Mother, 22 yr old Zinah Jennings,Won't Tell Where her son,18-mo old Amir Jennings is missing/Police Find Shovel, Bloody Clothes/Blanket in Mother's Home & Car, Per Warrant. She has given birth as of 8/31/12! Update 9/7/12: FOUND GUILTY/W SERVE 10 YRS!!

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The mother of a missing 18-month-old has been charged with cruelty to children following her arrest after Columbia police say she gave false and inconsistent information about her son’s whereabouts.

Family members last saw Amir Jennings with his mother, Zinah Demaris Jennings, 22, during the Thanksgiving holiday, police say.

According to reports, family members became concerned earlier this month when they could not locate Jennings or her child. They filed a missing persons report on the two with Columbia Police, and information was entered into the National Crime Information Center.

Car that Zinah Demaris Jennings was driving at the time of the accident on Dec. 24th. This is also a vehicle that Amir may have been in at one time
Jennings later surfaced in the early morning hours of Christmas Eve, police say, when she was involved in a single car accident on Millwood Avenue and Lady Street while driving a burgundy Dodge Neon.

The responding officer realized Jennings was considered a missing person and notified the investigator assigned to the case.

The responding officer asked Jennings for information about her son, police say, but she allegedly gave false and inconsistent information about Amir.

Jennings was arrested Thursday after police decided she was not cooperating in their investigation of her son’s whereabouts.

“The only consistency about everything she has told us is in the inconsistency,” Police Chief Randy Scott said.

Statements she has made to police about her son have not panned out..

“I consider this a very serious matter, I am very concerned about the safety of the child,” Scott said.

“Why would a mother not be willing to let us see her child? We just want to see the child.”

Jennings is being held at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center. Bond was set Saturday at $150,000.

State and federal Investigators in Georgia and North Carolina are helping in the case, because Jennings has ties to Atlanta and Charlotte, Scott said.

Anyone with information is asked to call CrimeStoppers, (888) CRIME-SC.
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Well that is a good way to get a mother in jail when a child has gone missing - charge them with cruelty!

Where's Amir? The toddler's mother Zinah Jennigs (pictured) has lied about her son's whereabouts for over a month
Sound familiar?
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January 04, 2012 03:40 PM EST
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A toddler is missing in Columbia, South Carolina and the mother of the child has all eyes on her. She won't tell police where the child is! This certainly sounds like other cases like the disappearance of baby Kate Phillips from the summer of 2011. The father of "Baby Kate" abducted the child and did something with her. To this day he refuses to disclose the location of the child and sits in jail awaiting trial.

This missing toddler case is most disturbing because the mother is involved and adamantly refusing to cooperate in the search. In an era where mothers are increasingly under suspicion when their children disappear, it just seems that 22-year-old Zinah Jennings doesn't want her child found. She may be the next Casey Anthony, or Julie Biryukova -- the mother of baby Sky Metalwala who vanished in October.

Zinah Jennings and her 18-month-old son Amir Jennings have been missing for over a month, but Zinah is now behind bars after a car accident near the holiday season. However, baby Amir still hasn't been found. Her stories to police have remained consistently inconsistent. She is charged with "unlawful conduct toward a child." That's an interesting charge considering the child hasn't been found. What unlawful conduct aside from keeping him missing? Could Zinah have harmed baby Amir Jennings?

Missing babies are all the rage these days

It's sad, but it's true; more and more children have been missing over the past couple of years, and statistically the numbers are heartbreaking. The Center for Missing and Exploited Children acknowledges that around 800,000 children go missing in the United States every year.

Where is little Amir? With it being over a month since his disappearance, it may be a long time before this answer is known. The mother of Zinah Jennings says that her behavior changed after little Amir was born. Could this be a case of postpartum depression?

artgal and wrap posted this almost at the same exact time. I merged and moved it to the lounge.

I thought I was going bonkers for sure!! Great minds!

lindamarie wrote:artgal and wrap posted this almost at the same exact time. I merged and moved it to the lounge.

Good idea..this case reminds me of Sky.

Columbia, SC (WLTX) - A missing 18-month old boy from Columbia is gaining national attention--but there's still idea no where the child is.

Police say Zinah Jennings, the 22-year old mom of Amir Jennings, is not cooperating with them.

"The unfortunate thing is Ms. Jennings will not tell us where the child is at, she's told us several different variantions of the story, but all of them proven to be false," said Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott.

Police are asking for your help to locate Amir, who has been missing since Thanksgiving.

Scott says he is concerned for Amir's safety because even the child's extended family isn't sure where the little boy is.

"Right now we have not ruled out foul play, but obviously we don't know where Amir is and we are not getting any solid answers... I am very concerned about his safety at this point," said Chief Scott.

Zinah's mother filed a missing person's report after not seeing her daughter or her grandson since Thanksgiving. But Zinah was seen again on December 24th when she was involved in a car accident--but Amir was not with her.

Police questioned her several times, and a warrant was issued for Zinah on December 29th. She was arrested and charged with unlawful conduct towards a child.

The charge was filed after police say she lied to investigators about her son Amir's whereabouts.

"We at this point don't understand why she's not telling us where Amir is at, when is the last time she has seen him," Jennings said. "Someone in the community has seen Amir and has seen Zinah. This is a criminal matter at this point."

Ms. Jennings is behind bars at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center where she is being held on a $150,000 bond.

"We are not stopping now," Scott says. "We don't know and until we know we will not stop looking, questioning family members, friends."

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Missing child's mother once said she had no child

Posted: Jan 04, 2012 5:04 PM CST
Updated: Jan 04, 2012 5:04 PM CST
By Jody Barr

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott says they're still getting very little help from the mother of a missing toddler about that child's whereabouts.

Scott says that started the night police say they caught up with Zinah Jennings. At one point, Zinah told Columbia police she didn't even have a child.

Police say this is definitely not typical behavior for a mother.

"I don't like the way this case is going," said Scott. "I'm staying optimistic, but right now, we're not getting any information, anything concrete that is telling us that Amir's safe and the last location that Amir is at and who he is with."

Zinah faced a judge Saturday with her family by her side.

Her mother, Jocelyn, filed a missing persons report Dec. 8 after seeing her daughter and getting no answers as to where her grandson was.

"Zinah was not necessarily reported as missing," said Jocelyn, "It was the child that I was concerned with because I had actually seen her the night before."

Police say the last time anyone saw Amir was the day before Thanksgiving.

Zinah told the judge she's spent the past four months living with her sister in Atlanta.

On Christmas Eve, police caught up with Zinah after she crashed her car in Columbia just blocks away from her mother's home. Amir wasn't with her and police quickly got suspicious.

"Traffic investigators asked her about her son and at that point, that's when she started giving inconsistent stories to the point, at one time, even saying that she doesn't have a child," said Scott.

The story hasn't changed, according to police. And it was a statement Zinah made during an interrogation last week that has investigators worried.

"During an interview with her, when I mentioned she would be going to jail, she said, 'That's the place I need to be,'" said Scott.

As for what that cryptic statement means for Amir, Scott says police still haven't pieced everything together.

"What we do know is that we've pretty much been able to specifically say that he was in Atlanta with his mother, but anything telling us concrete, that's new, that Amir is safe -- we don't have anything at this point," said Scott.

The FBI in Atlanta is tracking Zinah's life for the past six weeks. Investigators are going through bank records and digging through weeks of security camera footage in hopes to put a timeline together, or at least a place to start looking for Amir.

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Child Missing: Mother Accused of Cruelty and Lying to Police
January 02, 2012 01:45 PM EST

Police investigators have been looking for a child missing and of course, it seems as if his mother may know what happened to him. He was last seen by family and friends just around Thanksgiving, but has since been missing.

The little boy, Amir Jennings, was last seen with his mother, Zinah Demaris Jennings, who hasn't exactly been honest about her son's whereabouts, according to an article by The State.

Jennings reportedly vanished with her son earlier in December and family members were freaking out when they couldn't find the two. The family was so worried they filed missing person's reports with the Columbia Police and the information was entered into the National Crime Information Center. Then, all of a sudden, Zinah Jennings was seen driving around in a burgundy Dodge Neon in the early morning hours of Christmas Eve. But where was her son?

Well, she reportedly gave false information to investigators about her son's location and fed police lies about her involvement in his disappearance. She didn't even report her own child missing, which raises some speculation as to what she did with the child. To make matters worse, she is charged with cruelty to a child and it seems police are very concerned as to what happened to Amir. "I consider this a very serious matter, I am very concerned about the safety of the child," explained Police Chief Randy Scott.

At this time, the mother has been taken into custody and arrested for lying to authorities. She is not cooperating with police at this time. This only casts a shadow of suspicion on her - her child is missing and she is not cooperating. "Why would a mother not be willing to let us see her child? We just want to see the child," Scott added.

