Found Deceased ID - Zeke Best, 10-months, abducted by homicide suspect bio father Jeremy Best 41, Victor, 30 Nov 2023 *father arrested*

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Such an awful case.
RIP Zeke you were such a cute little baby - I’m sure your mummy has you back in her arms now.

It’s such a sad case as from her Facebook it seemed that up until a few months ago this was quite a normal loving family (I know sometimes social media can hide the truth) I wonder what triggered the change in him?

The hospital also have a lot of questions to answer - I’m not sure if it’s the same law in the US as the UK as over here he would’ve likely been sectioned under the mental health act and therefore wouldn’t have been able to self release (especially as they would’ve known he had a wife and baby at home who in that mental state he was a threat to).
 
KooshBall said:
He was allowed into the courtroom without a shirt on?
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It was a Zoom link for court. The jail guard got the video set up for him. I assume they probably tied to get him to put on his jail shirt but it wasn't worth the hassle.

Best cried when the charges were read. He knows what he did. I hope we get to hear from the neighbor at some point (the one mentioned in the affidavit). Best knew enough to flee the scene and hide from police. Not sure how that works when somebody has a 'psychotic break'.
 
Trublue21 said:
What changed? KB got pregnant in 2022. Baby Zeke was born January of 2023. It’s December 2023 and KB was 28 weeks pregnant with their 2nd child. I think that’s what triggered his “episode”. JMO
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She could have been the one that filed the reports, so the pregnancy and birth may have caused the late filing. I know plenty of men who are the business owners but their wives handle the paperwork side
 
aafromaa said:
I couldn’t agree more. I don’t know who he saw at the hospital but they do have several psychiatrists on staff according to their website. I cannot believe that they let him go the same afternoon when the police sent him there. It is very much like Lori Vallow being released immediately after the psych eval in AZ. These mental health ”professionals” need to be taking their jobs a bit more seriously. The 72-hour hold gives them 3 days to evaluate before deciding whether to release or commit for further treatment. So why are people like this being put back on the street? I hope someone files some lawsuits against these doctors and facilities and holds them accountable for these deaths.
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This is an inaccurate interpretation of mental health laws.

The 72-hour hold is AFTER involuntary commitment.

Here's how it actually works:
Person is deemed to be in a mental health crisis. Paperwork is usually filled out by either a physician, a mental health professional (social workers, for example), or law enforcement. They are then taken to an emergency room by law enforcement to receive a psychiatric evaluation. I am not aware of any state that allows a 72-hour hold prior to this evaluation being completed. Generally, it has to be done as soon as possible and the absolute max is 24 hours if the person is there against their will. Once that evaluation is done, the person doing the evaluation has to determine if the individual meets very specific criteria to be committed against their will. THIS is the 72-hour hold. If the person is committed to a psychiatric facility, then they board in the ER until a bed opens up and then they're transferred to a psych ward (which is locked). At the 72-hour mark on the psych ward, the treating physician must either discharge the patient or file for a formal court hearing to get a judge's order to keep the patient longer.

The caveat to all of the above is if the patient voluntarily commits him/herself or wants to be admitted.

IMO, it sounds like JB didn't meet criteria for involuntary commitment, which results in same day discharge.
 
masquerading said:
How devastating :( I hope Zeke and Kali are at peace together now at least.

The healthcare system (especially the behavioral health sector) in the USA is horrific and grossly negligent in many ways, and there are so many more cases that we never even hear about of people harming themselves and/or others because they’re not properly evaluated and treated accordingly. This is a really tragic example of that. IMO, it’s unlikely that, if Jeremy was in such a state that he was wandering around and entering stores naked, he was able to hide it and/or manipulate the hospital staff into believing he was fine. Do we know if he was taken to a hospital that even has psych staff on site though? Wondering because I’ve been to a hospital without psych staff and they generally just have you talk to a regular doctor about your symptoms and tell you to go home and “keep an eye on it”. Which is another glaring issue with the whole system. I hate that this was the outcome. If only he had been kept at the hospital.

