Rebecca Nalepa - suicide or murder? #7

[MyBelle]

I think it's rather obvious there is no law that the child can not be left alone for any period of time. Otherwise you couldn't even put a child to bed into his or her own bedroom, or let them go to the bathroom by themselves.

It is impossible to legislate common sense. Laws don't come into play unless a child is harmed. The California Penal Code addresses situations where children are harmed or injured because of lack of supervision.

JMO

 

[scorekeeper]

Love your welcome, score.

If it wasn't so late we could have a

. I'll pass on the meat. Throw on the veggies. lol

Soon it will be time for

.

Where are my manners? Welcome Gone2!

Heck, ariel,

fftobed:

but i can't stop watching the weather channel.......

:floorlaugh::floorlaugh::floorlaugh:

Great, I'll take that steak!!:great::great:

 

[MyBelle]

No damage - anyone found pulseless and not breathing needs CPR stat!

It also means his heart had stopped. If it stopped once, it may have stopped again and the parents were advised that there was nothing more that could be done.

JMO

 

[MyBelle]

Hi all,

I'm new to Websleuths.com. I live in San Diego, know Coronado well, know Rady's Children's Hospital (was there just two days ago), and have closely followed the recent events at the Spreckels mansion.

The commentary here is so thoughtful and insightful. So many articulate writers!

I thought I'd share a few impressions. My apologies in advance if I blunder in any way (and please let me know if I do).

There is just one reason why I think RN killed herself, why her demeanor changed since her last phone conversation with her sister. My sense is that following the phone call, JS called or texted RN to say that she was no longer welcome in his home. If he did so, his manner was probably not too kind (to put it mildly).

I believe that the bizarre, humiliating and public nature of the suicide (if that is indeed what it is) stemmed from anger at JS.

I do not think it was necessarily the regret (and devastation) she likely felt regarding MS.

By the way, DS's Coronado house is gorgeous. In some ways I think it's far nicer than the Spreckels mansion.

While at Rady's the other day I could not help thinking of DS, JS and of course poor MS. The hospital itself is not very large. I went by the ICU (outpatient radiology is nearby) and felt, once again, such sadness for the child and his parents. As a parent whose children are being cared for by a stepparent part of the time, I find this case particularly poignant.

I share your theory of why she committed suicide.

 

[MyBelle]

But they should have access to RN's phone records, right?

LE have access to ALL phone records.

 

[Carioca]

Thanks for the welcome! Your posts have made for such intriguing reading these past few weeks. There is next to no info in SD regarding this case. Coronado gossip, yes. So-and-so knowing a police officer who was there, etc. (It seems that right after RN's death everyone knew a Coronado cop.) But nothing factual.

A powerful lesson for us all. Oceanfront homes, immense wealth, luxuries and privilege. But for what, really? As my grandma used to say, "If you don't have your health, it's all a crocka *****."

From one newbie to another, welcome babette_gladney!

 

[jjenny]

It is impossible to legislate common sense. Laws don't come into play unless a child is harmed. The California Penal Code addresses situations where children are harmed or injured because of lack of supervision.

JMO

It is also impossible to prevent all accidents. Or accidents wouldn't be a leading cause of death in children.

 

[arielilane]

Welcome, Carioca!

 

[arielilane]

Was Rebecca hanging from a rope that was sufficiently long for her to be standing on a table down at ground level in the courtyard and then jump off the table?
If so, was the table that was reported to have been taken away originally in a position that would allow Rebecca to tie herself up, naked, standing on the table surface, and then hopped off?
If not, was there a table or chair, or any object of sufficient height found on the balcony level that Rebecca could have tied herself up while standing on it and then hopped off?
If not, could someone please explain how Rebecca slipped a noose over her neck, tied her ankles and her wrists, and then leaped at least 3 feet in the air to clear the railing?
Or, could someone please explain how Rebecca stood on a railing that appears in photographs and videos of the crime scene to be at best 3 inches wide, slip a noose over her head, tie her ankles and then tie her wrists before hopping off said railing…and wouldn’t she still need something to climb up on the railing? and wouldn’t that object still be on the balcony?
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/08/23/rebecca-zahau-case-suicide/

 

[MyBelle]

It is also impossible to prevent all accidents. Or accidents wouldn't be a leading cause of death in children.

