Found Deceased IN - Jacqueline Watts, 33, Columbus, 3 March 2017

[Jacobite]

I would never look at that river and think it could be dangerous. So peaceful and calm looking.

I am relieved that this isn't connected to what happened in my town, Delphi, IN.
But, I am very sad for an animal rescuer who died trying to save a dog. I am sorry, very very sorry. I love my dog.

 

[WideOpen]

Just sad! I cant add much more than the rest of you-
but this story is touching in so many ways, maybe because I think we can all relate a little bit of ourselves in Jacqueline's character and our beloved pets.
Prayers and may this beautiful woman's family find comfort in their faith.
JMO

 

[Hiandmighty]

JonBenet's pineapple snack has probably 1,000 pages still being discussed.

Anyway, the original post from the family friend said it was believed jackie fell into the river and because of the current was unable to save herself.

That led everyone to believe she slipped and fell close to where her car was parked, which didn't make sense given the dam and given where she was found.

The coroner's letter stated she entered the water... given what we have discussed... I believe this means she walked/ran willingly into the water below the dam (the shallow side). This makes sense.

Websleuths isn't about being right or wrong. It is about discussing human nature, crime, accidents, trying to solve puzzles and making sense out of incomprehensible endings.

 

[Momma2cam]

JonBenet's pineapple snack has probably 1,000 pages still being discussed.

Anyway, the original post from the family friend said it was believed jackie fell into the river and because of the current was unable to save herself.

That led everyone to believe she slipped and fell close to where her car was parked, which didn't make sense given the dam and given where she was found.

The coroner's letter stated she entered the water... given what we have discussed... I believe this means she walked/ran willingly into the water below the dam (the shallow side). This makes sense.

Websleuths isn't about being right or wrong. It is about discussing human nature, crime, accidents, trying to solve puzzles and making sense out of incomprehensible endings.

With all due respect, the JonBenet case is unsolved.

I certainly don't care about being right. I was anxious for the press conference and autopsy and hoped it would provide clarity, not for me or WS, but for her family and friends. I clung to hope that the family friend was credible and it seemed plausible. I found more comfort in that than in thinking there was a serial killer on the loose.

As another poster said, it is natural to be skeptical and look for someone or something to blame in cases of tragic accidents. I chose to blame the current and water as oppose to speculate other theories. I trust that we all have good intentions! Just am grateful for at least some closure for her family and it is nice to have a case with closure here as most don't end up with closure for a long time, if ever.

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[IceIce9]

This sad story really touches those of us who are dog lovers and dog rescuers.
Many of us, maybe even most of us, have put ourselves into dangerous situations while rescuing pets.

My condolences to her family. Such a loving person will be so missed.

Life. Isn't. Fair.

 

[Hiandmighty]

With all due respect, the JonBenet case is unsolved.

I certainly don't care about being right. I was anxious for the press conference and autopsy and hoped it would provide clarity, not for me or WS, but for her family and friends. I clung to hope that the family friend was credible and it seemed plausible. I found more comfort in that than in thinking there was a serial killer on the loose.

As another poster said, it is natural to be skeptical and look for someone or something to blame in cases of tragic accidents. I chose to blame the current and water as oppose to speculate other theories. I trust that we all have good intentions! Just am grateful for at least some closure for her family and it is nice to have a case with closure here as most don't end up with closure for a long time, if ever.

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I was speaking generally and not to you personally.

But that is you style, which Is fine. Plenty others prefer to go through methodically. Keep the mind sharp

 

[Coquette]

I find comfort in knowing Jackie lived her life fighting to protect vulnerable animals until the end. :heartbeat:

 

[Rachel1]

How very sad: (
I have made some risky choices as well ( ran onto a busy county road to grab a dog. Climbed a fence to feed a neglected dog and trespassed on a very unstable persons property) so I get it. But it's still very heartbreaking

 

[ElementalLaura]

RIP, Jackie. You are a bright soul and a special person whom everyone remembers as always smiling.

RIP, Ringo. You were fortunate to be seemingly very loved.

<modsnip>

I really hope that the city considers increasing safety at the dam or perhaps removing it altogether. Having a dam in the middle of a town park is not a good idea, and, despite the flooding story above, it would seem that the parkland itself provides some good protection from the usual flood.

As so many noted above, you can't trust the river, and I say that as someone who grew up on Indiana riverbanks.

 

[gitana1]

IMO, in this and any case, just because LE states "foul play is not suspected", that doesn't mean a whole lot until an autopsy is done. IMO the phrase "foul play not suspected" simply means that upon a basic visual inspection of the body at the scene that there were no overt signs of foul play (body with bullet wounds, stab wounds, ligature around the neck, hands or feet tied up, etc). To me it just means there's nothing "obvious" to suggest foul play.....but that could easily change once autopsy and/or toxicology testing is done, or witnesses come forth with info.

But the "dog theory" referred to frequently is just that, a theory.....yet I read many comments here in which this "theory" is being taken as actual fact and being discussed as if it were a proven fact, and that puzzles me because WS is a place where we discuss theories and facts but we don't make a hypothetical theory into an actual fact.

