Deborah Bradley & Jeremy Irwin - Dr. Phil Interview - 3 February 2012 #2

[melissasmom]

I can answer this.

If there is something you do that is so routine, you wind up doing it without even thinking. If it was 'routine' to always check the baby before you went to bed, when recalling events of a previous night, the auto assumption is you checked on the baby before you went to bed, because you always did that. But, you were drinking that night, and after replaying that night over and over in your head, you are not positive that you actually did check her before you went to bed, so to clarify you say when you are for sure you last saw her.

Thanks for this post. I have tried to convey that as well. If you have been drinking, you just cannot remember EXACTLY what you did and at what exact time. You might think you did it, because it was routine, but did you? Do you have a clear memory of it? When you think about it further you might not. Add the drinking into the fact that DB was roused by JI at 3:30 or so telling her that her baby was gone, the whole shock of that may make your memory not as clear as it should be. JMO

 

[mrsu]

I've got a question. Really has nothing to do with guilt or innocence, just curious of people's opinion.

Based on what we know or heard, do you think DB loved her daughter?

without a doubt

 

[Meri]

I have to get something off my chest. It's about a lot of people on here saying what a horrible mother she was for putting her child in bed and not checking on her for all those hours.

I have a daughter who is almost 17 now. When she was an baby, I put her to bed at 6 p.m. and she woke up every morning at exactly 6 a.m. I NEVER once in all those months checked on her (after the age of 4 months when I took her out of her bassinet and let her sleep in her crib) throughout the night. This is coming from a fairly neurotic and overly protective first-time mom who cared for her daughter VERY well. The main reason I didn't check on her was because I had a baby monitor always by my side - I could hear every single breath she made - but, also, she was an extremely light sleeper and had I gone in to check on her, she would have woken up.

I just don't understand why so many think she is a horrible mother for not checking on her child throughout the night. Was *I* a horrible mother? Hardly.

 

[norest4thewicked]

I think it's possible that she simply didn't remember what the truth was.

I think she could have already felt very guilty about the fact that her daughter was missing under her watch so she may not have initially told the police she was drinking because she didn't want to look bad. Maybe she thought her daughter would be found ASAP and to save face, didn't bring up the alcohol. Then she went on to say she turned off the lights and checked on her baby because that's what she NORMALLY does, so she must have done it that night as well. Maybe she turned the overhead lights off, but left the lamp on, and the kitchen appliance lights on. Maybe that's what she meant when she says she turned the lights off? Who knows. Then the police find the video of the wine. She realizes that she's *caught* and comes clean. Says she didn't mention it because she thinks it has no bearing on her child being missing. She knows she didn't do it, therefore someone must have taken her. So when police confront her she goes on to confess that no, because she was drunk, she really doesn't remember if she turned off the lights (but that's what her neighbor told her) or checked on Lisa.

^^all my speculation^^

I'm not saying if she did do what's above that it was right by any means, but by the time everything would have come out in the media, she was already crucified. It seems that "inconsistencies cleared up" by the families in these cases often turn into "the family changing their story" for reason. Now people find out she left out she was drunk. Her ship was sunk. If it's the case, it was most definitely self serving, but maybe she truly believed it had nothing to do with baby Lisa (the drinking happened hours earlier), maybe it (drinking) wasn't out of the norm, and maybe she figured Lisa would be found right away.

I admit that I was ALL over Debbie in the beginning. Now I can't help but think if they had something on her, anything on her, that we would have seen more by now. Something. Then I think about how I would react if my child was missing on my watch. And what if I was drunk when it happened? I probably wouldn't want to show my face in public either. I hope I never find out. I think of the people here, myself included, who complained, why aren't they talking, why aren't they out there...now people say they protest too much and dissect every word they say and they are only out there for self serving purposes.

