AL AL - J.B. Beasley, 17, & Tracie Hawlett, 17, Ozark, 31 July 1999 #1

[iluvmua]

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=11898052 (J.B.)

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=30584812 (Tracie)

 

[LucyOso]

@Killarney rose~ Then there you have it. Maybe there's a farmer nearby that has information. And you never know, he could have been an old guy just gassing up for his runs for the next day. IMHO I'd check the nearby junkyards because I doubt this truck was kept in running condition. As old as it was, and seeing that no one has had info on it, it's probably rotting somewhere. Junkyard owners (most times) require a title for their scrap. There might me a name on that title.

They could have trespassed trying to turn around (got stuck, hence the mud) and someone did not take kindly to it. If it was a farm truck, you would have to look at seasonal workers as well. The big thing is figuring out the type of mud and where it came from.

 

[killarney rose]

We have a neighbor with a truck like that. He's had it for as long as I've been living here- 30+ years. It's blue.

If there is writing on the truck in the picture, then I doubt it is a farm truck. maybe one belonging to a self employeed person.

 

[jenstar]

We have a neighbor with a truck like that. He's had it for as long as I've been living here- 30+ years. It's blue.

If there is writing on the truck in the picture, then I doubt it is a farm truck. maybe one belonging to a self employeed person.

I wish I could clarify what the writing was. There's a HUGE pole in the way, which kinda prevents me from seeing it clearly. For all I know that could be a shadow or a rust spot and that's what my brain is seeing because of the grainy-ness. But if it is writing, it could be a nearby greenhouse owner. Those are the type of farmers that have those types of trucks and would put writing on it. Or maybe it IS a farm truck and it used to be a service truck. I've seen people get a truck and not bother to take the writing off.

 

[LucyOso]

About the amount of gas used-

Distance from Dothan to Headland-16 miles.

Distance from Headland to Abbeville- 21 miles.

Distance from Headland to Ozark-30 miles.

distance from Abbeville Al to Ozark Al 38 miles.


I don't know how accurate this is, but I think it's a pretty good estimate. I put Abbeville in there because I have always assumed the girls got lost somewhere near Headland and ended up in or near Abbeville which is a straight shot due north of Headland on the same road. I then guesed they somehow ended up on hwy 27 which sent them straight into Ozark, and the Big/Little on Broad St(27) was most likely the first pay phone they came to after coming the back way into Ozark from Abbeville. This would mean they truly were lost and telling the truth when they made the phone call home.

Now, one could assume they went to Ozark on purpose, and if they did they most likely would have left Headland and drove to Ozark via hwy 231. That would mean they knew where they were at all along and made the phone call to buy themselves more time to get home w/o being in trouble for being out late.


Regardless of the scenario, they met their killer IMHO after pulling out of the Big/Little.


It's also MHO the girls really were lost and ended up coming into Ozark the back way and making the phone call home.

Someone that has more time than I do( I work from home and am eating dinner and typing here before I head back to "work" Super busy right now!)might want to take the timeline from an earlier post, pull up a Google map , and the mileage estimates and see what they come up with as far as how far the girls might have driven and how much gas they used- and what is left might show how far the killer drove the car and it would give a radius from the dump site as to far out he might have killed them .


Howe

Ok...so I did a google map of Ozark, where the car was found, etc. And it is rather possible they ended up doing a detour on Edna Drive. There is a lake there and maybe the mud can from that. :twocents:

 

[jenstar]

Ok...so I did a google map of Ozark, where the car was found, etc. And it is rather possible they ended up doing a detour on Edna Drive. There is a lake there and maybe the mud can from that. :twocents:

Is there a farm or a farmhouse with a field nearby? Hopefully with a dirt road?

 

[killarney rose]

Is there a farm or a farmhouse with a field nearby? Hopefully with a dirt road?

I just looked at this on the map. If it is where I am thinking it is, It is in town. But there is nothing around the lake. It is sort of in a vacant lot behind a little strip of store fronts/offices. I THINK.:fence: More like a pond.

 

[Martin L]

I have lived in Dothan since 1983 and I remember this so well. My son attends high school now where the girls went to school. It has amazed me that this has not been solved...although our LE does not have a lot of experience with these kinds of situations (thank goodness).

God bless y'all for trying to help!

You are the person to ask then,,is the dothan and ozark high schools rivals in sports?

 

[LucyOso]

Is there a farm or a farmhouse with a field nearby? Hopefully with a dirt road?

Yes...Edna Drive wraps around from the 123 highway back to an area near where the car was found on James/Herring. There is a dirt road off of Edna and I did street view that shows it, but, it does not show that road on the map.

