Deceased/Not Found IL - Yingying Zhang, 26, Urbana, 9 June 2017 #7 *Arrest*

[Webthrush]

Remember, if they decide to seek the death penalty, there will almost certainly be another delay -perhaps a significant delay of many more months. Perhaps that is why prosecutors let this deadline pass; they may know already that the DOJ will seek death, and that the judge will push everything back and will just be setting new deadlines anyway......

I hope it is something like this, and not some inexplicable inept bungling........

OK, my latest theory (…we can change our minds, right …
Originally, I thought the Gov’t. would ask for the death penalty, and the defense might in the end claim insanity (still possible). But the death penalty requires 1st degree murder, which just might be hard to nail down under the circumstances, whereas 2nd or 3rd deg. murder may be more of a slam-dunk. So I’m thinking they may “threaten” the death penalty, but primarily only to plea bargain and get BC to give up more info and accept a guilty plea for 2nd deg. murder (I think LE knows in general what happened, including what he did with the body, but may be missing several details/specifics needed for a 1st deg. charge to stick). They can get the info they need and avoid a prolonged, anguishing trial for the family, if they can get him to plead guilty to the lesser charge and be put away for life.
I’ll be flabbergasted if he sticks to his “innocent” plea (other than by way of insanity).

 

[Shiressleuth]

Not sure. I've not heard any allegations that the US Attorneys here are inept bunglers, so I'm not sure why they would allow themselves to miss a deadline like this.

However, the hearing at the DOJ where the panel decides whether or not to seek the death penalty is confidential, and may have already been held. IF they do seek death, the trial will almost certainly be delayed further, and probably by a significant number of months. Perhaps the prosecutors know already that the DOJ will seek the death penalty, so everything will be pushed back significantly and there will be new deadlines set by the judge. We will find out what their reasoning is by next Tuesday.....

They sure don't want to be missing deadlines or they may appear inept and pee off the judge as has been discussed. It sounds like they provided the names but not the actual testimonies except for one. These are public prosecutors and defenders on the public payroll so we'll see what happens.

Is it possible to seek the death penalty without the victim's body?
Moo.

 

[eastcoasterinco]

They sure don't want to be missing deadlines or they may appear inept and pee off the judge as has been discussed. It sounds like they provided the names but not the actual testimonies except for one. These are public prosecutors and defenders on the public payroll so we'll see what happens.

Is it possible to seek the death penalty without the victim's body?
Moo.

Given everything I’ve read about the difficulty of getting a conviction alone in “no body murder cases”, I would think it’s possible to seek the death penalty without a body (casey Anthony?) but the likelihood of getting a conviction is slim to none.

My guess is that the prosecutors will seek a 2nd degree guilty plea due to not having the body, but who knows!

MOO


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[trunkizback]

They sure don't want to be missing deadlines or they may appear inept and pee off the judge as has been discussed. It sounds like they provided the names but not the actual testimonies except for one. These are public prosecutors and defenders on the public payroll so we'll see what happens.

Is it possible to seek the death penalty without the victim's body?
Moo.

Couple points here today. 1. I sure hope the prosecution doesn't mess this up. The thought of this guy gettin off because of some idiotic clerical error worries me to no end.
And 2. I can;t remember who posted it on here a few months back but they advanced the theory that the FBI would go after BC on aggravated kidnapping only. If convicted he would be looking at 20 to 60 years. Then that leaves local law enforcement open to charge him with the murder. Now looking back on this , I'm thinking that may be the best play. Because if the worst happens and he gets off the kidnapping, might still be able to get him for murder.

 

[Shiressleuth]

Couple points here today. 1. I sure hope the prosecution doesn't mess this up. The thought of this guy gettin off because of some idiotic clerical error worries me to no end.
And 2. I can;t remember who posted it on here a few months back but they advanced the theory that the FBI would go after BC on aggravated kidnapping only. If convicted he would be looking at 20 to 60 years. Then that leaves local law enforcement open to charge him with the murder. Now looking back on this , I'm thinking that may be the best play. Because if the worst happens and he gets off the kidnapping, might still be able to get him for murder.

Can he be charged for both at the same time? I.e. charged at the federal level for the kidnapping and murder at the state level. A double whammy just to make sure or are they mutually exclusive of each other? This was probably discussed already but I didn't pay attention the first time so could we recap while we wait for the remains to be ruled in or out?

