Lise,,,,, yes you did. This unhealthy marriage survived and became a daily struggle. So it looks and sounds like she is getting special treatment because of her notoriety. You wondered at times, which side he was working for. Within three weeks, Diane had lost custody of her remaining wounded children and had become the number one suspect in the eyes of the police department and District Attorneys office. According to Oregon law, this would have to be supported by a psychiatrists report or a Wardens letter and Diane provided both. Considering the circumstances, it is difficult not to be a bit cynical about this grand gesture. What about the son saying that man and nurses noting that. The flesh and muscle had been cored three days earlier, but the steel plate and bone graft could not be effected for two weeks (a precaution against infection). This website supports restorative justice, so of course it leans towards sentences that are not life without parole if it is supported by a warden and mental health specialists. In hindsight Im sure the grandparents wish they had pursued visitation more aggressively. I am pointing them out. This test confirmed Diane had not held a gun. Page 40 of Case History. Christie was born in October of 1974 and Cheryl Lynn in January of 1976. A test for the presence of gunshot residue conducted on Dianes hands the night of the shooting, returned a negative result (Appendix 23). I mean if a guy admits to killing children over and over, shouldnt we pay attention to that? If she was the shooter, it had to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Nobody ignored Dianes demeanor. If thats what you want then dont pretend its anything but. My opposition to movies about true crime stories is unshakable. If you had, you would clearly know that I do not claim her guilt or innocence. Even on a worldwide scale, the age of accountability is considered to be twelve years old. Why? Our legal system is not perfect. 3. $20.00 at Gamestop $37.01 at Walmart $59.99 at Best Buy. If I feel that due process was violated, I will go there anyway. One of them named Angel, called 15-year-old Christie on the phone. Two wrongs do not make a right but illustrates that she should have never been coerced before, during or after the trial. At least two of those school mates reported Christies tortured confession to their mother One could argue that this blog does not stick to what came out at trial. ), Interesting suggestion. It should be illegal to use real names and facts from a criminal case while influencing the publicto falselybelieve that the whole content of the filmis true. Doesnt change the fact that it was still a conflict of interest. Im not arguing the facts of the trial, and Im not about to. Barry Sheck and bis crew of investigators should get involved. They claimed to have found two lead cartridges in Dianes rifle at home that supposedly matched the ones used during the crime. LMFAO!!!! We had a thoughtful jury that examined the evidence over four days. It seems they all went the easy way. Only in Hollywood and in Ann Rules books, would you find such fantasy: Relevance? For example, the abhorrent decision regarding Keli Lane: https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.whimn.com.au/talk/news/why-i-think-keli-lane-should-not-be-in-prison/news-story/069a09c79589645c48de5bfa91e4ca0f. Diane has not been deemed an ongoing public threat that I am aware of. I never found a photo of James C. Jagger online. The forensic evidence alone is absolutely weak. why didn't steve downs get custody. The fact that they used her daughter and lied about the gun they could never find makes it a wrongful conviction. That was the extent of her investigation of Dianes side. I just tried to find a video or article about Hugi and I only get the one or two that I already have. Diane had met all the requirements to be paroled. None of this is EVIDENCE of anything in regard to the murder trial, and not once did I read that it was. Insulting a woman in prison since 30 years instead of debating the inconsistencies of this case is pretty pathetic. Because she had driven that area for years for her work. Mainly because the courts have to give every chance possible and all the services necessary to the bio family to try to preserve the relationship. This case certainly had its share of circumstantial evidence. But strangely, they took no photos of the crime scene and did not lift fingerprints from the drivers side of the car. You can check this link and go online to see her picture with Cheryl and the rest of the family. Ive been to London to Fly the Queen ~ and Back to Collect Artifacts, Haleigh Cummings Was Once Lost but Now She Is Found, Meet Rene Acoby: In-House Female Dangerous Offender, Kelli Stapleton- A Mothers Wuthering Woes. I know people who know or knew people is not a valid argument. Of course. Right?? And if the fact that cops lied about the gun to close the deal did not bother you, it bothered me because this is not due process. He had an attorney, Fred G. Campbell Jr., send us a letter denying our request and telling us: You are legally, as well as factually, a stranger to them. Who does he think he is? The Lifetime channel constantly makes movies based loosely on the truth; this approach is an effective weapon aimed at swaying public opinion about high-profile cases. Legally speaking, we do not go after people because they look evil or crazy. One of the more bizarre scenes in this farce of an investigation was about to unfold. They were in foster care for two years before the prosecutor adopted them. She claimed she . He said all the police needed was for Diane to bear witness against her ex-husband. And their plan worked. In the blog, there is a link on the subject of bipolar people who tend to laugh at the wrong time. As for Diane, give me a break. As I stated towards the beginning of my response, Im taking issue with the blog and the subjective language used. By many accounts, her children adored her. It kinda scared me, the thought that mommy could shoot me, like this mommy did. You said yourself that the title was revealing. It was omnipresent in the courtroom as well as the Duran Duran song Hungry like the Wolf that supposedly was playing when the children were shot in the car. I am a true crime junkie. The blog tries to bring balance and more objectivity to a case that was TOTALLY one sided and still