AK - Lauri Waterman, 48, slain, Craig, PWI, 14 Nov 2004

[mysteriew]

What 16-year-old Rachelle Waterman seemed to want most in this tiny island village was a bad reputation.

She wore a black leather dog collar and fishnet stockings to classes at Craig High School. She bragged about practicing Wicca and told people she planned to get a Pentagram seared into her rear end.

She dated older guys and danced suggestively with girls at school dances. She titled her blog "My Crappy Life: The Inside Look of an Insane Person," and spiked it with swear words, sexual innuendos, and smirking accounts of being an outcast.

But among the 1,100 close-knit residents of Craig, few were buying Waterman as a true bad girl. To them, the teen was the prized daughter of the school board president and his equally civic-minded wife.

Like her parents, Waterman appeared to be the ultimate go-getter, singing in honor choir, suiting up for the volleyball team, and competing in Academic Decathlon. If she wasn't teaching younger kids about the dangers of drugs as a DARE volunteer, she was playing in pep band or working stage crew in community theater.

She could wear all the black clothes she wanted and talk tough to her friends and on her blog. To those in Craig, Rachelle Waterman was still a decent kid.

But on a cold Sunday morning last winter, a gruesome discovery deep in the forest that covers Prince of Wales Island called that assessment into question.

A hunter stumbled across the charred body of Waterman's mother, Lauri. Within days, the teenager was implicated, and people in Craig began asking themselves how much of the honor student's tough-girl act actually had been real.

On Tuesday, Waterman goes on trial for first first-degree murder and other charges that could land her in prison for the rest of her life. Supported by her father and some friends, she maintains her innocence.

What will not be contested at her trial might be its most troubling aspect: Whether she is found guilty or not, evidence indicates that Waterman's exaggerated portrayal of herself as an angry teenage outcast actually led to her mother's murder.
http://www.courttv.com/trials/waterman/background_ctv.html

 

[j2mirish]

What 16-year-old Rachelle Waterman seemed to want most in this tiny island village was a bad reputation.

She wore a black leather dog collar and fishnet stockings to classes at Craig High School. She bragged about practicing Wicca and told people she planned to get a Pentagram seared into her rear end.

She dated older guys and danced suggestively with girls at school dances. She titled her blog "My Crappy Life: The Inside Look of an Insane Person," and spiked it with swear words, sexual innuendos, and smirking accounts of being an outcast.

But among the 1,100 close-knit residents of Craig, few were buying Waterman as a true bad girl. To them, the teen was the prized daughter of the school board president and his equally civic-minded wife.

Like her parents, Waterman appeared to be the ultimate go-getter, singing in honor choir, suiting up for the volleyball team, and competing in Academic Decathlon. If she wasn't teaching younger kids about the dangers of drugs as a DARE volunteer, she was playing in pep band or working stage crew in community theater.

She could wear all the black clothes she wanted and talk tough to her friends and on her blog. To those in Craig, Rachelle Waterman was still a decent kid.

But on a cold Sunday morning last winter, a gruesome discovery deep in the forest that covers Prince of Wales Island called that assessment into question.

A hunter stumbled across the charred body of Waterman's mother, Lauri. Within days, the teenager was implicated, and people in Craig began asking themselves how much of the honor student's tough-girl act actually had been real.

On Tuesday, Waterman goes on trial for first first-degree murder and other charges that could land her in prison for the rest of her life. Supported by her father and some friends, she maintains her innocence.

What will not be contested at her trial might be its most troubling aspect: Whether she is found guilty or not, evidence indicates that Waterman's exaggerated portrayal of herself as an angry teenage outcast actually led to her mother's murder.
http://www.courttv.com/trials/waterman/background_ctv.html

I am so trying not to be judgemental here--did her parents know about her "other" side and just think it was a phase because of all her other accomplishments? I dont want to be harsh on the subject of GOTH- but dang, it just seems like alot of those kids in this attire, are really crying out for help- I again- not being judgemental-- it just always concerns me-- my kids are 9 & 11 and they know what GOTH is-- they havent really been around it yet-- but it just scares me-- I guess it kinda started with the Columbine boys--

 

[misterallgood]

If you read my blog, go to the main page and enter Rachelle's name in the search box. Some of my images are missing at the moment, but I had a number of entries about smchyrcky written in late 2004.

Steve

 

[cappuccina]

....a spoiled brat gone amok...

She is beyond belief...just like the dudes in Florida who beat the homeless men with baseball bats...

Spoiled, entitlement-driven, self-absorbed monsters...

Of course, this is just my opinion...

 

[Taximom]

Oh my gosh, if you changed the names in this article it could be my dd's "friend" from high school. She was the daughter of the H.S. (private) Superintendent and she was rebellious. Still is apparently. I would say that her parents knew a little of what their daughter was doing, but not all of it. She had everything going for her: brains, beauty, athletic...

