Just got approved, thanks for allowing me to contribute as I live in the local area. These forums and threads are great, a lot of interesting thoughts and observations.
I just wanted to add my two cents, it's been an itch that I can finally scratch after several days:
--Let's say for the sake of argument WH actually did find the jacket in the house. I have to believe that any "evidence" he found and brought to law enforcement that was not gathered in an organized or scientific manner would be inadmissible in court. If a lawyer tried to point to a resident of the house where it was "found" by WH, the defense attorney would argue (and win) that it could have been planted. Anything else WH "found" I'm assuming would also fall under this category, so even if he were being truthful, he could have just royally screwed NPD out of key evidence. That's best case btw, and I'm not buying it (just playing devil's advocate).
--I have to think the lack of bond has to do with him being a convicted felon and the charges he faces. He admitted to possession of the ammunition, so there is no real argument to be made about guilt or innocence. There are automatic charges that go with that. Also, based on past history that members have found, didn't he cross state lines before? Lastly, he also admitted to violence and a blatant disregard for police procedures and general disrespect for the police, as if daring them to stop him from injecting himself or interfering with proceedings. If I'm a CA, I'm talking to the judge about a possible flight risk, the recent violence and violent undertones in his conversation, and his interference with the investigation. He's guilty of at least the possession of ammunition, both by evidence and admission, so whether he stays in jail now or goes later is really a moot point.
--Do we know who moderates the "Bring AJ Home" FB page that's linked at the beginning of the thread? From that FB page near the bottom there is a very specific post that says she was "last seen at home on Monday around lunchtime" and "last heard from Tuesday morning around 5:30am." The words "seen" and "heard" were capitalized, denoting a strong intent to clarify details. This was the only real attempt at establishing a timeline, at least on that FB page. If JH were responsible for most of it, I can believe, at the time (Mar 5) that this was the information she had, and the fact that WH was able to provide more of a timeline much later is a little suspect to me, and I'm wondering if it came as a surprise to JH as well.
--"About 18 minutes." That's specific, and that's the kind of thing I remember being taught in a "how to write and give speeches" class that can be used to ensure a detail is not missed by the audience. Most people are used to hearing time in units of fives or tens, so the 18 would stick out and people would catch it. WH uses a lot of these kinds of words and phrases, almost as if to cement his accounting with the audience, to make himself sound so believable because he can be so specific with details. He also repeats or rephrases several details, again to ensure that his point is specific and hits home. I remember doing the same in opening and closing statements to the jury in mock trial in high school.
Despite all these things, the only thing I know for sure that WH is currently guilty of (with actual charges) is B&E and possession of ammo, because he admitted to doing both, and repeated his admission of guilt on multiple occasions. The hunt is still on, and whenever the case gets to court, whomever is accused, be it the neighbor, friend, WH, or someone else, they should be allowed to make a case. It would be difficult for me to sit in a courtroom for a kidnapping or a murder case with these circumstances...
I just wanted to add my two cents, it's been an itch that I can finally scratch after several days:
--Let's say for the sake of argument WH actually did find the jacket in the house. I have to believe that any "evidence" he found and brought to law enforcement that was not gathered in an organized or scientific manner would be inadmissible in court. If a lawyer tried to point to a resident of the house where it was "found" by WH, the defense attorney would argue (and win) that it could have been planted. Anything else WH "found" I'm assuming would also fall under this category, so even if he were being truthful, he could have just royally screwed NPD out of key evidence. That's best case btw, and I'm not buying it (just playing devil's advocate).
--I have to think the lack of bond has to do with him being a convicted felon and the charges he faces. He admitted to possession of the ammunition, so there is no real argument to be made about guilt or innocence. There are automatic charges that go with that. Also, based on past history that members have found, didn't he cross state lines before? Lastly, he also admitted to violence and a blatant disregard for police procedures and general disrespect for the police, as if daring them to stop him from injecting himself or interfering with proceedings. If I'm a CA, I'm talking to the judge about a possible flight risk, the recent violence and violent undertones in his conversation, and his interference with the investigation. He's guilty of at least the possession of ammunition, both by evidence and admission, so whether he stays in jail now or goes later is really a moot point.
--Do we know who moderates the "Bring AJ Home" FB page that's linked at the beginning of the thread? From that FB page near the bottom there is a very specific post that says she was "last seen at home on Monday around lunchtime" and "last heard from Tuesday morning around 5:30am." The words "seen" and "heard" were capitalized, denoting a strong intent to clarify details. This was the only real attempt at establishing a timeline, at least on that FB page. If JH were responsible for most of it, I can believe, at the time (Mar 5) that this was the information she had, and the fact that WH was able to provide more of a timeline much later is a little suspect to me, and I'm wondering if it came as a surprise to JH as well.
--"About 18 minutes." That's specific, and that's the kind of thing I remember being taught in a "how to write and give speeches" class that can be used to ensure a detail is not missed by the audience. Most people are used to hearing time in units of fives or tens, so the 18 would stick out and people would catch it. WH uses a lot of these kinds of words and phrases, almost as if to cement his accounting with the audience, to make himself sound so believable because he can be so specific with details. He also repeats or rephrases several details, again to ensure that his point is specific and hits home. I remember doing the same in opening and closing statements to the jury in mock trial in high school.
Despite all these things, the only thing I know for sure that WH is currently guilty of (with actual charges) is B&E and possession of ammo, because he admitted to doing both, and repeated his admission of guilt on multiple occasions. The hunt is still on, and whenever the case gets to court, whomever is accused, be it the neighbor, friend, WH, or someone else, they should be allowed to make a case. It would be difficult for me to sit in a courtroom for a kidnapping or a murder case with these circumstances...