GUILTY CA - Erin Corwin, 19, pregnant, Twentynine Palms, 28 June 2014 - #9

[IHAVENOCLUE]

I completely agree that we don't have the right to know anything in an open investigation. But I do not think LE should lie to the public. I am always supportive when they say "we are not discussing details of this investigation" (etc). That said, I am only thinking of the media's reporting of this--it may well be that LE was very careful to phrase things appropriately and honestly here, and that media made it sound flip-floppy.

here is a hypothetical situation... (Or maybe not so hypothetical...)...

what if someone involved in a case... Maybe even just,peripherally...and not someone privy to LE's plans of the investigation... Chooses to go before the media and share information with the public that would put the investigation of LE in jeopardy... (For instance motivate a POI to flee... Or ???)...

wouldn't LE have an obligation to somehow diffuse the released information... And possibly to counteract it with untruths (I usually hate that word)... So that Justice can be served?

Just some thoughts...

 

[Knox]

Maybe he removed the rebar, threw Erin in the mine (I got a lump in my throat typing that), threw in tires in an effort to cover her and then replaced what rebar he could. Another thought is maybe that wasn't the first sealed mine that he unsealed, thus having additional rebar in his Jeep. Does anyone know if tires are typically thrown in to sealed mines for whatever reason? I went to those same mines a hundred years ago so I don't remember much about them other than they seemed very, very scary.

I just keep thinking about that explosive device charge. Did Chris attach some incendiary or explosive device to the tire and throw it in the mine to destroy Erin's body?

 

[Knox]

Christopher Lee appeared in an Anchorage court on Tuesday, August 19, 2014. Police say Lee has been
charged with homicide in San Bernardino County, Calif. He was arrested by Anchorage police.
Marc Lester
===============================================================================================================================

Lee appeared for his hearing wearing red prison clothing, instead of the yellow that most Anchorage jail inmates wear. The difference typically indicates that inmate is segregated from the general population.

With his beard grown and hair unkempt, Lee said he’d speak with his attorney before making his decision on extradition. Nobrega interjected, stating she was not clear if he had an attorney. Lee’s family, sitting in the back of the courtroom, replied that he did. The lawyer practices in California, so the judge set a representation hearing for Lee.

One of the family members tried to comment in court but was hushed by family. The woman declined to comment after the hearing.

http://www.adn.com/article/20140819/suspect-murder-marine-wife-california-appears-anchorage-court

 

[EmmaRose]

Finally found it.......

"The head stamp on the fired cartridge was consistent with head stamps on .22-caliber casings recovered from Lee's vehicle and Lee's residence," the warrant stated.

http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/l...ed-in-Missing-Marine-Wife-Case-271874781.html

So how did it happen? He brings her to the mine area, they get out of the vehicle "to hunt". CL takes his gun out-- Erin is not afraid because she knew the gun was just for hunting. He shoots Erin and then throws her down to the bottom of the mine along with other evidence .... Or did he do it elsewhere, then transport her to the mine area??

The warrant also said Lee admitted to conducting Internet searching about how to dispose of a human body. This guy is not too bright, huh. When I was playing catch up on this thread, I was wondering why he was being called a moron alot. Now I know.

 

[Fairy1]

When asked if there were any weapons in the home, Lee's wife, Nicole, told authorities there was a .22-caliber rifle in the house, records show. Authorities searched for the firearm but could not find it. Nicole Lee later told investigators that her husband had taken the rifle to a residence owned by Isabella Megli.

After Megli gave consent to search the home, authorities found the rifle in a back closet, according to an affidavit.

The woman told investigators the couple had been storing their possessions on her property while preparing to move to Alaska where Christopher Lee previously lived.

According to authorities, Megli also said Nicole Lee told her deputies missed something when they didn't search the garage. Lee also told her that "without a body, the detectives did not have a case against them and the detectives would never find the body," the woman said.

"Nicole had also berated Lee in front of Isabella (Megli) about not being able to keep his lies straight when he was interviewed by detectives because he was dumb," according to the affidavit.