Well LE has confirmed that it was an accidental drowning and that she was trying to catch a dog who also drowned. So that's that. It is now fact.

This sad story really touches those of us who are dog lovers and dog rescuers.
Many of us, maybe even most of us, have put ourselves into dangerous situations while rescuing pets.

My condolences to her family. Such a loving person will be so missed.

Life. Isn't. Fair.

I keep thinking about this poor sweet lady and her family today. It's such a tragic loss of such a bright light. She had so much more to offer the world. It makes me cry. I guess hits close to home.

 

[GeeButtersnaps]

I know there were a couple videos earlier posted on this but I think this one really illustrates what that low head dam can do and how quickly it can take you..so terrible if that's what happened..clearly need to make people more aware of this danger bc I surely would have never thought about this either..

https://youtu.be/QGUTqPwBuHg


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[Momma2cam]

I know there were a couple videos earlier posted on this but I think this one really illustrates what that low head dam can do and how quickly it can take you..so terrible if that's what happened..clearly need to make people more aware of this danger bc I surely would have never thought about this either..

https://youtu.be/QGUTqPwBuHg


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Just awful. I cannot imagine. I've never heard of the dangers of these dams but will certainly be taking note of any moving forward and warning my kids of the concerns. Watching that brought tears to my eyes thinking about what Jackie went through.

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[jashrema]

I must be completely dense. I get the lo head dam thing, and the vid above was of a huge deep river with strong current...wasn't this water only 2-3 feet deep at MOST? Now I know you can drown in 2 inches of water, but it she went into the water, even at the dam..just getting on her hands and knees would put her above the water line..and the part of being "sucked" to the bottom and then up again...the bottom was only 24 inches.
idk..i just don't get it.
I haven't read a lot tonight..

did the coroner release COD?

 

[Momma2cam]

I must be completely dense. I get the lo head dam thing, and the vid above was of a huge deep river with strong current...wasn't this water only 2-3 feet deep at MOST? Now I know you can drown in 2 inches of water, but it she went into the water, even at the dam..just getting on her hands and knees would put her above the water line..and the part of being "sucked" to the bottom and then up again...the bottom was only 24 inches.
idk..i just don't get it.
I haven't read a lot tonight..

did the coroner release COD?

The depth right at the dam was likely more than 2-3 feet. It was at least a foot higher than pictures posted by a local member on Sunday.
The COD was declared accidental drowning.

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[jashrema]

The depth right at the dam was likely more than 2-3 feet. It was at least a foot higher than pictures posted by a local member on Sunday.
The COD was declared accidental drowning.

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Thanks Momma!

 

[BrownRice]

Jackie's story hit close to home for me this week. A friend of mine's dog went missing recently (still hasn't been found unfortunately), but I didn't realize how many dog rescuers there were! We posted his info on the local facebook lost/found pet pages and SO MANY complete strangers tried to help this dog. I mean they took time out of their day to help us.

I really never knew there were so many people like Jackie in the world. She had plans to go away for a fun weekend, but still stopped to help a little dog. Even though this obviously has a tragic and sad ending, it really does restore faith in humanity after all the horrible things we read about people all the time at WS.

 

[BrownRice]

I never knew this about the low head dams either (didn't even know they were called that). So if the depth of the water is low enough that you could stand (lower than 5-6'), could you still drown? That is what it sounds like.

 

[GeeButtersnaps]

I never knew this about the low head dams either (didn't even know they were called that). So if the depth of the water is low enough that you could stand (lower than 5-6'), could you still drown? That is what it sounds like.

This here even says deceptively small looking drop and if you read the whole article it talks more about it-so it could be a lot deeper right there than it appears but apparently doesn't have to be that deep..

http://www.myccr.com/articles/drowning-machines


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[CatsInTheCradle]

Jackie's story hit close to home for me this week. A friend of mine's dog went missing recently (still hasn't been found unfortunately), but I didn't realize how many dog rescuers there were! We posted his info on the local facebook lost/found pet pages and SO MANY complete strangers tried to help this dog. I mean they took time out of their day to help us.

I really never knew there were so many people like Jackie in the world. She had plans to go away for a fun weekend, but still stopped to help a little dog. Even though this obviously has a tragic and sad ending, it really does restore faith in humanity after all the horrible things we read about people all the time at WS.

RBBM yes - its the same way in our community. There is a networking group that is always out trying to help rescue the lost and wandering. Some of them have the device (not sure what it is exactly) that they take with them to scan the lost pets right there on the spot. There are wonderful people in this world and I just hate so bad that this ended so tragically for Jackie and Ringo.

 

[keeponsearching]

Very sad. I wouldn't think at all the dangers of crossing into that area. I grew up by a dam and never played near it, parents wouldn't allow us. I have come across dogs running wild before. I don't think twice about stopping. Once was on a busy road, and two little pups were running around with cones on their heads. I stopped and quickly scooped them up, thankful all cars stopped, even a huge truck. Which was really great since I was putting one in my suv the other was running in circles on the road.