Who dunnit? Discuss your theory(ies) here!

[formerlyfreedom]

A spot to talk about your own theories of who did the deed on Secrets and Lies!

 

Please note, if you have actual spoiler-information, that does need to be spoiler tagged in here! Thank you!

[mertensia]

I'm still plumping for the younger daughter though I think either mom or David is covering tor her and not big sister. Kid is a sociopath.

[cooksdelight]

I think the younger daughter also. She seems so torn up about what happened. I figure she and the boy had some kind of falling out, she shoved him or hit him with something. But then I think, why was she out there with him at night? He was killed at night or very early in the morning, right? Maybe he was killed when dad was off getting drunk after fighting with mom and that sent the little girl outside to get away from it all.

I think Mom figured it out and is covering or her, by framing Dad. Everything she's done thus far suggests she wants Dad to be blamed for it.

[mertensia]

Yeah the kid being sent outside to play makes sense - then she runs across Dead Boy Whose Name I Can't Remember. Was he hiding from his mom fighting with Scott on the phone, maybe?

[dogfish]

I think the murder had to occur either late at night or early morning, or the parents of both the boy and the younger daughter would have noticed that they were not in bed.  Did they sneak out to meet?  Daughter knows Dad has a flashlight in his truck and borrows it.  Some thing happens in the woods and she clocks him.

Edited March 9, 2015 by dogfish

[Sammich63]

I also tend to think it's the younger daughter.  When she realizes that Tom is her half brother, she appears to show lots of remorse.  I think she was jealous of the attention Tom was getting from her dad since she appears to be a daddy's girl.  

[Eegah]

I'm thinking Jess. She hated Ben for breaking off their affair after just one night, and ultimately got desperate enough to use their son to manufacture a way to get him back into her life. She didn't mean to kill him, but when that's what happened she couldn't accept her own responsibility and now fully blames Ben enough to want him to go down for it.

Edited March 9, 2015 by Eegah

[dogfish]

Ben seemed to be slightly sympathetic toward Scott at the cemetery.  Any chance they team-up to catch the killer or is Scott going to Leavenworth for being AWOL?

 

ETA - the developmentally challenged boy - red herring or will he play a role somehow...perhaps a witness unable to speak and tell people what he saw?

Edited March 9, 2015 by dogfish

[Dagny]

Going for the long shot... I think its the boy with the speaker and I think the mother is helping cover it up. Nobody expects the red herring.

[LeGrandElephant]

One of the most confusing things about this show is that Jess appears to be on Ben's side, but everyone else is against him. Why would the neighborhood be so against him when the mother of the victim isn't? I wonder if that's bad writing, or if it's pointing to her being two faced and not really being on his side. Have we ever seen her with him in public, or only inside her house? Maybe when he's not around she's telling other people she does suspect him. That would point to her as the perp.

[jbrecken]

The murderous flashlight looks like a Maglite. Maglites are popular with law-enforcement types. I think a cop did it, but probably not Juliette.

[Chairperson Meow]

I vote Ben's wife.

[Notwisconsin]

The Comic relief, but I'm probably wrong.

[imjagain]

Ben seemed to be slightly sympathetic toward Scott at the cemetery. Any chance they team-up to catch the killer or is Scott going to Leavenworth for being AWOL?

ETA - the developmentally challenged boy - red herring or will he play a role somehow...perhaps a witness unable to speak and tell people what he saw?

I keep wondering about this too.

Every time I see Melissa Gilbert I think she has to have a bigger role in this, right?

Timothy Busfield (?) Her husband is a producer.

Any way I thought she mentioned another son. hmmm I think she is involved? That's what I'm thinking, but have nothing to back it up :)

Edited March 15, 2015 by imjagain

[Chairperson Meow]

Who is Tyler? He's got to play a bigger part in this. The way that mom was denying Tyler was around seemed hinky.

[nb360]

I think it's the wife or the friend, Dave. Someone had to give him something that made him forget the night.