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/local-...-on-case-of-missing-oak-ridge-native_46876662

BBM. She was certainly right about that much anyway.

 

[Mrs. Gladden]

So how did it happen? He brings her to the mine area, they get out of the vehicle "to hunt". CL takes his gun out-- Erin is not afraid because she knew the gun was just for hunting. He shoots Erin and then throws her down to the bottom of the mine along with other evidence .... Or did he do it elsewhere, then transport her to the mine area??

The warrant also said Lee admitted to conducting Internet searching about how to dispose of a human body. This guy is not too bright, huh. When I was playing catch up on this thread, I was wondering why he was being called a moron alot. Now I know.

I've thought from the beginning that he shot her.....standing far enough away so that he wouldn't chance blood spatter, etc. The .22 would accomplish that, & if he did use it, I won't be surprised. It is a dangerous weapon....gets inside the body and bounces around, doing lots of organ damage. I've also thought he killed her where she would be found.

 

[tvscum]

Here's bonus video of NL in Anchorage court eyeballing CL. Apparently, there is no restriction on videotaping spectators in court in Alaska.

http://www.cbs8.com/story/26320600/sheriff-ex-marine-inquired-about-body-disposal

Also, if CL set tires on fire in the mine shaft, wouldn't there be a huge plume of black smoke rising up a 140 foot smoke stack in the middle of the desert? LE would have seen that for sure since they had been to that area before:

The scanner reports on the Monday morning EC's Corolla was found had LE checking out a report of a burned out Toyota truck at Hwy 62 and Gold Crown Rd. That's just 12 miles away from the Rose of Peru mine location. That Toyota truck, as it turned out, was old had been there for some time, but it shows LE was alerted to that area southeast of 29Palms early on.

In fact, if you wanted to drive to Rose of Peru mine, you would take the Gold Crown Rd. exit off Hwy 62.

 

[shadetree44]

I personally had a hard time sleeping last night thinking of her down there and hoping she didn't know she was there.

Thankful CL is a moron because it seems like Erin's family will get the answers they need for closure (circumstances around her demise). I mean- LE now has CL now asking how to dispose of a body, doing internet searches of mines in specific areas, both of them gone at same time, CL lying about his relationship with her, Erin telling who she is with and that she is pregnant with his child and that he is worried that his wife will find out and take their child away, spent casings with no gun, wife saying he is not keeping lies straight, and "they will never find the body". Not the smartest horses in the stable.....

The weapon was probably the .22 cal rifle that was located @ the ranch. Test fire and compare casing marks to ones found in mine.

 

[SmartSassyBBW]

I see the wife here is chewing gum in court like the wife in the Harris case. Classy.

 

[TravelingBug]

This makes me think he actually did tie a tire to her, and let her burn...(I really had trouble actually typing that) :frown:
"The day she disappeared, he was collecting tires," Ramos said. "And that ties to his research of how to dispose of a human being, because with tires they can burn for hours and hours."

Ramos would not say if Corwin's body was burned.

Ramos wasn't able to give many details regarding the case, but he says when those details are released the public will understand why the crime was so awful. He described lying in wait as a special allegation under California law that is used when a defendant "sets up or surprises their victim."

http://www.ktuu.com/news/news/prosecutor-former-marine-murdered-comrades-wife/27620982

I still stick with my post last night, so I definitely am not on the her being burned page - plus with what most of the other locals have said about how much of a response ANY smoke gets. Everyone knows the attention it attracts, and the smell wouldn't help whatsoever, IMO.

I think the repeated references - in everything yesterday AND in the documents today - referencing her BODY being found seems key to me.

None of them have been references to her remains.

If he burned her, especially with how tires would have added to it, I really don't think they'd be saying her body.

They referenced her being crumpled at the bottom of the mine, more phrasing that to me sounds like Erin was found quite in tact.

But the biggest thing, to me, along with the many references to "body" (and none to "remains") though is that they only did dental records to "ensure" it was her. That, to me, is a pretty good indicator that there was clothing or she was physically recognizable enough to be ID'd visually, and the dental only needing to be official to ensure it was her.

