All Episodes Discussion

[TVbitch]

Even if they can't prove murder, the two are definitely guilty of tampering with the crime scene and the body. And giving false statements to police. And the guy of trying to steal his money. 

The girlfriend seems like a piece of work. Her poem... ugh. 

And WTF with all these people who threaten to kill or destroy other people on social media. 

[mythoughtis]

I don’t know why people in social media have lost all sense of decorum or courtesy, let alone make threats.  I can make comments on here giving my opinion of a case.  I might  even mention that I think a  person should lose their job....but I would never threaten someone.  This is what is wrong with our country right this minute. 
who thinks it’s ok to run people off the road or shoot at a car?  Taking the law in their own hands? 
as to this case, I don’t know what to think.  It could have been suicidal, accidental, or murder.  Right up until that guy went to the bank.  Either the young man was suicidal and giving away money( inwhich case you call 911 because that’s an obvious sign) or  the guy was trying to rob a deceased person.  Which tells me he wasn’t a  friend. 

Edited January 11, 2021 by mythoughtis

[Annber03]

Yeah, a lot of people like to think they're big, tough, badasses online. It's easy to put on that front when you can hide behind some kind of anonymity. 

[sainte-chapelle]

On 1/10/2021 at 1:59 PM, TVbitch said:

Even if they can't prove murder, the two are definitely guilty of tampering with the crime scene and the body. And giving false statements to police. And the guy of trying to steal his money. 

The girlfriend seems like a piece of work. Her poem... ugh. 

And WTF with all these people who threaten to kill or destroy other people on social media. 

Those two are guilty of something. The girlfriend comes off as a disgusting selfish person. I think her and her mother are trying to paint him as abusive to take the heat off of her. He is dead and cannot defend himself, disgusting. Plus try tried to rob the guy. 

[Court]

They're clearly guilty of something. At first, I could see both sides but it's obvious to me it's not a clear cut case of suicide. I don't think he committed suicide either but perhaps the murder wasn't intentional. 

Why was there no prints on the gun?

[Vivigirl10]

Quote

Parents always want to think their child could not be suicidal.  Sadly parents do not always know what is going on with their child. I think it could have been suicide.  Or there was a fight over the gun when he was threatening to use it.  It could have been accidental.  

Parents opinions about their children are generally pretty useless.  In this case, you have the Mom's of the two who are accused.  The young man's Mom was going all "Momma Bear" about the situation.  Together, you hear them sing the praises of their perfect offspring.  All you had to do was look at and listen to the daughter/girlfriend to tell something was clearly off there.  But the victim's parents can be just as unreliable, although it's harder to think that way.  Christian may not have been suicidal but he could have been a little unhinged in his relationship and could have put a gun to his head for the purpose of being dramatic.  His parents may not have ever seen that side of him.  Overall, I think something fishy went down because of the credit union withdrawal, for sure.  

This must have been an oldie because it was on 48 Hours/ID, but did anyone catch "Reuschel vs. Reuschel"?  I'd never heard of this case before!  It left me stumped.  A rich married couple, a huge knife fight, wife ends up almost dead, but you really don't know who was truly the aggressor!  The wife had been arrested for dometic violence in the past.  She seemed like a kook and the husband appeared stable.  But then his story of the attack really didn't make much sense when he described them laying bloody in the bed after the first go-round of stabbing, discussing for hours their plans for their next trip.  What???  But one of the biggest highlights was the husband's daughter and her "we went over the budget by $150,000" wedding.  She had the absolute worst case of vocal fry I have ever heard.  Paired with the fact that it took her about a minute to get every. single. word. out.  What a piece of work!  It was a fascinating case.  

[LittleIggy]

Denton, TX: Wow, that was so sad. Wrong place, wrong time for that poor girl. That guy was a genuine psychopath.

[Madding crowd]

That guy was really creepy. One thing I didn’t understand was when the show and police kept saying Jackie and Caitlin looked so much alike he might have confused them at first. They looked nothing alike! 

[Koalagirl]

1 hour ago, Madding crowd said:

That guy was really creepy. One thing I didn’t understand was when the show and police kept saying Jackie and Caitlin looked so much alike he might have confused them at first. They looked nothing alike! 

