A Wisconsin teenager who vanished from her home five years ago has been found safe, the Milwaukee Police Department confirmed on May 25. Joniah Walker, now 19, disappeared from her mother's Milwaukee home on June 23, 2022, when she was 15 years old.
Authorities have not disclosed the circumstances of her discovery or whether she was accompanied. A police spokesperson stated that information regarding the location of missing individuals is not shared to protect their privacy.
Walker's mother, Tanesha Howard, last saw her daughter in her bedroom after returning from school on the day she vanished. Howard had spoken with Walker multiple times by phone that day. However, when Walker did not answer a call from her father around 3:30 p.m., Howard became concerned and left work immediately.
Ring doorbell camera footage from a neighbor's home captured Walker leaving the complex around 2:30 p.m. on the day of her disappearance, carrying a large green camping backpack. Howard stated that her daughter's departure with an unfamiliar backpack led her to believe someone had lured her away. She also noted that Walker had attempted to erase her digital footprint prior to vanishing, masking her data on the phone bill.
Howard has previously shared that her daughter struggled with school during the COVID-19 pandemic and has a history of post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. Howard expressed frustration that Walker was not initially classified as a 'critically missing' person by authorities.
Walker's disappearance became a focal point for legislative action in Wisconsin. State Representative Shelia Stubbs championed a bill to establish a Missing and Murdered African American Women and Girls Task Force (MMAAW). Stubbs had encouraged Howard to remain hopeful, believing Joniah was still alive. Several states have since passed similar legislation or introduced pending measures to address the issue of missing and murdered African American women and girls.