Rebecca Nalepa - suicide or murder? #6

[Paladine]

Paul Pfingst rejoined Higgs Fletcher & Mack in 2003 after serving eight years as San Diego County District Attorney.

Prior to his election in 1994, Mr. Pfingst was a Firm partner specializing in product liability, medical malpractice, professional licensing, and general litigation. Mr. Pfingst was the lead attorney for California physicians in the national breast implant litigation. He is a prolific trial lawyer representing clients in both state and federal courts and has been selected by his peers to the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA).

http://www.higgslaw.com/apg_a53_Paul_J_Pfingst.html

 

[Lawgirl]

http://www.higgslaw.com/apg_a53_Paul_J_Pfingst.html

My thought was that this is a link to JS, being that he was involved in that type of litigation - representing "physicians" and thus entities in the medical field in relation to this breast implant litigation. Perhaps this is how he is known to Medicis, and put that together with the fact that he is a former District Attorney who has high profile repution -- and knows the ins and out -- yes -- good choice indeed.

 

[Paladine]

Found this from 2002:

The San Diego Police Officers Assn., already annoyed at [Paul Pfingst], later endorsed [Bonnie Dumanis]; soon after being elected, Dumanis ended the policy of releasing the material.

The issue appeared to be this...

The State; San Diego D.A. Faces Criticism; The official draws fire for her decision not to charge three officers who shot a black man. She has refused to release details of probe.

http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes...sed+to+release+details+of+probe.&pqatl=google

Related to this case in that there may be some friction between the Police Assn. and Paul, I might think....have to buy the full article, but these quotes were pulled from the free abstract...

 

[Inobu]

Okay, so, you maybe are thinking we are putting way to much creedance on the fact this Pfingst showed up at the crime scene and it may be as simple as he sniffed out a high profile case that he could get some publicity on. On the other hand, you suggested that the discovery of facts early on allows the defense position to be stronger (or the prosecution should he run/be elected again)?

Okay, I don't know about everyone else, but IMO there are way too many juxtaposing incidents/facts in this case which makes everything smell bad!! These were two really terrible things that happened to real people and this silence from LE is deadening......

Au contraire, the attention is warranted in that it might explain the precautions taken in the case. We have seen 3 or 4 cases closed nation wide yet this one remains locked down.............

There is a reason for the slow pace.

 

[Inobu]

My thought was that this is a link to JS, being that he was involved in that type of litigation - representing "physicians" and thus entities in the medical field in relation to this breast implant litigation. Perhaps this is how he is known to Medicis, and put that together with the fact that he is a former District Attorney who has high profile repution -- and knows the ins and out -- yes -- good choice indeed.

lol, things happen for a reason.........

 

[Paladine]

An angle of the house I'm not sure I've seen posted...it made me realize how long the driveway is and how close the driveway/garage is to where Rebecca was found...same end of the house, kinda deal...for what that's worth...

 

[Paladine]

My money is on it being a scarf, too, Bonepile...I can see it trailing...I can see it around her neck area...<placing my bet but it's small...all I have to offer up is a little bit of pride....

(My kids say I use too many in my posts on FB...now, I'm second guessing every ...lol... )

 

[i.b.nora]

Found this from 2002:
Related to this in case in that there may be some friction between the Police *advertiser censored*. and Paul, I might think....have to buy the full article, but these quotes were pulled from the free abstract...

Full FREE article is here: http://articles.latimes.com/2004/jan/06/local/me-shoot6

I think too much is being speculated about friction between Pfingst and Dumanis. Also, she has been 'popular' as a DA and was reelected for a 3rd term in 2010, however she has announced plans to run for Mayor in 2012.

And, police especially in San Diego will always go for the most rightwingie person. Which, she is.

 

[Lawgirl]

Looking at her laying there and thinking "she's dead" is truly horrific -- what tragedy to befall on this young, beautiful woman. What a disgrace... smh

 

[scorekeeper]

Is there visible bruising along her lower torso and legs? The quality of these photos is so bad (and thank God for her sake), but I feel there is a purple tint in the lower torso, hip area, and legs.

i agree. looks like some bruising or blood pooling on her left inner thigh (could this be from the position she was in after she was deceased).
also a possible bruise on her right hip area....

 

[Bonepile]

Looking at her laying there and thinking "she's dead" is truly horrific -- what tragedy to befall on this young, beautiful woman. What a disgrace... smh

I have gone back and whited out her body which is only right as far as I am concerned ... and it highlights the point of my post more anyway.