Her father eventually became president of a college and she went there for a little bit, caused trouble and is now supposedly living in her car drinking and bulimic.

I say "friend" because this girl only called my dd when she was in trouble and my dd would listen to her troubles for a few years anyway.

I think teens can hide an awful lot, and if the parents are very busy...they can hide even more.

This girl was never goth, but I've heard other parents say "Oh, it's just a stage they're going through." I think it signifies SOMETHING. Maybe not witchcraft and murder, but there's something going on that's not altogether normal.:sick:

 

[Details]

This girl was never goth, but I've heard other parents say "Oh, it's just a stage they're going through." I think it signifies SOMETHING. Maybe not witchcraft and murder, but there's something going on that's not altogether normal.:sick:

It is a stage they are going through - lots of mental development, hormones - teenagers are sometimes being driven insane by their own bodies. Some get it worse than others.

It's not about which label they choose to use - goth, witch, punk, or even good girl (ever watch Cruel Intentions?), whatever, it's about the behavior.

 

[j2mirish]

It is a stage they are going through - lots of mental development, hormones - teenagers are sometimes being driven insane by their own bodies. Some get it worse than others.

It's not about which label they choose to use - goth, witch, punk, or even good girl (ever watch Cruel Intentions?), whatever, it's about the behavior.

but- I believe alot of times, the behavior- is dictated by the label

 

[Taximom]

It is a stage they are going through - lots of mental development, hormones - teenagers are sometimes being driven insane by their own bodies. Some get it worse than others.

It's not about which label they choose to use - goth, witch, punk, or even good girl (ever watch Cruel Intentions?), whatever, it's about the behavior.

You are right, any of those can be a stage, but I also believe it's something that needs to be monitored highly. So it doesn't get worse.

I never saw Cruel Intentions. Do you recommend it?

Ahhh, those lovely teen years. :sick: :sick: I'm glad I don't have to be a teen again.

 

[Details]

but- I believe alot of times, the behavior- is dictated by the label

I can't quite see that - kids of every label have done horrible things - the good kids with wonderful parents and every advantage, the goth types, the jock types - just about all of them.

Cruel Intentions - I wouldn't exactly recommend it - disturbing, interesting - but a classic example of a teen using the good girl label to get away with murder (figuratively, nearly literally).

 

[Details]

You are right, any of those can be a stage, but I also believe it's something that needs to be monitored highly. So it doesn't get worse.

I never saw Cruel Intentions. Do you recommend it?

Ahhh, those lovely teen years. :sick: :sick: I'm glad I don't have to be a teen again.

Yep - I just say monitor by the behavior, not by the label, labels can make you miss way too much.

 

[PonderingThings]

http://www.courttv.com/trials/waterman/012506_ctv.html

The father of an honor student accused of inducing two former lovers to kill her mother claimed Wednesday that he saw no animosity between the teenager and his wife.

Prosecutors allege that Rachelle Waterman, now 17, told two former flames falsely that her mother, Lauri, was abusive and then got the men, who were friends, to kill the 48-year-old woman while the teenager was out of town at a volleyball tournament.

The men, Jason Arrant and Brian Radel, struck plea bargains with the prosecutor and are expected to testify against Waterman. She faces a raft of charges, including conspiracy and murder, that could send her to prison for life.

Much more at link

 

[Rle7]

A judge on Tuesday dismissed all charges against a teenager accused of conspiring to murder her mother, saying evidence offered during Rachelle Waterman's mistrial last month suggests police coerced apparently incriminating statements from the Craig honor student.



Superior Court Judge Patricia Collins gave the prosecution until March 20 to decide whether to refile its case or appeal the dismissal to a higher court.

The 17-year-old Waterman was charged with murder and six other counts for allegedly conspiring with two former boyfriends to kill her mother in November 2004. The two 24-year-old men confessed to the murder, saying they believed they were carrying out the girl's wishes. They are scheduled to be sentenced Thursday.

A hung jury in Waterman's trial last month quit deliberations in its fifth day and jurors later said they were deadlocked 10-to-2 in favor of acquittal.

At trial, the defense argued that Rachelle Waterman never intended that her mother be killed when she complained about their relationship.

After the mistrial, the defense asked Collins to issue a judgment of acquittal on her own, a motion the judge denied during the first of two court hearings Tuesday.

However, Collins said, information that came out during the trial required that she reconsider the admissibility of statements made by Waterman to police shortly after her mother's murder. Those statements were the centerpiece of the state's arguments to the grand jury that indicted the girl for murder.