 

[Webthrush]

Can he be charged for both at the same time? I.e. charged at the federal level for the kidnapping and murder at the state level. A double whammy just to make sure or are they mutually exclusive of each other? This was probably discussed already but I didn't pay attention the first time so could we recap while we wait for the remains to be ruled in or out?

A lawyer can better explain the process, but I'm sure he'll be charged with multiple crimes; even if he somehow got off of a murder conviction, the multiple penalties assigned for other offenses could likely essentially add up to a life sentence.

 

[Shiressleuth]

https://mobile.twitter.com/fbispringfield?lang=en

Twitter link for FBI Springfield.

In case anything breaks.

 

[HoldySi]

Any updates on the remains?

 

[dm92]

Any updates on the remains?

Nothing so far.

This case now has had its own thread:

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...-Blanket-in-Burn-Pile-near-Boyleston-Dec-2017

Remains were taken to FBI Springfield Division facility for autopsy. They will then be transferred to Quantico for examination by a forensic anthropologist. They Wayne County coroner stated that positive identification could take up to several weeks.

I am now thinking that it is still possible this is Yingying, but unlikely to be her......

 

[kittythehare]

http://foxillinois.com/news/local/christensen-lawyers-move-to-dismiss-expert-testimony

His lawyers argue that the prosecution did not meet the deadline to produce summaries of Rule 16(a)(1)(G) and only produced one set of test results satisfying Rule 16(a)(1)(F). The lawyers also argue that the government claimed 10 additional experts would be brought forward for testimony during the trial but no summaries on the expert's opinions was produced before the December 15, 2017 deadline.

this is getting or has always been very messy?

 

[Maroon10]

http://foxillinois.com/news/local/christensen-lawyers-move-to-dismiss-expert-testimony

His lawyers argue that the prosecution did not meet the deadline to produce summaries of Rule 16(a)(1)(G) and only produced one set of test results satisfying Rule 16(a)(1)(F). The lawyers also argue that the government claimed 10 additional experts would be brought forward for testimony during the trial but no summaries on the expert's opinions was produced before the December 15, 2017 deadline.

this is getting or has always been very messy?

All this keeps making me think LE doesnt really have anything they can truly rely on, I always felt they jumped early and now are struggling to prove the case. IMHO

 

[kittythehare]

Nothing so far.

This case now has had its own thread:

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...-Blanket-in-Burn-Pile-near-Boyleston-Dec-2017

Remains were taken to FBI Springfield Division facility for autopsy. They will then be transferred to Quantico for examination by a forensic anthropologist. They Wayne County coroner stated that positive identification could take up to several weeks.

I am now thinking that it is still possible this is Yingying, but unlikely to be her......

The indictment stated the kidnapping was 'meticulously' planned, as far as I remember.
There is no evidence of 'meticulous planning' in any of the publicly available information- it looks purely opportunistic.

So what can they be basing this upon?
iMO, meticulous planning involves a plan, a victim/target/venue and means of torture and means of disposal.
Young Brendt likes an easy life .. to that end I think the body was disposed of in a location very convenient to his apartment.. assuming he did , in fact 'carry her into his apartment.
He could have drowned her in bath.
It's likely he video taped his interaction with her.
It is unlikely her body will have any of her clothes , suggesting they might have been disposed of separately, along with her bag, phone etc..

we have no evidence of incineration.. again this would be time consuming..if I try to think like him, I would favor dropping her from a great height as a means of disposal or encasing her in fast setting concrete, which would only require a small area that is little visited.. back to old building near his apartment again..
I am not confident net has been thoroughly searched for evidence of his crime or disposal.
It is still possible she was sold .
-he needed money and he needed it badly.

Also why did he choose an Asian girl? He had access to very many girls only too happy to accommodate his weird fetishes online.
I believe he took YY because she was a stranger, a new kid in town, unfamiliar with geographical topography.
Why would this be important to him??
If she was incapacitated almost immediately and it looks as though she was, why did she need to be a stranger?

if he did indeed plan it with meticulous detail.. how did he plan to dispose of her in such a manner that no trace remained.. apart from everything we have already rehashed to death.
What are we missing here.. What are Feds and local LE missing here?

