Oddities

[jayla]

On a different forum, someone had suggested to posters that they list all the things they found odd in the JBR case. This one also seems to have a few of those, or at the very least, a few coincidences. Does anyone care to list some? Thanks.
Mine:
She had been angry and punished the boys earlier that day.
She and Darin had fought that night as well.
She had the box with personal papers out like she had been perusing them.

[Dani_T]

Originally Posted by jayla

On a different forum, someone had suggested to posters that they list all the things they found odd in the JBR case. This one also seems to have a few of those, or at the very least, a few coincidences. Does anyone care to list some? Thanks.
Mine:
She had been angry and punished the boys earlier that day.
She and Darin had fought that night as well.
She had the box with personal papers out like she had been perusing them.

Oooh there is lots I've only got time for my favourite at the moment though

The bread knife had fibreglass and rubber derbis which was microscopically identical to what is produced when the screen is cut with the same knife

[Jeana (DP)]

Darlie claims to have been attacked first, and the boys as an afterthought.
Darlie had "slicing" wounds, while the boys had deep penetrating stabbing wounds to the trunks of their body sure to kill them.

[Texana]

The sink had been cleaned up, and blood traces showed up with Luminol.

That is a HUGE oddity, because what intruder would stop to clean up?

[cajun]

wasn't there only one set of footprints in all the blood that was in the house..just darlie's

the biggest thing to me was the way she acted in the cemetery, some grieving mother.

[CrazyMazy]

If she was fighting the intruder and she knew her husband was upstais sleeping, why did she not scream her head off to wake her up ??

[Jeana (DP)]

Well, that's one of the problems. Darlie says on the 911 tape "I woke up -- I was fighting." However, in the courtroom, she claims that she never said she fought the intruder(s), but that she was "frightening." Why she would deny something that would have helped her goes further to show that she was, even through the trial, staging the entire thing.

[Dani_T]

Originally Posted by Jeana (DP)

Well, that's one of the problems. Darlie says on the 911 tape "I woke up -- I was fighting." However, in the courtroom, she claims that she never said she fought the intruder(s), but that she was "frightening." Why she would deny something that would have helped her goes further to show that she was, even through the trial, staging the entire thing.

Officer Waddell also testified that she told him that she struggled with the intruder near the wine rack.

[Jeana (DP)]

Another oddity. Darlie claims that Darin "fixed" the gate that goes from their backyard to the alley behind the house the day before the night of the murders. When police were investigating, they discovered that the gate dragged horribly and had to be actually lifted off the ground to be opened. Why would an intruder(s) who is trying to escape from a house where he/they just murdered two little boys and their mother is following them bother to close this gate? There's no way they went over the top of it.

[IrishMist]

Some oddities that stick out for me...

If Darlie did it, why did she summon help before damon was dead? She had no way of knowing that he'd die without identifying her as the murderer, why risk that?

If an intruder did it, why didn't that yappy dog bark it's head off, and wake up Darin?

I do wonder about that black car....

But, if an intruder did it, why didn't he nab all of that jewelry that was on the counter?

If Darlie did it, WHY? Why on earth would she do that? The only thing I can come up with is the remote possibility that it was her "drama queen" side gone wild. Maybe he said he wanted a divorce, and was taking the boys, and it was a "If I can't have them, then neither can you" kind of thing??

There were some inconsistencies in the testimony of the nurses, i.e. there was blood on her hands, there wasn't blood on her hands... same with her feet. You can see from the pictures scratches and cuts that weren't put into the notes, or testified to by the nurses.

But, the bruises in the pictures seem incredibly large to have come from this type of struggle, if that's where she got them. I would expect "finger print" bruises, you know what I mean?

Darin doesn't make sense, either... you hear glass breaking, and your wife screaming hysterically-- yet you take the time to put on jeans?

I don't know. I just don't know. I do believe there's more to this story than what we've heard, though.