It is impossible to generalize and then draw a conclusion about a specific case. Accidents may be the leading cause of death in children but that doesn't mean every death of a child is an accident.

 

[arielilane]

Goodnight, all.

 

[MyBelle]

Was Rebecca hanging from a rope that was sufficiently long for her to be standing on a table down at ground level in the courtyard and then jump off the table?
If so, was the table that was reported to have been taken away originally in a position that would allow Rebecca to tie herself up, naked, standing on the table surface, and then hopped off?
If not, was there a table or chair, or any object of sufficient height found on the balcony level that Rebecca could have tied herself up while standing on it and then hopped off?
If not, could someone please explain how Rebecca slipped a noose over her neck, tied her ankles and her wrists, and then leaped at least 3 feet in the air to clear the railing?
Or, could someone please explain how Rebecca stood on a railing that appears in photographs and videos of the crime scene to be at best 3 inches wide, slip a noose over her head, tie her ankles and then tie her wrists before hopping off said railing…and wouldn’t she still need something to climb up on the railing? and wouldn’t that object still be on the balcony?
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/08/23/rebecca-zahau-case-suicide/

Based only on my viewing the photo, Rebecca had tied a scarf around her neck. I think she got on the table, tied her scarf to the cording from the balcony, wrapped her ankles/wrists, stepped through her arms so her wrists were behind her and then kicked the table out. Wouldn't be all that difficult for someone her age, physical agility and determination imo.

 

[SunnieRN]

Not if you land head first. I think it could be pretty much the same effect.

A fall from a balcony just explains a lot to me in terms of the result of his fall. If you are sliding down the railing on a staircase, you will most likely fall sideways, or rotate onto your back or stomach. I could see numerous broken bones, including a broken nose or head injury that could cause a concussion, especially depending upon how far down you slid first.

If you fall from a balcony, you can fall head first, straight down. This could cause you to fall straight on to your head, as if you were diving. That far, even on carpet, with a head first impact, you would most likely have a severe injury.

My point about how he fell, was he reaching for a ball and the 13 year old lifted him up? Did he start to fall and the 13 year old tried to hold him, but couldn't? Was he reaching for the ball and Ocean thought it was a game and jumped on him, pushing him over? I have no clue what happened, but feel the injury was a trauma froma hard fall, directly onto his head region.

There is also the question of what injury the other child received. How major was it and how did it occur? Was the other child walking up the stairs and Maxie decided he was going to tackle her, or jumped to her, thinking she could catch him?

We have only questions at this point, however solving this part of the case, may in turn solve the whole thing.

 

[MyBelle]

A fall from a balcony just explains a lot to me in terms of the result of his fall. If you are sliding down the railing on a staircase, you will most likely fall sideways, or rotate onto your back or stomach. I could see numerous broken bones, including a broken nose or head injury that could cause a concussion, especially depending upon how far down you slid first.

If you fall from a balcony, you can fall head first, straight down. This could cause you to fall straight on to your head, as if you were diving. That far, even on carpet, with a head first impact, you would most likely have a severe injury.

My point about how he fell, was he reaching for a ball and the 13 year old lifted him up? Did he start to fall and the 13 year old tried to hold him, but couldn't? Was he reaching for the ball and Ocean thought it was a game and jumped on him, pushing him over? I have no clue what happened, but feel the injury was a trauma froma hard fall, directly onto his head region.

There is also the question of what injury the other child received. How major was it and how did it occur? Was the other child walking up the stairs and Maxie decided he was going to tackle her, or jumped to her, thinking she could catch him?

We have only questions at this point, however solving this part of the case, may in turn solve the whole thing.

I think solving it all would be finding out what Rebecca was doing at the time of the incident. I also think that LE and Maxie's parents know the answer even though we do not.

JMO

 

[coastal]

A lot of things can cause the fall. In one version we heard he was reaching for the ball. In another he was sliding down the railing of the staircase. But it could be anything, a young child could be running places instead of walking, trip and fall.

I don't have a link because I read it on some blog the other day eek::tsktsk (and I haven't seen it repeated) so what follows is a rumor at best and maybe even a damned lie, but somebody blogged that somebody else said that Maxie was "planking", when he fell from the railing of the main staircase.

Article about planking:

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3581535/Plank-craze-claims-its-first-life.html

A BIZARRE craze where people pretend to be planks of wood claimed its first victim today ? after a man fell seven storeys to his death...