Intact body, summer sun.. fast disposal needed.. what would you go for?
amber alert was on by midnight on night of abduction.. he could not have anticipated that would happen quite so fast and that it did may have altered his meticulous plan to a plan more expedient yet less efficient.

i am really annoyed that official searches did not continue and that no reason was given for stopping them.
maybe Chinese govt needs to be putting a lot more pressure on US govt to get some action on this mess of a case..
Did anybody even search for a lump of fast setting concrete anywhere?

here's link to all indictments, again
https://search.justice.gov/search?query=brendt+christensen&op=Search&affiliate=justice

 

[dm92]

http://foxillinois.com/news/local/christensen-lawyers-move-to-dismiss-expert-testimony

His lawyers argue that the prosecution did not meet the deadline to produce summaries of Rule 16(a)(1)(G) and only produced one set of test results satisfying Rule 16(a)(1)(F). The lawyers also argue that the government claimed 10 additional experts would be brought forward for testimony during the trial but no summaries on the expert's opinions was produced before the December 15, 2017 deadline.

this is getting or has always been very messy?

No idea. I hope it is because the prosecution knows that a Notice of Intent to seek Death will be filed soon and that everything is going to be pushed back by several more months anyway......

 

[kittythehare]

No idea. I hope it is because the prosecution knows that a Notice of Intent to seek Death will be filed soon and that everything is going to be pushed back by several more months anyway......

That is NOT what the 'article' is saying.
There is no discernible good reason for non production by prosecution.
Makes one wonder how seriously they ever took the case to begin with.. lotta fanfare and noise, a few billboards for a few nights.. thats about the size of it, isn't it?
Lets try organise another search, a proper thorough search.
I no longer trust anything lE say.

 

[dm92]

That is NOT what the 'article' is saying.
There is no discernible good reason for non production by prosecution.
Makes one wonder how seriously they ever took the case to begin with.. lotta fanfare and noise, a few billboards for a few nights.. thats about the size of it, isn't it?
Lets try organise another search, a proper thorough search.
I no longer trust anything lE say.

I'm not saying there is a discernible good reason for non-compliance with this court order. This is completely troubling. I am only hoping that they did not comply because of something they know is coming like an LOI, as that might explain why. We will know more about what is going on on Tuesday, January 9th, as that is when the Government has to file their response with the court.

Also,

The lawyers also argue that the government claimed 10 additional experts would be brought forward for testimony during the trial but no summaries on the expert's opinions was produced before the December 15, 2017 deadline.

This states "10 additional experts." They may have provided a list of other experts and provided summaries for these experts' testimony before the deadline, but not for the "additional" ten that the defense was informed of on December 14th.

We will find out on the 9th.......

 

[kittythehare]

dm92.. i read it, I read the thread, all the threads and I've been hatching on this cursed case since the night she disappeared. So I do know.
And I conclude, they're not doing enough, have not done enough and unlikely to do enough to #FINDYY.. that's why we're here, is it or is it not?
Now there's always massive resistance to re searching, starting a new search or even any kind of a search.
Why is that?
Perp got a change of lawyer which could at a stretch be a cause of some delay.
What's the fed's excuse?
What did they produce in order to get grand jury indictment, superseding indictment and any other indictments, real or imaginary?

Now apart from second guessing them, are we actively searching for YY or discussing points of law that may or may not arise which will do sfa towards finding her.
Is the search off on WS/?
Just let me know..

 

[Deleted member 158085]

I'm not saying there is a discernible good reason for non-compliance with this court order. This is completely troubling. I am only hoping that they did not comply because of something they know is coming like an LOI, as that might explain why. We will know more about what is going on on Tuesday, January 9th, as that is when the Government has to file their response with the court.

Also,



This states "10 additional experts." They may have provided a list of other experts and provided summaries for these experts' testimony before the deadline, but not for the "additional" ten that the defense was informed of on December 14th.

We will find out on the 9th.......

I understand what you are saying. And I also want to thank you for your perspective. I always look forward to your posts.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

 

[trunkizback]

Now apart from second guessing them, are we actively searching for YY or discussing points of law that may or may not arise which will do sfa towards finding her.
Is the search off on WS/?
Just let me know..


