What others cases interest you as much as JBR's?

[eileenhawkeye]

There are many cases on Charley Project where I feel if they happened today, they would have lots of topics on WS discussing them and would get some national attention.

 

[SeekingJana]

JonBenet's murder was what brought me to a forum in early 1998.
No case will ever affect my life and my heart like her unsolved murder has.
I have had many friends who were case posters pass away.. I've always wondered if I will live long enough to see the killer named, the accomplice after the fact named.
I do not believe there can be justice in the judicial sense in the case any longer, as I believe Patsy murdered her daughter. However, I want to see her named as the killer through forensic evidence as technology evolves and I want this case to be marked SOLVED.

 

[FairM]

JonBenet's murder was what brought me to a forum in early 1998.
No case will ever affect my life and my heart like her unsolved murder has.
I have had many friends who were case posters pass away.. I've always wondered if I will live long enough to see the killer named, the accomplice after the fact named.
I do not believe there can be justice in the judicial sense in the case any longer, as I believe Patsy murdered her daughter. However, I want to see her named as the killer through forensic evidence as technology evolves and I want this case to be marked SOLVED.

what forensic evidence do you think will eventually lead to Patsy being named the killer?

 

[BBB167893]

what forensic evidence do you think will eventually lead to Patsy being named the killer?

I'd like to know your feelings on that, too, SeekingJana.

 

[eileenhawkeye]

Question for everyone: Why do you think JonBenet's forum is still active 15 years later? Why does it seem like every other case discussion here just goes silent as soon as the developments stop coming in or the case leaves the news? This forum shows that a case doesn't need regular coverage/developments to have an active discussion going on, but it seems to be the exception.

 

[DeeDee249]

Question for everyone: Why do you think JonBenet's forum is still active 15 years later? Why does it seem like every other case discussion here just goes silent as soon as the developments stop coming in or the case leaves the news? This forum shows that a case doesn't need regular coverage/developments to have an active discussion going on, but it seems to be the exception.

I don't think it is any ONE thing. I think it is several things. She was just 6 years old, a tiny beauty queen. That she WAS beautiful, blonde, and the child of wealthy parents plays a big part, don't think otherwise. It happened on Christmas night, a night when all children should be dreaming innocent, happy dreams of the toys they got and the holiday with their families. Instead, JB was in her "eternal rest" on the cold, filthy cement floor of a hidden basement room, wrapped in her favorite blanket from her own bed.
The lurid condition of the body, with a ligature strangulation and head bash, as well as the tabloids splashing them all over their pages right at the Christmas-New Year Holiday.
Her beautiful, sweet face, surrounded by blonde curls and crowned with baby's breath, made up to look much older than her 6 years, is an image that is hard to forget.
I also think it was the utter ridiculousness of the ransom note/pretend kidnapping, all the police screw-ups and criminal behavior of the DA's office.
And her parents' money got them out of having to answer for her death, whether they were directly responsible or were covering up for someone else.
This isn't the first murder of a child to hit the news, nor is it the first case where the suspects' wealth has allowed them to get away with it.
But this case is the only one that has ALL of the above, plus - it has never been solved. A perfect storm.

 

[eileenhawkeye]

I agree with all the reasons you listed. It's just puzzling to me how other cases get enough media coverage and interest to get their own forums (or many topics), and then as soon as the case stops getting regular coverage, the forum goes silent. There was obviously something about those cases for them to get thousands of posts in a short amount of time, but the developments stop and the discussion stops.

 

[Mikebr]

hi folks,
i am still following ryan ferguson, wrongfully convicted in MO, DB Cooper, and the ricky mccormick fbi code breaking thread, and read a little on michelle parker case in FL. still mostly interested in the ryan ferguson case which i think is a real tragedy in justice...if you are into deciphering codes look for the ricky mccormick case..might be challenging for you..if you don't know it though please go read about ryan.

