MN - Jacob Wetterling, 11, St. Joseph, 22 Oct 1989 - #7

[Sasquatch321]

You are defending him. And if this guy was always this way, maybe I can see your point. But he has been going to the media to try to 'clear his name' and has been in the very public eye in doing so. The normal, 'don't want to get involved, shy, quiet, hermit-like guy would be believable only if he stayed that way. The fact that he feels the need to be so out in the open now without contacting any of the Wetterlings regarding the case and his innocence before he does these public interviews and comments on blogs shows that he is NOT the shy, quiet, don't want to get involved guy...he is involved in getting his name cleared, why not clear his name first with the Wetterlings?

Very much agree with this. Also why would DR write to 14 different state agencys saying they have ruined his life? Jacob is still missing.. according to DR in the interview with kare11 news he says they can come in and dig all they want.

 

[cGorg]

Thinking about this some more. The tire tracks by the footprints most likely indicated that the car was traveling by the footprints. In other words, the car would not have been parked at that spot. The reason I say this is, if the car would have been parked there, there would have been some indication in the tracks of the car starting out. If starting from a dead stop, there would have been some slippage of the tires in the dirt. Apparently investigators did not see any sign of slippage in the tire prints.

So that, coupled with Dan Rassier's eyewitness account of seeing a car with another person in it turn around in his driveway, would have led LE to conclude that the abduction was by car, and that the driver drove all the way into the DR property AFTER taking Jacob.

Once that car was identified (Kevin) in 2003 - it changed the whole theory of the crime. Again - it's all about the cars. If Dan Rassier truly did report (in 1989) two other cars in his driveway that day / night - then he is probably innocent. If he didn't report that right away, then he is probably guilty of the crime, or of covering it up.

That being said - there is nothing (other than Dan's word) to support the notion that he reported multiple cars back in 1989.

Based upon the photo I'd have to agree with your analysis.

 

[ELOCsoul]

You are defending him. And if this guy was always this way, maybe I can see your point. But he has been going to the media to try to 'clear his name' and has been in the very public eye in doing so. The normal, 'don't want to get involved, shy, quiet, hermit-like guy would be believable only if he stayed that way. The fact that he feels the need to be so out in the open now without contacting any of the Wetterlings regarding the case and his innocence before he does these public interviews and comments on blogs shows that he is NOT the shy, quiet, don't want to get involved guy...he is involved in getting his name cleared, why not clear his name first with the Wetterlings?

I don't read it as they are defending DR per se. I believe what they are defending is objective thinking. We need more objective thinking, and less character assassination, in my opinion.

 

[HEY YOU!]

I don't read it as they are defending DR per se. I believe what they are defending is objective thinking. We need more objective thinking, and less character assassination, in my opinion.

I get what you are saying and that is exactly why I asked Keep Hope Alive for their opinion, I feel like maybe they see something that I don't and I want to think outside the box as well. Brainstorming is what we do here on Websleuths and by talking to someone who appears to have a different opinion, I feel like we may learn something. It is very easy to talk to people who agree with me, I want to know why KHA feels the way they do so perhaps I can re-frame my opinion. Nobody wants to accuse an innocent person, Just want to know all of the facts while sleuthing and keep an open mind.

 

[Sasquatch321]

Good insight. That did not occur to me. But how do we explain the dogs losing his scent, other than dogs are not necessarily 100% reliable?

Also, this just came to me. I haven't had time to think it through, but I'm going to put it out there anyway. I wonder if a car could was parked on the main road (16th?) just on the other side of the driveway AFTER the boys had gotten to store (so they would not have passed it on the way to the store, and they would not have noticed it on the way there or the way back). Could someone have pulled into the driveway (assuming that there were two or more people involved) once the two boys started running and were safely out of sight? Then the driver could have pulled into the driveway to pick up the abductor and Jacob? I wonder if there were any tracks at the very end of the driveway indicating which way a vehicle drove in and out. The idea might be a stretch, but I thought I'd put it out there anyway.

Interesting but if they had planned things to that level, why would they glaringly leave their footprints and tire tracks?

 

[KeepHopeAlive]

I get what you are saying and that is exactly why I asked Keep Hope Alive for their opinion, I feel like maybe they see something that I don't and I want to think outside the box as well. Brainstorming is what we do here on Websleuths and by talking to someone who appears to have a different opinion, I feel like we may learn something. It is very easy to talk to people who agree with me, I want to know why KHA feels the way they do so perhaps I can re-frame my opinion. Nobody wants to accuse an innocent person, Just want to know all of the facts while sleuthing and keep an open mind.

