PA PA - Betsy Aardsma, 22, murdered in Pattee Library, Penn State, 29 Nov 1969

[littlehorn]

Thats exactly how I visualize it too.
Its so cool your making these connections,now someone here on the board who was there!
You never know what will turn up and what could be the missing piece!
Ill be interested to see the results of your tests.
Hang in there.

Yes, I certainly hope rjackson emails me so I can talk to him/her further in private, I have some questions to ask which I'm not sure I can ask in a public forum at this point.

Once I have the mannequin coroner's report mock-up finished I will post whether it was helpful or not. I want to run any findings by the State Police first as I don't want to reveal anything that may be detrimental to their investigation -- although the coroner's report is available publicly.

Derek

 

[Talisman]

But then you see that the girl is found down a dead-end aisle, and you have to think: Why would she, if she truly interrupted a drug deal, etc., calmly continue searching for books, rather than getting the heck out of there?

There's no evidence to indicate that she struggled or was coerced so it's not likely she would have been dragged there.

Maybe Betsy didn't realize she was 'interupting' something. There would be no reason then to run and flee in her mind. Or maybe she did see something, but tried to act like it was nothing (maybe that's how her survival mode kicked in)

My mind though still goes back to the man saying "Somebody better help that girl." He really did have to be convinced that stab wound did the job.

If it was someone that was secretly obssessed with Betsy could they in any way know that she might be in the library that day? Could they have known her assignment well enough to know what aisle she would have to get books from?

littlehorn, I am so excited that you have gotten the Vidocq Society involved!! Thank you.

 

[littlehorn]

Maybe Betsy didn't realize she was 'interupting' something. There would be no reason then to run and flee in her mind. Or maybe she did see something, but tried to act like it was nothing (maybe that's how her survival mode kicked in)

My mind though still goes back to the man saying "Somebody better help that girl." He really did have to be convinced that stab wound did the job.

If it was someone that was secretly obssessed with Betsy could they in any way know that she might be in the library that day? Could they have known her assignment well enough to know what aisle she would have to get books from?

littlehorn, I am so excited that you have gotten the Vidocq Society involved!! Thank you.

Talisman,

I do wonder about that guy. However, I almost think perhaps he was NOT involved? Maybe he really did just believe that the girl had fainted and was on his way out of the library. Reason being, when you are that close to committing the "perfect murder," why would you go and screw it up by doing that? Theoretically she may have lain there for a day or two and not been noticed, had he not said something.

The way I understand it, there was NO indication to anyone outside of Betsy's immediate circle (her roommate and her fiancee) who knew that she would be there in the library on that day, or in that section.

She had spent Thanksgiving with her fiancee. She was supposed to stay all weekend, but they had a discussion Thanksgiving night where she expressed concern about her readiness for the paper she was working on. She decided to go back early to research. She played a card game with her roommate that evening after she got back from Hershey. The next day they walked over to the library together.

The odd part is, she *shouldn't* necessarily have been in that section. Even one of her professors told me so. The books in that section at that time were not relative to what she was researching.

My one wish is that the Trooper who is in charge, and who I spoke to before I submitted the case to the Vidocq Society, would let me attend the meeting. I don't want to reveal anything detrimental to the case -- I would just like to hear more about it and also to experience the atmosphere of a V.S. meeting.

Regards,

Derek

 

[pittsburghgirl]

Because I have a Mac and use Safari as my browser, I couldn't read all of the Daily Collegian stories. So if I am treading on old ground, I hope you can bear with me.

Did Betsy have a fellowship or teaching assistant position? That would be very common, as English grad students in big universities teach freshman composition.

The fact that she was wearing a dress isn't all that surprising. I was an undergrad in 1969, but in those days the miniskirt was very popular. We often wore skirts and short dresses to class.

