Tammi Smith and Elizabeth Johnson scheduled to go to trial Aug 9 to face criminal charges in the case of the missing Gabriel Johnson/ / Johnson said she killed her son Gabriel/ Audio of Elizabeth's call to Logan just released 12/14/10

Lindamarie...unfortunately, neither do I. She initially stated she killed him. I am afraid she is just spinning her tales, just like the other one...KC.

The experts that NG uses sometimes gripe me. Correct me if I am wrong, but didn't her expert say that this baby, at 8 months old, still needed a bottle propped in order to eat? I don't know why she sticks with experts and asks them questions about things like child development they know zilch about, and also I think it is this same one whose answers always seem to repeat the popular diagnosis of bloggers and she doesn't expand into anything professional beyond that. She sometimes just takes off on a minor quirk in body language or something, very unprofessional. NG herself has in the past made statements about 5 year olds that equate them with the stage of development of her toddler twins, but you can forgive her for that because she doesn't come on with a psychology degree and is only the sum total of her own experiences in life. I am sure, since most of us here have raised our own children, we all know that the normal 8 month old is not laying around like a newborn with a bottle propped up into its mouth, he is more apt to be walking around furniture and being watched so that he doesn't grab the wrong things and try to eat or drink them, or in the very least, he is crawling, grabbing his bottle and consuming it with no help. I think NG needs to find better experts, particularly in the field of psychology.

Yes, Terryrose. And the MD the other night answering the ? "what is he in danger of?" Answer was it is cold outside, the fly, other silly answers like that. I do not think this 8 mo. old is outside by himself, crawling the streets!

by lindamarie Today at 12:31 pm

The Smiths probably have a lawyer now is why they were not on last night but I don’t know for sure. I hope I am wrong but I don't think Gabriel is alive.

But the thing is, they have had an attorney this whole time. I haver heard Tammy time and time again state "I talked to My Attorney about that". SO, maybe they are finally listening to their Attorney?

cherylz wrote:Yes, Terryrose. And the MD the other night answering the ? "what is he in danger of?" Answer was it is cold outside, the fly, other silly answers like that. I do not think this 8 mo. old is outside by himself, crawling the streets!

I agree with both of you. NG probably does not hear a thing her experts say anyway, IMO she is already thinking about her next question.
I sure hope Gabriel is alive. Would be wonderful news that would be. I hope this case does not end up like Trenton Duckett's, no answers, ever. Poor Gabriel's dad and extended family.

CritterFan1 wrote:

cherylz wrote:Yes, Terryrose. And the MD the other night answering the ? "what is he in danger of?" Answer was it is cold outside, the fly, other silly answers like that. I do not think this 8 mo. old is outside by himself, crawling the streets!

I agree with both of you. NG probably does not hear a thing her experts say anyway, IMO she is already thinking about her next question.
I sure hope Gabriel is alive. Would be wonderful news that would be. I hope this case does not end up like Trenton Duckett's, no answers, ever. Poor Gabriel's dad and extended family.

Yes, Critter, and NG tends to align herself exclusively with certain parties directly involved in the crimes, such as Ron Cummings, and now the Smiths, and is defensive about them and also they can do no wrong in her eyes. That is a problem because she can lead suspicions in the wrong directions by trusting these people so blindly, probably out of gratitude that they are willing to come on her show and perform for her audience. Public opinion can be swayed in their own favor because they are presented by NG as being above reproach.

typo alert...*fly...meant to write flu!!

RIGHT ON TerryRose "AS USUAL"! You nailed that one down about the Smith's and Miss Nancy!

She does seem to pick a side with every case and sticks to that sides story!!

case.

"I looked in her eyes and I can tell you, that baby is alive," said Smith.

She said Johnson described, in detail, how a young white couple came to her San Antonio hotel room, put Gabriel in a car seat, and walked away.

Johnson was on the run after skipping a custody hearing with a man who may be Gabriel's father.

"She did definitely describe the people, what they look like. They're definitely in San Antonio, she did sign paperwork, but they did not notarize it or anything like that," said Smith. "According to Elizabeth, these people are going to try and hide this baby."

The Smiths have said they were interested in adopting Gabriel, but detectives believe they are withholding information. But, it was Smith who felt victimized, and she told Johnson as much.

"When I started to cry about... the pain and suffering that she's caused me, my family and my children, yes she got very teary eyed."

There were some things Smith couldn't say.

"There are some things that she said that I think I need to talk to the Tempe police department about before I talk to you all about," said Smith to reporters.

As for why Smith is so interested, she says, like Johnson, she just wants the baby found.

"She wants to get out of jail and she wants them to find this baby," said Smith.

