I don't know if his case has been talked about here since I can't find any threads about him, but Jim Kimball was an Oak Park, Illinois man who developed depression and anxiety after his father passed away. He vanished from his house after getting frustrated with a new stereo system. A man though to be him was found near a highway in South Bend, Indiana by a policeman and the guy was given a sobriety test since the cop thought he was drunk. He then released the man. The officer came across Jim's missing poster the next day and believes Jim was the man he had stopped.

Here is Jim Kimball's Charley Project page: http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/k/kimball_james.html

it's difficult to say,since it was a partial skeleton that was reconstructed.jmo though.I hope they can find him.seems a dna test would be needed.

it's difficult to say,since it was a partial skeleton that was reconstructed.jmo though.I hope they can find him.seems a dna test would be needed.

Someone on Websleuths said they were going to contact the people that handle Jim's case to see if they can get a DNA match. I don't think there's been an update since then.

This article (http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1993-11-26/news/9311260255_1_manic-depressives-maywood-police-department-shelters)mentions a possible sighting of Jim a few days after he left home:

Dan said that when Jim left home, he was not even wearing a coat.

But he apparently took a disc from The Clash's three-record set "Sandinista" with him.

"That album was missing from the basement," Dan said. And a few days after Jim walked out, an employee at a local record store spotted a man fitting Jim's description, "tossing a record in the air like a Frisbee," Dan said.

Other than another article from 1996 that mentions UM featuring his case, there's little to be found online. I don't think the unidentified man found at near the truck stop is him, and there's a possibility (at least, I hope so) that he could still be alive.

If anyone in Illinois or anywhere else has seen him, please contact the authorities.

I don't want to sound pessimistic, but it's been over 20 years since he vanished and I think the odds of him being alive are very remote.

I don't want to sound pessimistic, but it's been over 20 years since he vanished and I think the odds of him being alive are very remote.

I don't think he's alive. I think his illness and the fact that he probably did not have his medication with him when he disappeared put him at great risk for harm.

I would too think, he is dead. He could have been picked up by somebody then murdered but i can't be sure or he just wondered off to somewhere and died of exposure.

I don't believe there has been an update on this case. If you go to that "video website" and type in "Unsolved Mysteries Jim Kimball", Jim's brother has uploaded the UM segment saying he still has not been found.

I agree with wiseguy, he is likely dead. Over 20 years have passed since he was last seen.

plus, unfortunately, Jim didn't seem like the type of guy who would be able to "make friends and influence people" out there on his own. He might have gone into another fit of rage and bad things happened...

plus, unfortunately, Jim didn't seem like the type of guy who would be able to "make friends and influence people" out there on his own. He might have gone into another fit of rage and bad things happened...

Very true. Sadly, he may have picked a fight or mouthed off to the wrong person.

Did anyone notice that his Charley Project Page (http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/k/kimball_james.html) says...

Authorities believe that Kimball may have been taken against his will.

??? I find this very odd. Do they mean he was kidnapped from his family's home or while he was out on the road? Is there actual evidence of this or just a guess?

Did anyone notice that his Charley Project Page (http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/k/kimball_james.html) says...



??? I find this very odd. Do they mean he was kidnapped from his family's home or while he was out on the road? Is there actual evidence of this or just a guess?

I found this odd too! I wonder what makes the cops think that Jim was taken against his will?

With a temper as explosive as Jim's, I find it difficult to believe that he would allow anyone to abduct him. Unless it had been by gunpoint, but even then I can imagine him challenging the assailants.

His brother is still actively trying to find him online. There have been replies to his comments on youtube indicating that Jim lives in Milwaukee today, but with youtube comments it's hard to tell what can be taken seriously.

I am surprised that they haven't made an age progression of James Kimball. That might help find him if he's living out on the streets somewhere, if he is still alive, that is.

I wonder if Jim ever had the intention of coming back home after his outburst and walking out? We might never know until Jim is found, dead or alive. I agree with the posts above that Jim might have had a mood swing and mouthed off to the wrong person, who ended up doing harm to him, whether accidentally or on purpose, and his body was disposed of.

It can also be said that without his medication, he would certainly not have the capacity to control his mood swings and his thoughts. Jim, without the medication, could be a harm to himself and/or others because of the mood swings and inability to cope with stress. I also wonder if he developed a "fugue state" and doesn't recall his identity now and is amongst the homeless?

I bet Jim's family is upset that they didn't understand his condition then and had tried to be more reasonable. I hope they find Jim someday so they can be at peace and put this behind them.

I have watched Jim's segment a few times. I have to agree with you. I don't think he's alive because IMO if a person is missing over 10 years then i think they are dead, not just in Jim's case in all missing persons. It's very rare that we hear of people coming back from being missing years and years later, Sorry if i sound like morbid but thats just what i think

Saw this segment for the first time on the forbidden site. Jim's brother uploaded it, and in the description he says, "I remember it was cold out around 30-40 degrees (the weather report shows it was one of the coldest early April months in history) and there was snow out and Jim forgot his jacket so it doesn't seem premeditated..."

I'd have to agree with him. He likely died shortly after his disappearance. I believe the cop's story about seeing Kimball was just a case of mistaken identity.

Missing persons cases are especially sad, especially when there is family involved who are trying to track them down.

"I remember it was cold out around 30-40 degrees (the weather report shows it was one of the coldest early April months in history) and there was snow out and Jim forgot his jacket so it doesn't seem premeditated..."

I'd have to agree with him. He likely died shortly after his disappearance. I believe the cop's story about seeing Kimball was just a case of mistaken identity.

Agree with this. Just saw the Jim Kimball segment and I think he's deceased. And, I agree that the officer's story about seeing a homeless?! man on the side of the highway (in another state) that resembled Kimball was a false lead; he probably just saw someone that looked like Kimball.

Missing persons cases are especially sad, especially when there is family involved who are trying to track them down.



Agree with this. Just saw the Jim Kimball segment and I think he's deceased. And, I agree that the officer's story about seeing a homeless?! man on the side of the highway (in another state) that resembled Kimball was a false lead; he probably just saw someone that looked like Kimball.

I give more weight that the cop actually saw him because.. It was a cop. Trained to pay attention to what someone looks like. Not saying 100% he was right, but I trust that sighting more than, say the people who saw the "lil' miss" car.

I have little question he's dead and likely has been for quite some time. He disappeared in April from near Chicago.. If the sighting is right, he made it through at least one winter.. And, honestly, that's more than I would expect and a very big reason I would think that the cop was mistaken. Plus, looking at his photo.. He's very average. Doesn't have any features that really jump out at you.

I can see someone like him disappearing himself.. at least, WANTING to.. I just don't see him having the ability to successfully pull it off.

I remember this one. How tragic. If that police officer had known Jim Kimball was missing, he could have maybe gotten him the help he desperately needed. I think Kimball is dead. He was out there around who knows where and wasn't getting the medication he needed.

Looks similar?

https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=592273866725300&set=a.101816192437739

Looks similar?

https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=592273866725300&set=a.101816192437739

No

I think the odds are good the cop's sighting was real, he had a very good look at the guy and other geographic details are well aligned.
My guess is he drifted for a bit, not being a wanted criminal this would not be that hard to do. 11 months passed between the disappearance and the police sighting. UM didn't air the case until 20 months after the sighting, and it's very possible he had already met his end before the airing. Given his temper at a stereo system, it's entirely possible he crossed the wrong person with that attitude and met with foul play.

I think the cops sighting was legitimate. Police officers are trained to recognize people and have good memory. He may have just ended up like Michael rosenblum. Lost in the woods somewhere.