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

[TedMac]

I'm from Dothan and have heard of this case. My heart breaks for the parents. Ive read every page of this thread over the pat several days and have a few questions and a few opinions:
1) Was JB pregnant? rumors, rumors etc.
2) Was the judges son a boyfriend (current or former)?

Opinions:
1) I think the target of the crime was JB
2) Must have been a LEO impersonator or .....
3) Someone must have acted alone
4) May have been random but unlikely
5) The semen has nothing to do with the crime


Just what I've gathered from reading on this site. I certainly have no professional opinion. My gut feeling is that they went to Ozark for a reason, I really dont think they were lost. It would be hard for anyone to get "lost" going from Haleburg to Dothan, they would have crossed a major highway (431).

BBM Others have suggested the same thing and feel it could be creating a diversion in the investigation. Did JB have a boyfriend at the time? If so, was she with him earlier in the day? Again, if so, hopefully LE has talked with him about this.

 

[liz b.]

BBM Others have suggested the same thing and feel it could be creating a diversion in the investigation. Did JB have a boyfriend at the time? If so, was she with him earlier in the day? Again, if so, hopefully LE has talked with him about this.

Would she have showered and changed her clothes before she went out ?

Some questions I have :

1. Did JB live with her dance instructor ? The dance instructor is described as her legal guardian. I was quite surprised to read that JB's mother continues to describe her as "manipulative", "rebellious", but "very smart". Her pastor, he described her as " extremely vivacious", " outgoing' and "friendly"...no value judgements here, I was just surprised that the person legally responsible for JB was her dance instructor. jmo moo

2. The trip JB took with her father to Boston the week before the murders,was this a vacation trip ? Did JB have relatives in Boston ?

3. Was it JB who called from the gas station in Headland at 10:30pm ? Wonder what the conversation was about ? Who did she/they actually talk to ?

4. The white truck that was seen on video at the other gas station, did this truck pull up while the two girls were talking to the woman and her daughter ? Or was it already there when they drove into the gas station ?

5. These girls were executed. Wonder why the killer didn't rape them,didn't rob them ? What was his motive here ?

6. The pants wet to the knees,and the fact that they had stood in water at some point, could this have been some kind of attempt to "baptize" them, to force them to atone for their "sins " in the eyes of this sick killer ?

7. Would it still be possible to ask for voluntary DNA samples from all males of a certain age at the time of the murders ? also, ask for voluntary DNA samples from all males of a certain age that the girls knew ? And watch to see who declines to donate DNA ?

Vicious murders, hope the families get some justice. jmo moo

 

[killarney rose]

LizB, Tracie called her mom to tell her where they were and that they would be late getting home. The girls were to spend the night at Tracie's house that night.

 

[liz b.]

LizB, Tracie called her mom to tell her where they were and that they would be late getting home. The girls were to spend the night at Tracie's house that night.

TY for this. So this call was from the Headland gas station ? i read that the call(s) from the Headland gas station at 10 :30 pm were made to "friends" ? Also, the Bday party for JB, being given by her friend from the dance group : how long had JB been friends with Janna ? She didn't know where Janna lived ?

 

[HeatherD81]

I'm from Dothan and have heard of this case. My heart breaks for the parents. Ive read every page of this thread over the pat several days and have a few questions and a few opinions:
1) Was JB pregnant? rumors, rumors etc.
2) Was the judges son a boyfriend (current or former)?

Opinions:
1) I think the target of the crime was JB
2) Must have been a LEO impersonator or .....
3) Someone must have acted alone
4) May have been random but unlikely
5) The semen has nothing to do with the crime


Just what I've gathered from reading on this site. I certainly have no professional opinion. My gut feeling is that they went to Ozark for a reason, I really dont think they were lost. It would be hard for anyone to get "lost" going from Haleburg to Dothan, they would have crossed a major highway (431).

I have always wondered that as well. Especially if they were heading to Haleburg and turned back around. 431 is difficult to miss, even at night. That intersection is very well lit.

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[liz b.]

Sorry for not reading more thoroughly : so it seems the driver of the white truck seen on video at the gas station has been identified and cleared ?

 

[TedMac]

Would she have showered and changed her clothes before she went out ?

Some questions I have :

1. Did JB live with her dance instructor ? The dance instructor is described as her legal guardian. I was quite surprised to read that JB's mother continues to describe her as "manipulative", "rebellious", but "very smart". Her pastor, he described her as " extremely vivacious", " outgoing' and "friendly"...no value judgements here, I was just surprised that the person legally responsible for JB was her dance instructor. jmo moo

2. The trip JB took with her father to Boston the week before the murders,was this a vacation trip ? Did JB have relatives in Boston ?

3. Was it JB who called from the gas station in Headland at 10:30pm ? Wonder what the conversation was about ? Who did she/they actually talk to ?

