AL AL - J.B. Beasley, 17, & Tracie Hawlett, 17, Ozark, 31 July 1999 #1

[DimeDetective]

I'm wondering about the lack of other security video in the town that might have showed the car. With all the businesses down 123 including the courthouse it seems there would at least be one along that road that would have shown the car if it went that way. even the longer route on 27 that goes to 231 has several businesses. Its likely LE would have let it be known if some other photos/video were found showing the car going that way, or the truck for that matter for clearer ident purposes. This might suggest they didn't get that far and perhaps LE thinks depot lane is where the two parties might have met up, and were looking for evidence of an altercation/abduction, certain footprint impressions or that the truck might have been left there.

I can't remember how common security cameras were in 1999. It's like cell phones: they're universal now and have been for such a while that it's strangely difficult to remember a time when two lost girls would've had to resort to pulling over to use a pay phone at a closed gas station late at night. Just look at the single poor partial still photo we have of the white pickup truck from inside the Big/Little Store. That's all we have. I watched the Dateline episode on Mickey Shunick last night and there was plenty of surveillance video showing her riding her bike down streets with Brandon Scott Lavergne's white pickup in pursuit. When did surveillance cameras featuring higher-quality images really crop up everywhere?

If you're right and there should have been more downtown surveillance footage of the girls (and perhaps a pursuer) captured that night, then I think you could also be right about Depot Lane. Good sleuthing!

 

[killarney rose]

About the TOD- Unless it was raining the night of the murders- July in SE AL is almost unbearable. I can certainly see why it would be hard to determine TOD after the girls were locked in the trunk of a parked car 12+ hours. Even if it was parked in a shady area.


And about the security cameras- I doubt that today you would find very many along the probable routes the girls took. Ozark is a small town of modest means. I can see some businesses having security cameras-probably aimed at the entrances and inside the buildings. But to have multiple businesses with camera of high quality? No way. Not then or now.


If the keys did have blood/evidence on them, would that then make them more appealing as a souviener and the killer might still have them, or did he dispose of them right away to get rid of the evidence?

 

[jenstar]

I can't remember how common security cameras were in 1999. It's like cell phones: they're universal now and have been for such a while that it's strangely difficult to remember a time when two lost girls would've had to resort to pulling over to use a pay phone at a closed gas station late at night. Just look at the single poor partial still photo we have of the white pickup truck from inside the Big/Little Store. That's all we have. I watched the Dateline episode on Mickey Shunick last night and there was plenty of surveillance video showing her riding her bike down streets with Brandon Scott Lavergne's white pickup in pursuit. When did surveillance cameras featuring higher-quality images really crop up everywhere?

If you're right and there should have been more downtown surveillance footage of the girls (and perhaps a pursuer) captured that night, then I think you could also be right about Depot Lane. Good sleuthing!

If there were security cameras it was most likely cctv or a camera that ran to a tape VCR, sometimes the tapes were set to loop to record over what they'd previously recorded unless someone took out the tape to review it every night. My daycare person in 2001 did have hers hooked up to live-feed to her home computer and gave us the link and passcode so that we could check on our kids from any location.
But being a small town in the middle of the country I doubt they had that type of set-up.

 

[shadowangel]

Being in the security biz, I can echo what Jenstar stated as to video surveillance in the late '90s. Many stores did have camera systems, but they utilized VHS formats and not digital. The tapes would generally be changed every 24 hours, with tapes being rewound and used again after one to two weeks.

I'd like to throw out this point...In my own years of reading and research, it often seems that teams keep secrets better than single perpetrators. In criminal teams, one is dominant, the other submissive, and they create an almost symbiotic relationship. A single criminal may tell friends or relatives of their crimes for the thrill of sharing, but in a team the bond is strenthened by the shared secret. And, due to the nature of the relationship, neither rarely share outside the team-- The dominant uses the secret of the crime as another level of control, and the submissive keeps the secret out of fear (and a deeply misplaced sense of loyalty). Is this always this case? Of course not. But, when thinking of the murders of J.B. and Tracie, consider it in the light of being committed by a team. In fact, what about the possibility of a male-female team?