[mwell345]

 

Who is Tyler? He's got to play a bigger part in this. The way that mom was denying Tyler was around seemed hinky.

 

After last night, I'm thinking maybe Tyler too.  I lost focus for a few minutes but wasn't he involved in a hit and run?  Do we know anything more about that? I think Melissa Gilbert covered it up.  Since Tyler seems to be the only one who can handle Matt, she doesn't want him going away?

 

But then, is he already away at college?

 

I don't know. : )

Edited March 23, 2015 by mwell345

[Chairperson Meow]

Yeah. Every episode is now about marking a suspect off the list. So far, not suspects are: NotDad (Scott), Tyler, Matt (Autistic kid), Dr English Neighbor & Wife, Natalie (oldest daughter).

What we know about the night Tom died:

Killer had a blue jacket, Ben remembers nothing, Dave says he remembers nothing, but was able to answer Det's questions, Dave picked up a girl, it rained, Killer left Tom in the woods, Tom died from blunt force trauma, Ben drank a lot and ran on a day he didn't usually, Ben found Tom, Ben and Christy got in a "huge" fight

My theory:

Christy, Dave have to know more than what they're letting on. Jess has to know more too.

[Fable]

I think it's the wife.  I immediately thought Dave (the best friend) was Hinky from day #1 so that is why I have to rule him out...too obvious.  I don't believe Ben's kids could be involved (although I like the younger daughter for this) because I don't believe an ABC show at the 9 o-clock hour would involve a murderous child.  I don't think Ben did it, since he seems to be the point of view character and we see everything through his eyes.  I don't buy the peripheral characters since they are not part of the main story, so it has to be someone we already know and know well!  But I might buy the neighbor guy who seems to have a grudge, although only half heartedly! 

[LeGrandElephant]

Crazy theory: maybe Ben witnessed the murder, and whoever did it somehow tricked him into drinking something with a roofie in it, to wipe his memory. But, he subconsciously remembers, and that's why he wakes up early and goes running that way without realizing why.

[nb360]

In another section, someone suggested the wife and detective having an affair:

 

I thought this, too!  Can you say more about why you think this? This would give new weight to the way Chistry was "helping" the detective.

Edited March 25, 2015 by nb360

[Rick Kitchen]

We've never seen the "client" who keeps giving Christy stuff and whom she keeps meeting, and Cornell is so stiff to Ben.  That's just a throwaway theory.

[Mngirl77]

I also think it was the young daughter thought that from the start. She is a psychopath

[FineWashables]

I agree that the younger daughter is a sociopath, and I'd be all in on her being the murderer, BUT... as mentioned upthread, Melissa Gilbert is a major star and so far, she hasn't been given much to do. So it kinda has to be her. I know on any show I watch, the most recognizable guest star is always the perp.  So how about this: she found her autistic son molesting the little kid and had to kill the kid to protect her son.  Now I just have to figure out how they all got the kid into the woods.

Edited April 14, 2015 by FineWashables

[sjohnson]

The first question is who has a motive. Although Cornell has fixated on Ben, he has no motive. He wasn't trapped into responsibility for Tom yet he enjoyed many of the benefits of his company. And by all official reports, his paternity wasn't a potential problem for the family until Christy knew of the cheating, reportedly revealed the night of the murder. But we saw Ben try to deal with the revelation of his paternity by simple denial. He couldn't bring himself to tell Christy even after he knew it was coming out on TV. This is not the kind of proactive response planning and executing the murder of Tom is. Cornell knows this of course. Maybe it's one reason she hasn't arrested? I don't believe it in the commit a premeditated, murder then blank it out your mind scenario. And I think what they've showed us rules out Ben's conscious deception. In particular the reappearance of the flashlight makes no sense at all if Ben was the murderer.

 

Christy has the motive of vengeance on the husband she's cheating on (only after the murder she says,)  and bitterly resents and despises him about money/failure. But the bottom line has to be why it's not just enough to cheat and dump, and Christy very much wants to be a bottom line, business-like thinker. It's true that's kind of sociopathic or at least ruthless, but still. The risks are a terrible downside.

