BoP, I always love your posts because they are usually pointing me back to the facts. That helps to keep me grounded in reality while my brain flies off into Neverland, LOL!
BBM I hope you don't mind me jumping off your statements but I concur with your point and would like to add some thoughts I am having as of late.
I Know many here feel that LE doesn't owe us any explanation or isn't under any obligation to provide us with additional information. And, while that is actually true, we now have the social media aspect to add to the mix. SM adds a new dimension in which all sorts of theories are allowed to sprout and grow wings as people (and whole groups) reach their own conclusions, often based on rumor, simply because LE won't give the most basic of details.
While that in itself is not too problematic, it becomes so when based on these theories innocent people are targeted relentlessly and character aassasination runs rampant. Not here of course, WSer's are wonderfully wonderful always, sleuthing and forming theories is our thing, but we have all had a gander at other sites and it is brutal. Because of this LE is forced to spend time stamping out rumors and finger-pointing.
Another issue I see with the new SM dimension is that there may be hundreds, if not thousands, of tips turned in to LE based on these speculations. These tips have to be sifted through, possibly causing LE to spend precious resources and man hours following up on each and every piece of paper and every single phone message with tips from the public that could be used pursuing the killer. How many of these tips would never even be turned in if we had answers to the most basic of questions, like cause of death, for instance.
I totally understand that LE needs to keep details of the case close to the breast, but ALL of them? I wonder if they aren't doing themselves a bit of a disservice in doing so.
All of the above is moooooooooooo and imo, of course.