Mom of missing Calif. teen: 'Be strong — I know you can survive'

Video: Mom’s ‘heart aches’ for missing daughter

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2. Closed captioning of: Mom’s ‘heart aches’ for missing daughter

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   >> parents marlene and steve , and her sister danielle, are now joining us, along with lori smith, the santa claire are county sheriff . good morning to all of you.

   >> good morning.

   >> good morning.

   >> good morning.

   >> i know that as hard as it is to be on our television this morning, you are here because you want to do everything possible to help find sierra . so, marlene , you know, knowing your daughter, knowing what these new details that the police are now releasing, what does your gut tell you about what happened to sierra ?

   >> well, as every -- each day goes on i just have this gut feeling that she's not willfully choosing to be away. she loved her family. and she loved her friends. and i just know that she wouldn't -- wouldn't intentionally be away as the day goes on, my heart aches for her. i know she's out there. you know, i keep praying and i have faith that she's going to find her way back to us. and we're all going to embrace her. we loved her so much. we're praying for you, honey, we just want you back. we want you coming back. i can't wait to see you again.

   >> i know a lot of people listening are hoping you get that wish come true, marlene . i -- can either of you or steve explain why she was carrying a bag of clothing to school? have you ruled out in your minds that she might have been thinking about running away ?

   >> no. but i haven't thought of that. but i know that frequently she would borrow clothes from her friends, and they would -- she would bring things to her friends to, you know, wear, and she would borrow -- and borrow things that she really liked that they were wearing. you know, she's done that in the past quite a few times.

   >> steve , you also -- go ahead, steve .

   >> i was just going to say, there's no reason why we would think she would have a bag -- pack a bag of clothes like that. it's just --

   >> you released a statement, steve , on wednesday to address the fact that you are a registered sex offender , and you were trying to remind people, you said, that police say that, you know, that you are not a person of interest in this case. yet, you leave concerns about whether or not your history could shape public opinion about sierra . could distract people from the case. what do you want to say about that this morning?

   >> yeah. the only thing i'm going to say, as i stated, you know, i wanted the focus to be on sierra . we've got to find sierra . i'm not a suspect or a person of interest so i just want that, you know, removed. we've been cooperating, you know, with authorities, and i -- they've stated that also, and i just want that out of the way so that we can focus on sierra , finding sierra .

   >> sheriff, last night you brought in the fbi brought in actually search dogs and equipment into the house where sierra lived. why did that happen? do you know what they were looking for?

   >> what we know is that sierra probably --

   >> go ahead.

   >> probably didn't leave -- what we know is sierra probably didn't leave the court. no one sees her that morning. she did actually consensual searches on all the houses in the cul-de-sac. we wanted to rule out that any of the people here had anything to do with her disappearance.

   >> i see. and how -- so what will the focus then be on today, and in the coming days, as the clock as you know well is ticking?

   >> we're going to be continuing our investigation. we're doing hundreds of interviews. we're continuing to talk to kids. today, since it is the one-week anniversary, we're going to be doing roadblocks this morning, actually talking with all the cars that go past, see if that's their normal place to be on friday. but we have a tremendous number of people assigned to it doing many different things today.

   >> marlene , since you said at the beginning of this interview that you are increasingly concerned that sierra 's being held against her will, what -- do you have a message this morning to anyone who may be preventing her from coming home ?

   >> please, please find it in your heart to release her. we love her so much. and we ache for her and we're anxious to see her again. please find it in your heart to let her go. if you could see, the public is concerned about her, and we all are, as each day -- as each day comes, it just gets more difficult. sierra , if you're out there, please, be strong. i know you could survive this. i know you can. you're a strong individual and you're going to -- you're going to make it back to us.

   >> i know a lot of people are praying for your family. marlene , steve and danielle, i know you're there to support your parents. thank you so much, all of you. and also sheriff smith, thank you. we wish you every luck in finding sierra . and if you have any information on sierra 's disappearance you should call the santa clara county sheriff's office. the number is

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