 

Natalie is more or less a teen ball of rage. But she doesn't seem to sustain any emotion for very long. And she certainly doesn't seem to think. I don't think she cared enough about Tom to do any worse to him than neglect him. Especially I can't see that she would really care very much about a half-brother's appearance in the family. She would just have one more person to not think about. That is not a great burden.

 

Abby is clearly fixated on Ben as the emotionally supportive parent. But it does appear that Ben is the emotionally supportive parent, which means that wouldn't be pathological but realistically oriented. She has a pattern of eavesdropping, which may mean she may have known very early about Tom. And she has a quick temper. But why would she put the flashlight back? 

 

Dave also has access to means and possibly opportunity, if his pickup occurred later. (I don't think the show has said.) But Dave has no motive. Much as he like rent free he didn't really need it. And his friendship with Ben appears to be the most important and only permanent emotional relationship outside of mother, that really isn't a motive to kill Tom. Also, Dave is smart enough to realize that Ben would have to be a suspect, even if he couldn't predict Cornell's instant certainty.

 

Law of casting says Melissa Gilbert either did it or knows some key piece of evidence that explains it all. 

[LeGrandElephant]

Have we ruled out the possibility that Jess did it and is framing Ben?

Also, how do we know it was premeditated? Maybe Jess did it in a fit of rage and now regrets it, and carried the body out there after doing it?

[sjohnson]

^^^Lack of blood trail in the house, for one thing. Circumstantially, faking an accident makes more sense than dumping the body on a trail, unless the purpose was to display it to Ben. Why Jess is ruled out is still a huge withhold, though. T

[LeGrandElephant]

I just feel like they didn't go into the forensics enough. For example, some head wounds bleed a lot, but some would produce mostly internal bleeding and a blood trail wouldn't be an issue. I may have missed it because I've been watching less and less closely the last few episodes, but I don't remember them ruling out the idea that he was hit over the head somewhere else and moved, or explaining why Jess isn't a serious suspect.

[damalanop]

I'm starting to be really suspicious of Jess' sister. Wasn't she sleeping with Scott? Perhaps she thought Scott would leave Jess for her if Tom were out of the way. It definitely seems like Scott stayed around for Tom not because he was in love with Jess. Crazy theory, but a bit more palatable than Abby being the murderer. Although so many signs point to that, I just can't stomach it.

Edited April 20, 2015 by damalanop

[Chairperson Meow]

I'm beginning to suspect Christie's brother. He's got to be the one supplying her with cash. She probably called him the night of the fight and he drove over. You know, just like she drove over there after she aborted the baby without telling Ben.

[sjohnson]

I'm starting to be really suspicious of Jess' sister. Wasn't she sleeping with Scott? Perhaps she thought Scott would leave Jess for her if Tom were out of the way. It definitely seems like Scott stayed around for Tom not because he was in love with Jess. Crazy theory, but a bit more palatable than Abby being the murderer. Although so many signs point to that, I just can't stomach it.

I really like this but I can't see a way around Scott's alibi for her. 

[damalanop]

I really like this but I can't see a way around Scott's alibi for her.

Ahhhh! So they were together that night too? I missed that detail. That's what I get for half-watching. Thanks for filling in that blank for me!

[buckbuck]

I've been pretty sure it was Abby since about Ep 3.

 

She quite the little spy, always eavesdropping on people's conversations and knowing her way into her sister's laptop. She has impulsive anger that she acts immediately acts upon. She's shown concern a few times about whether they've found out who killed Tom. She had access to Natalie's key to the Murphy house. She had access to Ben's flashlight. (Which, by the way, I think she returned because she knew her dad was in trouble because it was missing, but didn't realize that she put him in an even worse position by doing so because of the forensics on it.) She had the opportunity to follow Ben & Matty and pick up the blue jacket.

 

I had thought long ago that the fight Ben & Christy had that night was about his infidelity and that Abby heard it and was scared to lose her dad.