If she was burned I just don't see the above fitting with any of that. But maybe it's wishful thinking on my part.

 

[TravelingBug]

The ex-Marine accused of killing Erin Corwin admitted searching the Internet about how to dispose of a body, and .22-caliber cartridge casings at the mine shaft where she was found matched those found in his Jeep and home, according to an arrest warrant filed in California Superior Court.

Christopher Brandon Lee also asked a witness about the best way to dispose of a body and told investigators he was collecting tires the morning Corwin disappeared. A tire and pieces of rebar also were found at the mine shaft.

http://www.desertsun.com/story/news...opher-lee-murder-charge-erin-corwin/14294995/

CL and NL BOTH seem to be missing some colours from their crayon box.

He asked the best way to dispose of a body? :facepalm: It'd not be quite as shocking to know he 'only' googled it, but to have also actually asked someone?! Wow.

That pairs nicely with NL's brag about how they won't be able to do anything without a body. Must have had great confidence in CL actually having gotten "the best way to dispose of a body."

Knowing this makes their choice wise of the mine even sweeter! Here he thought he had a great way to hide a body, and NL didn't think it'd be found. And they ended up putting her in a place that evidence is going to be far more intact than most other places they could have used!

 

[atthelake]

A thought on the rebar. I came across some photos of mines in my search and noticed that some of the mine openings have been "sealed" in a way in which they still allow critters such as bats and those cute kangaroo mice to access them but so that people won't inadvertently wander into one.

Here is a photo of one of the mine openings in the Rose of Peru mining district. http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t78/mustangfeverrr/022-3.jpg

It has been sealed off with (what appears to me to be) rebar.

I mentioned threads ago that, in looking at some of the bars, etc. used to seal some of the mine openings, that it wouldn't be very difficult to remove some of these metal bars, throw something large in, and then replace them.

I wonder if the mine opening in which Erin was found was covered or had been covered at one point.

I can see where CL might think that Erin would never be found if he didn't think that they would bother to look in a "sealed" mine.

Great information, thanks for finding and sharing

 

[TravelingBug]

He left such a trail for LE to follow, I don't know why he just didn't turn himself in.

He asked around about how to dispose of a human body.
He did internet searches on his computer of places to dispose of a human body.
He had spent .22 casings in his Jeep.
He left spent .22 casings in the mine shaft.
He had rebar in his Jeep.
He left rebar that was consistent with the rebar in his Jeep in the mine shaft.
He wasn't discrete about having an affair with Erin since neighbors knew about it.
He met with her outside of the base and left Jeep markings for LE to follow and trace back to him.
He left electronic imprints of his locations that day.
He didn't take into account that Erin was telling people about their affair and the baby.

He should have just tied a bow around his neck and appeared at the police station with a written confession in his hands. :shame:

So true!

It really is bizarre.

Did he not think they'd pin him as possibly tied to it until he was gone? Even if he did (foolishly) think that, why leave some evidence in his car (and elsewhere) along with some where she was found?

Or did he really not think she'd ever be found? But even then, didn't he think that the shell casings in his car, at least, would raise some eyebrows when the tie between EC and CL came out and she was then missing?

It just makes no sense...

Considering they seemed to have given it thought - the googling, asking around, supposedly paying some attention to the Peterson case (well, if the NL/horse lady 'cover up' of NL's comment story has any truth) - you'd think somewhere along the lines it'd have dawned on him...or them...that keeping evidence in your vehicle that matches that where the body is found really is a stupid, stupid idea.

Talk about a half-hearted cover-up attempt. It's very, very odd!

 

[moonbeams]

So if his family had an extra $2 million cash stuffed in a mattress, CL would be walking free tonight?????? (I realize that isn't very likely as I'm sure they looked at the families ability to raid money before setting bail and made it beyond their reach, but it's still quite a sobering thought!)