4. The white truck that was seen on video at the other gas station, did this truck pull up while the two girls were talking to the woman and her daughter ? Or was it already there when they drove into the gas station ?

5. These girls were executed. Wonder why the killer didn't rape them,didn't rob them ? What was his motive here ?

6. The pants wet to the knees,and the fact that they had stood in water at some point, could this have been some kind of attempt to "baptize" them, to force them to atone for their "sins " in the eyes of this sick killer ?

7. Would it still be possible to ask for voluntary DNA samples from all males of a certain age at the time of the murders ? also, ask for voluntary DNA samples from all males of a certain age that the girls knew ? And watch to see who declines to donate DNA ?

Vicious murders, hope the families get some justice. jmo moo

BBM. You would think she would, assuming she had time between that and going to the party.

 

[LR1]

Sorry for not reading more thoroughly : so it seems the driver of the white truck seen on video at the gas station has been identified and cleared ?

No worries liz, we didn't know he had been cleared until recently. apparently they made contact with him in 2001 but we somehow missed this in the articles.

These girls were executed. Wonder why the killer didn't rape them,didn't rob them ? What was his motive here ?

If the dna is his then that was the most probable motive imo, although not necessarily exclusively.

The pants wet to the knees,and the fact that they had stood in water at some point, could this have been some kind of attempt to "baptize" them, to force them to atone for their "sins " in the eyes of this sick killer ?

That's a interesting thought. Of the dozens of theory's I've pondered over the years one of them is the possibility however slim that it was some type of mission oriented killing, maybe not to the extent of baptism but something about them had set him off and he wanted to rid the world so to speak. I don't necessarily think this is what happened, its probably much simpler than that.

Would it still be possible to ask for voluntary DNA samples from all males of a certain age at the time of the murders ? also, ask for voluntary DNA samples from all males of a certain age that the girls knew ? And watch to see who declines to donate DNA ?

This process or something similar I would hope is something they did when the dna was discovered, I've always wondered if everyone was cooperative.

 

[LR1]

The license on the dash is why the rumor of cop cover up has run rampant down here.

I've seen it said somewhere that the license was on the console actually I've seen both but its never been clear to me which. If it was on the console depending where on the console it was I have known people, especially younger people, new drivers, to have it out in the open.

We were wondering awhile back if there was a store at the intersection of 123&231 on the south side of 231 where the truck stop looking place is. its a kangaroo now but there's a gap in the photos back then and it doesn't show one there in 97, do you remember what that lot looked like back in 99?

 

[liz b.]

No worries liz, we didn't know he had been cleared until recently. apparently they made contact with him in 2001 but we somehow missed this in the articles.



If the dna is his then that was the most probable motive imo, although not necessarily exclusively.



That's a interesting thought. Of the dozens of theory's I've pondered over the years one of them is the possibility however slim that it was some type of mission oriented killing, maybe not to the extent of baptism but something about them had set him off and he wanted to rid the world so to speak. I don't necessarily think this is what happened, its probably much simpler than that.



This process or something similar I would hope is something they did when the dna was discovered, I've always wondered if everyone was cooperative.

I read that as of a few years ago, 100 men had been cleared by donating DNA. Do you know if the area by depot,around the railroad was a hang out place for teenagers back then ? Where did teens in Ozark go to hang out ?TIA

 

[LR1]

I read that as of a few years ago, 100 men had been cleared by donating DNA. Do you know if the area by depot,around the railroad was a hang out place for teenagers back then ? Where did teens in Ozark go to hang out ?TIA

This isn't my neck of the woods liz so I'm not sure.

HeatherD spent some time there so maybe she will chime in.

 

[HeatherD81]

I've seen it said somewhere that the license was on the console actually I've seen both but its never been clear to me which. If it was on the console depending where on the console it was I have known people, especially younger people, new drivers, to have it out in the open.

We were wondering awhile back if there was a store at the intersection of 123&231 on the south side of 231 where the truck stop looking place is. its a kangaroo now but there's a gap in the photos back then and it doesn't show one there in 97, do you remember what that lot looked like back in 99?

If my memory serves me correctly, I don't think there was anything there until the Kangaroo station. But, it's been 15 years... It's hard to remember since the Kangaroo has been there so long.

I read that as of a few years ago, 100 men had been cleared by donating DNA. Do you know if the area by depot,around the railroad was a hang out place for teenagers back then ? Where did teens in Ozark go to hang out ?TIA

This isn't my neck of the woods liz so I'm not sure.

HeatherD spent some time there so maybe she will chime in.