Obviously, my words have been misinterpreted/misunderstood by some. I'll come back to this later when I have more time.

 

[KeepHopeAlive]

Interesting but if they had planned things to that level, why would they glaringly leave their footprints and tire tracks?

It's just my opinion, but I don't they think cared, or even thought about it. I think they have done this before and were confident enough that they were going to get away with it.

 

[Sasquatch321]

It's just my opinion, but I don't they think cared, or even thought about it. I think they have done this before and were confident enough that they were going to get away with it.

Fair enough. In my opinion there is just one guy in his 30s, who lives alone with his parents, and is keeping it as his own little secret.

 

[human]

no one has explained how there can be these cars that DR saw. How about the one that came hurtling down the driveway? Where are the prints? If you have ever driven fast on gravel, you know about the slipping and the flying gravel.

So what happened to all of these tire tracks?

 

[Sasquatch321]

DR says that if you find the Monte Carlo that whipped a u turn in his driveway during mid-afternoon, "you will have your kidnapper" and that is his best information to date. How absurd.

 

[Sasquatch321]

no one has explained how there can be these cars that DR saw. How about the one that came hurtling down the driveway? Where are the prints? If you have ever driven fast on gravel, you know about the slipping and the flying gravel.

So what happened to all of these tire tracks?

There are none besides Kevins in my opinion. This could be why dan asserted that LE told him he was changing his stories.

 

[KeepHopeAlive]

But why call the police immediately after you commit a crime? This would only draw more attention to yourself and give you less time to cover it up, would it not?

 

[Sasquatch321]

But why call the police immediately after you commit a crime? This would only draw more attention to yourself and give you less time to cover it up, would it not?

Scott Peterson called 911 to report his wife missing, any similarity?

 

[HEY YOU!]

But why call the police immediately after you commit a crime? This would only draw more attention to yourself and give you less time to cover it up, would it not?

Well, it would be a very smart thing to do to throw off the cops. Also saying that he would go search his own property to help. If DR did not go out or contact anybody while cops, helicopters, etc were all over that night...he may have had a visit to the front door and in his own words, if cops searched the house that night 'it would have all been over that night.'

 

[KeepHopeAlive]

Scott Peterson called 911 to report his wife missing, any similarity?

I'm not familiar with the exact events of that case. The police were on the scene at DR's residence within minutes.

 

[Sasquatch321]

I'm not familiar with the exact events of that case. The police were on the scene at DR's residence within minutes.

Yup exactly why DR had to scramble and do what he could to throw off the cops right away. So he calls 911 "They're stealing my wood!" Its well known he sounded way too nervous.

 

[KeepHopeAlive]

Well, it would be a very smart thing to do to throw off the cops. Also saying that he would go search his own property to help. If DR did not go out or contact anybody while cops, helicopters, etc were all over that night...he may have had a visit to the front door and in his own words, if cops searched the house that night 'it would have all been over that night.'

It would be a way to throw off the cops, if he had time, but they were there in minutes.

I still think when he says "it would have been all over that night" that he meant they would have searched his house and found that Jacob was not there. However, without actually knowing for sure, I do see how it could be interpreted both different ways.

 

[HEY YOU!]

Scott Peterson called 911 to report his wife missing, any similarity?

Exactly, the person who commits the crime then has to immediately think about how an innocent person would act under the circumstances. Going out to talk to cops and offering to help search his own property may have taken some of the heat off initially which was all the time he needed.

'Normal' may have meant going to Wetterlings to offer any help, support they needed since a neighbor's son was taken from his driveway. I feel like he didn't because Trevor & Aaron would have recognized him. And lifting the crime scene tape and walking all over the scene...can KHA explain that? Sounds like he was purposely trying to contaminate the scene. This man is a smart man, no way he would not know to stay away from the scene.

 

[HEY YOU!]

Yup exactly why DR had to scramble and do what he could to throw off the cops right away. So he calls 911 "They're stealing my wood!" Its well known he sounded way too nervous.

But there is no proof of that. Cops dropped the ball in so many ways that night. They should have secured the scene immediately, they should have notified the homeowner (DR) immediately and asked him right away what he saw that night, etc. Cops should have immediately got a warrant to search DR's property and all buildings. They should not have allowed DR to drive on the driveway at all until after scene had been processed in the daylight....

 

[Shay]

Does anyone have any explanation on why there is no indication that LE is not interested in any other cars? At least two, is it that he saw. One screaming up the driveway. Where are those tracks?

IMO, they are not interested in any other cars because there are no unidentified tracks. Therefore, there where no other cars. LE knows DR is lying about the cars. Again, MOO