14/06/2025
🚨MISSING 🚨TENNESSEE 🚨
Marsha Brantley, born Marsha Ellen Rader, has been missing from Cleveland, TN, since approximately June 2nd, 2009.
Marsha was the only child of her parents, who both passed away in 2000. She never had children of her own. She lived with her husband of nine years, Donnie Brantley, and her three dogs in a house that her parents built for her in Cleveland, TN.
The date of Marsha's disappearance is estimated, as she was not reported missing until November 2009, when her hairdresser and friend, Kelly, noticed that she had not been in for appointments after Marsha's neighbor inquired about her.
The neighbor said that she had not seen Marsha walking her dogs in a while and that her flower beds had not been tended to. This, combined with the fact that Kelly had not seen or heard from Marsha, was a red flag for both the neighbor and Kelly.
Kelly started placing calls to Marsha's phone, but received no answers, and she had no luck getting Donnie on the phone either. The neighbor went to the house to inquire about Marsha, but Donnie answered, saying she had left him and they were getting a divorce.
Over time, Donnie would provide many conflicting statements regarding Marsha's whereabouts. At one point, he claimed that she left to go stay in their camper in Townsend, TN, and on other occasions, he would say she left him to stay with friends out west.
Donnie never reported Marsha as missing and refused to answer questions or help search for her. He lied to police, saying that Marsha took her phone with her and was later caught with it in his possession. As if that isn't bothersome enough, he also used her phone to call the Chattanooga singles line.
After he was initially questioned by police, he took Marsha's jewelry and laptop and sold them to a pawnshop.
He failed a polygraph, and when interviewed, he refused to answer by pleading the fifth or said he could not remember around one hundred times.
It is no surprise that he was and is the main suspect in Marsha's disappearance. He has actually been charged with her murder twice, but both times the charges were dropped due to a lack of evidence.
His Lawyer explains that Donnie never reported her missing because she left him. He says that lying about the phone doesn't make him guilty of murder and that Donnie sold some of Marsha's belongings because he needed cash. His Lawyer also claims that Marsha took an estimated $100,000 in money that they kept hidden in the house when she left. His Lawyer says that he is innocent and that, because no body has been found, there is no proof that a murder even occurred.
Indeed, Marsha's body has not been found, and a crime scene has not been identified. It is also true that 16 years have now passed and Marsha has not returned to get her belongings, including records, sentimental items, her dogs, which she loved so much, her vehicle, or her house that her adoring parents built for her. It is also true that she has been legally declared deceased.
What happened exactly and when it happened remain unknown.
It is reported that Marsha's last conversation was with her friend Kim, who lives in Ohio, on May 27th, 2009. Marsha's phone stopped receiving calls altogether on June 2nd. 2009.
On June 3, 2009, Donnie delivered a greeting card to his ex-girlfriend's mailbox, and on the inside of the card, he wrote, "Things are better for me now."
So what happened to Marsha?
Some say she was very depressed before her disappearance. Some make comments about her weight loss. Some even remark about her struggles with menopause.
I took the better part of my evening to read Marsha's words myself in hopes of getting more of a perspective of who she was.
Marsha was a very talented writer. She was an animal lover who volunteered at a shelter. She was on a slight weight loss journey. She was witty and found humor in many situations, and she was also someone who used her words to raise awareness of situations she felt needed attention. She enjoyed watching movies and reading books. She was very excited about a book she was writing. She did love camping, the wildlife, and Tennessee.
What I did not find was any sign that she was done with life or any warnings that she wanted to leave.
Heartbreakingly enough, I did find that she loved Donnie deeply and that her marriage was something significant to her. Her second-to-last blog entry was in honor of their ninth wedding anniversary.
"I remember Donnie and I saying how much we looked forward to getting past the wedding and getting on with "real" life. Nine years later, a lot of water has gone under that bridge, equal parts happy and sad, and I love him more than I ever thought possible." -Marsha Brantley, March 31st, 2009
Her final blog entry, dated May 10, 2009, is about watching a Star Trek movie with Donnie.
Marsha's Camper was found on property belonging to a relative of Donnie's in 2012.
What do you remember or know about this case? Where is Marsha Brantley?
Are any more of her writings outside of her short story and blog available anywhere to read?
If you have any information, regardless of how insignificant it may seem, please call the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation at 1-800-TBI-FIND or the Bradley County Sheriff's Office at 423-728-7336.
