All Episodes Discussion

[stillhere1900]

No way could I have voted to convict.  The evidence was weak - - all they had was a jailhouse snitch (who later admitted he lied), a spot of blood on a shoe that did have a reasonable explanation and a question about whether blinds were opened or closed.  O.J. Simpson can be acquitted with loads of evidence against him and this man is convicted with nothing.  Unbelievable. 

 

I was a bit disheartened that Bambi mentioned how much Horry County put her through and yet did not mention her ex-boyfriend, who spent EIGHT YEARS behind bars.  

 

Shame on the prosecutor for not admitting he was wrong. 

 

I hope that Richard was given financial compensation by the State for being wrongly convicted. 8 yrs in prison for a  murder he did not commit.  Any consequences for the 'jail house snitch who got up on the stand and told a bold faced lie ?

[UsernameFatigue]

As others have said, there is no way I could have convicted based on a blind being closed in a picture. Also it would have made sense to me that if the guy was guilty of murdering his girlfriend's parents he was doing it for her, so he would have turned on her for lesser sentence.  After all they had split long before he was convicted. But he never did - because he didn't kill the parents in the first place.

 

I am amazed at how many of these shows have a prosecutor and /or police officers that are incapable of admitting they are wrong. It would certainly give me pause if I was living in a jurisdiction where these people had power.

Edited March 6, 2016 by UsernameFatigue

[RedheadZombie]

It was a repeat, but did you guys see Strangers on a Train? last night

 

I've seen it before, but I watched a little.  Is it odd for a man to call his twenty-eight year old daughter, the love of his life?  Especially while he's sitting next to his wife of thirty plus years?

 

The victim's mother bore a striking resemblance to Candice Bergen.

 

I may watch the rest later.  I remember being impressed with the group of men who figured it out.  But I also remember thinking this is something that only seems to happen for the wealthy white folks.

[stillhere1900]

Seems to me that the cops were kinda pissed off that the  'retired officers the "A TEAM" figured out who did it when they didn't.

Edited March 6, 2016 by stillhere1900

[imjagain]

I read an article saying that Bambi's brother tested positive for gun shot residue. The brother claims it's because he gave his father cpr. And now I'm watching Snapped (Michelle Williams) is accused of shooting her husband. The cops ask her to do GSR test and she tells them she touched his body and is scared they'll see some residue on her hands, cops assured her that it doesn't work that way.(I'm assuming she shot him, I just haven't finished the episode yet) I know absolutely nothing about guns, but if Bambi's brother tested positive wouldn't he be a suspect?

... Ok back to catching up with my shows lol.

[saber5055]

The "Strangers on a Train" episode was engrossing. New to me. And I hope the Charleston police department is being investigated and a bunch of its people fired. The biggest finger pointing in this case was to the police IMO, and I thought Dateline did a great job just "mentioning" the lack of police response or interest. It was almost like the cops had something to do with the woman's murder.

 

The A Team guys were great. But them being detained by police after they located the victim's remains, this after the burial place was revealed by one of the jailed murderers? Again, that police department was shown to be one of the worst ever. Got a gigantic kick out of the three cops being interviewed at the end, all of them saying they were on the trail of the murderers the entire time. 

 

Please.

 

The forger woman looked so much like the victim. Then we got to see what she looks like now. Oh, my. Time did her no favors. I totally did not believe her side of the story. Ethan I did believe. He seemed like a basically nice guy who got caught up by a grifter. Maybe he wasn't too bright, but I believed him when he told his story at the end.

[Enigma X]

Dang! So Ethan didn't do it? I fell asleep when they started accusing Ethan. When I woke up because I thought the case wrapped up 45 minutes into it. (The "Dang!" is not because Ethan didn't do it, but that I missed what seemed like a case with a lot of twists.)