I think at the time of the murder both girls had blonde hair.  He could have been extremely intoxicated and the blonde hair was a trigger. Caitlin even had blonde hair when they showed her testifying which the judge didn’t allow the jury to see.

[LittleIggy]

23 minutes ago, Koalagirl said:

I think at the time of the murder both girls had blonde hair.  He could have been extremely intoxicated and the blonde hair was a trigger. Caitlin even had blonde hair when they showed her testifying which the judge didn’t allow the jury to see.

I don’t think he was extremely intoxicated. They went to another bar and hung out with other people for awhile. He is a psychopath, and, after being reminded of Caitlyn, decided to use Jackie to send a message to Caitlyn. Remember the whole post-mortem Facebook friending thing? Just my opinion.

Edited January 17, 2021 by LittleIggy

[LakeGal]

I did not think they looked anything alike.  They had completely different body types.  It said the victim was 59 inches tall.  She was also kind of curvy.  The ex was tall and super skinny.  They were both females.  I guess that was all they needed.  

[Madding crowd]

I agree he was trying to send a message to Caitlin, but not because he thought Jackie looked like her or mistook her for Caitlin. 

[Josiemae]

What a sad case. That public defender was a piece of work. 

[TVbitch]

That serial killer specialist interrogator was so skilled. It was amazing to watch him work. 

Caitlin needs therapy stat if she is thinking that she would have rather it be her and would trade places with the victim if she could. This is not her fault. She actually did all the right things. 

[BusyOctober]

Just watched “The 30 Year Secret”, and I am outraged by the “friend” Dawn who kept the secret.  She is a horrible, selfish woman.  I just cannot believe she had zero scruples and lacked any remorse for what she had done. Even though Carl seems like he was an asshole husband to Tracey, he deserves at least an apology from Dawn.  I was just itching to slap Dawn’s smirking face when she was explaining her reasons for protecting her own murdering husband, and letting Carl face years of suspicion and gossip.  She was looking out for her own best interests, and didn’t want to disrupt her “happy” family life.  
 

She seemed so condescending when she was saying how Tracey wouldn’t leave Carl because she wanted that idealistic family, and thought if she just rode out the difficult times, all would be well. Well, you stupid cow, you did the exact same thing!! You stayed with a fucking murder (who probably did proposition Tracey for an affair), then kept your mouth shut so your life wouldn’t get messy.  And Dawn’s fake emotion when she was describing how after she came clean to her kids, that they took the news with “love and forgiveness “.  Of course they did....those now adult children were raised by a murderer dad  and a mom with no empathy or conscience, so their sense of morality is in the trash can with their parents. I am glad the real murder was finally caught, but man, do I wish there was a charge the cops and DA a could make stick to Dawn.  Horrible person.

[Ashforth]

1 hour ago, BusyOctober said:

Just watched “The 30 Year Secret”, and I am outraged by the “friend” Dawn who kept the secret.  She is a horrible, selfish woman.  I just cannot believe she had zero scruples and lacked any remorse for what she had done. Even though Carl seems like he was an asshole husband to Tracey, he deserves at least an apology from Dawn.  I was just itching to slap Dawn’s smirking face when she was explaining her reasons for protecting her own murdering husband, and letting Carl face years of suspicion and gossip.  She was looking out for her own best interests, and didn’t want to disrupt her “happy” family life.  
 

She seemed so condescending when she was saying how Tracey wouldn’t leave Carl because she wanted that idealistic family, and thought if she just rode out the difficult times, all would be well. Well, you stupid cow, you did the exact same thing!! You stayed with a fucking murder (who probably did proposition Tracey for an affair), then kept your mouth shut so your life wouldn’t get messy.  And Dawn’s fake emotion when she was describing how after she came clean to her kids, that they took the news with “love and forgiveness “.  Of course they did....those now adult children were raised by a murderer dad  and a mom with no empathy or conscience, so their sense of morality is in the trash can with their parents. I am glad the real murder was finally caught, but man, do I wish there was a charge the cops and DA a could make stick to Dawn.  Horrible person.

