CA CA - Dr Robert Stonebreaker, 53, Rancho Santa Fe, 16 Jan 2010

[Curious Me]

It is great to see a renewed interest in this case and fresh eyes taking a look at it. Dr. Stonebreaker was murdered and never got the Justice he deserved. LE seems to have left this a cold case and did not investigate it further. It was left an extremely mysterious unexplained death. We want more facts, we have hardly anything to go on. MOO, it's almost like LE kept all the facts under wraps and then let the case go cold.

You might notice that from the very first post that there was hardly any news articles describing the actual scene LE investigated concerning Dr. Stonebreaker's death. Any news links there were now no longer link to the articles. I did a search and linked what articles I could find below.

You might also notice how LE immediately started suspecting the spouse and accusing her of not cooperating, but LE never really explained why, nor did they ever come up with any workable theory to be pointing the finger at her. The spouse got an insurance settlement eventually, after much delay. LE did not solve this case nor did they pursue it further. Who actually killed Dr. Stonebreaker? LE seemed to accept the story the owners of the house gave of not hearing anybody outside on their property close to their house where a man had died.

It was extremely mysterious where the RS was found on that property far from his car, said to have maybe climbed over a gate, no blood trail. He had suffered the blow to his head right there where he was found dead, on that property far from the road.

There was reports he was driving poorly, overcorrecting, etc., but I'm not sure where those stories came from. I don't think there were any witnesses to his driving. I do not know if there were actual tire marks or any evidence he actually drove the car into that ditch. If anyone can find a news article describing his driving, please post it here.

I did a search and linked what articles I could find below. ​

Insurance companies halt payment while wife listed as suspect

The wife of a prominent veterinarian is accused of murder in his mysterious death.

www.cbs8.com

January 13, 2012

The Coast News Group

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thecoastnews.com

July 21, 2011 (Questionable actions IMO casting shade on the spouse trying to solicit funds, supporting LE faulty investigation, but MOO here.)

The Coast News Group

Your community. Your newspaper. Covers Camp Pendleton, Oceanside, Carlsbad, Encinitas, Solana Beach, Del Mar, Carmel Valley, Rancho Santa Fe, Escondido, San Marcos & Vista.

thecoastnews.com

September 9, 2010

The Coast News Group

Your community. Your newspaper. Covers Camp Pendleton, Oceanside, Carlsbad, Encinitas, Solana Beach, Del Mar, Carmel Valley, Rancho Santa Fe, Escondido, San Marcos & Vista.

thecoastnews.com

August 25, 2010

The Coast News Group

Your community. Your newspaper. Covers Camp Pendleton, Oceanside, Carlsbad, Encinitas, Solana Beach, Del Mar, Carmel Valley, Rancho Santa Fe, Escondido, San Marcos & Vista.

thecoastnews.com

2019

The Coast News Group

Your community. Your newspaper. Covers Camp Pendleton, Oceanside, Carlsbad, Encinitas, Solana Beach, Del Mar, Carmel Valley, Rancho Santa Fe, Escondido, San Marcos & Vista.

thecoastnews.com

 

[pentimento]

Money? Power? Connections? Influence? It wouldn't be the first time.

Not to cast aspersions on anybody, since I obviously have no idea about motive, but I'm thinking of the usual suspects -- love, money, drugs or some combination of these perhaps? There may be others I'm missing. I mention these only for the sake of exploring possible motives and some reason for the Dr. to have been at that location in the first place. Also, I wonder who the attorneys were for the lawsuit he was involved in against the chip maker -- although it's hard to see how that could provide a motive, it could provide a connection.

Let's just say for the sake of argument that Dr. Stonebreaker had some relationship -- business, personal or otherwise-- with at least one of the parties in the home. Also that the homeowner was a prominent attorney, above reproach, a partner at a large prestigious downtown law firm. This person and his associates would certainly be well-connected within the court system. At the very least, this person can't afford to have anything nefarious like a murder on his property which is in any way connected to someone in the home, especially if it is connected in some way to a hidden motive. His career may be at stake, and perhaps the reputation of his law firm.

What if this person also had a lot to lose in the event of marital strife? What if he was extremely wealthy but a significant amount of the person's money or property came or was coming from an inheritance through marriage but it was contingent on still being (happily) married? What if just for appearances sake, no one in his household could be involved in anything nefarious or there was the risk of losing out on a sizeable inheritance.

Anyway, I digress. More sheer speculation, but the focus on Dr. Stonebreaker's wife could have been sheer diversion. They had to look like they were doing SOMETHING to find his killer. What if there was subtle or not so subtle pressure from within the ranks to beg off investigating the prominent attorney? Maybe I've seen too many conspiracy movies but I can tell you from personal experience that police officers are not totally unbiased when it comes to investigating incidents involving someone they know or who is well-known, or comes from a well-known family. Do we know anything more about who was living there? Did the police encounter resistance from the courts in getting a warrant to investigate someone? Or was the message not so subtle?

