GUILTY FL - Calyx, 16, & Beau Schenecker, 13, shot to death, Tampa, 27 Jan 2011 #1

[lucky181]

Does a .38 caliber gun make much noise or are the houses so large and insulated that no neighbor heard a gun shot?

 

[BrownRice]

I'm wondering if she had any really close girlfriends who could shed more light on her condition for the last six months. Sounds like she should have somebody she talks to with 400 facebook friends.

Just because you have 400 "friends" on Facebook doesn't mean you have close friends. It's not a reality world for a lot of people. I would assume whatever she was internally fighting, she kept to herself.

 

[DesertCookie]

Just because you have 400 "friends" on Facebook doesn't mean you have close friends. It's not a reality world for a lot of people. I would assume whatever she was internally fighting, she kept to herself.

400 is alot of FB friends! I have 70 and two of them are my best friends that I would tell anything and everything to. I find it real hard to believe she didn't even have one "real" close friend among 400. Maybe when you're 17 you don't share everything, but by the time you're 50, I'd think she would have understood the importance of "girlfriend power". We don't get through life alone.... we need other people.

I think the military lifestyle she led could have contributed as well. There is pressure there to be outstanding in ever way, to meet higher standards, to promote your husband's career, raise the perfect family... been there, done that... it's an environment that can be less forgiving when you don't measure up... could have caused her to hide her weaknesses/illness/failings.

 

[strawberry]

I think we'll hear the police call today and get info on the DCF report soon since this is Florida with the Sunshine Laws.

 

[claudicici]

I think 400 Facebook friends is more of a sign of not having any real friends than having close friends.If you have 40 friends that means you actually add people that you somewhat care about and want to talk to.400 means you'll add anyone.It wouldn't surprise me if there's not a single close friend she opened up to among them.

 

[oceanblueeyes]

Does a .38 caliber gun make much noise or are the houses so large and insulated that no neighbor heard a gun shot?

I don't know if she bought a snubbed nosed .38 or a long barrel. It would make a difference but yes, imo, the shot could be heard if outside in an open area. A .38 use to be the weapon of choice for the police departments at one time.

But I have seen so many cases where no one heard gunshots inside a home. Even those that lived in an adjacent apartment right beside the victim. There would be so many variables that would have to be considered.

Houses are built much more constructionally sound these days with sound barriers inside the walls...... so inside her home the gunshot wouldn't be heard, imo and if the windows were closed and she did kill her son when they returned home then those sounds would be low and muffled also.

imo

 

[alsmom]

I looked her facebook over and was struck by the lack of status updates and actual communication with her 399 friends. It appears she quit facebooking after her accident but before that she seemed to comment on others pages a lot but didn't really get much response. Don't know, she just seemed like an outsider somehow

 

[not_my_kids]

400 is alot of FB friends! I have 70 and two of them are my best friends that I would tell anything and everything to. I find it real hard to believe she didn't even have one "real" close friend among 400. Maybe when you're 17 you don't share everything, but by the time you're 50, I'd think she would have understood the importance of "girlfriend power". We don't get through life alone.... we need other people.

I think the military lifestyle she led could have contributed as well. There is pressure there to be outstanding in ever way, to meet higher standards, to promote your husband's career, raise the perfect family... been there, done that... it's an environment that can be less forgiving when you don't measure up... could have caused her to hide her weaknesses/illness/failings.

I wouldn't be so sure about that, many people do the exact opposite as they age. I would tell anyone anything when I was 17, as I have gotten older, I don't share much of anything with anyone. My best friends from grade school have no idea what is going on in my life, besides just the stuff on the surface. When I first started having panic attacks, I didn't tell anyone. I thought I was going crazy, there was no way I would share that with even my closest friends. Especially my closest friends. Some people think they can make it alone. Some people actually can, to a point, it seems that's the safer route when dealing with problems inside your own head.

 

[Vresia]

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2011/ja...lassmate-begins-for-king-high-/news-breaking/
...Shortly after noon Nov. 8, Schenecker was involved in an automobile wreck when her 2010 Mercedes rear-ended a truck hauling a lawnmower on Fowler Avenue near Jefferson Road, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

Schenecker was injured and taken to a hospital, but when troopers arrived, she had left, according to highway patrol spokesman Sgt. Larry Kraus.

Investigators believed that Schenecker might have been impaired, Kraus said. Because they could not find and test her, they were never able to bring charges, Kraus said...


http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/509800ef75c34bd5a30d1987cdfc95a4/US--Tampa-Teens_Shot/
Police say the Florida woman accused of killing her two teenagers showed signs of drug impairment after a November car crash.

A Florida Highway Patrol report released Monday said Julie Powers Schenecker had dilated pupils with no reaction to light and "mush-mouthed speech" after she hit a vehicle towing a trailer.

Officers didn't do a field sobriety test because she was taken to the hospital. When officers went to the hospital to obtain a blood sample, Schenecker had already checked out...


http://www.tampabay.com/news/public...n-november-that-her-mother-abused-her/1148694
Julie Schenecker was suspected of abusing her teenage daughter just three months before police say she shot her children to death, according to a police report released Monday.

The case was closed about two months later after police determined Schenecker had hit Caylx, 16, for "back talking" and the girl didn't receive any injuries, the report states...

On Nov. 6, police went the family home at 16305 Royal Park Drive because of allegations that Schenecker, 50, had abused her daughter, Calyx. A counselor triggered the investigation after Calyx confided that Schenecker had hit her, the report states.

Calyx had no visible injuries, but, crying, she told police that four days earlier, on the drive home from cross country practice, she and her mom had argued and her mom slapped her with an open hand on her face for about 30 seconds...

