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Monroe County couple, 13 and 16, run away, families say

Mike Miller  —  8/22/2008 7:29 pm

Two teenagers from Monroe County ran away Wednesday and the impact of their disappearance is stunning to relatives in Madison.

"It is so hard to believe this is happening again with our family," said Steve Tate, of Madison, the uncle of Cassandra (Cassie) Tate, 13, from Wilton, who apparently ran away with her 16-year-old boyfriend, Kevin Lozano, from nearby Norwalk.

Steve Tate suffered from a similar event last year when his wife, Francine, disappeared for eight days after leaving a prayer meeting on the east side of Madison.
She was found alive and unharmed by a Department of Natural Resources warden near Phelps in far northern Wisconsin, where she had gone after deciding she needed time by herself.

"It is with a very heavy heart and almost unbelieving mind that I am reaching out again for help because of a missing person in my family," Tate said in an e-mail to friends today.

"A little over a year ago my wife Francine Tate went missing and because of the time and energy of many people she was found and came home safely. So now the goal is to bring these two children that are making poor decisions home safely," Tate said.

Although neither the Tate family in Wilton nor the Lozano family in Norwalk knew of the plans of the two teens to run off, Steve Tate said since their disappearance, law enforcement officials have learned that other teens in the two small villages -- only a few miles apart -- were aware of the plans and even when the pair would leave.

They left in a navy blue 1999 Dodge Durango with the Wisconsin license plate of 393 JDJ, according to a poster which is being distributed by the families.

Steve Tate said even Cassie's older sister was kept in the dark about the young couple's plans. He said the disappearance is even more difficult to understand since Cassie is well-aware of the agony a missing person causes a family because of her aunt's disappearance in the summer of 2007.

"She knows all the pain that is caused," Tate said. "When I found out I was overwhelmed."

Since the couple left, the families have discovered e-mails the two sent back and forth which detailed their plans and the families now think the young couple may be heading to the Los Angeles area, possibly to Highland Park which is northeast of L.A.

If you have information regarding the missing teens, please call the Monroe County Sheriff at 608-269-2117.

Mike Miller  —  8/22/2008 7:29 pm