Have to agree, it was quite shocking to see alot of the behavior throughout this case
TN - Gail Nowacki Palmgren, 44, Signal Mountain, 30 April 2011 - #13
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Have to agree, it was quite shocking to see alot of the behavior throughout this case
glorias
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Someone feel free to correct my thinking here, since it's been a long time since math or physics had any relevance in my life :innocent:
It depends on factors such as friction and the momentum of the Jeep. That rock is going to be sunken into the ground, at least a little. Most landscapers use Bobcats or some lever-fulcrum-pry bar mechanism, to basically dig a rock out of the dirt it's on. Only if the ground was saturated could it have slid in the mud, but it would leave a huge trench and no one has reported that. Hitting the rock would need to cause it to slide across the lawn with little friction or cause it to roll by "popping" it up out of the sunken area it's sitting in.
Since the Jeep was going 24 MPH, I assume she was braking, even though we'll never know for sure. That would reduce the momentum and thus the force exerted on the rock.
Melodie
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I agree. Based on what they are saying: 1. Gail's Jeep struck the rock 2. The rock weighed over 400 lbs. 3. Gail was driving slowly 4. The rock went over the cliff, too. That known, if she hit that boulder at that rate of speed, wouldn't it have put terrible ruts in the grass if it were basically dragged by the Jeep to the edge where it then fell? I don't see how that wouldn't have caused noticeable damage and how the residents did not notice it or whoever maintained that grassy area. JMO
poppyfrock
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OK, Gail did call her sister and police stating she was being followed the day of her disappearance right? On the wtvc newschannel 9 fb page, under the video posted of Matthew Palmgren's interview, people are saying that was never reported by a legitimate news source but only a rumor perpetuated by rabid conspiracy theorists. This is incorrect, right? I mean wasn't that reported and even confirmed by police? I am not finding any "legitimate" news sources for it now. Commenters saying the only "source" for that info is gail palmgren fb pages, not legitimate news or police. GAH!
Peliman
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While you all are discussing the findings I feel I need to share a little bit and I can't help thinking it maybe playing in this case somewhat.
I learned a long time ago that certain pilots in Vietnam when shot down had certain benefits assigned if they were classified as missing instead of killed in action. Their wives and children were paid a living allowance if they were classified missing until otherwise ruled differently <some pilots preferred this.> If they were classified as killed in action the family got a lump sum payment and benefits ended.
Gail probably has insurance benefits payable under accident but may not be payable depending on the LE classification.
Her children maybe beneficiary of any insurance payoff, I doubt we'll ever know. Even if LE suspects she intentionally drove off the road, her children maybe better off if it's classified an accident.
If LE gets more evidence of foul play they could bring charges later.
I really don't know but it's a possibility. Hope I'm not over-stepping any boundry's here.
I learned a long time ago that certain pilots in Vietnam when shot down had certain benefits assigned if they were classified as missing instead of killed in action. Their wives and children were paid a living allowance if they were classified missing until otherwise ruled differently <some pilots preferred this.> If they were classified as killed in action the family got a lump sum payment and benefits ended.
Gail probably has insurance benefits payable under accident but may not be payable depending on the LE classification.
Her children maybe beneficiary of any insurance payoff, I doubt we'll ever know. Even if LE suspects she intentionally drove off the road, her children maybe better off if it's classified an accident.
If LE gets more evidence of foul play they could bring charges later.
I really don't know but it's a possibility. Hope I'm not over-stepping any boundry's here.
hollyblue
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I don't have the link, but I do remember it was mentioned by the neighbor and Diane. I could never find any MSM source saying AD had stated it. It was other people on FB...not AD herself. This was a project I undertook after a few months.
Some1Nose
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BBM
"Gail Palmgren's whereabouts are a mystery that has only been intensified by her last conversation with her sister Diane, moments before Palmgren was last seen."
"She was nervous. She was anxious. She sounded scared," says Diane Nichols. Palmgren wouldn't say why she was scared but the Nichols made out this much, "She just thought she was being followed."
http://m.newschannel9.com/news/palmgren-1001216-nichols-last.html
Seems to me LE totally took that tid bit of information and put it on the back burner..They even turned that eye on the stove off...completely...JMHO
EllaMae
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It's possible that MP hired a PI to follow her due to the impending divorce. Lots of couples do that....unfortunately. Maybe she was being followed, but it was nothing as sinister as a murder for hire. MP may not care to share that publicly if he did employ a PI for divorce purposes.
It's also possible that Gail was actually suffering from paranoia.Her medical history is not something we'd know about unless her family released it. If she was truly afraid of MP...why did she just not stay at the lake house? Or move to a shelter? Why would she leave the children in his care? That makes no sense either...
I just find it hard to believe anyone would take a chance on running her off the mountain in broad daylight on a road with lots of houses, and possible witnesses.
hollyblue
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OK....Matt stated he wasn't present when any of the 911 calls were made, but he then states he was requested to leave while she packed and removed items from the house before she left. Then there was mention...something about an agreement to return after 12-14 hours? If true....and they knew...(from the police reports) she was heading for AL...wouldn't that seem irrelevant or nonsensical? Did I miss something or comprehend this wrong?
my_tee_mouse
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I've tried to keep an open mind through all this, and I even veered a bit toward suicide...until I saw the speed of the Jeep. I know this: If I were going to drive myself off a mountain, it would have to be at all-hell-for-leather, full-tilt, foot-to-the-floor speed, Thelma and Louise-style. And I just really don't see such a slow vehicle magically pushing a rock along with it, let alone pushing it along without making any kind of deep ruts. This just makes no sense to me whatsoever.
And I won't bash anyone in particular, but I will say that it's too bad that people can't be tried for being a total putz. Insert appropriate name if you have one in mind!
And I won't bash anyone in particular, but I will say that it's too bad that people can't be tried for being a total putz. Insert appropriate name if you have one in mind!
ThoughtFox
Expecting the Unexpected
Okay, I've finished transcribing the interview, and let me tell you . . . this is one of the most tedious things I've ever done in my time on WS!!! The repetitions, the obvious scripting, the lame questions, the excuses, the blahblahblah without any substance is mind-numbing. You'll see what I mean.