OK...I am not great at maps and images...but..here goes. The car was found on Herring Road near James Street (That is Point A on map). Union Street/123 that leads to 231, is right near Edna (Point B). It is 0.8 miles from 123 to where the car was found.



Not so good at maps. But this next one shows 763 Broad Street (Point C), where they made a call from Big/Little. (I know it is in backwards order...LOL...so go from C to B to A). This is where Merritt gave them directions.



I am not sure what directions Merritt gave, but Union/123 links up with 231 near Blackwell field. I would imagine she gave the 123 route (local route), instead of taking Andrews all the way to 231.



Here is a arial of Edna Drive...With the lake...



And here is the street view of the road off of it going to the lake/water...I think buildings are obscured by trees.



Anyway, sorry my maps aren't the greatest and must be read C-B-A...LOL. Click on the thumbnails to enlarge.

Ideas? Maybe the girls pulled off of 123 to pee, got lost, etc?

 

[LucyOso]

Here is another Street view on Edna...you can see the same car, but also buildings...

 

[LR1]

DimeDetective and LR1, here's what I think about the white truck.

I do think it's odd that Merritt and her daughter didn't notice the truck at all and it's never mentioned that they reported seeing it. The only explanation I can hazard is that maybe they saw it without even thinking about it and just assumed it belonged to someone who left it parked there or worked at the store. From what I understand, Merritt and her daughter had been in the store or at least had thought it was open, so maybe they had reason to assume that an employee could be working a late night closing down the store.

I was thinking that maybe LE or the local media even wouldn't want to necessarily make it known that there were witnesses that might have seen the truck in case it (the truck) was involved for fear of putting them at risk. we learned about the witnesses before the photo of the truck was released maybe they wanted to look for the truck for a short time before they eventually had to turn to the public.

 

[killarney rose]

LcuyOso- thank you so much for posting the map pictures. That is not the lake I was thinking of. I have been looking at regular maps. These were great!

 

[LR1]

I found that in 1999 :
"Also, in 1999, while Lavergne was serving in the Army at Fort Polk he sexually assaulted a woman in Evangeline Parish. He was driving a '93 Ford pickup with La. license plate of S074500. (Note: Police collected DNA (sperm from a washcloth) at the scene. This evidence may have been what helped them connect Lavergne to Pate.)

in April, Lavergne married Lainey Vasseur in September 1999. Lainey left him after several assault incidences. They divorced after he went to jail in October 2000 for the assault on Parish.
" http://www.missingpersonsofamerica.com/2012/07/will-more-victims-be-found-connected-to.html

The 1999 arrest report is there (horrible reading) and no color is given for his '93 ford pickup (page 4) : http://wac.450f.edgecastcdn.net/804...randon-Scott-Lavergne-1999-Arrest-Updated.pdf

regards

Hi zuli, Lavergne is someone I would definitely be looking at. He would have been about 20 and it would have been just a few weeks after the Pate girls murder. I don't know how tied down he was at Ft. Polk at the time and I haven't been able to find a Alabama connection with him but a DNA comparison would certainly be in order if a connection was made and his whereabouts that day were not known.

 

[LucyOso]

LcuyOso- thank you so much for posting the map pictures. That is not the lake I was thinking of. I have been looking at regular maps. These were great!

Thanks! I am not great at maps though.LOL. But, it helped me to see how small the area was and such. I also like the satellite view, because it actually shows the area. I am sure someone can do a better job! Anyway, I hope this helps.

 

[LR1]

I don't necessarily believe that the truck driver never coming forward means that person is the missing key, though they may have seen something and it's odd that the witness never mentioned the truck. However I'm sure the driver quickly realized that coming forward would make them a suspect and even if cleared that sort of thing can ruin your reputation. You know "oh look there's bob, he was suspected of murder a few years back" sort of thing.

Something I wonder. Maybe I mis-read a post, but was one girl placed in the trunk and shot before the other girl was in the truck? If so how in the hell did anyone get the 2nd girl in the trunk? I'm sure the timeline can't be concrete but that was the impression I got as to who got in the trunk when.

Something else I wonder. What is with the gas? They filled up and shortly the car was almost but not totally out of gas? Was anyone able to compare the mileage on her car to anything, even her most recent oil change? Or maybe she reset the trip counter when she got gas? I used to do that all the time in case the gas gauge stopped working, I still had an idea of when I was low.

The police officer impersonator idea really sticks with me since her license was out.