One article says, "She was in the core of the second floor, off to the side' of the central level, where books waiting to be shelved are kept." That might mean that she was looking for a particular book. If the professor had suggested something, it might not have been shelved where she expected it to be. So she might have wanted to look at the cart, to see if someone else had used it or had returned it. My question would be: what floor housed the books on Marvell criticism? Marvell was as noted for his political involvement with the Puritans during Cromwell's "reign." Where were British historical accounts of the 17th century shelved? While Betsy was working on one of Marvell's poems, it is likely that at the graduate level, a professor would have pointed her to LESS obvious sources that the usual critical essays, etc. The professor would have known what he told her to find. It is less knowable whether Betsy was sure where, exactly, things could be found. This was not the era of computer catalogues. And this is one huge library.

Authorities of all sorts (police, college officials, high school teachers, etc.) were all overly worried about drug use because it was a relatively new phenomenon to have large groups of kids "smoking dope" or taking LSD. 1968 was one of the most turbulent years in American history--assassinations, riots, the war in Vietnam, the shocking events of the Democratic convention, etc. And Kline reminds us of how much crazy random violence there was in 1969 itself. So there was, I think, a tendency to imagine that drugs were at the root of anything that went wrong. Even the Manson murders weren't caused by drugs; they were committed by crazy people who happened to use them and were therefore even crazier.

What strikes me is what an odd place this is for any sort of murder. If someone targetted Betsy specifically, I would think that there were many others ways to make her "disappear" without talking the appalling risks these people took. So it would seem to suggest that the public nature of the crime was part of it. Or maybe the whole point of it. A holiday weekend and a young woman who was not working with a partner or a group. Was the idea for the body to lay there, perhaps until Monday? Or was the point to call attention to the murder right away, to heighten the thrill of pulling it off in public? That's how it reads to me, nearly 40 years down the road.

 

[littlehorn]

Because I have a Mac and use Safari as my browser, I couldn't read all of the Daily Collegian stories. So if I am treading on old ground, I hope you can bear with me.

Did Betsy have a fellowship or teaching assistant position? That would be very common, as English grad students in big universities teach freshman composition.

Interesting that you mention this. It was Betsy's first semester at Penn State, and while she was studious, she had already dropped one class, and was considering dropping out of PSU. I have read in ONE newspaper article mention of "a friend" who was not named saying that "she was up for an assistant professorship." I don't know if this was just idle speculation, but I have never found any truth behind this statement.

She certainly was not in any fellowship/assistant position at the time of her murder.

One article says, "She was in the core of the second floor, off to the side' of the central level, where books waiting to be shelved are kept." That might mean that she was looking for a particular book. If the professor had suggested something, it might not have been shelved where she expected it to be. So she might have wanted to look at the cart, to see if someone else had used it or had returned it. My question would be: what floor housed the books on Marvell criticism? Marvell was as noted for his political involvement with the Puritans during Cromwell's "reign." Where were British historical accounts of the 17th century shelved? While Betsy was working on one of Marvell's poems, it is likely that at the graduate level, a professor would have pointed her to LESS obvious sources that the usual critical essays, etc. The professor would have known what he told her to find. It is less knowable whether Betsy was sure where, exactly, things could be found. This was not the era of computer catalogues. And this is one huge library.

It is noted that she spent some time in the card catalog area, which was at that time right inside the front door, where the Nittany Lion mount is now housed. I am not sure where the book she "should have been" looking for was, but one of the professors who was co-teaching the 501 class that semester said he found it odd that she had ended up in the core at that place at all.

The books she was carrying/found in the aisle when she died were not directly related to Marvell or literary criticism at all, in fact, they were accounts of early Saxons in England and other texts. It is possible she blundered into the wrong part of the library...Or was led there by design.

What strikes me is what an odd place this is for any sort of murder. If someone targetted Betsy specifically, I would think that there were many others ways to make her "disappear" without talking the appalling risks these people took. So it would seem to suggest that the public nature of the crime was part of it. Or maybe the whole point of it. A holiday weekend and a young woman who was not working with a partner or a group. Was the idea for the body to lay there, perhaps until Monday? Or was the point to call attention to the murder right away, to heighten the thrill of pulling it off in public? That's how it reads to me, nearly 40 years down the road.