 

If you have access to all the past episodes try rewatching them specifically watching Abby and her reactions: how she was  worried that first time Cornell came to the house; how she was so quick to go look at the flashlight photos that Cornell brought early on; her grief when she found out Tom was her brother; her quick temper, shown by the shoving match she got into with that boy at the Christmas Fair, her yelling at Cornell, and dropping the cookies she'd made for the party; her worry when the police came to search the house; how she was returning from outside after Ben brought Matty home (I think she was coming back from hiding the blue jacket in the guest house which Dave had already vacated). And I'm wondering what other incidents we haven't seen or heard about yet which may have been part of the reason that none of the other parents wanted her at the girl's party -- had the other kids seen odd and/or violent behaviour from her? Why isn't her best friend from last year not her friend this year? (Although what Ben said about that was true - that that kind of thing happens a lot with girls of that age.)

 

I'm wondering if Christy is a bit nuts and if Abby has inherited it from her.

[Jfplnkt11]

After hearing her parents fighting about how Ben cheated on Christy with Jess, Abby watches as Ben leaves the house and, in a stage of panic and extreme concern, waits for him to return. As Ben returns from a night out drinking with Dave, Abby hears the taxi pull up and watches him get out, only to see Ben go over to Jess' house instead of returning home. Being an extremely concerned child, she grabs a flashlight and goes across the street to see what Ben is doing there. She sees Ben putting Tom to sleep and acting fatherly towards him, and fears that Ben will leave his own family in exchange for one with Jess and Tom. As Ben leaves, Abby gets in and somehow tricks Tom into going with her to the trail where Ben takes his morning runs, where she kills Tom using the flashlight she grabbed from her garage (Ben's), knowing that Ben will see him there and, in her childish naivety, be dissuaded to leave his family because of Tom's death or because of the simple fact that she believes Jess will move from the house across the street and the Crawford's will live happily ever after.

[Jfplnkt11]

That is a theory I had come to a few episodes into the season and it just kept expanding and looking more and more obvious every week. I hope I'm wrong but I have a bad feeling that my guess is spot on

[DVizzo]

