Overview

• Full name: Brandi Jondell Summers (also recorded as Brandi Jondel Summers)
• Date of birth: January 2, 1972
• Age at disappearance: 5 years old
• Date last seen: March 30, 1977
• Last known location: Family residence in San Bernardino, San Bernardino County, California
• Case classification: Missing child; classified as a non-family abduction by The Charley Project
• Current case status: Unresolved; Brandi remains missing
• Associated missing person: Tiffani Claudette Wise, her younger half-sister
• Associated homicide victim: Beverly Wise, their mother
• Primary investigating agency: San Bernardino Police Department
• Main circumstances: Brandi and Tiffani disappeared on the day their mother was murdered inside the family home. Witnesses reportedly observed a man placing Tiffani into a gold Chevrolet Camaro, but Brandi was not seen during that reported encounter.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Brandi Jondell Summers: The 1977 Abduction of a Five-Year-Old Girl in San Bernardino, California

On March 30, 1977, five-year-old Brandi Jondell Summers disappeared from her family’s home in San Bernardino, California, along with her two-year-old half-sister, Tiffani Claudette Wise. Their mother, Beverly Wise, was found stabbed to death inside the residence. The youngest child in the household, an eight-month-old girl named Stacy, was left behind unharmed.

What followed was a complicated investigation involving reported sightings across several states, allegations against people connected to the family, criminal proceedings, and questions that have remained unanswered for nearly five decades.

Despite extensive attention to the case, neither Brandi nor Tiffani has been publicly confirmed found. Their disappearance remains one of the most troubling aspects of the 1977 killing of Beverly Wise.

According to the California Department of Justice and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, Brandi remains listed as missing.

Case Summary

• Full name: Brandi Jondell Summers (also recorded as Brandi Jondel Summers)
• Date of birth: January 2, 1972
• Age at disappearance: 5 years old
• Date last seen: March 30, 1977
• Last known location: Family residence in San Bernardino, San Bernardino County, California
• Case classification: Missing child; classified as a non-family abduction by The Charley Project
• Current case status: Unresolved; Brandi remains missing
• Associated missing person: Tiffani Claudette Wise, her younger half-sister
• Associated homicide victim: Beverly Wise, their mother
• Primary investigating agency: San Bernardino Police Department
• Main circumstances: Brandi and Tiffani disappeared on the day their mother was murdered inside the family home. Witnesses reportedly observed a man placing Tiffani into a gold Chevrolet Camaro, but Brandi was not seen during that reported encounter.

Sources: The Charley Project, California Department of Justice.

Brandi Summers: Background and Family Life

Brandi Jondell Summers was born on January 2, 1972, in San Jose, California. At the time she disappeared, she lived in San Bernardino with her mother, Beverly Wise, and her younger half-sisters, Tiffani and Stacy.

Brandi’s biological father was Roy Albert Summers, Beverly’s former husband. Tiffani’s father was Claude Wise.

Brandi was known within her family by her middle name, Jondell, sometimes spelled Jondel or Johndell in missing-person records.

A serious childhood medical condition

An especially important detail in Brandi’s disappearance was her health.

Brandi had cystic fibrosis, an inherited medical condition affecting the lungs, digestive system, and other organs. According to The Charley Project, she required medication with every meal at the time she went missing.

Her medical needs raised concerns about whether anyone caring for her after the abduction could provide appropriate treatment.

Investigators and missing-person organizations have also documented several distinctive physical characteristics. Brandi had blonde hair, blue or hazel eyes, surgical scars on her abdomen, and a facial scar.

Her abdominal markings included two linear surgical scars and a circular scar. These identifying features remain relevant because scars may persist into adulthood, although their appearance can change with age.

The California missing-person record specifically documents her abdominal scars.

March 30, 1977: Murder and Disappearance

On March 30, 1977, Beverly Wise was murdered inside her home in the Del Rosa area of San Bernardino.

Her two oldest daughters, Brandi and Tiffani, disappeared in connection with the incident.

Their youngest sister, Stacy, was found unharmed inside the residence. She was approximately eight months old.