Police say the jailhouse meeting between the two women was not recorded.

http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/national_world&id=7218068

Elizabeth Johnson, an Arizona mother who is refusing to help police find her missing 8-month-old baby, may have been using multiple names and a fake driver's license while on a strange road trip that took her from Tempe to San Antonio to Miami.
CNN's Nancy Grace is reporting that a hotel clerk at a San Antonio hotel where Elizabeth Johnson allegedly stayed told police that she checked in with a fake Texas driver's license and was carrying an infant car seat, but kept it pointed away from the clerk so they couldn’t see if there was a baby.

Court documents have also revealed that the second man Elizabeth Johnson named as the possible father of Gabriel Johnson, Craig Cherry, is actually the cousin of Tammi Smith, the woman who Elizabeth claims wanted to adopt little Gabriel. Cherry told investigators that he had never met Elizabeth Johnson and doesn't know why she would name him in the documents, according to CNN.

http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2010/01/14/crimesider/entry6096469.shtml

A blog entry from early January is sparking some interest in the case of a missing Arizona infant.

In reply to a web post on BeckyHiggins.com, blogger "Beth" wrote, "I live in WI, but am currently in San Antonio, TX. My husband and I are adopting a handsome baby boy that was placed into our care on January 1. I've decided to make my project life about Baby Gabriel. Even though I won't be home when my project arrives I am clicking away taking his photo here in San Antonio."

The entry is timestamped on January 4th. There's no contact info listed for Beth.

http://www.abc15.com/content/news/blogs/story/New-lead-in-Baby-Gabriels-Arizona-disappearance/kMzdZQEON0ORawoDI8UUdg.cspx

cherylz wrote:typo alert...*fly...meant to write flu!!

I thought it was some new slang term. thanks for clarifying!!!

BJ in OR wrote:A blog entry from early January is sparking some interest in the case of a missing Arizona infant.

In reply to a web post on BeckyHiggins.com, blogger "Beth" wrote, "I live in WI, but am currently in San Antonio, TX. My husband and I are adopting a handsome baby boy that was placed into our care on January 1. I've decided to make my project life about Baby Gabriel. Even though I won't be home when my project arrives I am clicking away taking his photo here in San Antonio."

The entry is timestamped on January 4th. There's no contact info listed for Beth.

http://www.abc15.com/content/news/blogs/story/New-lead-in-Baby-Gabriels-Arizona-disappearance/kMzdZQEON0ORawoDI8UUdg.cspx

:scratch: I know your all over this BJ. There is a project called baby Gabriel. I will find information and post it.

BJ in OR wrote:A blog entry from early January is sparking some interest in the case of a missing Arizona infant.

In reply to a web post on BeckyHiggins.com, blogger "Beth" wrote, "I live in WI, but am currently in San Antonio, TX. My husband and I are adopting a handsome baby boy that was placed into our care on January 1. I've decided to make my project life about Baby Gabriel. Even though I won't be home when my project arrives I am clicking away taking his photo here in San Antonio."

The entry is timestamped on January 4th. There's no contact info listed for Beth.

http://www.abc15.com/content/news/blogs/story/New-lead-in-Baby-Gabriels-Arizona-disappearance/kMzdZQEON0ORawoDI8UUdg.cspx

BJ, as usual, you dig up the most startling and pertinent facts in a case! I think NG ought to hire you!---or CNN! This is possibly another bombshell! How in the world did you ever find this one? Does LE know about this blogger and her post? Coincidentally, the name Beth is usually short for Elizabeth. What are your thoughts on this?

I went to http://beckyhiggins.com/ and didn't find the post that was mentioned, but didn't spend lots of time looking either.......and I'm not sure that I was even on the right site since there wasn't a link in the article.

When I did a search Elizabeth Johnson popped up in about a dozen search terms. Here is the real project Gabriel.
http://www.gabrielwv.org/

The Gabriel Project of West Virginia was started in 1997 and isn't directly connected with Gabriel Johnson that is missing right now.

According to those who know her, Elizabeth Johnson has never been to Nashville. She has no contacts there. But Tammi Peter Smith does. That's where she opened her first Healing Waters clinic back in 2004.
Tempe police said they are taking the connection seriously, naming the Smiths as persons of interest in the case.
"There would be nothing that they could charge us with because we have done nothing, we've done everything that the police have asked us," Tammi Peter Smith said.
Tammi and Jack Smith said their only priority is the safe return of 8-month-old Gabriel, and said it was Elizabeth who was driving the adoption plans. Not them.
"We did not do the adoption papers like she wanted. She wanted to keep pushing it along, pushing it along," Tammi Smith said.
But the baby's father, Logan McQueary, remembers differently. He said the Smiths pressured him after Gabriel disappeared.
An eerily similar story has emerged.
"I think what they've done is wrong. They've manipulated the system and lied and I wouldn't mind seeing them face charges," said Jack Smith's stepson, Travis Andrews Warford.
Warford is the biological father of Jack Smith's Granddaughter, Hannah. Warford claims the Smiths offered him money to sign over his custodial rights.
"Three different occasions over a year and a half in between, the man offered me money to get out of his life, leave him alone and let him have my little girl, period. I'll put my hand on any bible in any court in the United States and swear to it," said Warford.
But Tammi Smith replied, "Why would we offer him money, they revoked his rights?"
The Smiths were awarded legal custody of Hannah. But Travis, who has spend time in jail, says he was never alerted that the Smiths were headed to court.
"I'm angry. And the first chance that I have any opportunity, I will do as much as I can to gain not only visitation, but ultimately custody of my daughter," said Warford.
The Smiths deny all of Warford's claims.
"I'm sorry. You guys need to dig and find out who this guy is, and then you will be embarrassed that you are asking these questions," said Tammi Smith.
"At the end of the day, God will see justice done. And if they've done to these people what they done to me, but he's even lying to the law and the media, his time will come," said Warford.
How Warford's claims relate to the attempted adoption of Gabriel Johnson and his current whereabouts remains to be seen.