Edited for wording & clarity!!
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There are certainly problems, but IMO, the public has very little idea what the laws actually are and only hear about these horrific cases and not all the cases that are actually handled properly. There's a reason the mentally ill have rights and it's because there are many cases of vulnerable people being abused, taken advantage of, and locked away without due process. There has to be a balance. And yes, mistakes are made sometimes, because we're all human beings, none of us are psychic, and mental health destabilization isn't always linear.

If anyone is interested in learning exactly how these things happen, please look up the book "Aurora." It's written by the psychiatrist who treated (and was later villianized) the Aurora, CO mass shooter. She describes very well how the mental health system works and how and why it isn't always legal or even possible to foresee and prevent tragedies like this.
 
KMouse said:
It was a Zoom link for court. The jail guard got the video set up for him. I assume they probably tied to get him to put on his jail shirt but it wasn't worth the hassle.

Best cried when the charges were read. He knows what he did. I hope we get to hear from the neighbor at some point (the one mentioned in the affidavit). Best knew enough to flee the scene and hide from police. Not sure how that works when somebody has a 'psychotic break'.
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Do you have a link to the AA?
 
BeginnerSleuther said:
There are certainly problems, but IMO, the public has very little idea what the laws actually are and only hear about these horrific cases and not all the cases that are actually handled properly. There's a reason the mentally ill have rights and it's because there are many cases of vulnerable people being abused, taken advantage of, and locked away without due process. There has to be a balance. And yes, mistakes are made sometimes, because we're all human beings, none of us are psychic, and mental health destabilization isn't always linear.

If anyone is interested in learning exactly how these things happen, please look up the book "Aurora." It's written by the psychiatrist who treated (and was later villianized) the Aurora, CO mass shooter. She describes very well how the mental health system works and how and why it isn't always legal or even possible to foresee and prevent tragedies like this.
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We have different views on this, and that’s okay! I’ve been in the behavioral health system since I was 13 (psychiatric hospitals, residential hospitals, psychiatrists, therapists, etc), so I do understand the rights that mentally ill people have and the atrocities that can happen when those rights are ignored or impeded upon. I just don’t think it’s right to focus on that side only and not the issues with the fact that these tragedies are often preventable, that mental destabilization does often have warning signs, and that even when these things can be prevented, they still aren’t because of incompetencies within the mental healthcare system. I don’t even mean just murder-type tragedies, I mean suicides too. I had a friend who was trying to voluntarily admit herself to the hospital and was turned away by intake staff, despite having a plan for suicide and expressing those plans. And she ended up following through with them. I’ve been in a similar situation to that as well, obviously just didn’t go through with my plans. When things like that are happening within a system that is literally in place to prevent these things, I don’t think it’s a good one. It needs to be reformed, which is much easier said than done.

Obviously it’s not 100% on the doctors, that’s not what I’m saying at all. It’s on Jeremy for doing what he did. But as someone who’s been in the system for 12+ years, I personally know and have seen, felt, and experienced the failings of the system. That’s why I have the opinions that I do. Again, it’s okay that we disagree! I’m just explaining why I feel the way I do, not trying to start an argument.
 
aafromaa said:
Thank you for the insight. I guess it’s a little different here in Arkansas. If LE sends you to the hospital to be evaluated it would take an act of congress to get you out in less than 72-hours and all a family member needs to do is sign a paper and you will get picked up and held for the minimum 72-hours. Both have happened to my sister and she had no weapons and threatened no one including herself. One of the times they kept her 30 days and the other for 45 days - it was all drug related. Also my niece was really messed up on some bad drugs and passed out in a park and law enforcement picked her up for public intoxication or something like that and sent her to a psych ward for 72-hours - then they transferred her to a short term rehab facility and they held her there for about a week longer while she detoxed and she had to complete certain criteria - therapy and group sessions before she was released and later she was required by the court to do outpatient rehab because of the charges against her. I can’t believe Arkansas deals with psych holds better than the rest of the country since we’re usually last in such things but maybe we are doing a better job with that at least.
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Drug laws and mandatory rehab are a little different. These are not traditional psych holds.
 
