GUILTY MS - Amanda Price, 31, murdered at her New Albany home, 5 Dec 2011

[BrendaStarr]

Just to clarify, the two people arrested for stealing a car and breaking into a home were not charged with the car break-ins that occurred on the night of the Price murder. LE is saying there's nothing to connect them to
the Price shootings. I'm not sure if there's been any report of them being connected with the car break-ins on the night of the shootings.

As for the New Albany mayor's presence at the scene before the cops got there, my guess is that he heard the 911 call as it came in over the police scanner he has in his home, then raced over there, walked in -- I don't know which door he used -- located an injured Ron who told him to check on the little girl, located the little girl and picked her up and was observed holding her when the first police arrived. I don't know the mayer's background or relationship to the Prices. (I'm a New Albany native, not a current resident -- haven't lived there for years.) But I do know that in small towns, many people, laypersons as well as various officials, moniter the local police scanner. Some, such as first responders, do it because they have to; others, because they're nosy or just curious.

 

[shopper]

It doesn't add up to shoot someone in a situation that probably wouldn't even be investigated if the perp had just walked away, or even made some kind of excuse as to why they were there, but people looking for a fix don't have much sense. Although, wearing a mask makes it harder to make excuses.

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I think the people that orchestrate such believe it somehow gives cred to their story. But when one person is killed and the other barely nicked, it backfires IMO. I guess they feel confident the shooter won't kill them because they've gotta get paid for their services afterwards.

This is the only place that I can find where there is any discussion of this, the newspapers, television stations, fb...nada. It's like after Amanda was buried there was nothing left to talk about. Maybe it shouldn't, but it's starting to piss me off that people are just willing to buy that burglary gone awry story so freely.

 

[BrendaStarr]

Shopper, this is the only other place http://m.topix.com/forum/city/booneville-ms/T009B5S25EOMKFR44 I've found where anyone's questioning the "burglary gone wrong" story, and be wary, it's Topix, and you know what a cesspool that place can be. I can't find more than a "doubting Thomas" or two on the news sites, as I'm sure you've noticed, and they're quickly silenced. I can't even find anyone talking about it on the New Albany or Tupelo Topix, but there're definitely N.A. people talking on the Booneville one.

I'm so thankful to have found this discussion here on Websleauths, because like you, it just disturbs the heck out of me -- the apparent "buying into" of the "random" theory. At least the police chief did say this "could be" a target killing by someone with "ill-will" toward the couple. Hopefully, LE realizes the "random" scenario is full of holes and can't hold water.

 

[cluciano63]

Personally, I am just waiting for word of an affair to leak out...more likely on the part of the husband, IMO. Of course I could be wrong, this could truly be the most loving couple ever with the worst possible luck.

 

[shopper]

Thank you so much for that link Brenda, I will definitely be doing some reading & discussion there!!

Clucian, I am waiting for the same thing to come out. Or a bombshell about a hefty insurance policy. Like you, they could be the couple in that small percentage that it was just random and nothing untoward either of them. But I have to remind myself of that quite often!

 

[mycroft]

Brenda Andrew had herself shot by her lover so that her husband could be conveniently gunned down in their garage...she had a shoulder wound and survived of course. Also, there was a man in Florida who shot himself 5 times on the beach, in order to murder his wife...he had looked up on the internet where to shoot himself and survive...can't think of his name...those are just two that come to mind...
Anyway, JMO. It is not unheard of.

Thanks cluciano63. Interesting to know how wrong I was.

I'm always looking for good beach reading.

It still seems like an insane approach to murder! How do you practice?

Even if you trust your own skills as a marksman, why take the chance? If the perp is being paid, why wouldn't they just kill you?

 

[BrendaStarr]

If it's not random or something the husband isn't involved in . . . then I, too, am puzzling over the catalyst/motive -- if the husband turns out to have killed her or hired someone to kill her and wing him. Aside from the aforementioned possibility of an affair or for the insurance (if they could even afford any sizeable policy on Mississippi teachers' salaries), I'm reminded of the cases (eg. Lori Hacking) where one spouse is involved in any number of activites that causes them to "live a lie", and the other spouse is killed because they find out about it and threaten to leave and/or expose their spouse's lies or "secret life". Especially if one's whole identity is dependent upon one's public persona or family expectations which don't "gee and haw" with who the person really is. Sociopaths can and have murdered for much less. Not calling anyone a sociopath -- again, I don't know these people, but sociopaths are threatened by people who might topple their "house of cards". Here is where the "perfect couple, beloved local celebrities, über Christians" labels might offer a clue. That's a lot of tap dancing, living up to impossible standards.