By the time I was in high school I was at Dale County. We hung out in Winn Dixie shopping center on the corner of 231 and Westgate Pkwy a lot. I want to say the Winn Dixie shopping center in Ozark also had that draw. I remember lots of field parties. Clayhatchee was a big draw for field/river parties. But, you wouldn't go from Headland to Ozark to Clayhatchee. You would simply go up Hwy 84 to the river. You never just hung out with people from your school, you always had friends from most all of the regional schools, but, Dale County and Carroll were rivals and it wasn't always friendly. But, by 1999, Northview and Carroll were no longer rivals and had not been for several years. So, it is possible that they were going to hang out with friends in Ozark.

Like I said up thread, I have never figured out how they wound up in Ozark from Headland. If they truly were lost that has never made sense....

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[Irishrose70]

I am not positive whether the truck stop was there in 1999, but I know it was there in 2000/2001. If the girls turned left instead of right off of 431, they would have ended up on 134. any right turn from there would have landed them on hwy 27, which leads straight to Ozark. Most of these roads end up putting you out in the Echo community. If they went straight across 27, cr 36 would have put them out on 105 not far from the gas station they called from. 27 would have also had them passing the gas station. These roads can be very confusing, and have a lot of curves. One wrong turn can be all it takes. Most of the teens hung out at the old Walmart parking lot, the river, etc. I have been coming to this area almost 40 years, and have lived here for 25. There are some meth houses, and things of that nature, but there has never really been any gang activity. There is however an area called the block, that people generally do not go into unless they are looking for drugs or other trouble. The girls would not have entered this area though unless they headed for 231 using Andrews avenue, and made another right along the way. There are also several public housing areas, three of which are very close to Herring Avenue where the car/girls were found.

 

[Irishrose70]

Brown's crossroads was another hangout for teens , on the river, it is on hwy 27. So was Sandy Beaches, closer to Newton Alabama, but I think that was closed to the public at the time, although you could still get in. Judy Creek and Sandy creek are by 105, and were also places people went sometimes.

 

[Irishrose70]

As for the license, there could be a few scenarios, My daughter for instance used to put it over the visor sometimes if she got back in the car and forgot to put it in her purse, or if she was going somewhere where it might get lost (hiking, swimming, etc). Could it have been over the visor, and knocked loose by the driver of the car when he got out, or if there was any type of a struggle? Also there was a theory of a bathroom break. If they took Union Avenue, there is a road that is almost as dark as herring on the left after you leave downtown. It is not a very long road and it ends up behind the hospital and one of the public housing areas. At the end of that road if you take a left it ends up almost directly across from Herring Avenue, within a block. If you have your license in your pocket, you might be worried about it falling out when you drop your pants to use the bathroom. You get out of the car, and take it out, setting it on the closest place. The dash or the seat. Or it falls when you do this, and you pick it up and set it down when you get back in the car. Or of course there is the police or police impersonator theory.

 

[killarney rose]

TY for this. So this call was from the Headland gas station ? i read that the call(s) from the Headland gas station at 10 :30 pm were made to "friends" ? Also, the Bday party for JB, being given by her friend from the dance group : how long had JB been friends with Janna ? She didn't know where Janna lived ?

Tracie made the call to her mom from the Big/Little in Ozark. This is where the white truck was seen on camera and where Marilyn Mitchell have her directions .

She called friends for directions to the party from the BP in Headland.

 

[killarney rose]

There used to be Chism Truck Stop somewhere inbetween Ozark and Dothan. Do any locals remember if this was still open in 1999 before the kangaroo was built?

 

[HeatherD81]

Brown's crossroads was another hangout for teens , on the river, it is on hwy 27. So was Sandy Beaches, closer to Newton Alabama, but I think that was closed to the public at the time, although you could still get in. Judy Creek and Sandy creek are by 105, and were also places people went sometimes.

Brown's crossroads is out that way. I know we mainly used it to go make out. There were still parties out there at times. But, mostly it was a make out spot. Or to watch the infamous "Trees bleed". Which was just a weird way the moon would reflect off the trees. But it was a drawn for people that had never seen it.

As a teenage very seldom did I do exactly what I told my parents I was doing. And, I was one of the more "well behaved" girls.

I also know just how winding those roads are. It's that turn off of 431 that baffles me. That is very well lit area.

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[HeatherD81]

There used to be Chism Truck Stop somewhere inbetween Ozark and Dothan. Do any locals remember if this was still open in 1999 before the kangaroo was built?

Wait. Wasn't the Coffee Kettle right next to a Truck stop? If so, then there was one in that area in '99.

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[liz b.]

Tracie made the call to her mom from the Big/Little in Ozark. This is where the white truck was seen on camera and where Marilyn Mitchell have her directions .

She called friends for directions to the party from the BP in Headland.

Killarney rose ; right, that's what I read. I don't get that JB didn't know where her friend from the dance group ( Janna) actually lived ?