I was watching this last night and as soon as Dawn smirked that she blew up the case against Carl because she'd been keeping a secret for thirty years, I knew the secret would be that her own husband killed Tracey. She seemed proud of herself, when in fact she allowed Tracey's family and Carl to suffer for THIRTY YEARS because she was too cowardly to tell the truth. That is nothing to be proud of.

On a shallow note, in the photo they used from back in the day of Tracey's mom with the baby daughter, Tracey's mom bore an amazing resemblance to Mama from Mama's Family. Almost everyone else (Tracey and Dawn especially) seemed to have really bad/missing teeth. Meth? Or poverty and lack of access to dental care?

This was such a sad case. When they talked about Tracey's fear of going into the water, and that she drowned, it sent chills up my spine. It's like she knew what would happen to her someday.

On 1/10/2021 at 5:15 PM, Annber03 said:

Yeah, a lot of people like to think they're big, tough, badasses online. It's easy to put on that front when you can hide behind some kind of anonymity. 

Keyboard Warriors.

[sempervivum]

45 minutes ago, Ashforth said:

Almost everyone else (Tracey and Dawn especially) seemed to have really bad/missing teeth. Meth? Or poverty and lack of access to dental care?

Yeah, I think poverty alone is probably the answer. I was glad to see that Caroline (?),Tracy's daughter, seemed to have good teeth, in fact she was very striking looking. I didn't blame her for not wanting to talk to self-righteous Dawn.

2 hours ago, BusyOctober said:

I wish there was a charge the cops and DA a could make stick to Dawn.

Yes, it always amazes me that not reporting a crime isn't illegal (in most states).

[TVbitch]

Why on earth would Dawn want to be on camera? She had to know how bad she would come off. Maybe she couldn't resist being on TV.

What a piece of work. She was pregnant and wanted to keep her family in tact because her child "deserved a mother and a father." Um, so you want to have a murderer around your baby? Having a killer for a father is better than no father? It's beyond comprehension. 

At least she flat out admitted she chose herself and her happiness over doing the right thing by Tracey or by Carl. She didn't seem that repentent though.

This case is kinda scary because I was all ready to convict Carl! And it seems everyone else was, too!

[Steph J]

9 hours ago, BusyOctober said:

You stayed with a fucking murder (who probably did proposition Tracey for an affair), then kept your mouth shut so your life wouldn’t get messy. 

I 100% believe that he accidentally killed her while trying to rape her.  Dawn's claim is that he came home and said (this is from the transcript CBS posted)"I accidentally hurt her and now she's dead." "Who?" "Tracey." … "What happened?" … "I went over to Carl's to talk to Carl, Carl wasn't there. I talked to Tracey. I tried to talk her into leaving him. She got mad at me. We had a fight. We tussled and I accidentally hurt her and now she's dead." Mmm hmm, really.  She entered into a physical fight with you because you suggested that she leave her husband (something a lot of people probably suggested). Right, believable.

And while Dawn obviously has issues with the truth, the version that Jeff told to the police (that he and Tracey were having an affair, they got into an argument while in the river because she wanted them to leave their respective spouses for each other, and then she "went down and didn't come back up") is clearly full of lies and the investigator later gets him to admit that he pushed her under the water.

1 hour ago, TVbitch said:

What a piece of work. She was pregnant and wanted to keep her family in tact because her child "deserved a mother and a father."

And how many years of their children's lives did they actually have their family in tact, given that he spent a few years in prison?

[Madding crowd]

Dawn was a horrible person and a horrible friend. Why would she believe her husband would go to her friends house to talk her into leaving her husband? And why in the world would someone ‘tussle’ to the point of death? I also believe he was trying to rape Tracey and she fought back.

I feel bad the daughter grew up thinking her dad was a murderer. I hope she can find some peace and if I were her I would tell Dawn to go to hell.

[UsernameFatigue]

On 1/24/2021 at 2:05 PM, TVbitch said:

Why on earth would Dawn want to be on camera? She had to know how bad she would come off. Maybe she couldn't resist being on TV.

What a piece of work. She was pregnant and wanted to keep her family in tact because her child "deserved a mother and a father." Um, so you want to have a murderer around your baby? Having a killer for a father is better than no father? It's beyond comprehension. 

At least she flat out admitted she chose herself and her happiness over doing the right thing by Tracey or by Carl. She didn't seem that repentent though.