 

[IHAVENOCLUE]

Maybe the witness is his wife and/or ranch lady. After all, according to the Probable Cause Statement, it was NL who told them the 22 rifle was at the "ranch" and NL seems to be the first to mention a 22 caliber rifle (as far as we know at this point anyhow, according to Probable Cause Statement). Maybe, just maybe, she (NL) has been cooperating?? Thoughts?? Please don't throw tomatoes at me, I know I'm probably giving her credit where credit isn't due but it was just a thought.


ETA: Just to make my thoughts clear, I do NOT think NL was an innocent bystander. What I was trying to say is, to try and save herself, maybe she decided to help with the investigation. However, I DO think she played a part in Erin's demise.

Just jumping off your post... And I have been asking myself the questions you pose in the post above...

The Desert Sun article states... (In my own words...)

- CL's wife is a POI
- We (LE) are looking to see what her role in this case is
- A Penal Code states that an individual can be charged with assisting to covering up serious crimes such as this one... So we (LE) are looking into that...

Wow! I don't remember LE ever being so revealing of pursuing another POI in any case I have followed!

And... I wonder where NL is right now....:waitasec: :hills: :waitasec:

All... JMO

 

[moonbeams]

Just jumping off your post... And I have been asking myself the questions you pose in the post above...

The Desert Sun article states... (In my own words...)

- CL's wife is a POI
- We (LE) are looking to see what her role in this case is
- A Penal Code states that an individual can be charged with assisting to covering up serious crimes such as this one... So we (LE) are looking into that...

Wow! I don't remember LE ever being so revealing of pursuing another POI in any case I have followed!

And... I wonder where NL is right now....:waitasec: :hills: :waitasec:

All... JMO

BBM Well we saw the video of her chewing her cud, errrrr her gum in court earlier today.

 

[moonbeams]

Christopher Lee appeared in an Anchorage court on Tuesday, August 19, 2014. Police say Lee has been
charged with homicide in San Bernardino County, Calif. He was arrested by Anchorage police.
Marc Lester
===============================================================================================================================

Lee appeared for his hearing wearing red prison clothing, instead of the yellow that most Anchorage jail inmates wear. The difference typically indicates that inmate is segregated from the general population.

With his beard grown and hair unkempt, Lee said he’d speak with his attorney before making his decision on extradition. Nobrega interjected, stating she was not clear if he had an attorney. Lee’s family, sitting in the back of the courtroom, replied that he did. The lawyer practices in California, so the judge set a representation hearing for Lee.

One of the family members tried to comment in court but was hushed by family. The woman declined to comment after the hearing.

http://www.adn.com/article/20140819/suspect-murder-marine-wife-california-appears-anchorage-court

Hmmmmmm I wonder who they could be referring to???

 

[atthelake]

I just keep thinking about that explosive device charge. Did Chris attach some incendiary or explosive device to the tire and throw it in the mine to destroy Erin's body?

Perhaps tomorrow someone will do a search of "how to dispose of a body" plus "tire" on google and share results with us.

 

[nikb]

One thing I keep getting hung up on... how far in advance did CL know he was moving to Alaska. Did Erin know? Was this rendez vous a good bye? Did he not know about the baby and make a quick decision to rid of her?

I am waiting... just waiting for his wife to claim battered woman syndrome... anyone else?

My thoughts on her are probably tainted (okay I know they are tainted) by what I've read here, but I feel like as the "pants wearer" she's probably talking to herself about what an idiot and moron he was/is as it relates to this crime. I can practically see her in my mind berating him even while he's in prison. I think she might find it too weak to claim battered woman syndrome... of course, unless she was backed into a corner and it was her only 'out.' That's JMO and based on the very limited info that we have, though.

I feel so bad for their child.

 

[necco]

I very strongly believe video games desensitize people in many ways. And for those who have mental health issues, it affects them even more so.

I have played video games since I was about 5 years old. I probably spent a year of my life playing Mario games. I have never once tried to kill my enemies by hurling a turtle at them. Games are games. Violence is violence. They are separate issues.