The Jamison family of Eufaula, Oklahoma, United States, consisting of Bobby, his wife Sherilynn, and daughter Madyson, mysteriously disappeared on October 8, 2009. The family was reportedly considering the purchase of a forty-acre plot of land near Red Oak, about from Eufaula, at the time of their disappearance. Their suspected remains were found in November 2013 and positively identified by the Oklahoma medical examiner on July 3, 2014. No cause of death was determined, and the circumstances surrounding their disappearance remain unknown.
Disappearance
The initial investigation into the Jamison family's disappearance indicated that they had probably not vanished of their own accord. The Jamisons' pickup truck was discovered within a few days, abandoned in Latimer County, Oklahoma, a short distance south of the town of Kinta. The Jamisons' bodies were not found, but their malnourished dog, Maisie, was still in the truck. Also discovered were the Jamisons' IDs, wallets, mobile phones, a GPS system, and about $32,000 in cash. The Jamisons were known for carrying large amounts of cash with them. Another clue was the surveillance video from the family's home security system. The footage, time stamped the day they left, showed the couple making several silent trips between their vehicle and home, as they methodically packed to leave. In the footage, the couple's movements were described as "trancelike". The video also shows Sherilyn Jamison place a brown briefcase in the family pickup. Former Sheriff Beauchamp remarked that he believed the briefcase maybe an important clue. Indeed, both the briefcase and Sherilyn’s small-caliber handgun have never been recovered.
Discovery
The skeletal remains of two adults and one child were discovered by two hunters in a remote spot in Latimer County on November 15–16, 2013, more than four years after the family went missing, and less than away from where the family's pickup truck had been abandoned. The remains were widely presumed to be those of the missing family, though the Oklahoma medical examiner's office had to use anthropological and forensic pathological testing to identify them. Officials confirmed on July 3, 2014 that the remains belonged to the Jamisons. A cause of death was not determined due to the heavily decomposed state of the bodies.
Theories
Before the remains were discovered, several theories emerged about the family's disappearance, such as that they had faked their own deaths, were in witness protection, were murdered, or had died by group suicide. Shortly before the disappearance, Bobby Jamison was involved in a bitter lawsuit with his father, Bob Dean Jamison, claiming that Bob Dean had threatened the family. Bobby stated that his father had struck him with his vehicle on November 1, 2008 and that Bob Dean was involved in gangs and meth. Police do not believe that Bobby's father was involved in the family's disappearance. Another popular theory was that the Jamisons were involved in drug dealing. Investigators cited the large amount of cash found in the Jamisons' truck, and the apparent strange behavior exhibited by Bobby and Sherilynn shortly before they went missing. The Jamisons had reportedly told their local pastor Gary Brandon on separate occasions that they had seen spirits inside their home and that Bobby Jamison had allegedly claimed to have been reading from the “satanic bible”.
The Jamison disappearance was profiled on the Investigation Discovery series Disappeared in late 2010, in an episode titled "Paradise Lost". In January 2018, the disappearance was covered in Episode 50:"Luvs 'N Laffs and an Alt-Right Turn" of the And That's Why We Drink Podcast In March 2018, the Jamison family was discussed on an episode of BuzzFeed Unsolved, titled “The Disturbing Mystery of the Jamison Family”. In July 2019, the disappearance was covered in Season 4 Episode 12 of the “Unexplained” Podcast, “Wilderness be still”. In September 2019, the true-crime/supernatural podcast, "Let's Get Haunted" discussed the Jamison disappearance in episode 17: "The Jamison Family Disappearance." The hosts of "Let's Get Haunted" had obtained court records for prior history on the family and had spoken to a person who was directly involved with a prior case.
