Missing Person

Carolyn (Carrie) Lawson

NamUs lists Carolyn Elizabeth Lawson’s Jasper abduction case as open and unresolved. Her body has not been found, and a court declared her dead in 1993.

Incident date: Not documented
Location: Jasper, Walker County
Independent sources: 1

The record

Carolyn (Carrie) Elizabeth Lawson

Carolyn Elizabeth Lawson, 25, was abducted from her home in Jasper, Alabama, after responding to a telephone call from a woman claiming to be a nurse and saying that someone in Lawson’s family was seriously ill in a hospital. A masked assailant subdued and tied up Lawson’s husband. 1

According to NamUs, Karen McPherson pleaded guilty to the kidnapping and said that she and her cousin, Jerry Bland, had planned it for a $300,000 ransom. Bland died by suicide at his home three weeks after Lawson disappeared. Lawson’s family paid the ransom, and authorities recovered most of what they believed was the ransom money from Bland’s home. 1

NamUs states that Lawson’s body has not been found despite numerous tips and the work of a private investigator hired by her family. A court declared her dead in 1993. The NamUs case remains open and unresolved. 1

The Alabama Attorney General’s Office is listed as the primary investigating agency. 1

Timeline

Date not statedConfirmed
Lawson was abducted from her Jasper home; her husband was subdued and tied up by a masked assailant.
Three weeks after Lawson disappearedConfirmed
Jerry Bland died by suicide at his home.
1993Confirmed
A court declared Lawson dead.

Documented claims

Carolyn Elizabeth Lawson was 25 at the time of the incident.
Confirmed
Source: U.S. Department of Justice NamUs · Single-source claim.
Lawson was abducted from her Jasper, Alabama, home after a caller claiming to be a nurse said someone in Lawson’s family was seriously ill in a hospital.
Confirmed
Source: U.S. Department of Justice NamUs · Single-source claim.
A masked assailant subdued and tied up Lawson’s husband.
Confirmed
Source: U.S. Department of Justice NamUs · Single-source claim.
Karen McPherson pleaded guilty to the kidnapping and said she and her cousin, Jerry Bland, planned it for a $300,000 ransom.
Confirmed
Source: U.S. Department of Justice NamUs · Single-source claim.
Bland died by suicide at his home three weeks after Lawson disappeared.
Confirmed
Source: U.S. Department of Justice NamUs · Single-source claim.
Lawson’s family paid the ransom, and authorities found most of what they believed was the ransom money in Bland’s home.
Confirmed
Source: U.S. Department of Justice NamUs · Single-source claim.
Lawson’s body has never been found despite numerous tips and a private investigator hired by her family.
Confirmed
Source: U.S. Department of Justice NamUs · Single-source claim.
A court declared Lawson dead in 1993.
Confirmed
Source: U.S. Department of Justice NamUs · Single-source claim.
NamUs lists the case as open and unresolved.
Confirmed
Source: U.S. Department of Justice NamUs · Single-source claim.
The Alabama Attorney General’s Office is the primary investigating agency.
Confirmed
Source: U.S. Department of Justice NamUs · Single-source claim.

Sources

NamUs Missing Person Case MP4798 — Carolyn (Carrie) Elizabeth Lawson — U.S. Department of Justice NamUsOpen

Single official source. This entry is documented strictly from one official record. No independent reporting on this case was found. Details beyond the record are unverified and deliberately omitted.