The next step in the investigation is to see if reported her child missing and to see if he is staying with friends or relatives in Atlanta or Charlotte. Do you think she played a role in his disappearance?

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Just from what I've read, I do not think this "mother" is very competent. I think she may be mentally ill..even though the family states she was a good student. One has to wonder if PPD played a part in this...OR, she Is competent but on drugs..or both..but she seems Way off to me when she says she doesn't even Have a child and says jail is where she needs to be. Is she expressing guilt by the latter statement???

I am not sure if this show w/air tonight or tomorrow but I called in and am on right after Marc Klass and a commerical break. If it's not on tonight, it w/be on tomorrow night. No clue.

I asked a question about Post Partum Depression..called it PTSD and Nancy corrected me..lol..and she then went to Bethany Marshall..then the producer (nice gal) came on, said, "You did great, Kathie" and said, "Bye". I wanted to hear what Bethany said..guess I w/have to wait.

Probably sounded like a blubbering idiot.

Police Use Cadaver Dogs in Search for Missing South Carolina Boy
Published January 05, 2012
| Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Police say they have used cadaver dogs to search a car and home belonging to the South Carolina woman they accuse of repeatedly lying to them about where her 18-month-old son is.

Columbia Police Department spokeswoman Jennifer Timmons said Thursday three search warrants had been executed 22-year-old Zinah Jennings' car and home.
Jennings' mother says she has not seen Jennings' son, Amir, since Thanksgiving.

Jennings is charged with unlawful conduct toward a child after police say she told inconsistent stories about her son's whereabouts.

Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott wouldn't say if evidence had been found in the car or home.

"I'm really just focused on making sure that Amir is OK, or has some harm come to him?" Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott said. "That's what we don't know. That's what we cannot find out."

Undated photo of Zinah Jennings. Columbia police are in a desperate search for Jennings' 18-month-old son after she refused to tell them of his whereabouts.

Police have chased down multiple leads from the boy's mother, who has told them her son was with friends and family in the Carolinas and also Georgia. She has been arrested and is in custody.

Amir's grandmother contacted police in early December, saying she was worried about the boy and her daughter, a former Winthrop University student who struggled with depression and had begun acting erratically since her son's birth.

Police say they began looking for Zinah Jennings, 22, but also considered that relatives said she had repeatedly left town for days at a time, taking her son to visit friends in neighboring states.

"The grandmother told me specifically that, when she was in school, she was a very good person, a very good student," said Scott, adding that relatives had filed several previous missing persons reports on the mother. "But once the baby was born, the conduct kind of changed." This is what I discuss on NG

Several weeks later, on Christmas Eve, police investigating a one-car wreck just blocks from Jennings' home were surprised to find the driver was the young mother they'd been looking for. Interviewed at a hospital, police say Jennings immediately began giving conflicting statements about where the boy was.

"First it's, `He's with my sister in Atlanta. Oh no, I'm sorry, he's with my friend in Charlotte,"' he said. "It's all over the place. ... Everything she's telling us is just lies."
Police spoke with Amir's father, who told them he had seen the boy during Thanksgiving but generally has had little contact with him. The father was not identified by police.

After several dead ends, the mother was arrested Dec. 29 and charged with lying to police about her son's whereabouts. Authorities say they have stepped up their efforts to find the boy and are hoping a tip line will yield some information.

"I'm trying to stay optimistic about this," Scott said. "But short of being optimistic, this case bothers me."

Police did not know if Jennings had an attorney. On Thursday, the woman's mother said the family was planning to speak out.

"Our family will be making some statements today," Jocelyn Jennings Nelson said.

Scott said he's struggling to remain optimistic that Amir will be found unharmed. He would not discuss any evidence police have collected from the mother's home or car.

"It's the way this whole case is playing out," Scott said. "It's more than just that the child is missing. The mother is lying about the whereabouts of the child."

There was no answer Wednesday at the blue, two-story home where police say Jennings, her mother and son live, its door and front porch still festooned with Christmas decorations. The house, just a few blocks from one of Columbia's busiest thoroughfares, is on a quiet, tree-lined street of other one- and two-story homes, some with fenced- in yards and porches.

"We see each other and speak and say hello," said Selwyn Young, who lives across the street from the Jennings family and said he recalled seeing Jennings pushing the baby around the neighborhood and walking the family's dog. "Hopefully they find him. Hopefully they get it right."

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Aunt of missing toddler explains why she believes he is safe


CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The family of missing toddler Amir Jennings said Friday that they believe the boy is alive and staying with a friend or relative.
Eyewitness News' sister station in Atlanta spoke to Amir's aunt Denise Jennings, one of the last people to see Amir back in November.
She said she's doing everything she can to cooperate with authorities and bring Amir home.
"I can't begin to describe [how I feel]. The evenings and nights are worse for me," Denise Jennings said.
Denise Jennings is an aunt to 18-month old Amir Jennings. He hasn't been seen in six weeks.
Amir and his mother, Zinah Jennings, used to live with Denise at her home near Atlanta. But she said they left without warning a few days before Thanksgiving.
"She left with Amir. It was evening. It was cool out. And she walked out with him," Denise Jennings said. "We love him. And we want him home."
Both Denise and Amir's grandmother Joyce Jennings say Zinah has been battling post-partum depression.
Police arrested Zinah at the end of December. Investigators said she told them lie after lie about what happened to her son.
Police have searched from Charlotte to Atlanta for the little boy.
Amir's father used to live in Charlotte, and Columbia police said the Charlotte-Mecklenburg police department is helping them in the investigation.
Denise believes Amir is alive and well.
"I think that [Zinah] left him with someone. I think she was scared and wanted him to be cared for," she said.
On Thursday, Columbia police officers and federal agents searched Denise's property with cadaver dogs.
"They came and explained what they were going to do. I was glad to see them," she said.
It's at least the second time investigators have used cadaver dogs.
On Wednesday, Columbia police officers searched Joyce Jenning's property with a cadaver dog. Zinah and Amir had recently lived there.
Zinah Hennings is in jail on a $150,000 bond. She faces a child cruelty charge for refusing to tell investigators what happened to her son.
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video at link, can't embed

I wonder what the results of the cadaver dog search were.

Am on the fence about this one.

Wonder if NG w/ever run the segment.

Amir Jennings case: Cadaver dogs and search warrants

Posted on January 6, 2012 by Valhall

Cadaver dogs were used in a search of the family home in ongoing efforts to find evidence of where 18-month-old missing Amir Jennings might be located. The house belongs to Amir’s grandmother. Yesterday we learned that the grandmother had hired an attorney for Zinah Jennings. Attorney Hemphill P. Pride II issued a statement that he had not yet spoken with Zinah and did not know if she would allow him to represent her, but that the grandmother was concerned for her daughter and for her grandson. I’m not sure this was the best first move for finding or protecting her grandson, but okay.

However, it probably is one almost guaranteed way to not learn another thing about where he might be or what happened to him.

Some interesting information has been released in the probable cause affidavit for the search warrants obtained. You may read the document here. To summary:

Amir was last seen on November 29th.
Zinah was a suspect in a hit and run incident that occurred on December 6th. This was probably the initial car accident after which she started sending “cryptic messages” to family members.
In statements reported before, Zinah’s mother did see her December 7th, but Amir was not with her, which led the grandmother to report both Zinah and Amir missing on December 8th.
Zinah was in a second car accident on December 24th at which time officers identified her as a person they were looking for. She was then questioned about where her child was and initially told officers that she did not have a son. She then stated he was in Atlanta. THREE DAYS AFTER THE WRECK she then stated Amir was with one “Ernest Robinson”. The affidavit states that ERNEST ROBINSON does not exist – FOLKS WE HAVE OUR ZENAIDA!!! (LOL - you go, Val!!)
NINE DAYS AFTER THE WRECK Zinah then took detectives to an APARTMENT COMPLEX – FOLKS WE HAVE OUR SAWGRASS!!! – in which she was going to identify the apartment at which she had dropped her son off (NO, I’M NOT KIDDING YOU), but could not remember the unit number once they got to the complex. NINE DAYS! (Wonder if they were getting a bit put out with her yet???)
The affidavit then states that
“Information from Zinah’s [REDACTED] within the time frame her son went missing, which has led this affiant to believe a search of Zinah’s residence…will further the investigation.

My gut tells me that the redacted portion is her cell phone.
Wow. No points for originality. F for being just another lying mother with a missing child who is probably dead. I’m just waiting on the duct tape to surface.

Valhall.

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Val is one hell of a writer..gets to the point and I love her sense of humor. On NG (when I was on the phone) Marc Klass stated the same thing..that many mother's are repeating TMLS and that this case is another Not Mom (paraphrasing) case. I could not agree more!!