Although Coach was apparently well-liked in the town, the officiating preacher at her funeral did mention (news article, I wasn't there) how Amanda gracefully handled the inevitable hurtful comments that come with the territory of being a coach's wife.

I found that an odd thing to mention in a eulogy. Maybe that's just me.

And then there's the matter of him being "cut up" from falling through the glass door. Did this happen as a result of his being shot in the shoulder, as he reported? Or did he fall or get pushed through the door during an earlier altercation? (as in, a fight with his wife)

Regarding whether or not someone will muder a spouse or their child and then inflict themselves with a minor wound to make their story about an armed assailant seem credible . . . well that's the first thing I thought when the story broke, because it's happened so many times before. I could name several well-known cases just off the top of my head. They shot or stabbed themselves (or the one they hired did) to make it look like, "See, they almost got me, too!"

 

[mycroft]

I think the people that orchestrate such believe it somehow gives cred to their story. .

Thanks shopper. Not sure whether we're agreeing or disagreeing here.


What story? Are you saying that shooting hubby helped a random crime theory? I'm not sure that I follow.

 

[JoeFromLB]

The possible compromising of the crime scene is going to cause all sorts of trouble at trial if a suspect is eventually charged.

Trouble for the prosecution, that is. From reading the details of the timeline, etc. the police seem like rank amateurs to me. You don't go traipsing all over a crime scene before the CSI people have done a thorough examination of it. That's routine police procedure.

 

[cluciano63]

Thanks cluciano63. Interesting to know how wrong I was.

I'm always looking for good beach reading.

It still seems like an insane approach to murder! How do you practice?

Even if you trust your own skills as a marksman, why take the chance? If the perp is being paid, why wouldn't they just kill you?

In the cases I've seen, a lover was the shooter or the spouse himself was the shooter...only one case I know of, in So. Cal, where the hired killer doubled-crossed the husband and shot both of them to death...oops.

 

[Alcina]

She was letting the dog out, right? If I were a thief, druggie, or other unsavory character...I am going to worry about that dog first. It could do more damage to me than the lone woman.

 

[JoeFromLB]

If someone is hired by a husband to kill his wife and "wing" him in the shoulder, he had better be a darn good shot, as there are several arteries there. A bullet hits an artery, and you can bleed out rather quickly and die. There are very few "safe" places on the body when it comes to gunshot wounds. The very top of the shoulder is one of those.

Do we know if tests were done on the husband for powder burns on his hands and/or residue in the wound?

I still can't get over the (purported) fact that a burglar hits the wife with deadly accuracy square in the chest, then only grazes the husband, who had to be perceived as a much greater threat in that situation.

I don't know exactly where on the shoulder area he was hit, so my comments are tentative.

 

[JoeFromLB]

She was letting the dog out, right? If I were a thief, druggie, or other unsavory character...I am going to worry about that dog first. It could do more damage to me than the lone woman.

Do we know what breed the dog is? I haven't been able to find anything in the reports about it. A trained Rottweiler, e.g., can prove extremely dangerous to a burglar, gun or no gun.

 

[shopper]

Thanks shopper. Not sure whether we're agreeing or disagreeing here.


What story? Are you saying that shooting hubby helped a random crime theory? I'm not sure that I follow.

Since he's the only surviving victim, his version or "story" is all we have to go by. The "logic" is that how could he possibly be behind it, when he too was shot? But getting grazed in the shoulder, while I'm sure it hurt, is no big deal compared to where she was shot.

 

[Fairy1]

What a tragedy. I'm hoping with all my heart the husband had nothing to do with it, but we've seen so many similar cases that it's nearly impossible to be objective.

What's even more frightening is the possibility that he is so revered in the community, LE will never investigate this murder properly.

 

[cluciano63]

There was a 48 Hours on ID channel the other night about a funeral director, Michael Roseboro, who beat and strangled his wife and put her in the pool, saying she was killed by a random attacker. What struck me about the case, besides the brutality, was the number of people on the show who came forward to say he was from such a good family, so prominent in the community, they had such a "loving" marriage, etc...one person made the remark that he never "belittled her in public" which I guess was supposed to be in his favor. (?) Anyway, he was convicted, he was obsessed with another woman and did not care for the divorce route...