[txsvicki]

I may have already written this on another thread but I thought it odd that Darlie kept saying that the boys had been stabbed and were dying. I know she claims to have found the knife on the floor but for all she knew the boys could have been shot, and I believe she told 911 they had been stabbed. Also, she wasn't medically trained, how would she know that the boys wounds were deep enough to cause death? Finally, I thought it really odd that Darlie would run towards or after the intruder instead of away from and towards where Darrin was upstairs. I can't see anyone picking up the knife and placing it on the counter. What if the intruder came back to the kitchen and grabbed the knife again. Most people would hang on to it like a weapon until getting their wits about them and figuring out what had happened.

[Jeana (DP)]

Good post Irish Mist and welcome!!! This sentence from your post stood out for me:

Darin doesn't make sense, either... you hear glass breaking, and your wife screaming hysterically-- yet you take the time to put on jeans?


What actually makes even LESS sense if you can imagine, is that Darlie and Darin cannot seem to agree on just what Darin was wearing when he came down stairs.

In one statement, one of them claims he sleeps in the nude, so he put his jeans on when he heard the screams. As you posted, this makes no sense.

I've got three children and it also makes little sense to sleep nude when you've got an infant waking at all hours of the night - but of course its not unheard of, so I'll get back on track.

In another statement, one of them says Darin only took the time to put on his glasses, as he's blind without them. Another statement has him leaving them upstairs.

It may have happened, but I can't remember a statement where he put both the jeans and the glasses on. So, either he was nude, but he could see. Or, he had his pants on, but he was blind when he noticed all that stuff he said in his statement.

We may never know the truth, but its inconsistencies like this that make many speculate that Darin was way more involved than we've heard yet.

Hopefully, once they accept the fact that Darlie will be executed for the murders, one or the other will step forward and finally tell the truth.

[IrishMist]

Originally Posted by Jeana (DP)

Good post Irish Mist and welcome!!! This sentence from your post stood out for me:

Darin doesn't make sense, either... you hear glass breaking, and your wife screaming hysterically-- yet you take the time to put on jeans?


What actually makes even LESS sense if you can imagine, is that Darlie and Darin cannot seem to agree on just what Darin was wearing when he came down stairs.

In one statement, one of them claims he sleeps in the nude, so he put his jeans on when he heard the screams. As you posted, this makes no sense.

I've got three children and it also makes little sense to sleep nude when you've got an infant waking at all hours of the night - but of course its not unheard of, so I'll get back on track.

In another statement, one of them says Darin only took the time to put on his glasses, as he's blind without them. Another statement has him leaving them upstairs.

It may have happened, but I can't remember a statement where he put both the jeans and the glasses on. So, either he was nude, but he could see. Or, he had his pants on, but he was blind when he noticed all that stuff he said in his statement.

We may never know the truth, but its inconsistencies like this that make many speculate that Darin was way more involved than we've heard yet.

Hopefully, once they accept the fact that Darlie will be executed for the murders, one or the other will step forward and finally tell the truth.

I think he has to be, but somehow, I don't have the feeling that he killed them. Maybe he knows she did? I can picture in my mind... maybe she freaked, and killed them- it got the dog barking, which woke up Darin...
He comes down and sees the carnage--- Darlie crying hysterically, realizing what's she's done...
Darin saying "My God, what did you do, Darlie?"

Would they, at that point, think: what's done is done, how do we get out of this?

I don't know if we'll ever hear the truth. Even when she's executed, why would Darin come forward at that point? What would be in it for him?
I think they'll stand by their stories.
Well, at least Darin will... Darlie might get a little more vocal as her time comes closer, she may not want to go down alone.
But will she take Drake's only remaining parent away from him?
I go back and forth, and it remains to be seen... but I doubt we'll ever hear the whole truth.