Hopefully no one will object to my doing this. Thanks.

 

[scorekeeper]

I have gone back and whited out her body which is only right as far as I am concerned ... and it highlights the point of my post more anyway.

Hopefully no one will object to my doing this. Thanks.

Bonepile,

your pictures are most helpful. Thanks. No objections here.

the blue scarf and the orange cord are trailing in the same direction....but her hair is in the opposite direction...is the blue scarf over her hair...it's kinda eerie....

score

 

[Inobu]

Violent death spoken by LE holds true.

The circumstances and image plays toward an interrogation of some sort gone too far.

The number of windings of the orange cord around the feet plays into a last minute action.

For Whom does the Bell Tolls? As only the guilty knows.....

Inobu

 

[MyBelle]

Okay, so, you maybe are thinking we are putting way to much creedance on the fact this Pfingst showed up at the crime scene and it may be as simple as he sniffed out a high profile case that he could get some publicity on. On the other hand, you suggested that the discovery of facts early on allows the defense position to be stronger (or the prosecution should he run/be elected again)?

Okay, I don't know about everyone else, but IMO there are way too many juxtaposing incidents/facts in this case which makes everything smell bad!! These were two really terrible things that happened to real people and this silence from LE is deadening......

Isn't it considered unethical for a lawyer just to show up without being first called by a defendant? I think the reason we're not hearing much news is because it is going to be ruled a suicide and they'll just let it fade from the headlines.

 

[Stella5]

All that being said, I find myself less interested in posting on this thread as time goes by as I see most of my fellow posters who were inclined to see this as a suicide have stopped posting. I have sensed subtle, and sometimes not-so-subtle implications that if you don't think this was a murder, then your thinking is not quite right. Not from every poster here, but the majority.

snipped by me...

I agree, unfortunately, and that's why I have stepped back as of late. These threads, IMO, have gone against the very grain of victim friendly Websleuths, IMO. There is nothing wrong with theorizing the events of RZ's demise, but I am having a real problem painting JS or DS as the perpetrator(s) of this crime that hasn't even been labeled a crime yet. WS is supposed to be victim friendly, and JS and DS certainly are victims of the tragic and untimely death of their beautiful son Maxie. I'm not discounting RZ's death, but I couldn't imagine being in their shoes, losing their child and being painted as murderers when it hasn't even been proven there has been a murder yet. If you've ever had a child in ICU, you would know you don't leave... ever! I spent 8 days in ICU sleeping beside his bed in a chair, without a shower, and with changes of clothes that were brought to me. I cleaned up in the bathroom while my sons' grandparents or father stayed with him for all of the 5 minutes it would take me to change, or brush my teeth or use the toilet. Wild horses couldn't drag me from his room until I knew he wasn't going to lose his eye, or his eye sight and that he would recover and life would go on. It never occurred to me to leave the hospital to take revenge or try to hold the person I felt was responsible for his condition. I just don't see JS or DS being any different... their only concern was for Max and at the time RZ died they hadn't received the MRI they were waiting for to confirm whatever it was they were trying to confirm.

Suicides are a completely different animal altogether. In my personal experience, you never know if your loved one would go to the length to take their very own life. Also in my experience suicide is not something that is determined easily and wrapped all neat with a pretty bow immediately by LE. Sometimes is does take a lot of work to determine if a person did indeed take their own life. At this point, we just don't know if RZ would or would not resort to suicide. Sure she's been painted as the happiest, life loving-est person ever... but so was my brother and he hasn't been here for 4 1/2 years because one day he decided life and the burdens he had were too much for him to continue to deal with. I guess I'm more apt to accept the suicide theory or conclusion because of all the work I've done with Suicide Survivors and all the stories I've heard about how their loved ones succeeded in ending their lives. When they're desperate and determined for a way out, it's horrifying the lengths some of them will go to just to end their pain.

An interesting tid bit... my son is actually stationed on Coronado right now. He called last night and asked if I had heard of this case. He said he runs by the mansion every single day, and that LE had it roped off the day RZ was found and a few days later for only a short period of time (he thought Friday). He actually watched them both days and said nothing much was taken from the home and he was leaning towards suicide because the lack of evidence taken. He also said the infamous blue light which was discussed was actually LE walking up & down the stairs with plain on flashlights in the dark. His hunch was the were looking for impact places where Max may have hit or fell and he thinks Max's accident will play a bigger role in this entire investigation (just his hunch, his dad is LE). IMO he makes valid points and if they were leaning towards murder, the house would have been gone through with a fine tooth comb and not just the handful of hours it was.

