Do you think JG would allow their murders to be characterized as a sacrifice? I don't or, at least, I hope not.
However, a ritualistic killing is different from a standard homicide or murder because it goes beyond what's necessary to kill people. There's overkill or possibly mutilations. Also, a ritual will usually have some kind of symbolic evidence aka Runes. There may be posing of the bodies and staging of the crime scene. So, there's no doubt their murders were a ritual. I'm not sure the Judge will allow the phrase "ritual sacrifice" into testimony.
AMOOO
I can agree that posing the bodies could be interpreted as a type of ritual or what is typically deemed a"signature".
Ives stated that:
It was just not your normal "a person was killed here" crime scene, that's probably all I can say about it,' Ives said. Ives said that the scene was 'odd' and displayed at least three 'signatures', which are unique behaviors by the killer.
Would you want to take a guess, based on what we know now, what three signatures he was speaking of?
My guesses:
1). One girl was nude, one seems to have been redressed.
2). The killer took a girls underwear and a sock from scene.
3). The bodies were posed.
I can't dismiss the branches. There are too many accounts of sticks being used and we also have the words of various podcasters and YouTubers that saw those branches on the bodies.
I considered whether or not these may have been used as a possible message. That perhaps they could have even been Runes. Personally, I have serious doubts about that. As of today, I am of the opinion that the sticks and branches were haphazardly placed in a brief attempt to conceal the bodies. I just don't think that the intention was to replicate runes. I could be wrong. It's also possible that this may be seen as a signature. But ( and I honestly don't know) do murders that take place outside more typically involve attempts to hide the bodies?
As to his statements that the crime scene was " odd in nature". He went on to say that typical murders are more obvious, staging isn't present and that they tend to be based on money, relationship and/ or drugs.
Signatures at a crime scene:
What's the Difference Between a Killer's Signature and M.O.?
A signature is a ritual—something [that] is done that is not necessary to perpetrate that particular crime," he says. "The signature is the ritual that is unique to the offender, and that's what you're looking for."
Please keep in mind that not all signatures are religious in and of themselves. My understanding is that signatures are almost a "tell" regarding the mind of the killer.
I really don't know how JG would rule on the possibility of allowing the idea that this was a sacrifice. I would imagine that would be dependent on the evidence to support the theory.
I do appreciate your thoughts and questions. I am always open to weighing different types of information.
Delphi Murders 3 Signatures: Robert Ives Interview Transcript from 'Down the Hill' Podcast - CrimeLights