[stillhere1900]

I find it really interesting that the  'grifter claimed to be a Pediatric Surgeon when she met Kate on the train.  She said that someone had stolen her purse and that she needed a place to stay.  I would think that if a effin Doctor lost her purse, wouldn't the doctor just go to the nearest branch of her bank and get a new bankcard so that she could get a hotel room. Wouldn't you ask yourself why a dr would need to stay with a strangers family ?  Did Kate's mother & father ask any questions ?

 

I truly don't understand this part. Why didn't Kate question Heather Kamp about this ?   Was it left out of the Dateline story ?

[saber5055]

Professional grifters make their living off of using people. They are smooth, have an answer for everything, and tell their victims exactly what they want to hear. I've known such a person; it's easy to be manipulated if one is trusting and the grifter is SO LIKABLE! And that grifter always says SUCH NICE THINGS and is INTERESTED IN ME! So yeah, I can see her never being questioned, or if she was, having just the right answer. This is a person who had been working multiple victims all her life. She was good.

Dang! So Ethan didn't do it?

Both Ethan and the grifter woman gave their version of Kate's murder, separately, at the end of the show. Grifter woman said Ethan did it all, got Kate drunk enough that when he (jokingiy) told her to get into a big suitcase, she did. The he tazered her into unconsciousness, hit her over the head with a bottle, smuthered her with a pillow, then put her in a bathtub full of water. Yeah, overkill (no pun intended) so who knows what really killed her. A combo of all, I guess.

 

Anyway, Ethan told the same story, but it was the grifter woman who did all those things while he went into another room and prayed, unable to help. Grifter told Ethan that Kate was going to turn them into the cops (for something, can't remember). So the grifter's big "mafia family" was going to kill Ethan's family, mom, dad, brothers, sisters, if Kate did that. Ethan was afraid for his family being killed, so had to agree to the Kate murder. He then married grifter after Kate's death so she couldn't run away with his unborn child. Because grifter told Ethan she was pregnant with his kid ... when she wasn't.

 

Kate was wise to the grifter woman's scam, which is why grifter woman needed her gone.

 

So Ethan was involved, but only got 25 years if I remember correctly, while grifter woman got 40, or something like that. 

 

Ethan was pretty well-spoken in his interview. Simple, yet he used some interesting phrasing which made me think he was the sort of guy who was good-hearted but had never been out of the town where he was born. He was expressly sorry for what had happened, and said he wishes every day that he could trade his life for Kate's, but he knows he can't. So he accepts his punishment, said he deserves to be in prison.

 

Grifter, on the other hand, was not so generous in her admission of guilt, staying true to grifter form.

Edited March 6, 2016 by saber5055

[psychoticstate]

I've never heard of testing positive for GSR due to giving CPR.  Wouldn't the levels of residue be completely different from touching a body versus shooting the weapon?

 

Why wasn't Bambi's brother considered a suspect?   I would think whoever killed the two might have some type of blood spatter on them.  The bathroom seemed to have quite a bit of spatter and it was a small space. 

 

How does the brother potentially tie in with the man who was eventually convicted for the killings?  Do the authorities (and locals) think he or Bambi paid the convict?  That doesn't make much sense. 

 

Did they ever say why Bambi got the property and not her brother? 

 

The whole thing is just a mess with what appears to be a rush to judgment investigation.

[ari333]

As soon as I saw Kamp's photo and the resemblance to Kate, I thought identity theft or something fishy is about to happen

[saber5055]

I thought Richard looked and acted like a beaten man, having spent that much time wrongly imprisoned. Cops put people in jail to put "solved" crimes on their docket and to look good for state funding. Doesn't matter to them if the person is guilty or not, gotta have more convictions to show the governor what good police people they are.

 

Richard even said prison changes a person. It was like his soul was gone, he seemed so empty. I was glad he lives away and is married (and with kids?) now. I hope he is happy. As happy as he can be.

 

Bambi was pretty bright and articulate. I thought she was interesting. And yeah, I felt so much was left out, like the brother, as posted above. What? There is a brother? Bambi's two boys looked pretty rough though, quite a change from the All American Boy appearance in the kid photos.