You're all missing the big picture and the one person nobody has susoected. A killer wanting to get away with itnsnd conceal their guilt is one who hides in plain sight by being on their best behavior and it showing major transformation from bad behavior or lashing out to to good behavior and putting up a front. Innocent people get angry or mad when accused of something they know they didn't do. Whos behavior has shifted from bad to good and loving and caring and from rebellion to I now listen and take advice. This is the only person who could've killed tom with the means, know how, motive defintily after the fight and seeing Ben go to jesses and 99.9 percent went and saw him tuck tom in and play tooth fairy making assumption tom is your son at the time which was a mere coincidence it turned out to be true. They had hatred for jess and sense of betrayal after being loyal and helpful for so long. They had access to the murphey house which if the killer witnessed Ben and Tom they noticed he entered the back door and locked the door as he left the house so this person needed "their" key one could say which by the esy where is the key to the murphey house the Crawford's have? Perhaps the killer dropped it from their persons accidentally when in the act if killing tom and since it was raining lost an buried in the mud undiscovered until season finale I bet with guess who's prints on it considering if killer used key they'd be last one to touch it. But also the flashlight doesn't have to be replaced by the killer. Either killer did to implicate Ben as blsme for their families travesties or perhaps s young one saw her sister follow dad to jess murpheys when Ben left the cab and wanted to see what he was up to. Saw DSD cover jess tuck tom in plsy dad and tooth fairy and assume he's been lying when he said it was 1 time you're his dad and know it and are banging jess for 6 years and you live a double life and how betrayed she'd feel by Ben and jess whom she donates her time watching tom while mamma is banging my dad. Explains why tom would not be alarmed if she woke him saying something like he tom your Dad is outside and really misses you and wants to see you. Since tom just told Ben about his dad not caring. When Ben leaves she beats him home sneaks out later and as she gets the flashlight Abbey wakes or already awake planning on catching Santa this year looks out to see Natalie sneak out and taking dad's flsshlight going back to toms and going in then sees her leave with tom and then returns without him. Figuring it out sister killed tom from mornings events Abbey knows Natalie did it and DaD is suspect cud they can't find the flsshlight . knowing Nat has it somewhere searching like she's searching for presents finds it and in s hurried rush tosses it in dads truck not realizing forensics or it was murder weapon not taking s close look st it. She knows Dad didn't do it and doesn't want him in prison but also sister did and I have to protect the guilty and save the innocent which explains Abby's suspicion of guilt. Not did she did it did she knows who. I don't think nat is aware Abby knows. When Cornell visits Natalie to question at home Cornell says I just need to ask you s few questions and her response is "do they have to be in here?" Cornell replies yes you're a minor. Natalie thought she'd been caught and was going to confess and didn't want mom and Dad to be tortured by hearing it. When she is asked about 2 nights before his death and pawning tom to Vanessa a sigh of relief she conceals well. She also told Tyler and thsts cud you didn't kill anybody. But why is she so sure? Cruz she did. It explains the first 3 episodes with her anger and acting out having sex partying getting drunk dating 21 year old she's banging. She's living it up before she gets popped for murder. Realizing only later my Dad is actually telling the truth like Abby swears he never lies and that he only slept with jess 1 time and didn't honestly know tom was his. She also is 2nd theory for returning flashlight wanting to frame Dad out of snger. She may have told Dave about her killing tom when drunk cuz shortly after he has a sudden interest in the returned flashligt and disposal of it protecting Natalie and Ben whom both he loves and care for like family. But can't tell Ben of cours . Ben is going to find blue jacket abbey picked up in the guest house and reelaize it was Abby and before he can confront her there's Cornell Ben caught red hande . Instead of spilling the beans like he's been waiting for to rub in her face. This is not the way he pictures this moment and takes the fall protecting Abby whom cornell suspects. Cornell doesn't believe but he insists by providing location of flashlight and forces Cornell's hand to make an arrest. Persistsnt and not buying it after he remembered everything with the tooth if toms that can confirm she knows he's covering. Returns to crime scene only to find the KEY piece of evidence. The Crawford's Key to the Murphy's with none other than Natalie s prints on it. And we finally see what happened to tom from her account and her confession and Ben is released assuming they arrested Abby only to learn it was Natalie that abby was covering for which implied her guilt that made Ben sacrifice himself for the girls livelihood cuz he's s great father they mention all the tim . Ben covered uktimstly cuz he feels soley responsible for toms death by his actions with jess. If it's not the missing key they find it'll be Natalie's clothes she had on that night with toms blood cuz those have to be somewhere or her shoes. Only thing i can't Tie together is how Cornell knew the killer was wearing s blue jacket which matty had? If she knew of its existence surely she would've had it in evidence locked awa . How could she know if evidence like an article if distsnct color if she never knew it existed or the killer had it? My only thought is based on toms attire he was found dead in when sesrching jess Murphy's house for anything unusual noticing her blue rain jacket like toms is missing so cornell asked Dave if Ben had one and kept that between her and jess. Only thing I can think of. Other than that case closed. Its the only scenario that explains everyone's behavior accurately from all of them. Bottom line Natalie is your killer

[Jillybean]

KaDee Strickland was on Good Morning America just now, and she said they shot multiple endings and she doesn't even know who the killer will turn out to be.

[RedInk]

Maybe I'm overthinking it, but I can't see an adult taking a kid into the woods and bludgeoning him with a flashlight as a premeditated act. Its much easier for me to believe a kid would do that...in an argument, maybe not meaning to kill him. I'm going with the youngest daughter.

[joshmaeks]

Maybe I'm overthinking it, but I can't see an adult taking a kid into the woods and bludgeoning him with a flashlight as a premeditated act. Its much easier for me to believe a kid would do that...in an argument, maybe not meaning to kill him. I'm going with the youngest daughter.