Poor Gail ~ how did she listen to this for all those years? :twocents:
I'm reposting Part One in my next post because earlier I left out a few lines about the funeral right at the beginning. Then I'll post part two after that.
I made a note of every time he smiled during the interview because that happens at some interesting points, usually when talking about Arlene but also when he uses the phrase "tragic accident." He really likes that report from the Sheriff's office. I know he's relieved to have some closure, but seriously he smiles ALOT.
And the one time he breaks down in tears is while talking about his job. At the end of the interview he seems to blame comments in the NFP for his firing at BCBS, which is a little bit outrageous since no one forced him to break company rules, you know?
Poor Gail ~ how did she listen to this for all those years? :twocents:
I'm reposting Part One in my next post because earlier I left out a few lines about the funeral right at the beginning. Then I'll post part two after that.
I made a note of every time he smiled during the interview because that happens at some interesting points, usually when talking about Arlene but also when he uses the phrase "tragic accident." He really likes that report from the Sheriff's office. I know he's relieved to have some closure, but seriously he smiles ALOT.
And the one time he breaks down in tears is while talking about his job. At the end of the interview he seems to blame comments in the NFP for his firing at BCBS, which is a little bit outrageous since no one forced him to break company rules, you know?
ThoughtFox
Expecting the Unexpected
Matt Palmgren interview with John Madewell, Channel 9
http://www.newschannel9.com/video/?videoId=1364845612001&play=now
Part One (transcribed by Thoughtfox)
Goes through 15:32 on the video
JM: I just want to start back in reverse chronology here, going back to the Memorial Service on Friday, what kind of emotions or thoughts were going through your mind during this time?
MP: Well, we were ready for closure. It was all about the kids, I mean, we really wanted to talk to the kids and let them know their Mom. Center around that and give them peace around that. We definitely kept talking about her, we had a DVD of her there that was beautiful. Relived her life. Theres lots of pictures there. Lots of things around there to remind them. Lots of friends I know, even friends we didnt expect to see that we havent seen in ten years showed up. (smiles) I think for J the most important part was his Boy Scout Troop showed up. (smiles) Absolutely wonderful for him to be there with that. Uh, for L, a lot of schoolteachers actually showed up. (smiles) And she loves school, she loves Thrasher Elementary School, so by them showing up it was very important to her too.
JM: What have the last eight months been like for you and your children?
MP: Its been emotional for all of us. I think one of the things we planned on is that we got together and we set goals. One of our goals was to find Gail. And two, to protect the children. We wanted to protect them through this whole thing. So that led to a lot of our different actions, and so on.
JM: How did you break the news to them, as far as . . . that their mother was missing?
MP: We sat down with them, talked about it. They understood that there was a lot of emotions going on in . . . in the family. Their number one goal again was to find Gail. How do we find Mom? We hoped, you know, for the best, you know, we always did, throughout 8 months. Wed say prayers about it We just want to find where Mom went.
So my common (?factor? something) was that Mom was taking a break somewhere, you know, relaxing, uh, figure out what she wants. And that gave us a lot of comfort for 8 months.
JM: Have they had time to come to terms with losing their Mom?
MP: They have. Weve sat down and talked about it. Through this whole thing one of my goals was to be transparent with them. Theyre nine and twelve. They read the articles they read everything. They ask any question they want. I think one of the best things that happened is that the Hamilton County Sheriff Detectives Office took them out to the Brow and allowed them to ask any questions that they would like to. So they sat down with the and J is a very intellectual little kid (smiles) and he had a lot of questions. Both detectives very well answering those questions for them and will in the future. So . . . I think that brought a lot of understanding to them also.
JM: When her jeep was discovered, what was going through your mind at the time?
MP: Well, when I get the phone call, it was like oh my god, you know, you think about the last 8 months, and we were in a different line of thought
JM: What do you mean, a different line?
MP: We thought Gail went off somewhere . . . some of the things we thought she did. . . . She just went off . . . things that she was planning in advance . . . (smiling) . . . to, uh, go away a while for her stress levels or depression. Thats where we thought she was and where we continued to look and follow up on leads throughout the entire event. So that was our whole line of thought. When they called about the jeep it was like oh my gosh and it brings you back to day one. So it was like oh my gosh for the last 8 months (smiles) the line of thought so you bring it back to day one (smiles) and it starts its just totally different and it starts the thing all over again.
JM: I want to go back to day one, or that week preceding April 30th.
MP: Okay.
JM: You guys had a pending divorce.
MP: (nods)
JM: And police had been called twice out to your residence.
MP: (nods)
JM: for arguments that had happened between the two of you, your guys disagreements there. What happened the following day?
MP: Well, if you go back to the first police report, the day before Easter Good Friday. Uh, I wasnt even at the house. This was, I mean both those reports, I wasnt even at the house. They were filed by Gail by herself if you actually read the reports. Umm, wanted to go to the lake house . . . I wanted to take a separate car . . . give us time to talk on that Good Friday . . . so I wasnt even at the house when she filed the reports. We were (garbled) and she was discussing whether I should take the Jeep or not and she left and came back and went up the hill. I was not even there. So when she came back and talked to the police they just wanted to know if I was all right they talked about a cooling off period. She went to the lake house and I followed the next day.
JM: You talk about you werent even there, are you talking about on the . . .
MP: I wasnt even at the house on the 20th, Good Friday! (raises voice slightly) I was up the road a good bit, didnt know the police were called. The police report was filed before I got back.
JM: You met with the police, right?
MP: They stopped and asked me if everything was okay. I said everythings okay. But, uh, Gail was driving erratic and I told her I want to get out of the car at the stop sign. And I did. And she drove back to the house and called the police.
JM: What about the 30th?
MP: On the 30th, I came home from the conference. I came home on the 30th. Uh . . . The alarms were changed. All the different codes were changed. I didnt know what was going on. Didnt know where my kids were. (smiling now) She said we/I (?) had taken off with the kids before without telling me. So I didnt know what was going on. Had no idea. Uh . . . I guess, you know, she drove by the house. . . and I didnt know where she was going but I was trying to call her numerous times. Alarms were going off in the house, as you might imagine.