Again, I am not saying that this case in New Albany is anything but a tragedy at this point, but there are so many case of the "perfect" marriages ending in the murder of one (usually the wife.) Look at how perfect Scott and Lacey looked to the outside world. JMO

 

[Angelonline]

Okay, here are my observations so far being from a small MS town myself where a good many domestic type murders have gone either unsolved or lightly punished (example: one man got 2 years house arrest after killing his wife by shooting her in the back).
In regards to this case I noticed right away that in the photo of the couple she looks older than him. I think they are probably the same age, but she is an attractive 31 year old (age from article) he however looks early twenties, one of those guys that keeps his "boyish" good looks. These boyish good looks can however get high school coaches and high school teachers in trouble. Often times teenage girls find these guys to be attractive and all it takes is a little flirting and the coach/teacher has his ego inflated, which of course leads to infidelity and statutory rape. Which would be a pretty good motive if for instance the wife found out what was going on. I also noticed that one article, though I cannot find it now, mentioned that they had just returned from a trip to ? and that had went to take a student or support a student in some way. Was the student a male or female? Does anyone know.? The reason I wonder was did the wife pick up on some kind of vibes on this trip and she questioned him/ accused him when they got home? My #1 thought at this time is that this coach shot her and then shot himself. I do not care how "awesome" the community says their relationship is. None of the given explanations make sense.

 

[BrendaStarr]

Angelonline, New Albany has recently been a hotbed of teacher/student shenanigans. Earlier this year, the 25-yr.-old married high school soccer coach/history teacher had a flirtatious relationship with a 17-yr.-old girl which reportedly resulted in a kiss. You can read about it at nems360.com. What you won't read about, however, is the recent (few months prior to soccer coach charges) scandal involving the married female junior high teacher who had a much more "involved" relationship with a teenage male student that included secret trysts outside of school. She was allowed "quietly" (I put that in quotes because the whole town found out about it) to resign, with no criminal charges filed. Her family is well-known and "connected", as is the family of the teenage girl who kissed the coach. The teenage girl's identity was protected, but everyone in town knew who it was. This might tell you a little about how things are "handled" in New Albany, MS.

The Prices are relative newcomers (2002), but were/are very loved, as we've all read. I believe the soccer coach and his wife were fairly new to town. (2008?) I include this extra info as it pertains to your theory, and illustrates the current atmosphere vis-à-vis New Albany student/teacher scandals.

In regards to your question about the trip the Prices had taken with a student, I've included a link with a brief interview with him. I believe that trip was strictly sports-related and above board, but I have to wonder if they (the Prices) argued about anything after dropping the student off and driving several hours back to N.A.
http://nems360.com/pages/full_story...749246&instance=secondary_stories_left_column

 

[Angelonline]

Brenda, Thanks for the article. That clears up my suspicions about the student that they took to Jackson. I have had the same experience as far as coaches/teachers in my area. We had a very popular (from a "good" local family) middle school principal/coach be allowed to resign after rumors of multiple instances of misconduct with female students. Also in recent years at the high school we have had 4 male teachers (2 of those coaches) who have been formally charged with statutory rape. 3 are now registered sex offenders, 1 is awaiting trial. Two of those RSO's are still "highly regarded" in the community and still married to the same woman. The other RSO who was not from a good local family and was not a coach is never mentioned by anyone. The most important things in our area are being from a good local family or being the winning football or baseball coach. If you are one of those things you are on a pedestal for certain. I hope and pray in this instance that justice is served. IMO though the only way that it will be is if someone who is also from a good local family comes forward and tells what they know, if indeed there is anyone that "knows". In most small MS towns, it is all about who you know or who you are related too. From my own personal experience, if someone not as highly regarded comes forward it will be swept under the rug or likewise if no one comes forward. So in my mind this will most likely never be solved or they will find someone to try to pin it on, I have seen that happen as well here.

 

[colette]

The police chief relates what the husband saw...

"The door was open back into the kitchen. The door was open where he had opened it up to take the dog out, and it's a back glass door, and he sees the guy standing there," said Grisham. "And so he dives at him through the door."

"This person was dressed in black, was wearing a face mask, like a full toboggan, had on gloves and was armed with a .380 caliber pistol," he said.

http://www.wmctv.com/story/16325134...residents-to-remain-vigilant-following-murder

Ok, now the husband was taking the dog out, I thought it was the wife. He dives through a glass door to attack someone, no way.
He was close enough to see the caliber of gun and only gets a shoulder wound???