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

[tang]

I like your proposed scenario CoolJ. It sounds as plausible as any.

One thing I wish we could have clarified is who arrived at the gas station first. If it was NOT the truck, and we could be certain (surveillance camera) that no driver/passenger ever left the vehicle, then I would be extremely suspicious. No cell phones were available. So if an occupant didn't not interact with anyone in the lot (ask if store open, directions etc), or purchase gas, yet stayed for a short time.... well it seems off to me. I can see someone pulling up and realizing they didn't have money and then leave = short time in station. But for a vehicle to remain there for 5+minutes without any activity seem suspicious. Again, it all comes down to information we don't have but wish we could rule out.

 

[tang]

One other thought about the driver's license. What if perp was in back seat and was questioning how old the girls were (pervy). If he asked JB to take out Tracie's license. Maybe he got off on confirming her age? I'd be curious if fingerprints other than the drivers were on the license.

 

[:+:MrTT:+:]

One other thought about the driver's license. What if perp was in back seat and was questioning how old the girls were (pervy). If he asked JB to take out Tracie's license. Maybe he got off on confirming her age? I'd be curious if fingerprints other than the drivers were on the license.

I am beginning to think at some point perhaps after taking them back, he wanted to know the name of the girl he just murdered. And simply discarded it in the car before leaving. To know before anyone else the name of the girl he just killed before the press released it. In a way to relive it and get an extra adrenalin ruse when the name was finally released.

But I would like to know if the other girl had any id on her. I am thinking she did not, just the driver. But I don't know.

If they both had id, but only the one was found discarded in the vehicle than perhaps someone approached afte3r parking and ask for it. If the driver only had id, than perhaps he just wanted to know the name of the girl before leaving.

 

[shadowangel]

I started looking into reports of people encountering fake police officers in the area. I didn't find anything from the exact time period of the girls' murders, but there are still quite a few reports, but most of the article links are dead.

In late 2008, there was a string of incidents in which people were pulled over by a man, aged late 30s- early 40s, and asked to produce their ID. None were harmed, though one man was handcuffed while his car was searched. Here is one link I found which is still active:

http://www.wtvy.com/home/headlines/33409129.html

Also in 2008, Dothan police hired an officer ("DD") who had a history in LE and firefighting. He was fired 2 years later for excessive force, then arrested in 2011 for impersonating an officer in GA.

 

[bearx]

Reading about muddy shoes, etc, and the melting ice = mud idea, any idea what the tires on the car looked like?

 

[jenstar]

I believe that cell phones were available at the time, but cell signal may not have reached out that far. We were on the verge of 2g technology back then. So, I 'd say at that time it was so far out in the country; it was a dead zone and you wouldn't get signal outside your normal area code, or your phone wasn't allowed to "roam" and use other towers.
@Killarney Rose/Dime Detective
How was the cell signal out there when you were driving around? How many bars did you have?

 

[killarney rose]

I believe that cell phones were available at the time, but cell signal may not have reached out that far. We were on the verge of 2g technology back then. So, I 'd say at that time it was so far out in the country; it was a dead zone and you wouldn't get signal outside your normal area code, or your phone wasn't allowed to "roam" and use other towers.
@Killarney Rose/Dime Detective
How was the cell signal out there when you were driving around? How many bars did you have?

I am ashamed to admit I never got my cell phone out.:blushing: I'm not tied to it like most people and consider it a neccessary evil. It stays dead in my purse until I travel on a trip.....

Back in '99 is when I did get my first cell. And yes, unless you were in town, service was hit & miss. But you usually had it in most towns.

 

[jenstar]

Reading about muddy shoes, etc, and the melting ice = mud idea, any idea what the tires on the car looked like?

P205/R15 is the stock tire that comes with that Model Mozda 929. They did say that the car and tires were muddy.

 

[killarney rose]

Would love to see pics of the car. Not a chance of that though. DH works in the fall- and the parking lot is unpaved and gets muddy there. Sometimes the car(and tires) look so muddy from just driving through there, it looks as is he's been driving through a mud bog instead of a parking lot.

 

[deca]

My first cell phone was in 98- it was a normal sized (not huge one). I remember it was $19 a month (ah, the good old days) and I although I lived in CA at the time, I was able to get service even in rural towns. I was a young adult a few years out of high school and many of us started to acquire them then.