And I got in the car and followed her up to where she was going, trying to beep and say hey, Im home. J had an awards ceremony that day if it wasnt for the tornadoes. And she, uh, pulled into the Signal Mt. Police Department. So that report wasnt even filed at the Signal Mt. Police Department and we didnt even have words. She said she didnt want to talk to us, she was worried about something, and she went back to the house.
I stayed there, per their request, and the police asked her to come back in 12 to 14 hours with the kids, and just have a cooling off period.
JM: What time of the day was it here at this point?
MP: About 11:30
JM: On the 30th?
MP: Mmmhmm.
JM: What happened after that?
MP: After that, we agreed. She went back to the house. The police were concerned at how long it was taking her there. We knew she was moving some stuff out. (smiles and laughs). And then came back up . . . police asked me to go up to Pruetts (Food Town) and wait. And I did as they requested. And, uh, she went down to the lake house with the kids and I was in communication with them through text or via cell phone to make sure they were okay.
JM: Let me make sure I understand this right. You said 11:30 . . . are you talking about the 29th?
MP: The 29th. (nods in agreement)
JM: On the 30th, on the Saturday
MP: On Saturday, uh, the only communication she had, she asked me. . . where I was . . . J called me and said they were on their way back. I said greatwe were going to spend the weekend together. Gail and I agreed (smiling) that it was Dads weekend, since last weekend was Moms weekend. (smiles) And she called me, she came back and asked how long it was going to take for me to get there. Got up there and, uh, the kids were there. Were just talkin and . . . there was no communication between Gail and I. On the 30th.
JM: Did you physically see her on the 30th?
MP: No. (shakes head no)
JM: My understanding was from the Sheriff that at 12:15 you were at home?
MP: I was at home, yes sir.
JM: And at noon, where were you?
MP: We stood there and talked about what we were going to do because the weekend before I didnt get to see
Mans voice off camera: I think hes asking you were you were at 12 oclock?
MP: Oh, at 12 oclock I was downtown. My Mom ran some errands. We were at a boutique store down on the North Shore. And thats when we received the phone call saying where were you and I said Ill be up there in about 20 minutes.
JM: So she was already at the house?
MP: She was almost there or was there.
JM: And she left the kids, is that right?
MP: She left the kids. She said she was going out to make some phone calls, uh, to her cousin, Sherry. Thats what the kids told me. Thats when we sat there and called her to find out where she was and what she was planning on. And shes taken off to the lake house before from Louisville when we lived there, as well as when we lived in Birmingham. Just kind of went there for her peace of mind. So we kind of thought thats where she went. So we spent the day together after that.
JM: When you didnt see her on that Saturday, how much time passed before you started becoming concerned or when did you . . .
MP: The kids and I texted her, said . . . you know, theres been patterns of this before. Said we hope youre okay . . . everything else . . . uh, find out what youre thinkin. Uh, she said she was going to spend the weekend down there and the kids were mine for the weekend. We were going to do baseball games, bike riding and everything else.
And uh, I got a phone call Monday morning from her sister and Arlene saying file a missing person, file a missing person . . . and Im like, why? Shes at the lake house. (smiles) And . . . thats where she is.
JM: This is Arlene Durham saying this?
MP: Right.
JM: What did you think when Ms. Durham said that?
MP: I said, Arlene, how did . . . Gails down there. Nope, Ive been following your . . . lake house. And I said why are you following? Whats going on at my lake house and stuff? You know, and she just started ragging me that she knows it and shes been over there and stuff. And Im like why have you been over there at our house? (smiling) You know. So finally I said okay, if you guys are that concerned, Ill go file it. So of course, I went right up the mountain about literally an hour after that conversation to, um, file a missing persons report with Officer Miranda.
JM: Now, Gails sister had all ready filed a missing persons report? Is that correct?
MP: (Nods head in agreement)
JM: May 2nd?
MP: Correct. (takes drink of water)
JM: Um, why did you wait to file the missing persons report after her sister?
MP: Her sister didnt tell me. Her sister called me also. There was nothing telling me that a missing person report had already been filed. So I went up there and was surprised. Officer Miranda came over and said a report had already been filed. And I asked him some questions about that. At the same time we know theres a three-way call between her sister, Arlene Durham, and a neighbor trying to give her possessions back already. (smiles) I thought that was odd. Here theyre pushing to file a missing persons report and theyre worried about Gails possessions being a different peoples houses.
Thats why I began wondering what the heck was going on, Im doing missing persons reports and stuff. And I did not know anything about her sister filing that report until Officer Miranda told me.
JM: What did the results of this investigation mean to you?
MP: It was a tragic accident. I mean . . . we were havin marital issues. Were workin throught em. Were tryin to find out the best things for the kids. Uh, its horrible. Its awful. Its like relivin (smiles) another death. You know. Um, I think all the Law Enforcement was doing their job all the way through. We were communicating with them., I think from day one we hired the best people we could because thats what you do, in my job, you go find the best people to go find and meet your objectives. Thats why we hired Mike Mathis (PI) and Lee Davis (attorney) and Brian Hoss (attorney) and the kids and I talkedlets go find it. And thats where we were going with this all, to get the best people and to find Gail.
We searched FLda. I know I have cousins there. Everybody was giving us information that were (sp) feeding all through the . . . to give to the Law Enforcement. That first (something) we searched New York. There was tips in Vermont. There was tips we followed up on every lead we could. But we werent going to go public with it. We were going to keep it private. And this was the private issue we were trying to . . . trying to handle.
JM: Why did you make that decision to go private instead of public?
MP: Talking to Gails family, we all decided it was a private issue. We know Gails had some issues in the past. We dont want that out there. And we just said were going to handle this privately. I thought we were all on the same page if you look at the press conference that was handled at Signal Mountain, were all asking Gail to come home. Unfortunately like I said it was a tragic accident. And it hurts to this day.
JM: Do the results of this accident, do you in your mind, do you feel they vindicate you? Do you feel exonerated?
