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Southern Indiana student missing 13 years declared dead

MADISON, Ind. (AP) – A southern Indiana college student who disappeared more than 13 years ago has been declared dead by a judge.

The judge’s order sets the date of death for Molly Dattilo of Madison as July 6, 2004, the day the 23-year-old went missing in Indianapolis. Dattilo was an Eastern Kentucky University student who was taking summer classes at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.

No arrests have ever been made in her disappearance, but in 2010 the family won a $3.5 million civil judgment against two men they believe were responsible.

Dattilo’s family worked to publicize the search for her, but attorney Kerry Thompson tells The Madison Courier the family “decided it was time to close that chapter.”

The court order says Dattilo’s disappearance “cannot be explained other than that she is deceased.”