CO - Jessica Ridgeway, 10, Westminster, 5 Oct 2012 - #21

[oceanblueeyes]

That's a great article, thanks for posting! I too agree with what was said about his mother.

I also agree with him that we should get over being shocked that teens are doing these kind of crimes.

I have read cases about teen murderers for decades. Sadly, I havent been shocked by their behavior in years.

 

[seattlechiquita]

I also agree with him that we should get over being shocked that teens are doing these kind of crimes.

I have read cases about teen murderers for decades. Sadly, I havent been shocked by their behavior in years.

I'm with you. The criminologist didn't add much to what we already know.

 

[Marilynilpa]

I read that "a woman" emailed Missing Person's News Monday night with a tip about someone in the neighborhood who fit the profile, description and had recently gotten into religion. MPN researched it and contacted LE on Tuesday.
<modsnip>.

Could you please provide a link to this article you read? When I looked at Missing Person's News, this is what I found:

Late Tuesday, evening police received a call that led them to a home near the Ketner Lake Open Space.

http://missingpersonsnews.com/archives/5534

This is in keeping with what MSM has been reporting all along. No mention of an outside party forcing AS and his mom to "deal". AS told his mom enough to cause her to call LE.

Perhaps what you read was a comment under an article, in which case that would be considered rumor. JMO

I think AS "confessed" to his mom as a direct result of LE taking a DNA swab from him. In my opinion, AS realized at that point that his time was running out.

 

[GrainneDhu]

The juvenile charges could be rolled together, or the sentences could run concurrently, or be suspended altogether. And in general, after serving between 1/3 and 1/2 of the sentence, they become eligible for parole. It's unfair to victims who feel "safe" because a perp is sentenced to 40 or 50 years, only to find him out within 4 or 5.

I wasn't clear in my first post, my apologies.

I was surprised that there was not an overall cap on sentencing and that there was even a chance he could be sentenced to a total of as much as 35 years if tried as a juvenile (which I am certain is not going to happen).

 

[Lois Lane]

if tried and convicted as an adult he CAN get life without parole:

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/new...-murder-austin-sigg-appears-in-court-thursday


but we are a long way from this point....... it is comforting however to know that this is in fact a possibility.

Due to the enacted 2006 Colorado law, I'm not convinced that he can be sentenced to LWOP. MOO.

In 2006, Colorado passed a bill ending its practice of sentencing juveniles to life without parole; instead, juveniles who receive a life sentence will have to serve 40 years before they are eligible for parole.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/whenkidsgetlife/view/

Though Sigg will be tried as an adult, if convicted, he is not eligible for the death penalty or for a mandatory life sentence without parole, under Colorado law.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/jessica-ri...igg-calm-court/story?id=17558599#.UIqwZm_A9RJ

Today [2009], there are only a handful of states -- including Alaska, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico and Oregon -- that prohibit sentencing minors to life without parole, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/04/08/teens.life.sentence/index.html

The CNN article was written after the Colorado Assembly prohibited LWOP for minors in 2006. I have not been able to find anything indicating a reversal of that statute and the language indicated in the Assembly Act is still carried in the Colorado code according to Lexis-Nexis.

I'm holding off on deciding what the definitive answer is on the question; I'm waiting for someone knowledgeable in Colorado criminal procedure/law to weigh in on the issue.

JMO, but I'm not sure that some/most of the journalists covering the story are correct in their assessments. At least one of them got the prohibition on JLWOP correct (IMO), but incorrectly attributed it to SCOTUS rather than upon the 2006 Colorado Assembly Act signed into law by then Governor Bill Owens. The 2006 Colorado Act predated the 2010 and 2012 relevant SCOTUS decisions.

In my searches for clarification on the issue, I've been trying to avoid providing links from sources who are/were participants in the robust public discourse in Colorado on the issue of juvenile justice. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to locate any sourcing that is clear, concise and neutral.

So I will provide this information and link:

In May 2006, four years before the Supreme Court decision in Graham, the Colorado General Assembly ended the sentence of life without parole for youth in Colorado. The bipartisan legislation, H.B. 06&#8208;1315, was sponsored by 12 members of the Colorado General Assembly and signed by Governor Bill Owens. Not only did this bill precede Graham, but it also went further than the Supreme Court by precluding all youth – including those convicted of homicide offenses – from receiving the sentence of life without parole. The General Assembly set the alternative maximum sentence for juveniles at 40 years without parole. In the statement of findings, the General Assembly explained that it was “in the interest of justice to recognize the rehabilitation potential of juveniles who are convicted as adults of class 1 felonies.”

http://www.campaignforyouthjustice.org/documents/CO_HB_06-1315.pdf

That said, from what we know at this time, I believe that upon a conviction Sigg will be sentenced to the maximum allowable under Colorado (and federal) law due to the apparent heinousness of the crimes with which he will be charged.

Being eligible for parole is not a guarantee of ever seeing the light of day as a free person.

If I'm correct in my understanding of Colorado law on the issue of juvenile life without parole, any dissatisfaction with the issue is a matter for the citizens of Colorado to address with their General Assembly.