The problem for us here in the Champaign area is the same as all of you further away are experiencing. We have NO ONE to actually ask questions to. If you call any local LE office they refer you to an FBI phone number where some faceless entity ( who may be in Batcrap India for all we know ) just asks what your tip is and says they will enter it into a database somewhere. They have NO answers to any questions. This has aggravated me ( and I"M sure many of you ) since the day the info just plain quit. I seriously wonder if they have a handle on this at all. Like many have said...they may have some spectacular voice/video stuff that we don't know about...but..since we don't ..well.. I just worry that they might botch this whole thing. Wouldn't be the first time a murderer walked free in our court system!...cough cough OJ

 

[kittythehare]

Now apart from second guessing them, are we actively searching for YY or discussing points of law that may or may not arise which will do sfa towards finding her.
Is the search off on WS/?
Just let me know..


The problem for us here in the Champaign area is the same as all of you further away are experiencing. We have NO ONE to actually ask questions to. If you call any local LE office they refer you to an FBI phone number where some faceless entity ( who may be in Batcrap India for all we know ) just asks what your tip is and says they will enter it into a database somewhere. They have NO answers to any questions. This has aggravated me ( and I"M sure many of you ) since the day the info just plain quit. I seriously wonder if they have a handle on this at all. Like many have said...they may have some spectacular voice/video stuff that we don't know about...but..since we don't ..well.. I just worry that they might botch this whole thing. Wouldn't be the first time a murderer walked free in our court system!...cough cough OJ

I know you put a lot of heart and legwork into this yourself and provided a unique perspective.. and I know you went the route you describe and the response you got..
And that honors YY and I really appreciate it, though am not physically there..

Again, flash back to amber alert at 10pm.. he would have needed to get rid of her quickly.. roadblocks would be expected.. he didn't spot the cctv at the time, but possibly thought of it later.. in his first denial to police, was it rehearsed, I wonder?

If it was a thing that the Chinese report is inaccurate regarding the 5 hr deadline, kidnap to her death.. he would have had no reason to dispose of her in a hurry.. but amber alert could well have prohibited any further travel that evening or subsequently..

Just bear with me on this and take above scenario into a/c.. he needed to get rid of her that night, sometime after 10pm and he could not use a car. He would have had to carry her wherever he intended to dispose of her..

what were his options within walking distance, while carrying a large bag that could have resembled a laundry bag? (still working with the quick setting cement possibility for the exercise.. or some similar substance that he either had in his possession or could easily procure from a late night hardware shop without arousing suspicion..)

one such place is the old cement building we spend so much time with..

where else could he have gone, that night, carrying her, and following the 2200hrs amber alert?

A manhole is a possibility and could be what was referred to when it was said 'unless she turns up at some water outlet/sewer?
We know he traversed road from his home to gym every day and can safely assume he was familiar with it..

so that's a very short journey..
what do you think?

 

[trunkizback]

I know you put a lot of heart and legwork into this yourself and provided a unique perspective.. and I know you went the route you describe and the response you got..
And that honors YY and I really appreciate it, though am not physically there..

Again, flash back to amber alert at 10pm.. he would have needed to get rid of her quickly.. roadblocks would be expected.. he didn't spot the cctv at the time, but possibly thought of it later.. in his first denial to police, was it rehearsed, I wonder?

If it was a thing that the Chinese report is inaccurate regarding the 5 hr deadline, kidnap to her death.. he would have had no reason to dispose of her in a hurry.. but amber alert could well have prohibited any further travel that evening or subsequently..

Just bear with me on this and take above scenario into a/c.. he needed to get rid of her that night, sometime after 10pm and he could not use a car. He would have had to carry her wherever he intended to dispose of her..

what were his options within walking distance, while carrying a large bag that could have resembled a laundry bag? (still working with the quick setting cement possibility for the exercise.. or some similar substance that he either had in his possession or could easily procure from a late night hardware shop without arousing suspicion..)

one such place is the old cement building we spend so much time with..

where else could he have gone, that night, carrying her, and following the 2200hrs amber alert?

A manhole is a possibility and could be what was referred to when it was said 'unless she turns up at some water outlet/sewer?
We know he traversed road from his home to gym every day and can safely assume he was familiar with it..

so that's a very short journey..

what do you think?

I hadn't heasrd of the " showing up at a sewer outlet " thing before. He said that? All I can say is..IF she does end up being found in that plant someday...there are some FBI clowns gonna be needin a new job!