Police find shovel, bloody clothes and blankets as they hunt for missing Columbia, SC, toddler

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Police looking for a South Carolina toddler missing since Thanksgiving have found a shovel and what appear to be bloody clothes and blankets in his mother’s Columbia home and in her car, according to search warrants.

Authorities went to the home of Zinah Jennings earlier this month after her stepfather told police he had seen her in the backyard with a shovel around the time Amir Jennings disappeared.

Investigators might have had no leads on a missing mother and child if the woman hadn’t crashed her car on Christmas Eve. But even after questioning Zinah Jennings in custody, police don’t know what’s happened to her son. She is now in jail, charged with lying to authorities about where the boy is, prompting a search by local, state and federal authorities spanning the Carolinas, Georgia and beyond.

Using a cadaver dog to search the house near downtown Columbia, investigators found a shovel. A dog was also used to search Jennings’ car, where investigators say they found blankets and clothes with stains that appear to be blood.

Investigators said the items were being analyzed by state police. Also Tuesday, police said a $10,000 reward was being offered for information leading to the toddler’s return.

Police also obtained surveillance video and records of Jennings’ computer use at the Richland County Public Library after receiving a tip Jan. 5 that the woman was a frequent visitor there. Warrants show authorities also collected a DNA swab from Jennings’ cheek and her medical records from a visit to the hospital after a Christmas Eve car wreck.

Jennings has been jailed since Dec. 30 after police said she repeatedly lied to them about where her son was. Last week, the boy’s grandmother pleaded with the public to help authorities find the toddler she described as a happy, gap-toothed child who enjoys nursery rhymes and responds to “Mir Mir” and “AJ.” He was about 18 months old when he was last seen.

Jocelyn Jennings Nelson reported her daughter missing in early December, saying she was worried about the boy and Jennings, who she said struggled with depression and started acting erratically after her son’s birth.

Police began looking for the 22-year-old mother but said they also considered that relatives said she had repeatedly left town for days at a time, taking her son to visit friends in neighboring states.

Several weeks later, on Christmas Eve, police investigating a one-car wreck just blocks from Jennings’ home were surprised to find the driver was the young mother they’d been looking for. Interviewed at a hospital, Jennings gave conflicting statements about where the boy was, according to police, first telling authorities she didn’t have any children before saying Amir was with friends and family in cities from Atlanta to Charlotte, N.C.

After several dead ends, the mother was arrested and charged with lying to police. Authorities say they have stepped up their efforts to find the boy and are hoping a tip line will yield some information.

Jennings also took investigators to a Columbia apartment complex where she said she had dropped off her son, later saying she didn’t know the apartment number or location within the complex, according to search warrants.
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There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that she killed her child.

$10,000 reward offered in Amir Jennings case
2:09 PM, Jan 10, 2012

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WLTX) -- A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the return of missing toddler Amir Jennings.

Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott announced the reward Tuesday afternoon.

"This case has been weighing on the hearts and minds of Columbia Police investigators for weeks now. There is still great concern for the child's safety and well-being," he said. "We continue to ask the public across three states to assist us in finding Amir Jennings."

Scott said the child's mother is being more cooperative, but still hasn't let them know what may have happened to the toddler.

Jennings hasn't been seen since around Thanksgiving. Officers have arrested his mother, 22-year-old Zinah Jennings, and charged her with unlawful conduct toward a child.

Zinah's family initially reported her missing as well, but she turned up again after she was involved in a car accident on December 24. During questioning, she refused to say what happened to her 18-month-old son, according to Scott.

Last week, cadaver dogs and officers searched Zinah's home in Columbia. Investigators say during that search they took a shovel and several other items as evidence.

Chief Scott said a search of Zinah's car turned up a bloody blanket. Scott says, however, that the blood could be from the mother from injuries sustained in the December 24th car accident.

The blanket and the shovel were sent to the State Law Enforcement Division for testing.

Scott said since the initial questioning, Zinah has told them she last saw the child on November 29 at her home in Columbia. However, he said she said her son disappeared, and it was up to police to find him.

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Video:

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COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the whereabouts and the return of a toddler who has been missing since before Thanksgiving.

WHERE IS AMIR JENNINGS?
18-month-old Amir Jennings has been missing since November 24th. His mother, Zinah Jennings, is in jail and refuses to tell police where the little boy is.

$10K reward for information leading to the whereabouts and the return of Amir Jennings

Warrants: Bloody clothes, blankets found in Zinah Jennings' car

Family pleads for help to find missing 18-month-old boy
Police: Mother of missing child not cooperating with authorities

Mother of missing child arrested, charged with unlawful conduct

Police use cadaver dogs in search for missing boy
Missing child's mother once said she had no child
IF YOU HAVE INFORMATION

Call Crimestoppers at 1-888-CRIME-SC
Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott said the case has been weighing on the hearts and mind of Columbia police investigators for weeks.

"There is still great concern for the child's safety and well-being," said Scott. "We continue to ask the public across three states to assist us in finding Amir Jennings."

Family members last saw the 18-month-old boy with his mother Zinah Demaris Jennings during the Thanksgiving holiday.

A warrant was issued for Jennings on December 29 by the Columbia Police Department and on the same day, Jennings was arrested and charged with Unlawful Conduct Towards a Child.

Police said Jennings providing false and inconsistent information to investigators on Amir's whereabouts. She was booked at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center.

Since the charge, CPD with the assistance of local, state and federal agencies executed search warrants regarding this investigation in Columbia and near Atlanta, Georgia.

Evidence has been taken from different locations and is in the process of being tested at the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division's Forensic Services Laboratory.

The reward is being offered by the Columbia Police Department and Crimestoppers.

Chief Scott encourages citizens with information about Ms. Jennings or her son Amir, including if they saw the mother and child together at any time, to call, text or submit online, their anonymous tip to Crimestoppers in the following ways:

CALL toll-free, 1-888-CRIME-SC.

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must see video.

Amir Jennings case: Warrants reference possible blood stains in car

Posted on January 10, 2012 by Valhall

WSOCTV out of Columbia, South Carolina has obtained unedited copies of search warrants in the case of missing 18-month-old Amir Jennings. Those search warrants indicate that law enforcement had found stains in the car of the child’s mother, Zinah Jennings. The stains are reported to have been on “items of clothing and blankets”.

The documents also contain the bombshell that Zinah’s stepfather told law enforcement he saw Zinah in the backyard of the family home with a shovel around the same time Amir went missing (right at Thanksgiving). The warrants reveal the backyard was searched with cadaver dogs, but do not indicate if the cadaver dogs hit on anything, or if anything was located in the backyard during that search.

The warrant shows that on January 4th the police searched the family home and took a shovel and the blankets and clothes from Zinah’s car. Those items were sent off to the State Law Enforcement Division for testing. A previous search, which included cadaver dogs, had been conducted on Zinah’s bedroom at the home (which belongs to her mother). Several items were confiscated during that search but an unedited list has not been reported on so it is unknown what was taken into evidence. WBTV reports there are two more search warrants that have not been released. Those are for Zinah’s car and the other “on a property outside Atlanta where a relative lives”.

In statements made by Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott, he indicated Zinah, who has been sitting in jail for child cruelty and lying to police in this investigation, has become “more cooperative”…although that isn’t so much more that’s she has actually told them where her son is. Scott is reported to have said that Zinah told them her son had disappeared and it was up to them to find him. Lovely thing for a mother with a missing child to say…huh?

Valhall.

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2:49 PM, Jan 12, 2012
Written by
Tony Santaella

Columbia, SC (WXIA)-- WXIA-TV in Atlanta has learned that the mother of a missing toddler was arrested for prostitution and drug possession less than a month before her son's disappearance.

According to the police report obtained by 11Alive News, East Point, Georgia police arrested Zinah Jennings on November 9 after she agreed to have sex with an undercover officer in exchange for $40.

Zinah Jennings is the mother of Amir Jennings, who has been missing since late November.

The police report also says Jennings was smoking a "marijuana cigar" when officers waiting nearby swooped in to arrest her.

Jennings's family told Columbia Police that the 22-year-old suffered from severe depression when they reported her missing in early December.

A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the return of Amir. Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott announced the reward Tuesday afternoon.

"This case has been weighing on the hearts and minds of Columbia Police investigators for weeks now. There is still great concern for the child's safety and well-being," he said. "We continue to ask the public across three states to assist us in finding Amir Jennings."

Scott said the child's mother still hasn't let them know what may have happened to the toddler. Officers have charged Zinah Jennings with unlawful conduct toward a child.

Zinah's family initially reported her missing as well, but she turned up again after she was involved in a car accident on December 24. During questioning, she refused to say what happened to her 18-month-old son, according to Scott.