 

[eileenhawkeye]

It's weird to me how in denial some people are about how the victim's physical appearance plays a part in the amount of attention they get. I'm not really talking about JonBenet's case here, because at this point, everyone realizes that her being a wealthy "child beauty queen" is why it's such a huge case, but about more recent high-profile cases.

People will insist over and over that it's the circumstances that matter, and the case would get the same amount of attention no matter what the victim's race/gender/age are. But I disagree. Take the Lisa Irwin case; a baby being kidnapped out of her crib is sensational but the fact that Lisa was a cute, middle-class, white baby does play a part; as I doubt she would be on the cover of People magazine if she wasn't. A lot of the things that make high-profile cases so interesting come out weeks after they hit the news. So there are probably lots of obscure cases that may seem run-of-the-mill but would have lots of twists and turns if the media was interested in them.

 

[KarenUK]

It's weird to me how in denial some people are about how the victim's physical appearance plays a part in the amount of attention they get. I'm not really talking about JonBenet's case here, because at this point, everyone realizes that her being a wealthy "child beauty queen" is why it's such a huge case, but about more recent high-profile cases.

People will insist over and over that it's the circumstances that matter, and the case would get the same amount of attention no matter what the victim's race/gender/age are. But I disagree. Take the Lisa Irwin case; a baby being kidnapped out of her crib is sensational but the fact that Lisa was a cute, middle-class, white baby does play a part; as I doubt she would be on the cover of People magazine if she wasn't. A lot of the things that make high-profile cases so interesting come out weeks after they hit the news. So there are probably lots of obscure cases that may seem run-of-the-mill but would have lots of twists and turns if the media was interested in them.

The medias attitude to some cases really annoys me. I remember reading an article just after Joanna Yeates body was found in which the reporter recreated her last two days (eating the same food purchased from the same shop - even following a trip to a supermarket following her exact movements from the released CCTV footage) all with a dreadful commentary from the reporter on how Joanna may have been feeling at the time: "As a young graduate I feel hopeful for my bright future whilst shopping for pizza" (I'm paraphrasing, but it really was that bad in places).
That could be just an example of shockingly bad journalism, but there one or two cases every year when we are told a murder has "touched the nations heart" - and almost every time it will involve well educated, middle class photogenic people.

 

[UKGuy]

It's weird to me how in denial some people are about how the victim's physical appearance plays a part in the amount of attention they get. I'm not really talking about JonBenet's case here, because at this point, everyone realizes that her being a wealthy "child beauty queen" is why it's such a huge case, but about more recent high-profile cases.

People will insist over and over that it's the circumstances that matter, and the case would get the same amount of attention no matter what the victim's race/gender/age are. But I disagree. Take the Lisa Irwin case; a baby being kidnapped out of her crib is sensational but the fact that Lisa was a cute, middle-class, white baby does play a part; as I doubt she would be on the cover of People magazine if she wasn't. A lot of the things that make high-profile cases so interesting come out weeks after they hit the news. So there are probably lots of obscure cases that may seem run-of-the-mill but would have lots of twists and turns if the media was interested in them.

eileenhawkeye,
Yes because these things are supposed to only happen in the underclass.


.

 

[Mikebr]

The medias attitude to some cases really annoys me. I remember reading an article just after Joanna Yeates body was found in which the reporter recreated her last two days (eating the same food purchased from the same shop - even following a trip to a supermarket following her exact movements from the released CCTV footage) all with a dreadful commentary from the reporter on how Joanna may have been feeling at the time: "As a young graduate I feel hopeful for my bright future whilst shopping for pizza" (I'm paraphrasing, but it really was that bad in places).
That could be just an example of shockingly bad journalism, but there one or two cases every year when we are told a murder has "touched the nations heart" - and almost every time it will involve well educated, middle class photogenic people.