The combination of a homicide, two missing young children, and an infant left behind prompted an investigation into what had happened inside the home and who had taken the girls.

The reported gold Camaro

According to The Charley Project, witnesses described seeing a white male outside the family residence placing Tiffani into a gold Camaro.

The man was reportedly wearing a black leather jacket and had short reddish-brown hair.

Witnesses did not report seeing Brandi during this encounter.

The reported description resembled Roy Summers, Brandi’s biological father. However, resemblance alone did not establish the man’s identity.

Police initially spoke with Roy during the week following Beverly’s murder and reportedly did not consider him responsible at that stage. Investigators later reconsidered his possible involvement as the case developed.

The witness description is an important historical lead, but publicly available records do not establish that the reported driver was conclusively identified through physical or forensic evidence.

Source: The Charley Project case profile.

Investigation History: Sightings, Suspicions, and Criminal Proceedings

Early investigative efforts

The investigation expanded beyond California as information emerged suggesting the missing girls might have been taken across state lines.

Historical case accounts describe reported sightings involving Idaho, Nevada, Utah, and other locations in the western United States.

Investigators examined possible connections between Roy Summers, his acquaintances, and people who allegedly encountered the children after their disappearance.

However, the publicly accessible case summaries do not establish that every reported sighting was independently verified.

This distinction matters: a witness account may provide investigators with a lead without proving that a missing child was present at a particular location.

Roy Summers and the murder investigation

Roy Albert Summers became a central figure in the historical investigation.

The Charley Project describes a history of violence involving his previous marriages. Investigators reportedly reconsidered their initial assessment of him as the inquiry progressed.

Historical reporting and case research also describe criminal proceedings arising from the murder and abductions.

A case-focused historical archive, Brandi Summers and Tiffani Wise: Where Are You?, states that eight people were charged with offenses connected to the investigation.

The archive identifies October 28, 1982, as the date a jury verdict was delivered in the major trial.

The archive also reports that Roy Summers was not convicted of Beverly Wise’s murder.

These accounts document significant historical allegations and legal proceedings, but the archive is not an official court docket. Its descriptions of individual charges, alleged misconduct, and trial outcomes should not be treated as independently verified judicial findings without the underlying court records.

Roy Summers should not be described as a convicted murderer in this case. The available material does not establish such a conviction.

Allegations that the girls survived the initial abduction

One of the most significant unresolved questions is whether Brandi and Tiffani remained alive for months or years after March 1977.

The historical archive describes witness statements suggesting the children were seen with adults connected to the investigation after the disappearance.

It also reports that people associated with the case discussed arrangements involving the children’s care or possible adoption.

A retrospective investigation published by And Then They Were Gone examines accounts suggesting the girls may have been moved among households and across state lines.

These accounts are relevant because they raise the possibility that the disappearance did not end with an immediate fatal outcome.

Nevertheless, publicly available official missing-person records do not establish the girls’ whereabouts during those later years.

Reported sightings and retrospective witness accounts must therefore be distinguished from confirmed recoveries or independently established proof of survival.

Sources: Historical case archive, And Then They Were Gone.

Physical evidence and forensic questions

The known public records provide relatively little detailed information about physical evidence recovered during the original investigation.

The published case descriptions identify the mother’s stabbing, the witness account involving a gold Camaro, and the children’s identifying physical characteristics.

They do not provide a comprehensive, authenticated inventory of crime-scene evidence, laboratory findings, fingerprints, biological samples, or other forensic exhibits.

No publicly verified DNA match or forensic identification resolving Brandi’s disappearance was located in the reviewed sources.

There is also no verified public announcement establishing that forensic genetic genealogy has identified Brandi, located her remains, or produced a confirmed suspect in her disappearance.

The absence of a public announcement does not establish that investigators have never collected or tested evidence. It means those particular investigative steps or results could not be confirmed from the available records.

Theories and Unresolved Questions

Several possibilities have been discussed in connection with Brandi’s disappearance. None should be presented as a proven explanation for her ultimate fate.

