The tragic conclusion of the search for 10-year-old non-verbal autistic Maddelynn Wallace has left the Waldorf, Maryland community in shock and grief.
The body of the missing youngster was discovered in a water-filled quarry near her home.
Maddelynn was last seen on Saturday, April 15, at approximately 5:30 p.m., prompting an extensive search operation. The Sheriff’s Office of Charles County worked with numerous search teams and law enforcement agencies to locate the missing girl. The investigation led them to a forested region with numerous quarries.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 1 in 54 children in the United States has autism. Unfortunately, children with autism, particularly those who are non-verbal, are more likely to wander off or go missing. The National Autism Association reports that nearly half of autistic children are likely to wander away from a safe environment.
In this sad case, dive teams discovered Maddelynn’s lifeless body approximately one mile from her last known location, submerged in a quarry. The County Medical Examiner identified the body as Maddelynn’s following an autopsy and determined that drowning was the cause of death.
While the police do not suspect foul play at this time, the investigation into the incident continues. The sheriff’s office has extended condolences to Maddelynn’s grieving family, but has not yet released any additional information about the case.