 

I don't think I know anyone who EVERYONE loves and EVERYONE thinks is perfect. Yet dead people always are.

Edited March 6, 2016 by saber5055

[cooksdelight]

I am amazed at how many of these shows have a prosecutor and /or police officers that are incapable of admitting they are wrong. It would certainly give me pause if I was living in a jurisdiction where these people had power.

It happens more than people realize. I know of several past cases here in my hometown that were later overturned, but the lengths the police went to in order to get a conviction was scary. Presently, my sister is fighting to get a man re-arrested for stealing her car, because one of the deputies didn't do the paperwork properly. Judge dismissed all charges.

When you see a case like this, small town of people who've already made up their mind, it makes the D.A. look like an asshole.

[RedheadZombie]

 

Did they ever say why Bambi got the property and not her brother?

I don't think they said but I wonder if they are half-siblings. The property came from her father's side of the family.

[cooksdelight]

My guess is pickup line for his Monday night cookie. I just watched this on I.D. for the first time. I knew the pot dealer would have had no reason to come to Eric's apartment, he'd completed the deal. Hat's off to the detective who decided to test the old guns in police possession. That's a guy who I'd want hunting down my loved one's killer.

[imjagain]

Yes. It said in the article I read her father left it to her. They also referred to her brother as half brother. The brother said he didn't care that he tested positive. It also never explained why the cops didn't focus on him, all very confusing. Her brother was never even mentioned on the show.

[teebax]

I feel for Eric and his family. No one should have their life taken away in such a manner. I have a brother who has always been a player. He's also a musician, so he's a walking stereotype. I shudder to think this type of thing could happen to him but it could. I know he'll say anything he needs to just to get into a woman's pants. I can tell you there's a long trail of broken hearts he's left behind, too.

 

I don't know how long Eric had been seeing his Katrina, but I suspect he wasn't honest with her about his (lack of) intentions. She claimed he professed that he loved her. I don't know if that's true or not, but often people will say anything to get you into bed.

 

I know it sounds naive, but Eric owed it to the women he was dating to tell them straight up that he wasn't looking for something serious and that he wasn't a one-woman man. There's no shame in that (for a person of either gender) but it's not nice to play with people's hearts and emotions. Katrina was clearly unstable but I'm not all that surprised that a so-called ladies' man finally met a lady who didn't take kindly to being played.

 

This was such a sad case. I hope my brother watched it.

[cooksdelight]

Eric had been seeing Katrina for three weeks, on Monday nights only.

[ButterQueen]

Eric had been seeing Katrina for three weeks, on Monday nights only.

This is what makes it so bizarre. Only 3 dates!!! Yikes!!!

[hoosiermom]

Bitch better pray I'm not diagnosed with a terminal illness, lest I get my affairs in order, change my name to KARMA, and hunt her down myself.  ;-)

. When are we going after Pam Hupp? I'm riding shotgun! (In case Pam reads this and sends the cops after me, I'm kidding. Or wishing. Whatever).

[walnutqueen]

. When are we going after Pam Hupp? I'm riding shotgun! (In case Pam reads this and sends the cops after me, I'm kidding. Or wishing. Whatever).

 

As soon as I can afford an untraceable sniper rifle and a new pair of glasses.  And a pet-sitter. 

 

Can you spring for gas money?   :-)

[hoosiermom]

As soon as I can afford an untraceable sniper rifle and a new pair of glasses.  And a pet-sitter. 

 

Can you spring for gas money?   :-)

. Hell, I'll spring for plane tickets! I don't want to end up like Thelma and Louise (sp) although that would be a magnificent way to go out. Just not yet.

[walnutqueen]

. Hell, I'll spring for plane tickets! I don't want to end up like Thelma and Louise (sp) although that would be a magnificent way to go out. Just not yet.

 

Plane tickets?  You're not watching enough true crime, girl!  It'll be hard enough traveling at night in a nondescript vehicle with stolen plates and loaded with spare gas cans on back roads and blue highways to avoid traffic and security cameras.  Crime is hard work, ya know.