Last week, cadaver dogs and officers searched Zinah's home in Columbia. Chief Scott said a search of Zinah's car turned up a bloody blanket. Scott says, however, that the blood could be from the mother from injuries sustained in the December 24th car accident.

The blanket and the shovel were sent to the State Law Enforcement Division for testing.

Scott said since the initial questioning, Zinah has told them she last saw the child on November 29 at her home in Columbia. However, he said she said her son disappeared, and it was up to police to find him.

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Missing SC toddler at forefront of Columbia mayor's speech
Posted: 4:31 pm EST January 12, 2012

COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Columbia’s mayor used his annual “State of the City” speech Wednesday night to remember a missing toddler’s family.

Mayor Steve Benjamin opened his address asking people who have any information about the location of 18-month-old Amir Jennings to step forward.

The search for the toddler has stretched from Georgia to North Carolina. His mother, Zinah Jennings, is currently in jail, being held for lying to police about her son.

The boy has not been since Thanksgiving.

Benjamin said in his address:
“Before we begin, I would like to address a situation of ongoing and growing alarm.

Over the past weeks, in the midst of international unrest and presidential politics, one little boy and the family that wants nothing more than to have him home safe and sound has captured our nation's attention.

Eighteen-month-old Amir Jennings was last seen with his mother during the Thanksgiving holiday and we join them in our prayers for his safe and speedy return.

If you have any information about Amir, his whereabouts or the circumstances surrounding his disappearance, please call, text or log on to midlandscrimestoppers.com and submit your anonymous tip today.

Amir is out there somewhere and we need your help to bring him home.”

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On NG tonight when I asked about post partum depression, I completely agree with Bethany Marshall. As she stated (and was cut off so did not hear her response to my question until tonight) PPD makes you pretty much blah. She said that when a mother kills her child it is usually because of a man in their lives and the child is "getting in the way", as in "tot mom" and Susan Smith.

That being said, I do think this "mother" had some form of PPD since her grades declined dramatically - but as BM and Pat Brown stated..that would not make you kill your child.

The "mother" was arrested for prostitution before the baby went missing. This was not discussed on NG as that was taped one week ago. How could a person go from making straight A's in college to hooking? I do not buy the families statement that she was some honor student or whatever. MOO.

GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to for being with us. Bombshell tonight. Police searching for an 18-month-old whose mom refuses to cooperate. Toddler Amir, missing since Thanksgiving, but nobody reports it? Mommy only turns up when she crashes a car, and first she says she doesn`t even have a child.

We are taking your calls. Straight out to Keven Cohen, host, WVOC, joining us out of Columbia. Keven, they happen to find Mommy when she crashes her car. What happened?

KEVEN COHEN, WVOC (via telephone): They find her. She ends up going to the hospital after crashing her car. They realize, Hey, you`re on a missing persons list. We`re trying to find you. We`re trying to find your baby. Where`s your baby? She says, I don`t even have a baby, Nancy. And then the nurse at the hospital says, Oh, I think you do because that`s a C- section scar.

GRACE: So when she gets to the hospital because of her crash, she insists she doesn`t have the baby. Dr. Hua joining, Dr. Zhongxue Hua from Union County. How obvious is a C-section scar?

DR. ZHONGXUE HUA, UNION COUNTY, NJ, CHIEF MEDICAL EXAMINER: It`s usually in the lower abdomen -- I mean, the lower portion of the belly, horizontal, five or six inch long. It`s obvious for layperson.

GRACE: And you know, Doctor, there`s no mistaking it, OK? You know what a C-section scar is, and this mom`s trying to tell authorities she doesn`t have a baby with a big, fat, honking C-section scar on her tummy! Come on!

HUA: It`s just -- it`s just (INAUDIBLE) so obvious.

GRACE: I mean, Keven, back to you, Keven Cohen joining us. He`s a host on WVOC there in Columbia. How dumb does she think we are that we don`t know what a C-section scar looks like? I sure as heck know what it looks like!

So Keven, first she tells cops, I don`t have a baby. What baby? Where`s the baby? Then what does her story change to?

COHEN: Well, remember, this is a 22-year-old who`s obviously telling anybody that she talks to whatever they want to hear at the moment. First she says, The baby, yes, I do have a baby. That baby -- oh, the baby`s in Atlanta. And then we hear, no, the baby`s with friends in Charlotte. Then we hear, well, the baby might be with the father. But then we hear that the father`s not even involved with the baby.

So it`s just been a different story one day after the next after the next, and now she`s sitting in a jail cell because of unlawful conduct.

GRACE: Good! Good! I`m glad she`s in a jail cell!

Joining me right now, a special guest, Chief Randy Scott, the chief of the Columbia, South Carolina, police. Chief, if it weren`t for your motor (ph) men and women, we`d never even have this mom. We wouldn`t even be onto baby Amir missing. This mom reported missing by her own mother. The grandmother reports her -- her with the purple hair, that`s Mommy. I know, scary, but true. That`s the mommy. The grandmommy reports her and the baby missing.

It wasn`t until Mommy rams her car and crashes it that police find out she`s not missing at all. But where`s the baby? Chief, as I told you before, I don`t care if it`s for spitting on the sidewalk, I want this mommy behind bars!

So what is she in for, Chief?

CHIEF RANDY SCOTT, COLUMBIA, SC, PD (via telephone): Yes, ma`am. She`s in right now for unlawful conduct towards a child until we can, you know, see what else is going on with this case. I mean, you`ve explained it very well. Just as confusing as it probably sounds to your listeners, it`s even more confusing to us at law enforcement.

GRACE: Well, I will tell you this much, I`m not confused, Chief Scott. It all boils down to this. She`s lying! It`s tot mom all over again! And remember in the tot mom case, Joe Gomez, senior investigative reporter, KTRH -- remember, at the beginning of tot mom, she would never even mention her little girl, Caylee, as if she didn`t even have a baby. She was out partying and hot body contests and shots and all that. She never mentioned, never talked about her little girl, as if she didn`t even have one. Then she`d say, Oh, the baby`s at the beach. Oh, the baby`s in Jacksonville, this, that. The baby was in none of those places. The baby was dead!

JOE GOMEZ, KTRH: Isn`t it interesting, Nancy. Why would she say these things? Why would Zinah say these things to police? And then after police, you know, come back to her and they say, Look, your stories don`t add up, Zinah says, Well, oh, gee (INAUDIBLE) what to say. Then police say, We`re going to arrest you. Then Zinah says, Well, maybe -- maybe that`s is where I belong. Why would she even say that (INAUDIBLE) her baby was. It sounds to me like Zinah may be feeling a little guilty, Nancy. Let`s hope, at least.

GRACE: Back to Chief Randy Scott, the elected -- the chief of police there in Columbia, South Carolina. Chief, first she said, I don`t have a baby. Then she says the baby`s in Atlanta. Then she said the baby`s what, in Carolina, and that the baby was with the father. What have you learned in your investigation?

SCOTT: Well, what she`s been doing is intentionally telling us stories to send us on paths that aren`t true. And as of today, Ms. Grace, we still do not know where little Amir is at.

GRACE: What can you tell me about Amir, Chief Scott? I mean, who normally took care of the baby?

SCOTT: Zinah was the mother. She is -- you know, Amir is only 18 months old. Zinah was the mother. And I know the grandmother had involvement. From what we understand now, the biological father had little involvement with Amir. But the unfortunate part is that the last time the baby was seen by sisters in Atlanta was November 17th, and here in Columbia, I believe right around Thanksgiving holiday. So you know, we`re talking in excess of almost 30 days now.

GRACE: Chief Scott, when the baby was seen well and alive around Thanksgiving, who was the baby with?

SCOTT: The baby was with Zinah and Zinah`s mother, which is Amir`s grandmother.

GRACE: OK, so the grandmother and the mother. And the grandmother, just like in tot mom, is the one to report the baby missing, not the mom.

To Keven Cohen joining us, WVOC. What can you tell me about recent search warrants being executed?

COHEN: My sources tell me that there have been three search warrants granted and executed, two of them on the grandmother`s house, one inside the grandmother`s house, one outside on the perimeter, and then one for the mother, Zinah`s, car. And they haven`t turned up anything to indicate where Amir might be, but they have been executed so far.

GRACE: Out to Marc Klaas, president and founder, Klaas Kids Foundation. Marc, you lost Polly, your little girl, many years ago and have been a tireless advocate for children ever since then. I want to hear your thinking.

MARC KLAAS, KLAAS KIDS FOUNDATION: Well, you know, you said -- a couple of times you`ve alluded to the tot mom case, and I think that very much like tot mom, it`s quite possible that this woman has murdered her child. Otherwise, she would take steps to lead the authorities to the child so that she could get out of jail.

This is very disturbing in this post-Casey Anthony era, when these -- these homicidal parents realize that if they just keep their mouths shut and spin enough lies, that the possibility exists that at the end of the day, they very well may walk.

