GUILTY IL - Kimberly Vaughn, 34, & 3 children slain, Channahon Twp, 14 June 2007

[kinsey milhoune]

Wow - I with every fiber in me believe this man shot his family. I believe he will be arrested & charged.

From the above linked article -
"The exact spot of the shootings continues to puzzle investigators. Just off busy I-55, but on a frontage road with no way back on. And instead of pulling over to the side of the road to fix what he claimed was a loose luggage strap, Chris Vaughn pulled into the only driveway between trees that blocked whatever he was doing from passersby."

This quote from the paper isn't exactly correct. There is access back on to I-55, you can get right back on north or south by going back on Bluff Rd. from the frontage road.

I think what they meant is if you follow the frontage road south from the tower, there is no access back on, the road curves & goes back into Channahon. Their statement is a bit confusing.

 

[greeneyz]

Until the tests all come back I don't want to bash him and say he did it and call him names etc. As much as he LOOKS guilty there is always a chance he is NOT, as another poster stated what if he is telling the truth, the man just lost his 3 children and his wife. As far as his parents go I feel so sorry for them, what are they supposed to think or even do at this point? He is thier son, she was thier daughter in law and the kids were thier grandchildren. How horrific for them as well as for Kimberly's family to have to go through this.

 

[kinsey milhoune]

CBS2 Chicago reporting that Christopher has told investigators he made a confession of sorts to Kimberly, which explains why she got massively pi$$ed & gave him a superficial wound in the fatty tissue of his thigh while executing her beloved children & herself. http://cbs2chicago.com/westsuburbanbureau/local_story_170193202.html

Seems he is coming up with more of a story now! I can't see a mother killing her kids no matter what kind of confession the husband makes!

 

[crash676]

The marina is maybe a half mile south of the tower, yes, I thought of him walking there & cleaning his hands of residue too. There is a bar at the marina & it would have been closed at that hour & the marina also, so no one around to see him. Like I posted, that whole area at that hour would be very dark & deserted!

Do you think it is possible that he had an accomplice docked at the Marina? There are lots of boats in and out of there and many of them are house boats. Or perhaps a client who lent him his boat and he went their to clean up? That seems a little more likely than in the river water. Just a thought..

 

[southcitymom]

Seems he is coming up with more of a story now! I can't see a mother killing her kids no matter what kind of confession the husband makes!

I doubt he's coming up with more of a story. I believe the police had this confession information from the beginning. If someone shoots you, the next logical question is "why?" I have faith that this question was asked and answered in the first 12-hour interview, but it's just now making its way to the media.

The police are releasing very little to the media and I think that's wise, although personally I want to know everything they do!

 

[pamlet]

Here's a link to the marina .. lots of good pictures showing the layout...

http://marinas.com/view/marina/745

I was curious about the proximity of the marina and the accessability. I saw in one place I googled that the marina opens (probably the office/store) at 9am. But depending on the time they were down the road I would think they'd run the risk of fisherman heading out early...

 

[Lanie]

I doubt he's coming up with more of a story. I believe the police had this confession information from the beginning. If someone shoots you, the next logical question is "why?" I have faith that this question was asked and answered in the first 12-hour interview, but it's just now making its way to the media.

The police are releasing very little to the media and I think that's wise, although personally I want to know everything they do!

I know!! I just can't understand why they won't at least tell me, I won't tell anyone!

 

[southcitymom]

I know!! I just can't understand why they won't at least tell me, I won't tell anyone!

Well, you'd have to tell us here! That's part of the code!:dance:

LE probably knows that and considers you to be unreliable....

 

[Lanie]

Well, you'd have to tell us here! That's part of the code!:dance:

LE probably knows that and considers you to be unreliable....

Well, I wonder who told them about the code?

 

[southcitymom]

Well, I wonder who told them about the code?

A snitch....obviously! Some of us just can't keep our big mouths shut!

 

[Lanie]

A snitch....obviously! Some of us just can't keep our big mouths shut!

This certainly explains why they won't tell me anything.:crazy:

 

[southcitymom]

This certainly explains why they won't tell me anything.:crazy:

Maybe they'll tell us all something soon.

I just can't turn over a scene in my mind that makes sense based on what we know.

If Chris Vaughn did it, as many obviously believe, it must have been planned. Why pre-plan a crime scene that leaves so much forensic evidence? I mean, he's an investigator - he must know the drill and have the background to make a better plan. If this was planned, there is so much forensically that could uncover his lie.

And why in the name of G-D does a seemingly, mild mannered father and husband decide to off his entire family?

I guess for me, it is just easier to grasp the mother going loco because of something she found out and snapping. I understand that there's no indication that she was mentally ill or depressed, but there's also no indication that he's a cold-blooded psychopath.