Or -- this just came to me. What if Dr. Stonebreaker had been at the house earlier and an argument ensued. Someone smashed his window as he was leaving the property in haste. It wouldn't have to be a short person, only a person with a golf club or something like that and is approaching or at some distance from the car as it is quickly driving out, and that's the best shot that they could get. So let's say Dr. Stonebreaker is upset and starts driving home but it's hard to see with the smashed windshield and the rain, and at some point he turns around to go back, in anger or despair or remorse. If someone did see him driving erratically, (I know this hasn't been confirmed) maybe it was because he couldn't see well through the windshield, so he almost misses the turn and crashes. (I need to go back and look at the windshield to see if it was driveable in that condition -- I'd do it now but I'm afraid of losing my post ) IF someone did witness him driving, perhaps because of the dark and the rain, they couldn't see that the window was smashed. Then he crashes, and walks back to the house and is either let in or climbs over the side fence and the argument continues or he is confronted right away, and the person who smashed his window with the object, uses that object to hit him over the head. Although I don't know if I'd go back to a house where someone had just smashed in my window, so maybe this doesn't fit. Or maybe he was just really angry and emboldened, or he could have been trying to make amends or explain himself and hoped for sympathy and help for crashing his car. Maybe he misjudged someone given their status in the community. Just some thoughts I had just now, throwing them out there to maybe spark other ideas...

The police could conveniently write off the smashed window as the result of the accident. Why would they not mention it if indeed, as have some have speculated, the window was smashed in? No further questions.

Again, I have no intention of casting aspersions on anyone, but we are all human and make mistakes and sometimes we can make a mess of things. People are also inclined to protect their own interests. This is all just sheer speculation and conjecture on my part, in an attempt to explain what we do know. Maybe something will ring a bell with those more in the know. It would be nice to see some justice for Dr. Stonebreaker.

JMO

 

[pentimento]

<modsnip - quoted post was removed>

On that note, I had a couple of other thoughts. The smashed in windshield. Could that have occurred at another location, another house nearby maybe, and prior to the accident? Could an argument have happened in this other location where Dr. Stonebreaker's windshield was smashed in, perhaps as he was leaving? Then he knew that person and where they lived and attempted to drive there with the smashed windshield It could explain the driver's side window being down in the rain -- it helped him to see because it was difficult to see through the windshield. JMO

This case is a real mystery because of the lack of information and the time that has elapsed.

ETA: I think the horse-racing angle is interesting. I didn't comment on it because I just don't know enough about that world. But what if Dr. Stonebreaker discovered something like horses were being doped or otherwise mistreated in order to gain an unfair racing advantage? Did his practice include larger animals like horses? Didn't the homeowner say that he had used Dr. Stonebreaker's services in the past? Perhaps he was called to examine a horse or horses and discovered something that could have disqualified these animals from racing? This would be a huge scandal. Could provide a motive if these horses stood to win a lot of money, plus it could forever damage the reputation of the horse breeder/owner if the information were to come to light. I wonder if some horses were stabled at "another location" (which I speculated about above)? If my memory serves, I seem to recall a spate of horse deaths not too long ago at Del Mar? I wonder what was going on there.... Sheer speculation, don't have any facts to support this, just thinking out loud.

JMO of course.

ETA: Del Mar Racetrack is about 20 minutes from the location that Dr. Stonebreaker was found. Could he have been examining an injured horse at the track? Or meeting or having a drink with someone at a nearby Golf Club? Did he play golf? JMO

6792 Paseo Delicias to Del Mar Racing

www.google.com

 

[Curious Me]

Did his practice include larger animals like horses?

Your post is thought-provoking, @pentimento. I appreciated your speculations from many angles, and the map you took the trouble to post. Thank You.

As far as I know, Dr. Stonebreaker's expertise was birds, and he was strictly a bird avian veterinarian, IIRC.

He was my African Grey's bird doctor. He started the Free Flight sanctuary for Birds, and I would take my children there.

Now, he may have had a side interest in horses, I don't know. I never heard of his practice including other animals like horses. JMO, his spouse was probably brought up around horses as his F-i-L was a well known horse veterinarian, boarded horses, I believe in another state, and also owned a winning race horse. All this being in the news and mentioned often in horse racing circles. ​

ETA: Del Mar Racetrack is about 20 minutes from the location that Dr. Stonebreaker was found. Could he have been examining an injured horse at the track? Or meeting or having a drink with someone at a nearby Golf Club? Did he play golf? JMO

This happened on a rainy Saturday night. I don't know if he played golf. I would think if he met someone for drinks at the Golf Club then that would've been reported to LE. I don't think they mentioned finding golf clubs in his car either.

There's no way to find out what or who lured him out that way. MOO, and this is MOO only, he was lured out there and murdered, and there was a cover up trying to make it look like a car accident and LE speculating he was running around injured and traumatized, climbing gates, etc., LE even tried to fly the idea he was being chased. Oh, but then LE tries to accuse the spouse of being involved when she wasn't anywhere near the scene, so I'd like to know why they tried to keep her as a suspect.

A lot of people in that area do own horses. The doctor ends up dead almost in front of this couple's house far from his car, hit on the back of the head and seeming to bleed out there on that property, and no one heard a thing. He was found the next morning. It's extremely mysterious. LE didn't come up with anything remarkable in the end to solve this case. Dr. Stonebreaker and his family and children still deserve Justice. Looks like someone got away with murder. All my own thoughts, speculations, and definitely MOO.​

 

[pentimento]

Your post is thought-provoking, @pentimento. I appreciated your speculations from many angles, and the map you took the trouble to post. Thank You.

As far as I know, Dr. Stonebreaker's expertise was birds, and he was strictly a bird avian veterinarian, IIRC.

He was my African Grey's bird doctor. He started the Free Flight sanctuary for Birds, and I would take my children there.