GRACE: And as a matter of fact, we saw that tot mom did walk, Marc Klaas.

Back to Chief Randy Scott, joining us from Columbia. Chief, what can you tell me about the search warrants that Keven Cohen has reported?

SCOTT: Yes, ma`am. We`ve conducted three search warrants just in the last couple days. I`m really not at liberty right now to disclose what we found. But I can tell you that we will not stop executing search warrants and interviewing persons until we find some concrete evidence that Amir is safe, until we actually have Amir. You know, like I said yesterday or last night, I am concerned, and this case really bothers me.

GRACE: To Sheryl McCollum, crime analyst and director of the Cold Case Investigative Research Institute. Sheryl, we`ve got a case that right now is going cold in the search for little Amir.

SHERYL MCCOLLUM, CRIME ANALYST: Right.

GRACE: The main roadmap you`d have in the search for a child is the mother.

MCCOLLUM: Correct. Again, the concerns are that she didn`t report him missing. She did say she didn`t have a child. I agree with Chief Scott. He`s got a very dangerous situation on his hands. I do not believe they`re going to recover this child alive. I believe he needs to get some cadaver dogs over to that car. And he`s going to be within five miles of a place that is familiar to this mother.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) you know, one -- at one hand, the baby was in Atlanta, and in another hand, the baby was in Charlotte. We`re researching both of those ideas, but you know, this is a child. So I didn`t want to take anything to chance. So I called in every resource that was possible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She was arrested and charged with unlawful conduct towards a child.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Eighteen-month-old Amir Jennings`s whereabouts are still unknown.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Even now, behind bars, she`s still not giving us anything to find Amir.

GRACE: The conflicting stories from Mommy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don`t have a baby. I do have a baby. Baby`s with father. Baby`s in Atlanta with family. Baby`s is in Charlotte with someone else.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In this child`s case, we`ve done just about everything possible. We have the FBI involved.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The inconsistent stories.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is not about Zinah, at this point. It`s about Amir, finding out that he is safe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Tonight, where is baby Amir? The mother and the child reported missing, but then Mommy manages to crash her car, and a motor (ph) man says, Wait a minute. Aren`t you a missing person? Where`s your baby? At first, she says, I don`t have a baby. Then there at the hospital, they see a C-section scar. After putting two and two together, cops now have Mommy behind the bars for not reporting her child missing. Is it tot mom all over again?

We are taking your calls. Out to Kathy in Texas. Hi, Kathy. What`s your question?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, hi, Nancy. First, I just wanted to state that I completely agree with Marc Klaas and everything that he stated. This is just a repeat of the Casey Anthony case.

Secondly, I wanted to make a statement that she said that she needs to go to jail when they arrested her. I find that to be really troubling, considering that it was stated by her family that she was doing quite well in college. She was making great grades, and then had the baby at 18 and went downhill from there. And I`m wondering if this could possibly be related to post-traumatic -- I was going to say stress disorder, but I meant -- oh, gosh, you know what I`m talking about.

GRACE: Post-partum depression.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, .

GRACE: OK. Good question. To Bethany Marshall, psychoanalyst, author of "Dealbreakers." More post-partum depression?

BETHANY MARSHALL, PSYCHOANALYST: Well, even if she does have post- partum depression, that`s not what`s primary. Depression does not make you kill your child. It`s a factor, but I wouldn`t really bother thinking about that. What we know about Casey Anthony, Susan Smith, these mothers who kill their child, is that they have a homicidal intent or urge that waxes and wanes over time. And when they finally get the courage to kill the child, it`s when a love interest enters their life.

So I would -- what I would be most curious about is who was this mother having sex with, dating, living with? Because that person is going to be a treasure trove of information. And also, this mom looks high in her mugshot to me. So you want to think about a drug picture and a homicidal picture, not a depression picture.

GRACE: When you say when a love interest enters the mother`s life, are you referring to, for instance, Susan Smith, who wanted the rich boyfriend and she ended up drowning her three children in order to get him when he didn`t want a ready-made family, or tot mom, when she hooks up with Anthony Lazzaro, who -- she immediately loses the child?

MARSHALL: Nancy, you`ve identified it accurately. These women find a man, fall in love, have a sense of an idealized life that they`re going to have with this guy. And then their primary attachment is to the man. They care about the man, they are not bonded with their own baby.

And what you see in forensic interviews afterwards is they speak about the child rather unempathetically because they`re not bonded. And when this mother says, Oh, well, maybe I should just be in jail, I don`t think that`s that deep. What she`s doing is she`s being a petulant child, and that`s why she says that, and she thinks she can get away with it, but she won`t.

GRACE: To Pat Brown, criminal profiler, author of "The Profiler." Do you see the similarities between this mom and, for instance, Susan Smith and tot mom, Casey Anthony?

PAT BROWN, CRIMINAL PROFILER: Oh, yes, Nancy. And I agree with Bethany about the -- you know, now that the man has maybe entered the picture, something better has entered the picture. And I don`t agree that she cares more about the man than the baby. She just likes the attention she gets from the man better than the attention she got from that baby.

So in other words, the scale kind of went like this, and she said, OK, this is becoming a pain in the neck. This is actually ruining my chances with this, which is giving me more. So we toss out the one that`s holding me back. (INAUDIBLE) a psychopathic kind of thinking, which is about me, me, me.

GRACE: But another issue regarding Kathy in Texas`s question regarding the post-partum depression -- it`s 18 months into it. What about it, Bethany?

MARSHALL: Well, when you -- when you`re depressed, you have low levels of energy, disinterest. You don`t have the energy at your disposal to kill a child. That is a tremendously forceful act that requires planning, enthusiasm, being able to organize your thought process. Someone with post-partum depression is very lethargic and they cannot think -- they can`t think their way out of a paper bag, let alone how to hide a child.

GRACE: Back to Chief Randy Scott, joining us from South Carolina police. Chief, thanks again for being with us. You said that the mom is currently behind bars on other charges. Are those charges not reporting her child missing?

SCOTT: Well, those charges are -- right now has her in jail while we`re continuing to investigate this case. But one of your callers said it just right, Ms. Grace. We are -- have investigators right now on the ground in Atlanta (INAUDIBLE) Atlanta and the FBI (INAUDIBLE) everything possible to find out what happened (INAUDIBLE)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Still giving us inconsistent stories. And it`s unfortunate. Our main concern is the whereabouts and the safety of this child right now, and that we just don`t have any concrete idea.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Zinah Jennings was asked about her son, who was not in the car. She gave conflicting stories. Investigators say that her son has not been seen since Thanksgiving.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) have not been cooperative and very inconsistent with law enforcement.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Giving us inconsistent stories.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Zinah Jennings is being held on $150,000 bond, charged with child cruelty.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you have Amir, you need to call law enforcement immediately.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: We are taking your calls. Out to Deanna in Washington. Hi, dear. What`s your question?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Nancy. I`m just wondering how is it that this mother of this 18-month-old baby is in prison or jail, excuse me, for child cruelty, when Skye Metalwala`s mother out here in Bellevue, Washington, leaves her child supposedly locked in a car while she goes to get gas, and the police won`t even take her in for questioning.

GRACE: You know what, Marc Klaas. Deanna is right. Why?

KLAAS: I have no idea. Different procedures. But that`s an incredibly good point, different techniques, different approaches to solving the crime. But I think you need to bring Skye`s mother in and really start asking her some hard questions. It truly looks like she`s getting away with murder.

GRACE: You know, in this case, we see this same technique employed, Marc Klaas, as in tot mom, bringing her in for other charges when the police really suspect her in a murder.

KLAAS: Well, absolutely. And they got a trove of information from tot mom, and it ultimately led to the recovery of her little girl. But leaving the mother on her own, hoping that she will lead them to something, I think is a flawed strategy. I think it`s flawed because she understands what they`re doing. And she`s going to stay away from anything that might lead them to her child.

I think you need to put the hammer on these moms. I`m sorry, I just don`t appreciate people being able to get away with these kinds of crimes. She`s in jail now. Something`s going to happen. She`s going to talk to somebody. She`s going to lead the investigators somewhere. The fact this is getting so much publicity is going to lead to something. Hopefully, their techniques will bring the little girl (SIC) home.

GRACE: To the lawyers, Odom and Furr. Penny Douglas Furr, there`s absolutely nothing wrong with cops putting her behind bars on another charge.

PENNY DOUGLAS FURR, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: No, they can do that, Nancy, but the problem is if you put her in jail, she stops talking, she gets a lawyer. You don`t get any information from her. So the cops can either leave her out there, keep her talking, or put her in jail and stop talking immediately.

GRACE: Peter Odom, she wasn`t talking before, except to tell lies!

