GUILTY GA - Lauren Giddings, 27, Macon, 26 June 2011 # 2

[bessie]

So, I'm confused here...maybe I missed something, but I've never seen the above conversation referenced in any press conference or news article. If I missed it, can you please provide a link? I've been off the site for a bit, but I'm just perplexed because I haven't seen this particular section of dialogue from McDaniel and LE before.

Well, of course you haven't seen it before. I only wrote it about an hour ago to illustrate my answer.

Oh, wait a minute. Did you miss the question?

I just don't understand why SM would confess to burglary when he could oh so easily have offered up a completely innocent and totally believable explanation? I'm really baffled by how this guy's mind works. I don't think he has the ability to think quick on his feet, or perhaps he wanted to confess/get caught, either consciously or unconsciously? Any ideas?

 

[midstateMind]

Among the folks who are talking, do any of them know him personally?

To clarify: I live in this town-- whether it's 4 construction workers at the chick-fil-a, parishioners at the church LG attended, teachers at a local school, the bartender at a downtown restaurant, friends texting each other or otherwise: people are talking nonstop. People in this town are flabbergasted, grasping at straws, etc...

It's not about who knows McDaniel personally---it's that things are such at a fevered pitch that EVERYONE is talking. It's hard to know what is real and what is false, but new claims of evidence are popping up left and right. The way that this town talks, it would not be surprising to find out there are leaks all over the place. I'll be interested to see what is true and false when juxtaposed against what I'm hearing.

 

[midstateMind]

Well, of course you haven't seen it before. I only wrote it about an hour ago to illustrate my answer.

Oh, wait a minute. Did you miss the question?

Clearly---I was trying to sort out if this was an imagined scenario or a transcript. Thanks for clarifying...like I said, I stepped away from sleuthing for a few hours and was wondering what I might have missed! :crazy:

 

[bessie]

Well after what you've just described, I'm not a bit surprised if fact and fiction are starting to blur into one.

In all sincerity, I'm terribly sorry for the local residents. I live in New Orleans which is full of crime, but knock on wood, I don't recall a crime as horrific as this one hitting close to home. My heart goes out to y'all.

 

[bessie]

Investigators worked until midnight removing items from McDaniel's apartment. This latest update corrects the earlier report which said LE was inside Lauren's apartment.

Investigators were seen carrying out bags of evidence -- about a dozen. Two or three of the bags were large and appeared to be filled with soft items.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story said incorrectly that our reporter saw police inside Lauren Giddings' apartment. She saw them in McDaniel's apartment.

http://www.13wmaz.com/news/local/ar...partment?odyssey=mod|newswell|img|FRONTPAGE|p

 

[bessie]

Does anyone know if those apartments are equipped with security alarms? At the end of the video in the latest article, as the detectives are leaving McD's apartment and turning out lights, one officer stops, and it looks like he's pressing keys on a keypad. It's probably an alarm that LE just recently installed. But if it's an existing system, that makes the alleged e-mail even more curious.

 

[SmoothOperator]

bessie, I am almost certain that midway thru previous thread #1 that it was indeed stated that these apartments of Barristers Hall were equipped with alarm systems.. I believe it was relayed by the apt manager to a local reporter and then told to us thru the reporter and/or online news article..

I will attempt to hunt down a link(am still via mobile).. If anyone knows of the link off hand or comes across it please post to verify and confirm about there being alarm systems in these particular apts..

ETA: yep, it's true there are alarm systems.. Below is a snippet and the apartments link to verify that info and/or other details regarding those apartments..

{snipped for significance}
Barristers Hall
Barristers Hall is a community of 16 apartments, each with covered patios, designated parking and security systems... {continued at link below}
www.barristershall.com/

 

[goodgirl65]

respectfully snipped

I agree. Nearly 3 year old stolen condoms? Bizarre. I cannot think of a single reason why he would confess to that.

I agree with you there...even being a virgin doesnt exclude him from possibly having condoms(old or new) in his apt. Why would he jump to confess to burglary if thats ALL they found? Im thinking there were other things found that havent been made public. Such as: ladies underwear/bras/lingerie.
Another reason LE may be focusing on him at moment until results of the tests come back.

 

[Sandstorm]

Last night, Tuesday, July 12, the LE returned to McD's apartment; however, they were not reinstalling plumbing.

There are many things that stack up against McD, one of which is his reaction to the reporter during the interview on the morning of June 25th, when the body was discovered.

At the time of the interview, the identity of the body was not known; only that it was a female.
No info was released at the discovery scene that a torso had been found.
"A body" was the news release term.

During the interview, McD did not ask anything about the body.