Waterman told police she knew of the plot to kill 48-year-old Lauri Waterman and did nothing to stop it. Those videotaped interviews were shown during the trial.

But Collins on Tuesday said the state has a "heavy burden" to prove that statements are not coerced when the defendant is a juvenile. Her decision was based not on one thing, she said, but on the "totality of the circumstances" surrounding the police interview.

Collins said police lied to Waterman about evidence in the case, which is not in itself illegal, promised that what she told them would be kept "confidential" and threatened her with harsher consequences if she did not confess.

At least one thing Waterman "admitted" — about which window she used to sneak into the house and whether she told one of the killers about it — proved to be untrue, Collins said. That "shed doubt on the reliability" of other statements.

In addition, the grand jury was misled about efforts to contact Waterman's father before the questioning and about the girl's own understanding of her right to have him present, the judge said.

The order to dismiss the indictment drew gasps and tears from Waterman's father and friends in the courtroom audience. However, the weeping teenager, dressed in yellow prison garb, was returned to jail.

http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/crime/story/7513192p-7424816c.html

 

[christine2448]

A judge on Tuesday dismissed all charges against a teenager accused of conspiring to murder her mother, saying evidence offered during Rachelle Waterman's mistrial last month suggests police coerced apparently incriminating statements from the Craig honor student.



Superior Court Judge Patricia Collins gave the prosecution until March 20 to decide whether to refile its case or appeal the dismissal to a higher court.

The 17-year-old Waterman was charged with murder and six other counts for allegedly conspiring with two former boyfriends to kill her mother in November 2004. The two 24-year-old men confessed to the murder, saying they believed they were carrying out the girl's wishes. They are scheduled to be sentenced Thursday.

A hung jury in Waterman's trial last month quit deliberations in its fifth day and jurors later said they were deadlocked 10-to-2 in favor of acquittal.

At trial, the defense argued that Rachelle Waterman never intended that her mother be killed when she complained about their relationship.

After the mistrial, the defense asked Collins to issue a judgment of acquittal on her own, a motion the judge denied during the first of two court hearings Tuesday.

However, Collins said, information that came out during the trial required that she reconsider the admissibility of statements made by Waterman to police shortly after her mother's murder. Those statements were the centerpiece of the state's arguments to the grand jury that indicted the girl for murder.

Waterman told police she knew of the plot to kill 48-year-old Lauri Waterman and did nothing to stop it. Those videotaped interviews were shown during the trial.

But Collins on Tuesday said the state has a "heavy burden" to prove that statements are not coerced when the defendant is a juvenile. Her decision was based not on one thing, she said, but on the "totality of the circumstances" surrounding the police interview.

Collins said police lied to Waterman about evidence in the case, which is not in itself illegal, promised that what she told them would be kept "confidential" and threatened her with harsher consequences if she did not confess.

At least one thing Waterman "admitted" — about which window she used to sneak into the house and whether she told one of the killers about it — proved to be untrue, Collins said. That "shed doubt on the reliability" of other statements.

In addition, the grand jury was misled about efforts to contact Waterman's father before the questioning and about the girl's own understanding of her right to have him present, the judge said.

The order to dismiss the indictment drew gasps and tears from Waterman's father and friends in the courtroom audience. However, the weeping teenager, dressed in yellow prison garb, was returned to jail.

http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/crime/story/7513192p-7424816c.html

WOW.....WOW again, my first WOW was too short for posting

 

[j2mirish]

A judge on Tuesday dismissed all charges against a teenager accused of conspiring to murder her mother, saying evidence offered during Rachelle Waterman's mistrial last month suggests police coerced apparently incriminating statements from the Craig honor student.



Superior Court Judge Patricia Collins gave the prosecution until March 20 to decide whether to refile its case or appeal the dismissal to a higher court.

The 17-year-old Waterman was charged with murder and six other counts for allegedly conspiring with two former boyfriends to kill her mother in November 2004. The two 24-year-old men confessed to the murder, saying they believed they were carrying out the girl's wishes. They are scheduled to be sentenced Thursday.

A hung jury in Waterman's trial last month quit deliberations in its fifth day and jurors later said they were deadlocked 10-to-2 in favor of acquittal.

At trial, the defense argued that Rachelle Waterman never intended that her mother be killed when she complained about their relationship.

After the mistrial, the defense asked Collins to issue a judgment of acquittal on her own, a motion the judge denied during the first of two court hearings Tuesday.

However, Collins said, information that came out during the trial required that she reconsider the admissibility of statements made by Waterman to police shortly after her mother's murder. Those statements were the centerpiece of the state's arguments to the grand jury that indicted the girl for murder.

Waterman told police she knew of the plot to kill 48-year-old Lauri Waterman and did nothing to stop it. Those videotaped interviews were shown during the trial.

