Ebby Steppach was an 18-year-old from Little Rock, Arkansas, who went missing in October 2015. Her disappearance sparked a long and emotional investigation that garnered national attention. Ebby was last heard from on October 24, 2015, after making a phone call to report a sexual assault involving several individuals, some of whom were classmates. Her car was found abandoned two days later with her personal items inside, but there were no signs of Ebby herself.
Timeline:
October 23, 2015: Ebby Steppach, 18 years old and a recent graduate of Little Rock Central High School, attended a party where she later confided to friends that she had been sexually assaulted by multiple men. She mentioned that the assault was filmed and that she intended to report it to the police.
October 24, 2015: Ebby spoke to her stepfather, Michael Jernigan, and told him she was parked outside his house. However, when he went out to look, she wasn’t there. This was the last confirmed contact anyone had with her. She also called the police to report the sexual assault, but for unknown reasons, the details of the assault report were not immediately investigated.
October 26, 2015: Ebby’s car, a 2003 Volkswagen Passat, was found abandoned in Chalamont Park in Little Rock. Her personal belongings, including her phone, wallet, and contact lenses, were inside the car, which raised alarms for her family, as it seemed unlikely she would have left those items behind voluntarily. Despite this, there was little urgency in the initial investigation, and authorities did not immediately classify her case as critical.
Ebby’s family, particularly her mother Laurie Jernigan, expressed frustration with the police department’s handling of the case. Laurie criticized the lack of follow-up on important leads, including Ebby’s last reported phone calls and the people involved in the alleged sexual assault. The Little Rock Police Department was slow to process evidence and failed to search the area around Chalamont Park thoroughly, even though the car was found there.
For nearly three years, Ebby’s case remained unsolved. Laurie Jernigan led a personal crusade for justice, conducting independent searches, pressuring law enforcement, and raising public awareness through social media and media appearances. After years of limited progress, Laurie and other family members convinced police to more thoroughly investigate the area where Ebby’s car had been found. A new team of detectives took over the case, and they conducted a more thorough search of the park. During this renewed investigation, human remains were discovered on May 22, 2018, in a drainage pipe in Chalamont Park, just 60 feet away from where her car had been abandoned. The remains were identified as Ebby Steppach through dental records.
The discovery of Ebby’s remains provided some closure, but it also brought more questions. The condition of the remains made it difficult to determine the exact cause of death. It was not clear if she had been murdered or if her death was accidental. The police stated that there were no immediate signs of trauma, but the advanced decomposition complicated efforts to establish what had happened.
Key Issues in the Case:
Early on, police failed to thoroughly investigate the sexual assault allegations that Ebby had made, and no arrests were made in connection to those claims. The delay in pursuing leads from the night of the assault and the people involved became a key criticism.
Despite the car being found in Chalamont Park, a thorough search of the nearby drainage pipes and other areas wasn’t conducted for nearly three years. This was a key failure that the family repeatedly raised concerns about.
Laurie Jernigan’s tireless advocacy was pivotal in keeping the case in the public eye. She organized community searches, used social media to gather attention, and pushed authorities to reexamine the case multiple times. Laurie’s efforts helped push the police to change their approach and ultimately led to the discovery of Ebby’s remains.
Ebby’s case became emblematic of larger systemic issues in how some missing person cases, especially those involving young adults, are handled by law enforcement. The initial delays and apparent lack of urgency in Ebby’s case sparked debate over the need for reform in how missing persons, particularly women, are investigated.
Ebby’s case received national attention in part because of the work of her family, especially through social media and advocacy efforts. Her story was featured in various true crime podcasts, TV shows, and national news segments, including Dateline NBC and Crime Watch Daily.
Since the exact cause of Ebby’s death has not been conclusively determined, there has been speculation about what happened. Some theories suggest that she was murdered and her body disposed of in the drainage pipe, while others propose the possibility of an accidental death. However, without clear evidence, these remain theories.
While Ebby’s case remains officially unsolved, her family continues to advocate for justice, hoping that one day more answers will come to light. Ebby’s mother has been vocal about the need for more robust missing person protocols and police accountability.
The case has also had a lasting impact on the Little Rock community, raising awareness about both the emotional toll on families of missing persons and the importance of persistence in investigations.