http://www.kpho.com/news/22180215/detail.html

In reply to a web post on BeckyHiggins.com, blogger "Beth" wrote, "I live in WI, but am currently in San Antonio, TX. My husband and I are adopting a handsome baby boy that was placed into our care on January 1. I've decided to make my project life about Baby Gabriel. Even though I won't be home when my project arrives I am clicking away taking his photo here in San Antonio."

by BJ in OR Today at 3:33 pm

The Gabriel Project of West Virginia was started in 1997 and isn't directly connected with Gabriel Johnson that is missing right now.

When was Elizabeth found in Florida? I can't remember?

Side note, this is too weird of a coincidence!! Does anyone else think so?

You've got this Gabriel Project stated in WV that helps women who don't know how or want to be parents, then you have this blogger named "Beth" saying she will not be home to when her "project" arrives, but she is clicking pictures of him in Texas!! UM HELLO!!

Maybe LE should be looking in West Virginia???

This case is like an octopus - all these arms spreading in different directions. The Smiths are not telling the truth and neither is Elizabeth - they are all lying. The next question if LE cannot get anyone to say anything what are the maxium charges that Elizabeth can face? Child endangerment? Could they accuse her of human trafficking for selling her baby? After all, you cannot just give a child away can you? Whats the max she could get if they dont find the baby and no break in the case? If she keeps her mouth shut she could
get, what? a couple of years maybe? I dont see what is in this for Elizabeth Johnson. If she was going to get a huge sum of money that is one thing but thats not going to happen now. So why wont she talk?
She realizes she could be in jail and face serious charges at least now she seems to realize it. So
whats in it for her to keep quiet at this point? Unless
that baby is dead. Then it makes sense she wouldnt
talk

Great Points Artgal! IMO, I would think if they don't find the baby and she won't talk, she should face murder charges just like CA did! She already made threats and sent texts saying she killed the baby, so you would think LE could use that is evidence?

OMG, I just read this on FB :(

Nancy Grace Breaking: An alleged Texas teen babysitter to little 8-month-old Gabriel Johnson may be the key to finding him. The 18-year-old alleged babysitter says the hotel room in which she watched Gabriel was dirty, with things thrown everywhere, without baby toys, and a knife was next to the bed! She also says that Gabriel was thin, dirty, seemed like he was scared and wanted to be held the whole time. Where is Gabriel Johnson? Watch tonight!

My instincts keep telling me that all of the people involved in this (and I think there are more than several) did not want to actually harm this baby. The fact that this troubled mother sought to adopt him out to strangers says to me that deep inside she wanted what was best for him and she knew she is a very poor, unstable mother and couldn't keep him. I think there were arrangements made with others to provide for this baby and those people too had the baby's welfare at heart basically or they operate a business in which they are paid but do not harm a child, just find a placement for the child. This is the picture I am getting and I hope that I am right. The alternative to this scenario would be that the little baby was murdered and this troubled mother would be a murderess. Why would she go to such great lengths trying to find another place for him if she had any thoughts of killing him?

What is strange to me is when Elizabeth describes the couple she gave Gabriel to she uses to describe the room clerk and herself as the couple. I thought that strange but at least she can remember her lie. He is a big man, tall and dark. She if 5'6" with blonde hair.
Yep thats an easy one to remember.

jeanne I pray your are right. I have dealt with and saw mental illness enough to know there is no rhyme or reason to what they do. I am realistic that children can be hidden for years and year. Gabriel is a beautiful little boy that we have all fallen in love with. Sounds and feels familiar to Caylee Anthony. Millions of people are seeing his pictures thanks to the media attention.

Breaking News! A housekeeper at one of the hotels Elizabeth Johnson allegedly stayed at with her missing baby boy Gabriel breaks her silence to a local TV station -- she claims she saw a Hispanic woman in the hotel room babysitting the missing infant! Could the "mystery babysitter" hold the clues to finding baby Gabriel? Tonight, a Nancy Grace primetime exclusive: the babysitter speaks out! Nancy Grace, 8 & 10 PM E.T. on HLN!