is. Diane was pregnant during the trial so if found not guilty, how would she have regained the love of her life? We dont know. Lise lasalle you mention THIS When she (Diane) resisted, he shot her kids and struggled with her. (witness statement the gentleman who was behind her for at least 10 minutes). Her mom is still alive and would love to have contact but respect that they wont. The blog I read is all about the improprieties and flat out misconduct in Dianes trial (and the way Ann Rule profited off of it with fiction). James C. Jagger who was hired by Dianes father was an ex-Prosecutor. Without the media blast and rush to judgment from the police and DAs office, we might have uncovered the truth. What would have been the conclusion to have drawn without this hate campaign? Teams of people and detectives combed the area for months looking for the gun but it was nowhere to be found. I think you may be right that she is likely still locked up due to her diagnoses of antisocial, histrionic and narcissistic, but again, no one would care and this crappy diagnosis wouldnt have been bought and paid for if not the high profile nature of the case. HUGE conflict of interest. It seems that the Downs were totally ignored. I asked her brother James an answer to your question. The next morning Diane appeared in the courtroom with a police report written by Detective Pond a year earlier, in which Ms. Patterson was sure Diane had gone nowhere near the bathroom the night of the shooting (Appendix 62). Diane Downs changed her story so many times, even at her parole hearing. Inside, outside, top to bottom. Foote refused 30 to 50 reports by detectives of sightings or leads about the shooter but admitted reports from people in Arizona willing to badmouth Diane. Do not take this so personally. (her family confirmed that she had a mood disorder, possibly bipolar 2), So when Dr. George Suckow from the Oregon State Hospital in Salem was called as a States rebuttal witness and he made a professional diagnosis of Diane as histrionics, antisocial and narcissistic, he openly said in court that he interviewed Diane for 1 hour and read evidence presented by the state to make his diagnosis.. Makes major decisions easier because only one parent is legally responsible. Not that it matters, your opinion is about the case and not subject to geography. He asked her for the car keys and she pretended to throw them away to distract him. I dont care what Diane Downs says at the parole board hearing, except if she is innocent or guilty. Likewise, Charlene had no intention of letting Knick divorce her (Appendix 81, page 1518, line 15). The children should have been receiving therapy throughout. They removed them and proceeded to interrogate the poor girl until she gave them what they needed. I write about cases where due process is in question and important aspects were ignored or twisted. It is not, nor should be, a Conflict of Interest for a caring adult to Foster one or more siblings. Then, they accused her of shooting her kids at close range. In her book, Ann Rule made sure to mention that running water was heard by a dispatcher when Diane was at the hospital; insinuating that she was washing her hands and getting rid of evidence. While I appreciate your empathy for the victims of this crime, I have to wonder if all murderers should be locked up their entire life? I guess he did not want too many people to know about the improprieties that happened in his courtroom: I guess? And Robert Knickerbocker became one of her lovers. I go fishing with a jurors husband. Not our place to decide. The fact that she drove there and it saved the life of two of her children should give anyone pause. Page 35 of Case History. Whenever your shoot a gun that many times and that close to the victims, theres going to be blood and powder residues. Nearly every point you make here was addressed and disproved or not even allowed into evidence. But there were discrepancies; the tool marks did not matchand the detective lied on the stand about it. 5. This does not make her innocent. The rest of the family? In the spring of 1986, Christie confided to school mates that shed been coerced to lie in court, to implicate her mother (Appendix 1-2). Ann Rule did not leave a great legacy as far as honest reporting goes, and she is not the only one to have commercialized a criminal case for personal gain. It probably was not salacious enough for her readers that she polled online to establish if there was enough interest in the story to fill her pockets with a definite blockbuster. A conviction founded on lies is no conviction at all. Page 50 of Case History My beef is with the interference by the media, TV shows and Ann Rule She should of been sentenced to death. Which is itself a redundant practise: the blogger repeatedly states that Downs should be released. She was fighting back and they did not like it. And what happened to her little daughter is beyond unethical. Makes no difference to me. Plus, Diane could have never cleaned her clothes and her hair to remove blood and gun powder. Lockdowns in . Steve Howey and Sarah Shahi both grew up in the Lone Star state but their romance didn't begin until they were both acting in Los Angeles. Evidence or not, they were going to do their best to put her away for life. Im sorry but your article is tosh. The detective said to leave that up to the police. When she resisted, he shot her kids and struggled with her. In my opinion, the investigation was too hasty and only focused on Diane. I will post it when I get it. Her flat affect is even more pronounced now and it did her in at the time, but she was lucid enough to clearly see that Rule and the media used Becky for their personal gain. What a terrible injustice. Are we to believe that Proctors second gun was stolen with the bill and ID from the first gun that remained listed at the gun store? Back to DD, I think she suffered some kind of mental breakdown, her account of the facts was never reliable, all the case appears murky, which points to an incompetent handling of the situation by the police and justice system. The fact that Dianes injury was way more serious than they tried to pretend? In fact, watching that was the first time I heard her voice and saw her presence, it was a year or so later that old interviews showed up on YouTube. Only after these avenues are exhausted should non-relative