Left: Pursley, circa 1994;
Right: Age-progression at age 27 (circa 2006)
Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance
Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance
Missing Since: June 26, 1994 from Running Springs, California Classification: Endangered Missing Date Of Birth: August 18, 1979 Age: 14 years old Height and Weight: 5'5, 125 pounds Distinguishing Characteristics: Caucasian male. Brown hair, blue eyes. Pursley has two scars on the back of his head, a scar across his neck, and several scars on his chest. He has surgical scars on his left hip, left knee, left buttock, and back. Some agencies may spell his middle name "Wasde." His left leg is four inches shorter than his right leg and he walks with a limp as a result. Clothing/Jewelry Description: Blue jeans, a purple shirt, a black White Sox baseball cap and tennis shoes. Medical Conditions: Pursley suffers from various medical problems as a result of a near-drowning accident he had as a toddler. He had several surgeries as a child. His difficulties include one paralyzed vocal cord, a life-threatening internal fungus, poor motor skills in his right arm and hand, and seizures. Pursley is required to take medication twice daily to prevent his seizures and will be in danger without it. His intelligence is unimpaired, but he has learning and behavioral difficulties and functions at the level of a nine-year-old.
Details of Disappearance
Pursley was living at a special needs boarding school, the Cedu School, in Running Springs, California at the time of his disappearance. He had been enrolled in the school only since June 1, and had told his mother he was homesick and wanted to leave. He was last seen at 8:00 p.m. on June 26, 1994 as he walked to a barn on the property to check on the animals. A staff member saw a light go on in the barn shortly afterwards. Pursley did not return to his dormitory by the 10:00 p.m. curfew and and has not been seen again. Searchers tracked him to a nearby highway, but no further.There were numerous reported sightings of Pursley in California and Utah in 1994 and 1995, but none of them have been confirmed. He is from Flagler, Colorado and may be somewhere in that state. Many agencies classify Pursley's disappearance as that of an Endangered Runaway. The school officials believe he ran away, but his family thinks he may have been abducted or lured from the school grounds. Curiously, Pursley is not the only student to have disappeared from the Cedu School and never been found; John Inman disappeared from the school in 1993 and Daniel Yuen in 2004. The Cedu School filed for bankruptcy and closed in 2005.
No suspects have been identified in Pursley's disappearance and his case remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Source Information
Updated 6 times since October 12, 2004.
Last updated January 21, 2010; distinguishing characteristics and details of disappearance updated.
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
San Bernardino County Sheriff's Office
909-336-0600
The National Center For Missing and Exploited Children
Child Protection Education Of America
The Deseret Morning News
The Rocky Mountain News
California Attorney General's Office
NamUs