Theory 1: The girls were concealed by adults connected to the case

Historical witness accounts and family-oriented case research suggest that Brandi and Tiffani may have been kept with adults known to Roy Summers or his associates.

This theory is based partly on reported sightings and allegations concerning the children’s movements after the murder.

It has not been established through a publicly confirmed recovery of either child.

Theory 2: Brandi died because of medical complications

Because Brandi had cystic fibrosis and needed regular medication, some people researching the case have questioned whether she could have survived without appropriate medical care.

The historical case archive discusses the possibility that she died from illness or was killed.

However, there is no publicly verified finding that Brandi died from cystic fibrosis or was murdered.

Her medical condition is a confirmed fact. Any claim about the cause or circumstances of a possible death remains speculative without additional evidence.

Theory 3: One or both girls survived under different identities

Another possibility discussed in case research is that the children were raised under different surnames or identities.

The California Department of Justice lists several alternative surnames associated with Brandi’s record, including Iwakiri, Beer, Carino, Casner, Estes, Fink, and Danos.

The NCMEC poster also identifies Wise as a possible surname.

These names may be useful when evaluating tips, but their inclusion in a missing-person database does not prove that Brandi was legally adopted, renamed, or raised by a particular family.

Important unanswered questions

The central questions remain whether the reported post-1977 sightings were accurate, who removed the girls from the residence, where they were taken, and whether anyone still possesses information that could establish their identities or whereabouts.

There is also the unresolved question of whether records from the historical criminal proceedings contain information that could be reassessed using modern investigative techniques.

Until new evidence is verified, none of these possibilities can be treated as the definitive explanation.

Latest Publicly Available Investigative Updates

Public-record review through October 18, 2026

Brandi remains listed as missing

The California Department of Justice continues to maintain a public missing-person record for Brandi under the spelling Brandi Jondel Summers.

The record identifies the San Bernardino Police Department as the reporting agency and lists case number 77029401.

The NCMEC missing-child poster also continues to identify Brandi and her sister as missing.

As of October 2026, Brandi would be 54 years old, and Tiffani would be 51.

Their continued appearance in these databases is evidence of their publicly listed missing-person status, not proof of a new investigative development.
The current NCMEC poster identifies Brandi’s age-progression image as depicting her at approximately 42 years old and Tiffani’s at approximately 38.

These are illustrative reconstructions, not verified photographs of either woman as an adult.

The Charley Project’s profile records an age-progression update on March 19, 2014.

Source: NCMEC poster 755358.

Continued public awareness

The disappearance has remained the subject of independent historical research, missing-person listings, and true-crime reporting.

In November 2021, the And Then They Were Gone podcast published a two-part examination of the case, revisiting the murder, the missing children, the historical investigation, and reported sightings.

The project brought renewed public attention to the disappearance but did not constitute an official investigative breakthrough.

No newly confirmed resolution

No publicly confirmed recent developments were located establishing an arrest, new prosecution, identification of remains, successful DNA identification, or recovery of Brandi or Tiffani.

No recent official investigative announcement resolving the case was identified.

This does not rule out ongoing investigative work that has not been made public.

Conclusion: A Family Still Seeking Answers

Nearly half a century after Brandi Jondell Summers and Tiffani Claudette Wise disappeared, their whereabouts remain unknown.

Their mother’s murder and the disappearance of two young children created an exceptionally difficult case, complicated by disputed accounts, historical legal proceedings, and the passage of time.

Brandi’s serious medical condition added urgency to the search, while reports that the sisters may have survived the initial abduction have kept questions about their possible later lives open.

The available evidence does not justify declaring Brandi dead or identifying any individual as conclusively responsible for her disappearance.

Anyone with information about the girls, their possible movements after March 30, 1977, the reported gold Camaro, or the people involved in their care is encouraged to contact law enforcement.

Even information remembered from decades ago may be worth reporting. Witnesses should provide what they personally know and distinguish firsthand observations from information heard from others.

The San Bernardino Police Department is the reporting agency listed in California’s official missing-person records. Information can also be submitted through the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678).

Brandi and Tiffani deserve to have their identities, histories, and fates established through reliable evidence. Their case remains unresolved.