This case is kinda scary because I was all ready to convict Carl! And it seems everyone else was, too!

Not only did she protect the father of her baby, but she went on to have three more children with a guy that she knew was a murderer. What a POS. She also let Tracey's daughter believe for 30 years that her father killed her mother. Carl was a lousy husband, but maybe had Dawn told the truth years ago, Carolyn could have had a relationship with her father, of some sort. 

At least the prosecutor admitted how scary it was that they had come so close to putting the wrong man on trial for Tracey's murder. Yes, he was an abusive husband, but I am still shocked that they thought they had enough to convict Carl, when they really had nothing tying him to the murder. If it was not for the fact that the prosecutor noticed the report where Dawn had said years ago that Carl had choked Tracey, Dawn would never have come forward and told the truth. 

Edited January 29, 2021 by UsernameFatigue

[sainte-chapelle]

Wow, Dawn is a garbage person. Yea how loving is that murdering would be rapist dad? She blames the cops for not asking the right questions? She is such a piece of garbage. Carl was a bad person but he didn’t kill her and he walked around with that stigma for 30 years. She is a sociopath...birds of a feather and all that. “Think of the children” bitch you got pregnant twice after you knew he is a murderer. I’m sorry her kids forgave her. I wish they cut her out of their lives.

Edited January 30, 2021 by sainte-chapelle

[sainte-chapelle]

On 1/24/2021 at 6:42 PM, Steph J said:

I 100% believe that he accidentally killed her while trying to rape her.  Dawn's claim is that he came home and said (this is from the transcript CBS posted)"I accidentally hurt her and now she's dead." "Who?" "Tracey." … "What happened?" … "I went over to Carl's to talk to Carl, Carl wasn't there. I talked to Tracey. I tried to talk her into leaving him. She got mad at me. We had a fight. We tussled and I accidentally hurt her and now she's dead." Mmm hmm, really.  She entered into a physical fight with you because you suggested that she leave her husband (something a lot of people probably suggested). Right, believable.

And while Dawn obviously has issues with the truth, the version that Jeff told to the police (that he and Tracey were having an affair, they got into an argument while in the river because she wanted them to leave their respective spouses for each other, and then she "went down and didn't come back up") is clearly full of lies and the investigator later gets him to admit that he pushed her under the water.

And how many years of their children's lives did they actually have their family in tact, given that he spent a few years in prison?

Classic case of trying to demonize the victim. I think he knew her husband wasn’t home and stopped by to try to start a sexual relationship with her. He probably lured her to the river under a ruse...she turned him down and he attacked her. Dawn is almost smug about her husband wanting to protect his family....arg....human garbage the two of them.

[Court]

I'm watching the Jennifer Dulos case and all I can think of is I've never loved someone enough enough to help them murder or aid them in covering up a murder. I'm dumping you then. Not helping you!

[CraftyHazel]

I’m watching the case with Dawn-the-lying-POS right now.  How can she possibly justify...even to herself...what she did?!  And I’m sorry, but there need to be stronger laws for something like this.  How can she not be charged with aiding and abetting or conspiracy after the fact, or concealment of a crime??  She’s dreadful.

Edited February 14, 2021 by CraftyHazel

[sempervivum]

Too bad the Reuschels didn't manage to kill each other. I can't blame the jury for the guilty verdict, though. He should have reported the physical abuse and then could have claimed the murder attempt was self defense (which I don't think it was).

His daughter was an odd one and seemed to be soaking up the attention. And I'm pretty sure it wasn't Daddy who insisted on spending $150K (!!!) on her wedding.

 

[MsJamieDornan]

1 hour ago, sempervivum said:

His daughter was an odd one

I wanted to rip my ears off listening to her speak.

[basiltherat]

On the picture of daughter R and step mommy, I couldn't tell them apart!  Are they trying to tell us that Daddy R married step because he couldn't do his daughter?!  He was creepy but I do think that his wife did beat him up.  In fact, I would go on to say that the three of them were all sacks of garbage.  And why didn't Daughter #2 have anything to say?  Original wife seemed to be normal, and I wonder if she stayed normal because she dumped the whole lot of them.  And, yeah, the princess' vocal fry and greensleeves was annoying.