So in my mind - snapping makes more sense than something planned.

I'm not saying that's the way it went down, but that's what my mind does with the information we now have. Obviously, if he ends up being charged, we will be learning a lot more about him and what could have led to this senseless slaughter.

 

[Lanie]

And I'm on the opposite side of the fence on this. Hopefully we will know more when the forensics come back, and in the meantime you can take the high road and sympathize with his plight, and I will take the low road and hope he burns in hell for what I believe he has done.
Just my opinion.

 

[southcitymom]

And I'm on the opposite side of the fence on this. Hopefully we will know more when the forensics come back, and in the meantime you can take the high road and sympathize with his plight, and I will take the low road and hope he burns in hell for what I believe he has done.
Just my opinion.

Fair enough!

 

[dontpanic38]

I totally agree with you southcity. It sounds terrible to even think that it makes more sense for the Mom to have snapped, but to me it does. I think that had he preplanned the whole thing he would have done things differently. I also think that mothers who snap are more likely to "spare" their children and I don't look at this as any different than Andrea Yates.

I wonder if the thigh shot was an attempt at a groin shot (Which if I cheated, I am not so sure that my wife wouldn't try that herself)
And when she took the shot at him and he ran, she decided to "spare" her kids from what she had done or what she was going to do...

Again, I will admit I am wrong if it comes out that he is guilty, I just have a feeling that it is too easy to jump to conclusions, and I feel terrible for him if he is not guilty.

Also I wanted to comment about the way people react regarding someone "lawyering up" I understand that people get frustrated when a lawyer makes his client stop talking, but I would have to say that if I were accused of something or the police wanted to talk to me for more than a few minutes, the first thing I would do is get a lawyer.
I missed a court date for a traffic ticket, I went to the courthouse to pay on a different one and was arrested and sat in the Down town St. Louis City jail for 23 hours. It was by far one of the scariest most horrible days of my life. I didn't need a lawyer, but you can bet that if I get another traffic ticket, I will have a traffic lawyer go to that stinking dirty courthouse. It is not nearly the same as being questioned for murder or something like that, but if you are innocent, the only person who can help you is a lawyer....

Just my thoughts.....

 

[Lanie]

I completely agree. If I were ever arrested for a serious crime, the first and only thing I would say to police is "I want a lawyer", and I wouldn't care how guilty it made me look.
I also freely admit that a lot of times I am quick to 'jump to conclusions', which, btw, I like to refer to as 'making an informed decision based on the information at hand'. If it looks like a duck....
Having said all that, I do believe proof would be needed for an arrest. I am not in favor of violating anyone's civil rights, even if I believe someone is guilty as hell.

 

[Camper]

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/435024,6_1_NA20_VAUGHN_S1.article

Father of slain family back in native Missouri
Relatives: Parents not capable of such violenceJune 20, 2007

By Lisa Donovan Chicago Sun-Times

ST. CHARLES, Mo. -- Christopher Vaughn, the suburban Chicago man who survived a shooting that claimed the lives of his wife and three children, was back in his native Missouri on Tuesday, where a church and congregation were preparing to remember the victims and help the family deal with an "unspeakable tragedy."

Dressed in a shirt, shorts, and ball cap, Vaughn emerged from his parent's suburban St. Louis home. His left arm apparently bandaged, he climbed into the passenger side of a beige metallic pickup truck and left without commenting.

A short time earlier, relatives who answered the door of the modest two-story home in O'Fallon, northwest of St. Louis, asked that a reporter respect the three "No Trespassing" signs planted on the rolling wooded lot around the residence.

Family and friends of the Vaughns say Kimberly Vaughn, second from left, wouldn't kill her children, Blake, left, Abby and Cassandra, before killing herself, though that's what her husband, Christopher, says is what happened in their SUV last week.

About 30 minutes away, in nearby St. Charles Christopher's in-laws also were asking for privacy in a case that is as mysterious as it is sad.

--->>>From Frans link, "
Visitation will be from 3 to 8 p.m. Friday at Baue Funeral Home in St. Charles. A memorial service is planned for 1 p.m. Saturday at New Hope
Presbyterian Church."

Visitation on Friday ?, someone help me out here, will caskets be there with the remains OR will LE still have them?
Then the memorial service on Saturday, need help on that too, memorial service in my memory is that there are no bodies present for memorial services, am I right or?

IF IF Vaughn made his family a target through something he discovered through his forensic work, this could explain the very loud QUIET coming from LE. Could Vaughn have been chased from the highway to where the killing area was? I am not a patient waiting person, I too, want to know all of the details and I want them yesterday. UGH.
SAD SAD thing for the family to go through, the children were beautiful, the little boy was so prescious, their lives cut short by WHAT????