i have thought of these issues too. how do some stories become so covered and others barely make a local paper. i know the adage about dog bites man is not new, man bites dog now thats news...but i think there is more involved. First i think some news organization or journalist must think its interesting...or that they can make it interesting. I am not suggesting sinister motives, just reporters doing their job to get viewers or sell papers. some of these stories might have been dog bite man stories if they were solved quickly. many of us come to our own conclusions, until someone is convicted it kind of leaves the story alive..and even in some convictions if not all of them, there will always be some of us who think the wrong person or not all the people were held accountable. I don't think any of us would find a story of a drug dealer being shot by another drug dealer newsworthy unless it turned out one of them was the child of a famous person or some other strange fact. so the characteristics of the victim or the suspect do play a role in our interest...but getting the stories going is more a media creation, keeping it in the news maybe a little of us once we bite. but i think a slightly covered story looking for a missing child or adult, or a murder suspect, info etc, is more effective than the overly covered stories where everything is a media circus. it might look like the media cares more about the outcome but they really care more about the scoop. some people complain the media covers jbr or the anthony case because they are this or that but not another because they are poor or from the wrong part of town..but my belief is the more dignified, low lev coverage actually helps the outcome, but the circus distorts the outcome. so those people complaining should actually be thankful.

 

[UKGuy]

The medias attitude to some cases really annoys me. I remember reading an article just after Joanna Yeates body was found in which the reporter recreated her last two days (eating the same food purchased from the same shop - even following a trip to a supermarket following her exact movements from the released CCTV footage) all with a dreadful commentary from the reporter on how Joanna may have been feeling at the time: "As a young graduate I feel hopeful for my bright future whilst shopping for pizza" (I'm paraphrasing, but it really was that bad in places).
That could be just an example of shockingly bad journalism, but there one or two cases every year when we are told a murder has "touched the nations heart" - and almost every time it will involve well educated, middle class photogenic people.

KarenUK,
The press invent what they do not know, make the profit, then attempt to limit any litigation costs, by offering cash to any litigants.

Consider Joanna Yeate's landord, some newspapers had him, allegedly, consorting with pedophiles and acting as a Peeping Tom. He was demonized and later sued the publishers successfully.

In the days before DNA testing the killer might have got away with this and the landord either convicted on circumstantial evidence or rendered the eternal prime suspect.

Consider if its assumed that certain crimes are statistically distributed across the middle classes in the same manner as the underclass, then what might this suggest about the upper class?

The names for the classes imply a progression of moral improvement: lower, middle, upper. Currently based on the acquisition of capital.


.

 

[KarenUK]

KarenUK,
The press invent what they do not know, make the profit, then attempt to limit any litigation costs, by offering cash to any litigants.

Consider Joanna Yeate's landord, some newspapers had him, allegedly, consorting with pedophiles and acting as a Peeping Tom. He was demonized and later sued the publishers successfully.

In the days before DNA testing the killer might have got away with this and the landord either convicted on circumstantial evidence or rendered the eternal prime suspect.

Consider if its assumed that certain crimes are statistically distributed across the middle classes in the same manner as the underclass, then what might this suggest about the upper class?

The names for the classes imply a progression of moral improvement: lower, middle, upper. Currently based on the acquisition of capital.


.

Ahh I just wish I could be articulate!

 

[eileenhawkeye]

Unfortunately, I don't think it's possible for the media coverage of crime victims to ever be fair. We want every case to get national attention, and we want this national attention to last until the case is solved. But there are too many cases for that to happen. If Baby Lisa is in the news, then Michelle Parker isn't in the news, or Robyn Gardner isn't in the news, or Sky isn't in the news.

 

[SeekingJana]

I'd like to know your feelings on that, too, SeekingJana.

I have read the redacted lists of items removed from the house. An enormous amount of things were removed. We do not have the complete list of items removed from the basement around the body. I beleive there are still unpublished results of testing, also.
Then there is the fiber evidence. Patsy's jacket fibers in the knots on the garotte handle.
John's sweater fibers on her thighs etc.
I believe that forensic evidence testing will someday be able to " straighten" out the mess that is the blood/ unknown " male" DNA but which is incomplete with today's sequencing techniques. Either rule it in as relavent or rule it out as an improperly collected, stored, or tested item. ( I believe the item was compromised in handling).
I believe that there IS enough physical evidence which cannot be cast aside as transfer after the body was found, placed under or near the Christmas tree, etc.