 

[LucyOso]

I've often wondered if perhaps J.B. was a little on the disorganized side, and if maybe she had taken her license out in the days prior for some mundane reason and then never got around to putting it back in her purse. If this was the case, along with what someone brought up about her window being down when the car was found due to the simple fact that it was summer in Alabama (hot, humid), the whole theory that the perpetrator was, or posed as, a police officer could so very easily amount to nothing.



On the other hand, the facts that a) it was J.B.'s car, not Tracie's, that was driven the night of the murders, and b) the evidence shows that J.B. was definitely sexually assaulted to some degree while no evidence exists that Tracie was as well, leads me to think that if anyone was specifically targeted, it seems to have been J.B.



Good observations!

BBM and cut...

I can attest to disorganized teenagers. I think my 17 year old daughter misplaced her debit card 3 times this month. LOL. I also agree the window being down, may just be a means to cool the car. It is possible these are coincidental and not part of the case...

With the targeting of Tracie. Here is the thing... If Tracie was followed home by someone (perhaps they had done it before), and was being watched, the fact that JB picked her up doesn't matter. Tracie may have also made small talk with a "regular" customer and mentioned her plans for the evening. She seems trusting enough. If this regular happened to be a young adult, physically fit, military guy with a paycheck who seemed interested in her (quite exciting compared to local teenage boys) she could have easily been smitten and bragged up she was going to a party (trying to seem mature, etc). The perp would find this a perfect opportunity to have her out at night without people or adults around and after knowing where she lived waited until JB picked her up. There are many cases where someone "scopes" out a home (Duncan) and waits for the right moment to strike.

As for JB getting targeted sexually, this could really just have been an in the moment thing. It sounds to me like JB was pretty streetwise (due to her upbringing, etc). If JB put up a fight either verbally or physically, the perp could easily changed his target her instead. In fact, from what I read Tracie seems a very innocent, trusting person which may have attracted a perp initially (they like to destroy innocence, trust, and reign terror). However, if JB fought him verbally and physically, was non-compliant, etc...the perp would have direct rage towards her because her behavior is the epitome of his source of anger and rage towards women to begin with (rejection, equal rights, refusals, etc). I hope I am explaining that well.

 

[LucyOso]

I'm wondering about the lack of other security video in the town that might have showed the car. With all the businesses down 123 including the courthouse it seems there would at least be one along that road that would have shown the car if it went that way. even the longer route on 27 that goes to 231 has several businesses. Its likely LE would have let it be known if some other photos/video were found showing the car going that way, or the truck for that matter for clearer ident purposes. This might suggest they didn't get that far and perhaps LE thinks depot lane is where the two parties might have met up, and were looking for evidence of an altercation/abduction, certain footprint impressions or that the truck might have been left there.

I have a question about the white truck...two ideas...

1. Is there a possibility this was another good samaritan who gave directions to the girls, made sure they got to Big/Little ok and on the phone, then left when he/she knew they were safe? Perhaps the girls were freaked out because they felt they were being followed to begin with. This white truck person may not have been from the area or never heard the news, so they never came forward.

2. Perhaps the white truck person IS a suspect. I know when we were teens and going to "field" parties, alcohol was involved. Often it was BYO. The person in the white truck could very well be someone Tracie met at JC Penny (see my previous post about an older guy) who offered to buy them alcohol, etc. It is also possible the girls found an adult to buy alcohol or cigs for them. It is also possible, they traveled a great distance in attempts to find a store that was open (perhaps the perp knew the closing times of stores and thus explaining the many miles on the car and in the process confusing the girls). White truck pulls up to Big/Little it (amazingly) is closed as well and this is why no-one gets out of the truck. The white truck person and the girls know you can't do a alcohol transfer in public, so a prearranged place is set for either the transfer of alcohol or cigs or to get back the money for the alcohol. They meet at the place and white truck person kills them. Do they know if any money was missing, 5-10 dollars for a six-pack, etc? Or white truck person feels the girls should perform him a favor for the attempts and it goes downhill very fast. The ID could have been out if JB had tried to buy cigs or alcohol on her own and got carded...hence the need to find a buyer for them. I also want to add if this was a case of the girls wanting to "be cool" etc, they would not have cut their losses and told the person, hey..we have to go...:twocents:

I am not insinuating the girls were drinkers or hard core partiers or what not. I am more reflecting on some teenage norms and my experiences.