 

Oh, and NO CELL PHONES!

[hoosiermom]

Plane tickets?  You're not watching enough true crime, girl!  It'll be hard enough traveling at night in a nondescript vehicle with stolen plates and loaded with spare gas cans on back roads and blue highways to avoid traffic and security cameras.  Crime is hard work, ya know.

 

Oh, and NO CELL PHONES!

all good points. I guess I lost my mind . I will leave all the planning to you for any crime sprees we may embark on in the future. Lol

[walnutqueen]

I'd be a formidable criminal if I weren't so damned lazy.  ;-)

[ari333]

Did you guys see this? A female captain in the military found dead in her El Paso home. .

[ari333]

I thought it was odd that Roger the husband, called Lynn, the wife, and said on the answering machine/ voice mail, "Hey Lynn, this is Roger." WHO DOES THAT? "Hey Honey, it's me." sounds normal to me, but he didnt' say that.

 

Another weird flag was the 911 call when he said, "I just got home. My wife is dead.," WHo starts the call about themselves? "I just got home." Why start the call with THAT.?

Also, wen the "troubled" brother, Rodney, moved in, I thought  -- oh no here we go...

[ari333]

Although in his defense, she did the same when she left voice messages. Still odd... imo

[ari333]

Plane tickets?  You're not watching enough true crime, girl!  It'll be hard enough traveling at night in a nondescript vehicle with stolen plates and loaded with spare gas cans on back roads and blue highways to avoid traffic and security cameras.  Crime is hard work, ya know.

 

Oh, and NO CELL PHONES!

 

Im glad I'm on your good side :-)

[birdmom]

Using their names instead of honey etc wasn't odd to me because their marriage wasn't solid. When my husband and I went thru a rough patch I went back to calling him by name. However, the I just got home and my wife is dead was a big red flag because it was obvious he wanted to reinforce his alibi.

[walnutqueen]

Im glad I'm on your good side :-)

 

For now ....

 

cue eeevil cackle     :-D

[ari333]

For now ....

 

cue eeevil cackle     :-D

 

 

and twisting my handlebar mustache with thumb and forefinger a la Simon Bar Sinister or something -  or whoever ties that chick to the railroad tracks in that cartoon ... if I had a mustache :-)....

 

....and stirs cauldron while cackling... evil-ly ... :-)

while wearing my Stevie Nicks gauzy black cape dress and spinning around dancing in my hemp sandals as I sing GoldDust Woman.  

Edited March 12, 2016 by ari333

[ari333]

Using their names instead of honey etc wasn't odd to me because their marriage wasn't solid. When my husband and I went thru a rough patch I went back to calling him by name. However, the I just got home and my wife is dead was a big red flag because it was obvious he wanted to reinforce his alibi.

 

 

Good points. I agree.

[walnutqueen]

and twisting my handlebar mustache with thumb and forefinger a la Simon Bar Sinister or something -  or whoever ties that chick to the railroad tracks in that cartoon ... if I had a mustache :-)....

 

....and stirs cauldron while cackling... evil-ly ... :-)

while wearing my Stevie Nicks gauzy black cape dress and spinning around dancing in my hemp sandals as I sing GoldDust Woman.  

 

 

I'm now humming "Along Came Jones".  Thanks a lot for that earworm!

[saber5055]

I'd like to know what the proper procedure is for calling in a 911 when one finds a body. Too subdued ... that person did it. Too hysterical ... the caller is acting, he/she did it. Says the wrong thing ... what is the correct thing?

 

I just hope I never have to experience finding a dead loved one so I don't have to be grilled because my 911 call wasn't like how someone thought it should be.

 

One of my best friends called me yesterday. I don't have caller ID, so after a few minutes of her talking, I had to ask, "Who is this?" Using your name when you call/leave a message doesn't raise a red flag with me, it's just courtesy. Phone lines vary, especially cell connections.

