Baltimore mother desperate for information on missing son with schizophrenia and epilepsy
It’s been more than a year since 22-year-old Tiyaun J. Leach went missing from West Baltimore, leaving his family desperate for answers. His mother, LaMonica Patton, continues to call hospitals, shelters and jails in a relentless search for her son, who struggles with schizophrenia and epilepsy. The post Baltimore mother desperate for information on missing son with schizophrenia and epilepsy appeared first on AFRO American Newspapers.
Black News 
By Megan Sayles
AFRO Staff Writer
msayles@afro.com
It’s been more than a year since 22-year-old Tiyaun J. Leach went missing in Baltimore, leaving his family in a constant state of fear and uncertainty. Since then his mother, LaMonica Patton, has spent most of her days calling and visiting hospitals, shelters and jails—determined to find information that her son is safe.
Leach’s case highlights the challenges vulnerable adults can encounter when they go missing. The young man has schizophrenia and epilepsy, and Patton said he often struggles to manage his medications. When he does not take them, he can become irritable and has difficulty regulating his behavior—making it harder for him to navigate daily life safely.
“I’m just hoping and praying that he is OK,” said Patton. “Every time I’m out, I’m looking around and everybody looks like him to me.”
In the weeks leading up to his disappearance in February 2025, Leach had been living in his mother’s apartment at Greenspring Overlook in West Baltimore while she recovered from a spinal surgery. He had recently been removed from a program in East Baltimore after a physical altercation with another participant.
Patton said she has asked him to find another place to stay, in part because he had been taking items from her home, but she never expected him to go missing. After her request, Leach began staying in the basement laundry area of Patton’s apartment building. While staying there, Leach experienced a seizure, prompting a neighbor to call an ambulance.
He was taken to Grace Medical Center for treatment and discharged, but Patton said she never received clear information on where he went afterward. According to her, hospital staff gave conflicting accounts—some suggesting he was sent to a shelter, others a nursing home—but none could confirm a specific location. Patton said that they repeatedly cited HIPAA privacy rules as a reason they could not give her details, even though she stressed that her son is a vulnerable adult.
“Somebody’s got to know something,” said Patton. “There’s no way in the world a person just goes missing from Baltimore City like that and everything goes cold.”
The Baltimore Police Department told the AFRO that Leach was last seen on Feb. 24, 2025, at the 2400 block of Loyola Northway in West Baltimore. There, he was captured on video by a door camera.
Police said the investigation is still open but had no other details to share.
Patton described her son as a caring, generous young man, despite the challenges he faces navigating his schizophrenia and epilepsy. She said he would give someone the shirt off his back or the last dollar in his pocket if they needed it.
As time has passed, Patton has grown increasingly worried that there has been no movement on her son’s medical assistance—knowing that he routinely requires medical care to manage his conditions. The uncertainty has left her feeling overwhelmed, forcing her to seek support for her own mental health.
“I had to get a psychiatric doctor because of this. I talk to her every Thursday and without her, I don’t know where I would be right now. I know I have other children to live for—I have six kids and seven grandkids,” said Patton. “I want to be around for them, but this situation with my son being gone like that is really taking a toll on me.”
Individuals with information about Leach’s whereabouts can call Patton at 443-325-6382.
The post Baltimore mother desperate for information on missing son with schizophrenia and epilepsy appeared first on AFRO American Newspapers.
