Just for the sake of playing devil's advocate...And throwing a few different ideas out there...
I read through most of the posts, and some of the articles. Of course, there is a lot of contradictory information, so this is more of an intellectual exercise than any real "sleuthing". According to the primary article I read, Betsy was found by another female student. (I know, there are several accounts of who actually found her). This same student reported hearing screams and the sounds of books falling. Then two males walked from the area, one of them stating that "someone had better help this girl". (Daily Collegian, 12/2/69). The student then claimed she stayed with Betsy some 15 to 20 minutes before help arrived, though she continuously called for assistance (though the length of time is disputed by the LE rep quoted in the article). If medical assistance had arrived earlier, I feel it possible she may have survived.
Now...As I've read most of the posts, a common idea is that this was committed by a jealous wannabe-boyfriend, upset at her recent engagement, or a thrill-kill. However, there is another possiblity, with the scenario arranged in the news article.
What if this were not committed by someone jealous of the soon-to-husband, but someone jealous of Betsy? The student hears screams which apparently no one else heard. She reports two suspicious men, one of whom speaks to her, intentionally pointing out the victim. She goes to Betsy's aid, staying with her and calling for help (instead of running from the stacks and calling for an ambulance herself). The time it takes for someone else to finally call for help virtually ensures Betsy's death.
Others have commented on the calculated, nearly methodical and cold-blooded nature of this murder. I have no difficultly believing that a woman could be this methodical, possibly more so than a man would be.
It is stated in the article that, due to the angle of the blade penetration, that the killer was behind Betsy, placing one hand over her mouth and stabbing with the other. As we tend to consider the majority of people right-handed, I am assuming the angle of penetration is from right to left and downward (and overhand swing, over Betsy's shoulder, the knife held in the right hand).
Again, for thought's sake...What if the killer were left-handed? An overhand swing, the knife in the left hand, would (to my thinking, at least) penetrate in quite the same way. According to this same article, the wound was only three inches deep. If the blade were very sharp, I wouldn't think an overabundance of strength would be necessary to penetrate three inches.
That being said, how could someone attack Betsy from the front? If she knew the person...Expected the person to be there...Or felt no threat until it was too late.
As she would problably feel if the killer were a female. I have to wonder if the boyfriend left any women scorned when he became engaged to Betsy.
Again, I'm sure most of this is contradicted by other information. Just posting some random thoughts to get the brain cells working.