[walnutqueen]

So, all his army buddies and is brother are lying, and he's the victim?  May he rot in jail forever.

[ari333]

I'd like to know what the proper procedure is for calling in a 911 when one finds a body. Too subdued ... that person did it. Too hysterical ... the caller is acting, he/she did it. Says the wrong thing ... what is the correct thing?

 

I just hope I never have to experience finding a dead loved one so I don't have to be grilled because my 911 call wasn't like how someone thought it should be.

 

One of my best friends called me yesterday. I don't have caller ID, so after a few minutes of her talking, I had to ask, "Who is this?" Using your name when you call/leave a message doesn't raise a red flag with me, it's just courtesy. Phone lines vary, especially cell connections.

 

I see your point. If I have time to search for the link I will, but there are FBI studies on 911 calls. Certain things tend to be said when the person is later found to be guilty/involved. Evidence turns up, but the first clue CAN be, at times, the 911 call.. not always. I was not trying to generalize. It just struck me that way in this instance.It is related to statement analysis  which some find interesting reading.  .

 

There is another statistic which I found interesting that many times the perp gets someone else to initiate the 911 call if there is another person available.

So, all his army buddies and is brother are lying, and he's the victim?  May he rot in jail forever.

yes.....

Yes to the rot in jail part.... for clarification. :-)

Edited March 13, 2016 by ari333

[teebax]

I know it's always suspicious when people over-explain things in their 911 calls. That's just not normal to do. You find your spouse dead and the first thing out of your mouth is a lengthy siloloquy about your day, setting up your alibi? Guilty.

[biakbiak]

The thing is it might be normal for some people. My grandmother died after a long battle with cancer but my mother found her dead and I listened to my mother have the most meandering 911 call including asking if she should even be calling 911 in the first place.

[applecrisp]

Ari33 if you find a link.  My messages are always meandering so there you go.

 

I saw this story on Shadow of Doubt and knew he was the big G.  Sad story but am glad they emphasized her pregnancy- two innocents died.

[RCharter]

How did it take someone 2 hours to show up for a rescue?  We either need to increase the parks budget or just shut them down when they are so busy it takes two hours to get to a rescue site.  Or at least have people pay a little more.  

[Stampiron]

The court decision denying Roger Reister's appeal contains a summary of the testimony by some of the friends Roger talked to about murdering Lynn. In addition to his brother, he talked about murdering his wife with no less than 6 people. There's nothing in the summary of any of them saying anything like "Uh Roger, that's a really, really bad idea." In fact, they all reported having fairly detailed conversations about murdering Lynn. That just boggles my mind. Nice job, parents of Roger's friends!

 

(A free Pro Tip from a hardcore Dateline viewer: I have yet to see a successful plan for The Perfect Murder that included the step "Tell all your friends about it." Just sayin'.)

 

One friend - Patrick Muller - initially agreed to commit the murder:

 

A:...And I don't know, we were listening to some music, and then he started going into that he was having problems with his divorce -- or his marriage, I mean. And then he asked me if I would kill Captain Reister, ma'am.
Q: What did you tell him?
A: Yes, I would.

Q: Why?

A: Roger is a friend of mine.

 

Like he was asking to help him move. Jesus Christ. Muller was in the military, so he kept referring to the female prosecutor as "Ma'am" and all I could think about was Todd from Breaking Bad. That disturbing combination of politeness and a complete lack of morality.

 

And finally, there is this gem about Roger Reister, brother of Rodney:

 

Appellant was excited about the pregnancy, shared the news with his friends, and speculated that Lamphere was pregnant with twin girls whom he wanted to name Ripley Renee and Raven Rochelle.

 

Another reason to be glad this guy is off the streets.

 

[ari333]

Hey can you give me a lift to the airport.? .... or um... kill my wife? same thing. GAH!

Hey can you give me a lift to the airport.? .... or um... kill my wife? same thing. GAH!

Edited March 13, 2016 by ari333

[callmebetty]

Hey can you give me a lift to the airport.? .... or um... kill my wife? same thing. GAH!