Good point. I have often commented that I Don't believe the murder was any sort of "hit" or stalker-killing, partly because this could have been MUCH more easily accomplished elsewhere.

I wonder if perhaps there wasn't a dual motive -- to kill her, but also to prick Penn State University, for some imagined wrong exercised upon the killer. They may not have even known her as "Betsy," just as "right place, right time," and a bold way to give the finger to the University -- by killing someone right in the heart of what is central to a research college -- the library.

Derek

 

[kline]

Interesting that you mention this. It was Betsy's first semester at Penn State, and while she was studious, she had already dropped one class, and was considering dropping out of PSU. I have read in ONE newspaper article mention of "a friend" who was not named saying that "she was up for an assistant professorship." I don't know if this was just idle speculation, but I have never found any truth behind this statement.

She certainly was not in any fellowship/assistant position at the time of her murder.



It is noted that she spent some time in the card catalog area, which was at that time right inside the front door, where the Nittany Lion mount is now housed. I am not sure where the book she "should have been" looking for was, but one of the professors who was co-teaching the 501 class that semester said he found it odd that she had ended up in the core at that place at all.

The books she was carrying/found in the aisle when she died were not directly related to Marvell or literary criticism at all, in fact, they were accounts of early Saxons in England and other texts. It is possible she blundered into the wrong part of the library...Or was led there by design.



Good point. I have often commented that I Don't believe the murder was any sort of "hit" or stalker-killing, partly because this could have been MUCH more easily accomplished elsewhere.

I wonder if perhaps there wasn't a dual motive -- to kill her, but also to prick Penn State University, for some imagined wrong exercised upon the killer. They may not have even known her as "Betsy," just as "right place, right time," and a bold way to give the finger to the University -- by killing someone right in the heart of what is central to a research college -- the library.

Derek

You know,I know weve touched on this before but its something I keep coming back to when thinking this murder through,considering the staggering risk to the killer in doing it in the library,how important was it to perhaps kill someone there?
What if that was the whole point?
And who the victim was ,was basicly irrelevant.
It would certainly explain why sifting through Betsy's life turned up nothing and also forces us to totally re-think who and what kind of person the murderer was.
By the way I wish you could be in on that meeting too Derek!

 

[littlehorn]

You know,I know weve touched on this before but its something I keep coming back to when thinking this murder through,considering the staggering risk to the killer in doing it in the library,how important was it to perhaps kill someone there?
What if that was the whole point?
And who the victim was ,was basicly irrelevant.
It would certainly explain why sifting through Betsy's life turned up nothing and also forces us to totally re-think who and what kind of person the murderer was.
By the way I wish you could be in on that meeting too Derek!

I think it's definitely a compelling angle. Thinking about "rage" as a motive against Betsy herself always comes up empty. But what if someone is VERY mad at PSU for some reason? You can't kill a college -- but you can create fear and chaos. It could easily have been an almost terroristic event. A way to get back at PSU for whatever imagined wrong there was. And given five minutes either way, we might not be talking about Betsy Aardsma's murder, but someone else's instead.

Derek

 

[pittsburghgirl]

You know,I know weve touched on this before but its something I keep coming back to when thinking this murder through,considering the staggering risk to the killer in doing it in the library,how important was it to perhaps kill someone there?
What if that was the whole point?
And who the victim was ,was basicly irrelevant.
It would certainly explain why sifting through Betsy's life turned up nothing and also forces us to totally re-think who and what kind of person the murderer was.
By the way I wish you could be in on that meeting too Derek!

