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Jermain Charlo

Missing Person Medium Featured

123 views 0 copies Published Oct 06, 2025

Case Details
Location:

Missoula , MT

Description:

Jermain Charlo, a 23-year-old Indigenous woman from the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, vanished in the early hours of June 16, 2018, after leaving The Badlander bar in Missoula, Montana. She was last seen with her ex-boyfriend, Michael DeFrance, who later admitted to discarding her phone in Idaho. DeFrance had a history of domestic violence, including a 2013 conviction for assaulting Charlo. In 2023, he was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison for illegal firearm possession but was not named a suspect in Charlo's disappearance. Despite extensive searches and media coverage, Charlo remains missing, and the case highlights concerns about the systemic issues facing Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW).

Victim Information
Photo of Jermain Charlo
Jermain Charlo

Age: 23 years old

Name:

Jermain Charlo

Age:

23 years old

Description:

Gender: Female

Timeline (5)
Event

Jermain Charlo and Michael DeFrance have an argument at the home they share. Jermain tells police DeFrance held her down across the hood of a van, hit her four times in the face and head, threw her on the ground, and spat on her. When he is subsequently arrested and convicted for partner or family member abuse (PFMA), this is DeFrance's second domestic violence conviction. His first conviction is sealed and occurred prior to 2013. With each conviction, the consequences become harsher, and this time he is ordered to pay a fine, spend a day in jail, forfeit firearms for a year, and complete 40 hours of a domestic violence treatment program.

Event

Jermain and DeFrance have an argument at Jermain's aunt's house. When the aunt intervenes, DeFrance grabs her, throws her to the ground, and lands on top of her. Though he is arrested, it is later unclear if he is ever charged or convicted in the matter.

Evidence

Jermain Charlo was at/near downtown Missoula bars (including The Badlander). Security footage shows her socializing outside The Badlander.

Event

Charlo’s cellphone activity — investigators later obtained call/data records showing her phone “pinged” a tower in the Evaro Hill area for several hours. Law-enforcement reporting gives the window about 2:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. on June 16.

Interview

Michael DeFrance (the man seen with Charlo on video and reported to be her ex) initially told police different versions of what happened that night — first saying he dropped her off in Missoula with her phone, later saying he had her phone and then admitting he discarded it. DeFrance later told investigators he disposed of the phone in Idaho

Case Evidence (2)

Jermain Charlo was at/near downtown Missoula bars (including The Badlander). Security footage shows her socializing outside The Badlander.

Digital Evidence

The panel reversed Michael Blake DeFrance’s conviction for violating 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9), which forbids the possession of firearms by anyone convicted of a “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence”

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Submission Info
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Submitted:

Oct 06, 2025 2:12 AM

Published:

Oct 06, 2025 2:12 AM

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