Schencker told police that Calyx's behavior had changed in the past year. She believed it was because Calyx was attending King High School. They had been going to counseling at the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay for about three weeks...


http://www2.tbo.com/content/2011/ja...lassmate-begins-for-king-high-/news-breaking/
Mom held in slayings was accused of hitting daughter...

 

[SarahW]

dilated pupils with no reaction to light" and "mush-mouth" speech can be signs of head injury.

 

[Track292008]

Thank you, Vresia, for your very valuable information.

It sounds as if Julia had been in a downward spiral for a few months. Perhaps her excessive use (of alcohol, drugs, medications, whatever) coincided with her husband's being out of town. Could her behavior when she was arrested be due to withdrawal?

Also, does anyone here have any info on why Calyx was attending King High School? IIRC, she had transferred there recently. Also, what is the International Baccalaureate program there and was that the major attraction for Calyx?

TIA.

 

[nyc]

Wow, thanks for those new articles, Vresia. They imply that there was a downward spiral of warning signs that make me wonder how she convinced people--especially her husband--that things were okay. Those poor children--they had to be aware that things were not normal!

The reports from the car accident are confusing as well. If the police thought she was under the influence of something, could they not have asked the hospital to take blood? And if she was showing those symptoms when she arrived, it is surprising they didn't do more tests on her--altho I guess she could just refuse them.

It is sounding less like the car accident was the source of the problems--especially as it was after her hitting her daughter--but it certainly sounds like it was caused by the problems she was undergoing.

I don't think this situation could be explained just by a Type A personality being frustrated with her kids. There may have been certain triggers in her kids getting older and starting to do annoying teenager things, but I think there must have been either emerging mental illness, drug use or an untreated thyroid issue--or a combination of all of them. And yes, a medication or an anti-depressant could have set things off--especially if she didn't have anyone around close enough to see the changes and alert her (anyone older than her children, who were probably scared and confused, poor things).

 

[LNL]

From 1st article in post 89 above...

She was driving her 2010 Mercedes when she had the accident in November, but is now being represented by the public defenders office.

I know earlier there was an article that said they bought their home in 2008 for $448,000 and now it is worth $261,000.

Why do people have expensive cars when their mortgage is probably under water? I just don't get it.

As a taxpayer, I really I get really annoyed!

 

[angela]

This woman is severely ill - mentally and physically. God bless her and her family and everybody who cares about them and is blown away by this horrible tragedy.

Thank you so much for this post. I truly believe she is sick. In my line of work, I have seen her obvious physical symptoms (shaking, tongue rolling) more times than I can count. So sad.

 

[OrdinaryLife]

From 1st article in post 89 above...

She was driving her 2010 Mercedes when she had the accident in November, but is now being represented by the public defenders office.

I know earlier there was an article that said they bought their home in 2008 for $448,000 and now it is worth $261,000.

Why do people have expensive cars when their mortgage is probably under water? I just don't get it.

As a taxpayer, I really I get really annoyed!

IMVHO, that's neither here or there. Many situations of financial real life happen and it's easy to look from the outside when not fully aware of what reality is for another.

I think this woman was on a down spiral. Given the time frame, that news media has given, it seems tragically rapid. For this woman's mother to call LE from another State sharing concern, it's obvious something was going on. I don't believe this woman was evil, but is mentally ill. This is one of those very, very, very sad cases where there's no rhyme or reason. Those poor innocent children....

 

[OrdinaryLife]

Another thought... Perhaps she has a public defender because she is incapable of making any "of sound mind" choices at this moment and her husband is/was overseas. It's extremely obvious legal counsel is needed.

imvho

 

[Vresia]

The fact that JPS was showing signs of emotional trouble before last Thursday makes this even more heartbreaking, if that is even possible. Now the husband, grandmother, family crisis counselor & many others that saw the signs have a new layer of torture. No one could have ever, ever imagined that JPS' decline would lead to killing her children; I pray the witnesses to her deterioration will come to believe this.

http://download.gannett.edgesuite.net/wtsp/pdfs/2011/schenecker-abuse-report.pdf
Tampa Police report on alleged abuse

http://download.gannett.edgesuite.net/wtsp/pdfs/2011/julie_schenecker_crash_report.pdf
Julie Schenecker's accident report

 

[LNL]

IMVHO, that's neither here or there. Many situations of financial real life happen and it's easy to look from the outside when not fully aware of what reality is for another.

I think this woman was on a down spiral. Given the time frame, that news media has given, it seems tragically rapid. For this woman's mother to call LE from another State sharing concern, it's obvious something was going on. I don't believe this woman was evil, but is mentally ill. This is one of those very, very, very sad cases where there's no rhyme or reason. Those poor innocent children....

Well, I seems as if they were spending beyond there means if she needs a public defender. That is her reality, IMO.

I agree with the children's innocence and her apparent problems, be it drugs, alcohol or mental illness. IMVHO

 

[Sleuthster]

Teen told Tampa police in November that her mother abused her

http://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafety/crime/article1148694.ece

TAMPA — Julie Schenecker was suspected of abusing her teenage daughter just three months before police say she shot her children to death, according to reports released Monday.
And though 16-year-old Calyx Schenecker told investigators in November that her mom had hit her in the face with open and closed fists and had "busted" her lip a month earlier, they didn't see any bruises or marks, a Florida Department of Children and Families report states.
The case was closed two months later because there was no evidence of injury, a Tampa police report states.
The Nov. 2 incident was the first time the mother and daughter's verbal arguments became physical, Calyx's father told a DCF investigator, according to the report.
<snipped>

 

[Sleuthster]

In regards to the story I just posted...How awful! If these events happened that poor child had to endure horrible abuse and then to be killed by one of the people you trust the most, your mother. Makes me sick.