UPPER LAKE, Calif. – A 54-year-old Upper Lake woman was found dead Wednesday afternoon after initially being reported as missing by her husband earlier that morning.

A search team found the body of Jesma Bailey in Middle Creek, according to Capt. James Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

Bauman said deputies responded to Bailey's residence on Dewell Road shortly before 10:30 a.m. Wednesdsay when her husband, Daniel Bailey, reported that she had disappeared from their residence some time during the previous night.

Daniel Bailey told deputies he had last seen his wife at about 9 p.m. Tuesday when he went to bed, Bauman said. The following morning when Daniel Bailey woke up, his wife was gone and a door leading outside from her room had been left open.

Prior to the deputies’ arrival, Daniel Bailey had found a pillow, a blanket, his wife's reading glasses and some DMV paperwork outside about 40 feet from the home, Bauman said.

Daniel Bailey told deputies that his wife had been troubled about her fourth driving under the influence arrest last November, but had otherwise expressed no thoughts of hurting herself. Bauman said the husband also reported finding empty liquor bottles about the home and a bottle of recently filled prescription medications was found nearly empty.

Additional deputies arrived to assist with looking for Jesma Bailey around the property and the area of Middle Creek, which is directly across Dewell Road from the home, Bauman said. After failing to locate the woman in the immediate area, deputies requested that a search and rescue operation be launched.

Bauman said an incident command center was established at the US Forest Service Station on Elk Mountain Road by Lake County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue and Office of Emergency Services coordinators. Members of the K-Corps joined Search and Rescue volunteers to expand the search area.

Efforts to get air support from outside of the county were thwarted by weather conditions, Bauman said. However at about 2:15 p.m. Wednesday a locally assigned REACH helicopter was able to respond.

While flying the area, the REACH helicopter located what appeared to be clothing along the banks of Middle Creek, Bauman said.

Acting on that information, Bauman said a search team proceeded to an area more than a mile downstream from the Bailey home and at about 3:20 p.m. they found Jesma Bailey deceased in the water.

Upon recovering the body, Bauman said detectives called to the scene found the woman had sustained some superficial injuries, but there were no obvious signs of foul play or significant trauma.

He said the exact circumstances surrounding Jesma Bailey’s death are pending further investigation and her exact cause of death is pending the results of an autopsy scheduled for next Monday.

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