Now, he may have had a side interest in horses, I don't know. I never heard of his practice including other animals like horses. JMO, his spouse was probably brought up around horses as his F-i-L was a well known horse veterinarian, boarded horses, I believe in another state, and also owned a winning race horse. All this being in the news and mentioned often in horse racing circles.

This happened on a rainy Saturday night. I don't know if he played golf. I would think if he met someone for drinks at the Golf Club then that would've been reported to LE. I don't think they mentioned finding golf clubs in his car either.

There's no way to find out what or who lured him out that way. MOO, and this is MOO only, he was lured out there and murdered, and there was a cover up trying to make it look like a car accident and LE speculating he was running around injured and traumatized, climbing gates, etc., LE even tried to fly the idea he was being chased. Oh, but then LE tries to accuse the spouse of being involved when she wasn't anywhere near the scene, so I'd like to know why they tried to keep her as a suspect.

A lot of people in that area do own horses. The doctor ends up dead almost in front of this couple's house far from his car, hit on the back of the head and seeming to bleed out there on that property, and no one heard a thing. He was found the next morning. It's extremely mysterious. LE didn't come up with anything remarkable in the end to solve this case. Dr. Stonebreaker and his family and children still deserve Justice. Looks like someone got away with murder. All my own thoughts, speculations, and definitely MOO.​

Very interesting. Hmm. So the homeowner claimed to have used his services at one time? If that information is correct, did he own a bird or birds? Seems like a very narrow specialty and it seems like Dr. Stonebreaker may have been perhaps the ONLY avian specialist in that area? Seems like you would rely on him again, not just once if that were the case.... or mentioned that he cared for your birds once, since he's the only avian guy in town. I don't know, maybe it's just me, but I find this odd. The whole thing about the guy having a clipping and then admitting to it (was it out when the police interviewed him?) or telling the police about it is odd. I still have the sneaking suspicion though that Dr. Stonebreaker may have worked with the occasional small animals and maybe even horses, but obviously I don't know that for sure.

Still puzzling over the article. Maybe the homeowner was afraid that some past connection with the doctor would be found by investigators, and then he could say, " oh yes, that was the time that we consulted with him about our dear pet (whatever -- perhaps a horse).... Remember? I mentioned it in the interview." He downplays the connection but mentions it nonetheless, just in case. JMO.

The more I think about it the more I'm leaning toward Dr. Stonebreaker knowing or finding out something that someone didn't want him to know, and my suspicion is that it had to do with his veterinary practice. It's just all to coincidental that he ends up on basically a direct route from the race track to where he crashed, and then ends up dead in the driveway of a horse owner/breeder/racer (not sure if he owns or breeds or races exactly,would be interesting to know). He is very high-profile vet and the homeowner is in the horse racing world, just happens to have a clipping regarding Dr. Stonebreaker (and we don't know if he had birds), and admits to recognizing him and meeting him at least once. Very strange. JMO.

ETA: So in your scenario was he followed up there to where he had the accident? Or was he killed and the car window bashed in while he was at the house and then the car staged to look like an accident. Seems kinda risky if you happened to be seen staging the car, but I imagine it's pretty quiet up there at night. Why not put the body in the car? I can kind of envision that his windshield was bashed in, he was being followed and crashed accidently, then someone was there to take him up to the house. But why not just kill him right there? Very puzzling as to why he would walk or even be driving up to that house if his window had already been bashed in (my scenario) as well. Very puzzling. JMO.

 

[Curious Me]

...I don't know, maybe it's just me, but I find this odd. The whole thing about the guy having a clipping and then admitting to it (was it out when the police interviewed him?) or telling the police about it is odd. I still have the sneaking suspicion though that Dr. Stonebreaker may have worked with the occasional small animals and maybe even horses, but obviously I don't know that for sure.

It's not just you. Dr. Stonebreaker ended up dead at their door step. His car was found the night before, but his body was not found until the next morning. He was found far enough from his car to raise many questions. He was all the way to that attorney's house laying there deceased. Then, the owner of the house says he knows him.

It has been mentioned often that it was weird that the husband of the couple who owned the house where the doctor was found dead in their yard was an attorney who "just happened to have an article he saved about Dr. Stonebreaker". JMO, the couple could possibly have owned horses as many people out there do. What did the article they saved say about the doctor? Why would they find that interesting enough to save the article?

This is where I feel someone in his family might have some idea why he was driving around out there to begin with, but no reports family supplied that info. Just that little bit of info would help greatly. What brought Dr. S out to that area on a rainy Saturday night? He ended up dead. Someone hit him on the head. Was he a threat of some kind to someone? All MOO, of course.

​

...It's just all to coincidental that he ends up on basically a direct route from the race track to where he crashed, and then ends up dead in the driveway of a ...​

I don't find the racetrack being included for sure in his route that night, or having anything to do with him on that night.

Free Flight and his Vet offices were in Del Mar, which would be closer to the racetrack. I think he and his family lived in Encinitas. I'll include some maps to give you an idea how close Encinitas is to Rancho Santa Fe.​

Can be enlarged

FREE FLIGHT Exotic Bird Sanctuary
2132 Jimmy Durante Blvd.,
Del Mar, CA 92014

Visit Free Flight | Free Flight Exotic Bird Sanctuary

If you're planning a trip to San Diego, be sure to fit in a visit to Free Flight! Make your reservation to visit us today!

www.freeflightbirds.org

This is all MOO.

 

[Curious Me]

Still puzzling over the article....

