In case you did not read the blog: During Dianes examination at trial, Fred Hugi said in front of the jury, in the form of a question, that she had been diagnosed as a deviant sociopath. Late Tom Billings had been the first who openly questioned Diane Downs guilt. Evidence or not, they were going to do their best to put her away for life. USA population seems to shun complex ethical problems preferring to deal with absolute evil in order to exert absolute power to crush it. But, we cant help but notice that a few key individuals of her family, so to speak, didnt give those insightful interviews. but I think there are some extreme cases that knock women in a bad psychotic way that can be life threatening. Downs was constantly provoked by inmates because of the nature of her situation, and she never once attacked or defended herself in a violent manner. Diane, 18, had run away from home to do so. Rule sued the Seattle Weekly after they published the article titled , Ann Rule promotes her books as true crime stories so to this day, viewers believe that the book and the movie titled, This reminds me of what a jail counselor named Rachel Roth said at the trial of Debra Milke , They already had made up their mind that Diane was the perpetrator so they laughed off the idea of the , When I hear some people say that they would have liked to smack that smirk off Dianes face when she interacted with the cops or the media, I say. The way this investigation and the trial were conducted only left me with doubts. And Steven was free to follow her lead or not. According to her hospital records, every 6 hours she was given 400 milligrams of Dilantin (which is noted for causing confusion). Brewer stood ready to testify in June 1991, that it was because of Prosecutor Hugis lie that he changed his mind to convict and that he alone was responsible for silencing the dissenting votes of two other jurors (Appendix 97). I can only imagine to absolute horror of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca during their horrific murders. She (Diane) managed to jump in the car after getting shot in the arm. An earlier commenter wrote that it doesnt matter that the trail or the investigation was faultyWHAT !? Unfortunately, he hasn't been as outspoken as people expected, considering the gruesome details of the crime committed by her ex-wife. What is known for a fact, is, Prosecutor Fred Hugi took physical custody of Christie and Danny shortly after Christies confessions to her school mates, and he officially adopted them in the summer of 1986. Whats wrong with the system is whats wrong with us. Then ask yourself if thats how you want your son to grow up. I stuck to what came out at trial and not the fantasy factory coming from the state, the media and Rule. I go through every new finding and I point out what was done at trial that did not respect due process. Diane had spent three days in the hospital ingesting massive doses of Morphine, Demerol, Percodan, and visterol. But the birth of little Danny did not make this bad boy change his stripes; he remained a cad and a destabilizing force in their lives. Diane followed the detectives to their car. But as usual, it was slanted in the worst possible way. She functions best in highly structured environments where she has a sense of control. Ive been trying to decipher her handwriting on the couple of pages she wrote to her daughter (misquoted on here somewhere is a highlighted If you love your little boy, youll take him far away from here- why is this being taken as a threat and not a warning?!). Anyways. Nuts maybe, but not threatening. Instead of shooting the little kids, why didnt the carjacker/killer (CK) simply shoot DD dead and take her car? The woman shot her children. I am not saying she is innocent. Rule even talked about writing a book about her but it never materialized. The State produced a witness (Ms. Patterson) to testify that Diane Downs entered the hospital bathroom, left the door open, and ran water in the sink (Appendix 87, page 476). That is why people wonder why such a vital family member never gave the anticipated insightful interview. It no longer matters as far as the verdict, she was found guilty, but why no parole? It was far fetched, unfoundedand convenientlyrelayedby Rule to boost the sales of her book. She could not have been shot twice in the back while sitting up and have the bullet pierce her body to end up under the floorboard of the passenger side. I care about the experts reports written about Diane because they know her situation and mental state. They sure forgot to tell us about her pulse racing during these sessions. There are documented cases of suicides where the person has no GNR, as well as murder cases. why didn't steve downs get custody. At least two of those school mates reported Christies tortured confession to their mother It does not contradict what I said, but what they said. In a fairly good knot which would have taken time to do one handed and teeth. She took care of herself not her children. It became judicial kidnapping to obtain a coerced confession: inflammatory The role of Diane Downs was played by none other than Farrah Fawcett and her lover was played by Ryan ONeal who had been Farrahs love interest in real life. Anne Rule made a big deal of a brass unicorn engraved with the childrens names that Diane had purchased. That she had no blood or gun powder anywhere when she allegedly shot at close range? 