[mythoughtis]

The Reuschels  was a repeat.  I didn’t  like any of them either time I watched it.   I believe the  husband did it because his story about the two of them lying on the bed for hours, bloody and stabbed, discussing future travel plans was ridiculous. I hope spoiled princess daughter dearest grows up sometime. 

Edited February 22, 2021 by mythoughtis

[12catcrazy]

Anybody else watch this past episode about Madelaine McCann?  I really hope that the Germans can pin that poor child's disappearance on their suspect.    If the Portuguese police had done their job correctly, maybe this guy would have been caught while the child was still alive.  

It still blows my mind how parents (and these people were Doctors for cryin out loud), could leave 3 very young children by themselves like that.  They said that the group of friends/ parents would take turns every 15 minutes to check on the kids, but as this case proved, tragedy can happen within 15 minutes.  What if there would have been a fire - you couldn't trust a 3 year old to know how to escape that.   I understand that with toddlers, you can turn your back for a minute and the kid can take off, but to leave sleeping children alone in a crowded resort and to leave the door unlocked on top of it....  guess that these people had a different take on childrearing than most Americans do.  

Edited March 2, 2021 by 12catcrazy
typo

[Ellee]

Aniah Blanchard. 
 

I don’t cry anymore. I cried.  Her family is hurting so much.  

Her step-father comes across as one heckuva man.  Her mom is a strong woman. 

No words (decent words) to describe the suspect. 

What was the message at the end regarding the DA?

Off to read....

[LakeGal]

This show might have been about Aniah's murder.  But I felt like they spent more time on the stepdad's UFC career than on the murder.  I was getting annoyed at how much time they spent on the stepdad.  

[Ellee]

23 minutes ago, LakeGal said:

This show might have been about Aniah's murder.  But I felt like they spent more time on the stepdad's UFC career than on the murder.  I was getting annoyed at how much time they spent on the stepdad.  

I have to agree with you on that.  I wonder if it went that way as others didn’t talk too much. 

[Ohmo]

3 hours ago, Ellee said:

I have to agree with you on that.  I wonder if it went that way as others didn’t talk too much. 

I thought it might have been used as filler since this is a relatively new case.  No trial date has been set.  I didn't mind.  I'd rather hear about her stepdad who obviously loved her than the POS that killed her.

I don't follow UFC, but I do follow sports.  I remember hearing that Dana White offered the reward shortly after Aniah was taken. I say put the UFC octagon to good use. Put that POS inside and let some fighters "practice." It's infuriating that we have to waste a trial on the likes of him.  It's abundantly clear what should happen to him.

I not only feel sorry for her family and friends, it is absolutely horrid that she seemed to know this would happen to her one day...and it actually did.

I'm also pissed at that DA.  I liked him. and he seemed to grow close with Aniah's family, but then the episode said he'd been brought up on ethics and other charges, which probably means he won't be allowed to handle this case.

[txhorns79]

3 hours ago, LakeGal said:

This show might have been about Aniah's murder.  But I felt like they spent more time on the stepdad's UFC career than on the murder.  I was getting annoyed at how much time they spent on the stepdad.  

I felt like the stepdad and mom must have demanded some kind of deal in exchange for their interview.  I also noticed they barely acknowledged Aniah's father.  I agree they really did seem overly invested in the stepfather's UFC fighting.  I kind of rolled my eyes that they actually aired him saying that Aniah visited him in a dream and encouraged him to continue fighting.  I wanted to remind the producer that this episode is nominally about the horrible kidnapping and murder of a college student, not her stepfather's fighting career.   

[MerBearHou]

I have never been brought to tears before watching “48 Hours” but this one did.  Precious Aniah getting a little snack just 2 minutes from home.  Drove all that way so she could be home for work the next morning.  So loved and lovely and the heartbreak of her very close family was just tangible through the TV.  That despicable bastard who’d bonded out — I hope he rots in prison.  Just a crushing episode.

[Ellee]

https://thecinemaholic.com/where-is-ibraheem-yazeed-now/

He’s in jail.  He was bonded out for other crimes when Aniah was murdered.  
 

He shouldn’t see the light of day.  Ever. 