PETER ODOM, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: They have to consider -- this is a woman with a documented psychological history. They need to start thinking about that to maybe get some cooperation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you have Amir, you need to call law enforcement immediately. If you have seen Amir, you need to call us immediately. This is a criminal investigation at this point.

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Updated: 3:15 PM Jan 13, 2012

SC boy's mom faces Ga. drug, prostitution charges
The mother of a South Carolina toddler missing since Thanksgiving was arrested in Georgia and accused of prostitution shortly before her son's disappearance.
Posted: 11:45 AM Jan 13, 2012
Reporter: The Associated Press

Columbia, S.C., police are searching for Zinah Jennings' son, 18-month-old Amir Jennings. (WRDW-TV / Jan. 6, 2012)

Friday, Jan. 13, 2012

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- The mother of a South Carolina toddler missing since Thanksgiving was arrested in Georgia and accused of prostitution shortly before her son's disappearance.

East Point, Ga., police said 22-year-old Zinah Jennings was arrested in November after she offered sex to an undercover officer. Authorities say Jennings agreed to take $40 in exchange for sex and is also facing a drug charge for smoking marijuana when she was arrested. Not for nothin', but if one is going to be arrested, I personally would want to be a bit high on the green. MOO.

Jennings has been in jail in Columbia since late December, charged with lying to authorities about the whereabouts of her son. Amir Jennings was 18 months old when his grandmother reported him missing, saying she hadn't seen the boy since Thanksgiving.

Zinah Jennings had been staying with a half-sister in the Atlanta area. Would love to know more about this half-sister..Has she been poly'd, etc.

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The shady lifestyle of missing tot Amir Jennings mother

Levi Page, Nashville Crime Examiner
January 16, 2012

Missing South Carolina toddler Amir Jennings and his 22-year-old mother were reported missing by his mothers family in early December. They had not seen Amir since Thanksgiving. Amir’s mother was later discovered Christmas Eve, after she was involved in a car accident. During questioning she refused to tell cops where her son was. Now Columbia authorities have charged Zinah Jennings with unlawful conduct toward a child.

When police questioned her after her car accident, she first denied that she had a son. Then she told them that Amir was with friends/family in Atlanta, then she changed her story again and claimed Amir was in Charlotte, NC. Zinah Jennings, like Casey Anthony sent the police on wild goose chases across the Southeast.

Now the shady lifestyle of Zinah Jennings is surfacing. In November, shortly before her son vanished, she was arrested in Georgia for drugs and prostitution. The 22-year-old was busted after being spotted clad in a short skirt attempting to get the attention of every passing motorist. She did get the attention of one… An undercover officer. She also faces a Marijuana charge stemming from the same incident.

Zinah had been staying with her half sister in the Atlanta area. The day she was busted, her half sister also reported her missing and told authorities that Zinah had “schizophrenic tendencies.” Zinah Jennings has not been diagnosed with any known mental disorder, but her family claims she was depressed after the birth of her son.

Police have searched the home and car of Zinah Jennings and made grim discoveries. Investigators discovered bloody clothes and blankets, along with a shovel. Zinah’s stepfather said that he saw Zinah in the backyard with a shovel around the time Amir vanished.

The items discovered are being analyzed by state police, and cadaver dogs were utilized by cops in searches.

Cops also obtained search warrants for computers that Zinah Jennings was known to use at a public library.

There is a $10,000 reward for any information leading to Amir Jennings whereabouts.

-Levi Page

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- A notable Columbia criminal defense attorney said Tuesday he is now representing the South Carolina mother of a toddler who has been missing since Thanksgiving.

Hemphill Pride II told The Associated Press that he was hired Monday to represent Zinah Jennings on a charge of unlawful conduct toward a child. Pride said he had met with his client in a Columbia psychiatric hospital where she is being evaluated but was still waiting on Jennings' previous attorney to send over the case file.

Jennings has seen in jail since late December, when Columbia police say they arrested her for lying about the whereabouts of her son.

Her mother had reported Jennings missing several weeks earlier, telling police she thought her daughter and grandson were in Atlanta but that she was receiving evasive answers when she asked about the boy, Amir.

Speaking to police after a Christmas Eve car wreck, Jennings first said she didn't have children and then said her son was with relatives and friends in cities from Atlanta to Charlotte, N.C.

Investigators say they chased down Jennings' stories but met with several dead ends before arresting the mother.

Authorities said they have stepped up their efforts to find the boy and are hoping a tip line and $10,000 reward will yield information. State police are analyzing stains on blankets and clothes removed from Jennings' car to see if they are blood, and police said Tuesday they were still working leads but had no updates on the case.

Jennings was arrested on prostitution and drug charges in Georgia shortly before her son disappeared. Jennings was arrested by East Point, Ga., police in November, accused of offering sex to an undercover officer.

Jennings had been staying with a half-sister, Denise Jennings, in the Atlanta area for three weeks before her Nov. 9 arrest. East Point is just south of Atlanta.

On the day Zinah Jennings was arrested, her half-sister reported her missing, telling police that she had left her home and suffered from "schizophrenic tendencies" that had not been diagnosed.

The grandmother, Jocelyn Jennings Nelson, has said her headstrong daughter frequently traveled to visit relatives and friends in the Carolinas and Georgia but had been depressed since the birth of her son. Nelson said she reported Jennings and the boy missing last month after becoming concerned during their visit to Atlanta.

"I was assured by both her sister and her that, `Everything is fine."' Nelson said.

Pride represented former South Carolina standout Moe Thompson, who pleaded guilty in 2005 to attempted first-degree burglary and petit larceny on allegations he and a teammate took TVs and a DVD player they thought belonged to other football players. Thompson was sentenced to 20 years, suspended to five years probation.

Pride was also an initial attorney for the "3 Hebrew Boys," a trio of men charged with dozens of federal fraud counts and subsequently ordered to repay $82 million in restitution to thousands of investors.
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What kind of a name is Hemphill??? Looks like he's never served as a criminal lawyer except for fraud and burglary. Nothing death defying like this case. We all know this little one is gone.

I would bet her pimp probably did away w/him, or she just left him in some alley and some pervert killed him. For some reason, I don't think she killed him, but have been wrong before.

Posted: Jan 17, 2012 1:14 PM CST
Updated: Jan 17, 2012 1:40 PM CST
By Jody Barr

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) – As the search for missing 18-month-old Amir Jennings grows colder, his father said he's getting more worried that his son may not come home.

WHERE IS AMIR JENNINGS?
18-month-old Amir Jennings has been missing since November 24th. His mother, Zinah Jennings, is in jail and refuses to tell police where the little boy is.

Roderick Mitchell is Amir's biological father, who said he's tried to maintain a relationship with his son, but Zinah Jennings has prevented that from happening.

Mitchell told WIS that allegations that he, or someone in his family has Amir are, "absolutely not true." said Mitchell by phone. "In fact, investigators have never even asked me about anything like that." Amir's maternal grandmother, Jocelyn Jennings Nelson, told the Associated Press last week that Amir could be with Mitchell, or one of his family members.

The last time Mitchell said he saw Amir was November 29, when he stopped by the Jennings' Lady Street home to pick his son up for the day. "I went there early to pick him up because I was off work for the day," Mitchell said, "But Zinah wouldn't let him go with me." "She said, ‘we got something to do,'" as Mitchell described the conversation.

"I turned to leave the house," Mitchell said. "I picked him up, gave him a hug and I said I love you and that's the last time I saw him."

The last time Mitchell said he spent time with his son was Nov. 22 after he ran into Zinah and Amir at a beauty shop on Taylor St. in Columbia. "I asked her if I could spend some time with him and take him shopping," Mitchell said, "I was surprised she let me get him that day." That day, Mitchell snapped the last-known picture of Amir on his cell phone, which is one of the pictures now being used to help find Amir.

Mitchell said he dropped his son off with Zinah Jennings later in the day and scheduled another visit with his son for Nov. 29, his next day off, "I always tried to get my son but it was always a situation like, they always made it seem like, we don't need you," Mitchell said describing his attempts to deal with Zinah and Jocelyn in trying to spend time with his son.

Jocelyn Jennings reported Amir and Zinah missing to Columbia Police on Dec. 8 after she said she saw her daughter the day before, but did not see her grandson. It took Columbia Police until Dec. 24 to track Zinah down, after she crashed her car on Millwood Ave. That's when investigators said she told conflicting stories about where her son was, telling officers he was in Atlanta, then Charlotte and at one point, police said Zinah denied having a child at all.

It would take Columbia Police another week to arrest Jennings and charge her with cruelty to children. Police have not said what evidence they have to support the charge, however a city judge set her bond on the charge at $150,000.

Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott said investigators have uncovered nothing new.

"She's the only person on this earth who knows where Amir is," Mitchell said, "She needs to tell it. We need to get this child home."

