I haven't followed this case, but I did recently watch the interviews with Raven. He is very convincing at times, particularly when he reminisces about the "good times". I also get the impression that he has rehearsed this story with his church elders many times, and has almost perfected it. I have a couple of comments.
- He seems to start laughing and joking at odd times, then composes himself into the sad husband again.
- Did I understand correctly that he told his in-laws that Janet shot herself? Within the Mormon religion, wouldn't that would be a very serious problem regarding the afterlife? (this seems consistent with his other comments about Janet pulling away from the church)
- I was surprised that he said he knew about the first pregnancy from the beginning, yet others say that Janet kept the pregnancy to herself until the 5th month, when she started showing.
- Raven seems to have rehearsed his description of the night she was murdered so often that the details about folding laundry and standing by the crib are the points he wants to emphasize, reinforcing his claim that they worked and cooperated together.
- He says he had homework and Janet wanted him to finish it rather than play soccer. He says he needed a break from the homework, but from his description of the evening, he hadn't done any homework yet: company for dinner, giving away a TV, folding laundry, putting Kaiden to bed, enjoying the sunset, and heading out to soccer.
- Changing a tire really confuses me. I thought they were on a tight budget, so why couldn't he change the tire himself? The tire had a bubble in it, and it sounds like they were replacing the tire. Why didn't he go out and buy a tire, then put it on? Even if it was going to be replaced, that can be scheduled and done in about 15 minutes, so why was the car dropped off to have a tire changed?
- He constantly talks about how bright she is, but then makes a point of saying she took 5 years to complete her 4 year degree and really enjoyed filing.
- Why did he say that when he saw the door cracked open a bit, he thought he might have left it open? He had left a couple of hours earlier and a bright girl would have closed the door at some point in the evening.
- He claims that "your life flashes before your eyes" (in relation to finding his wife) but in fact that is what people say happens as you die, not when you find someone murdered.
- Finally, the time line has me completely perplexed. In fact, I have to wonder why he hasn't been arrested on the basis of the timeline. He arrived home at 10:40, the autopsy says Janet was mortally injured at 10:50, she passed away at 10:55, and Raven called 911 at 10:58. He didn't see anyone else in the house between 10:40 and 11, so he was the only person in the house when she was murdered. Why hasn't there been an arrest on that basis alone? Anyone know what the hold up is?