Opening Statements

[SleuthyGal]

What kind of attacker takes a woman's shoes and socks and shorts (I mean seriously?) but leaves her diamond earrings (or at least one of them).

It makes no sense. Common sense tells us how highly improbable this scenario would be.

 

[CyberPro]

I just re-read the autopsy report. From my initial impressions, I though this was something to do with decomposition and insect activity. I cannot tell for sure even on reflection, but it is reported as in the thyroid area, and 1.3" long. It does not say if it is vertical or horizontal, but nothing indicates that it is a ligature mark. I would also think if the necklace was jerked hard enough to make a lasting mark on her neck, it would be noted as a "broken" necklace.

CyberPro

INJURIES
There is a faint linear mark across the central neck in the area of the thyroid prominence approximately 1.3" in length.At the left margin there are several circular insect defects. Internally, there is dark discoloration of the anterior strap
muscles on the left without definite evidence of hemorrhage.
There is marked congestion of the supraclavicular tissues on the left, but without obvious hemorrhage.
There is an area of abnormal flexibility in the distal portion of the right wing of the hyoid bone without accompanying
hemorrhage. After stripping the periostium it is noted that the lateral surface of the bone is intact and that there is a
vertical linear fracture of the medial surface

ETA: The diagrams at the end of the report show the line is horizontal and pretty high on the throat. There are "circular defects" at the left end of the line. Not sure, but still sounds like insects, maybe exploiting a break in the skin at that point, but if the line is a straight as shown there had to be something that caused it, insects would not be so precise.

 

[SleuthyGal]

Who cleaned up the garage? Did Brad do it even though he never did anything around the house, or did Nancy do it? Where did the toys go? How does the fact that the garage was cleaned factor into her murder ... only to explain that Brad backed his car into the garage after murdering her?

Brad said he cleaned out the garage. See his depo testimony. He went into detail about it. I don't remember what he said he did with the stuff he moved. Yes, the reason Brad actually cleaned out the garage was so he could park his car in there so he wouldn't be seen loading his wife's body in the trunk. IMHO.

 

[otto]

What kind of attacker takes a woman's shoes and socks and shorts (I mean seriously?) but leaves her diamond earrings (or at least one of them).

It makes no sense. Common sense tells us how highly improbable this scenario would be.

I'm no expert but it seems to me that often, when a woman is found on the side of the road, she's missing most of her clothes. I have read of women that have lost a shoe during a struggle.

 

[ncsu95]

1. He said he cleaned out the garage a few days (maybe 2?) before Nancy got home from her vacation. We know this because Brad's deposition testimony goes into great detail about when he cleaned out the garage. The bug guy saw the garage a couple days before the murder and it was still crowded in there, with no room for a car. When did Brad make room for his car? Well likely sometime after he left the party up until he pulled his car into the garage (to load Nancy's body in it, IMHO). Oh and Brad claimed he made room for Nancy's car so she and the girls could stay cool. However, the side he cleaned out....was the side HE parked on and always had. We found a google map street view of the house from 2006 and his car is on the left side of the driveway and hers was on the right.

2. At the custody hearing the woman who thought she saw Nancy couldn't be 100% sure. Eyewitness testimony can often be some of the weakest because people remember things differently and can get important details incorrect. She was discredited and the judge didn't believe her (and said so in her ruling).

3. Nancy's diamond necklace was found *in* a desk. Not in her room, not on the foyer table...in (as in inside) a desk.

With regards to which side of the garage is cleaned out...that could simply be a factor of which side was easier to clean out. Maybe stuff was hung on the wall that made it impractical to clean out the right side. If it was done for parking, not a big deal to start parking on the right side of the driveway to allow the other vehicle into the garage.

So your theory is that he left the party intent on killing her...then went home to clean out the garage before she got home so he could get the car in there?

 

[johnfear]

He presented like "therapy was an option" in the October video dep. However, I can get behind what you are saying here.

Also, here's a thought. The girl who called 911 was offering to pay her for painting, wasn't she? So, she probably was aware of the scenario you were spelling out below. Wonder what else she has to say. I mean, when my friends say, Hey, come paint my ________ or help me _________, unless I am shelling out cash for supplies or driving to heck and back, I don't expect payment. Or is that just me?

Also, I didn't get the impression from (even the family side) that she was "cut off from household dough" but that she was definitely cut off from having anything beyond the household money.

He wasn't working on the marriage and by that point neither was she. These two (obviously) hated each other. While she was gone he had left the house a mess. It was such a mess that there were bugs crawling around when Nancy got back from her vacation (and remember she then called an exterminator). Nancy told her friends about the poor/dirty condition of the house, she told her family too (cf custody hearing testimony). This was in-line with how Brad always was. Nancy did 99.9% of the housework.

BTW, the only thing Nancy wanted/needed from Brad that last Friday was her household money. He was giving her cash because she had no credit cards. And he didn't give her the money. And he didn't get it on Friday night. And he didn't get it on Sat. either. It's the one thing she was most angry about, out of all the things going on. She was livid about not getting the money she needed. He was at the store twice Sat morning. There are ATM machines there.