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Lawyer Says Zinah Jennings, Mom of Amir Jennings, is Pregnant

12:14 PM, Jan 26, 2012

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- An attorney for the mother of a South Carolina toddler missing since Thanksgiving says his client is pregnant and should be released from jail.

Hemphill Pride II says in court papers filed earlier this week that 22-year-old Zinah Jennings needs pre-natal care. Pride says he has known about the pregnancy for a week.

Pride says a doctor who has examined Jennings says she is mentally ill.

Pride says Jennings has been ordered to have treatment for a year and has been ordered to take Risperdal, used to treat symptoms of schizophrenia.

Jennings son, Amir, was 18 months old when his grandmother reported him missing in November. The boy has not been found. Police say his mother has lied about where he is.

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COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) – The Columbia mother charged with lying to investigators about where she last saw her 19-month-old son, is now pregnant and deemed "mentally ill," according to court records.

Jennings hired Columbia attorney Hemphill Pride to represent her after ditching her tax payer-funded public defender on Jan. 17. Pride filed four motions between Jan. 23 and Jan. 25, asking for evidence from prosecutors to support the cruelty to children charge, and Pride asked for a judge to reduce Jennings' $150,000 bond.

The filings also show that Jennings is pregnant and being detained at a psychiatric facility in Columbia.

"She is in dire need of prenatal care," Pride argued in his filing.

Hospital staffers tested Jennings for pregnancy when she crashed her car Dec. 24, the night Columbia Police first questioned her about where her son is. That pregnancy test, according to sources close to the case, came back negative.

Jennings was re-tested on Dec. 28 while undergoing mental health evaluations, according to sources, when that test came back positive for pregnancy.

A Richland County probate judge ordered Jennings to undergo mental health examinations after her arrest on Dec. 30.

On Jan. 11, records show that Dr. Michael J. Ferlauto issued a report that showed Jennings was, "mentally ill, needs involuntary treatment and because of this mental illness…lacks sufficient insight or capacity to make responsible decisions with respect to his/her treatment…and, therefore, involuntary hospitalization; [and] involuntary outpatient treatment is recommended."

On Jan. 17, records show that probate court judge Theresa L. Clement held a hearing and found Jennings "mentally ill." Clement's ruling included a year-long mental health treatment that included medication.

Pride has asked for Jennings' bond to be reduced. A hearing must be set by the circuit court and the solicitor's office.

MOTION FOR ZINAH JENNINGS TO NOT APPEAR IN INMATE CLOTHING

A forth motion would all Jennings to appear in court wearing "civilian clothing," instead of the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center uniform issued to all inmates. Pride's reasons, "this case has been widely publicized, locally and nationally, via every source of the news media."

Pride argued that Jennings' showing for court hearings in the inmate uniform, "impedes her right to a fair and impartial trial," according to the court record.

Pride's motion also asks the judge to "bar media coverage of any and all future court proceedings," if the court would not allow her to appear in "civilian clothing."

Pride declined to discuss the details of his motions, but said he's asked for a day in court to argue his motions.

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How sad for Amir if his mother truly is schizophrenic...No telling what he had to go through if she was having a psychotic episode...So sad for the new baby, too, if she really is pregnant.

DNA results in on missing Columbia toddler's mom's car

Posted: Feb 03, 2012 11:16 AM CST
Updated: Feb 03, 2012 2:50 PM CST
By Jody Barr

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) – State Law Enforcement Division agents have finished preliminary DNA testing on samples Columbia Police investigators collected from Zinah Jennings' car. The results, according to sources close to the investigation are "inconclusive," but may not be human blood.

Investigators executed a search warrant of Jennings' 2004 Dodge Neon on Dec. 30, looking for any evidence that could show what happened to Jennings' now 19 month old son, Amir. Inside, investigators found, "stains consistent with blood stains were seen on items of clothing and blankets," according to the warrant. Police also used a cadaver dog, trained to find human remains.

On a separate search warrant executed five days later at Jennings' mother's Lady Street home, warrants show that investigators took a shovel as evidence after Zinah's stepfather spotted her "with a shovel in her backyard within the time frame her son went missing," the warrants show. Investigators went looking for, "Any human remains, items containing human remains, anything that could be used to dispose of human remains, including any shovels, hoes, rakes, or like tools or any items that may lead to the location of the missing juvenile to further aid in the aforementioned property being searched a cadaver dog will be used," according to the search warrant.

Sources also tell WIS that agents did not find any DNA on the shovel police took from the Jennings' home.

Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott said he has not seen the final report, but confirmed the preliminary SLED results came back as "inconclusive." "My guys are still digging," Scott said Friday.

SLED would not discuss the case or provide answers to WIS' request to explain exactly what their agents found in the DNA testing, and what an "inconclusive" result means. "It's still ongoing," SLED spokeswoman Katherine Richardson said, "You'll have to check with the local agency on the results."

Richardson said SLED does not comment on other agencies investigations. SLED does DNA testing for nearly every local law enforcement agency in the state.

Police charged Zinah Jennings with cruelty to children on Dec. 30. Police were looking for Jennings after her mother, Jocelyn Jennings, filed a missing persons report on her grandson Dec. 8, after seeing Zinah the day before, but she didn't see her grandson.

Investigators think the last time Amir was seen was Nov. 29, according to the search warrants. Police told WIS, Zinah has not given investigators any new information concerning her son since her arrest.

On Dec. 31, a Columbia judge set Jennings' bond at $150,000. Jennings has no prior criminal convictions and her attorney has argued that the bond amount was, "set so high as to have the same effect as denying Mrs. Jennings bond," Hemphill Pride told reporters following a bond reduction hearing last week in Columbia. Pride wanted a circuit court judge to reduce the bond amount, but that motion was denied.

Jennings' case file shows no tangible evidence that police have to support the cruelty charge. The evidence police point to in affidavits shows that Jennings "misled" investigators about where her son is, and what happened to him. Police said the fact that Amir would need "constant care and attention," is one of the reasons to support the charge.

Pride made that argument Jan. 30 before circuit court judge Casey Manning. It took the judge less than 24 hours to issue his ruling, to keep Jennings' bond amount at $150,000.

As of this report, there are no plans from Jennings' side to contest Mannings' order.

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MUST-SEE video!!

DNA results in in missing toddler case
By MINDY LUCAS - [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Results from DNA testing on samples collected from the car of Zinah Jennings are in, but Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott says he will not comment until the first of the week when he expects to be briefed by State Law Enforcement Division agents.

“I have not seen the report,” Scott said Saturday. “SLED is finished with one portion of the preliminary results, and I will be briefed on those findings on Monday.”

Jennings, 22, is the mother of Amir Jennings, last seen Nov. 29, when he was 18-months-old.

Samples were taken from Jennings’ car in December after investigators found “stains consistent with bloodstains” on clothing and blankets. Investigators also searched a two-story house in the Waverly neighborhood where Jennings lived with her mother and Amir. They also took a swab of fluid or tissue from Zinah Jennings for DNA identification purposes.

Scott said multiple submissions were made and sent for testing in SLED’s crime lab, and only a portion of those results have come back.

In addition, he said he would not know until Monday whether the report included DNA testing from a shovel found at the home.

Amir was reported missing by his grandparents in December after Zinah Jennings wrecked her Dodge Neon in a one-car accident near her house and gave police conflicting reports of where her son might be.

Jennings has remained in jail since Dec. 29, when she was charged with unlawful conduct toward a child. Police say she has since refused to cooperate in their search for the toddler.

A request for a bond lower than the $150,000 set was recently denied. In asking a judge for a lower bond, Jennings’ attorney, Hemphill Pride II, said his client is mentally ill and pregnant.

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Mentally ill and pregnant. Nuff said.

Amir Jennings's Grandmother: I Believe He's Alive
6:44 PM, Feb 16, 2012
Written by
Tony Santaella

Columbia, SC (WLTX) - The grandmother of Amir Jennings, the Columbia toddler who's been missing since November, says she believes her grandson is still alive.

Jocelyn Jennings Nelson spoke to reporters late Thursday afternoon, just before a prayer vigil for the child was set to start.

Amir Jennings was last seen around Thanksgiving. The child's mother, Zinah Jennings, is in police custody, and investigators say she has been uncooperative.

"I don't know what happened in my daughter's life that brought her to this very dark place," Nelson said. "I can't imagine the feeling of being incarcerated and thinking it's okay."

Since the disappearance became public, officers have received plenty of leads, but none that have provided the clues necessary to find the child.

"I don't know why she is not willing to share," Nelson said. "I don't know if she can share where Amir is and where she left him."

Zinah Jennings herself was listed as missing for a time, but she resurfaced after a car accident in late December. Investigators have since pursued leads in other states, including the Atlanta area.

