Elijah Vue’s mother faces additional charges as amended criminal complaint details further suspected neglect

MANITOWOC — Katrina B. Baur is facing additional charges in connection with the disappearance of her son, 3-year-old Elijah Vue.

Baur, 31, of Wisconsin Dells, is being held at Manitowoc County Jail and was charged with felony child neglect.

According to a criminal complaint, Baur's felony child neglect charge was changed to felony chronic neglect of a child, and a second felony child neglect charge was added that involves a 6-year-old child. Baur is also charged with two misdemeanor counts of obstructing an officer.

Jesse Vang, a 39-year-old Two Rivers man who was taking care of Elijah when the child went missing, is also being held in the county jail and is suspected of felony child neglect.

Both Baur and Vang appeared in Manitowoc County Circuit Court March 7 via Zoom for their respective preliminary hearings, but those hearings were rescheduled to March 14.

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Here are takeaways from the court appearances and the latest on the search for Elijah.

Amended complaint details Katrina Baur's visits to Two Rivers

According to the amended complaint, Baur visited Vang in the early morning of Feb. 14, which was Valentine's Day, along with a 6-year-old child who is unnamed in the complaint.

The complaint states that texts leading up to Baur's visit indicated Vang told her she couldn't see Elijah when she got to his apartment. He told her he would put Elijah to sleep before she arrived.

Baur also told Vang the 6-year-old child could sleep in the car.

Later, when Baur arrived at the apartment, she texted Vang from the car asking if the car's headlights could turn off completely. She then said she'd leave the car off and then turn it on again later.

The complaint notes that the National Weather Service listed the temperature for Feb. 14 at a low of 27 degrees Fahrenheit and a high of 36 degrees.

The complaint also states that a photo was found on Baur's phone that was taken at approximately 3:13 a.m. Feb. 14 of Elijah lying down on a bed. The photo showed Elijah had a blindfold over his eyes and appeared to have bruising on his jawline, neck and upper arm on the left side. That photo was deleted an hour later.

The complaint also gave details from Baur's phone data when she visited Manitowoc and Two Rivers Feb. 16-17.

According to the complaint, there was a period of time when Vang was at Saucy's Sports Bar in Manitowoc by himself and Baur was at Kwik Trip by herself. Elijah was in Two Rivers during this time and was supposed to be under the care of Baur and Vang.

"Law enforcement has been unable to locate anyone other than Jesse Vang or Katrina Baur who cared for the child on February 16 and 17, 2024," the complaint states.

Elijah was reported missing from the Two Rivers apartment in the 3900 block of Mishicot Road at 10:59 a.m. Feb. 20. Law enforcement has still not been able to locate the boy, despite daily searches throughout Manitowoc County and other areas in Wisconsin.

On Feb. 18, the complaint listed another series of texts between Vang and Baur. Vang told Baur to trust him regarding Elijah's visit with him and that he'll make sure "he hates me and being here."

She responded that she only wanted Elijah to fear him, not hate him, the complaint said.

Vang messaged: "he did fear me ... but he didn't respect me ... now I'm making him respect me."

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Katrina Baur's bail remains at $15,000 cash bond

Baur's motion to modify bail was addressed during the March 7 court appearance.

The motion to modify bail for Baur asked to change the cash bail to a personal recognizance bond, which would not require Baur to pay any money, "on the grounds that Ms. Baur is unable to post the cash bail as set."

Baur's attorney, Ann Larson, said Baur's lifelong residency in Wisconsin and having no serious criminal record should be considered.

"There's a lot of high emotion going on with this case, but there's also high emotion going on with Ms. Baur," Larson said. "She's been worried sick not knowing where her son is."

District Attorney Jacalyn LaBre pointed out that Baur does have a history of missing court dates and said that she does have contact with people out of state who might help her flee.

LaBre also said she is amending Baur's felony child neglect charge to felony chronic neglect of a child and adding another charge of child neglect.

Judge Robert Dewane decided the bail would remain at $15,000 cash.

In Wisconsin, the court system requires people to pay the full cash bail to be released from custody.

Preliminary hearings for Katrina Baur and Jesse Vang were delayed.

Baur and Vang both appeared in Manitowoc County Circuit Court March 7 for preliminary hearings in their respective cases, but both were rescheduled to March 14.

In Baur's case, LaBre recently filed an amended criminal complaint that changes the first felony child neglect charge to felony chronic child neglect and adds a second child neglect charge that involves a second child who is 6 years old. The hearing was rescheduled to give all parties a chance to review the new document.

Vang also faces a felony child neglect charge. However, he has not yet been assigned an attorney from the Office of the State Public Defender.

Vang has already submitted a petition for a court-assigned attorney, but Dewane said he needs to allow more time for the public defenders' office to find an attorney before he can consider Vang's petition.

What to know about Jesse Vang: What to know about Jesse Vang, the Two Rivers man charged with neglecting missing 3-year-old Elijah Vue

The motion to dismiss child neglect charge says Katrina Baur was charged 'because her son went missing.'

Baur has also made a motion to the Manitowoc County Circuit Court to dismiss the charge of felony child neglect.

The motion states: "The complaint charges Ms. Baur with child neglect because her son went missing. Nothing in the complaint asserts that she had reason to believe that leaving her son with Mr. Vang for a week would lead to the child being endangered physically, mentally or emotionally. It is not unreasonable, nor uncommon, to leave a child in the care of family or friends."

The motion was filed March 6, but will not be addressed until Baur's next court appearance March 14.

What happened to Elijah Vue?

Search efforts for 3-year-old Elijah by local, state and federal law enforcement officers have included canvassing of urban and rural neighborhoods; searches of rivers, shores and a landfill in Calumet County; and K-9 teams "checking and rechecking various areas."

The FBI has offered a $15,000 reward for information leading to locating Elijah or convicting those responsible for his disappearance, and Manitowoc County Crime Stoppers has offered a $10,000 reward.

Two Rivers Police Chief Ben Meinnert said they have received hundreds of tips and leads and that officers continue to follow up on all of those.

Volunteer groups made up of residents also continue to aid in searching for the child by volunteering daily to canvass neighborhoods and other public areas.

Do you have information about Elijah Vue?

Police describe Elijah as being of Hmong and white ethnicity with dark brown hair and brown eyes. He is approximately 3 feet tall and has a birthmark on his left knee. He was last seen wearing gray pants, a dark-colored, long-sleeve shirt and a pair of red-and-green dinosaur slip-on shoes. He may also be carrying a red-and-white plaid blanket.

If you have information that could help the Two Rivers Police Department find Elijah Vue, contact their tipline at 844-267-6648 or submit information via the Crime Stoppers app P3.

People who share information that leads to finding Elijah or the arrest of anyone involved in or responsible for his disappearance could be eligible to receive a reward of up to $10,000 through Manitowoc County Crime Stoppers or $15,000 through the FBI.

Alisa M. Schafer is a reporter for the Herald Times Reporter in Manitowoc. She can be reached by email at aschafer@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Elijah Vue: Mother faces more charges related to missing Wisconsin boy