Unsolved Disappearance
Christopher Alan Temple, 17, went missing from Bath Township, Michigan, on April 22, 1990.
Christopher went to an Earth Day celebration at Riverfront Park during the day on April 22. In the evening, he met with his friends at the campground in the remote Rose Lake State Wildlife Area. The park is 4,000 acres about 12 miles northeast of Lansing and is known for hunting, fishing, birdwatching, and other activities.
While everyone there was enjoying the campfire with alcohol and marijuana, all of a sudden Chris stood up, mumbled something to his friends and walked into the woods. His friends thought he was going to relieve himself.
His friends then noticed he was missing and began looking for him. They drove home and got flashlights and coats as the temperature was dropping. they went back and searched again, finding nothing.
Authorities conducted an extensive search on foot, with canines and helicopters, and found nothing initially. They brought in boats to help search the surrounding lakes.
A year and a half later one of his sneakers was found about 300 yards from the campsite. It was found southwest of the campsite, in an area that had been searched previously. It looked weathered. Authorities decided to search the area again. This time, they found the matching shoe, two large clumps of strawberry blonde hair and eight .22 caliber shell casings.
The hair was tested and determined to have nothing to do with Christopher's case. The shell casings were typical for hunting. The shoes were determined to to be his.
Christopher had a good childhood. He was the eldest son of John and Ronnie Temple, the owners of a shoe store, and very hard-working. Chris had 2 younger siblings.
Christopher was a student at Haslett Community Education. He had previously gone to East Lansing High School where he had difficulty with absences and tardiness. He also started using drugs and alcohol. Chris began isolating, his grades declined, and he wasn't interested in normal activities or even getting a driver's license.
Eventually Christopher was arrested in August 1989 for larceny in excess of 100 dollars and that was a turning point in his life.
When he vanished, Christopher had perfect perfect attendance and straight A grades. In fact, he would have graduated only a couple of months after his disappearance.
If you have any information about the disappearance of Christopher Alan Temple, please call the Bath Township Police Department at 517-641-4050.
The area Christopher was in was very swampy.
The area Christopher was in was very swampy.