Hopefully NG will let her finish a sentence!!

The housekeeper or the mystery babysitter speaks out? WTH??

by CritterFan1 Today at 6:52 pm

Hopefully NG will let her finish a sentence!!

True that! The Man HATES that, so do I but I am used to it.. he seriously yells at the TV and says, HOW Can anyone like you WOMEN!! LOL

I want to know about this so called Baby sitter in the hotel room!!! WTF, did she just find some random person to watch her son? This case is so bizarre!

I like your hubby and I don't even know him. I do the same thing, Mommy, when it comes to Nancy DisGrace. However, she does have some great guests.

I am wondering if the babysitter is a mystery, why would she go on NG?? I think she will have the housekeeper on instead.

This case is getting really bizarre.

I've come to the conclusion that there are gals with kids out there that actually look up to Casey Anthony as some kind of role model. These gals don't want their child or children and they think Casey is "all that." Makes me sick!!

What can I say, my hubby is a likable guy.. LOL. He truly hates her with a passion, but still watches the show just like the rest of us. Well, not all the time, sometimes he pretends like he's doing something else, but still argues with her even when pre-occupied.. LOL!! :lol!:

I've come to the conclusion that there are gals with kids out there that actually look up to Casey Anthony as some kind of role model. These gals don't want their child or children and they think Casey is "all that." Makes me sick!!

That makes me sick to even think about! BUT HEY.... she did go straight to Florida!!!! Maybe she was hoping to meet her or even shack up with her in Prison????

If there was a babysitter hired to watch the baby in her absence, then it seems she wasn't as neglectful a mother as the media has led us to believe. Not a good mother by any means, but not neglectful enough to leave a baby alone in a hotel room. Confusing, this case. :idk:

Im terribly worried that this child is dead. The babysitter like most people in these situations might have been somewhat concerned but wouldnt bother to pick up a phone and report possibly abuse to authorities. She lists her services on craigslist
for $40.00 and she doesnt report her income probably little as it is, and people like this usually wont get involved with agencies of any kind. Im surprised shes on NG.

I pray this child IS with someone who is feeding him and taking care of him at this point. And I hope they throw the book at Elizabeth Johnson - for whatever charges and how ever many they can make stick.

Elizabeth Johnson, the mother who allegedly gave her 8-month old baby boy away to a San Antonio couple,.

Tammi Smith, the woman who hoped to adopt Baby Gabriel, is still a person of interest but also is shedding light on the situation after she talked to Johnson. According to Smith, Johnson handed the baby to a San Antonio couple who vowed no one would ever know.
It is possible the couple could stay in hiding and Smith says they assured Johnson no one would recognize the young boy after a few years.
The couple was described by Johnson as Caucasians in their mid-thirties. The female was short with long, blonde hair and the male was a “bigger guy” with short, dark hair.
A blog comment on a scrapbooking website is also being investigated by Tempe, AZ authorities. Whoever wrote the entry says they are from Wisconsin but are currently in San Antonio where they adopted a young boy named Gabriel on January 4th.

http://www.kens5.com/news/More-clues-into-Baby-Gabriels-whereabouts-81582577.html

She doesn't like the jail food? The bed is too hard? Oh my!

If this so-called couple never come forward with the baby, if they in fact even exist, then this girl is in big trouble. Even if they do come forward I hope they put her away for a long time. Im so fed up with these women. Im starting to long for the rubber hose
method of questioning. When I hear the baby sitter describe this poor little guy who wanted to be held by a complete stranger, I can hardly stand to think about.
Give me the rubber hose, Id like to use it on this so-called mother.

Once again, I am disgusted with NG's medical experts. We all know this young troubled woman is not a good mother, even Johnson knows she isn't. But here we go again with unscientific diagnoses on the part of NG, her psych-expert, and her MD expert. They have a babysitter that they bait with leading questions----I think NG wanted to be told there was no food at all for this baby. When told, there was a can of formula, a bottle, and jars of baby food, they still trump it up to say outright that this woman is starving the baby. Grrrrrrrrrrhhhhh! Obviously, she is not. And what kind of doctor diagnoses dehydration in this manner. Did I miss the first part---during the first part had he asked if the baby had such symptoms?---had NG asked before I tuned in? After I tuned in, the babysitter had not been asked if there had been a wet diaper to change---did I miss it? The first symptom of dehydration is no wetting of the diaper, is it not? The tylenol, was it used for teething pain?---or was it being used, as the sitter said, just to shut him up?----I don't think Tylenol will "shut up" a cranky baby, only if the baby has teething pain or is suffering from a feverish illness will this calm him down. You can all get mad at me here for my rant, but this pseudo-science that is being perpetrated by NG's guests is annoying me greatly. They come up with a theory and keep ramping it up without a shred of evidence to support it, then they go further to suggest that this woman had been taking care of him but suddenly was distancing herself and starving him because she planned to murder him. Now, come on, this is not science! These are not facts! This becomes nothing more than vicious false accusations. NG needs to find real experts in the medical field who won't claim to know it all beyond whatever facts are actually known and won't start making them up for the program.