See...that's not how things work in the real world of Law Enforcement. The real world isn't a sound bite and decisions are made within LE about strategies and what to do next on each case. LE isn't CSI Miami and have to solve the case in 60 minutes. Sometimes it takes years. Please don't take this personally because I don't mean it to be, but if you are basing your belief that she is not guilty on the fact that she hasn't been arrested yet, that is just incredible. Again, I suggest that every one of us take ONLY the things that we KNOW and base our beliefs on that. We can't base anything on media or rumors.

 

[In da Middle]

What about if she took the baby into her master bedroom to sleep and a drunken mother passed out on top of the child. Could she have woken up to find a dead baby in her bed?

If this was the case, I would think the dogs would have indicated this on the bed. The bed and bedding for this bed was all still there.

 

[Donjeta]

Thanks for this post. I have tried to convey that as well. If you have been drinking, you just cannot remember EXACTLY what you did and at what exact time. You might think you did it, because it was routine, but did you? Do you have a clear memory of it? When you think about it further you might not. Add the drinking into the fact that DB was roused by JI at 3:30 or so telling her that her baby was gone, the whole shock of that may make your memory not as clear as it should be. JMO

It just comes across as lying if you don't honestly say that you don't remember.

 

[norest4thewicked]

I can answer this.

If there is something you do that is so routine, you wind up doing it without even thinking. If it was 'routine' to always check the baby before you went to bed, when recalling events of a previous night, the auto assumption is you checked on the baby before you went to bed, because you always did that. But, you were drinking that night, and after replaying that night over and over in your head, you are not positive that you actually did check her before you went to bed, so to clarify you say when you are for sure you last saw her.

The flaw in this is that "every other night," your baby did not go missing. That is what would make this night stand out.

 

[cityslick]

I have to get something off my chest. It's about a lot of people on here saying what a horrible mother she was for putting her child in bed and not checking on her for all those hours.

I have a daughter who is almost 17 now. When she was an baby, I put her to bed at 6 p.m. and she woke up every morning at exactly 6 a.m. I NEVER once in all those months checked on her (after the age of 4 months when I took her out of her bassinet and let her sleep in her crib) throughout the night. This is coming from a fairly neurotic and overly protective first-time mom who cared for her daughter VERY well. The main reason I didn't check on her was because I had a baby monitor always by my side - I could hear every single breath she made - but, also, she was an extremely light sleeper and had I gone in to check on her, she would have woken up.

I just don't understand why so many think she is a horrible mother for not checking on her child throughout the night. Was *I* a horrible mother? Hardly.

I think the drinking plays into it. People can take not checking on the kid. They can't take not checking on the kid while your drinking. Because that makes it seem you are casting your child aside while you do your own thing. The fact that she admits she got drunk furthers this thought process.

She shouldn't have been drinking, at least not to the point of intoxification. Not because BL went missing, but because it's a neglectful thing to do.

 

[Dewey2Me1MoThyme]

Hey now, you guys are going to make Octobermoon WANT to go to the dungeon, kind of like a vacation.
Stop that! LOL

I hear they have ALL the lights turned off there :floorlaugh:

 

[In da Middle]

Well, it's my theory that baby Lisa died in the bathtub. Either she was put in there because of her fever or perhaps she was fussy and DB thought that would help. I know that my children often loved a bath when fussy. But, I think that for whatever reason, DB forgot about Lisa due to her drinking and "adult time" or just lost track of time. I think that Lisa was taken from the tub directly to the spot that the dog hit on next to DB's bed. I haven't heard back yet from the SAR experts on whether or not a dog would hit on this area if the shower was run hot for a long time afterwards and cleaned out. However, even if a dog HAD hit here, I don't know that we would have necessarily been privy to it as the general public. Just my thoughts.

psssst, I haven't checked if the shower part of your question was answered, but your massive packaging question was.

 

[norest4thewicked]

Is it also your belief that neither of the two boys went in the bathroom the entire time DB and neihbours sat on the front stoop drinking, or they went in, saw a dead baby floating in the bathtub and didn't bother to say anything, and just went back to watching tv? If DB stayed on the front porch as everything seems to indicate and never went in to check on the kids, as we've heard, how did BL go un-noticed with 3 other children in the house?