All MOO & all that stuff... Hoping LE has something concrete by the end of the week.

 

[4Jacy]

Not to delve into a whole new issue but the D.A. is an elected office. There is an election coming up..... dig into this and you might see some more thought provoking facts.

Inobu

This isn't a mouse and game thing. I, at least don't play. Will you kindly state your intent and position? Many thanks!

 

[jwporetenus]

First, let me clarify that the 9/11 example I used was not to suggest that RN's circumstances compared to what the WTC victims were facing. My point is, that none of us know for sure what we would or would not do until we are actually in such a situation. Ronald Maris, the forensic suicide expert I quoted, stated that suicide is an escape for the person who is suffering - at the point in time of the act, they can see no other way out of their pain. As far as RN being like you and me, well, maybe, but none of us who post here (that I am aware of) knew her personally. And one difference between RN and you and me is that she actually did find herself in this unthinkable situation. As for why she would allow herself to be found in such a humiliating state, nude, in the courtyard of her boyfriend's mansion? Well, I can't answer that one. But we don't know what the state of her relationship with JS was at that point in time. There may have been a heated argument, he may have stated, or implied, that they were over. She needed comfort, she was surely hurting, he may not have been willing to give it to her, may have made her feel to blame. It does seem that if RN did commit suicide in such a manner, she intended to send a message.

All that being said, I find myself less interested in posting on this thread as time goes by as I see most of my fellow posters who were inclined to see this as a suicide have stopped posting. I have sensed subtle, and sometimes not-so-subtle implications that if you don't think this was a murder, then your thinking is not quite right. Not from every poster here, but the majority.

Just a quick word of sincere apology -- after re-reading my own post and your comments, I am mortified to realize how I must have come across to you and regret it. The thread is titled "Murder or Suicide?" and so I have expressed my opinion on that question with some detail and (too much) enthusiasm, but I did not intend to imply that any other point of view is wrong, or that anyone who doesn't think as I do isn't thinking right. When I say the MOO disclaimer, I genuinely mean it. I don't know anything more than anyone else does about this case -- in fact, I probably know significantly less than many here. The last thing that I want to do is create some hostile, oppositional stance about this poor woman's cause of death, when everyone is here to just discuss it, not "win" a point. I tend to express my opinions a too zealously sometimes, as though I have to win an argument, because that's what I do for a living but explaining why I'm obnoxious doesn't make my tone any less obnoxious. Going forward, I will definitely think before I hit "reply" and take it down some notches.

I appreciate both the content and the reasonable, respectful tone of all your posts, and need to learn from your approach. I hope that you will keep on posting your opinions and insights as you always have! I'm nothing but a newbie here and if anybody needs to pipe down, it's me, not you!

 

[askfornina]

i really don't think it was anyone's intention to stifle or somehow downplay the opinion of a fellow poster. at least it hasn't been my intention. i do agree and have stated that DS and JS are still victims, but i also understand the need to speculate. i do wish more people that think this is suicide would post. i am of the opinion that this was murder, because of the bizarre circumstances. i have a hard time relating it to Maxie's accident though..i do believe it could be completely unrelated. it could also not be completely unrelated. the point is it makes me sad that some of you feel unwelcome. all this speculation stems from a severe lack of information.

 

[Inobu]

I am one of the leading proponent of the murder theory because I cannot see any compelling evidence that lead me to believe that RN hung herself in the manner in which she laid.

There are two methods of restraint

1. Binding on limbs
2. Orange cords restraining hands behind back.

No evidence of a hanging other than 1 witness account that cannot be substantiated as the sole witness compromised the scene.

The only information available to WS is the images and noted reports from LE. No information given by LE supports a suicide but subtle comments like violent death, suspension (in place of hung) and criminal act point toward homicide not suicide.

I will state my contention.

The orange cord lies in the direction from which the body was carrier. Upper Right of image toward lower left.

The knees are bent based on the body being carried (right arm under knees, left arm supporting head and shoulder). Orange cord trapped between the body and the carrier and the black end trailing behind.

The table leg breaking in an outward direction and being placed under the table. The natural fall would be in the opposite location. That rule the table out in my opinion. A three legged table has no use for RN.

This is information readily seen in the image.

I cannot see the theoretical equivalent in a suicide scenario.

Inobu

 

[Inobu]

This isn't a mouse and game thing. I, at least don't play. Will you kindly state your intent and position? Many thanks!

You must have missed it Palidine touched on the issue a few minutes afterward .( 20 posts up.)

Inobu