 

[killarney rose]

Took a trip to Ozark today. Wow- my brain is whirling with ideas! I had never been to the neighborhood where the girls were found-wow. I have pictures from several locations around town. I'll begin with Herring St. and the surrounding neighborhood.

The thing that strikes me is that the entire area- the Big/Little where the girls made the phone call, Herring St. where their bodies were found, and the Depot Ln location are all within just a few blocks. It would be a very easy walk.

I came home today with the theory that whoever did this lives in this area. I have lived in the Wiregrass over 30 years. I have been all over Ozark many times for different reasons. Today was the first time I have ever been to Herring St. Why? Because it is out of the way. It is not someplace you would drive through, or past while on the way to somewhere else. It is someplace you would drive to because you have a reason to be there. You are visiting someone who lives there, going to play ball in the neighborhood, you live there, or are going to the church next to the ball field.

I really believe the killer lived in this neighborhood, or had ties to it.

This is the street approaching Herring St.

When you turn left onto Herring St, the place where the car was left is immediately on your right. We actually drove by Herring(the sign is missing) but saw the memorial from the street we were on.

A close up of the memorial

What struck me is, this is a wooded street- nothing on it, until you get to the top of the hill and on your immediate right are apartments. How easy it would have been for the killer to have just pulled off the road, abandoned the car, and walked home. To these apartments, or to the neighborhood around them, or perhaps the one around the corner by the ball field or church?

Leaving the memorial, you cross a small creek, go up a hill and come to a few ramshackle houses. The Apartments are just past the red brick building.

This is the ballfield. If you look at the picture of the dump site, the woods behind it- they are not deep- maybe a hundred feet if that far. This ball field is directly on the other side of those woods.

DH pointed out- there appears to be trails though the woods where people have cut through or walked. Also lots of trash on this road where people have clearly used it as a dumping area for trash. It's my guess that even though this 1 block area is kind of desolate it gets quite a bit of traffic. In fact, the city workers were there cleaning up trash while we were taking pictures.

Standing at the memorial looking back toward the road leading in to Herring St.

I have pictures of the other areas, but will post seperately to give time for discussion.

 

[deca]

Wow, thanks for those pics!

I think J.B. was the target.

I don't think J.B used the keys as a weapon or either girl got into a fight with the perp. I would guess if they did try to fight back there would have been some other injuries/signs of stuggle (bruising, scrapes, etc.) on the girls. My guess is that the perp stopped them and at some point grabbed the keys either out of the ignition or out of J.B. grasp. I guess it is possible that it the girls run or march through the wet area the keys got lost, but I think it is more likely the perp has or had them.

Although someone attached to the military base is a likely possibility, lets not forget locals that have contact with young people- like teachers or other young people, etc.

 

[jenstar]

I have a question about the white truck...two ideas...

1. Is there a possibility this was another good samaritan who gave directions to the girls, made sure they got to Big/Little ok and on the phone, then left when he/she knew they were safe? Perhaps the girls were freaked out because they felt they were being followed to begin with. This white truck person may not have been from the area or never heard the news, so they never came forward.

