| Age at missing | 48 years old |
| Case ID | james-woodford-guinn |
| City en | Pineville |
| City geo ID | 4337291 |
| City slug | pineville |
| Classification | Endangered Missing |
| Classification en | Endangered Missing |
| County en | |
| County fips ref | 22079 |
| County slug | rapides-parish |
| Created at | 2026-01-13T02:44:52+00:00 |
| Date of birth | |
| Disappearance details | Guinn was last seen at Pinecrest State School, the state residential facility for mentally disabled individuals where he lived in Pineville, Louisiana, on September 24, 1993. (The facility's name has since been changed to Pinecrest Developmental Center.) He was last seen standing on the patio of his cottage, smoking his pipe, at 4:45 p.m. He was reported missing about fifteen minutes later after he failed to show up for dinner. He has never been heard from again and an extensive search of the area turned up no indication of his whereabouts. Guinn had been living at Pinecrest State School for almost thirty years by the time he went missing and had no record of absconding. His cottage was about a mile from the front entrance, which was unmanned at the time of his disappearance and was the only public access route onto the fenced grounds. He enjoys being around groups of people. He had relatives living in Bossier City at the time of his disappearance, and had also spent time in a mental health facility in New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1995, Guinn's mother sued Pinecrest, alleging their security measures were lacking and her son was inadequately supervised. The institution's treatment plan had said he required "constant supervision", meaning staff needed to keep him in sight or know where he was at all times. Five months before he disappeared, this was downgraded to "close supervision", meaning staff needed to check on him at least every fifteen minutes. Witnesses at the trial suggested it was unlikely Guinn ran away and theorized he was abducted from the grounds and murdered. A judge ruled in Guinn's mother's favor and she was awarded $300,000 in damages. His case remains unsolved. Investigating Agency Pineville Police Department 318-442-6603 Source Information Louisiana Repository for Unidentified & Missing People The Alexandria Town Talk Updated 1 time since October 12, 2004. Last updated December 11, 2016; casefile added. |
| Disappearance details en | Guinn was last seen at Pinecrest State School, the state residential facility for mentally disabled individuals where he lived in Pineville, Louisiana, on September 24, 1993. (The facility's name has since been changed to Pinecrest Developmental Center.) He was last seen standing on the patio of his cottage, smoking his pipe, at 4:45 p.m. He was reported missing about fifteen minutes later after he failed to show up for dinner. He has never been heard from again and an extensive search of the area turned up no indication of his whereabouts. Guinn had been living at Pinecrest State School for almost thirty years by the time he went missing and had no record of absconding. His cottage was about a mile from the front entrance, which was unmanned at the time of his disappearance and was the only public access route onto the fenced grounds. He enjoys being around groups of people. He had relatives living in Bossier City at the time of his disappearance, and had also spent time in a mental health facility in New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1995, Guinn's mother sued Pinecrest, alleging their security measures were lacking and her son was inadequately supervised. The institution's treatment plan had said he required "constant supervision", meaning staff needed to keep him in sight or know where he was at all times. Five months before he disappeared, this was downgraded to "close supervision", meaning staff needed to check on him at least every fifteen minutes. Witnesses at the trial suggested it was unlikely Guinn ran away and theorized he was abducted from the grounds and murdered. A judge ruled in Guinn's mother's favor and she was awarded $300,000 in damages. His case remains unsolved. Investigating Agency Pineville Police Department 318-442-6603 Source Information Louisiana Repository for Unidentified & Missing People The Alexandria Town Talk Updated 1 time since October 12, 2004. Last updated December 11, 2016; casefile added. |
| Disappearance details word count | 318 |
| Distinguishing marks | White male. Blond hair. Guinn wears thick eyeglasses and his two upper front teeth are missing. He walks with a severe limp and often falls. |
| Distinguishing marks en | White male. Blond hair. Guinn wears thick eyeglasses and his two upper front teeth are missing. He walks with a severe limp and often falls. |
| Full name | James Woodford Guinn |
| Full name en | James Woodford Guinn |
| Height | 5'0 - 5'2 |
| ID | 5635 |
| Investigating agency | Pineville Police Department 318-442-6603 Source Information Louisiana Repository for Unidentified & Missing People The Alexandria Town Talk |
| Missing since | 1993-09-24 |
| Official last updated | 2016-12-11 |
| Official update count | 1 |
| Official update history | casefile added. |
| Path | louisiana/rapides-parish/pineville |
| Race | White |
| Race en | White |
| Sex | Male |
| Source info | Louisiana Repository for Unidentified & Missing People The Alexandria Town Talk |
| State en | Louisiana |
| State ref | LA |
| State slug | louisiana |
| Status | active |
| Updated at | 2026-01-13T02:44:52+00:00 |
| URL path | louisiana/rapides-parish/pineville |
| Weight | 140 pounds |
Guinn was last seen at Pinecrest State School, the state residential facility for mentally disabled individuals where he lived in Pineville, Louisiana, on September 24, 1993. (The facility’s name has since been changed to Pinecrest Developmental Center.) He was last seen standing on the patio of his cottage, smoking his pipe, at 4:45 p.m. He was reported missing about fifteen minutes later after he failed to show up for dinner. He has never been heard from again and an extensive search of the area turned up no indication of his whereabouts. Guinn had been living at Pinecrest State School for almost thirty years by the time he went missing and had no record of absconding. His cottage was about a mile from the front entrance, which was unmanned at the time of his disappearance and was the only public access route onto the fenced grounds. He enjoys being around groups of people. He had relatives living in Bossier City at the time of his disappearance, and had also spent time in a mental health facility in New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1995, Guinn’s mother sued Pinecrest, alleging their security measures were lacking and her son was inadequately supervised. The institution’s treatment plan had said he required “constant supervision”, meaning staff needed to keep him in sight or know where he was at all times. Five months before he disappeared, this was downgraded to “close supervision”, meaning staff needed to check on him at least every fifteen minutes. Witnesses at the trial suggested it was unlikely Guinn ran away and theorized he was abducted from the grounds and murdered. A judge ruled in Guinn’s mother’s favor and she was awarded $300,000 in damages. His case remains unsolved. Investigating Agency Pineville Police Department 318-442-6603 Source Information Louisiana Repository for Unidentified & Missing People The Alexandria Town Talk Updated 1 time since October 12, 2004. Last updated December 11, 2016; casefile added.