But Collins on Tuesday said the state has a "heavy burden" to prove that statements are not coerced when the defendant is a juvenile. Her decision was based not on one thing, she said, but on the "totality of the circumstances" surrounding the police interview.

Collins said police lied to Waterman about evidence in the case, which is not in itself illegal, promised that what she told them would be kept "confidential" and threatened her with harsher consequences if she did not confess.

At least one thing Waterman "admitted" — about which window she used to sneak into the house and whether she told one of the killers about it — proved to be untrue, Collins said. That "shed doubt on the reliability" of other statements.

In addition, the grand jury was misled about efforts to contact Waterman's father before the questioning and about the girl's own understanding of her right to have him present, the judge said.

The order to dismiss the indictment drew gasps and tears from Waterman's father and friends in the courtroom audience. However, the weeping teenager, dressed in yellow prison garb, was returned to jail.

http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/crime/story/7513192p-7424816c.html

why returned to jail if charges were dismissed??????

 

[Hbgchick]

I can't quite see that - kids of every label have done horrible things - the good kids with wonderful parents and every advantage, the goth types, the jock types - just about all of them.

Cruel Intentions - I wouldn't exactly recommend it - disturbing, interesting - but a classic example of a teen using the good girl label to get away with murder (figuratively, nearly literally).

Totally agreed. Goth gets a bad rap just because it's "strange" to some parents, but there are all kinds of kids doing horrible things these days.

 

[Rle7]

Rachelle Waterman has her first taste of freedom in nearly 14 months.



The 17-year-old Craig teenager -- accused of conspiring with two former boyfriends to kill her mother -- walked out of the Lemon Creek Correctional Facility Wednesday after her father, Carl "Doc" Waterman, paid her $5,000 bail.

She did not speak to reporters after her release. As her father drove out of the parking lot, she sat in the back seat reading a newspaper account of the surprise events Tuesday that gained her limited release.

A judge on Tuesday threw out the grand jury indictment against Waterman, saying it was based on police interviews in which Alaska state troopers bullied the teen into a confession.

Those interviews, which were played last month during her murder trial that ended with a hung jury, were conducted shortly after 48-year-old Lauri Waterman's murder in November 2004.

But Superior Court Judge Patricia Collins on Tuesday ordered the teen be held until March 20, the deadline she gave state prosecutors to decide whether to appeal the dismissal or refile charges. She did, however, reduce Waterman's bail to $50,000.

Before he paid 10 percent of that to get her out of jail Wednesday, "Doc" Waterman told The Associated Press that he has guarded hopes for his daughter.

"She won't have what you call a normal life anytime soon. She'll be OK. She's a tough kid, she's smart," he said outside a Juneau bank where he picked up cash. "She'll be on her way to make the best of it."

"Doc" Waterman is both the husband of the victim and the father of the girl who could still be charged with her mother's murder. He said he would sit down and discuss the situation with his daughter at length before they decide their next step.

"We haven't decided where Rachelle is going to be, but I don't think she'll go back to Craig," he said.

http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/7515213p-7427051c.html

 

[SieSie]

Wow, after reading a few of the articles, I can't believe the charges have been dismissed!!!

 

[PrayersForMaura]

Very strange case. TWO ex's working together. I'm shaking my head on that alone aside from everything else.

 

[WISCer]

All I can say is that Dad had better watch his back and sleep with one eye open. His daughter appears to be a master manipulator!

 

[Rle7]

Two men who killed the mother of a teenage girl they both dated were sentenced Thursday to 99 years, but one got a break when the judge suspended 49 years of his term.



Brian Radel, 25, the man who actually murdered Lauri Waterman last year, got a flat 99 years.

His co-conspirator, Jason Arrant, 26, was sentenced to 50 years, plus 49 years of suspended time, which he could be made to serve if he violates parole once he is freed.

Before being sentenced, Arrant asked Superior Court Judge Patricia Collins for mercy, saying he got involved in the murder at the urging of the victim's daughter.

"I did what I did because Rachelle Waterman asked me to. She told me stories of abuse, both mental and physical. She showed me bruises on her arms, her legs and her back to support these claims," Arrant said, reading from handwritten notes.

"She told me she believed her life was in danger, and I bought it hook, line and sinker because I loved her with all my heart."

Arrant turned to the victim's husband, Carl "Doc" Waterman, and said he wouldn't insult him by asking for his forgiveness.

"You have every right to hate me. Instead, I can only offer my deepest apologies and regrets, for whatever that may be worth," he said.

Doc Waterman spoke briefly before Arrant's sentencing, saying he deserved the maximum penalty of 99 years. He declined to talk to reporters later. His daughter, Rachelle, free on bail, did not attend the hearing.

http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/7518197p-7430195c.html