While researching this subject, I was surprised to learn that my state of residence abolished juvenile life without parole in 2009.

But Texas lawmakers eliminated the penalty with little fanfare and practically no attention in the last legislative session.

State senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa sponsored the law that took effect Sept. 1 [2009], mandating that any juvenile certified to stand trial as an adult for capital murder–which in Texas would mean a minimum age of 14–would receive a life sentence with eligibility for parole after 40 years.

http://crimeblog.dallasnews.com/2009/09/texas-abolishes-life-without-p.html/

 

[AstroKitty]

At a previous job, we were all given the Myers-Briggs personality test. It was very interesting.

We were given this in Sept at school. Just myself and another student had the same score. I find that scoring so situational though because I know, at least to me, that my answers would be different if I had taken it even 3 years ago. But the 3 main points rarely change much (so they say).

 

[Jules71]

I woke up in the middle of the night last night and thought what if LE really didn't have DNA from either incident and just went to the media saying they did in order to get the perp freaked out enough to flush him out. Does anyone think that could be possible?

This was in re: to people wondering how he could be so careless to leave his DNA when he was familiar with CSI.

 

[nursebeeme]

Lois, this article says he can get life in prison but they must have a sentencing hearing in order for that to happen. (he also will have to be tried and convicted as an adult)
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/new...-murder-austin-sigg-appears-in-court-thursday

 

[GrainneDhu]

Here are a couple of quotes from the above article that I found interesting:

Quote:

Sigg's defense asked the judge to put all documents in the case under seal and issue a gag order, according to KMGH. The judge sealed the documents, but did not issue a gag order.


He was calm throughout the proceedings, interrupting the judge once to say he had not understood part of the hearing. It was explained to him by his court-appointed attorney.

As a former paralegal, I know how much most judges hate being interrupted by a defendant. Usually an attorney will tell his client not to speak to the judge directly unless asked to do so. When I read that AS interrupted the judge, my first thought was that AS sees this as "his" show, it's all about him and everyone else is an incidental player. Including the judge. JMO.

There is also the possibility that his lawyer hadn't had a chance to instruct him on desirable behaviour in the courtroom. Or, even if the lawyer did instruct him, Sigg may not have been taking it all in.

For me, it's too early to really get a fix on who this guy is inside.

But maybe that's just an indication that I am a slow learner.

 

[Jules71]

We were given this in Sept at school. Just myself and another student had the same score. I find that scoring so situational though because I know, at least to me, that my answers would be different if I had taken it even 3 years ago. But the 3 main points rarely change much (so they say).

You are right! I think it can change. I took the test twice several years apart. I originally scored that I was an extrovert. Now I score introvert. So I am conflicted. I think naturally I am an extrovert, but situationally have become introverted due to other factors in my life.

 

[Marnie]

Can someone tell me where it was said that investigators were already suspecting him before his mother called them? TIA

I don't know if this was answered yet, as I'm a little behind but this first news video says that they already suspected him but had no reason to arrest him:

Home searched, Sigg interviewed weeks ago
9:43 PM, Oct 25, 2012

http://www.9news.com/news/article/296133/339/Home-searched-Sigg-interviewed-weeks-ago

Then this news report which says this:

"Sources told the CALL7 Investigators that police would have eventually been led to Sigg, because he was one of 500 people who voluntarily submitted their DNA to investigators. So, while the phone call tip to police led to Sigg's arrest more quickly, once all of the DNA samples from neighborhood residents had been processed, investigators would have connected the cases to Sigg."

DA cites DNA, confession during teen suspect's hearing in Jessica Ridgeway killing
Posted: 10/25/2012
Last Updated: 5 hours ago

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/new...-murder-austin-sigg-appears-in-court-thursday


Hope that helps!

 

[nursebeeme]

According to this he stalked victim: Yes= Premeditated. IMHO

So very sad.

Kelly

just a reminder: the blog that says that AS stalked Jessica is not considered a fact.

 

[Jules71]

BethInAk, anyone who is smart enough to be owned by a Welsh Corgi seems pretty psychologically sound to me! JMO

I know some people in my life feel my interest in true crime is unhealthy. They don't understand why I would want to spend time on WS, for instance, when I could be doing other things. Those closest to me understand, and I try not to worry about the others.

But I imagine if anyone connected to me were to suffer a violent death, my name would come up in a few minds because of my "unusual" interests.

BBM. Yep! Most people I know think the same thing.

 

[AstroKitty]

I woke up in the middle of the night last night and thought what if LE really didn't have DNA from either incident and just went to the media saying they did in order to get the perp freaked out enough to flush him out. Does anyone think that could be possible?

This was in re: to people wondering how he could be so careless to leave his DNA when he was familiar with CSI.

I go back and forth with it, not because of Jessica's body and items but because how do they have DNA from the joggers? Did they scratch him? I'm confused on that. However, I think AS would like to believe with all his "research" and semester of college (it's not even the end of 1st semester), that he was brilliant and would not get caught. He thought too much of himself and it made his actions sloppy. Just my opinion.

