Found Deceased CA - Blaze Bernstein, 19, Lake Forest, 2 Jan 2018 #4

I just joined and have given most of the BB commentary a thorough look. I suspect this murder will be solved eventually, probably sooner rather than later. In the meantime, I do want to raise an issue that (as far as I can tell) was not extensively discussed yet.

BB left his wallet, keys, glasses and meds at home, suggesting (it has been said), BB expected to be away for a relatively short time. This could be part of it, but I'm curious about how this relates to BB's expectations of the encounter, and possible 'defensive' preparations in the event that the individual(s) he expected to meet cause problems. The glasses and meds may not be such a big deal, but if BB was concerned about any shadiness on the part of his hookup, he might leave keys and wallet behind, to safeguard both himself and his family.

Speaking personally, if I were truly meeting an old high school bud for a 'catch up' while home on break, I would likely bring my keys and wallet with me, as I generally feel undressed without them, at least while away from home, and I think most people would. If there was indeed a third person, and the driver checks out OK by LE, then it suggests that the 'third man' , if he did exist, was a total stranger to BB.

Another thing: if the driver were truly an old high school bud the family knew, why not just have him stop by the house and knock on the door, prior to getting in the car. I'm sure this will become clearer once LE releases info on the identity of the driver and the history of his relationship with BB, but in the meantime I suspect it is an important angle on this. Based on what we know now, BB appears to have slipped out of the house surreptitiously, which adds a bit of darkness to the proceedings. He was keeping things totally secret, or anticipated the possibility - however remote - of something untoward.

I think the alibi was literally made up as the police were questioning him. Otherwise he could have come up with an alibi that is just difficult to verify because it doesn't involve being around other people, such as "I was at home watching TV" or "I was going for a drive to clear my head" or "I was sleeping" or something.

anonypotomous said:

Please tell me how the police can assume and even state that they feel it was not premeditated when they haven’t even arrested anyone yet or gotten a confession. They must know *something* if they can seem to be so sure that there was no premeditation. How can they be sure that the killer didn’t pick him up specifically to murder him?




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An example would be manner of death. If Blaze had no signs of physical trauma (not stabbed/shot/beaten on the head/whatever) but had, say, needle holes in his arms and looked like he OD'ed, they might think it was an accidental OD and his scared addict friend buried him in a panic because he didn't want to call police and get caught himself for possession.

The police may also lying hoping that the suspect will confess and say it was an accident, at which point they'd have a confession and could charge him with whatever they wanted including first degree murder

Tortoise said:

Because then they would be able to check her out and find out she doesn't exist or if she does exist won't corroborate his story.

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I doubt there was any "thinking" going on when that alibi was spewed to LE.

They checked it out in that they questioned him and it appears he may as well not bothered with an alibi that can't be corroborated.

eucalyptuz said:

The leaking of the affidavit is odd. We don't get to see the whole thing, only the parts that leave the driving friend suggestively in the 'guilty' frame. And surely with the evidence they already have on him, it's a wonder why there's been no arrest...This makes me think that maybe there is another person involved and that the driver,although complicit, was not the main doer? The leaking of these damning parts of the affidavit would certainly turn up the heat on the driving friend and if he was not responsible for the murder (but accomplice after the fact for sure), perhaps leading to a ID-ing of third party? Not convinced of this theory myself but the partial leak and then sealing of the document feels a bit like 'strategy'.

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I've been thinking along these lines as well, but we'll see.

I'm also very skeptical that the dirt under the fingernails - 36+ hours after the murder - doesn't make sense to me.

Could be a case of misdirection by LE, making people think they're looking at the driver and letting the potential 3rd person and actual perp breathe a little easier. Who knows?

PaulR said:

I think the alibi was literally made up as the police were questioning him. Otherwise he could have come up with an alibi that is just difficult to verify because it doesn't involve being around other people, such as "I was at home watching TV" or "I was going for a drive to clear my head" or "I was sleeping" or something.

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It seems that way on first glance, but maybe he knew they could check his phone location or there were people at or security cameras near his residence that wouldn't check out with that. Maybe he'd already given a story to people he lived with (if he lived with anyone) and couldn't change it.

curiosityscat said:

Unless something has changed, which I missed...From all the new reports I read, it was the organized Police Search efforts that located his body, and it happened because of the weather change (the rains), made his body more visible than it had been previously...the area had originally been searched by police, drones, etc...(but was missed because it was concealed & the rains unearthed it)...where his body was finally located was shockingly close to the site of where his memorial was located..(which is why I said, unless I missed something and LE came back and said he was moved;however, as I understand it, that was not the case, and his body was never moved.)

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Sheriff in the press conference indicated they believe he had been in the park since the murder and therefore the body wasn't moved (not 100% clear if it could have been moved within the park, but I suspect everything went down in that secluded location where it was found)

stlrfninca said:

I've been thinking along these lines as well, but we'll see.

I'm also very skeptical that the dirt under the fingernails - 36+ hours after the murder - doesn't make sense to me.

Could be a case of misdirection by LE, making people think they're looking at the driver and letting the potential 3rd person and actual perp breathe a little easier. Who knows?

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It may have been a tiny amount of dirt in his cuticle area but a seasoned detective would notice.


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gitana1 said:

I don't know. It strikes me as a true detail. Washing your hands wouldn't necessarily get rid of dirt embedded under the nail. He would've needed to scrub it out with a brush or scoop it out with a file.

And what about the scratches?

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I agree that the driver may not have known how to get all the dirt out of his nails. Or he might've been really clueless.