[Diana Berry]

On 3/8/2021 at 11:48 PM, MerBearHou said:

I have never been brought to tears before watching “48 Hours” but this one did.  Precious Aniah getting a little snack just 2 minutes from home.  Drove all that way so she could be home for work the next morning.  So loved and lovely and the heartbreak of her very close family was just tangible through the TV.  That despicable bastard who’d bonded out — I hope he rots in prison.  Just a crushing episode.

I had seen this case before, possibly  on Dateline?, but they didn’t use the UFC angle of the stepfather.  Whenever they show someone stopping at a convenience store my heart drops.  Rest In Peace sweet girl.  Bless her family.

 

 

[A.Ham]

Just watched the Aniah story, so terribly sad. She was so young and vibrant and clearly loved by many. My heart goes out to her family. I will never understand how a perpetrator of violent crimes can simply be out on bail. SMH. She should be alive today.

[ketchuplover]

everyone should be autopsied before burial/cremation ...so let it be written ... so let it be done

[Fable]

Did anyone watch last night’s episode about Jonelle Matthews?  I wasn’t quite sure what to make of this story.  My feeling is that Steven Pankey was an obsessed and delusional nutjob with an antisocial or narcissistic personality who enjoyed attention a little too much.  I also think the rake thing could have been and likely was leaked somehow. 

His lawyer also seemed a little too eager to get on camera and spill things about this case, so another attention seeker.  I certainly wouldn’t want him for my attorney. 

[Guest]

1 hour ago, Fable said:

Did anyone watch last night’s episode about Jonelle Matthews?  I wasn’t quite sure what to make of this story.  My feeling is that Steven Pankey was an obsessed and delusional nutjob with an antisocial or narcissistic personality who enjoyed attention a little too much.  I also think the rake thing could have been and likely was leaked somehow. 

His lawyer also seemed a little too eager to get on camera and spill things about this case, so another attention seeker.  I certainly wouldn’t want him for my attorney. 

 I chuckled a bit when he said four times “I should not be showing my defense for this case but....”. Okay, you shouldn’t be showing your defense plan.  So shut up.

He also said his client Pankey “likes to talk a lot”.  So does the attorney apparently.  

The attorney also said that Pankey needs to “keep quiet”.  Hmm....some good advice there.  Why not take it?  

Edited March 28, 2021 by PsychoKlown

[TVbitch]

This episode did not hold my interest. I couldn't really form an opinion as to whether this (weird, unlikable) guy was guilty without hearing all the evidence and the defense (that wasn't spilled by his attorney). At the end it said the trial did not even start until 2021. They should have waited and aired the episode after the trial.   

[Ohmo]

7 hours ago, Fable said:

I also think the rake thing could have been and likely was leaked somehow. 

That wasn't what stuck out to me.  It was the fact that Jonelle's father said that Pankey was a janitor at their church.  Back in the early '80s, abduction was not as high-profile as it is now.  I'm only roughly two years older than Jonelle, and I can tell you, it wasn't emphasized to us like it is now.  Not until after cases like this one started happening.  I can see Pankey going to Jonelle's house, she's alone, but she thinks, "It's the janitor from CHURCH", and she lets him in, thinking she "knows" him, and it's safe to let him in. I can completely buy that he did it.

[ByaNose]

The lawyer seemed to be enjoying the absurdity of his client. I would actually laugh when would laugh. I’m not sure I’d hire him. Hopefully, his client has money to pay him because I have no idea why he’d take on the case. Very odd. Pankey (he should be convicted on the name alone) most likely did it and was such a sociopath that he couldn’t help himself by not inserting himself in the case. Also, that was such a different time when you were young you thought you knew everybody and didn’t think twice to let them in. Which makes you think that she had seen or knew him somehow and felt safe enough. Also, I was puzzled that he (or whomever) just shot her. Obviously, they bought a gun for a reason but I wonder if they even had plan on shooting her to begin with. While she had been taken no one knows how long she had been kidnapped, killed and then buried. I mean it took 30 years for the body to be randomly found. Such a shame. 

