Travis Decker’s Ex Wants Him Found ‘Dead or Alive,’ Says Lawyer — But Do Authorities Think He’s Still Living?

Travis Decker’s ex-wife wants him found “dead or alive,” her attorney said this week, as authorities continue to assess whether the long-missing father is in hiding — or if he may already be dead.

Decker, a 32-year-old U.S. Army veteran, has been the subject of a manhunt since his three daughters, Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5, were found asphyxiated near his pickup truck in the remote Rock Island Campground in Washington State on June 2.

He failed to bring the girls back to his ex-wife, Whitney Decker, in Wenatchee, Wash., after taking them for a court-ordered visit on May 30. 

But after a nearly month-long search spanning multiple counties in the state, Travis, who is wanted on first-degree murder and kidnapping charges, is nowhere to be found.

During a June 26 appearance on NewsNation’s Banfield, Whitney’s attorney said the grieving mother hopes Travis is found, “dead or alive.”

“That’s a huge, a huge thing that she wants,” attorney Arianna Cozart said. “It’s very, very important to her so that she can have peace.”

On June 23, the Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office said they were shifting their resources amid the search since they believe there is “no certain evidence that Decker remains alive or in this area.” He has been described by authorities as a former military man trained in survival skills.

When asked whether Whitney would prefer Travis be found dead or alive, her attorney said she isn’t focused on that distinction.

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“I don’t think she’s able to think that far ahead, because either way, it’s hard, right? I think that she knows that if he is found alive, he’ll never be able to answer the questions that she might have to a point where it would give her peace. I think that her main focus is just that he’s found one way or the other,” Cozart said on the show.

Cozart previously told PEOPLE Whitney was “shocked and devastated” when she learned her girls had died. Whitney never suspected her ex-husband of causing harm. “This man never laid a hand on those girls,” Cozart said.

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According to Cozart, the couple split in 2022 as a result of his alleged mental health struggles. “He seemed to suffer from PTSD as a result of combat,” she previously told PEOPLE. “Whitney struggled to help Travis through severe paranoia, nightmares and insomnia.” Cozart said he tried to get help but nothing seemed to change.

Whitney — who said she regrets that authorities never issued an Amber Alert about her missing daughters — will advocate to improve the alert system and provide more mental health services for veterans, Cozart told PEOPLE.

Last week, Whitney spoke out publicly for the first time at a memorial held in Wenatchee, and said she was “so thankful for that time I had with the girls.”