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? Fred Hugi was pretty upset when Ann Rule went Hollywood with his case. He could not during the marriage so he walked away. She had a more than competent attorney and a fair trial before a jury and NOT the same judge who handled the childrens matters. I wanted to ask you something on this case. This article is about due process and the legal right to a fair trial for everyone. Everything was in the bag and ready for trial. Too bad it triggered you, maybe try to stay away from sites that might not go along with the mob mentality and usual media narrative. No conflict of interest from a prosecutor adopting a defendants children 2 years after the fact? He separated from his wife and was going to follow Diane who, by now, had decided to move and work in Oregon to be closer to her parents. She has an excellent conduct report and never reacted violently to any of the harassment from other inmates. I dont know how familiar she was with the area, but I do not think that it matters anyway. Ultimately, the blogger is entitled to their opinion as is everyone else. http://sputniknews.com/us/20150620/1023613662.html#ixzz3djEXlSAC // The Prison State of America Dec 28, 2014 Chris Hedges, http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/the_prison_state_of_america_20141228 Since his ex wife was sentenced to life in prison, he has not reappeared in public life nor has he given any television interviews about his family. http://www.glamour.com/story/i-found-out-my-mother-was-a-killer-the-rebecca-babcock-story. When they assess the conduct of an inmate, what counts is mostly how she behaves inside through the years and if she shows violent tendencies. The tape is real and probably not admissible, but it seems to indicate that her testimony was coerced: Why is it not admissible? why didn't steve downs get custody. 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. Within a few weeks, the kids who had survived were placed in protective custody and were no longer in Steve's care. Also, aside from her original mental state, which may or may not excuse her aloofness (doesnt prove shes a killer by the way! After Diane was convicted, the two living children were adopted by the prosecutor in the case and his wife, and it was Christie who ultimately pointed to her mother being responsible for the shooting. One of the jurors finally declared. Of course I saw movie first, then read the bookI wanted more, sadly early Internet days, there wasnt much out there, as far as info or video, picturesnothing really. No gun, no blood or gun residue on her and if she shot them, these elements should have been there. No. And, when she got assigned to the mail routes in the city of Cottage Grove, Oregon, as a part of her job with the U.S. postal service, he didnt have any qualms with her taking the children. She. Her lover and former husband testified against her but it did not represent evidence but character assassination. ..maybe it was lack of Internet and cellies *shrug)..years later, my Co worker at burger King (I was 16)told me about the small sacrifices movie she watched the night before. Diane was pregnant during the trial so if found not guilty, how would she have regained the love of her life? Her father passed away in October 2017 after having fought relentlessly for her release. She said She did it. Instead, it is Diane who fought to keep her children. Most were married because Diane had no desire to remarry. In the moment of who shot youmy momhave a hard time believing that could be coached. I was curious as to what these requirements were, as I have not seen these online. Whether or not Mrs. Frederickson could have attacheda 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. It is called a conflict of interest. The roller coaster ride had nothing to do with Diane s children and Diane knew it. So it would be logical to conclude that it would have left residues if anyone had shot at least 6 times. A group of ladies formed a group called HELDD which stands for Help Exonerate & Liberate Diane Downs. On a side note, what do you think of parole of Leslie Van Houton? That is not a quick process and is very invasive to a familys privacy. Her daughter told the media she watched Small Sacrifices several times. Yes, but it is a fact that she was starting to say that she did not know who shot them when it happened. You said yourself that the title was revealing. There is also a recording where she says that she had no idea who shot them. Too bad she did not interview Diane or her family. That didnt seem right so we wrote a letter to Mr Hugi with a request for visitation rights. I enjoyed your take, and agree their are several reasons with this, and lets be honestevery other case ever prosecuted, to take pause and question but Diane continues to lie, make up brand new stories about people after her, and has made no moves to better herself in any way shape or form while shes been in prison, by her own admission. She did it. But due to a law enacted in Oregon after she first became eligible for parole, she can now only apply every 10 years. Van Houten has made her choices and needs to own up to her actions and stop putting all the blame on drugs and Manson. The problem with high profile cases is that the media, the DA, the cops and authors like Ann Rule dictate the narrative and it becomes almost impossible to look any other way unless you are a critical thinker devoid of emotions related to the case. The Halo TV show stars Orange is the New Black's Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief, with Californication's Natascha McElhone as Dr. Halsey. Diane Downs is no exception. They never tried to reunite them with family. Lise lasalle you mention THIS When she (Diane) resisted, he shot her kids and struggled with her. That same gun turned up at a police raid years later in Perris, California, and it did not match the ballistics from the shooting site. After a failed marriage that got her a divorce from Steve Downs, she wanted to be with her lover. They were not truth seekers and enjoyed a nice burning at the stake instead. According to Detective Welch, Steve Downs followed Diane to Oregon, they fought and Steves rage took the last step on the path hed been treading for a long time.