Brian To/WireImage(AUBURN, Wash.) — Police in Auburn, Wash., say they did nothing wrong in dealing with now-deceased actress Misty Upham in the days and weeks leading up to her death.
The Native American actress, who appeared in August: Osage County, Frozen River, and Django Unchained, was found dead in Auburn, a suburb of Seattle, on Oct. 16, more than a week after her family reported her missing.
Since her death, the family has criticized the Auburn Police Department for its handling of Upham and said the department bears some responsibility for her death.
“We believe that Misty’s death was accidental. She did not commit suicide,” the actress’ father, Charles Upham, wrote in statement on Facebook the day after her body was found. “We believe she ran into the wooded area behind her apartment to hide from the police. The area in question has a hidden drop off and evidence suggests that she slipped and fell off of the steep embankment when she tried to get out of a view from the road.”
Charles Upham wrote that his daughter was afraid of the Auburn police.
“In an incident prior to her disappearance, the Auburn PD came to pick up Misty on an involuntary transport to the ER. She was cuffed and placed in a police car. Some of the officers began to taunt and tease her while she was in the car,” he said. “They were tapping on the window making faces at her.”
But in a statement sent to ABC News, the Auburn Police Department denied any wrongdoing and said they have received no complaints of mistreatment from the actress, her family or town or medical officials.
“Since July of 2013, the Auburn Police Department has responded to five separate incidents involving Ms. Upham,” the statement read. “On four of those incidents, she was contacted by officers and she did not object to being transported by private ambulance for further evaluation. On the 5th incident, Misty had already left the residence and officers were unable to locate her. Each contact was handled professionally and with compassion, with the goal of getting Ms. Upham the attention and care she needed.”
After Charles Upham wrote that his daughter had “a swollen jaw, black eye and scratches and bruises on her shoulder,” after contact with police during the incident prior to her disappearance, police responded that any inference that it was “at the hands of the police” was “not correct.”
“Rather, included in a related written report, Ms. Upham stated that she had sustained a sprained ankle and black eye when she jumped out a two-story window,” the statement said.
Upham’s family also faulted police for their handling of the actress’ disappearance on Oct. 5, maintaining that the police could have done more to find her.
The police statement countered that police “did not ignore Ms. Upham’s disappearance in this most recent episode.”
As soon as her information was entered into a missing person’s database, police added, “an active search and investigation commenced,” which included checks in the areas where she was last seen, interviews with family members and friends, and the involvement of the Seattle Police Department.
Police also tried to locate Upham through her cell phone signal but said her service had been disconnected prior to her disappearance.
The department said that it “will continue to search for answers to unravel the mystery behind her passing,” according to the statement. “We intend to find the information that will help bring closure to the people who loved and cared for Ms. Upham.”
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