In the four months searching for Dan Davis, his daughter Wendy Davis’ online pleas for help went viral, with millions of online supporters from Chicago to Ireland searching for answers, engaging with her videos, offering advice and putting up posters in their area.
Davis was found dead Monday in Blue Island. Some answers have come to light, though the Cook County medical examiners office said Thursday it could still be weeks until cause and time of death are determined.
Davis, 59, disappeared Nov. 25 after being involved in a multivehicle accident and refusing treatment. Wendy and her mother, Jenn Barber Masuka, both said Davis’ appearance was unlike him.
Masuka said they may never completely know what happened to Davis but said she received some answers from a Blue Island police detective Tuesday when visiting the site where Davis was found.
Blue Island City Administrator Thomas Wogan said Friday Davis was found wearing a Harley-Davidson jacket and an Indiana University sweatshirt, and his wallet was located in his back pocket.
This fits the description of what Davis was wearing and what police and family told people to look for when searching.
Wogan said preliminary information indicates Davis may have been at the location where he was found since November.
“To know that he hasn’t been in pain and he hasn’t been wandering around lonely and cold and hungry and confused for three months, it does bring a little bit of comfort,” Masuka said.
Wogan also said police reported there were no outwardly apparent signs of trauma. Masuka said police suggested this means no foul play was involved and that Davis was not robbed.
Wogan said the body was discovered Monday by a truck driver who was on break and contacted 911. Blue Island police, along with Illinois State Police, Merrionette Park Police and the Chicago Police Department, responded to the scene.
The Cook County medical examiner’s office is investigating the official cause and manner of death, but a spokesperson said Friday it could take several weeks to run tests and work with law enforcement to make final determinations.
Until then, Wogan said police are treating the case as a potential homicide investigation out of precaution. The Blue Island Police Department is leading the investigation, he said.
Wogan said officers have canvassed the area for possible video footage, though the length of time may exceed the typical retention period for many surveillance systems
He said investigators reviewing available camera images have not been able to confirm if a person in those images is Davis.
Footage of Davis previously taken from cameras in Blue Island shows he wandered the area for around 48 hours on Nov. 25 and 26, according to footage gathered by Masuka from area security cameras.
Timestamped videos show Davis leaving 115 Bourbon Street, his place of work, at about 1:15 a.m. He was seen again on cameras walking through a yard near DesPlains and Gregory in Blue Island at 7:30 a.m., around 3.4 miles from Bourbon Street.
Camera footage documents Davis walking in Blue Island at 8:40 a.m. Nov. 25, from 135th Street and Greenwood Avenue; at 11:12 a.m. toward 13314 Rexford Street; at 2 p.m. to Vermont Street and Maple Avenue; at 2:23 p.m. to 2629 Grove St.; at 3 p.m. from 13217 Old Western Ave. going east on Long Grove to Old Western; and at 4:20 p.m. at 127th and Greenwood.
Davis was last seen at 6:35 p.m. Nov. 26, leaving St. Donatus Church, at 1939 Union St., in Blue Island.
Masuka said because Davis was seen on camera walking around with his jacket unzipped on a cold day, seemingly unbothered by falling and stumbling, she believes he was in shock, not feeling pain and possibly even numb from hypothermia.
“He was not comprehending anything,” she said. “He was not planning. He didn’t know where he was going. He still hadn’t had the wherewithal to ask to borrow a phone to call anyone.”
Wendy Davis said that even though someone from the search group did not find her father, she said “the search efforts were not all for nothing.”
She said she has read all the online comments about her father this week and is amazed by how many people were personally touched by his spirit and her story.
“They felt connected to us and it’s inspired them to help other people in public who look like they might need help or just to keep an eye on their loved ones more,” Davis said. “It’s clear that we’ve helped so many people throughout. … We ended up doing something so much greater than I ever intended for us to do.”
Masuka said while she wanted someone from the search group to find Davis, she will never forget the overwhelming support from people who did not even personally know Davis and the “accidental” community created during the search.
She said some people have told her being involved “has changed them forever.”
“OK, so we didn’t accomplish our goal that we set out to accomplish, but look what accidentally happened right now with everything going on in the world,” she said. “We created an entire community, accidentally. Social media can be an amazing thing when you use its power for good.”
Masuka and Wendy both said they were not prepared for how much they miss chatting with their search party and reading everyone’s online messages.
“Obviously, these whole few months have been hell, but I loved reading all of the support every day and it was so uplifting,” Wendy said. “I feel like I’m graduating high school in a weird way like saying goodbye to all these people that I’ve been talking to every day for three months and I really had some great moments with everyone and built some great relationships.”
Masuka and Wendy also said they have found a love for the Blue Island community and plan on returning. Masuka said even when they were outside searching for Davis over Thanksgiving, Blue Island families offered them warm food and cider.
Masuka said so many people, such as Chamber of Commerce officials, business owners, garbage truck drivers, snowplow drivers, local officials, law enforcement officers and residents volunteered to help.
“They were so nice to us the entire time, and they, they knew us by name, and they kept our flyers up,” she said. “I can’t wait to patronize the community and just pay them all back and pay it forward.”
Masuka said she will now be on the lookout from for people who need help and said the experience inspired her to get involved with missing person organizations.
She said she is also interested in pursuing state legislation inspired by Dan’s situation, such as having more guidelines in place before letting a car crash victim refuse treatment and leave the scene.
Davis’ family has received an outpouring of online support since he was found Monday. Masuka reposted condolences from more than 200 people, from Florida, to Scotland, to South Carolina, on her Find Dan Davis Facebook.
Entertainment venue 115 Bourbon Street, where Davis worked for more than 25 years, posted online that Davis was “an irreplaceable part of the Bourbon Street family.”
“His passion for his work, his creativity and his dedication helped shape the experience that so many people have come to know and love at Bourbon,” the statement read. “So much of what happens here was touched by Dan in some way.”
Wendy Davis and Masuka said they plan a memorial service for Davis and would like to find a way to thank all the people who supported the search for Davis.
Wendy Davis reposted a GoFundMe link online Tuesday, asking for help paying for the memorial service, and that link received nearly $3,000 in 24 hours.
That fundraiser, which was first posted on Dec. 4, totaled to $33,815 by Friday afternoon.
awright@chicagotribune.com
