Jaycee Dugard's Mom Consulted Psychic

A psychic said that she predicted that kidnap victim Jaycee Lee Dugard would return home safely.

Dayle Schear, a Reno, Nev., psychic who has worked on high-profile cases like the O.J. Simpson case, was consulted by Dugard's mother, Terry Probyn, in 1991. KOLO-TV reports that Schear told Probyn , "I looked her in the eyes and I said please do not give up on this child...eventually she'll walk through the door, you're going to see her again."

KOLO reports that Schear provided Probyn with details on her daughter's confinement. " I described the general area and how she was being held. I said it was sexual...I knew she was being held at force and she could not get to a phone to call."

Dugard has been reunited with her family after being held captive for 18 years in a backyard shed by a convicted sex offender and his wife.

Investigators have often incorporated information from psychics when working on cases, but they don't actively seek out their help, according to an article on TruTV . Author Vernon J. Geberth who wrote a book called "Practical Homicide Investigation" notes that there is little research on how much psychics have helped in solving crimes.

Benjamin Radford on LiveScience.com writes that psychics often tout their abilities to help solve crime cases, but that they usually give information so vague that it's useless. "If Shear's psychic powers told her that this poor girl was being kept in the most horrific conditions -- being subjected to continual sexual and physical abuse for nearly two decades -- then it's puzzling that Jaycee was not found 18 years ago."

Radford also notes that there hasn't been a single documented missing person that has been found or recovered due solely to psychic information. He cites the TruTV show " Haunting Evidence ," which followed psychic detectives as they investigated cold cases. The show was cancelled after three seasons without having solved a single case.

The Criminal Report Daily blog on Discovery.com writes that in some cases, psychics have caused more harm than good. "Do you recall the cases of Holly Krewson , Opal Jo Jennings, Lynda McClelland, or Shawn Hornbeck? In each of those cases, [psychic Sylvia] Browne provided false hope to the families by offering inaccurate information. Specifically, in the case of Shawn Hornbeck, Browne predicted that he was dead. However, Hornbeck was alive and located less than six month later. The Hornbeck family subsequently appeared on 'Anderson Cooper 360' (a CNN news program), during which time they stated that Browne had offered to give them more information for a nominal fee of $700. Of course, Browne ultimately denied the family's allegations."

Radford has a suggestion for those who claim psychic abilities to solve cases. "If they have the powers they claim, perhaps they should take a break from their TV appearances and lucrative lecture circuits to actually help find these and other desperate missing persons. "

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