[Jeana (DP)]

Originally Posted by IrishMist

I think he has to be, but somehow, I don't have the feeling that he killed them. Maybe he knows she did? I can picture in my mind... maybe she freaked, and killed them- it got the dog barking, which woke up Darin...
He comes down and sees the carnage--- Darlie crying hysterically, realizing what's she's done...
Darin saying "My God, what did you do, Darlie?"

Would they, at that point, think: what's done is done, how do we get out of this?

I don't know if we'll ever hear the truth. Even when she's executed, why would Darin come forward at that point? What would be in it for him?
I think they'll stand by their stories.
Well, at least Darin will... Darlie might get a little more vocal as her time comes closer, she may not want to go down alone.
But will she take Drake's only remaining parent away from him?
I go back and forth, and it remains to be seen... but I doubt we'll ever hear the whole truth.

Well she may be a different parent than the one who murdered the boys, but if she hasn't or can't change, grow, mature, then why would she possibly care if she takes Drake away from the one parent that he has? This is a woman who brutally murdered her sleeping children. I don't know if a psychopath can care.

As far as what Darin knows, I think he'll keep quiet as long as Darlie does. I believe he's got enough knowledge to guaranty that not only will Darlie lose all her remaining appeals, but that everyone (except maybe her family), will disown her. She'll get no more "fan" mail, no more positive publicity, zip. I don't think she could handle that. As for what Darlie knows about Darin, its probably enough to have him arrested. I don't know what the DA's office or the police have on him, but something tells me Darin's not very well liked by either office.

[Usher737]

The things that bother me the most are the sock in the alley and the cleaned up sink.

Does anyone think that maybe Darlie was going to also kill herself and then backed out at the last minute ?

Post pardum depression can lead to strange behavior, so if she did do it, why not confess and plead temporary insanity?

I guess part of me believes she could be guilty but can not come up with a logical reason as to why.

[IrishMist]

I can't come up with a reason why, either. At least not a reason that makes sense to a clear minded person. I do know that there are people who look at others as objects, not as people. Darlie may have been that way, and it would certainly make it easier to get rid of objects than people. (Armchair psychology here.) I can only imagine the pressure of the combined effects of post-partum depression, diet pills, and financial stress. She was young, and I think ill-equipped to deal with heavy duty problems. If I'm not mistaken, she was always taken care of, so I don't believe she ever had to develop that inner strength one needs to find a way to deal with serious problems. So when in the midst of serious problems, she cracked. She sank instead of knowing how to swim.

I do know that I go back and forth regarding her guilt. If she did do it, I think she acted alone. I get torn between whether Darin caught her doing it, or if she did the deed, then kicked the whole thing into gear, and he believes her...

I started reading the transcripts, and there are two oddities that really stick out for me so far...

1. There are no bloody footprints going TO the sink- only away.

and

2. When I was reading Darlie's account, and comparing to the pictures, something stuck out to me. She says that she found the knife on the floor in the utility room. She picked it up, and put it on the counter, right?
When you look at the pictures, the knife points toward the kitchen.
Think about it. When you have a knife in your hand, and you set it down... don't you set it down with the point away from you?

I know this isn't a huge distinction, but it doesn't fit with her story. That knife was set down from the family room side of the breakfast bar. The one part of her story that doesn't change is where she found the knife, and what she did with it. She changes where she was when she saw the knife, but in every story, she is still in the kitchen when she sets it down.

Maybe this is addressed in testimony, and I just haven't got to it yet. There is sooo much to read, and I'm at the tip of the iceberg. But these things really jumped out at me.

[Jeana (DP)]

Excellent post IrishMist! I agree with you. One of the things that law enforcement picked up on right away is the absence of any damage to items in the home. If two men break into a home that they're not familiar with in the middle of the night, have a life or death fight with a mother trying to save not only her own life, but the lives of her children, and escape a different way than they entered, one would think that more than a wine glass would be broken. They surmise that Darlie cared too much for her possessions to break anything. If you've got the book, Media Tried, Justice Denied, there are excellent photos of the house that show shelf after shelf of knick-knacks all OVER the rooms where these fights took place. Most of these items are fragile and some appear to be very delicate and look as though a strong breeze could knock them off of the shelves on which they sit. How is it that nothing was disturbed by this fight of her life? Makes no sense!!!