IIRC, this article came out the same week as the doctor's death. Free Flight had existed for many, many years without the non-profit status. Something about this bothers me.
The article also answers your questions that the dr. did treat small animals. Food for thought here.​

Del Mar Times – San Diego Union-Tribune

Del Mar news featuring local news and events, discussions, announcements, photos and videos.

www.delmartimes.net

“We just receive our nonprofit status, and that was quite an accomplishment,” Stonebreaker said, referring to the sanctuary. “Nonprofit status is allowing the board to take over (the sanctuary) and make decisions rather than me. Hopefully it will be self-sustaining and the vet hospital won’t have to be paying all the salaries and overhead that goes along with that.

[...]

“When I took over, I changed the name to Animal and Bird Hospital,” Stonebreaker said, “so a lot of people knew this was my ‘home’ to treat birds and other exotics. I’ve seen everything here: hamsters, rabbits, guinea pigs, monkeys and some reptiles. We even had a sloth in not too long ago.

Please note-- Underlined and BBM, and some of MOO.

 

[vls12345]

I'm just reading this thread for the first time.

Did the medical examiner say how long they thought RS had been deceased before being found? Was the car towed thatnight and they really didn't look for the missing driver? They didn't look up the car's owner and go to his house to see if he was home or notify next of kin that his crashed, abandoned car was found? Who noticed the crashed car and reported it? When?

Did LE search the house and grounds of the property where he was found for a blunt force object?

 

[pentimento]

I don't find the racetrack being included for sure in his route that night, or having anything to do with him on that night.

Yes, perhaps you are right. I just had this idea that horse racing was involved, but actually this post about the homeowner's wife that was shared previously is not about race horses. In fact, there's nothing to indicate that they have any connection to racing at all, unless there's something else I missed. These are champion show horses mentioned here, not race horses. It seemed like there might be something there, but perhaps not. JMO. Still, I do wonder what type of animal the homeowner used the Dr's veterinary services for.

Rancho Santa Fe Review – San Diego Union-Tribune

Local news coverage of Rancho Santa Fe. Featuring local news and events, discussions, announcements, photos and videos.

www.ranchosantafereview.com

It IS very interesting timing on when that article about the sanctuary came out, which the homeowner clipped. So the gist of it -- times are tough, non-profit status will help with the bottom line and the sanctuary will pay rent to the hospital, board members are taking over the sanctuary making decisions. It does say that he is hoping that the sanctuary will be able to "pay back some of the money" AND pay rent. I guess he was hoping for payback for salaries and overhead already paid to the sanctuary (which is his) but he refers to it as they? I'm a bit confused about that. JMO

Anyway, I do wonder if there is something to that article, but for the life of me I can't figure out how it would relate to the house where he was (presumably) killed. JMO.

ETA: According to the Free Flight website, the sanctuary got non-profit status in March 2009...

"Free Flight became a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit in March of 2009. Less than a year later, we suffered a tremendous loss when Dr. Stonebreaker passed away suddenly. This tragedy inspired clients, colleagues, employees and family to be more determined than ever to continue to pursue his passion for all species of exotic birds."

About Us | Free Flight Exotic Bird Sanctuary

Free Flight is a sanctuary for exotic birds where parrots and people connect to raise community awareness.

www.freeflightbirds.org

 

[pentimento]

So I'm curious about a few things. It seems like there were some financial things in flux at the time of the Dr's death. So the animal hospital and the sanctuary were on the same land, presumably owned by the doctor. I think I read that the Dr's wife sold the veterinary practice, which is stil in operation now, presumably with new owners. Did she sell the building and the land that the practice was on, or is the veterinary practice now renting from her? Property values in Del Mar are high. Anyway, it seems like it would be big change if the sanctuary was supposed to be paying rent to the veterinary practice AND pay back other monies, then the veterinary practice is no more. The rent and other money owed to the practice would then go to her? Does the wife still own the sanctuary? Didn't she work there? Was she on the board making decisions? Not sure if I have my facts straight, but perhaps she had more to gain from his death than we thought. JMO Still not sure how this ties in with the homeowner, unless there was someone in the background giving legal advice (and saving newspaper articles about it).... JMO, of course.

 

[Curious Me]

There is supposed to be something about this case on the kfmb news tonite at 11 (may 22, 2012). Last I read the wife Pam was under suspicion and the insurance company will not release any funds. Dr. Stonebreaker was my vet and a very good one too and a very helpful one. He really went out of his way to help animals. He was going to come out to my house 45 min away from his home to look at a sick parrot of mine on a Sunday when no one else would bother. Not every vet can take care of a sick parrot. I really feel bad that the police have not been able to find his murderer. I believe he was being chased down that dark winding road and that's probably why he crashed in the first place. Then probably chased on foot to the final resting place. Very sad. I pray the wife had nothing to do with it but for some reason LE suspects her. Someone could have been paid to do this.​

This person ^^^ says the doctor was willing to make a house call for her sick bird, so it's possible he did go out of his way to help a sick animal, or was lured with that excuse. MOO here, LE provided no evidence to determine if he really was driving erratically, or if it was even possible he was being chased, or if it was a real car accident. LE rushed to point the finger at the spouse and provided no reasoning there either. LE, in MOO, failed to investigate this homicide correctly. It could've been a hired hit, or he could've been lured to that property, but LE didn't investigate any of that, as far as I can find. People wanted to believe LE that he was being chased due to road rage, but JMO, and MOO, I don't believe that's what happened. I don't believe that even makes sense. Dr. S. was a big man and if he was injured in any way in a car accident, someone would've caught up with him sooner if they were chasing him while he climbed gates, etc., Can't believe LE tried to fly that story.

