Women in Crime Terry and Diane

[Kimster]

:doh: When I went to the link yesterday, the article that was listed was by Diane Fanning. I didn't read it. I believe I led the goose chase!

 

[DianeFanning]

Just wanted to clarify: I did not write the Diane and Terri blog post:
http://womenincrimeink.blogspot.com/2010/09/diane-and-terri.html

I am one of the founding members of Women in Crime Ink but it is not my personal blog. That is located at http://dianefanning.blogspot.com

I think the confusion may have arisen because I did post on the Women in Crime Ink blog yesterday about Teresa Lewis.

Have a great day.

 

[TxLady2]

There is one glaring difference. Diane Downs killed more than one of her own children, am I right? Terri MAY have caused harm to her stepchild, one child.... not her own.

I really know very little about that case, I wasn't a big crime follower in the 80's.

 

[bessie]

:doh: When I went to the link yesterday, the article that was listed was by Diane Fanning. I didn't read it. I believe I led the goose chase!

:nono:

:cheerful: :blowkiss:

 

[Kimster]

:nono:

:cheerful: :blowkiss:

:blushing:

I do hope that's the worst thing that happens to me today! Thank you to Diane Fanning for being so gracious! :blowkiss:

 

[bessie]

Just wanted to clarify: I did not write the Diane and Terri blog post:
http://womenincrimeink.blogspot.com/2010/09/diane-and-terri.html

I am one of the founding members of Women in Crime Ink but it is not my personal blog. That is located at http://dianefanning.blogspot.com

I think the confusion may have arisen because I did post on the Women in Crime Ink blog yesterday about Teresa Lewis.

Have a great day.

Well, that's a relief.

My deepest apologies to you for my part in the misunderstanding. Had I been a little more observant, I would've noticed the byline does indeed read Anne Bremner.

 

[gwenabob]

There is one glaring difference. Diane Downs killed more than one of her own children, am I right? Terri MAY have caused harm to her stepchild, one child.... not her own.

I really know very little about that case, I wasn't a big crime follower in the 80's.

Diane successfully killed one of her children. The other two survived in spite of her. Allegedly, the motive was the same as Susan Smith's. Rejection by a man who didn't want to raise her kids.

Terri has allegedly done away with only one child, her stepson, for the reason IMO she didn't want to raise him.

I think Terri has more in common with the boyfriends and stepfathers we hear about every day who kill their Significant Other's children. IMO.

 

[SmoothOperator]

I wasn't talking about the comparisons drawn.

I am sorry. I misunderstood what your misleading was referring to from the article... My mistake.

 

[gitana1]

Danny is Diane's son from her marriage.

Diane's daughter, born to her in jail 10 days after her conviction, I believe is the child you state was the result of an affair.

Diane's educational background is available online; referenced in several articles. Terri's educational background is available on this site.

Diane's claim of a bushy haired man attacking her on a lonely road is her primary defense, and therefore the lack of its attention paid in this particular article is rather disturbing, but does not detract from the fact that it is, in fact, her alibi.

Terri writes in her email (again, referenced here) that she was being blamed (the inference, and I imagine the only subjective point) is that she means she did not do it)

Danny was the product of an affair. He did not have the same father as the girls. She may have still been married to her husband but she was sleeping with someone else. What you may be reading is inaccurate. Small Sacrifices is accurate and you can read about who Danny's father is in there:

Small Sacrifices: Diane Downs, who turned 50 in August, remains in the Valley Prison for Women in Chowchilla, California. Her first hope of a parole hearing is four years away. Adopted by Lane County Prosecutor Fred Hugi and his wife, Joanne, in 1984, Christie and Danny--who somehow survived their gunshot wounds--, have no contact with Diane. They have both graduated from college. Christie is married and had a baby boy in 2005. Danny, a computer whiz, is still partially paralyzed from the bullet in his back, but he is living a happy and normal life. They have grown up in a very happy home with the Hugis. I heard recently from a young woman who insists she is the daughter Diane gave birth to a month after her 1984 trial, the baby who was adopted soon after. Thus far, she has offered no proof that she is who she claims to be. Danny's biological father, the man Diane selected because she thought he had "good genes," still lives in Arizona and has a family. His youngest son looks just like Danny did at the same age. Diane still insists that she and her children were shot by a "bushy haired stranger." (BBM)

http://www.annrules.com/news3.htm

And from another article:

