James Robert Cooper was 16 when he left his Maple Boulevard home in Monroe, Michigan, on October 25, 1996, intending to attend Monroe High School but never returned. He was seen outside the school that morning and a witness later thought she saw him sitting inside a vehicle near the campus, though the car, driver and direction of travel were never identified.

At disappearance he was about five feet eleven inches, 155 pounds, with light brown to blond hair, blue eyes, braces and a scarred area on one arm; reports disagree on whether the scar was on his left or right arm. He left without wallet, identification or money and did not pick up his final paycheck, which raised questions about whether he intended to run away.

No verified sightings, belongings, crime scene or suspects have been publicly reported. His family remained in Monroe and the investigation stayed open; he was legally declared dead in 2017. Does anyone who lived in Monroe at the time remember seeing James or the vehicle near the school that morning?