Why didn't Brad give Nancy her cash? Why didn't he get it Sat morning? Why not Sat afternoon? Do you suppose it's because he knew she would never need money again? Because she was dead? Sure looks that way.

 

[Just the Fax]

What kind of attacker takes a woman's shoes and socks and shorts (I mean seriously?) but leaves her diamond earrings (or at least one of them).

It makes no sense. Common sense tells us how highly improbable this scenario would be.

I think Kurtz maybe going with the spurned lover angle vs random.

 

[otto]

Brad said he cleaned out the garage. See his depo testimony. He went into detail about it. I don't remember what he said he did with the stuff he moved. Yes, the reason Brad actually cleaned out the garage was so he could park his car in there so he wouldn't be seen loading his wife's body in the trunk. IMHO.

Doesn't that seem like a lot of extra work to do to put a body in the back of a vehicle in the middle of the night?

 

[SleuthyGal]

SG, the exterminator was there on Wednesday (3 days before) and the garage was a wreck.
What day did Nancy get back from vacation?

IIRC, Nancy got back 5 days before her murder. She's the one who called the exterminator. The exterminator testified that the garage was a mess (as it had been in the past).

 

[raisincharlie]

I went back and listened a second time - heard more than the first time. Two things have really peaked my interest:

1. A description of the green dress. Not only did LE look for it the day Nancy was reported missing but Diana Duncan looked for it - it was nowhere to be found in that house. Brad produces it the next day. (Where was this dress while everyone is looking for it ? They don't find the dress but they do find her running shoes. Brad feels compelled to give the dress to LE the next day, after they have her shoes for the canine needs. Interesting)

2. Regarding the landline - Brads call history shows a total of three calls from the landline to his cell phone - 3 - but yet Brad only tells LE about one. (These calls IMO will sink him if it can be proven that he somehow initiated these calls via VOIP).

 

[Skittles]

SG, the exterminator was there on Wednesday (3 days before) and the garage was a wreck.
What day did Nancy get back from vacation?

Nancy returned home from the beach on Sunday, July 6th.

 

[otto]

He presented like "therapy was an option" in the October video dep. However, I can get behind what you are saying here.

Also, here's a thought. The girl who called 911 was offering to pay her for painting, wasn't she? So, she probably was aware of the scenario you were spelling out below. Wonder what else she has to say. I mean, when my friends say, Hey, come paint my ________ or help me _________, unless I am shelling out cash for supplies or driving to heck and back, I don't expect payment. Or is that just me?

Also, I didn't get the impression from (even the family side) that she was "cut off from household dough" but that she was definitely cut off from having anything beyond the household money.

I remember something about Brad saying that Nancy was overspending, like purchasing very expensive paintings.

 

[SleuthyGal]

Doesn't that seem like a lot of extra work to do to put a body in the back of a vehicle in the middle of the night?

It seems like a lot of work to murder someone, dump their body like trash, spend HOURS cleaning a house and doing loads of laundry, make 2 trips to the grocery store within a 40 min period, and then go out 'looking' for them for a couple hrs, when you could (you know) just divorce them and be done with it and (bonus!) get to keep your life and still have your children, at least part of the time, and find someone more compatible to have a relationship with, in time.

But that's just me and I'm kinda lazy that way.

 

[ncsu95]

Doesn't that seem like a lot of extra work to do to put a body in the back of a vehicle in the middle of the night?

Yes. And would draw more attention.

 

[Just the Fax]

Also, I didn't get the impression from (even the family side) that she was "cut off from household dough" but that she was definitely cut off from having anything beyond the household money.

He said he gave her 80% of what was left after bills...$300 /wk was for EVERYTHING.

 

[ncsu95]

I think Kurtz maybe going with the spurned lover angle vs random.

Based on the recent requests, I would agree.

 

[johnfear]

What are we calling bills then?

Groceries included in that?

This part gets tricky for me AND I think it's what a great big bulk of domestic violence is based on (interpersonal financial disagreements, right next to cheating)

 

[ncsu95]

2. Regarding the landline - Brads call history shows a total of three calls from the landline to his cell phone - 3 - but yet Brad only tells LE about one. (These calls IMO will sink him if it can be proven that he somehow initiated these calls via VOIP).

This would do it for me. It's probably the most crucial piece of evidence. If she made the calls, he couldn't have done it (I guess not impossible). If he initiated the calls, he's guilty. And it should be fairly easy to prove.

 

[ncsu95]

I remember something about Brad saying that Nancy was overspending, like purchasing very expensive paintings.

Right...and they were big time in debt. Going to a cash basis at that point made sense. Stop the bleeding before the divorce instead of racking up more bills.

Unfortunately, I married the wrong person in my early 20s. We didn't have kids, but she did cheat (but I didn't kill her). Once it was apparent that we were moving forward with the divorce, we stopped all joint credit cards, etc. so there wouldn't be more debt.

 

[otto]

Yes. And would draw more attention.

Exactly. There was a party going on across the street so presumably people were leaving at around the same time as Nancy. The neighbor reported that the lights were out at the Cooper home at midnight. Unless Brad murdered Nancy after midnight, then cleaned the garage, moved the body, went shopping a few times, then did laundry and cleaned some more ... I kind of think the garage is not connected, but we'll see.