​

Detectives seek clues in unsolved murder of North County veterinarian

For more than two years, the murder mystery surrounding the death of a prominent, North County veterinarian has gone unsolved.

www.cbs8.com

Dr. Stonebreaker, a resident of Encinitas, was not inside the vehicle and officers towed away the Porsche that night.

"They checked the whole area and there was no sign of any blood, there was no sign of anything to indicate that the driver had any serious trauma," said CHP Sgt. Lewis Hall at the time of the crash.

The next morning, a neighbor came outside to find Stonebreaker's body lying in a nearby driveway. The cause of death was a blow to the back of the head, according to the medical examiner.

Detectives believe the doctor may have walked or ran about 100 yards up the driveway to the spot where his body was discovered. That driveway was gated but if Stonebreaker was being chased, he may have climbed a side fence looking for help.

https://ecf.casd.uscourts.gov/doc1/03718038294

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that Plaintiff Pamela Stonebreaker and Defendant The
Guardian Life Insurance Company of America have settled. Plaintiff anticipates signing
settlement documents, including a joint dismissal of the entire case with prejudice in the
very near future.
DATED: July 24, 2013 MCKENNA LONG & ALDRIDGE LLP
By: s/ Nathan S. Arrington
Nathan S. Arrington
Attorneys for Plaintiff Pamela Stonebreaker

She got her 3 million after insurance interplead the money, sold the Porsche, sold the vet practice, leased the building, and wanted more money: liar: for 'bad faith' and apparently settled.
Still not talking to the detectives since three weeks after the murder which might mean she is still not cleared:twocents:
Not sure what it's going to take to solve this. Reward money? Ya probably lured there, saw what was coming and ran, a big guy and didn't run fast enough? This case haunts me,:banghead: too, lingering? or are the detectives waiting for a solid case? Curious indeed.

Oh, noooo... She got rid of the practice, too??!!

That's very sad.

^^^ Answers some of your questions about the insurance settlement, and the practice. MOO here-- if you look into what was going on, the spouse was, IMO, made to look guilty just by LE and the insurance co. trying to say she wouldn't talk further, wouldn't cooperate, but they were trying to pin guilt on her with no solid reason right from the start. It seem wrong what they did to her. It seems RS's brother went against her too. LE failed to investigate other suspects or theories. Seems they left the spouse to sound guilty and never solved the case. Believe me, the doctor was worth more alive than that settlement. I really want to know who did this to Dr. Stonebreaker. He was a good man.

All MOO​

 

[pentimento]

Answers some of your questions about the insurance settlement, and the practice. MOO here-- if you look into what was going on, the spouse was, IMO, made to look guilty just by LE and the insurance co. trying to say she wouldn't talk further, wouldn't cooperate, but they were trying to pin guilt on her with no solid reason right from the start. It seem wrong what they did to her. It seems RS's brother went against her too. LE failed to investigate other suspects or theories. Seems they left the spouse to sound guilty and never solved the case. Believe me, the doctor was worth more alive than that settlement. I really want to know who did this to Dr. Stonebreaker. He was a good man.

I completely get where you're coming from as you have known the persons involved, and have known about this case a lot longer than I have. I'm just stumbling around trying to figure out who had motive. Who would benefit from the Dr.'s death? Would the adoption of non-profit status for the sanctuary benefit or threaten somebody, especially if one party had plans or desires to get out of a marriage? That seems to be the thing that was in flux at the time, and was probably changing around some prior financial arrangements.

Sometimes it's not about the bottom line exactly, there could also be a personal resentment. Maybe technically speaking the Dr's spouse would have come out just fine in the case of divorce or even remaining married, but would still be beholden to someone. Sometimes things are more about control, or freedom. JMO

So if you can bear with me with these half-baked ideas... I'm happy to be proven wrong, I'm just thinking things through impartially -- as you can tell I've hinted around at various motives involving various people.

So I guess I was just thinking that maybe the sanctuary was "her baby" and the vet practice his. Maybe the non-profit idea seemed good in the beginning, but then he started trying to pay back his veterinary practice with rent and owed money for past salaries, etc., whereas her interests might have been more attuned to benefitting the sanctuary more. Was this a source of contention? Completely wild speculation on my part. It could've then become 'OK, you and your board handle the sanctuary and make decisions as long as you pay this rent and these back monies owed' (I'm inferring this sheerly on the basis that he referred to the sanctuary as "they" in the article linked, and not "we" -- which may be a stretch but I found his wording odd). JMO.

Anyway, if you think about it, she came out pretty well after the divorce. His veterinary practice is no more, and she now receives rental income from that. Also, there is no longer a vet practice to pay back monies to, and rent, so presumably that goes to her now. The sanctuary has non-profit status which is a financial bonus. That's a million dollar property at least and she has full control (with her board I presume) of the sanctuary. JMO

I'm not sure if this has been shared but there's an article about the insurance lawsuit ("Lawsuit reveals possible suspect in suspicious death") in the local Rancho Santa Fe newspaper, and towards the end there is a timeline of the wife's activities on the day that the Dr. was killed. Seems she was at the animal hospital in the early evening. What that means I don't know, but I didn't know this information before.