Sorry, friends, most of you won't agree with me, but I just had to get it off my chest.

To the contrary, Terry Rose, I agree with every word you said. Nancy and her minions are infamous for taking something so normal and trumping it up to outrageous. Case in point, the expensive bottled water and exquisite cheese treats Casey is enjoying in her private jail cell.

I think Nancy only allows guests on her show who will sensationalize as much as she does.

As far as Gabriel, I do not think he is dead. I do think they will find the "couple" or people who have him and I think the Smith's know more than they are saying. I did believe them at first, but after I read about Tammy's relative possibly being Gabriel's father, I knew something was definitely wrong with this bunch.

Thanks, Wrap, and I agree with everything you have said. About one thing I hope we are both right---that he is not dead but is with somebody who is taking care of him.

Robert Johnson showed up for the visit with his grandfather Bob Johnson. The elder Johnson said they were there to support Elizabeth but also to try to get her to come clean. "It was our intention to ask her to give up the location of the baby and settle this thing. Life goes on. We can't be playing around with this. There's better ways to settle this than how she's going about it," said the jailed woman's grandfather.
Less than 5 minutes after walking into the jail, both Johnson men came out. They were refused a visit with Elizabeth. Corrections officials said Elizabeth's visitors for the day were restricted to legal advisers.
"The thought going through my head is that her lawyers had told her that she is not to be giving any more interviews. But that has nothing to do with her visiting family," said the older Johnson.
Twin brother Robert said he was highly disappointed he didn't get to see his sister. "It's pretty messed up. Love to see her and I don't know why we can't," said Robert.
Repeated calls to the public defender assigned to the Elizabeth Johnson case to determine why her visitation was pulled went unanswered.

http://www.kpho.com/news/22242288/detail.html

Tempe officials say detectives have begun searching the home of a Scottsdale couple considered 'persons of interest' in the case of an 8-month-old boy missing since December.

Tempe Police Department spokesperson Mike Horn confirmed that police served a search warrant at Tammi and Jack Smith's home near 160th Street and Rio Verde Trail Thursday night.

Horn would not say what detectives are looking for, but it's likely investigators are interested in computers and any of the Smith's travel documents.

The search warrants come just hours after Tammi Smith voluntarily met with Tempe detectives for more than two hours Thursday.

As she walked out of Tempe Police Department Headquarters, Smith could be heard saying, "That was rough."

She went on to talk to reporters and quickly admitted that she played a role in manipulating paperwork with Elizabeth Johnson, the mother of baby Gabriel.

"I made a poor decision back when I met Elizabeth," said Smith. "I helped her (Elizabeth) file her paperwork so she could get her child support and things like that. There was another name put on there and I helped her (Elizabeth) fill out that paperwork, and because of that it obviously doesn't make me look good."

The name on the paperwork, was apparently Craig Cherry, which prompted Tempe police detectives to look into the possibility Cherry was Gabriel's father.

According to detectives, Cherry is not Gabriel's father, but is a relative of Tammi Smith.

"Instead of putting a false name there, I helped her (Elizabeth) put another name," said Tammi Smith.

With her husband, Jack, waiting nearby, Tammi went on to say she and her husband do not have attorneys, but were considering calling one.

While the Smiths are labeled "persons of interest" in the case by Tempe Police, Johnson is considered the prime suspect in her son's disappearance and is not cooperating with detectives.

Officials say Tammi, who had wanted to a adopt Gabriel, spoke to Elizabeth Johnson in jail Wednesday.

Smith said she is confident that baby Gabriel is still alive after meeting with Elizabeth Johnson.

According to Smith, Johnson left the toddler with an unknown couple in San Antonio, Texas on the day after Christmas.

She told reporters after the meeting that "according to Elizabeth, these people are going to try to hide this baby because they believe that in a few years nobody will notice who this baby is."

Smith also said Elizabeth told her the couple came to Elizabeth's hotel room in Texas with a new car seat, placed Gabriel in the car seat, and abruptly left.

"She did definitely describe the people and what they look like, they're definitely in San Antonio, she (Elizabeth) did sign paperwork, but they did not notarize it or anything like that," said Smith.

According to Smith, Elizabeth also told her during the nearly 45-minute jail house visit that the couple did not "buy" Gabriel and the man and woman were both white in their 30s.

In the meantime, police say a reward of up to $5,000 is being offered for the safe return of the Tempe toddler who disappeared with his 23-year-old mother last month.

The reward is being offered through Crime Stoppers in San Antonio, Texas.

Anyone with information about Gabriel can call Crime Stoppers at 210-224-STOP or online at http://www.sacrimestoppers.com.

Tempe police say detectives were in San Antonio this week where a missing person investigation has been officially opened to find the little boy.