"We're wondering if she sold him, if she gave him away, if she was threatened," Nelson wondered.

Despite media reports which have negatively portrayed her daughter, Nelson said the public is getting a skewed view of Zinah Jennings.

"My daughter was a doting and loving mother...and she was looking forward to her future. She had goals and dreams that we all hoped for."

Nelson asked that the public continue to offer tips to police, who she believes will find the child.

Anyone with information should call Crimestoppers at 1-888-CRIME-SC, or e-mail a tip in to Crimestoppers of the Midlands. You can also text information in by texting "TIPSC" plus your message to CRIMES (274637). Either way you choose, your identity will remain anonymous, and you could be eligible for a cash reward.

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COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - It's been 113 days since Amir Jennings was last seen by family members.

Since her arrest in December, Jennings' mother, Zinah Jennings, has been either unable or unwilling to help police locate her son.

Jennings' attorney Hemphill Pride says his client is hamstrung by a combination of mental illness and medication.
much more at: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Video at link

Tuesday, May. 01, 2012
By JOHN MONK - [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

The last time anyone saw Amir Jennings was Dec. 6, according to a warrant in the case. Amir was 18 months old at the time he was reported missing.

Jennings’ lawyer, Hemphill Pride II, said Monday if his client is indicted, he will move before a judge to have the charges dismissed.
“They don’t have the evidence to go to trial on the charge,” Pride said. “The conduct for which a person should go to trial in connection with the charge against her is absent.”

Jennings is also pregnant, said Pride, who did not know when the baby was expected.

The charge Jennings faces is a felony, carrying a maximum of 10 years in prison.

In early December, relatives reported mother and child missing to Columbia police. But it wasn’t untilDec. 24 that Jennings was found, when she wrecked her Dodge Neon in a one-car accident near Millwood Avenue and Lady Street in Columbia.

When police ran her name through law enforcement databases, they found she and her son were listed as missing.

Once detectives began question her, Jennings gave different accounts of Amir’s whereabouts.

After her accident, when Jennings was taken to the hospital, she told workers there she did not have a child, according to police.
Jennings later told police Amir was in Atlanta with a sister, in Charlotte with a friend and in Columbia with a friend. Police checked all these stories out and could find no one to verify them.

Finally, Dec. 29, police arrested Jennings on charges of unlawful conduct toward a child. Amir remains missing.

Since Jennings has been in jail, Pride said she has been examined by state-appointed mental health professionals and found to be mentally ill.

“She went though a series of examinations by a state psychologist,” Pride said. That doctor then testified before a judge in probate court that Jennings was mentally ill, Pride said. The judge then ordered Jennings to take a medicine that would help her mental condition for one year, Pride said.

“How can a person who is mentally ill be responsible for the information that they give?” Pride asked. “She was suffering under a disability when police were talking with her.”

Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott said Monday detectives are still “actively working on this case. It may not be in the news every day, and we don’t consider it a cold case.”

Police have searched wooded areas near Columbia, used cadaver dogs to examine Jennings’ Lady Street home and taken DNA samples from the home.

Police also said they found clothes and blankets with what appeared to be blood on them in Jennings’ car. The results of those tests were not available. WHY NOT??

“Ms. Jennings has not given us any help,” Scott said. “She is the confirmed last person to see Amir. We are trying to find out what happened, and we are not giving up hope.”

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Columbia, SC (WLTX) - Zinah Jennings's attorney, Hemphill Pride, says he's expecting a indictment when the case goes before a grand jury next week.

Jennings is the mother of Amir Jennings, a Columbia child who hasn't been seen since last November. She's been booked since December 29 on a charge of unlawful conduct towards a child.

"I don't really have any expectations. I'm really waiting to see what the indictment says," said Pride.

Pride would not comment on Zinah Jennings's knowledge of where her son might be.

Columbia police have been looking for him since December, when a missing persons report was filed. They've executed more than one search warrant at places where investigators say the boy might have been. Investigators collected cloths with blood on them and a shovel from one of those locations.

"Zinah is sleepy. She is light luster," (HUH??) said Pride describing his client who is in the Richland County jail and is pregnant. "I think she's a little depressed. She certainly is showing signs of anxiety from her confinement and stress from her pregnancy. They are giving her a degree of care, certainly not the degree of care I believe she's entitled to and certainly not the care if she were not in jail." You have GOT to be kidding me!! I have NO sympathy for her and they better take that baby from her the minute it's born!

Pride says he's visited Jennings at least once a week since a judge set her bond at $150,000. A judge has also ordered her to take medication to deal with mental instability.

"I would describe her as being pretty zonked and out of it. So, she's not doing anything to help, she's in jail," said Pride. "I would not agree to let the police department talk with her because she has criminal charges against her."

In February, Amir's grandmother, Jocelyn Jennings Nelson said at a press conference she wasn't sure if Zinah sold Amir, gave him away, or if he was taken from her.

"How do we know she knows where the child is? How do we know she wasn't trying to guess where the child could be?" said Pride. Asked if knowing was her responsibility as the toddlers' parent, Pride replied, "Well how can you hold her responsible when the state has determined her to be irresponsible because she's mentally ill? She's suffering from a disability."

Pride says he plans to, "file an appropriate motion to dismiss."

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Pregnant and on meds not good. I don't have any sympathy for her either but the unborn baby is on my mind.

True. And, the sooner they take that poor baby away from her, the better!!

Posted: May 09, 2012 4:37 PM CDT
Updated: May 10, 2012 7:04 AM CDT
By WIS Staff - email

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) -
A grand jury will decide if Zinah Jennings' case will head to trial Thursday morning.

Jennings has been in jail for the last 5 months on an unlawful conduct charge in connection to the disappearance of her 18-month-old son, Amir. The boy vanished shortly after Thanksgiving last year.

Investigators say Zinah lied about where Amir might be.

Zinah's mother, Jocelyn Jennings, has spent many sleepless nights wondering about her daughter and worrying about her grandson. Jocelyn says this whole episode is unlike Zinah of old.

"She graduated with a B average, was very active in school, she was on the color guard for several years. She participated in other school events. She was a very active, normal teenager," Jocelyn said.

Zinah is Jocelyn's only child. Like all mothers, she had high hopes for her daughter, whom she described as outgoing and full of life.

Jocelyn said Zinah headed off to college after high school, but came back home after one year to attend Midlands Technical College.

"From that moment on, her life changed," Jocelyn said. "She immediately met someone, and fell in love. Without a plan, she got pregnant and became a mother. With school, she tried to continue on with her education. She was searching for job and she was challenged by time."

Her mother says at that point, Zinah began battling depression and using alcohol to help her cope with a series of roadblocks in life. She says Zinah was living at home during this time, but made the decision to move to Atlanta last fall with a family member. It was a decision Jocelyn said didn't help her turn Zinah's life around.

It was during that time Zinah was arrested for prostitution.

With things spiraling out of her control, the family member offered to take Zinah on her trip to clear her head if Jocelyn came and got Amir the week before Thanksgiving. She says when she arrived in Atlanta, Zinah refused to let her have Amir.

"She said, 'No, you're not taking Amir anywhere with you' and she packed up her car and, in fact, she left before I did," Jocelyn said.

Jocelyn says shortly after Thanksgiving, she became nervous about Amir's whereabouts.

Jocelyn says her next step was calling police to report that Amir was missing. Jocelyn says Zinah didn't know she reached out to police to find Amir until her car crashed on Dec. 24. Even then, she says Zinah keep insisting Amir was safe and her family member named Denise in Atlanta backed up her story.

"Denise kept saying, 'You are interfering. You are trying to control. Leave her alone. I saw her yesterday and she even gave me that story from after Thanksgiving,'" Jocelyn said.

Five months later, Jocelyn is still no closer to knowing her grandson might be.

"I don't know where Amir is and neither does Zinah," Jocelyn said.

Jocelyn seemed eager to talk even more, but her attorney, who was by her side, cut several answers short. Off camera, she says she hopes to bring Zinah home soon and to start rebuilding their lives together.

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Interesting video of interview w/Zinah's grandmother at above link.

4:43 PM, May 10, 2012

Written by Tony Santaella

Columbia, SC (WLTX) - A grand jury indicted the mother of a missing Columbia toddler Thursday afternoon.

Zinah Jennings now faces a charge of unlawful conduct toward a child.

Zinah Jenning's son, Amir Jennings, was last seen around Thanksgiving. Columbia police have said Zinah Jennings has been uncooperative.

Since the disappearance became public, officers have received plenty of leads, but none that have provided the clues necessary to find the child.

Zinah Jennings herself was listed as missing for a time, but she resurfaced after a car accident in late December. Investigators have since pursued leads in other states, including the Atlanta area.

Police questioned her several times, and a warrant was issued for Zinah on December 29th on a charge of unlawful conduct towards a child.

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