<<<snip

Hugs and kisses to the mods (who may well remove this naughty post)!
Welcome to Websleuths, babette_gladney! Hey neighbor:seeya:!

Sweet dreams, everyone.

 

[curiousjo]

So, looks like some people think he fell from that back balcony - not the entrance way staircase? In that case, then I may be able to see RN being wrapped with electrical cord(on her own accord or someone elses). But, only if that is what MS was playing with when he died. Was MS trying to slide down such a cord from the balcony to the lawn - like a fireman? Cord came unplugged -> he fell, hit his head on cement? If he fell while goofing aound on front staircase (Like what I had initially thought was the case...), then that looks like a long fall too. But, doubt he would have been using electrical cord and that is a problem for me. No woman is going to tie her legs with an electrical cord, then hang herself in the nude - thats something a man would do, or a very enraged woman looking for quick revenge.

According to the dog kennel man - RN mentioned that her son was in hospital and her daughter was injured too. Was GS filming the event on her cellphone or video cam? When MS fell, she tried to bridge his fall or she was accidentally hit - before MS snacked his head on the cement/marble?

Was RN even there, or was she doing something else? Lets face it, if there is a Sophomore highschool student in the house who is playing with a 6 year old - then you would think that you could let them play without complete supervision. Many trust their kids to a teenage babysitter when they go out to the movies and dinner.

 

[oceanblueeyes]

Was Rebecca hanging from a rope that was sufficiently long for her to be standing on a table down at ground level in the courtyard and then jump off the table?
If so, was the table that was reported to have been taken away originally in a position that would allow Rebecca to tie herself up, naked, standing on the table surface, and then hopped off?
If not, was there a table or chair, or any object of sufficient height found on the balcony level that Rebecca could have tied herself up while standing on it and then hopped off?
If not, could someone please explain how Rebecca slipped a noose over her neck, tied her ankles and her wrists, and then leaped at least 3 feet in the air to clear the railing?
Or, could someone please explain how Rebecca stood on a railing that appears in photographs and videos of the crime scene to be at best 3 inches wide, slip a noose over her head, tie her ankles and then tie her wrists before hopping off said railing…and wouldn’t she still need something to climb up on the railing? and wouldn’t that object still be on the balcony?
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/08/23/rebecca-zahau-case-suicide/

Even after this long all we can do is speculate about unknowns.

I am beginning to believe she tied the cord around the balcony bottom railing letting it trail down to the courtyard ground then she went down and possibly stood on the table after attaching the rope to the blue scarf she had on and then jumped off the table. The binding of the hands and feet is really not hard to do for someone who is petite and agile like Rebecca was known to be. It is just a 'step through' process with her bound feet once the hands have been bound.

Iirc we read that the bottom of the balcony is about 10-11 feet above ground level and the cord certainly looks long enough to reach.

 

[curiousjo]

Why didn't the balcony railing break and tumble to the ground with her bodies dead weight? Is it really that secure.... or was scene staged?

 

[curiousjo]

The only way I can see RN committing suicide is if JS told her it was over, and he was ending the relationship. The accident happened Mon am, by late Tues night she was already going to kill herself? Why would RN to do something this drastic unless she thought she was going to loose everything. Wouldn't she have wanted to be around to support her love, JS? She was a survivor, a girl who learned how to swim so she could participate in an athletic event with a friend.... doesn't add up. Very out of character.

 

[oceanblueeyes]

Why didn't the balcony railing break and tumble to the ground with her bodies dead weight? Is it really that secure.... or was scene staged?

Oh my goodness this type of rout iron metal railing is very strong. It is riveted into the concrete at the base.

I cant see Jonah Shaknai buying anything that wasnt secure. I am sure he had home inspectors everywhere checking out the mansion concerning the entire structure.

Her weight which was maybe a 100 pounds max would not cause the balcony any stress at all. It is made to be very secure since large adults and children are known to lean on the top railing.

Imo, it was a strong as the ones that are found on balconies of resorts or hotels.

Plus when she jumped off the table her lower body could have hit the ground taking weight off of the railing if the scarf and rope began to sag. I believe that is why her leg looks crooked in the photos due to her lower extremities sagging to the ground during the time she was suspended there by the rope.

IMO