[Goody]

Originally Posted by IrishMist

2. When I was reading Darlie's account, and comparing to the pictures, something stuck out to me. She says that she found the knife on the floor in the utility room. She picked it up, and put it on the counter, right?
When you look at the pictures, the knife points toward the kitchen.
Think about it. When you have a knife in your hand, and you set it down... don't you set it down with the point away from you?

I know this isn't a huge distinction, but it doesn't fit with her story. That knife was set down from the family room side of the breakfast bar. The one part of her story that doesn't change is where she found the knife, and what she did with it. She changes where she was when she saw the knife, but in every story, she is still in the kitchen when she sets it down.

Maybe this is addressed in testimony, and I just haven't got to it yet. There is sooo much to read, and I'm at the tip of the iceberg. But these things really jumped out at me.

I don't think anyone has noticed that before. Good work. That is one more dot for me. Thanks. I have always wondered if she didn't just forget to put the knife on the floor (where the intruder was supposed to have dropped it) and noticed while on the phone, and that is why she kept making such a big deal about the fingerprints.

But now looking at it from the other side of that counter, imagine this. She thought Damon was dead and dialed 911, then something happened (maybe Darin alerted her) to make her realize that he wasn't. So she got the knife and went into the family room, stabbing him again to make sure, then put it on the counter (as you noted) from the family room side. It was too late to turn back at that point. The police were due any second and in the haste of the moment, she doesn't notice the knife is still on the counter until Waddell shows up. Isn't that when the conversation gets confusing? She is talking to Waddell and the 911 operator and maybe Darin at times?

And don't forget that Darin hurries to Damon's side to take his pulse once he knows the paramedics are outside. He claims he didn't get one, yet only seconds later the paramedic says Damon didn't take his last breath until the paramedic picked him up. So why did Darin scoot over there to check his pulse right then knowing paremedics would be in at any moment?

Add that little bit of information to the picture beginning to come into focus with Darlie placing that knife on the counter from the family room side because she'd had to stab Damon again while on the phone to 911 and not knowing that the knife handle would not pick up fingerprints, she had to come up with a quick cover story so she admits she picked up the knife but says she doesn't know why. She makes it sound as if it were just an instinctive act. But she is desperate to make sure people remember that she said she picked up the knife early on, so she keeps repeating it to anyone who will listen. Little did she know that effort only made her look more guilty. It didn't establish an alibi for her.

[IrishMist]

Originally Posted by Goody

I don't think anyone has noticed that before. Good work. That is one more dot for me. Thanks. I have always wondered if she didn't just forget to put the knife on the floor (where the intruder was supposed to have dropped it) and noticed while on the phone, and that is why she kept making such a big deal about the fingerprints.

But now looking at it from the other side of that counter, imagine this. She thought Damon was dead and dialed 911, then something happened (maybe Darin alerted her) to make her realize that he wasn't. So she got the knife and went into the family room, stabbing him again to make sure, then put it on the counter (as you noted) from the family room side. It was too late to turn back at that point. The police were due any second and in the haste of the moment, she doesn't notice the knife is still on the counter until Waddell shows up. Isn't that when the conversation gets confusing? She is talking to Waddell and the 911 operator and maybe Darin at times?

And don't forget that Darin hurries to Damon's side to take his pulse once he knows the paramedics are outside. He claims he didn't get one, yet only seconds later the paramedic says Damon didn't take his last breath until the paramedic picked him up. So why did Darin scoot over there to check his pulse right then knowing paremedics would be in at any moment?