Agreed. This is why I don't think Ben's wife is the killer. This show has really been stressing me out. I just want to know who did it! And it better make sense when they finally tell us!

[chlban]

I think everything on the show is pointing to it being the wife. Since I totally hate her, I'm good with that, and yeah, I can almost see her beating an innocent child. However, because everything is pointing there, I don't think it will be her.

 

I also see the logic in the arguments about it being the younger daughter, but I really don' think ABC  will go there. It's awfully dark for network TV. It's dark for Cable.

 

So, I really lean to the theory that Melissa Gilbert is here for a reason. I don't think there is a single thing pointing to her, but I have a feeling it will be her.

[truthaboutluv]

I think between tonight's episode and the synopsis for the season finale, they've all but given it away that it's Abby, the younger daughter, who killed Tom. And I think, not surprisingly, Ben will confess, to save her.

[Spartan Girl]

I agree that it's Abby, and will go a step further and say that Christy helped her cover it up. Her behavior has been suspicious and she was WAY too defensive when Cornell questioned her at the brother's house.

[DaWhits]

My bet is on Abby. She's been so super-supportive of her father from Day 1. And, her emotional states are volatile. Plus, there's the repeat act of her eavesdropping on conversations, which could very likely have fueled her suspicions and (if she did, in fact, witness Ben reading a bedtime story to Tom and showing him fatherly love after such an awful fight with her mother) her intent to coax him out of bed with the purpose of drowning him in the river. She knew him well enough to know he couldn't swim. And the blood spatter analysis likely revealed the height of the killer, which - if lower than normal - points to a child. And we don't have many key characters of a non-adult height to choose from. It will be interesting to see how this actually pans out. Im not 100% convinced it's Abby, but if I had to put money on it.....

PS: I like the idea mentioned earlier that Ben would fess up if Abby is charged. Hadn't considered that, but very likely.

[chlban]

I just think Abby is too obvious, I can't see them going there, but obviously I could be wrong. I definitely see Ben confessing if it is Abby though. That totally fits. 

 

I wonder what they plan to do with this after the reveal? Are they going to follow How to Get Away With Murder, by giving us another murder? Or are they going to start all over again with a whole new central cast?   

 

Based on the ratings, it looks like this could get renewed, so they must be considering these things.

[GaiusB]

It have to be Abby, the analysis and two scenes where Cornell watch Abby while she is with her parents point on her. Also if it was somebody else, he/she would be arrested quickly, there would be no drama in the finale. But with Abby - a kid murderer being held captive by Jess - mentally unstable mother of the victim there is some good potential.

 

chlban, i heard they plan to continue with Cornell on another crime, which is lol. Most unpleasant character of the show will be only one who will remain for the season 2. If its true i hope they will humanise her somehow, they should probably use her estranged daughter for that.

[Sammich63]

If there is enough evidence to arrest Abby, then how can Ben confess and be arrested? After watching CornellConfidential, I have to stick with my original theory that it's Abby who killed Tom.

[GracieK]

Remember last episode when Natalie said she was going to teach Tom to swim... maybe that's pointing to her.

[CountryCrazy]

My guess is that Abby will be revealed to the audience but Ben will take the blame covering for her which would put Ben and Cornell at odds going into Season 2 ! I think Season 2 might focus on Cornell working to get Abby arrested !

[GracieK]

Abby also mentioned, in that  Cornell Confidential (not last episode) right before Natalie pointed out she was going to teach him to swim, that Tom did everything with Ben except swim because he was afraid to... seems like she may have pointed out that specific detail because she was trying to lure him down to the water but Tom tried to run away because he was scared of it, and Abby chased him and then clocked him with the flashlight she was carrying to light the path.

 

Also, this last Cornell Confidential mentions a sexual assault that is being reported on Ben's street right as they are sending a cruiser over the Jess/Abby situation.. wonder what that is all about.

[Chairperson Meow]

in the trailer for "The Lie", Jess screams "He raped me!" Also, she's led away by police.