9-29-2011 Rancho Santa Fe Review

Providing The Ranch with Three Decades of Quality Journalism See which businesses earned your votes in our ‘Best Of’ special section inside this newspaper. REAL ESTATE LISTINGS PHOTO PAGES & FEATURES See TEXTBOOK, page 25 Boxholder Rancho Santa Fe CA 92067 PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE PAID...

issuu.com

So, anyway, I'm not really invested in this theory. I have absolutely no evidence to support it Just putting it out there in case something will ring a bell with someone. The problem is (and maybe this is the problem that LE ran into) there seems to be absolutely no connection to the homeowner where his body was found and it just seems implausible that there isn't some connection to someone in that household. I think the idea of luring him there is a distinct possibiity. The question is who, and why?

 

[pentimento]

I know this has been discussed before, but the simplest (in my mind) explanation is simply a matter of someone in that household thought he was an intruder and whacked him over the head. Why lie about it? Because someone in the household had called him up there in the first place to look at an ailing animal. They knew about him, had used him before, and kept an article about him. I could imagine a large house where people are not always together in the evening and know what the other people are doing. Do we know who was in the home at the time? Did they have security? Maybe one of the parties was on medication or had been drinking, and/or didn't know the doctor was coming. The doctor had an accident on the way up, and so he unexpectedly didn't arrive by car, and they didn't answer or open the gate for someone on foot because whoever answered the intercom may not have known he was coming. So the doctor climbs over the side fence to get to the house. Were there cameras? I could see how this could look suspicious. Also, I'm not a legal expert but this could involve charges of manslaughter, especially since he was called up there by someone in the first place. Plus, a high-status lawyer living in a prestigious area may not want anything to stain their or someone else's reputation. Still, it seems like there would be some phone records or something for the police to go on. And if the Dr's windshield really WAS bashed in, then this doesn't fit. Going round in circles on this one.... JMO.

ETA: And that would explain why the homeowner made a point of stating the he immediately recongized the doctor (in other words, would not have mistaken him for an intruder) and seemingly pointed out the fact that he had an article about him to prove he knew his face and had seen it recently in the article. I suppose it is also possible that the person that called him up there actually didn't recognize him, and when he didn't arrive by car they mistook him for an intruder. JMO

 

[aliciaengel010]

I'm just reading this thread for the first time.

Did the medical examiner say how long they thought RS had been deceased before being found? Was the car towed thatnight and they really didn't look for the missing driver? They didn't look up the car's owner and go to his house to see if he was home or notify next of kin that his crashed, abandoned car was found? Who noticed the crashed car and reported it? When?

Did LE search the house and grounds of the property where he was found for a blunt force object?

Great questions, and from what I was able to find, I think the Medical Examiner's records in regards to Robert's death are still sealed. I know they were ordered sealed at that time, which apparently is common practice while there is still an investigation happening, but I don't know if it was ever unsealed as law enforcement doesn't seem to be doing much investigating on the case anymore, if any. It's kind of sad that they seem to have just lost interest in getting justice for Robert, if they ever had any to begin with. The whole investigation seemed really sloppy and suspicious. It's unclear to what extent the home of the property where Robert was found at was searched, or if they ever even figured out what type of object he was hit with.

As for the car crash, I do think it's strange that they wouldn't have thought to try to contact Robert or his family as I'm sure they ran his license plate through the database. But it was stated that there were no signs of blood or anything like that in the car, so they didn't believe anyone was injured when it crashed. And from the picture I saw, the car certainly still looked drivable; the damage was less severe than I had imagined. I used to live out in that area too and it seemed like every week there was some sort of car crash happening, so law enforcement probably didn't think much of it at the time since it happened so often out there. Apparently his car was found at 9:30 PM on the night of the 16th and I'm not sure whether or not it was reported or if an officer just happened to drive by and notice it. I guess they searched the surrounding area for an hour before towing it, according to an article I read, but didn't find anything, so they obviously didn't really think something terribly serious happened at that time. They probably assumed it was a drunk driver who had crashed and called someone to come get him and that he'd contact authorities in the morning for his car back. Wouldn't be the first time something like that happened out there. I used to hear about those scenarios a lot in that area. His body wasn't discovered until the following morning at 8 a.m.

It's not clear if they ever stated exactly how long he had been dead when his body was found, but detectives have indicated that they believe Robert died on the night of the 16th, and said that evidence shows that his murder happened at the spot where he was found. That would mean he was dead for at least 8 or 9 hours before he was supposedly found.

Also, I did notice the articles said that Robert's crash was investigated and towed by the CA Highway Patrol, given the road it was found on, but the next morning, when Robert's body was found on the driveway, it was the local sheriff's department that came to investigate as that home is in their jurisdiction. One thing I do know about the CHP (highway patrol) and Sheriff's Dept. is that they are two separate agencies who often have a huge rivalry and tend to dislike each other, and therefore rarely communicate. So the fact that his crash was investigated by CHP and his murder was in a completely separate jurisdiction, the Sheriff's, I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't communicate much and that could be part of why this whole thing is so confusing. The crash investigation seems to be disproportionate to the murder investigation, and it's probably because they are treated almost as two separate incidents given the jurisdiction overlap. So CHP probably didn't search up into the nearby homes because that technically wouldn't be part of their jurisdiction. And sheriffs may not have known, at the time at least, the extent of the car's damages, as it had already been towed by the time they arrived at the scene where his body was. that may or may not be relevant overall but I did think that was interesting thing to note - that his crash and murder were pretty much investigated as if they were two different events basically.