MP: (stammers) I dont think theres any . . . I uh . . . I wish we found it day one. I mean, theres no vindication. Im not proud of anything. (smiles) Im glad of closure for me and the kids and stuff. Uh, the public . . . they were mean. (smiles) Ive learned a lot about what people can do to somebodys life, you know. And people that dont back you up. People that . . . even your work that youve done so well for, you know, that people jump to conclusions. Theres assumptions out there . . . and the one thing that we did was stick to our goals. That was to find Gail and to protect the kids and . . . no matter what I did with the protecting the kids, I mean, people scrutinized it. Whatever.
My kids are so proud of it all. They knew who they can trust. They knew who are true friends are now. (smiles) So . . . vindicated? I never did anything. I told them that from day one. To . . . all the people. And theres nothing to be vindicate really for.
JM: Is this a relief for you, as far as the findings of the accident?
MP: Uh, I dont know if its a relief. When you really think about my psyche for the past 8 months thinking Gail was off with friends or somebody. Ill wait till they find the Jeep. The kids believed that. I dont know if its a relief. I think that LE and Cue and everybody brought in did an excellent job and everything. I think I believe 100% in what the findings are. Even some are (to) my surprise. (smiles)
JM: You said Cue?
MP: Cue is the . . . uh, Kevin, Gails brother helped sponsor that in. (smiles) And we were supportive of it. He did it behind the scenes. Again, we kept our names out of Facebook and everything else. I didnt even know Kevin was behind it but he is a sponsor. (smiles) And he did a great job of bringing them in thats the missing persons
JM: Group from California?
MP: From, uh, I think South Carolina or California? But theyre all over. So they did some nice work with the Sheriffs Office. All I asked for was constant communication between that group and the Ham. Co. Sheriffs Dept.
Part One Ends at about 15: 32
http://www.newschannel9.com/video/?videoId=1364845612001&play=now
Part One (transcribed by Thoughtfox)
Goes through 15:32 on the video
JM: I just want to start back in reverse chronology here, going back to the Memorial Service on Friday, what kind of emotions or thoughts were going through your mind during this time?
MP: Well, we were ready for closure. It was all about the kids, I mean, we really wanted to talk to the kids and let them know their Mom. Center around that and give them peace around that. We definitely kept talking about her, we had a DVD of her there that was beautiful. Relived her life. Theres lots of pictures there. Lots of things around there to remind them. Lots of friends I know, even friends we didnt expect to see that we havent seen in ten years showed up. (smiles) I think for J the most important part was his Boy Scout Troop showed up. (smiles) Absolutely wonderful for him to be there with that. Uh, for L, a lot of schoolteachers actually showed up. (smiles) And she loves school, she loves Thrasher Elementary School, so by them showing up it was very important to her too.
JM: What have the last eight months been like for you and your children?
MP: Its been emotional for all of us. I think one of the things we planned on is that we got together and we set goals. One of our goals was to find Gail. And two, to protect the children. We wanted to protect them through this whole thing. So that led to a lot of our different actions, and so on.
JM: How did you break the news to them, as far as . . . that their mother was missing?
MP: We sat down with them, talked about it. They understood that there was a lot of emotions going on in . . . in the family. Their number one goal again was to find Gail. How do we find Mom? We hoped, you know, for the best, you know, we always did, throughout 8 months. Wed say prayers about it We just want to find where Mom went.
So my common (?factor? something) was that Mom was taking a break somewhere, you know, relaxing, uh, figure out what she wants. And that gave us a lot of comfort for 8 months.
JM: Have they had time to come to terms with losing their Mom?
MP: They have. Weve sat down and talked about it. Through this whole thing one of my goals was to be transparent with them. Theyre nine and twelve. They read the articles they read everything. They ask any question they want. I think one of the best things that happened is that the Hamilton County Sheriff Detectives Office took them out to the Brow and allowed them to ask any questions that they would like to. So they sat down with the and J is a very intellectual little kid (smiles) and he had a lot of questions. Both detectives very well answering those questions for them and will in the future. So . . . I think that brought a lot of understanding to them also.
JM: When her jeep was discovered, what was going through your mind at the time?
MP: Well, when I get the phone call, it was like oh my god, you know, you think about the last 8 months, and we were in a different line of thought
JM: What do you mean, a different line?
MP: We thought Gail went off somewhere . . . some of the things we thought she did. . . . She just went off . . . things that she was planning in advance . . . (smiling) . . . to, uh, go away a while for her stress levels or depression. Thats where we thought she was and where we continued to look and follow up on leads throughout the entire event. So that was our whole line of thought. When they called about the jeep it was like oh my gosh and it brings you back to day one. So it was like oh my gosh for the last 8 months (smiles) the line of thought so you bring it back to day one (smiles) and it starts its just totally different and it starts the thing all over again.
JM: I want to go back to day one, or that week preceding April 30th.
MP: Okay.
JM: You guys had a pending divorce.
MP: (nods)
JM: And police had been called twice out to your residence.
MP: (nods)
JM: for arguments that had happened between the two of you, your guys disagreements there. What happened the following day?
MP: Well, if you go back to the first police report, the day before Easter Good Friday. Uh, I wasnt even at the house. This was, I mean both those reports, I wasnt even at the house. They were filed by Gail by herself if you actually read the reports. Umm, wanted to go to the lake house . . . I wanted to take a separate car . . . give us time to talk on that Good Friday . . . so I wasnt even at the house when she filed the reports. We were (garbled) and she was discussing whether I should take the Jeep or not and she left and came back and went up the hill. I was not even there. So when she came back and talked to the police they just wanted to know if I was all right they talked about a cooling off period. She went to the lake house and I followed the next day.
JM: You talk about you werent even there, are you talking about on the . . .
MP: I wasnt even at the house on the 20th, Good Friday! (raises voice slightly) I was up the road a good bit, didnt know the police were called. The police report was filed before I got back.
JM: You met with the police, right?
MP: They stopped and asked me if everything was okay. I said everythings okay. But, uh, Gail was driving erratic and I told her I want to get out of the car at the stop sign. And I did. And she drove back to the house and called the police.
JM: What about the 30th?
