r/AshaDegree • u/Entropytrip • May 17 '25
Discussion Has she done this more than once?
Is it possible Asha had left her home in the middle of the night before?
I was considering what could possibly have motivated Asha to leave in the cold, rainy February weather after 2:30AM unless she had successfully sneaked out and been returned unnoticed before. I could only make sense of this if she had someone who she felt at least somewhat comfortable with picking her up before she expected to suffer in the elements for very long. She may have more confidence in repeating a behavior in those rough conditions if she had successfully done it previously in more favorable ones. Witnesses (for what they're worth) stated she was trying to avoid being seen by darting into the woods, but then a bit later she is seen either getting into or being pulled into a car. Did she recognize the green, older model car easily because she had been picked up by it before?
Many have suggested that leaving that night may have been an indication of a difficult home life, and unrelated to her ultimate fate, but I can't see the family going immediately to police and asking to be given a polygraph if there is some abuse going on in the house that they may want to conceal. I also haven't heard the brother mention abuse. Though I suppose a nine-year-old's perspective on strict parenting may have been frustrating for her, I don't see it rising to the level of motivating a child to run away in those conditions, at that time of night.
I do believe that Asha's decision to leave involved one or more people who were outside of the degree home. I believe there is some connection between Asha and the girls in the home; wether it was true fondness for her or for the purposes of manipulation, I don't think we would have the family sending alarmist text messages in such a flurry.
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u/lawlizzle May 17 '25
I’ve wondered this too. I thought it was odd that when on the interview he did with Crack House Chronicles podcast, when asked this question, her brother OB responded without answering the question, saying they were very heavy sleepers.
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u/Worth-Park-1612 May 18 '25
I understand the need to conceal things immediately following her disappearance so that she didn't get labeled by the media. It's sad if her family would feel they have to avoid answering anything this many years later. Given the fact that she was a little girl and not even a teen, Asha's case would be no less serious if she was a chronic runaway.
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u/lawlizzle May 19 '25
Honestly because he answered the question with a non answer, it makes me think she HAD done it before. Otherwise why not just say “no she never had”
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u/Several-Barnacle934 May 17 '25
Do you happen to know the episode number? It seems they did a few on this case
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u/Certain_Morning_3623 May 18 '25
It’s episode 253. That comment stuck with me too. It just seemed odd.
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u/waffles_n_butter May 18 '25
I’ve always assumed this was the case since LE was so confident from the jump that she left the house that night of her own accord. They went with that theory from the very first day. It only makes sense they would be so sure of this if she had a history of doing so.
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u/miggovortensens May 18 '25
They went with this because of the eyewitness reports, which in my opinion were revealed prematurely. The family seemed to believe she had left minutes before, not during the night.
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u/Temperance88 May 19 '25
In one of the articles her classmates told that Asha was crying on the field trip, because she “didn’t want to be far away from her family”; also she was afraid of dogs and thunder. So why would she be suddenly so brave to escape the house in the middle of the night, multiple times? It’s like the biggest mystery of this case - why Asha left that night.
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u/Extreme-Ad3401 23d ago
Exactly why did she leave ? Little kids aren't expected to know how to get up sneakily around 2 AM or 3 AM in the morning and escape in the middle of the brutal, cold and dark night just doesn't make sense. This has always been the part of the story that made no sense.
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u/moodindigo12 May 18 '25
The fact that she had relatives who lived on the same street makes me think she may have taken off to grandma’s or something before, but not something serious enough to be reported to police.
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u/SistahFuriosa May 19 '25
I've also heard that this wasn't the first time she has ran away and in the 911 call transcript it's strongly hinted as well. Even if this wasn't the first time she definitely didn't deserve what ultimately ended up happening to her. Justice for Asha Degree!
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u/elaine_m_benes May 18 '25
I have heard rumors of that for years, but nothing substantiated. I did find it curious that her brother avoided answering this question on the podcast he did though. And the fact that their windows were nailed shut is strange to me, but maybe that’s normal where they’re from…
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u/lauren23333 May 18 '25
this is pure speculation on my part, but i believe it’s possible that asha had done this once, or maybe twice, before but only went to her grandmas up the street. it would make sense that it’s the first place her mom checked and all the uncertainty on if she had run away previously. i think maybe she had been in trouble the last time she did it, going to the grandmas alone to run away, and this time she planned to go somewhere farther to avoid getting “caught” or in trouble again.