Johnson was arrested last month in Miami and according to the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, she was booked into an Arizona jail on charges of custodial interference and kidnapping.

Her cash-only bond is set at $1,100,000.

Two other people named 'persons of interest' in the case said they took a polygraph test last week.

Tammi and Jack Smith said they were willing to take the examination after being named suspects.

"There is an enormous amount of peace in the truth and the truth is what it is and I can't fabricate the truth," said Jack.

The Tempe Police Department is leading the investigation. According to spokesperson Steve Carbajal, investigators believe the Smiths have undisclosed information that will lead them to baby Gabriel Johnson.

"We should have been persons of interest from day one," Jack said. "We are persons of interest. We were probably the last people to see Gabriel before he left town."

The Smiths had apparently tried to adopt the 8-month-old from mother Elizabeth last month, but Gabriel's father, Logan McQueary refused to sign the adoption papers.

"When Gabriel disappeared, they said basically, if you really care about your son and you want him back, and you want Elizabeth to bring him back, that you'll sign the paperwork and then she'll bring him back to us, and you'll know he's safe," said McQueary. "And I said, no, I'm not signing any paperwork."

The Smiths said they were just relaying messages from Johnson to McQueary after she had taken off with the baby.

"Let's do this paperwork, and maybe she'll tell us where the baby is," Tammi said. "It's not legal anyway, but does she have to know that? I mean, I'd rather get the baby back and sign the phony papers, but I guess the detectives don't want us to do that."

When McQueary tried to gain custody of Gabriel, Elizabeth apparently disappeared with the infant.

Carbajal said Elizabeth initially told authorities she gave her baby to a couple she met in San Antonio while on the run after skipping out on a custodial hearing in Phoenix.

"They wanted the baby and she simply gave it to them," said Bob Johnson, Elizabeth's grandfather. "It sounded like a pretty weak story. It was almost on the border of unbelievable that a person would do that with an 8-month-old child."

But Johnson also said he doesn't believe the Smiths had anything to do with Gabriel's disappearance.

"That's ridiculous... no, God, no," he said.

Bob said his daughter met Tammi at an airport when Gabriel was just a month old. He said Gabriel was fussing and Tammi came to help Elizabeth, and then cared for Gabriel the entire flight home. After that, they apparently kept in touch.

In a Facebook message posted by Tammi on December 23, she said, "Please keep praying for Gabriel and his Mommy's safety on the road! She has found underground help in TX that has given her formula/diapers, etc. and all the legal formalities... Keep praying for his safety.

Appearing on the Nancy Grace show again Friday, Tammi said the message was directed at Gabriel's father.

"At first she mentioned that it was a domestic violence shelter, and she had used the word 'underground' maybe once in the conversation," said Tammi. "And instead of saying 'domestic violence,' I didn't want that to make Logan think that he was violent towards her."

Despite reports that they wished to adopt Gabriel, the Smiths now say they have nothing to hide, and that they're doing all they can to reunited Gabriel with his father.

"We were actually just thinking of maybe just getting a dog," joked Tammi. "It seems to be a hard process adopting, and I don't know that we want to go through this again, unless the courts said, here's a baby and the parents both signed. That's different."

Police are also working with the FBI, along with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and are taking tips from all over the country from anyone who may have spotted the baby.

Police say Elizabeth left Arizona with Gabriel on December 18. There have been no signs of her child since the day after Christmas.

Police did find Elizabeth in Florida and arrested her for failing to appear at her custodial hearing.

But Gabriel was not with her and detectives said she refused to tell them where he is.

"She was confronted, arrested and interviewed exhaustively about the whereabouts of the child," said Wayne Jones, with Miami Beach Police.

Gabriel's father, Logan McQueary, has pleaded to get his son back.

"Please don't be afraid of getting into trouble, just drop him off at a fire station, help me get my son back," he said.

McQueary said he had previously received text messages from Gabriel's mother saying she had killed the child.

"She basically said, 'there's no way in Hell you're ever seeing your son again,'" he said.

But McQueary says he believes Gabriel is still alive, considering he and Johnson were last seen at a park after McQueary received the threatening messages.

Elizabeth's twin brother, Robert Johnson, said he doesn't believe his sister's story, but also said he has to support her.

"She's stubborn and hard headed. If she doesn't want Logan to have the baby, she will do everything she can to keep Gabriel from Logan."

Elizabeth has a history of eratic behavior.

In September of 2009, police arrested her for criminal damage.

According to a police report, she broke several of her apartment's windows and mirrors, destroyed a television, and a video game system.

The report also said she used a knife to cut McQueary's clothes.

Then in December of 2009, another police report revealed Elizabeth called police and told them McQueary had taken Gabriel and would no give him back.