MP: On the 30th, I came home from the conference. I came home on the 30th. Uh . . . The alarms were changed. All the different codes were changed. I didnt know what was going on. Didnt know where my kids were. (smiling now) She said we/I (?) had taken off with the kids before without telling me. So I didnt know what was going on. Had no idea. Uh . . . I guess, you know, she drove by the house. . . and I didnt know where she was going but I was trying to call her numerous times. Alarms were going off in the house, as you might imagine.
And I got in the car and followed her up to where she was going, trying to beep and say hey, Im home. J had an awards ceremony that day if it wasnt for the tornadoes. And she, uh, pulled into the Signal Mt. Police Department. So that report wasnt even filed at the Signal Mt. Police Department and we didnt even have words. She said she didnt want to talk to us, she was worried about something, and she went back to the house.
I stayed there, per their request, and the police asked her to come back in 12 to 14 hours with the kids, and just have a cooling off period.
JM: What time of the day was it here at this point?
MP: About 11:30
JM: On the 30th?
MP: Mmmhmm.
JM: What happened after that?
MP: After that, we agreed. She went back to the house. The police were concerned at how long it was taking her there. We knew she was moving some stuff out. (smiles and laughs). And then came back up . . . police asked me to go up to Pruetts (Food Town) and wait. And I did as they requested. And, uh, she went down to the lake house with the kids and I was in communication with them through text or via cell phone to make sure they were okay.
JM: Let me make sure I understand this right. You said 11:30 . . . are you talking about the 29th?
MP: The 29th. (nods in agreement)
JM: On the 30th, on the Saturday
MP: On Saturday, uh, the only communication she had, she asked me. . . where I was . . . J called me and said they were on their way back. I said greatwe were going to spend the weekend together. Gail and I agreed (smiling) that it was Dads weekend, since last weekend was Moms weekend. (smiles) And she called me, she came back and asked how long it was going to take for me to get there. Got up there and, uh, the kids were there. Were just talkin and . . . there was no communication between Gail and I. On the 30th.
JM: Did you physically see her on the 30th?
MP: No. (shakes head no)
JM: My understanding was from the Sheriff that at 12:15 you were at home?
MP: I was at home, yes sir.
JM: And at noon, where were you?
MP: We stood there and talked about what we were going to do because the weekend before I didnt get to see
Mans voice off camera: I think hes asking you were you were at 12 oclock?
MP: Oh, at 12 oclock I was downtown. My Mom ran some errands. We were at a boutique store down on the North Shore. And thats when we received the phone call saying where were you and I said Ill be up there in about 20 minutes.
JM: So she was already at the house?
MP: She was almost there or was there.
JM: And she left the kids, is that right?
MP: She left the kids. She said she was going out to make some phone calls, uh, to her cousin, Sherry. Thats what the kids told me. Thats when we sat there and called her to find out where she was and what she was planning on. And shes taken off to the lake house before from Louisville when we lived there, as well as when we lived in Birmingham. Just kind of went there for her peace of mind. So we kind of thought thats where she went. So we spent the day together after that.
JM: When you didnt see her on that Saturday, how much time passed before you started becoming concerned or when did you . . .
MP: The kids and I texted her, said . . . you know, theres been patterns of this before. Said we hope youre okay . . . everything else . . . uh, find out what youre thinkin. Uh, she said she was going to spend the weekend down there and the kids were mine for the weekend. We were going to do baseball games, bike riding and everything else.
And uh, I got a phone call Monday morning from her sister and Arlene saying file a missing person, file a missing person . . . and Im like, why? Shes at the lake house. (smiles) And . . . thats where she is.
JM: This is Arlene Durham saying this?
MP: Right.
JM: What did you think when Ms. Durham said that?
MP: I said, Arlene, how did . . . Gails down there. Nope, Ive been following your . . . lake house. And I said why are you following? Whats going on at my lake house and stuff? You know, and she just started ragging me that she knows it and shes been over there and stuff. And Im like why have you been over there at our house? (smiling) You know. So finally I said okay, if you guys are that concerned, Ill go file it. So of course, I went right up the mountain about literally an hour after that conversation to, um, file a missing persons report with Officer Miranda.
JM: Now, Gails sister had all ready filed a missing persons report? Is that correct?
MP: (Nods head in agreement)
JM: May 2nd?
MP: Correct. (takes drink of water)
JM: Um, why did you wait to file the missing persons report after her sister?
MP: Her sister didnt tell me. Her sister called me also. There was nothing telling me that a missing person report had already been filed. So I went up there and was surprised. Officer Miranda came over and said a report had already been filed. And I asked him some questions about that. At the same time we know theres a three-way call between her sister, Arlene Durham, and a neighbor trying to give her possessions back already. (smiles) I thought that was odd. Here theyre pushing to file a missing persons report and theyre worried about Gails possessions being a different peoples houses.
Thats why I began wondering what the heck was going on, Im doing missing persons reports and stuff. And I did not know anything about her sister filing that report until Officer Miranda told me.
JM: What did the results of this investigation mean to you?
MP: It was a tragic accident. I mean . . . we were havin marital issues. Were workin throught em. Were tryin to find out the best things for the kids. Uh, its horrible. Its awful. Its like relivin (smiles) another death. You know. Um, I think all the Law Enforcement was doing their job all the way through. We were communicating with them., I think from day one we hired the best people we could because thats what you do, in my job, you go find the best people to go find and meet your objectives. Thats why we hired Mike Mathis (PI) and Lee Davis (attorney) and Brian Hoss (attorney) and the kids and I talkedlets go find it. And thats where we were going with this all, to get the best people and to find Gail.
We searched FLda. I know I have cousins there. Everybody was giving us information that were (sp) feeding all through the . . . to give to the Law Enforcement. That first (something) we searched New York. There was tips in Vermont. There was tips we followed up on every lead we could. But we werent going to go public with it. We were going to keep it private. And this was the private issue we were trying to . . . trying to handle.
JM: Why did you make that decision to go private instead of public?
