It sounds like she was wearing the clothes she wore when taking the children to school. That's why I think he got her when she first came in. I suspect she left her purse at home. And though she was weary and afraid of him I think he caught her off guard. Who would think he would pounce on a sunny school morning? I think she pulled in in the left bay and never saw him nor suspected he would be there lying in wait.
He is diabolical.
MOO.
Had another thought that your post just sparked. So probably before JD took the kids to school she didn't really have time to "get ready." Shower and groom and such. Just enough time to make a hot mug of tea and eat a granola bar that she never got to open.
So when she gets home she's gonna take a quick shower and get ready and pack for the night in NY and then leave. She's got to be in NY for her first appointment by 11:00 is what I remember reading.
So she pulls into the garage. Gets out with her purse and walks towards the door to the house leading into the laundry room area. Her back is to the garage door opening. He is somehow inside. She goes inside the laundry room area. Remember she's going to take a shower.
She drops her purse on the floor between the mudroom and the kitchen. No one is home (no kids nanny) she starts removing her dirty clothes that she had on to take the kids to school. TO put in the laundry hamper or washing machine. Shirts off...bra...then shoes...you know the drill. Only she never locked the door to the garage leading into the laundry room. She has no idea that he had made it into the garage.
Now when she's disrobing he's now inside the house. She tries to flee. Her only opening is the mudroom door. She is able to unlock it but can't make it outside because he's got her in a bearhug and is dragging her back to the garage. There is a huge struggle. He hits her repeatedly. Blood spatter everywhere but she is still fighting. Half clothed.
Finally, he's wounded her enough that she is prone. Bleeding. Restrains her with the zip ties. Maybe smothers her with the kids camping pillow uses the other to start mopping up blood. She's down. she cant move. possibly dead but definitely not able to escape or cause him anymore concern.
He uses the clothes she already discarded that she was wearing to start cleaning initially, then loads and loads of paper towels.
When my friend was murdered many years ago I met the author Patricia Cornwell and she was saying something about how head/face wounds bleed like stink...like nobody's business.
That is another explanation for the purse on the floor and the mudroom door being unlocked. Rather than locking it back when he was cleaning the crime scene he just wiped it down but wasn't thorough enough and didn't lock it back. Left her purse exactly where it was as he didn't want to touch it.
That is just another possible scenario and a sea of scenarios.
PS I still think she as attacked in the garage and never made it in the house. He probably was too afraid to run into the garage outright lest she see him and escape into the safety of her vehicle. So he slides in as she is closing the garage from the panel near the garage door to the house and hides behind the suburban or between the vehicles and she doesn't look back and never sees or knows he is there.