Add that little bit of information to the picture beginning to come into focus with Darlie placing that knife on the counter from the family room side because she'd had to stab Damon again while on the phone to 911 and not knowing that the knife handle would not pick up fingerprints, she had to come up with a quick cover story so she admits she picked up the knife but says she doesn't know why. She makes it sound as if it were just an instinctive act. But she is desperate to make sure people remember that she said she picked up the knife early on, so she keeps repeating it to anyone who will listen. Little did she know that effort only made her look more guilty. It didn't establish an alibi for her.

I don't know, Goody...
My gut says she was done stabbing by the time she got on the phone. To me, you couldn't stab someone without a sound... you know, some kind of grunt or something.
I also believe that the height of the explosion was over by then. Not that she was calm, by any means... still on an emotional tangent, how could you not be after a night like that?

The knife, I think, was set down after the murders. Any idiot knows about fingerprints, and she thought she had that covered. But it was just another detail that she didn't think all the way through.

As far as Darin checking Damon's pulse, that was part of the show. They thought the boys were both dead. Probably surprised the hell out of Darin when he checked the pulse and found one. But what the hell else was he gonna do when the paramedics arrived? He had to be checking on the boys, that's what a parent would be doing. Did he think far enough ahead to realize he'd need the blood of both boys on his jeans? I don't know.

[ProbableCauz]

The first oddity that stood out to me was Darlie speaking with the 911 operator.
The Constant use of "they"

00:00:00 911 Operator #1 ...Rowlett 911...what is your emergency..
00:01:19 Darlie Routier ...somebody came here...they broke in...
00:03:27 911 Operator #1 ...ma'am...
00:05:11 Darlie Routier ...they just stabbed me and my children...
00:07:16 911 Operator #1 ...what...
00:08:05 Darlie Routier ...they just stabbed me and my kids...my little boys...
00:09:24 911 Operator #1 ...who...who did...
00:11:12 Darlie Routier ...my little boy is dying...

She never answers the operator question, "who did"?


01:11:28 Darlie Routier ...I saw them Darin...

Again, she makes reference to more than 1 person being involved


02:38:11 911 Operator #1 ...is there anybody in the house ...besides you and your children...
02:38:11 Darlie Routier ...no ...my husband he just ran downstairs ...he's helping me ...but they're dying ...oh my God ...they're dead...


Darlie says no to the question, is there anybody in the house besides her and the children, she says NO, then says Darin just ran downstairs, how does she know the intruders aren't still there?


03:52:13 Darlie Routier ...no ...he ran out ...uh ...they ran out in the garage ...I was sleeping...


Is it he or they? and if she was sleeping, how does she know what he or they was doing?

04:05:02 Darlie Routier ...ya'll look out in the garage ...look out in the garage ...they left a knife laying on...


Look in the garage for what? She just told the operator no one but the family was in the home, and the knife is in plain view.

She then goes on to say "his knife was laying over there and she already touched it".

From the moment she placed the call, the oddities began.....

[Goody]

Originally Posted by IrishMist

I don't know, Goody...
My gut says she was done stabbing by the time she got on the phone. To me, you couldn't stab someone without a sound... you know, some kind of grunt or something.

I am not sure I agree with that. She'd have gotten no resistance from Damon at that point. He was dying, just not fast enough. Or at least he was seriously injured and losing blood.

What makes me think she was on the phone is that it sounds like someone says somthing about someone "breathing" and then she seems to be alerted. I can't remember exactly. I've participated in so many discussions about the 911 tape, the trial transcript, and various others who have created their own, etc., but I am thinking there is room for a probable exchange between Darlie and Darin in which he notes that one of the kids is still breathing (has to be Damon) and she comes back with a worried tone (forgotten what I thought her words were.) But I admit that this isn't proof it did happen. It just offers some support for the possibility.

[Goody]

Originally Posted by IrishMist

As far as Darin checking Damon's pulse, that was part of the show. They thought the boys were both dead. Probably surprised the hell out of Darin when he checked the pulse and found one. But what the hell else was he gonna do when the paramedics arrived? He had to be checking on the boys, that's what a parent would be doing. Did he think far enough ahead to realize he'd need the blood of both boys on his jeans? I don't know.

