The Unavoidable Truth: Brittany Robinson

In this episode of Hunting 4 Answers: In June 2012, 14-year-old Brittany Robinson was dropped off at her father’s home in Mobile, Alabama for what was supposed to be a weekend visit. She never came home. Days later, he vanished too. For more than a decade, Brittany’s family waited for answers until new evidence reignited the case and led to a murder trial that would divide a courtroom and devastate a community. Anyone with information about this case is urged to contact the Mobile Police Department at 251-208-7211 or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST.

This is the story of Brittany Robinson.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hunting for Answers is a production of The Black Effect
Podcast Network and iHeartRadio. Did you know that, according to
national data, one in five women and one in sixteen
men experience sexual assault during college. The Hunting for Answers
Campus Tour is bringing this conversation straight to college campuses,

(00:21):
starting on December first at Clark Atlanta University. We'll be
in the Carl Maryware Building Room one O three at
twelve pm. Come out and join us as we break
down relational awareness, dating literacy, and how we all can
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see you there. For more details, follow Hunting for Answers

(00:44):
on social media. Welcome to Hunting for Answers, a true
crime podcast. I'm your host Hunter, and today we're highlighting
a case out of Mobile, Alabama, a case that has
haunted the community for more than a decade. In the

(01:05):
summer of twenty twelve, a fourteen year old girl was
dropped off at her father's home for what was supposed
to be a weekend visit. She never came home. Her
father left town immediately after she disappeared, and for thirteen years,
these seemed to be the only person who knew what

(01:29):
really happened. In twenty twenty four, the case took a
chilling turn that would lead to a trial and even
more questions. Today, she still remains missing. This is the
story of Brittany Robinson. Brittany Chante Robinson I was just

(02:00):
fourteen years old, a bright, kind hearted teen with a
love for reading and drawing. She was preparing to start
ninth grade at Murphy High School in the fall of
twenty twelve, enrolled in advanced courses and excited for what
was ahead. Her family remembers her as mature beyond her years,

(02:26):
yet still very much a kid at heart. She lived
with severe asthma and relied on daily medication, so when
she vanished without it, those who loved her knew something
was very wrong. On the morning of June fourteenth, twenty twelve,

(02:48):
Britney's aunt dropped her off at her father's home on
Recovery Road and Mobile for what was supposed to be
a two day visit. Her father, Demitric Hooper, would say
he'd bring her back on Sunday, but she was never
seen again. Hooper left Mobile immediately after the disappearance and

(03:13):
traveled extensively throughout the southeast. At that moment, there was
no record that he ever reported her missing. For weeks,
her mother and relatives called, searched, and waited until a
missing person bulletin was issued. Investigators traced her father to Arkansas,

(03:37):
where he had entered a mental health facility in September
of twenty twelve. Her father suffered from schizophrenia and had
sought treatment at that facility in the years before Britney's disappearance.
He had been hospitalized multiple times in Alabama for his

(03:57):
mental illness and struggles with drug use. When police found him,
he was in possession of Britney's pink iPod, a rope,
and knives, but Britney herself was still nowhere in sight.
In the years that followed, Hooper was charged with custodial

(04:22):
interference in connection with Britney's disappearance. He eventually pleaded guilty
to the felony and served time in prison, but even
then he never revealed what happened to his daughter. After
Britney's disappearance, family members searched, called, and waited. Police and

(04:46):
volunteer groups conducted ground searches near mccovery Road and other
areas following leads, but Brittany was still nowhere to be
found and the case was going cold. Her mother held
on to hope, but as the years were on, authorities

(05:08):
began to suspect something far less hopeful. In December twenty
twenty three, everything changed. Demitric Hooper was arrested in Oklahoma
City on unrelated felony charges, assault with a dangerous weapon

(05:28):
and burglary. While he sat in custody, investigators in Mobile
revisited the file on his daughter's disappearance, reviewing old statements,
re examining evidence, and consulting the cold case unit. By
February twenty twenty four, a Mobile County grand jury returned

(05:53):
a formal indictment charging Hooper with murder in the presumed
death of his daughter, Brittany Jante Robinson. In May twenty
twenty four, Dmitric Hooper was extradited back to Alabama to
face a murder charge and the disappearance. Prosecutors argued that

(06:16):
the passage of time, his post disappearance behavior, and the
items found in his possession all pointed to one unavoidable
truth that Brittany was no longer alive. Mobile District Attorney
Keith Blackwood had told reporters, the passage of time makes

(06:38):
it more certain that Britney Robinson was killed and that
you know she didn't run away and is just going
to appear back in mobile one day. But without her
remains and without forensic evidence showing what happened to her,
the prosecution faced an uphill value to prove guilt beyond

(07:02):
a reasonable doubt. The trial began early June twenty twenty five.
Jurors heard about a controlled burn site where investigators found
a shovel and a burnt cell phone, and bones discovered
on a dirt road that were later determined to be

(07:22):
animal remains. Britney's sister and aunt testified that Hooper grew
agitated whenever the topic of Britney's disappearance came up. They
also heard testimony about hair found and a bird's nest
hair that tests revealed came from a wig. It was

(07:45):
a case built almost entirely on circumstantial evidence and a
missing teen no one could explain. In the end, the
jury returned its verdict not guilty. For Britney's family, the
acquittal was devastating. They had waited thirteen years for answers

(08:12):
and were left with even more questions. Today, Britney Chantey
Robinson remains missing. According to the National Center for Missing
and Exploited Children, she would now be twenty seven years old.

(08:33):
Her case is still listed as active by the Mobile
Police Department's Cold Case Unit Age Progression. Images on file
with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children show
what she might look like today and for her mother
and family, the search for Answers continues. Our thoughts and

(08:58):
prayers are with a fear family and friends of Britney Robinson.
If you have any information about her disappearance, contact the
Mobile Police Department or the National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children. You can find their contact information in the
description below. As we close out this episode, remember to

(09:22):
share Britney's story to help spread awareness and to keep
her name alive as her family continues their fight for justice.
Don't forget to follow Hunting for Answers to stay updated
on Britney's case and others like it. Subscribe on YouTube
and follow us on Instagram and TikTok for more true

(09:44):
crime stories and updates. And if you're watching on YouTube,
feel free to share your thoughts on this case in
the comments below. Thank you so much. For joining us
for another episode until next time. Hunting for Answers is

(10:14):
a production of the Black Effect Podcast Network. For more
podcasts from the Black Effect Podcast Network, visit the iHeartRadio app,
Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.