MP: Talking to Gails family, we all decided it was a private issue. We know Gails had some issues in the past. We dont want that out there. And we just said were going to handle this privately. I thought we were all on the same page if you look at the press conference that was handled at Signal Mountain, were all asking Gail to come home. Unfortunately like I said it was a tragic accident. And it hurts to this day.
JM: Do the results of this accident, do you in your mind, do you feel they vindicate you? Do you feel exonerated?
MP: (stammers) I dont think theres any . . . I uh . . . I wish we found it day one. I mean, theres no vindication. Im not proud of anything. (smiles) Im glad of closure for me and the kids and stuff. Uh, the public . . . they were mean. (smiles) Ive learned a lot about what people can do to somebodys life, you know. And people that dont back you up. People that . . . even your work that youve done so well for, you know, that people jump to conclusions. Theres assumptions out there . . . and the one thing that we did was stick to our goals. That was to find Gail and to protect the kids and . . . no matter what I did with the protecting the kids, I mean, people scrutinized it. Whatever.
My kids are so proud of it all. They knew who they can trust. They knew who are true friends are now. (smiles) So . . . vindicated? I never did anything. I told them that from day one. To . . . all the people. And theres nothing to be vindicate really for.
JM: Is this a relief for you, as far as the findings of the accident?
MP: Uh, I dont know if its a relief. When you really think about my psyche for the past 8 months thinking Gail was off with friends or somebody. Ill wait till they find the Jeep. The kids believed that. I dont know if its a relief. I think that LE and Cue and everybody brought in did an excellent job and everything. I think I believe 100% in what the findings are. Even some are (to) my surprise. (smiles)
JM: You said Cue?
MP: Cue is the . . . uh, Kevin, Gails brother helped sponsor that in. (smiles) And we were supportive of it. He did it behind the scenes. Again, we kept our names out of Facebook and everything else. I didnt even know Kevin was behind it but he is a sponsor. (smiles) And he did a great job of bringing them in thats the missing persons
JM: Group from California?
MP: From, uh, I think South Carolina or California? But theyre all over. So they did some nice work with the Sheriffs Office. All I asked for was constant communication between that group and the Ham. Co. Sheriffs Dept.
Part One Ends at about 15: 32
ThoughtFox
Expecting the Unexpected
Matt Palmgren interview with John Madewell, Channel 9
http://www.newschannel9.com/video/?videoId=1364845612001&play=now
Part Two (transcribed by Thoughtfox)
Begins at 15:32
JM: You were talking about how the public can be mean.
MP: (drinks water, smiles)
JM: The suspicions, I mean these were widely out there in the public, the criticism, even accusations towards you…
MP: Sure. (nods)
JM: How did that affect you?
MP: It bothers you, but I have two small kids. (smiles) And no matter what, it’s like, I’m a big boy and I said ‘I’ll take it—just don’t hurt the children.’ We didn’t get proactive on some things until they started posting stuff about the kids. Whether the kids should be taken away or not taken away. The lawsuits and everything else. And that’s when we got proactive because it got away from our goals of protecting these kids from everything. I mean, one’s in Elementary School and one’s in Middle School so they’re going to hear things. That’s why I always said let’s be transparent with them. They’ve read the articles. They’ve read, uh, filings. They completely understand what’s going on. So . . .
JM: You’re talking about they’ve read the articles. Did you ever fear that your children would be exposed to this? I mean in the media? It was all in the media.
MP: We protected them from the media. We were quite clear from the media and the schools—the schools were fantastic. Principal Randolph and Principal McCullough (sp) were great. We had it clear that if they saw something that was out of the ordinary to call me and I would be down there immediately to talk to them. We had them proper counseling all the way through the whole thing. And so, that’s what we did was protect those two kids.
JM: Did you ever have any fear that particularly J since he was older, that they might believe some of these things that were going around?
MP: Yeah, we’ve talked about it. Uh, they never believed it. Their biggest concern was that they were scared of some of the people on the Internet. Arlene Durham especially. That’s why we filed harassment charge against her when she got too close to our kids. (smiles) You know, she was frustrated and she wanted to know stuff so she started going to our kids. And the kids were scared to death of her to this day. So I wasn’t concerned because our kids and I have a great relationship and they come to me all the time. We’d sit down …they’d literally get upset and call the newspapers ‘liars’ because they knew some of the true facts that were out there.
JM: What was your personal low point?
MP: Uh . . . (chuckles and smiles) . . . I think when I had to tell my kids that I don’t have a job. (appears to get emotional, nods, starts to cry.)
I mean they always knew that Dad takes care of them. (gets Kleenex) And they were worried and they were scared.
(talks to attorney sitting beside him ? garbled words)
JM: How do you see life moving forward for you and your children?
MP: Well we sat down and talked a lot. Uh, they’ve laid out some of their . . . and they love some people up there in the community. (smiles) Some people in the community, very silent people, have always been there for us, picked up the kids when I couldn’t be there, or took them to their house. And, um, really wrapped their arms around them in the community and stuff, so we’re working forward on that. We’re not sure where we’re going to stay right now. I’ve … I’ve set goals with them and you know January, February, and March will be a big time for us to sit down and it’s a good time for them to say, you know, ‘what do you really want to do?’ So I think over the next few months that we’ll um be trying to figure out what we actually want to do.
Like I said, I told you about the Boy Scouts before . . . boy, the Boy Scouts up there, that troops been phenomenal for J. And so, so have certain people up there.
JM: What about your relationship with Gail’s family? How is it now? Did it change it?
MP: Uh, some things have changed. We’re still working through some issues. Um, I hope they find some comfort in the report, what actually happened. We’ve always reached out to them. They have not accepted that (smiles) and I understand that—they’ve lost a sister. We’ve always been close. I’ve always been close to the family. Some of the family has come to me and, um, really supportive. Some people have been completely silent. (smiles) And other people just don’t say nothing. I think they could’ve been more supportive through this to tell you what kind of person I really am (smiles) instead of people reading or not reading the whole story in news reports or police reports and so on. ‘Cause they’ve known me for 14 years, and probably 17 years. Three years before we even got married.
JM: Do you feel like they had some suspicions?