Earlier on the thread, someone (you, Kline?) mentioned the Manson murders. Investigating the lives of Sharon Tate or Roman Polanski or any of the others who were killed would have turned up nothing; Manson was enraged at Terry Melchor (sp?). who had lived in that house previously and who (in Manson's deluded mind) had denied Manson his chance at rock stardom. Or think of many other murders in public places (the DC sniper killings) where the point was terrorizing the public. The victims became victims because they were in a place where 1) they could be shot from the kill vehicle and 2) the killers had access to escape.

I think that the need to escape explains the timing of the murder--they wanted witnesses, but only witnesses to the death, not the murder. And most campuses run reduced security over the holidays, since there are many fewer students on campus.

 

[littlehorn]

Earlier on the thread, someone (you, Kline?) mentioned the Manson murders. Investigating the lives of Sharon Tate or Roman Polanski or any of the others who were killed would have turned up nothing; Manson was enraged at Terry Melchor (sp?). who had lived in that house previously and who (in Manson's deluded mind) had denied Manson his chance at rock stardom. Or think of many other murders in public places (the DC sniper killings) where the point was terrorizing the public. The victims became victims because they were in a place where 1) they could be shot from the kill vehicle and 2) the killers had access to escape.

I think that the need to escape explains the timing of the murder--they wanted witnesses, but only witnesses to the death, not the murder. And most campuses run reduced security over the holidays, since there are many fewer students on campus.

Not only that, but PSU security at that time was widely regarded as a joke. There were numerous letters to the editor, student protests, etc., both before and after the murder about the quality of Penn State's internal security, specifically in the library area, which had numerous problems with homosexuals to the point that they had to remove the stalls in the men's room on level 1, as well as drifters and "hangers on" as mentioned in the Aardsma family letter to PSU after Betsy's death.

One potential problem with the "two men" theory is that accounts differ as to whether one or two men were seen leaving, and if there were two, whether they were involved together or not.

Regards,

Derek

 

[pittsburghgirl]

In general, campus security is not noticeably better today, as the Virginia Tech massacre demonstrated. Universities are huge, wide-open spaces and loathe to make buildings like libraries inaccessible to the wider community. It's actually surprising how few of these incidents there have been over time.

I keep thinking about the efficiency of the murder. Who knows how to kill in that way? People trained by the military, especially special forces. Practiced killers (organized crime hit men, serial killers). I'd be skeptical on the "medical student" idea because it would be very different to know anatomy in that context (healing, diagnosis, even surgery) and to know how to knife someone who is upright, breathing, and may fight back.

So who fits this profile: Person or persons selecting victim based on location and opportunity. Has killed with a knife before. Wants to do it in public.

 

[Talisman]

I think it's definitely a compelling angle. Thinking about "rage" as a motive against Betsy herself always comes up empty. But what if someone is VERY mad at PSU for some reason? You can't kill a college -- but you can create fear and chaos. It could easily have been an almost terroristic event. A way to get back at PSU for whatever imagined wrong there was. And given five minutes either way, we might not be talking about Betsy Aardsma's murder, but someone else's instead.

Derek

littlehorn, I undestand what you are saying, but if it was a way to get back at PSU and nothing else.....why save the clippings for all of those years to set up a shrine with the comments "I'm back." That all takes it back to being a personal attack against Betsy, to me.

If the Vidocq Society won't let you attend the meeting, do you think they will share any theories with you? I am so curious about what they think about the old clippings and the shrine...whether they think it really was the killer or just some looney.

 

[littlehorn]

In general, campus security is not noticeably better today, as the Virginia Tech massacre demonstrated. Universities are huge, wide-open spaces and loathe to make buildings like libraries inaccessible to the wider community. It's actually surprising how few of these incidents there have been over time.

I keep thinking about the efficiency of the murder. Who knows how to kill in that way? People trained by the military, especially special forces. Practiced killers (organized crime hit men, serial killers). I'd be skeptical on the "medical student" idea because it would be very different to know anatomy in that context (healing, diagnosis, even surgery) and to know how to knife someone who is upright, breathing, and may fight back.

