Nothing has been found in nearly three weeks of searching, but authorities and family members are still hopeful that Kiplyn Davis's remains will be found.

Acting on a tip, authorities began searching a site near Spanish Fork River Park around April 12 for the missing 15-year-old. In the 13 years since Kiplyn disappeared, authorities have conducted countless searches, but none lasted near as long as the current effort. Richard Davis, Kiplyn's father, said the longest had lasted only a few days.

"We've just got to continue to be patient. Hopefully they'll find her," Davis said. "The longer it goes, you start to have your doubts again."

Deputy County Attorney Mariane O'Bryant, who is prosecuting the two men charged with Kiplyn's murder, expressed a similar sentiment.

"We're always hopeful, but you know of course the longer it goes on, the less likely that seems," she said.

The search was on hold for much of last week because of wet weather in Spanish Fork Canyon, Richard said. But on Wednesday, crews continued to dig and sift through dirt at the search site, which O'Bryant said is "much smaller than an acre."

A large mound of dirt stood near the end of Thistle Slide Road -- the old U.S. 6 that was blocked by a landslide in 1983 -- and crews at several tables sifted through the pile by hand. A bulldozer continued to excavate more dirt throughout the day.

O'Bryant said it is difficult to tell how long the search will continue.

Kiplyn, then a 15-year-old sophomore, disappeared from Spanish Fork High School on May 2, 1995. Two former classmates, Timmy Brent Olsen and Christopher Neal Jeppson, have been charged with her murder and are awaiting trial. Both men, along with three others, have been convicted of or pleaded guilty to perjury for lying to a federal grand jury that convened to investigate Kiplyn's disappearance.

Throughout the years, a number of searches have focused on areas in Spanish Fork Canyon. Witnesses at Olsen's perjury trial and preliminary hearing, as well as at the grand jury, said they heard Olsen say Kiplyn was buried in the canyon by himself or others.

The area where crews are now searching lies near Thistle Slide Road, beyond Spanish Fork River Park. The park was built in 2000 after Utah County purchased the land from Union Pacific. At the time of Kiplyn's disappearance, the future park land was used primarily for cattle grazing.

Davis said the current search is frustrating but well worth the effort. Authorities have acted on most of the tips that they have received about possible burial sites, and though none led them to Kiplyn's remains, Davis said all were worth following up on. "Everything's worth doing, because if you don't look you don't know," he said. "I appreciate all that they're doing for me. I just don't know how I'll ever pay them back."

Olsen and Jeppson will be back in Provo's 4th District Court on May 15 for arguments on several motions filed by their attorneys, including requests to separate the two codefendants' cases and to change the venue for the trials.

• Jeremy Duda can be reached at 344-2561 or jduda@heraldextra.com.

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