But another possible explanation of his some of his more obvious and clueless acts, with respect to the dirt, the girlfriend with no name or address, the not touching doorknobs, etc.: He may know he's guilty and unconsciously want to be caught.

The leaked part of the affidavit also says 'Detectives noticed that the friend was nervous and was “breathing heavy, talking fast and visibly shaking.”' So clearly he's afraid. But he may also feel guilty. I wonder whether detectives are still trying to get him to confess.

(If a third party was also involved, for instance, if a relative helped him clean up the crime scene, he also might be trying to protect that person.)

An immediate arrest would mean they believe they have enough to charge a suspect and make an arrest stick. In the grand scheme of things this has been a relatively short-lived case. At first the media coverage seemed really strange to me, with publications reporting on the heavy breathing and visible shaking, now I think it was to coerce a confession.

anonypotomous said:

Please tell me how the police can assume and even state that they feel it was not premeditated when they haven’t even arrested anyone yet or gotten a confession. They must know *something* if they can seem to be so sure that there was no premeditation. How can they be sure that the killer didn’t pick him up specifically to murder him?




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I believe all their public comments were phrased to not scare the subject who had been talking to them. Keep him talking and piling up the evidence against him.

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I mentioned this prior to the thread being shut down, but do we know that the driver is an adult? Could he be a minor?

One MSM article stated that they were doing a rush DNA analysis on the evidence they had. Does anyone know how long it takes to get the results from this?

darmela said:

One MSM article stated that they were doing a rush DNA analysis on the evidence they had. Does anyone know how long it takes to get the results from this?

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It can be done in a day or two if they are pushing it ahead.

kkdj said:

I mentioned this prior to the thread being shut down, but do we know that the driver is an adult? Could he be a minor?

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I don't believe it's been stated publicly anywhere within TOS.

kkdj said:

I mentioned this prior to the thread being shut down, but do we know that the driver is an adult? Could he be a minor?

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I thought about this too. Mainly because the affidavit was sealed and this is what happens to documents in cases involving minors. Hard to fathom an under-18 getting his hands on a rental car though. I suppose anything is possible with a guarantor.

stlrfninca said:

I've been thinking along these lines as well, but we'll see.

I'm also very skeptical that the dirt under the fingernails - 36+ hours after the murder - doesn't make sense to me.

Could be a case of misdirection by LE, making people think they're looking at the driver and letting the potential 3rd person and actual perp breathe a little easier. Who knows?

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As someone who has spent a lot of my life doing physical work outdoors, I can say that dirt, blood, grease etc, can stay under nails and imbedded in callouses DAYS or longer, even when I TRY to scrub it away. And as for the scratches, some injuries strangely don't show visibly when they happen, but appear as red marks or even scratches/scab lines a day or two after the event.

LAhiker said:

I agree that the driver may not have known how to get all the dirt out of his nails. Or he might've been really clueless.

But another possible explanation of his some of his more obvious and clueless acts, with respect to the dirt, the girlfriend with no name or address, the not touching doorknobs, etc.: He may know he's guilty and unconsciously want to be caught.

The leaked part of the affidavit also says 'Detectives noticed that the friend was nervous and was “breathing heavy, talking fast and visibly shaking.”' So clearly he's afraid. But he may also feel guilty. I wonder whether detectives are still trying to get him to confess.

(If a third party was also involved, for instance, if a relative helped him clean up the crime scene, he also might be trying to protect that person.)

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Or maybe it's the other way around - maybe he's covering for the other person - very possibly a relative. This would fit with the fact that LE says he's only a witness (according to MSM). It would also explain his nervousness when talking to LE and parts of his suspicious behavior. If he's not guilty but has information that implicates a relative he's trying to protect, he still may need to alter some facts a little.

stlrfninca said:

Or maybe it's the other way around - maybe he's covering for the other person - very possibly a relative. This would fit with the fact that LE says he's only a witness (according to MSM). It would also explain his nervousness when talking to LE and parts of his suspicious behavior. If he's not guilty but has information that implicates a relative he's trying to protect, he still may need to alter some facts a little.

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Verrrrrrrrry true

SleuthDr said:

Speaking personally, if I were truly meeting an old high school bud for a 'catch up' while home on break, I would likely bring my keys and wallet with me, as I generally feel undressed without them, at least while away from home, and I think most people would. If there was indeed a third person, and the driver checks out OK by LE, then it suggests that the 'third man' , if he did exist, was a total stranger to BB.

Another thing: if the driver were truly an old high school bud the family knew, why not just have him stop by the house and knock on the door, prior to getting in the car. .

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Her is the thing, we really do not know if the 'Hobby Lobby, pick-up by friend, meeting a second friend is the true story'

Seems to me , as was mentioned above, if the friend was truly a HS classmate:
Why go to Hobby Lobby parking lot for get-together

When did Blaze make arrangements with the Other friend and why did he have to meet him IN the park.

They had a car , they could go anywhere , The driver friend also knew this third person, why not just pick him up too. Why wait until you are "catching up" and then mention "our friend is meeting us IN the park, You wait in the car, while I go in to see him" Wouldn't the driver want to see him too?

Does a Friend really want to get together and catch up with you in a Hobby Lobby parking lot?

Some one must have missed the Driver Friend , He was gone from 10 to at least 4am
.
Why was all of this so secretive for Blaze and the driver friend they had to sneak around.
Blaze was 19 years old, old enough and open enough to let his parents know, borrow their car, or just walk the five minutes to the Park?

This is why I have to believe this "story" is highly unlikely.

R.U.