So who fits this profile: Person or persons selecting victim based on location and opportunity. Has killed with a knife before. Wants to do it in public.

The murder was definitely efficient. However, from my research on serial killers, etc., most DON'T know how to kill in that efficient of a fashion -- or at least, they choose not to. They typically tend towards butchery to enjoy the crime as much as they can.

I am definitely skeptical of the med student idea for numerous reasons -- the main reason being that PSU med students attend classes at Penn State Hershey, even back then. The likelihood of her encountering a "mad doctor" in the stacks is slim to none.

I don't know that the person killed with a knife before...Or since. As the police themselves theorized, there was no guarantee that her stab wound was fatal. One former investigator even told me: "Half an inch in either direction and we'd be talking to her today."

I am hesistant to give the killer too much credit as I think it could lead to overlooking the real killer if too much time is spent hunting a "professional."

Does that make sense? I wrestle with this on an almost daily basis. Nothing about this case makes sense when you come down to it. Based on some of the things that I know it makes even less sense.

Derek

 

[littlehorn]

littlehorn, I undestand what you are saying, but if it was a way to get back at PSU and nothing else.....why save the clippings for all of those years to set up a shrine with the comments "I'm back." That all takes it back to being a personal attack against Betsy, to me.

If the Vidocq Society won't let you attend the meeting, do you think they will share any theories with you? I am so curious about what they think about the old clippings and the shrine...whether they think it really was the killer or just some looney.

You are correct, the shrine changes things quite a bit. It is likely that the killer himself created the 1994 shrine, due to the fact that it was in the correct aisle and location, despite the changes made to the library over the last 25 years prior to the shrine. If it wasn't the killer, it was at very least someone intimately familiar with the case and with the crime scene.

The 1999 shrine was sloppier and not in the correct aisle. Probably a copycat. I wonder often about whether the shrine was truly "from the heart" or whether it was just an attempt to stir up news coverage/fear, which backfired when it was covered up by the college.

I don't know if the Vidocq Society or the police will share any theories with me. It was kind of my hope in setting this up for the PSP that I might be allowed to go along. The Society had not heard of the Aardsma case and the PSP had not heard of the Society. But I understand and respect that the officer in charge is going to present his whole case, and has to maintain the secrecy of the case file.

Regards,

Derek

 

[littlehorn]

littlehorn, I undestand what you are saying, but if it was a way to get back at PSU and nothing else.....why save the clippings for all of those years to set up a shrine with the comments "I'm back." That all takes it back to being a personal attack against Betsy, to me.

It also is possible that the killer has mellowed over time, and felt a twinge of remorse about Betsy's death being required to further his other goals.

Derek

 

[MaryLiz]

pittsburgh girl..thanks for posting your ideas...you have some very good thoughts. Going back to Manson briefly, I had completely forgotten it was Terry Melcher (Doris Day's son) who Manson wanted to avenge that night. Thanks for reminding me of that.

The only reason I thought the perp might have been in med school was the exact spot where Betsy was stabbed and the comment the pathologist, Dr. Magnani, made in the State College Magazine article from 1999, about the murderer being familiar with the anatomy of the human body. Of course, that wouldn't necessarily mean that the person HAD to be in med school but that statement just sort of led me in that direction.

But touching on some of the other things said...I was all set to agree with littlehorn about the attack maybe being against PSU, because after reading everything over and over again, I (like everyone else) cannot come up with any reason why anyone would want to kill Betsy. Unless there was just something going on in her life with someone that no one knew about. But she certainly didn't seem like the type to keep secrets either.

I am now thinking again that it could have been a random act by a thrill seeker who wanted to see what it was like to kill somebody. But that's been discussed here before too and normally when that happens, someone like that doesn't generally stop with just one murder. I just cannot believe that a person could kill one person, then never kill again, never tell anyone and never taunt. It's the ultimate...getting away with murder. And no one will just STOP at that. So whoever did this probably HAS killed again. They certainly have taunted by coming back and setting up the shrines in 1994 and 1999 (if the one in 1999 wasn't a copycat).