This child deserves to have her murderer named, whomever it was within the home, and the case closed.

BTW, Dave, did you ever publish a book on the case? I know you were working on one. I'd like to buy it if you are published.
Thanks.
Maria

 

[BBB167893]

I have read the redacted lists of items removed from the house. An enormous amount of things were removed. We do not have the complete list of items removed from the basement around the body. I beleive there are still unpublished results of testing, also.
Then there is the fiber evidence. Patsy's jacket fibers in the knots on the garotte handle.
John's sweater fibers on her thighs etc.
I believe that forensic evidence testing will someday be able to " straighten" out the mess that is the blood/ unknown " male" DNA but which is incomplete with today's sequencing techniques. Either rule it in as relavent or rule it out as an improperly collected, stored, or tested item. ( I believe the item was compromised in handling).
I believe that there IS enough physical evidence which cannot be cast aside as transfer after the body was found, placed under or near the Christmas tree, etc.

This child deserves to have her murderer named, whomever it was within the home, and the case closed.

I'm with you on those points.

BTW, Dave, did you ever publish a book on the case? I know you were working on one. I'd like to buy it if you are published.
Thanks.
Maria

I've signed the contract. It's up to them now.

 

[ILikeToBendPages]

"The Fort Worth Three"

What happened to the three girls who disappeared together from a shopping mall in Texas?

TX TX - Missing Fort Worth Three, 1974 - #2 - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community

I've never heard anything more over the years about the girls other than they might of ran away. I think they went missing from Hulen Mall? I'd think if they did run away one of them would of gotten in touch with family by now.

Jennifer Day 1985 missing from her early morning job at a donut shop up off Preston Rd. and was found in field in Plano. It was the same year Christie Lynn Meeks and Christie Proctor went missing.

Stacie Madison and Susan Smalley went missing from Forest Ln. in 1989 and have never been found. My nieces went to school with them.

Kelley Wilson missing from Gilmer 1992. We had just bought a cabin in East Texas and it was big news. It was said that a Gilmer police officer was involved.

Opal May Jennings (6) taken from her grandmother's front yard in Saginaw 1999. Her remains were found in 2003. Her killer told police that Opal came onto him sexually.

Ashley Estell (7) went missing from a soccer field and found along side a road in Plano. Michael Blair was convicted of her murder, but his conviction was overturned.

We had a young girl ,Jasimine Gonzalez, and her family that had come down from Oklahoma City to visit family for Halloween and was taken from the apartment by a "family friend" who sexually assaulted her, stabbed her then dumped her body.

We heard the helicopter from about 1:30 till dawn then the police went door to door handing out flyers. She was found later that day dumped in a yard. I stood in my driveway and could see where her body had been dumped. The Amber Alert was never sent out because she didn't meet the criteria of an abduction.

I wonder how many are missing and dead because of the revolving doors on our prison system.

Sometimes the old saying in Texas of "he needed killing" is true.

 

[eileenhawkeye]

Okay, this is weird. I'm from New Jersey, and I was thinking recently that the only high-profile missing/murdered child case I can think of is the Lindbergh baby. I did a search on missingkids.com to see that there are 31 missing kids in NJ from the last 15 years Then I looked up Virginia, since they have a similar population. 316 missing kids in the last 15 years! Why such a huge difference?

 

[DeeDee249]

Okay, this is weird. I'm from New Jersey, and I was thinking recently that the only high-profile missing/murdered child case I can think of is the Lindbergh baby. I did a search on missingkids.com to see that there are 31 missing kids in NJ from the last 15 years Then I looked up Virginia, since they have a similar population. 316 missing kids in the last 15 years! Why such a huge difference?

I'm from New Jersey, too. Maybe it is because New Jersey has more Mob hits to deal with?