IF my thoughts are spot on about organized crime - I predict Vaughn will disappear right after the memorial service, with LE help.

.

 

[southcitymom]

I totally agree with you southcity. It sounds terrible to even think that it makes more sense for the Mom to have snapped, but to me it does. I think that had he preplanned the whole thing he would have done things differently. I also think that mothers who snap are more likely to "spare" their children and I don't look at this as any different than Andrea Yates.

I wonder if the thigh shot was an attempt at a groin shot (Which if I cheated, I am not so sure that my wife wouldn't try that herself)
And when she took the shot at him and he ran, she decided to "spare" her kids from what she had done or what she was going to do...

Again, I will admit I am wrong if it comes out that he is guilty, I just have a feeling that it is too easy to jump to conclusions, and I feel terrible for him if he is not guilty.

Also I wanted to comment about the way people react regarding someone "lawyering up" I understand that people get frustrated when a lawyer makes his client stop talking, but I would have to say that if I were accused of something or the police wanted to talk to me for more than a few minutes, the first thing I would do is get a lawyer.
I missed a court date for a traffic ticket, I went to the courthouse to pay on a different one and was arrested and sat in the Down town St. Louis City jail for 23 hours. It was by far one of the scariest most horrible days of my life. I didn't need a lawyer, but you can bet that if I get another traffic ticket, I will have a traffic lawyer go to that stinking dirty courthouse. It is not nearly the same as being questioned for murder or something like that, but if you are innocent, the only person who can help you is a lawyer....

Just my thoughts.....

Thanks for letting me know I have company. When Lanie posted that I was taking the "high" road, I thought she might mean I was chemically impaired! (just kidding, Lanie - I crack myself up....)

Right or wrong doesn't matter much to me - either way, this is a tragedy of unbearable proportions. One of those parents murdered their kids - there's no way I can spin that to be anything but devastating.

I too don't have problem number one with people getting an attorney. It's the smart thing to do, and I assume that any one on this board who had the means to afford one would get one if they needed one - guilty or innocent.

To think lawyering up implies guilt doesn't make sense to me. All it implies to me is that a person is smart enough to want to protect their best interests and smart enough to know that it's not always easy to navigate our legal system without professional assistance.

Guilty or not guilty, I feel terrible for this guy. Don't get me wrong - if he's guilty, he should be punished severely - and I don't doubt that he will be. But guilty or not, he will suffer this for the rest of his days, and I empathize with people who cause their own suffering because I do it all the time.

 

[calidreamin]

--->>>From Frans link, "
Visitation will be from 3 to 8 p.m. Friday at Baue Funeral Home in St. Charles. A memorial service is planned for 1 p.m. Saturday at New Hope
Presbyterian Church."

Visitation on Friday ?, someone help me out here, will caskets be there with the remains OR will LE still have them?
Then the memorial service on Saturday, need help on that too, memorial service in my memory is that there are no bodies present for memorial services, am I right or?

IF IF Vaughn made his family a target through something he discovered through his forensic work, this could explain the very loud QUIET coming from LE. Could Vaughn have been chased from the highway to where the killing area was? I am not a patient waiting person, I too, want to know all of the details and I want them yesterday. UGH.
SAD SAD thing for the family to go through, the children were beautiful, the little boy was so prescious, their lives cut short by WHAT????

IF my thoughts are spot on about organized crime - I predict Vaughn will disappear right after the memorial service, with LE help.

.

I read in the news a couple days ago that the coroner had released the bodies so I am sure they will be at the visitation. It will be interesting to see what the forensics say. I really am leaning towards him doing it but I hadn't considered a crime connection. I am not patient either so it is hard for me to wait for information too.

 

[lymom3]

--->>>From Frans link, "
Visitation will be from 3 to 8 p.m. Friday at Baue Funeral Home in St. Charles. A memorial service is planned for 1 p.m. Saturday at New Hope
Presbyterian Church."

Visitation on Friday ?, someone help me out here, will caskets be there with the remains OR will LE still have them?
Then the memorial service on Saturday, need help on that too, memorial service in my memory is that there are no bodies present for memorial services, am I right or?

IF IF Vaughn made his family a target through something he discovered through his forensic work, this could explain the very loud QUIET coming from LE. Could Vaughn have been chased from the highway to where the killing area was? I am not a patient waiting person, I too, want to know all of the details and I want them yesterday. UGH.
SAD SAD thing for the family to go through, the children were beautiful, the little boy was so prescious, their lives cut short by WHAT????

IF my thoughts are spot on about organized crime - I predict Vaughn will disappear right after the memorial service, with LE help.

.

I'm almost tempted to go to the visitation as it is only about 10 miles away from me. I'm not sure that I could do that though...I would feel like an intruder.