Was the bathtub reported to have water in it, or signs that water had recently been in it? I'm just trying to grasp how you came up with this bathtub theory is all.

You certainly jumped to a lot of conclusions for me there but...I didn't say it was while she was out on the porch.

 

[Dewey2Me1MoThyme]

Is there just one bathroom?

As far as I know, going by the walk throughs that have been videod, they only mention one.

 

[cityslick]

The flaw in this is that "every other night," your baby did not go missing. That is what would make this night stand out.

Do we know exactly when she changed the time? How many days after she initially said 10:30pm?

Have you never recollected things more clearly days after thinking about it some more?

 

[NFYIAMY]

Two things:

1. You're in Baltimore... I like you already!

[/[/B]

In Baltimore only part (3-4 months) of the year. DH still works up in DC (so he's here most of the year) but I own a business in MB, SC so I spend the majority of my time down there.

It's been a beautifuuuully warmer winter here this year -- cannot complain about the weather for sure!

 

[Meri]

I think the drinking plays into it. People can take not checking on the kid. They can't take not checking on the kid while your drinking. Because that makes it seem you are casting your child aside while you do your own thing. The fact that she admits she got drunk furthers this thought process.

She shouldn't have been drinking, at least not to the point of intoxification. Not because BL went missing, but because it's a neglectful thing to do.

Well, I agree with you, definitely. But when I read the criticisms here, it's mostly "Who puts their child to bed and never checks on her for hours upon hours" not "Who gets drunk out of their mind and doesn't check on their child for so many hours."

 

[norest4thewicked]

No report that dogs hit on anything in the bathroom or that anything from the bathroom was taken under the search warrant evidence log.

Because LE doesn't report everything to the general public.

 

[katydid23]

Cadaver dogs should be all over that bed then

The baby could have been unconscious on the bed, then put on the floor for revival purposes, which may have failed. Her actual death may have happened on the floor, right where the cadaver dog hit.

 

[octobermoon]

I've got a question. Really has nothing to do with guilt or innocence, just curious of people's opinion.

Based on what we know or heard, do you think DB loved her daughter?

yes I do.

 

[In da Middle]

I think one of the sightings that's gotten lumped in is from the gas station, the one where you can't make heads or tails out of what it even is, or what the person is carrying, if anything at all. The one where JT said that this confirmed sighting was of a person coming out of the woods when in fact there aren't even any woods there.

That begs another question, would someone who just kidnapped a baby be walking out under those bright lights, through the gas station with cars coming in and out carrying a baby only clad in a diaper? Sounds pretty far fetched to me.

JMHO

The image was NOT walking in the bright lights of the gas station. It was walking along the street, across the street from the gas station. That is exactly why it is a blob instead of a clear image like the people and vehicles that actually ARE at the gas station. It is walking exactly where a person that is trying not to be on the cameras would walk.

 

[ExpectingUnicorns]

I have to get something off my chest. It's about a lot of people on here saying what a horrible mother she was for putting her child in bed and not checking on her for all those hours.

I have a daughter who is almost 17 now. When she was an baby, I put her to bed at 6 p.m. and she woke up every morning at exactly 6 a.m. I NEVER once in all those months checked on her (after the age of 4 months when I took her out of her bassinet and let her sleep in her crib) throughout the night. This is coming from a fairly neurotic and overly protective first-time mom who cared for her daughter VERY well. The main reason I didn't check on her was because I had a baby monitor always by my side - I could hear every single breath she made - but, also, she was an extremely light sleeper and had I gone in to check on her, she would have woken up.

I just don't understand why so many think she is a horrible mother for not checking on her child throughout the night. Was *I* a horrible mother? Hardly.

But, Meri, her normal (according to her own statements) routine was just the opposite of yours. She said she always checked on Baby Lisa before she went to bed herself. That's why she thinks she did the night she was drunk ~ even though she now admits she has no specific memory of doing so.

So, if the above routine is true, then it only follows that when the same sweet baby is sick that she would check on her even more often. . . It's the inconsistency in her own routine that seems bothersome here.