All good points

I think the wording in the article when referring to Tracie went something like "first into the trunk she was shot" I'm not sure how they would know this unless they were able draw this conclusion from the layering of the bodies and the blood spatter evidence. come to think of it why even put this out? it would be something only the killer would know and I cant think of how this info being out would help in finding the perp.

 

[Tracey4AU]

You are the person to ask then,,is the dothan and ozark high schools rivals in sports?

Not any more than any others that I have been aware of.

 

[LucyOso]

All good points

I think the wording in the article when referring to Tracie went something like "first into the trunk she was shot" I'm not sure how they would know this unless they were able draw this conclusion from the layering of the bodies and the blood spatter evidence. come to think of it why even put this out? it would be something only the killer would know and I cant think of how this info being out would help in finding the perp.

I am not certain why they would share this. Perhaps, because most people would think it took a couple of people to manage two girls. If Tracie was killed first, then the perp got his DNA on JB and then killed her, it could change the scenario. It is also possible if Tracie was shot at close range in the trunk, the bullet/fragments passed through her into the floor. I am not sure why this was leaked, but, there maybe a reason...if JB was kept alive for awhile, perhaps someone may have witnessed a man and one woman in what may appear to be a couples spat somewhere? I also really wonder about JB getting shot in the cheek. Did she turn her head? Was this intentional? Did she take more time to die? That wound many not necessarily be fatal.

The only reason why LE may leak the information is if they think the perp has done this before and they are trying to establish an MO for other LE departments to reference? IDK.

 

[LR1]

About the amount of gas used-

Distance from Dothan to Headland-16 miles.

Distance from Headland to Abbeville- 21 miles.

Distance from Headland to Ozark-30 miles.

distance from Abbeville Al to Ozark Al 38 miles.


I don't know how accurate this is, but I think it's a pretty good estimate. I put Abbeville in there because I have always assumed the girls got lost somewhere near Headland and ended up in or near Abbeville which is a straight shot due north of Headland on the same road. I then guesed they somehow ended up on hwy 27 which sent them straight into Ozark, and the Big/Little on Broad St(27) was most likely the first pay phone they came to after coming the back way into Ozark from Abbeville. This would mean they truly were lost and telling the truth when they made the phone call home.

mapquest gives the headland to Ozark via Abbeville route a 49 minute driving time, I think its quite possible they came into Ozark on 27. they could also have taken the smaller roads but more direct route between headland and Ozark but there's several turns that must not be missed in order to get there. if they came in on 231 I think they would've just backtracked the way they came in instead of having to get directions.

Someone that has more time than I do( I work from home and am eating dinner and typing here before I head back to "work" Super busy right now!)might want to take the timeline from an earlier post, pull up a Google map , and the mileage estimates and see what they come up with as far as how far the girls might have driven and how much gas they used- and what is left might show how far the killer drove the car and it would give a radius from the dump site as to far out he might have killed them

This is pure genius and I hope the investigators would have done this.

 

[LR1]

I am not certain why they would share this. Perhaps, because most people would think it took a couple of people to manage two girls. If Tracie was killed first, then the perp got his DNA on JB and then killed her, it could change the scenario. It is also possible if Tracie was shot at close range in the trunk, the bullet/fragments passed through her into the floor. I am not sure why this was leaked, but, there maybe a reason...if JB was kept alive for awhile, perhaps someone may have witnessed a man and one woman in what may appear to be a couples spat somewhere? I also really wonder about JB getting shot in the cheek. Did she turn her head? Was this intentional? Did she take more time to die? That wound many not necessarily be fatal.

The only reason why LE may leak the information is if they think the perp has done this before and they are trying to establish an MO for other LE departments to reference? IDK.

I'm not sure either I guess it could have been the writers embellishment given the fact that it was known that JB was shot in the cheek and the obvious scenario would be that she reacted after seeing Tracie shot unexpectedly. I like to think the the poor girl faced her killer bravely and the has to live with that thought for the rest its life.

 

[LucyOso]

I am not sure if I am allowed to post this: These are blogs I found searching for news articles about the girls. Please let me know if I need to delete this...

http://www.wiregrass.com/Default.aspxTabId=55&afv=post&aff=1&aft=4873&afr=4874 Interesting

http://www.dreamindemon.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-13601.html And the fourth post down on this is VERY interesting and references the first link.

http://www.zoominfo.com/CachedPage/...16T10:07:08&firstName=Tracie&lastName=Hawlett The comments on this page are interesting as well.

http://www.wiregrass.com/WiregrassForums/tabid/55/aft/15277/Default.aspx This has some interesting comments as well.

http://www.topix.com/forum/city/dothan-al/TGEDS92KKMDVSKI9C/p2 And this....lots of rumors...HMMMMM