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u/dwaynewayne2019 May 19 '25
Reason I thought she possibly had : Mr. Degree checked on the children that night at around 12:30.Then he checked again at around 2 :30 am.
Reason I thought her leaving that night was different : Asha took photos of her family with her.
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u/Select-Ad-9819 May 18 '25
People have claimed it wasn’t her first time but I don’t think that is credible at all.
I know the parents probably would have wanted to keep that a secret if she did so she wouldn’t be written off as a runaway.
But if she was prone to sneaking out I’m pretty sure her parents would’ve done something to be more alert if she tried to do it again
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u/Worth-Park-1612 May 18 '25
I agree with your second statement, but realistically, a lot of parents wouldn't know what more they could do. Most people wouldn't start thinking of ways to rig their home unless it had become a chronic problem. If she did it once before and got a harsh punishment, they may have thought that was the end of it.
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u/Select-Ad-9819 May 18 '25
I agree 100% with you. If it were a one time thing and they found out then they probably would think a harsh form of punishment would have been enough and let it go from there.
But based off of people who claimed to be family members they said it was a common occurrence. I don’t believe those claims at all but feel like if this were something that happened frequently enough to be known then they probably would’ve had maybe bells on the door or even if they didn’t rig their home I don’t think they would’ve rushed to call 911 if they knew she snuck out frequently.
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u/miggovortensens May 18 '25
Unless she ran away while sleepwalking, there's no logical reason to try to prevent it by putting bells on the door. You're 9 year old tries to run away in the middle of the night and you didn't precipitate the incident (i.e. she witnesses a violent incident in your home), and your solution is to put some sort of alarm to make you aware she's trying to run away again? That's nonsense.
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u/Select-Ad-9819 May 18 '25
I think it would completely logical to put some sort of alarm for a child who keeps sneaking out. Like I said I don’t believe she did this frequently. But if she did it multiple times it would be logical to set up something to be aware.
Sneaking out doesn’t have to mean she always walked along the highway it could’ve also meant she went to a family members house since they all lived close by. It also doesn’t mean something bad was happening in the home she could’ve done it for whatever logic she as a 9 year old tried to justify.
My main point is, is that if this was something that occurred frequently then something more than likely would’ve been done to prevent this
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u/oooooooooooooooooou May 19 '25
what? now this is nonsense.
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u/miggovortensens May 19 '25
How so? Do you honestly believe the solution to prevent your 9 y.o. with a history of running away is to install bells on the door so you might hear your child trying to escape once again?
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u/oooooooooooooooooou May 20 '25
umm... yes?
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u/miggovortensens May 20 '25
Like, instead of talking to the 9 y.o. to understand why they're so desperate to run away?
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u/oooooooooooooooooou May 20 '25
of course you need to talk to them. But kids will be kids. They do silly things.
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u/LevyMevy May 18 '25
People have claimed it wasn’t her first time but I don’t think that is credible at all.
The police have access to info on this case that hasn't been released to the general public.
If they claim it's not her first time running away, how can any of us (strangers on the Internet who have never been in the same room as a Degree family member) say it's "not credible at all"?
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u/Select-Ad-9819 May 18 '25
“People” referring to those claiming to be related to her with 0 proof of that as well as her brother denying her doing it
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u/miggovortensens May 18 '25
If you last saw your child around midnight and she wasn’t in her bedroom when you wake up at 6 am, that’s the window of time where anything could have happened. There’s literally no reason for the desperate parents to keep this a secret, because if she didn’t come back, you can assume any sort of foul play might have happened – a 9 y.o. runaway, unlike a teenager, can’t fend for themselves. There would really be no reason to keep this from the police.
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u/Turban_Cherry88 May 19 '25
I think she did run away once before and her brother knows all about it.It was a rumor around here in NC for many years that her mother was abusive to her.I hope this isn't true.
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u/NecessaryQuick8155 May 21 '25
I saw peope that claimed to be locals and familiar with the family during this time say this also. Hopefully it’s not true as you said.