masquerading said:
We have different views on this, and that’s okay! I’ve been in the behavioral health system since I was 13 (psychiatric hospitals, residential hospitals, psychiatrists, therapists, etc), so I do understand the rights that mentally ill people have and the atrocities that can happen when those rights are ignored or impeded upon. I just don’t think it’s right to focus on that side only and not the issues with the fact that these tragedies are often preventable, that mental destabilization does often have warning signs, and that even when these things can be prevented, they still aren’t because of incompetencies within the mental healthcare system. I don’t even mean just murder-type tragedies, I mean suicides too. I had a friend who was trying to voluntarily admit herself to the hospital and was turned away by intake staff, despite having a plan for suicide and expressing those plans. And she ended up following through with them. I’ve been in a similar situation to that as well, obviously just didn’t go through with my plans. When things like that are happening within a system that is literally in place to prevent these things, I don’t think it’s a good one. It needs to be reformed, which is much easier said than done.

Obviously it’s not 100% on the doctors, that’s not what I’m saying at all. It’s on Jeremy for doing what he did. But as someone who’s been in the system for 12+ years, I personally know and have seen, felt, and experienced the failings of the system. That’s why I have the opinions that I do. Again, it’s okay that we disagree! I’m just explaining why I feel the way I do, not trying to start an argument.
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I don't have a problem with us having a difference of opinion. And I have no idea what happened or didn't happen when he received his evaluation. All I'm saying is that IMO we, as a society, are too quick to jump to incompetence when, in fact, in a lot of these cases, there is no way for the mental health system (as it's designed) to prevent them. Part of that is the nature of mental illness itself.

It's like if a person goes to a cardiologist and in the office, his EKG and workup looks good. A week later, he has a heart attack. The public doesn't automatically jump to blaming the cardiologist for not preventing the heart attack. But somehow, with mental illness, the person most routinely blamed is the mental health professionals or the system. That isn't right, IMO.

Sure, it's possible the mental health professional made a mistake, but it's also just as possible the cardiologist made a mistake in the case of the patient with a heart attack. We just don't know yet so jumping to assumptions isn't fair. JMO.
 
I wouldn't necessarily say incompetence with doctors, but I do think there is systematic failure when it comes to mental health. I have shared this story previously, but when my step-son was in psychosis, we couldn't get help! The professionals that came to help us talked to him, then left. They flat out told me that they know that he was in psychosis, but there was nothing they could do. He wasn't a "threat" to himself or others. That very night he drove 100 mph on the freeway without his lights on.

The professionals can only do what the laws allow them to do. It is hard! But, it is absolutely obvious to all of us that he was and is crazy and should not have been out of the hospital so quickly
 
cocomod said:
I wouldn't necessarily say incompetence with doctors, but I do think there is systematic failure when it comes to mental health. I have shared this story previously, but when my step-son was in psychosis, we couldn't get help! The professionals that came to help us talked to him, then left. They flat out told me that they know that he was in psychosis, but there was nothing they could do. He wasn't a "threat" to himself or others. That very night he drove 100 mph on the freeway without his lights on.

The professionals can only do what the laws allow them to do. It is hard! But, it is absolutely obvious to all of us that he was and is crazy and should not have been out of the hospital so quickly
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THIS, very similar experiences with a close family member in psychosis.
 
cocomod said:
I wouldn't necessarily say incompetence with doctors, but I do think there is systematic failure when it comes to mental health. I have shared this story previously, but when my step-son was in psychosis, we couldn't get help! The professionals that came to help us talked to him, then left. They flat out told me that they know that he was in psychosis, but there was nothing they could do. He wasn't a "threat" to himself or others. That very night he drove 100 mph on the freeway without his lights on.