I have considered the possibility that checking Damon's pulse was just for show on Darin's part, but I can't figure out why he would say he didn't get a pulse unless he was just trying to show that it wouldn't have done him any good to try to help him sooner because he was already gone, in spite of what paramedics said.

When paramedics came in, he was already back at Devon's side, which I believe was his agreed on post (with Darlie). So his move to Damon's side was quick, to the point, and probably didn't take even a full minute. Probably no more than a few seconds.

I don't think he thought he'd need the blood of both boys on him, since I believe originally he was to stay with Devon while Darlie was to be with Damon. He needed NOT to have the blood of both boys on him to help support his alibi....he was upstairs and rushed to Devon's side (not even seeing Damon) to administer CPR. Shouldn't be any Damon blood on Darin...until he started trying to alibi for Darlie, changing his story from just getting a pulse to lifting up the boy's shirt and removing the towel she'd put on him to see his wounds. I don't believe he did any of those things except to take Damon's pulse (and that is just a maybe).

[Goody]

My favorite oddity is the flying blood. Bevel went through a lot of trouble demonstrating just how the cast off blood from the knife could land in the exact same location as it did on her shirt as she raised the knife to stab again. They found droplets with both Damon's and Devon's blood on her shirt. The defense (and supporters) have stated that the blood could have also landed on her shirt as she bent forward to close Devon's chest as Darin blew air into his lungs. Nothing offered to explain how Damon's blood got there. But not a single demonstration to show us exactly how such a thing could occur. So all we have is some vague theory about events that could have happened and not one single effort made to show us what Bevel did....exactly how it did happen. We're just supposed to buy that?

[Jeana (DP)]

Originally Posted by ProbableCauz

The first oddity that stood out to me was Darlie speaking with the 911 operator.
The Constant use of "they"

00:00:00 911 Operator #1 ...Rowlett 911...what is your emergency..
00:01:19 Darlie Routier ...somebody came here...they broke in...
00:03:27 911 Operator #1 ...ma'am...
00:05:11 Darlie Routier ...they just stabbed me and my children...
00:07:16 911 Operator #1 ...what...
00:08:05 Darlie Routier ...they just stabbed me and my kids...my little boys...
00:09:24 911 Operator #1 ...who...who did...
00:11:12 Darlie Routier ...my little boy is dying...

She never answers the operator question, "who did"?


01:11:28 Darlie Routier ...I saw them Darin...

Again, she makes reference to more than 1 person being involved


02:38:11 911 Operator #1 ...is there anybody in the house ...besides you and your children...
02:38:11 Darlie Routier ...no ...my husband he just ran downstairs ...he's helping me ...but they're dying ...oh my God ...they're dead...


Darlie says no to the question, is there anybody in the house besides her and the children, she says NO, then says Darin just ran downstairs, how does she know the intruders aren't still there?


03:52:13 Darlie Routier ...no ...he ran out ...uh ...they ran out in the garage ...I was sleeping...


Is it he or they? and if she was sleeping, how does she know what he or they was doing?

04:05:02 Darlie Routier ...ya'll look out in the garage ...look out in the garage ...they left a knife laying on...


Look in the garage for what? She just told the operator no one but the family was in the home, and the knife is in plain view.

She then goes on to say "his knife was laying over there and she already touched it".

From the moment she placed the call, the oddities began.....

She STILL can't decide whether there was one or two intruders!!! LOL

[IrishMist]

Originally Posted by Jeana (DP)

She STILL can't decide whether there was one or two intruders!!! LOL

This doesn't bug me too much. I have family and friends born and raised in southern Tennessee, and they have a weird habit of using "they" when they only mean one person. (That's not their only weird habit, but it's one of them!! )

However, Jeana, you're from Texas, aren't you? You'd know the dialect far better than I.