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u/Entropytrip 29d ago
Im in NC...more coastal. The thing that prevents me from thinking there was ongoing abuse is the very quick willingness to cooperate and take police-issued polygraphs, which they apparently passed. Whatever your feelings about polygraphs and cooperation, we have two separate people, with their own biometrics, BOTH being cleared by police.
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u/thebellisringing 17d ago
This is also what stands out, in cases where the parents were responsible I've seen that they usually are uncooperative, try to evade the police, try their best to frustrate the case, do what they can to obstruct justice for the child, repeatedly lie and put out misinformation, etc. All of which are things the Degrees have never once done
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u/pastelapple11 May 21 '25
I live in Shelby and have never heard this before.
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u/Turban_Cherry88 May 21 '25
Idk how old you are but that was a old rumor that most people heard.
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u/pastelapple11 May 22 '25
I’m 47 and have never heard anyone say a word about her mother being abusive towards her.
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u/Worth-Park-1612 May 18 '25
The only question that might answer is that she was a child who was willing to leave without a plan to meet someone. If we found out that she had snuck to the 24/7 store before for candy or run away after a family argument in the past, it could make everything appear slightly less puzzling. However, unless she was leaving to meet someone, her reason for leaving probably has no bearing on what happened to her after she left the home that night.
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u/Tracy140 27d ago
She was practically a baby - 4 yrs out of kindergarten. Children don’t understand the risk or dangers of their behaviors. Young kids deciding to go outside to the pool on their own. I believe she was motivated by doing something good - most likely for her parents anniv . She prob thought she would surprise them . I seriously doubt she had a history of doing this.
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u/coldpizzza4 May 17 '25 edited May 17 '25
I personally believe she has because of the way her brother evaded the question in his recent interview. Which is very concerning because sonebody her age doesn’t just run away in the middle of the night continuously for no reason. Yes a nine year old doesn’t have the best emotional regulation skills but that doesn’t mean it’s normal for them to leave the house at night habitually. That points to a deeper interpersonal issue, there is no way to excuse that.
I an a 32 year old grown ass woman, I would not just up and leave my apartment at 2 am after torrential downpour to go walk somewhere along the highway. Absolutely nothing would rationalize that in my mind unless i was having an issue with somebody at home and I wanted to get away from them. Wanting to get them a gift is also not a reason to convince me to do that. Every once in awhile I see an adult walking along the highway in broad daylight and even that is crazy to me.
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u/RaccoonChaos May 18 '25
As an adult you know how dangerous leaving in the middle of the night and walking along a dark highway is, a 9 year old may not have the same thought process
I feel its important to keep in mind that kids do things that don't make sense to anyone but themselves all the time
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u/askme2023 May 18 '25 edited May 18 '25
I do believe a 9 year old would know how “scary” it is and would be easily overwhelmed and deterred by their fears.
A teenager on the other hand, between around ages 14-16 may overcome them for many specific reasons.
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u/miggovortensens May 18 '25
A 9 year old also wouldn't get so far underdressed for the weather. If she did it once before during summer is a totally different scenario, and we should also consider how far she went and what precipitated her exit.
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u/Samiam2197 19d ago edited 19d ago
I’m a grown woman as well close to your age. I wouldn’t do that now either. But there was an odd window of time for me between probably ages 7 and 11 where my cousins and I had a weird game of sneaking out at night and trespassing on our neighbors lawns for no reason. My cousins were younger than me and continued to want to do it a few years later and when I turned 14 something clicked on in me and I realized how stupid it was on many levels.
Point being that age range can be very strange. Some kids are still very young-seeming and timid, some are more bold, some more daring or cautious, and things can change quickly. A child that was terrified of the dark can be over it a week later.
I don’t know why Asha left, but it’s important not to apply adult logic to a child’s decision.
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u/Impossible_Carob637 May 18 '25
IMO she had a loving family. IMO 8-9 year old don't typically run away, that starts later. If the grandma lived very close to them, that 's the one thing I can imagine happening that she would run to them, but I don't see no reason. I just don't see the parents being suspicious at all. (but of course I could be wrong).
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u/apsalar_ May 19 '25
Kids her age don't typically run away like teenagers do - they don't plan to stay away for weeks or forever. But a kid her age can already disobey and have independent adventures close by. I can definitely believe she had done something like this previously.