To regain that in charge feeling of love, Diane decided to become pregnant again but not with Steve's baby. By that time, 1978, the family had moved to Mesa where both Diane and Steve worked for the same mobile home manufacturer. On the assembly line Diane found her "stud," whom she passionately seduced. Her tummy swelled and she once again became drugged on love. Danny was born four days after Christmas, 1979.
Even though the child was not his, Steve accepted the boy as his own, but within a year, the Diane and Steve decided to divorce. Diane moved in with the father of Danny, and it was during this time she began to change.
http://www.mysterycrimescene.com/small-sacrifices.html

Your post did not state it was about the differences between the two women. Your post stated it was about the factual inconsistencies in the article. I was pointing out that the only actual fact you cited as coming from the article, was true and the rest of the facts you cited as false, were not facts that were actually cited within the article at all.

I agree that it is not a fair comparison (at least not at this time). Diane Downs and TH seem like very different people to me but if we are going to point out a journalist's inconsistencies, I think we need to be accurate about those. Especially when that journalist is a poster. :twocents:

ETA: I didn't read all the way through before posting that the author is a poster here. I see that it was not Diane Fanning after all. But I still think we should be accurate when discussing a journalist's inconsistencies, otherwise we're the same as bad reporters!

 

[SmoothOperator]

I wasn't talking about the comparisons drawn.

I realize I misunderstood and just wanted to know if in a "nutshell" you could possibly "dummy it down" what you were referring to that was misleading?

[would rather sound stupid by asking than continuing to not know]

As I just went back[now that I had a minute] to see exactly what it was that I misunderstood? TIA if you have a moment to do so

ETA~ unless it was the point that others had made that this article was presumptuous in nature referring to a couple of points to do with Terri... If thats what it is, then I gotcha

 

[Billylee]

Maybe if you're interested in talking to the author, you can get Levy to ask her on the show? Just a thought.

I myself can't compare TH to anyone, because I really know so little about her at this point. I've heard one side saying she is a loving mother and step- mother, and another say she is a lying, evil person, that is, now that she's not a loving mother and step- mother anymore. LOL I couldn't begin to draw comparisons, especially since we don't even know if TH was involved in the crime of disappearing Kyron.

 

[Melanie]

I agree with debs post. I don't agree with the bold because I never heard Terri comes out and say anything, (is there a link she said that or just hearsay)

I not sure that we really know if her alibi check out:waitasec:

I follow Diane Down from 1984 I follow and read and watch everything on this monster.

If you want compare Diane to Susan Smith I say okay...but not Terri horman. Terri is lot more complicate.
:banghead:

I agree with you. I watched the movie, read the book, saw the 20-20 special. The biggest diff I can find is DD loved the camera, and the camera loved her. She was in front of it constantly, usually giggling uncontrollably. Worried more about her car than her children, and is a total narcassist psychopath.

I don't know enough about TH to compare her too -- as she just hasn't been in the media, and all the information is usually coming from D and KH. On the other hand, TH has sat quietly in the background.

I'd compare DD to Susan Smith -- but not TH.

ALL MOO

Mel

 

[Openmyeyes]

While Ms. Bremners details were at tad off, what I thought was profound was the fact it took 9 months for LE to arrest Diane. Its interesting to be reminded that not all cases are solved as quickly as we'd like them to be.

I'm still hoping for a best case scenario with Kyron. Nothing would make me happier than to see this child come walking back home, LE coming out and saying that Kyron told them who did this and we have made the following arrests....

A dream goes on forever.

 

[GrainneDhu]

I've always felt that Diane was very complicated. She may not have had a college degree like Terri does, but I have a feeling she would have excelled in college. (that's just moo after studying this person for many years)

Some things I've learned about Susan Smith recently have brought some more "complication" into what I thought I knew about her as well. I still can't think about what she did and what happened to those children without feeling chills, but I do feel that perhaps she was damaged before she hit maturity. (Something I've also contemplated regarding Diane as well.)

Not excuses whatsoever, but something at least to bring *some* measure of understanding to what is after all, an un-understandable crime.

(but oh, how I feel for the children...)

I agree with you.

I see such things as pointers towards the way that such tragedies may be avoided, in some future utopia.

I don't believe in some evil that just springs out of nowhere and possesses someone to commit a horrific crime. I believe that there are usually one or more factors in their personal history that led to the criminal moment.

It's not an excuse, to me. It's a hope for the future.