 

[gitana1]

BBM

If he were to plead guilty to one count of murder in exchange for having the other charges dropped, it could be a big deal for him.

_____________

I believe he is sick, but I personally believe that anybody who commits a crime like this is sick. What I don't believe is that he didn't know that his actions were wrong, which means that his "sickness" is really irrelevant (I think). I do think it's important to eventually figure out what causes people to become like him, but I also don't believe there's much that can be done for them once they do. I think it's too late for him, and whether his actions were caused by mental illness, brain damage, physical abnormalities or something else, he still needs to be held responsible for his actions. MOO

Im not sure how? Whoever I was responding to stated he would enter into a plea deal for LWOP. But since he is not eligible for the death penalty, I asked how LWOP would be a deal for him. Since there is no sentence worse than death after LWOP, your answer makes little sense to me.

I agree with much of what you are saying in the post above.
I do think it is odd that more young people are committing these kind of horrific acts.

However, before the internet existed, people like Ted Bundy and Dahmer, Charles Xng, etc. were performing similar atrocities. I would like to see some honest statistical research(ha ha good one I know...), or at least analysis without an agenda, to demonstrate the full spectrum of these incidents. If we could see that the numbers may be dropping, but the criminals are in a much different age bracket, that would be helpful information.

I happen to believe that one of the major problems in our society which contributes to the swelling numbers of kids who are interested in this violent material, is the sexually repressed environment we live in. Yes, the United States, on the surface a country in which sexual metaphor can be found in all kinds of advertising (including hamburgers), is sexually repressed.
All day long, violence of one sort or another is replayed on news programs. At the same time, Janet Jackson's exposed nipple is cause for public outcry, huge fines, the involvement of the Supreme Court, and congressional hearings. The fact that the simple exposure of a woman's nipple created so many problems is ridiculous. It is a breast. Babies often nurse on breasts. Men can show off their tatas in public, so why is a little extra fatty tissue a big deal? If I was from a foreign country and I heard about this incident, I would immediately think the U.S. lived under the guidance of some very puritanical rules.

My point is that those things which are not given a natural comfortable place in society, will take root in the underbelly of society and become more seductive due to the repressed nature of the topic.
Sorry to ramble, I just feel as though the healthiest and quickest way to change this obsession is to stop making the human body such a big deal. It is just too confusing to be constantly bombarded with things of a sexual nature, or innuendo, but not have the comfort level to discuss them openly with people.

My gosh, I totally agree. Nations with the most intense sexual repression also tend to be those that don't shy from violence and they have the highest rates of violent sex crimes and murder. Meanwhile, in a nation like Spain, where there are nude beaches and nudity all over the tv (yet little kids dress like little kids), there are few sex crimes against kids, especially those ending in murder. And the few they have are usually committed by foreigners.

 

[Wondergirl]

Has anyone found Sigg's Usernames or Emails?

 

[PlainJaneDoe]

I work with smart people here and there. Degrees out the ying yang.

Honestly sometimes the things they do are so STUPID. I see a huge lacking of common sense. Book smarts yes but..........

:seeya: hehe I feel like you're describing me.

 

[absentia]

Could you please provide a link to this article you read? When I looked at Missing Person's News, this is what I found:

Late Tuesday, evening police received a call that led them to a home near the Ketner Lake Open Space.

http://missingpersonsnews.com/archives/5534

This is in keeping with what MSM has been reporting all along. No mention of an outside party forcing AS and his mom to "deal". AS told his mom enough to cause her to call LE.

Perhaps what you read was a comment under an article, in which case that would be considered rumor. JMO

I think AS "confessed" to his mom as a direct result of LE taking a DNA swab from him. In my opinion, AS realized at that point that his time was running out.

agh! why is it not there? I have to go back and find my posts about it. the first time I posted about it, it was the first search result if you typed Jessica Ridgeway in the search field on the home page. now I can't find it. not sure which date it was. someone else found it first though. Lemme try to find their post and my posts about it.

 

[Marnie]

I really wonder if mom smelled something, searched around, found something then asked questions backing him into a corner?

I think he gave his DNA in the neighborhood sweep, THEN the story about the cross was broadcast and she KNEW it was his! She probably questioned him then and possibly explained how he was going to be caught.

I can't imagine this being a low-key soft spoken encounter B/W mother and son, but who knows? Maybe she prayed with him: maybe he was a pussy-cat with her. She may be he sweetest thing to ever walk the planet? IDK

Certainly she understood him and some of his problems if she got him "help" for his *advertiser censored* addiction. Maybe she was long suffering with him and he was a hellion at home? Who knows? But she did do the right thing by talking him into turning himself in.

 

[iamnotagolem]

I think AS got a thrill from submitting his DNA. He knew it would be months or even years before LE finally decided to test the 500+ samples, and then people would say, "You had his DNA all along and it took you this long to check it?!" Unfortunately, in his mind, his mother had to go and mess it all up.

I've wondered a few times if his mom turned him in because she was scared of him. I can't imagine suspecting my child of murder and have them living in my house with me. Next time you tell them to do the dishes are they gonna find your body under the house, too?