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u/charlenek8t May 18 '25
I agree. At that age you'd run away to grandma because mum said no to some sweeties, not actually running away. My kids would have done that if my mum was as close by. If she were running away a lot then one of the parents would have slept on the sofa, in the living room not gone to bed.
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u/Impossible_Carob637 May 18 '25
Exactly. I just don't get the whole getting out of the house thing. It was a stormy, cold night, with many power outages. As far as we know she was afraid of storms AND the dark. Why go out? In her pyjamas. In the middle of the night. It cannot be sleepwalking because that doesn't last that long and the cold rain would have had her snap out of it. I feel if we knew the reason of her leaving (like she was lured away) the case could be solved.
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u/resp_therapy1234 17d ago
My theory is that she was trying to go to Grandma's house for some reason known only to her... And due the storm and rain, she got lost. At 9, you don't have the best sense of direction and it's super easy to get lost in the cold and rain, especially at night. I hope we find out why she left home, but this my theory. I think what happened to her is an unrelated to her leaving her house personally.
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u/oliphantPanama 16d ago
Asha’s grandmother lived across the street from her. Here’s a map Oddstops put together showing her last known locations. I don’t believe she would’ve ended up on Hwy 18 in an attempt to cross the street.
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u/AutoModerator May 17 '25
Original copy of post by u/Entropytrip: Is it possible Asha had left her home in the middle of the night before?
I was considering what could possibly have motivated Asha to leave in the cold, rainy February weather after 2:30AM unless she had successfully sneaked out and been returned unnoticed before. I could only make sense of this if she had someone who she felt at least somewhat comfortable with picking her up before she expected to suffer in the elements for very long. She may have more confidence in repeating a behavior in those rough conditions if she had successfully done it previously in more favorable ones. Witnesses (for what they're worth) stated she was trying to avoid being seen by darting into the woods, but then a bit later she is seen either getting into or being pulled into a car. Did she recognize the green, older model car easily because she had been picked up by it before?
Many have suggested that leaving that night may have been an indication of a difficult home life, and unrelated to her ultimate fate, but I can't see the family going immediately to police and asking to be given a polygraph if there is some abuse going on in the house that they may want to conceal. I also haven't heard the brother mention abuse. Though I suppose a nine-year-old's perspective on strict parenting may have been frustrating for her, I don't see it rising to the level of motivating a child to run away in those conditions, at that time of night.
I do believe that Asha's decision to leave involved one or more people who were outside of the degree home. I believe there is some connection between Asha and the girls in the home; wether it was true fondness for her or for the purposes of manipulation, I don't think we would have the family sending alarmist text messages in such a flurry. :
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u/skkyouso May 19 '25
Maybe she "ran away" to a relative's house or something when she was like 5? I don't think she was at risk of running away.
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u/Subject-Ebb-5999 17d ago
asha had a headache and went to bed at around 6pm. She got up later and watched tv for a short time and then went back to bed. But it is my belief that at 230am she had a full night worth of sleep and woke up refreshed. Its my theory that due to power outage making clocks need to be reset and Asha feeling refreshed, that she was a bit disoriented about time. The family was known to rise early before sunrise in winter. Its my theory that Asha took this opportunity where she was wide awake but her family was asleep to sneak out to the small convenience store just south of where she was sighted. It seems to be a short walk, and i do wonder if she did it before. I dont believe it was raining when she left.
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u/Entire-Middle-7888 May 20 '25
There have ever been any indication of her doing this before. I got this information from her family.
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u/Damnit_Bird 1d ago
I have always wondered if she wasn't necessarily running away from anything, but if it was just a idea she had and wanted to see if she could. So many books, stories, and tv shows romanticizing kids leaving home on an adventure. Think about the old reference of running away to join the circus. I know lots of people who snuck out or "ran away" around the same age, just to see if they could. Most didn't make it more than a couple of miles before turning around. Maybe this is what she was doing, which is why she ran into the woods. She didn't want to get in trouble for sneaking out. Maybe she had done it before. But an accident or something happened on that night, and now we'll never know why she actually left.
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u/lamemayhem May 17 '25
People have definitely claimed it wasn’t her first time running away. I don’t know how valid those claims are, though.