So it is possible that the people in the white truck just stopped to use their phone, look at a map, etc. For all we know it could have been a "hook up" going on in that truck between some local lovers. I still think the sinister truck should be looked into, though.

 

[jenstar]

Would love to see pics of the car. Not a chance of that though. DH works in the fall- and the parking lot is unpaved and gets muddy there. Sometimes the car(and tires) look so muddy from just driving through there, it looks as is he's been driving through a mud bog instead of a parking lot.

True. I've lived in the country long enough to tell if it were "dirt road", type dirt..or "swimming hole" type dirt. I'm sure the dirt in Indiana & Ky is different from Alabama but that would be something that you could look at and tell as a local right?

 

[bearx]

True. I've lived in the country long enough to tell if it were "dirt road", type dirt..or "swimming hole" type dirt. I'm sure the dirt in Indiana & Ky is different from Alabama but that would be something that you could look at and tell as a local right?

Especially as it seems the car was driven to that location after the girls were killed. I wonder if any of the few sites investigated were likely to be a muddier area.

 

[jenstar]

Especially as it seems the car was driven to that location after the girls were killed. I wonder if any of the few sites investigated were likely to be a muddier area.

That's pretty much what we're speculating now. "Where the girls were taken" is still an unknown at that point. I have a feeling if LE wants us to be able to help with this case we're going to need more than the breadcrumbs they're feeding us.
The three "wet" areas that's been mentioned are:
Sandy Creek
Jones' Pond
and Behind the Ice Factory.

 

[killarney rose]

True. I've lived in the country long enough to tell if it were "dirt road", type dirt..or "swimming hole" type dirt. I'm sure the dirt in Indiana & Ky is different from Alabama but that would be something that you could look at and tell as a local right?

It would depend on the soil type.

 

[LR1]

It would be nice to have a better quality photo of the truck at the pumps. looks like you can see through the passengers side window through the back glass, I can't see a passenger unless he/she's leaning forward. and does anyone see the trident looking thing on the door? it shows up almost red through my low rent graphics card even though its a black and white photo.

someone I think KR mentioned her DH couldn't see a the bed and I cant either and that might be because of the pumps blocking the view. or possibly a darker bed that had to get replaced. haven't made up my mind about make/model yet. don't really see a Toyota there.

 

[jenstar]

It would depend on the soil type.

That's what I think too. Our "dirt roads" are a really light almost yellow dirt color. And if we went "mudding" the mud would be a really deep brown to almost grey color, even when it dried. Same as our front yards or "burms" on the side of the road.

 

[jenstar]

It would be nice to have a better quality photo of the truck at the pumps. looks like you can see through the passengers side window through the back glass, I can't see a passenger unless he/she's leaning forward. and does anyone see the trident looking thing on the door? it shows up almost red through my low rent graphics card even though its a black and white photo.

I knew I saw something there on the passenger door of the truck. I clarified, cropped and re-scaled the picture in an earlier post. But the texture and pixelation of the photo didn't clarify if it were writing or a logo. I also thought too that my mind could have tried to make sense of a shadow or a rust spot. Since I couldn't clarify it any better I left well enough alone. If you can put the photo on photobucket and provide a link; I'm sure we'd all like to see what you see. Thanks for your work

 

[jenstar]

I've found a blogpost by a woman who claims to know who did it and never called in a tip to LE
http://lucescroo.blogspot.com/2006/10/tracie-hawlett-and-jb-beasley.html

thoughts?

 

[LR1]

I knew I saw something there on the passenger door of the truck. I clarified, cropped and re-scaled the picture in an earlier post. But the texture and pixelation of the photo didn't clarify if it were writing or a logo. I also thought too that my mind could have tried to make sense of a shadow or a rust spot. Since I couldn't clarify it any better I left well enough alone. If you can put the photo on photobucket and provide a link; I'm sure we'd all like to see what you see. Thanks for your work

You're sure asking a lot from me lol. jk lets get some feed back and let it play out. Like I say it might be my inferior set up or even my eyes playing tricks. Hopefully someone with more skills can blow it up but not too much that it distorts and post it.

 

[LR1]

I've found a blogpost by a woman who claims to know who did it and never called in a tip to LE
http://lucescroo.blogspot.com/2006/10/tracie-hawlett-and-jb-beasley.html

thoughts?

old as the hills, I would imagine they looked at that one up, down and sideways.

cant say for sure though.