I think the response of an innocent person would be similar to this:

Where did you find the body?
Is it Lauren?
Can you tell what happened?
Are you sure this person is dead?
How was this person killed?
When did it happen?
McD said, "I need to sit down."

re-post of radio interview:
http://www.wmac-am.com/includes/news_items/6/463/7oclockhour.mp3

http://www.macon.com/2011/07/12/1629530/police-search-giddings-next-door.html

 

[Colonel Mustard]

Thanks Van! It's nice to get a lawyer's perspective I'm curious...do they actually tell law students to never confess if they're put in a situation to be questioned by police? Hope that all the activity around the apartment means we'll be hearing something soon.

That's not what Van the Man meant by that statement. That's what they tell you to tell your CLIENTS. The vast majority of law students, as VtheM stated, are extremely careful not to cross any line that would keep them from passing the fitness requirement to take the bar exam. Law students and attorneys are held to an extremely high ethical standard and cannot have any criminal infractions, otherwise they will not be granted a license to practice law. Even a minor offense (including a juvenile offense) requires a lengthy appeal process if one is to ever be given a second chance to sit for the bar. McDaniel is well aware of this and seems to have had a serious lack of impulse control for someone who had so much to lose. This is a serious red flag IMO.

 

[Sandstorm]

I agree. Nearly 3 year old stolen condoms? Bizarre. I cannot think of a single reason why he would confess to that.

New theory: McD likes to go into apartments while their occupants are out. LG goes to Zaxby's at 6:30. McD goes into her apartment thinking she's leaving for a longer period of time. She comes back and catches him in the act and in the struggle he either accidentally or intentionally kills her.

Very thought provoking PDUBBY...
A friend of mine holds this as her #1 Theory.
She contends that McD is a confirmed thief and snoop not a thrill killer.

McD has admitted to two burglaries which makes one wonder:
is he an honest burglar?
or
are there more break-ins he is not disclosing?

If he was a habitual burglar then your theory makes a lot of sense.
Theory:
Upon Lauren's return from Zaxby's, she caught him inside her apartment.... confrontation ensued...
his entire attorney future is at stake...struggle....death....cover-up.

Sandstorm following your lead, PDUBBY.

 

[Idreamofgenie]

Thanks Van! It's nice to get a lawyer's perspective I'm curious...do they actually tell law students to never confess if they're put in a situation to be questioned by police? Hope that all the activity around the apartment means we'll be hearing something soon.

Spot on. The headline on the front page of the paper is that they searched McD's apartment again. Check this:
http://www.macon.com/2011/07/13/1629505/police.com-back-inside-mcdaniels-apartment.html

 

[Idreamofgenie]

Also, I believe LE said there was no sign of a struggle. Could the perp have put everything back in it's place if there was one?

 

[Lawette32]

Just signed up & enjoyed reading the discussion. I'm a lawyer in Macon with an office not far from the law school. Regarding the bond hearing: certain crimes must be bonded by a Superior Court Judge, this is done only on Thursdays. A Motion must be filed by the defendant or his lawyer to get a court date. The hearing was not last Thursday since it sounded like his lawyer got on the case too late to file by the deadline. Unless more charges are added by Thursday, I would expect a bond to be set.
As to safety in downtown Macon: there is a high degree of property crime & lots of car break-ins. There was a recent stat on that in the Macon paper I'll try & find. My office has suffered 1 very destructive burglary, a car break-in in daylight, all the copper pipe being stolen 2-3 times, & the front door has been busted out several times, I guess just for fun. However, I run/bike all over downtown with no problems. I see women running & walking dogs often & did today.
As to McD, burglary is considered a rather serious offense by the d.a. & court here. It is a 10 year felony, meaning that is the max. Everyone gets jail time. Some counties in Ga. give you prison time for the 1st offense. The idea is that burglaries often escalate to violence/death. Check out this for an example:
http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=139006.
This was on Walnut Street, near the law school.
I see a major problem with burglarizing your classmates in law school. Law school is extremely expensive. Law students I know are very aware of being very careful in all activities to avoid anything close to a crime or you are done & lots of money wasted. Since reports are that McD confessed, I see an anti-social type not thinking clearly. Also one thing law school would instill is "never confess". A disconnect in his thinking going on there.
Sorry this got a little long. I did also drive by the scene around 8pm tonite. More vehicles/cops/media than I have seen before were out.

Hi all-

I am a law student at Mercer and am currently working in criminal law until graduation.

Piggbacking off of what Van said, from what I understand, a bond has to be set for each individual charge- one for each burglary. I'm concerned that if they don't charge him before his bond hearing Thursday, he will very likely be able to bond out on the two burglary charges. His family is from the area, so he wouldn't be considered a huge flight risk; he didn't steal anything of substantial value, and based on these charges alone, he wouldn't be a substantial threat to the community. Judges consider all these factors when considering setting bond, so I'm sincerely worried he will be able to bond out.