MP: Uh, they at first, uh . . . Arlene was drivin’ a lot of suspicions. Unfounded. (smiles) To everybody. And unfortunately you can’t always defend yourself because if you say something it’s going to be taken one way or another. (smiles) And we chose as a family a plan to remain silent and to keep the focus on finding Gail. And it’s like that was the whole goal, it’s like unless they came and started doing something to the kids, or something detrimental, we were going to stay silent. We were going to have the best people on this, support LE and everybody else on finding Gail.
JM: What was your relationship before Gail went missing as far as Arlene Durham?
MP: Arlene’s not Gail’s best friend. (shakes head no) She is not. I mean, they printed that over and over again. Uh, media outlets have had communication from both sides of the family explaining that she’s not a spokesperson for us, for Gail’s side of the family, or my side of the family. Uh, we have asked them not to print stuff that’s not true. If you go back and take all the radio interviews and stuff, now that we know the outcome of the event, they’re lies. They’re lies to stir up stuff and to hurt me. Which ended up not just hurting me, but my kids.
So the relationship’s never been good. She’s been a caretaker of our houses. She’s done odd jobs for us. But beyond that, yeah, we’d go down and visit her little farm with the kids. But beyond that . . . (shakes head no). She’s not . . . we know who Gail’s best friends are. We contacted them early. One lives in California and one lives in Ohio, and a couple live in Buffalo, New York. And those are Gail’s true best friends.
JM: Do you feel like you were slandered?
MP: I think so (nods). I think people took things out of context. (smiles) I think things . . . uh . . . they’re definitely untrue. I’m not that type of person. I’ve never abused Gail. I’ve never verbally abused Gail. Only one person’s come out and said that. The kids know the truth and I know the truth and that’s what we stuck by through the whole thing.
JM: How hard has it been to live on Signal Mt. with all the things that were going on?
MP: Uh, you’re more vigilant, I won’t say it’s hard. There are some tremendous people up there. And those people just asked to not to be brought into the Facebook stuff, the things that were going on, the slander stuff. I got personal phone calls that said ‘we’re there for you’ and ‘what do you need us to do for the kids?’ I’ve had people who took J on a canoeing trip several weeks after who said ‘I will make sure he’s by my side every second of this trip and you don’t have to worry about it, and that’s what he needs.’
Then I have other people who just ran and hided (sp) and then aided some of this stuff. (smiles) So you had both things, but we tried to stay above that. I mean, the kids wanted their friends up there.
JM: Did you feel like people were staring at you or judging you with all the innuendo that was out there?
MP: I don’t . . . they might have been . . . but it really didn’t bother me because if you stick to the goals that we talked about it doesn’t really matter. Let’s find Gail. You know, and I wish we didn’t get distracted over some of this stuff (smiles) that was being said and maybe did some more of the other stuff—research and walking and thinking about it—that’s out there, you know.
JM: After the Jeep was discovered, and the investigation was leaning towards an accident at that point, Clive Bonnick, who had been critical of you, had some innuendo from his part there.
MP: (drinks water, nods)
JM: He apologized directly to you. Did you see that or hear it?
MP: I saw it a few days later. I didn’t . . . one of the things I stayed away from was the news (smiles) a little bit. And the newspapers. And my family when we sat down and talked about who’s role was to look at that stuff and contact me or the team we put together to look at some of those things because there might have been some clues in there. A lot of things Arlene said or whatever . . . there might have been some clues to where Gail went. But, uh, with Clive—I’ve known Clive five . . . we coached Soccer together. He coached the girls team, I coached the boys team for the spring leagues up there. I think Clive was just lookin’ . . . uh . . . I’m not sure where Clive was goin’ with some of the things he was sayin’. I think some of it was frustration on his part. But that’s up to Clive and not to me to figure out what he was thinkin’.
JM: Clive did not know Gail, did he? Or did he?
MP: Clive met Gail on April . . . in April . . . my soccer team played his soccer team. Uh, Gail was across the field because I remember it. I introduced Gail to Clive around April of 2010, I believe.
JM: What did you think of his apology?
MP: I’m glad he apologized. (smile) He stepped back from that apology all ready. Uh, but I mean, that’s up to him. He has to figure out what he’s thinkin’ and find closure on his own. My thing is to protect my kids away from some of that stuff. (smiles)
JM: Do you think other people owe you an apology?
MP: I don’t need one. If they have ‘em, they can. I think the big apologies need to go to my kids for some of the stuff that they’ve had to put up with. Let’s face it, people post things on Facebook, teenagers get to read it. Elementary Schools now read it. Kids get to read it. And that’s the stuff that gets back to your kids. And that’s why we’ve been so transparent with them. And their comments and several people’s comments get back to the kids. That’s what people have to remember through this whole thing.
JM: Clive had said this and others did ~ they wanted to know why you didn’t participate in the searches?
MP: Well, because some of the things at the beginning, Signal Mt. police force were making some innuendoes towards me. (smiles) And saying you’re guilty of something so I didn’t know what to actually do. So that’s what brought on bringing this team together with attorneys and everything. And I didn’t want the searches to become about me. We supported things on the backside. We had . . . you know I asked Lee Davis ‘who is the best person to go find Gail? Who knows these mountains? Who’s been here the longest?’ And that’s where Mike Mathis and his team came in to go look. We had people searching.
What I could do was look through things, find things, go through books, find anything we can turn over to get any inclination of what was going through Gail’s mind or where she might have gone. So we were working that side as a private matter. And to go walk through the woods—I’m glad people were doing it, I knew people were doing it. To have myself do it for several hours it might have looked good. But I could spend several hours going through Year Books and finding best friends and looking through some of her documents and say ‘is there something there we can turn over to LE to give these detectives a helping hand?’ and seeing where she was and following up on it? We were quite frankly following up on all the leads.
JM: What would you say to those around the dinner table and probably you had something to do with it?
MP: (shrugs) They’re wrong. I’ve said that from day one. I never had anything to do with it. It is not within me/my to do something like that. People that know me. If people actually ask the people that know me who was on Gail’s side of the family or on my side of the family or my best friends, even some of Gail’s best friends . . . if you took all these rumors (smiles) and put them aside, people knew that I didn’t . . . that I had nothing to do with Gail’s disappearance. And it’s like, so, I would tell them to go back and if they need to have closure and stuff, look back at what’s fact versus rumor.
