping lead the push for the statewide unit, arguing that too many cases fade with time.
"There’s hundreds of cases in Tennessee, but just having someone that actually picks up your case and doesn’t wait for a lead to come in — they’re actually investigating it on a regular basis," Robinson said.
"I took 10 families with me to the state legislature the other day, and it was powerful," she said.
Jonnie Carter is also pushing to get cases solved. Her daughter, Bethany Markowski, was 11 when she vanished during a court-ordered visit with her father in Jackson, Tennessee, in 2001.
"She loved everything and everybody — always had a smile on her face," Carter said.
"She was going around asking her cousins and all of us, 'What if daddy doesn’t bring me home this time?'" she said.
Carter said her daughter never came home.
"Friday morning was the last time I saw her," Carter said.
"March the fourth it was 25 years. Bethany’s 36 now," Carter said.
Carter turned her grief into advocacy by starting the Bethany Markowski Foundation to raise awareness and help other families.
"I never quit on Bethany," Carter said.
Carter joined the legislative effort after speaking with Robinson.
"Casey Robinson brought it to my attention, about the bill and she asked me to go speak," Carter said.
Looking through photos of her daughter, Carter holds onto hope that her story is not over.
The legislation is moving to the Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee.
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