Police later accused her of filing a false police report after learning Johnson herself gave Gabriel to Tammi and Jack Smith.

http://www.abc15.com/content/news/southeastvalley/tempe/story/PD-searches-home-of-persons-of-interest-in-Tempe/xgsbK2cK80iD5ZWBC0ifjg.cspx

A baby-sitter came forward on Wednesday saying she watched Gabriel for about two hours while Elizabeth left the hotel. The woman says Gabriel appeared dirty and lethargic, "He had stains around his mouth and dried boogers around his nose," said Alisa. She also said Elizabeth told her "She had already drugged the baby but if he started to cry to give him more Tylenol".

http://www.azcentral.com/12news/news/articles/2010/01/14/20100114warrantserved01142010-CR.html

I do not understand why no one in Elizabeth's family noticed that Gabriel was failing to thrive? At birth he was a normal weight, had energy. A healthy baby does not turn into a lethargic child if properly nourished and cared for and get thinner as it gets older.
The dried buggies is not so bad, lots of kids have gross noses this time of year. The dirtiness and stains around his mouth make me sad for poor Gabriel. A favorite part of my children's bedtime routine was their baths.

I wanted soooo bad to get a warm, soft washcloth and wipe his tears, nose and little mouth and make that baby smile.

Honestly, too much time has passed. I do believe he is gone.

Once again LE has sat on their duffs and did not thoroughly search the landfills where I truly believe little Gabriel is now.

What a piece of shit, pardon my french, that mother is.

Playing her games and weaving her web of tales.

As BJ said "our" little Gabriel is in no way related to this group. Here is an offical web site for project Gabriel. http://www.gabrielproject.com/help.htm
If by posting this link here it helps one Mother or baby then we have helped in some way save a life. I don't think this Beth person was speaking of "our" Gabriel. She could have adopted a baby through this program and named the baby Gabriel in honor of the program. People are reaching for straws in this case. Jeanne is right LE should be searching dumpster and landfills based on the text messages Elizabeth sent out. All possibilities should be checked out.
PS I am not a member of the Gabriel project.

ABCNews.com > GMA
Baby Gabriel Still Alive, Mom Tells ABC From Jail
Elizabeth Johnson Tells ABC News Gabriel is Alive, Says Jail Not That Bad
By ELISA ROUPENIAN and SARAH NETTER
Jan. 13, 2010

Elizabeth Johnson, the Arizona mother jailed after she disappeared with her about-to-be-adopted infant son, confirmed today in a brief jailhouse interview that 8-month-old Gabriel Johnson is alive.
Elizabeth Johnson tells ABC News she gave her baby to a couple in a park.

Johnson, a striking 23-year-old, has been jailed following her arrest on kidnapping and child abuse charges after Gabriel disappeared on her cross country trip in which she allegedly sent text messages to the boy's biological father that she had killed their son.

"Yes I'm sure he's alive," Johnson confirmed today.

She was being visited by Tammi Smith, who, along with her husband Jack Smith, say they were in talks with Johnson to adopt Gabriel before he disappeared. The Smiths have been named persons of interest by Tempe, Ariz., police for potentially withholding information about the case.


The Smiths have stuck by Johnson, but recently told ABC News that they are frustrated and want Johnson to tell police what she did with the baby. Tammi Smith told Johnson in jail that she and her husband have been blamed for Gabriel's disappearance.

"I am so, so sorry about that," Johnson replied. But still, no word on where Gabriel is.

Mom Describes Mystery Couple Who Supposedly Have Her Baby

Johnson told a Phoenix CBS affiliate shortly after her Dec. 29 arrest in Miami Beach that she gave Gabriel to a couple she met in a San Antonio, Texas, park, but that she didn't know anything about them, only that they seemed trustworthy.

An ABC producer was with Smith inside the prison Wednesday as the mother offered new details about the couple.

Johnson said the couple is Caucasian, in their 30s. The man is tall with short black hair, and the woman is about 5 feet, 3 inches tall and has short black hair.

Johnson said the couple brought their own car seat and that they said they could keep baby Gabriel without anyone noticing.
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/elizabeth-johnson-tells-abc-news-baby-gabriel-alive/story?id=9554084

CritterFan1 wrote:I do not understand why no one in Elizabeth's family noticed that Gabriel was failing to thrive? At birth he was a normal weight, had energy. A healthy baby does not turn into a lethargic child if properly nourished and cared for and get thinner as it gets older.
The dried buggies is not so bad, lots of kids have gross noses this time of year. The dirtiness and stains around his mouth make me sad for poor Gabriel. A favorite part of my children's bedtime routine was their baths.

Once again, it is NG and her "experts" who have decided the baby had "a failure to thrive", but, as one of the "experts" pointed out, that happens from birth and not suddenly at 8 months so this "expert" takes off on the deliberate starvation thing instead. The babysitter only said he was "skinny" and nothing more. The babysitter appeared to not even know what the word "lethargic" meant when it was asked about by NG. I don't know about others, but I have seen healthy skinny babies, my own were always quite plump enough, but changed after 6 months when they were becoming more active. At about 5 to 6 months, they were pretty chubby.