Earlier, someone else mentioned a Leopold and Loeb scenario, I think. I didn't have time to go back and read through all the posts here. But I found an article on NewspapersArchives.com from the Daily Collegian where there was one guy investigators talked to who said he saw two guys either sitting together or standing together nearby where Betsy was murdered and the witness said something to the effect that "he knew it was those two that did it." Of course, I can't find the article again tonight to post here but I am going to look again in the next couple days and see if I can find it. His statement probably doesn't mean anything now, but maybe it was a scenario like Leopold/Loeb where there were TWO people who wanted to do a thrill kill.

I know I'm just rehashing old suggestions and ideas so forgive me for rambling and repeating things. I just can't get this case off my mind and as littlehorn said..nothing makes sense.

 

[Talisman]

I wonder if whoever did this was someone Betsy went to school with at U of M? Not necessarily connected with the other coed murders in Ann Arbor at that time, but someone she had gone to school with who might have been obsessed with her. Perhaps someone from MI who had been pursuing her while she was in Ann Arbor and she kept putting them off. Or maybe someone she dated while she was in Ann Arbor and broke up with before she got together with her fiance, who was in med school. I didn't have time to go through the articles to see if it mentioned how long she had been dating her fiance before they actually got engaged. Just a thought that this could have been someone from Michigan maybe...

MaryBeth,

Bringing up your post from a few days ago....there really might be something to the Ann Arbor or University of Michigan connection. We know that Betsy was a medical student there (didn't she also work in a hospital there?) We know that she left medical school to obtain a graduate degree in English at Penn State. It was stated because she wanted to follow her fiance David Wright to be closer to him.

What if there was more to it than that? Betsy is said to have interests in many different things but I wonder why the switch from medical to english studies. Was there another reason to leave Michigan?

Maybe you are on track about someone following her to Pa. They might not have ever dated but that doesn't mean he couldn't be obssesed with Betsy. Maybe he was attending classes there and found out that Betsy was going to Penn State the following year. Maybe he applied to Penn St. then, too.

Betsy and David were engaged, but weren't making it official until the holidays--does that mean she didn't have a ring yet? Could she have been wearing it and 'he' saw it? Maybe he overheard her at one point talking about planning the wedding. Enough to make an obssesed person snap? I don't know, MaryBeth, but it is something to consider.

You do have me thinking though. And I'm really wondering why she changed her mind about finishing the medical studies. You gave me something to :waitasec:

 

[kline]

I think it's definitely a compelling angle. Thinking about "rage" as a motive against Betsy herself always comes up empty. But what if someone is VERY mad at PSU for some reason? You can't kill a college -- but you can create fear and chaos. It could easily have been an almost terroristic event. A way to get back at PSU for whatever imagined wrong there was. And given five minutes either way, we might not be talking about Betsy Aardsma's murder, but someone else's instead.

Derek

Absolutely.
It does make a certain sense if you look at it from a 'terrorist/statement' point of veiw.
Especially it explains why such a risky location.
Whoever did it whether the target was Betsy or the school or something else it was certainly worth it to the killer to take such an incredible risk to do it in such a public place.
Its almost like it was a statement either way you look at it.
Of course there are so many contradictry elements.
You have the almost 'sentry kill' efficent method of murder though as ive stated before I think you have to have a head full of some kind of steam to ram a blade into somebody but nonetheless it still almost speaks of a certain impersonality yet then you have the '94 shrine which indicates quite a bit of emotional investment.(And I would still bet the house and lot that shrine was indeed placed by the killer)
The ironic part is whatever point the sick intended to make was certainly lost on everybody(especially me.)
I still think the Homosexual/drifter angle may have some merit though if the problem had gotten so extreme they were having to take such drastic measures as removing doors from the mens room stalls.
It places things in an interesting context at any rate.
(Just a disclaimer:I have no doubt by tommorow I will have worked my way through all the possible scenarios until Im convinced it was a totally personal crime aimed at Betsy specificly again.
At least for a few hours until you guys come up with another compelling possibilty then Ill change my mind again.This case is maddining.)