ETA- I started reading this forum to follow what you all thought about Lauren's case. I am appreciative of how much integrity this forum maintains. It seems well moderated, and it also appears that all of you are very sensitive to the lives of the people involved, which I hadn't expected when I first ran across the site. Glad to be here!

 

[Knox]

I agree with you Sandstorm, McD's reaction to the discovery of Lauren's body hits me the same way. When I watched that video though, another of the red flags for me was his "I" - "We" switch ups.

OT- Did you all read about Leibby Kletzy? The parallel in his case and Lauren's makes me ill. ~ RIP Sweet Leibby~
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/07/13/thousands-turn-out-to-search-for-missing-brooklyn-boy/

 

[bessie]

bessie, I am almost certain that midway thru previous thread #1 that it was indeed stated that these apartments of Barristers Hall were equipped with alarm systems.. I believe it was relayed by the apt manager to a local reporter and then told to us thru the reporter and/or online news article..

I will attempt to hunt down a link(am still via mobile).. If anyone knows of the link off hand or comes across it please post to verify and confirm about there being alarm systems in these particular apts..

ETA: yep, it's true there are alarm systems.. Below is a snippet and the apartments link to verify that info and/or other details regarding those apartments..

Thanks, Smooth. I missed that. Now I'm convinced the e-mail was bogus.

 

[bessie]

Hi all-

I am a law student at Mercer and am currently working in criminal law until graduation.

Piggbacking off of what Van said, from what I understand, a bond has to be set for each individual charge- one for each burglary. I'm concerned that if they don't charge him before his bond hearing Thursday, he will very likely be able to bond out on the two burglary charges. His family is from the area, so he wouldn't be considered a huge flight risk; he didn't steal anything of substantial value, and based on these charges alone, he wouldn't be a substantial threat to the community. Judges consider all these factors when considering setting bond, so I'm sincerely worried he will be able to bond out.

ETA- I started reading this forum to follow what you all thought about Lauren's case. I am appreciative of how much integrity this forum maintains. It seems well moderated, and it also appears that all of you are very sensitive to the lives of the people involved, which I hadn't expected when I first ran across the site. Glad to be here!

Welcome, Lawette. We're glad you joined us, and thank you for the insightful post. I didn't think the value of the stolen property would be a consideration since he wasn't charged with theft. At any rate, I hope that if sufficient evidence to charge him exists, it's now in the hands of LE and charges will come today.

 

[Knox]

Hi all-

I am a law student at Mercer and am currently working in criminal law until graduation.

Piggbacking off of what Van said, from what I understand, a bond has to be set for each individual charge- one for each burglary. I'm concerned that if they don't charge him before his bond hearing Thursday, he will very likely be able to bond out on the two burglary charges. His family is from the area, so he wouldn't be considered a huge flight risk; he didn't steal anything of substantial value, and based on these charges alone, he wouldn't be a substantial threat to the community. Judges consider all these factors when considering setting bond, so I'm sincerely worried he will be able to bond out.

ETA- I started reading this forum to follow what you all thought about Lauren's case. I am appreciative of how much integrity this forum maintains. It seems well moderated, and it also appears that all of you are very sensitive to the lives of the people involved, which I hadn't expected when I first ran across the site. Glad to be here!

Welcome to WS and we appreciate your input!!

Despite what DA Winters said

(snipped) " A bond hearing for McDaniel, who has been held at the Bibb County jail for nearly two weeks on two burglary charges from two winters ago, is scheduled for Thursday in Bibb County Superior Court. Winters said that hearing has no bearing on the speed of the Giddings investigation".

http://www.macon.com/2011/07/12/1629...#ixzz1RxNfmHmo​

I think LE believes McD murdered Lauren and are indeed working to find evidence to charge him before the hearing on the burglary charges. They do not want him bonding out, MOO.

 

[Lawette32]

Welcome, Lawette. We're glad you joined us, and thank you for the insightful post. I didn't think the value of the stolen property would be a consideration since he wasn't charged with theft. At any rate, I hope that if sufficient evidence to charge him exists, it's now in the hands of LE and charges will come today.

For purposes of charging a burglary, it's true the amount wouldn't matter- but I would bet that the low value of condoms will be brought up regardless in the bond hearing. I go to our bond hearings often in Macon, and it seems like everything but the kitchen sink is thrown in to convince the Judge a bond is appropriate. Even if it's not necessarily an element of the charged crime, I think judges are pretty human and consider what occurred (ie how much was taken) during the burglary.

 

[bessie]

Welcome to WS and we appreciate your input!!

Despite what DA Winters said I think LE believes McD murdered Lauren and are indeed working to find evidence to charge him before the hearing on the burglary charges. They do not want him bonding out, MOO.

I agree, Knox. My guess is something was returned from Quantico yesterday that sent LE over to the apartment in a hurry in an effort to expedite charges. Keeping my fingers crossed.