The mother is a slop and we already know that, but I have seen some pretty sloppy mothers these days and yet I would never say they are actually seriously neglecting their babies. NG and her "experts" have even given Marc Klass the wrong ideas about this case. He thinks EJ is just like KC, going out "clubbing" while neglecting the baby. NG is the one who said this and nobody else. The babysitter who was hired to take care of the baby while his mother went out only said she was dressed up enough to be going out clubbing and that was all they needed to take off on their tangent. Ignored is what all else the sitter said, such as EJ saying she had an appointment and was late for it and the fact that she was only gone for 2 hours. This is not "out clubbing" when you dutifully provide care for the baby when you go out and when you are only gone about 2 hours. Clubbing would take much, much longer than 2 hours. That would be the time you would spend on an appointment, just as she said she was doing. And the time of day was mid-afternoon, no? Not a time period when most would go out "clubbing" anyway.

The crying and wanting to be held, the babysitter saying he appeared to be scared, NG and Co. take off on that and suggest a subdural hematoma and broken bones, to which the babysitter replied that there were no signs of trauma, no bumps or bruises. NG speculates about diaper rash because that would make the mom look neglectful and the sitter says there was no diaper rash. NG and Co. are looking for things that don't exist and reporting them as facts. I would have asked the sitter if she thought the baby was acting this way simply because he was teething. And the lack of supplies and toys in the room---what, did this sitter look through the closet (if there was one) and the mom's suitcases? Just because things are not in view doesn't mean they were not there. NG and Co. want us all to think this baby was neglected (and abused) far more than he was, if he was in any way at all in the first place. Even the Smiths have never said that he appeared to be so. NG and Co. needs to stop leading people astray.

Im with you terryrose.

It is hard to believe that as badly as she just wanted to give him away that she would harm him otherwise. I think she knew the father was going to get custody before that trial even started. She knew she couldnt even fake to love her son the way a truly doting mother would, and so she took off knowing the only way she was going to give her son a good home (in her eyes a good home was NOT with his dad, it would seem) was to give him away to strangers instead of dealing with a couple or anyone that the father already knew about, etc.

I agree with both your points above, however, if this is true and EJ realizes the magnitude of her situation
(and maybe she doesnt) why not co-operate. Is it reasonable to believe she would give the child to strangers? I also believe that NG and her experts overly dramatize, but maybe as they make these cases
so nationally & widely known they are creating a sense of "urgency" so that people who know something might come forward. I also hope that this child is alive and I think there is a lot more to this story than we know. The Smiths are very very suspect to me
and its possible they are part of an illegal underground
adoption group too. Elizabeth Johnson has to have something more at stake here to not co-operate with the police. I just cannot believe if she gave the child away that she did so without knowing who the people were.

Police Execute Search Warrant In Hunt For Missing Baby
Police have searched a couple’s home in the hunt for a baby who hasn’t been seen since he and his mother made a trip to Texas last month.

PHOENIX (January 15, 2010)—Police in Tempe, Ariz. have confirmed that officers executed a search warrant Thursday night at the home of a Scottsdale, Ariz. couple considered "persons of interest" in the case of a missing infant who hasn’t been seen since he and his mother made a trip to Texas last month.

Tempe Police Department spokesman Sgt. Mike Horn said the warrant was specific to the investigation of 8-month-old Gabriel
Johnson.

Horn said Friday the investigation is active and detectives are not releasing any further information at this time.

Jack and Tammi Smith have said Gabriel's mother Elizabeth Johnson, 23, wanted to give up her baby for adoption, but her ex-boyfriend wouldn't go along with it.

Tammi Smith spent Thursday afternoon at Tempe police headquarters.

She told reporters she requested the meeting to try and help police with the investigation.

Johnson remains in custody in Phoenix on charges of kidnapping, child abuse and custodial interference.

Crime Stoppers of San Antonio is offering a $5,000 reward for information that leads the infant’s safe return, police officials in the Phoenix suburb of Tempe announced Wednesday.

Anyone with any information can call Crime Stoppers at 210-224-STOP (210-224-7867).

Tips may also be submitted online.

San Antonio Crime Stoppers Web Site

The San Antonio Police Department has opened a missing person investigation into the disappearance the infant, who was last seen on Dec. 26 in San Antonio.

Investigators said his mother drove to Texas from her home in Tempe, stayed in San Antonio for about a week, and then took a bus to Florida without her baby son.

She was arrested Dec. 30 in Miami Beach and was returned to Arizona to face kidnapping and child abuse charges.
http://www.kwtx.com/home/headlines/81719207.html

What a waste of time and money. Did they really think they would find him at the Smith's? Or evidence of any kind after all this time has went by? LE is dropping the ball and not doing everything they can to find Gabriel. If I was reading about searches of dumpsters and landfills I would be not be saying that.