2. Perhaps the white truck person IS a suspect. I know when we were teens and going to "field" parties, alcohol was involved. Often it was BYO. The person in the white truck could very well be someone Tracie met at JC Penny (see my previous post about an older guy) who offered to buy them alcohol, etc. It is also possible the girls found an adult to buy alcohol or cigs for them. It is also possible, they traveled a great distance in attempts to find a store that was open (perhaps the perp knew the closing times of stores and thus explaining the many miles on the car and in the process confusing the girls). White truck pulls up to Big/Little it (amazingly) is closed as well and this is why no-one gets out of the truck. The white truck person and the girls know you can't do a alcohol transfer in public, so a prearranged place is set for either the transfer of alcohol or cigs or to get back the money for the alcohol. They meet at the place and white truck person kills them. Do they know if any money was missing, 5-10 dollars for a six-pack, etc? Or white truck person feels the girls should perform him a favor for the attempts and it goes downhill very fast. The ID could have been out if JB had tried to buy cigs or alcohol on her own and got carded...hence the need to find a buyer for them. I also want to add if this was a case of the girls wanting to "be cool" etc, they would not have cut their losses and told the person, hey..we have to go...:twocents:

I am not insinuating the girls were drinkers or hard core partiers or what not. I am more reflecting on some teenage norms and my experiences.

Actually I back that up 100%. I know that where my mom lives in Eastern KY, we have a "drive thru" carryout place. You basically flash your ID and if they recognize you, they don't even check the DOB.
Is there a drive thru liquor store in the area?
That's a possible place where the girls would have been. And people would be reluctant to talk because they sold alcohol to underage girls.

 

[killarney rose]

Visiting this area today has me fairly convinced the killer was local. I was amazed at the close proximity of the important areas!

I think you could be right about the killer not being injured by the girls...


I also visited the Depot Ln area. I have a theory- with pictures about the girls getting wet and muddy there, if indeed that is where they were killed.

I'll post that later tonight. Didn't want to saturate the thread with too much at a time.

 

[jenstar]

Wow, thanks for those pics!

I think J.B. was the target.

I don't think J.B used the keys as a weapon or either girl got into a fight with the perp. I would guess if they did try to fight back there would have been some other injuries/signs of stuggle (bruising, scrapes, etc.) on the girls. My guess is that the perp stopped them and at some point grabbed the keys either out of the ignition or out of J.B. grasp. I guess it is possible that it the girls run or march through the wet area the keys got lost, but I think it is more likely the perp has or had them.

Although someone attached to the military base is a likely possibility, lets not forget locals that have contact with young people- like teachers or other young people, etc.

I was looking through Houston County/Dothan Sexual Offenders and sooo many are in there for rape with a 15 year old. None of them had "violent" offences, (at least the one's I though would fit the profile.)

 

[jenstar]

Visiting this area today has me fairly convinced the killer was local. I was amazed at the close proximity of the important areas!

I think you could be right about the killer not being injured by the girls...


I also visited the Depot Ln area. I have a theory- with pictures about the girls getting wet and muddy there, if indeed that is where they were killed.

I'll post that later tonight. Didn't want to saturate the thread with too much at a time.

I read in an article somewhere that the mud on the shoes were traced back to the "sandy creek" area. Did you find that accessible?Oh, Great Work!! BTW it gives us a way better visual than just maps.

 

[Dixie811]

Thanks for all the leg work, Killarney Rose! Those pictures are really great.

I also feel as though JB was the target. Perhaps because of her more difficult family life (wasn't she in foster care at the time of the murders? Correct me if I'm wrong!) maybe the killer found her more vulnerable?

 

[DimeDetective]

Took a trip to Ozark today. Wow- my brain is whirling with ideas! I had never been to the neighborhood where the girls were found-wow. I have pictures from several locations around town.

KR, no kidding! I traveled to Ozark today myself. From the looks of the sunlight in your pictures you were there earlier in the day, but otherwise we almost ran into each other!

I took pictures and a few short videos. I'm working on getting them ready to post now.

KR, if I may ask: what is the width of the photos you posted? I'd like to post similarly large-sized images (so they can be studied by fellow Websleuths) without blowing the margins. Thanks in advance!

 

[killarney rose]

KR, no kidding! I traveled to Ozark today myself. From the looks of the sunlight in your pictures you were there earlier in the day, but otherwise we almost ran into each other!

