Dartez
Andrews – Missing 17-year-old Addison Faith Dartez is safe and appeared in juvenile court in Murphy on Tuesday morning for an emancipation hearing.
Dartez had been missing and without her medication since she was last seen leaving home on Dec. 20. But she was scheduled for an emancipation hearing Tuesday and appeared in court for that hearing.
The hearing was closed to the public and press. The results of the hearing were unavailable by press time.
“The main thing is that she is safe,” Cherokee County Sheriff Dustin Smith said outside the courtroom. He added that the next challenge will be to keep her home and safe should District Court Judge Tessa Sellers rule against her petition for emancipation.
Emancipation of minors is a legal mechanism by which a minor before attaining the age of majority is freed from control by their parents or guardians, and the parents or guardians are freed from responsibility for their child. Emancipated children can legally make certain decisions on their own behalf.
Dartez was last seen leaving her home on foot around 2 a.m. Dec. 20. She was wearing a navy blue hoodie with “Hold my beer” in cursive lettering on the chest, jean pants and cowboy boots. She was carrying a gray backpack and Yeti water bottle covered with stickers.
Previously, Cherokee County sheriff’s Det. Sport Teasdale said his office had received tips from as far as Buncombe County and that numerous agencies were involved in the search.
The sheriff’s office’s Facebook page posted a notice about the missing teen about 12 hours after she went missing, and since that time the post has been shared more than 1,700 times.
Family said on social media that there is a $5,000 reward for any information leading to finding Dartez and returning her safe, alive and well.
“We are extremely broken-hearted at her absence,” Tonya Williams said. “Those close to our family know the emotional toll it is taking. But we will keep going. We will search until she’s found. We will get her back.”
Following her reappearance on Tuesday, Stephen Dartez, Addison Dartez’s father, posted on Facebook, “Addison has been found. Thank our God above she is alive. Thank you so much all of the prayers and calls.”
He posted his comment at around 9:30 a.m. Tuesday. Within an hour, his post had received almost 450 likes, 363 shares and 162 comments.