 

[pentimento]

the car certainly still looked drivable;

What an interesting thought! I hadn't thought to think about whether it was drivable or not. I looked again at the photo and it is hard for me to tell. You're right, the damage is not that bad, but it could have been caught up in some shrubbage or something (it looks a little like it might have been pried off of something) or part of front of the car could've been interfering with moving the wheels. Or maybe it stalled out. This is something I would definitely like to know though -- whether it was drivable or not -- because that certainly would make a huge difference in the whole scenario. Who would walk away in the rain if they could drive?

 

[Curious Me]

Who would walk away in the rain if they could drive?

I thought the car was in a ditch and maybe needed to be towed out of it? Car might've been drivable, looks it to me, but I haven't paid enough attention to where it was found. I thought a steep incline. Makes me think if it was a car accident, and RS didn't have his cell phone, then he might try to get help to call a tow service. Trying to look at this from every angle.

Speculation here-- What about if someone drove the car there after hitting RS on the head and killing him? All that superficial damage could've been to make it appear a car accident. RS could've already been at that house, and instead of running there climbing gates, he could've drove there. Some one hit him on the head and then had to drive his car off the property. We have no idea how he ended up at the end of that driveway in front of that couple's house.

MOO, if LE had done a thorough investigation, they could've maybe checked for tire tracks, it being a rainy night, especially if the driveway leading up to the house wasn't all paved. CHP must've written a report on the car being found on the road. Yet, I don't remember any real reports or witnesses to determine if and how RS was driving. They alluded to him over correcting, but where'd they get that idea?​

 

[pentimento]

We have no idea how he ended up at the end of that driveway in front of that couple's house.

That honestly has to be the most perplexing thing for me. If he was killed at the home before the crash, why leave the body there? If they were going to dump his car, why not dump the body too? Maybe they realized that they couldn't get the blood stains out of the concrete driveway if LE came knocking asking questions of nearby residents? But why stage the crash so close to your home and the crime scene? JMO.

Honestly, this is a tough one. I wish we had more information. Personally, I'm leaning towards the theory that he had an accident, but that he was intending to go the property where he was found -- maybe a veterinary call, or maybe something else. He either was mistaken for an intruder because he arrived on foot, probably wet and disheveled, and they didn't recognize him and someone hit him with something when he got close to the house, then realized the horrible mistake. Being a lawyer, the guy knew that this could be criminal negligence if not manslaughter (speculating here, I have no legal training), having called the Dr. up the house in the first place (yes he might not get charged, but what an awful thing to have to admit that you did this to a popular and well-known doctor). He could also face a civil lawsuit from the Dr's wife. Maybe the guy was drunk or something, I don't know. Or else the Dr. arrived for some other reason and an argument ensued. If the reports are true that he was driving erratically, could he have been upset or angry about something? The problem with both of these scenarios is that we still don't have a link between the doctor and the residents of that house, other than the resident said that he had used his veterinary services before. JMO.

Or, the Dr. had an accident and was trying to get help and went to that house randomly, but then why pass up a closer house that doesn't have a gate? And what was he doing up in that area in the first place? I think that house was his destination that night, and something went horribly wrong, JMO.

ETA: If it was a veterinary call, maybe the Dr. was late as it was, and if he was driving erratically it was because he was in a hurry, and that contributed to the crash. Then the accident would have made him even later, perhaps late enough that they assumed he wasn't coming, and that could be another reason he may have been mistaken for an intruder. JMO.

 

[Curious Me]

...If they were going to dump his car, why not dump the body too? Maybe they realized that they couldn't get the blood stains out of the concrete driveway if LE came knocking asking questions of nearby residents? But why stage the crash so close to your home and the crime scene? JMO....

RS was a big man. It would be very hard to move the dead weight of a dead body, let alone move a big hefty man into a car to drive him off and away from the crime scene. The person might've been smaller in frame, not able to lug a body around, and scared they'd get caught dumping a body. It's another charge I believe, too, tampering with the body, if caught, and if an attorney they might consider that.

RS bleed out on that driveway, so there was a lot of blood. Trying to move him back into his car would be a tell that he was placed in that car after death. Yes, LE might just notice blood all over the driveway.

Now days, you never know when you might end up on a camera by a passing car or from a doorbell doing something illegal like moving a body.

Maybe it seemed safer to leave the body there, and come up with a story-- "oh, I didn't hear or notice a dead body on my driveway, but I have used the dr.'s service before, in fact, I have a clipping I saved..."

The body was left on the property, so staging a crash close to the property makes more sense. Apparently the mysterious circumstances totally stumped LE where they had to try to make up a story of RS being chased, climbing gates, or in total desperation blaming his spouse who wasn't even there.

@pentimento, You are making sense in questioning things the way you are though. I appreciate your theories and your feedback.

BTW, there are no real reports that I can find of RS driving erratically or any which way. Did you find any real reports of his driving?

Another member also mentioned thinking RS arrived at the house and an argument got out of hand. It's possible.

Or someone hit him not knowing who he was or why he was on the property, brazenly not calling 911, but going out, no gun, and hitting a big man with a blow that killed him. Who does that?

Or RS was lured there to threaten him, he wouldn't cooperate, and someone felt he had to be silenced.

It's possible if you search, there might be more of a connection between the homeowners and RS. That can't be ruled out, especially if you think RS might've been heading to that property.

All my own speculation and MOO. ​

 

[pentimento]

RS was a big man. It would be very hard to move the dead weight of a dead body, let alone move a big hefty man into a car to drive him off and away from the crime scene.