Hey can you give me a lift to the airport.? .... or um... kill my wife? same thing. GAH!

I was thinking the same thing. Sure kill somebody no problem. WTF! I certainly would never want to date or marry that dude, I know I would end up as the next Dateline episode when the relationship turns sour. Yikes!

Glad that the two brothers are put away. Once again a sad case for her friends and family what a loss.

[UsernameFatigue]

As soon as they said at the first of the show that she was pregnant I knew her hubby had killer her. It is pretty much always the hubby when a woman is pregnant. (Or in this case had her killed - result is the same). And I am in no way blaming the victim here but in pretty much every case when this happens the couple has a shaky marriage, and often the guy has cheated. Why do women get pregnant under those circumstances? And yes, I realize that he is half to blame but I just don't get it. Even her friend didn't understand why she didn't just walk away - Lynn said she wanted to save her marriage at all costs. Unfortuntely it cost her her life. Not to say he wouldn't have killed her anyway even if she wasn't pregnant but when the guy is having an affair with someone who is a teenager and that is the age of the new friends he is hanging out with, he isn't looking for more responsiblity.

 

I didn't think his saying her name on the phone call was odd. Often my hubby uses my first name when he leaves a message even though we have pet names for each other. I think it is because he makes so many calls in a day it is just automatic to say his name. He also says his name when he is calling stores to ask a question and the person on the other end has no clue who he is. (My brother also does the same thing). I find it funny but know it is just an automatic habit. What I did find suspicious was the number of calls he made which seems to be a MO for these murderers in order to bolster their alibi.

 

I also hope he rots in jail if for no other reason than he took his 4 year old son into the house knowing that the boy's mother would be in there dead. All to set up his alibi. It seems like maybe the son didn't see anything as he said his father took him out quickly but still - what a disgusting thing to do. But then he killed the kid's mom (not to mention sibling) and took the chance that his son would also grow up without a dad (as he did) if he was caught so I guess I should not be surprised that he would use his own child in that fashion.

Edited March 14, 2016 by UsernameFatigue

[UsernameFatigue]

Ugh, just read the link to his appeal posted above. He is way more twisted that they even portrayed on the episode.

 

Appellant was excited about the pregnancy, shared the news with his friends, and speculated that Lamphere was pregnant with twin girls whom he wanted to name Ripley Renee and Raven Rochelle.

 

Wow, this guy was really delusional. I wonder why he didn't speculate that his wife was pregnant with twin girls and give them names? Sheesh, the girlfriend never was pregnant with twins  - apparently he just thought wishing it would make it so. But then, he decided they weren't his after all. His girlfriend got off lucky - she may have been his next victim if she decided to pursue child support when he got quickly tired of the idea of the latest R's, Ripley and Raven. Rot, you monster.

Edited March 13, 2016 by UsernameFatigue

[applecrisp]

also unfortunate. he really procreated.

[pigs-in-space]

How did it take someone 2 hours to show up for a rescue?  We either need to increase the parks budget or just shut them down when they are so busy it takes two hours to get to a rescue site.  Or at least have people pay a little more.  

 

I'm sure there are a number of reasons, some of which were elaborated on in the show:

-They were in an area where they couldn't use a helicopter to medivac in, since the terrain was rough, therefore the ranger had to hike to their location

-The husband purposefully took them off the main trails that hikers are encouraged to stay on

-It also sounded like he didn't give great instructions on where they were to the 911 dispatch

 

Yes, the parks service budgets are in pretty terrible shape, and they should absolutely be increased (I used to work for a nonprofit that advocated for NPS), but it wasn't the ranger's fault she couldn't get there in time.  Even if they had more staff, given the conditions that day, no amount of money could have gotten someone there much faster.  Which was exactly what the husband probably wanted.

[stillhere1900]

NM

Edited March 14, 2016 by stillhere1900

[biakbiak]

Labrie sentenced to a year for violating his curfew.