Identified! Canada - Casselman, Ont, 'Nation River Lady' WhtFem 239UFON, 25-50, May'75 *POI charged* - Jewell Parchman Langford

[Betty P]

''According to the documents, he told investigators he killed her after realizing that she had lied to him about her age. At the time of her death, the Tennessee woman was 48 years old and Nichols was 32.''

It's interesting that Rodney Nichols can remember that he killed Jewell Langford because he thought she was too old for him.

Also adding that its commendable that Canadian police have worked so long to identify Jewell and solve her murder.

 

[MarziPanda]

There's also a third option, in between 'faking his illness' and 'too ill, unfit to stand trial' - that he has dementia but is fit to stand trial. People with dementia aren't just fine one day and incompetent the next, millions of people live well with dementia for many years before they lose capacity.

I think he's made it quite clear that he remembers what happened. That doesn't mean he doesn't have dementia, but imo (and that's a very big imo as I'm no expert and haven't met him) it seems like that could mean he's fit to stand trial.

 

[AddyFinch]

Great comments. All true. If he stands trial, this could be an interesting one.

 

[Melt71]

There's also a third option, in between 'faking his illness' and 'too ill, unfit to stand trial' - that he has dementia but is fit to stand trial. People with dementia aren't just fine one day and incompetent the next, millions of people live well with dementia for many years before they lose capacity.

I think he's made it quite clear that he remembers what happened. That doesn't mean he doesn't have dementia, but imo (and that's a very big imo as I'm no expert and haven't met him) it seems like that could mean he's fit to stand trial.

Or he could have just had a rare lucid moment/day which happens even in very unwell dementia sufferers, who on the whole wouldn't be fit for trial. I guess the assessments are trying to determine the place on the scale from well -> unwell he fits.

 

[stefaniied]

My grandmother died of Alzheimer/dementia but she still remembered everything about her childhood/early life lol, but couldn't register new information at all. You don't completely lose your mind one day lol, you just slowly forget everything that happened in your life, from most recent to your oldest memories.

Maybe he does remember yeah, but the fact that he has diagnosed dementia, it will be easy to argue for the defense lol. I don't think he'll stand trial.

 

[Cedars]

My grandmother died of Alzheimer/dementia but she still remembered everything about her childhood/early life lol, but couldn't register new information at all. You don't completely lose your mind one day lol, you just slowly forget everything that happened in your life, from most recent to your oldest memories.

Maybe he does remember yeah, but the fact that he has diagnosed dementia, it will be easy to argue for the defense lol. I don't think he'll stand trial.

Yes, I agree the older memories last the longest. IMO, the issue with being fit to stand trial is whether he can understand the situation now, ie the charges against him, what a trial is, what the consequences are, can he cooperate with his lawyer to mount a defense...

Also, if faking, he won't be able to just go back to real life, he'll require constant observation and control because he's so out of it all.

JMO

 

[stefaniied]

Yes, I agree the older memories last the longest. IMO, the issue with being fit to stand trial is whether he can understand the situation now, ie the charges against him, what a trial is, what the consequences are, can he cooperate with his lawyer to mount a defense...

Also, if faking, he won't be able to just go back to real life, he'll require constant observation and control because he's so out of it all.

JMO

Maybe I am missing something, but if he has "full onset dementia" like his lawyers claim and not "Rapidly Progressive dementia" that means he must have had his diagnostic years ago & not something that progressed just in the last months, so it's easy to know if he's faking it or not... It takes many years to reach full onset dementia... Also, doesn't he have a legal guardian? As soon as my gm had her diagnosis my gf became her legal guardian because she was deemed unfit.

I wish he would pay for what he did, but if he has had his diagnosis years ago and has a legal guardian, even though he can still undertand the situation now, it could be a lucidity moment lol, I don't think it would be ethical to try him.