Very good point. Your point about who would hit an intruder instead of calling 911 also troubles me. You could be right that the car was moved to stage something looking like road rage gone really bad. I wish we knew if the windshield was indeed smashed in from the outside, and if so, why was it not mentioned in the press? I wonder if it's in the police report? Now I'm back to thinking that there might have been a subtle pressure or bias from somewhere to not fully investigate the lawyer's story. It would be really hard to explain a dead doctor with a car with a smashed in windshield in front of your garage and claim that you didn't know anything about it. JMO.

ETA: Or maybe because it was investigated by two jurisdictions, CHP and Sheriff, as @aliciaengel1010 pointed out, the Sheriff investigating the murder relied on the CHP report which assumed that the damage was done as a result of the accident. Seems like the Sheriff would have at least examined the car though. JMO

I haven't seen anything confirming the doctor's driving that night, but then I haven't looked that hard, which is why I always qualified it with "if." It could give some indication of the doctor's state of mind though, if we knew for sure.

So if it wasn't a vet call gone bad, what was it? A legal matter? Something personal? Was his car moved or was the accident incidental and prior to his arriving on the property? Darn it, I was so certain about my scenario last night, I thought I could rest my mind on this for a while . The only thing I'm relatively certain about now is that the house where he was found is where he intended to go that night, for whatever reason. Unless some new information comes to light...

 

[aliciaengel010]

Very good point. Your point about who would hit an intruder instead of calling 911 also troubles me. You could be right that the car was moved to stage something looking like road rage gone really bad. I wish we knew if the windshield was indeed smashed in from the outside, and if so, why was it not mentioned in the press? I wonder if it's in the police report? Now I'm back to thinking that there might have been a subtle pressure or bias from somewhere to not fully investigate the lawyer's story. It would be really hard to explain a dead doctor with a car with a smashed in windshield in front of your garage and claim that you didn't know anything about it. JMO.

ETA: Or maybe because it was investigated by two jurisdictions, CHP and Sheriff, as @aliciaengel1010 pointed out, the Sheriff investigating the murder relied on the CHP report which assumed that the damage was done as a result of the accident. Seems like the Sheriff would have at least examined the car though. JMO

I haven't seen anything confirming the doctor's driving that night, but then I haven't looked that hard, which is why I always qualified it with "if." It could give some indication of the doctor's state of mind though, if we knew for sure.

So if it wasn't a vet call gone bad, what was it? A legal matter? Something personal? Was his car moved or was the accident incidental and prior to his arriving on the property? Darn it, I was so certain about my scenario last night, I thought I could rest my mind on this for a while . The only thing I'm relatively certain about now is that the house where he was found is where he intended to go that night, for whatever reason. Unless some new information comes to light...

You bring up some really valid points! I'm glad I'm not the only one who is bothered by the lack of answers about this case. Lol. It really is a mystery, and there are so many angles to look at, and so many confusing aspects that require explanation. From the car crash, to the location of Robert's death, to the mysterious investigation and the way it was portrayed to the public... it almost feels like they confused the public on purpose. Of course that's just my gut feeling and I'm not trying to make accusations, but I do wonder about some of the information publicized by LE. Like for one, Sheriff's investigators said in an article that they originally assumed RS had died in an accident supposedly until they were told otherwise from the medical examiner, who said it was blunt force trauma. The car wasn't super badly damaged (at least not from the looks of it; I could be wrong though. I do know that I've had fender benders in which my car looked wore than RS' car did in the photo, and it still drove just fine.) There was apparently no sign of blood in the car, no trail of blood leading to the scene, nor were there even signs that anyone was injured in the car. So why they would even initially assume that RS' death was caused from the accident is strange to me.

There was also blood at the scene where he was found that led them to determine he was hit over the head at that particular spot where he died. It sounds like they knew where he died pretty early on, so why they even bothered to try to imply that it could've been the result of a car accident when they already knew otherwise is extremely strange. Again, it almost feels like they sort of purposely misled the public, but maybe that's just me overthinking. Lol.

I agree Robert was most likely planning to go to the house where he ended up dead that night. I'm not sure if he was witnessed driving radically or not; they do say he overcorrected for the curb and it led to him losing control of his car and crashing. I don't know if he was actually seen by someone but I also read somewhere that there were skid marks on the road and that might've made them assume they were from Robert's car. But I do know that accidents happen often in that area, so I wonder if the skid marks even belonged to his car or someone else's. It would be interesting to know if the steering wheel and front door knob were ever tested for fingerprints/DNA. I also have wondered if, like you said, he actually crashed the car himself or if someone else did it maybe in a panic or as an attempt to create a distraction away from the scene of the murder.

In regards to the car, I looked at the picture again and I noticed that the smashed windshield looks like it could possibly be the result of someone shooting at the window. Not sure if a bullet was ever recovered from the scene, but if you notice in the picture, the windshield wipers are up, which indicates his car was on and moving when something hit it or when it crashed. Found this interesting video that shows what a rock hitting the windshield would look like vs. a bullet hole. The damage on Robert's windshield looks just like the bullet hole.

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Is it possible that maybe someone shot at Robert's windshield, and then at some point, maybe he was pistol whipped and that's what killed him? Just a guess/speculation. The sheriffs did say it was a single blow to the head that caused the death, and someone being pistol whipped hard enough can in fact die from one blow to the head. It's never been clarified if there were bullets found, and of course there are still questions as to why someone would've done that to him. But it would be an interesting angle to consider.