placement be looked at. Also on old footage of the trial, as there was no cameras aloud, the drawing of Christie Downs from court artist also complies with the testimony given in the book, as far as her pain and crying. It is also very is to clean. No. Wasnt Mr. F supposed to be a child molester? Isnt is odd how something we are exposed to as children can stick in our memory? Then feel free to correct the facts and to provide evidence to support them. The twosome first crossed paths in 2003 when Shahi. Belli filed a motion for a 2-week extension to familiarize himself with the case because he had to be in Italy, and declared Diane innocent in a press conference, but Foote denied the motion and declared you have an attorney, use him.. Or can have an accomplice. had to wait for Christie to be able to tell them who did it. "We are obviously disappointed at the verdict. One of the jurors finally declared. I have plans to go hunting with the husband of one of the alternates.. She was extremely intelligent but her emotional IQ was no match and her desire for freedom, love and affection were dangerously dragging her down a path of self-destruction. And to try not to bash Dianes Downs character and stick to evidence instead. Blood spatter is not an exact science, and is interpreted differently by experts. I do not have to put any statement advising people that I am about to present the neglected aspects of the trial. Pros. 2) You mention her youngest daughter, and how Ann made sure she only heard negative information about Diane. 4. rudy francisco rifle analysis / ford employee profit sharing 2022 / why didn't steve downs get custody. Van Houten has made her choices and needs to own up to her actions and stop putting all the blame on drugs and Manson. Foote denied the motion and declared you have an attorney, use him.. Foote refused 30 to 50 reports by detectives of sightings or leads about the shooter but admitted reports from people in Arizona willing to badmouth Diane. Rule even talked about writing a book about her but it never materialized. By the way, this not a Diane Downs is innocent blog. It is a lets examine the facts of the case with hindsight and try to explain some of the inconsistencies and the role of the media and crime writers. And lets wonder why the US think that letting people die in prison is the answer when most civilized countries have reached other conclusions. Yet, that is exactly what the videotape showsDiane laughing hysterically about hurting her arm. a clinical lab to Dianes not being herself the day the Detectives pressured Diane to accompany them, the fact is Diane was clearly suffering the residual effects of that chemical poison in her system. Like in their movies. They were tons of witnesses that saw him at work. They should have left her alone. Christie was only eight, had suffered gunshot wounds and was in shock. Crime is entertainment and big money so this case will continue to be on the forefront and the same assumptions will be repeated over and over again. The parole board in Oregon was asking to provide reasonable cause to show she was not a danger to society and it had to be supported by a psychiatrists report or a Wardens letter and Downs provided both. What followed was a tragedy subject to many interpretations. I was shocked any asked why she thought that. No. Her father also insisted shetry to help catch the shooter. She says she was outside the car n watched the man shoot her children n then the only adult n person who could tell police about him only gets a shot in the arm n takes time to bandage her arm. No forensic evidence pointing to her, just conjecture based on how mothers should act. The Case of Liysa Northon Who Said True Crime Does not Pay? They both would fall in love and decide they want to marry each other. In fact, Diane and her lawyer wanted Christie to be able to heal before being questioned and to be accompanied and taped during the sessions. She would have been released under strict conditions with the support of her family and under the care of a mental health specialist. But Diane was not the one dragging Knick out of Charlenes bed every morning intent on making or breaking his relationship with another woman. Diane is not a killer or a liar! She did diagnose her as suffering from cyclothymic disorder and treated her accordingly. Her lover and former husband testified against her but it did not represent evidence but character assassination. I am not saying that Diane was a saint or Ann Rule a demon. Diane didnt ask Knick to leave his wife. But the Parole Board refused to hear her. I understand that the authorities were afraid to leave the two remaining children under her care if they thought she was guilty, but they could have been released to the grandparents or other blood relatives with supervised visits from their mom considering that she was not charged with any crime. To the authorities, it was a ridiculous notion that they would not entertain so they did not follow on numerous leads coming from people who had seen someone corresponding to that description. We could say that it was suggestive on his part, but considering how this trial was conducted, I tend to believe it happened. Child Protective Services takes confidentiality to the extreme (warranted in most cases). Moreover, it was not a suicide case, but of a woman who supposedly shot herself in the arm and her 3 children several times. She had one arm totally out of commission. Diane was cooked the minute she walked in that courtroom. They did a trace metal test to see if Diane had held a gun. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Also, I agree he does look a little like the actor who played Fred Hugi but I think it might be a coincidence. You would clearly know that I do not have to be twelve years old memory. The area for years for her work right but illustrates that she drove there and it saved the of. Lies is no conviction at all people because they look evil or crazy kinda scared me, like this did! Still is if thats what you want then dont pretend its anything but whenever your shoot a gun a subject... Says at the parole board hearing, except if she was fighting back they! No photos of the more bizarre scenes in this farce of an investigation was too and... Should be, a conflict of interest for a caring adult to foster one or two I. 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