I would agree as well. He would more than likely remember. Not sure what relevance TMs recollection/nonrecollection of a ring he bought nearly 50 years has to do with the case of three missing girls, though. I feel this thread is at times meandering off point. JMO.
Having so much doubt in so many details here rabbitholes are impossible to avoid, cause everything may be suddenly relevant. It's probably nothing, cause I don't see how could it be something... unless maybe someone gave TM the ring, bought it for him and convinced him to give it to Renee that morning. What scenario that could imply I have no idea.
But I also have no idea what on Earth was going on with the M's family.
Dad suddenly moving across the street from wife and kids to live with another woman.
Allegedly not supporting the older two, but taking the youngest with him... I don't understand that. Not at all. Okay, youngest kid, mom working a lot, it would make sense if living with the dad would provide her with his or his new partner supervision during the day (or from someone who's living there). But there is nothing clear about that. Who was supposed to watch Julie? Where she actually went when they said "home" to call her mom and ask for permission. And why was she asking mom for permission if she wasn't even living with her then? Why she didn't call dad? Okay, maybe he was at work and couldn't pick up the call. But shouldn't she be asking the person who was watching her first?
Okay, we can assume that her siblings were supposed to do that, cause they were free from school as well. BUT if so, then why would she be sooo excited to go to the mall with Renee and Rachel if her sister and friend were ALSO going to the mall, and on top of that even planning to hang out with Renee and Rachel then? What was so exciting in that then? And why mom's hesitation to allow her to go, if JM was going as well?
On one side we have Julie's mom account in which she seems reluctant and certainly not aware of any mall-going plans. No mention of the person who was supposed to watch her. No mention of questions about TM or JM, instead there is a mention that mom was reluctant to let her go cause Julie didn't have any money.
But how did she knew that Julie has no money if Julie wasn't living with her. Cause she asked? Possibly, but at least her sister had to have at least a bit of pocket money for that lunch at the mall, right? Unless the friend was paying. Or grandma gave them something while giving them a lift?
On the other side we have majority of these kids heading to the mall.
Distant fathers who are abandoning their families could be not interested in anything that happens to their kids. But if Julie was living with him for significant period of time... why on Earth he doesn't seem to be involved in the search at all? He's not showing up anywhere, he's not pleading for his daughter's return, giving any statements to the press.
I absolutely hate the way TM was talking about his mom. I hate it. It gives me all sorts of bad vibes, terrible vibes. As far as I remember he wasn't talking bad about her, but... well, at least my impression was that he was kinda bragging about being so sneaky to have VB live with them without his mom's knowledge.
Addind to that the fact that dad was living across the street and took one child with him makes me wonder if he (dad) had a habit of belittling and fooling the mom that went passed on TM.
I'm probably heading straight for some conspiracy levels now, but I wonder... TM said that he left the driveway. JM says that she doesn't remember anything. Friend doesn't remember much and grandma wasn't with them. Clerks at Army Navy didn't saw the girls. Then who's the source of claim that Renee and Rachel were reluctant to take Julie with them, cause I'm kinda lost at this point?
And how do we know (apart from alleged Shawn's mom claim to meet them all at Minot, whis isn't supported by anything) that Julie even went with them? Unless there were other stops and whitnesses seeing Julie with them - Julie's mom didn't saw anything or anyone, cause it was just a call. How do we know that it was Julie's idea to call, and not an result of someone convincing Julie to call and claim that she wants to go with Renee and Rachel? Some weird motives had to be behind that, but this whole case is weird.