The professionals can only do what the laws allow them to do. It is hard! But, it is absolutely obvious to all of us that he was and is crazy and should not have been out of the hospital so quickly
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This case has really hit close to home for me, and your post especially hits close to home.

I recently went through alcohol withdrawal and ended up getting hospitalized due to what I can only call a psychotic break due to the withdrawal symptoms. Luckily, I live in a small town and I was recognized when I was wondering around during the break and my family was notified fairly quickly and was located and taken in to the hospital.

I learned after the fact that my family members were completely beside themselves because the hospital staff were continually ready to discharge me. Luckily in my case, the family won the argument each day and I wasn't home until my brain was back in functioning order.
 
Knox said:
Best seemed agitated during the court hearing and came in shirtless.

Jim Archibald and John Malek were assigned as Best's defense attorneys and asked the Judge for a mental check on Best.

"Your Honor, me and Mr. Malik have met with Mr. Best. We believe that it's necessary under Idaho Code 18 to 11 that this court order a competency review. So we would ask that an order from this court be sent to the Department of Health and Welfare to conduct the mental competency review," Archibald said.

A Teton County Sheriff's affidavit describes what may have happened to Kali Best. The report said police were sent to the couple's home in Victor at 4600 Skyline Loop for a 911 hang-up call. Dispatch said, "There were loud sounds of yelling in the background of the phone call and then silence."

Deputies said when the recorded 911 call was played back, "a female can be heard repeating 'Jeremy' and 'Jeremy no'" in the background.

The document said, "A male voice repeats 'yes' in response, and then yells 'get the back, you’re gonna get shot' followed by 'I love you, I love you, I love you.'"

Deputies found Kali's body on the ground outside of Jeremy's Auto Repair shop door. It appeared she had been shot 3 times. The deputy tried CPR, but was unsuccessful.

The report also said Kali was 28 weeks pregnant.

localnews8.com

Jeremy Best appears in court; document describes how murder victim was found - Local News 8

New in the State of Idaho vs Jeremy Albert Best case, while attending his arraignment hearing Best's defense team, made up of Jim Archibald and John Malek, asked the court for a Competency Test to be conducted before proceedings continue.
localnews8.com localnews8.com
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O.K. Good Lord, I have seen signs posted on the doors of convenience stores that state: "Shoes and Shirt required." Does that not apply to a courtroom, before a judge?
 
MollyHarps said:
Such an awful case.
RIP Zeke you were such a cute little baby - I’m sure your mummy has you back in her arms now.

It’s such a sad case as from her Facebook it seemed that up until a few months ago this was quite a normal loving family (I know sometimes social media can hide the truth) I wonder what triggered the change in him?

The hospital also have a lot of questions to answer - I’m not sure if it’s the same law in the US as the UK as over here he would’ve likely been sectioned under the mental health act and therefore wouldn’t have been able to self release (especially as they would’ve known he had a wife and baby at home who in that mental state he was a threat to).
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Not at all the same in the U.S. Due process and all.

The hospital is likely in the clear. No one is "sectioned" just because they're naked in public (a misdemeanor - there are thousands of misdemeanors). That being said he could have gone to jail. After being arrested for being naked in public, he would have been detained for at least 24 hours and evaluated (in most places).

But instead, he was taken to an ER. Not jail. Where I live (conservative area of California), it's very likely he would have gone to jail for the nakedness. Not sure what the local community standard is in this small Idaho County.

There's nothing about being naked in public that is medically associated with being a danger to wife and baby. IOW, no statistical association (which is how medicine/psychiatry work).

He *could* have been jailed, though, for his misdemeanor and a constructive judge could have kept him for longer than 72 hours.

IMO.
 
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