 

[kline]

Earlier on the thread, someone (you, Kline?) mentioned the Manson murders. Investigating the lives of Sharon Tate or Roman Polanski or any of the others who were killed would have turned up nothing; Manson was enraged at Terry Melchor (sp?). who had lived in that house previously and who (in Manson's deluded mind) had denied Manson his chance at rock stardom. Or think of many other murders in public places (the DC sniper killings) where the point was terrorizing the public. The victims became victims because they were in a place where 1) they could be shot from the kill vehicle and 2) the killers had access to escape.

I think that the need to escape explains the timing of the murder--they wanted witnesses, but only witnesses to the death, not the murder. And most campuses run reduced security over the holidays, since there are many fewer students on campus.

Yeah definatly.
Reportedly Manson and Tex Watson were well aware that Melcher didnt live on Cielo Drive anymore.
The motive was a Message on a couple of fronts:The "Helter Skelter" call to arms (however invested Manson actually was in this is argued in some quarters.Who knows.) but also to put The Fear into Melcher .(It suceeded admirably ,big surprise there.) and the rest of the elite music biz types Manson felt had snubbed him.(Doors producer Paul Rothchild had passed on Charlie's music as well)
Plus to try to give authorities the Idea that the Jugged Bobby Beusolie(sp?) couldnt posssibly have stabbed Gary Hinman and did blood etchings on his living room wall because Hey,here's another crime just like that one!( BTW The Tate detectives were so dialed into the 'Celebrity Drug Burn' motive they refused to even consider the possibity the crimes were connected even when the simularities were pointed out by the detectives investigating the Hinman murder)
But yes I totally agree with your point.
It was meant to be a Statement and the answer was absolutely nowhere in the Victim's back story which may well be the case with Betsy's murder.
It would certainly explain the why depite so much effort so much of it is still a mystery.

 

[Talisman]

(And I would still bet the house and lot that shrine was indeed placed by the killer)

(Just a disclaimer:I have no doubt by tommorow I will have worked my way through all the possible scenarios until Im convinced it was a totally personal crime aimed at Betsy specificly again.
At least for a few hours until you guys come up with another compelling possibilty then Ill change my mind again.This case is maddining.)

*snipped*

Exactly the way I feel!!:crazy:

 

[littlehorn]

But touching on some of the other things said...I was all set to agree with littlehorn about the attack maybe being against PSU, because after reading everything over and over again, I (like everyone else) cannot come up with any reason why anyone would want to kill Betsy. Unless there was just something going on in her life with someone that no one knew about. But she certainly didn't seem like the type to keep secrets either.

I just cannot believe that a person could kill one person, then never kill again, never tell anyone and never taunt. It's the ultimate...getting away with murder. And no one will just STOP at that. So whoever did this probably HAS killed again. They certainly have taunted by coming back and setting up the shrines in 1994 and 1999 (if the one in 1999 wasn't a copycat).

I know exactly where you're coming from. Every scenario, taken to its "logical" conclusion, ends up being unrealistic or illogical in the end.

That's why I keep going back to basics with it. Has to be one killer -- two is 2x as many chances to screw up, talk to someone, etc. Has to be an opportunistic crime, based on what police determined about her pattern of activity that day.

And it almost has to be something motiveless as we are concerned. We probably can't understand it, but the killer can/could at the time.

Like when they asked Edmund Kemper why he killed his grandparents at the age of 12: "I just wanted to see what it would be like to shoot grandpa." Or his later response: "When I see a pretty girl, half of me thinks 'I'd like to talk to her, date her.' The other half of me thinks 'I wonder what her head would look like on a stick.'"

We can't understand these motives in a rational way, but the killer can.

Derek