A recent interview with the Administrator of both the Find Teresa Butler website and Facebook Page:
Teresa Butler: Fear In A Small Town | Free Podcasts | PodOmatic"
Here is what stands out most to me:
1. The items taken - Obviously these were the easy grab/not gonna trace kind. Yet, what sets them apart? For me, it is the fact that the Jeep Stereo was taken. All items were in the house except for this one.
2. Key snapped off in lock. Teresa was STILL alive when she left the home. She would have locked the door behind her because of the boys. I have no doubt about this. If you are being threatened/kidnapped and are trying to lock a door with a shaky hand, you could definitely snap it off. She may even had done this purposely so that no one could get back in to the boys.
3. The light bulb on the front porch was unscrewed. She would NOT have been able to tell who was on the porch or right outside her home without opening the door. Criminals do this all the time. Keep in mind that this is as town with 402 people. She probably saw most of them while working at Walmart.
So my theory?
This was a robbery. The criminals first took the Jeep stereo. They either unscrewed the light bulb BEFORE or AFTER taking the stereo. Either way, they wanted to be undetected. Teresa either heard them outside (and yes, I feel it was more than one individual) and went to investigate, or opened the door upon them knocking. Considering she disappeared sometime after 10pm, it would have been dark. No light bulb to show who it was. Her sister-in-law had JUST left the home, so it is VERY possible she may have thought it was her coming back having forgotten something? Either way, she either ends up being grabbed while they are taking the stereo or she opens the door and they rush her.
These aren't criminal masterminds. They wanted a quick grab and go. They may have been on drugs/alcohol at the time as well. So they end up in the house with a woman and her 2 young children. She wants nothing more than to keep her boys safe. She would have done whatever the individuals told her as long as they didn't touch the boys. Being so young, they are not worried about leaving them as credible witnesses. The only one that could do that is Teresa, which is why they couldn't just leave her behind.
She did as she was told. There is no confirmation which lock had the broken key inside, but more than likely it was from the front door. She would have wanted the house locked so the boys could not get out before they were found. It broke in the lock because she was either doing it herself and shaking, or it was intentional so they couldn't get back inside the house for the boys.
Again, this is a small town with 402 people. I am sure the individuals involved are one-degree away from Teresa at most. Hopefully justice will be served sooner rather than later and her body can be recovered for her family.
Here is what stands out most to me:
1. The items taken - Obviously these were the easy grab/not gonna trace kind. Yet, what sets them apart? For me, it is the fact that the Jeep Stereo was taken. All items were in the house except for this one.
When TB's husband returned home he entered through the locked front door. If there was a broken key in that door's lock he would not have been unable to unlock it and enter the house. The lock had to have been removed from a different door. LE, AFAIK, has not released that information.2. Key snapped off in lock. Teresa was STILL alive when she left the home. She would have locked the door behind her because of the boys. I have no doubt about this. If you are being threatened/kidnapped and are trying to lock a door with a shaky hand, you could definitely snap it off. She may even had done this purposely so that no one could get back in to the boys.
What we do not know is if the porch light was on when the perp(s) arrived and they unscrewed it to reduce that lights' spillover to the Jeep.3. The light bulb on the front porch was unscrewed. She would NOT have been able to tell who was on the porch or right outside her home without opening the door. Criminals do this all the time. Keep in mind that this is as town with 402 people. She probably saw most of them while working at Walmart.
So my theory?
This was a robbery. The criminals first took the Jeep stereo. They either unscrewed the light bulb BEFORE or AFTER taking the stereo. Either way, they wanted to be undetected. Teresa either heard them outside (and yes, I feel it was more than one individual) and went to investigate, or opened the door upon them knocking. Considering she disappeared sometime after 10pm, it would have been dark. No light bulb to show who it was. Her sister-in-law had JUST left the home, so it is VERY possible she may have thought it was her coming back having forgotten something? Either way, she either ends up being grabbed while they are taking the stereo or she opens the door and they rush her.
These aren't criminal masterminds. They wanted a quick grab and go. They may have been on drugs/alcohol at the time as well. So they end up in the house with a woman and her 2 young children. She wants nothing more than to keep her boys safe. She would have done whatever the individuals told her as long as they didn't touch the boys. Being so young, they are not worried about leaving them as credible witnesses. The only one that could do that is Teresa, which is why they couldn't just leave her behind.
She did as she was told. There is no confirmation which lock had the broken key inside, but more than likely it was from the front door. She would have wanted the house locked so the boys could not get out before they were found. It broke in the lock because she was either doing it herself and shaking, or it was intentional so they couldn't get back inside the house for the boys.
Again, this is a small town with 402 people. I am sure the individuals involved are one-degree away from Teresa at most. Hopefully justice will be served sooner rather than later and her body can be recovered for her family.
If the killer(s) wore gloves then there wouldn't be any trace evidence from their hands, but I also still wonder if LE did find something in the Jeep.Let us note it is not too difficult to remove a radio from a Jeep, as long as you have the proper tools and know-how. Since it would be difficult for anyone removing such an item to not leave fingerprints, hair or other trace evidence we might assume the perp(s) wore gloves and/or other coverings. Or, LE did find forensics in the vehicle and have kept that information from the public.
How to Remove a Factory Radio in a Jeep Wrangler
When TB's husband returned home he entered through the locked front door. If there was a broken key in that door's lock he would not have been unable to unlock it and enter the house. The lock had to have been removed from a different door. LE, AFAIK, has not released that information.
What we do not know is if the porch light was on when the perp(s) arrived and they unscrewed it to reduce that lights' spillover to the Jeep.
I believe the stereo was removed from the Jeep *after* the perp(s) had already entered the house and interacted with TB. The perp(s) likely would have demanded the vehicle key from TB while also asking about other small electronic items she might have. I suppose one (or more) perp stayed in the house and watched TB while another (or more) removed the stereo. In the meantime, TB might have removed her wedding rings and managed to hide them under the sofa by dropping them and moving them with her foot or, they made TB sit on the sofa or carpet while they removed the now-missing items and that is when she hid the rings.
I also believe TB left 'willingly' with the perp(s) so as to remove the threat from the house... I believe the children were likely in bed sleeping by then.