I took pictures and a few short videos. I'm working on getting them ready to post now.

KR, if I may ask: what is the width of the photos you posted? I'd like to post similarly large-sized images (so they can be studied by fellow Websleuths) without blowing the margins. Thanks in advance!

That will be awesome to see what you took!

We were there around lunchtime-hey did you eat in Ozark? LOL- I kept looking around thinking what if someone else was there doing the same thing we were!

I"m not sure about the size- I didn't edit just uploaded to Photobucket and prayed they wouldn't be huge! I'll see if I can find out and post the size for you.

 

[killarney rose]

Dime Detective- 800 x 600 pixels. Hope that helps.

 

[jenstar]

People need to move past this stereotype. There are "backwoods" types in every state of this country. Being in AL has nothing to do with this murder. These were middle class girls. I find this offensive, as do I am sure many other Alabamians. I have a college degree that may or may not show up in my poor typing ability. When I open my mouth there are people who would love to lower my IQ by quite a few points due to my heavy southern accent (of which I am very proud of).

Hey, I know a girl from New York who is loud and obnoxious, so I guess all New Yorkers are?:furious: UM...they don't have sex offenders above the Mason/Dixon line?:furious:

So lets quite stereotyping an entire state and look at the facts as pertain to this case.

Oh I agree, I lived in Eastern KY for awhile and those people are quite strange themselves. I seriously wasn't trying to offend anyone. I was simply leading up to the fact that when I looked at these sex offenders they looked horribly creepy. As in "horror movie/Wrong Turn" sort of creepy. (as would most in any state I'm sure.) You're right, my use of stereotypes was a wrong thing to do and my phrasing was out of context. I deeply apologize.

 

[DimeDetective]

We were there around lunchtime. LOL- I kept looking around thinking what if someone else was there doing the same thing we were!

We missed each other by a few hours. I was there midafternoon.

hey did you eat in Ozark?

Applebee's!

I"m not sure about the size- I didn't edit just uploaded to Photobucket and prayed they wouldn't be huge! I'll see if I can find out and post the size for you.

Thank you kindly! If not, no problem. I'll play around with it until I get it right.

 

[killarney rose]

Don't get me wrong I'm not trying to be a "debbie downer" but, Alabama back-woods people seems about as backwards as they come. The girls grow up too fast and the men can't wait to get their hands on them. Also I knew a girl from Alabama and man was she loud and obnoxious. I was looking through Houston County/Dothan Sexual Offenders and sooo many are in there for rape with a 15 year old. None of them had "violent" offences, (at least the one's I though would fit the profile.)

I just flat out take offense to this. It is beyond time for people to move past stereotypes like this. People in Al are no more backwoods than people in the other 49 states are. These were middle class girls.

Also, I knew a girl from New York, she was loud and obnoxious with an annoying Bronx accent. ...so I have decided all New Yorkers are loud and obnoxious....have you checked the sex offender list for states north of the Mason Dixon line? Bet you find the same proportion of offenders...wait...maybe not...these lil Alabama gals just run around in their Daisy Dukes rollin' around in the hay loft with any ol man..:floorlaugh:

 

[jenstar]

I just flat out take offense to this. It is beyond time for people to move past stereotypes like this. People in Al are no more backwoods than people in the other 49 states are. These were middle class girls.

Also, I knew a girl from New York, she was loud and obnoxious with an annoying Bronx accent. ...so I have decided all New Yorkers are loud and obnoxious....have you checked the sex offender list for states north of the Mason Dixon line? Bet you find the same proportion of offenders...wait...maybe not...these lil Alabama gals just run around in their Daisy Dukes rollin' around in the hay loft with any ol man..:floorlaugh:

Now; I think you went from being offended to being downright ridiculous. As you can see, I replied to you with an apology. If you're still offended that's not on me anymore. I even went back and edited my original comment. So that it isn't still seeming to pass judgement. But that's ok. I've already said my piece. I think we should turn our attentions back to J.B. and Tracy, like YOU originally said.