Selena Broadnax, who disappeared from a Flossmoor group home July 11, has been found. Broadnax, 20, turned herself in to an Illinois Department of Children and Family Services case manager in Kankakee on Aug. 5
Selena Broadnax, who disappeared from a Flossmoor group home July 11, has been found.
Broadnax, 20, turned herself in to an Illinois Department of Children and Family Services case manager in Kankakee on Aug. 5, Flossmoor Police Sgt. James Hundley said Thursday. She is in good condition and appeared to be well-cared-for during the three weeks she was missing, he said.
On July 15, Flossmoor police issued a missing persons alert for Broadnax, who is a ward of the state and described as a special needs person.
Hundley said police were in contact with a person who was aware of Broadnax’s condition and whereabouts during much of the time she was missing. That person acted as an intermediary. Hundley said police started their discussions with the intermediary shortly after Broadnax was declared missing.
During the time she was missing, Broadnax stayed with some people she knew on Chicago’s South Side, Hundley said.
“They were people she was comfortable with,” he said. Police did not know where she was staying.
According to a police report, Broadnax was seen getting into a large dark-colored vehicle at about 9:35 p.m. on July 11. Broadnax is on medication but did not take it with her when she left the group home, police said. She has no monetary means of support.
Police believed Broadnax might have been in the Kankakee area, where she formerly lived. Her DCFS case manager is assigned to the agency’s Kankakee office.
On Tuesday, Broadnax appeared with her state-appointed guardian before a Cook County Juvenile Court judge, who temporarily assigned her to an alternative living setting other than a group home, Hundley said. If the new setting works out in the next month, that will likely become her new home, he said.
At the time of her disappearance, Broadnax had only recently moved into the Flossmoor group home and was not happy with the placement, Hundley said.
Flossmoor police worked in conjunction with the Cook County Sheriff’s Police during the time that Broadnax was missing. The sheriff’s police agreed that the best strategy was to work with the intermediary until Broadnax was ready to resurface, he said.
“We are very happy that everything was resolved this way,” Hundley said. “For us, this was the best outcome — that nothing unfortunate happened to her.”