[UsernameFatigue]

4 hours ago, TVbitch said:

This episode did not hold my interest. I couldn't really form an opinion as to whether this (weird, unlikable) guy was guilty without hearing all the evidence and the defense (that wasn't spilled by his attorney). At the end it said the trial did not even start until 2021. They should have waited and aired the episode after the trial.   

I agree that the episode should not have aired until the trail is over. It always seems to me a way for a defense to appeal a conviction, saying that their client could not get a fair trial with all the pre trial publicity. OTOH, the defense lawyer freely consented to being on TV, so I would assume that argument would not fly? 

The prosecution had 8 pages of points used to get the indictment. so I assume there is a lot more than what we were told. His ex also said that when they returned on the 26th from visiting his parents, not only was he digging in the back yard, but also burned a car that was back there and took it to the savage yard. I would assume that she also must have blown holes in his alibi that he was home with her and his son when Jonelle was taken? I freeze framed where they show the first page of evidence. His ex not only said that the trip away, the day after Jonelle disappeared was unplanned. but that Pankey dumped the family dogs before they left, and they were never seen again, For that reason alone I hope he is convicted and dies a slow, painful death in prison. 

[UsernameFatigue]

24 minutes ago, Ohmo said:

That wasn't what stuck out to me.  It was the fact that Jonelle's father said that Pankey was a janitor at their church.  Back in the early '80s, abduction was not as high-profile as it is now.  I'm only roughly two years older than Jonelle, and I can tell you, it wasn't emphasized to us like it is now.  Not until after cases like this one started happening.  I can see Pankey going to Jonelle's house, she's alone, but she thinks, "It's the janitor from CHURCH", and she lets him in, thinking she "knows" him, and it's safe to let him in. I can completely buy that he did it.

I thought that they said that Pankey left his job as janitor at the church two years before Jonelle and her family moved to town? Her father said that they did not know him, though they did know that when he said that he was a youth pastor that he was lying. I assume they were told that was never the case, that he was the janitor. They were never clear though whether he continued to be a member of the church, and may have been one when Jonelle was taken? It didn't seem like it, as they emphasized that he knew Jonelle's neighbourhood quite well, and watched kids at her school. 

In the evidence shown on the page that I freeze framed. it said that he was at church (didn't say it was the same church) where Jonelle's disappearance  was a part of the service, and the pastor said that he thought she was safe. (Paraphrasing here - can't remember the exact words used). Pankey said words to the effect of the pastor being a false prophet, and got so upset that he had to be escorted from church.

He definitely has some screws loose, but that is also a great cover for murder. Oh, he's just a weird guy. But we all know that weird guys are very capable of murder. 

[txhorns79]

8 hours ago, Fable said:

Did anyone watch last night’s episode about Jonelle Matthews?  I wasn’t quite sure what to make of this story.  My feeling is that Steven Pankey was an obsessed and delusional nutjob with an antisocial or narcissistic personality who enjoyed attention a little too much.  I also think the rake thing could have been and likely was leaked somehow.

I agree.  I figured the rake thing got out at some point, and he heard about it.  His behavior here doesn't strike me as someone who goes out, murders a young girl, then stays off the radar for years.  This is someone who makes himself known to the police in the first few weeks, not necessarily as a suspect, but perhaps just as a concerned citizen or general busybody.  

 

36 minutes ago, UsernameFatigue said:

The prosecution had 8 pages of points used to get the indictment. so I assume there is a lot more than what we were told.

Here is the indictment.  It's mostly circumstantial, and it looks like the biggest piece of evidence they have is his knowledge about the rake.  In terms of his having been a janitor at the church, it sounds like his time at the church ended in 1978, just as the Matthews family joined it.  So it would seem unlikely that six years later, Jonelle would have recognized him from church (when she was about 6) and let him into the house.   

[Josiemae]

What a sad case. 😔 May her family find some peace. 

That lawyer is extremely pleased with himself, isn't he? I only hope the prosecution has more (much more), otherwise there will be no conviction. 

[ByaNose]

30 minutes ago, Josiemae said:

What a sad case. 😔 May her family find some peace. 

That lawyer is extremely pleased with himself, isn't he? I only hope the prosecution has more (much more), otherwise there will be no conviction. 

The lawyer was almost weirder then his client. He just seemed too happy about......everything.