JM: Speaking about fact versus rumor, I wanted to kind of circle back to this accident report. What do you think that will say to the public when it becomes public?
MP: It will say it’s a tragic accident. Uh, I think based on the science behind it, the thorough job the Ham. Co. Sheriff’s Department and all the experts . . . I mean Lee talked to me about all the experts they contacted so it’s just not their experts it’s every expert. It was a tragic accident that happened on a day. And . . . hopefully the public will come to some closure around it. To say, ‘this was a tragic accident.’ Things do happen tragically.
And it’s sad for me, it’s sad for the family, it’s sad for Gail’s family. It’s sad for the community out there.
JM: There’s a divide between what’s been out there in the public sphere versus what you knew privately. Does it make you feel any better to do this interview, to get some of this out?
MP: It makes me feel better. I want people to know about the kids and what we’re thinking. And the kids were part of the discussion on what we were going to release or not release. They were part of the discussion of whether I was going to get in front of the media or not in front of the media. If they had said ‘Dad, you need to get out in front of the media’ then I would have got out in front of the media. We all talked privately and like I say they’re smart little kids.
Attorney off camera: (paraphrase) No matter what the kids said about being in front of the media, I wouldn’t have let you.
MP: (smiling) Okay. (to JM) You can take that out, or leave it in. Never let me out in front of the media. But I mean it was really about the kids. And to see so much that was hurtful out there, no matter what I said publicly it was going to be twisted. (smiles) And that would just confuse the kids. So I was better off talking with them privately than I was anytime publicly.
JM: The last question I have is not a question. If there’s something you want to say or you want to interject, I’ll leave it open.
MP: I just hope the media channels and stuff just really look at it and base theirselves (sp) on facts and stuff in the future. Not listen to a single source. (smiles) Not listen to one person out there. And if they are going to, do a background check. Check out who these people actually are. Uh, don’t bury the facts as we know they have on some things. (smiles) Don’t spend a lot of time doing research only to come out with the research that says look to one area and making assumptions. I really hope they learn some lessons. Even the Times Free Press article about how they’re changing their blog-in policies and stuff . . . and who can actually post . . . on stories now because of things that have happened to me, with my job and with the kids reading that stuff. I hope people really take a self-reflection over . . . over this.
JM: I’ve asked you before if you thought you were slandered. Do you plan to take any action?
MP: I’m not sure at this time. Our goals are really . . . we’re still with the ‘tragic accident’ (smiles) . . . and I said it was like, go back seven months, eight months, you’re thinking one thing, and now you’re thinking . . . we’re still in the stages of ‘wow, what can we do best to memorialize Gail’? What’s the best thing we can actually do? So we haven’t even gotten to that stage yet. It’s more about talking to the kids and finding out what their future wants, to answer your previous question. That’s the important thing.
The End
http://www.newschannel9.com/video/?videoId=1364845612001&play=now
Part Two (transcribed by Thoughtfox)
Begins at 15:32
JM: You were talking about how the public can be mean.
MP: (drinks water, smiles)
JM: The suspicions, I mean these were widely out there in the public, the criticism, even accusations towards you…
MP: Sure. (nods)
JM: How did that affect you?
MP: It bothers you, but I have two small kids. (smiles) And no matter what, it’s like, I’m a big boy and I said ‘I’ll take it—just don’t hurt the children.’ We didn’t get proactive on some things until they started posting stuff about the kids. Whether the kids should be taken away or not taken away. The lawsuits and everything else. And that’s when we got proactive because it got away from our goals of protecting these kids from everything. I mean, one’s in Elementary School and one’s in Middle School so they’re going to hear things. That’s why I always said let’s be transparent with them. They’ve read the articles. They’ve read, uh, filings. They completely understand what’s going on. So . . .
JM: You’re talking about they’ve read the articles. Did you ever fear that your children would be exposed to this? I mean in the media? It was all in the media.
MP: We protected them from the media. We were quite clear from the media and the schools—the schools were fantastic. Principal Randolph and Principal McCullough (sp) were great. We had it clear that if they saw something that was out of the ordinary to call me and I would be down there immediately to talk to them. We had them proper counseling all the way through the whole thing. And so, that’s what we did was protect those two kids.
JM: Did you ever have any fear that particularly J since he was older, that they might believe some of these things that were going around?
MP: Yeah, we’ve talked about it. Uh, they never believed it. Their biggest concern was that they were scared of some of the people on the Internet. Arlene Durham especially. That’s why we filed harassment charge against her when she got too close to our kids. (smiles) You know, she was frustrated and she wanted to know stuff so she started going to our kids. And the kids were scared to death of her to this day. So I wasn’t concerned because our kids and I have a great relationship and they come to me all the time. We’d sit down …they’d literally get upset and call the newspapers ‘liars’ because they knew some of the true facts that were out there.
JM: What was your personal low point?
MP: Uh . . . (chuckles and smiles) . . . I think when I had to tell my kids that I don’t have a job. (appears to get emotional, nods, starts to cry.)
I mean they always knew that Dad takes care of them. (gets Kleenex) And they were worried and they were scared.
(talks to attorney sitting beside him ? garbled words)
JM: How do you see life moving forward for you and your children?
MP: Well we sat down and talked a lot. Uh, they’ve laid out some of their . . . and they love some people up there in the community. (smiles) Some people in the community, very silent people, have always been there for us, picked up the kids when I couldn’t be there, or took them to their house. And, um, really wrapped their arms around them in the community and stuff, so we’re working forward on that. We’re not sure where we’re going to stay right now. I’ve … I’ve set goals with them and you know January, February, and March will be a big time for us to sit down and it’s a good time for them to say, you know, ‘what do you really want to do?’ So I think over the next few months that we’ll um be trying to figure out what we actually want to do.
Like I said, I told you about the Boy Scouts before . . . boy, the Boy Scouts up there, that troops been phenomenal for J. And so, so have certain people up there.
JM: What about your relationship with Gail’s family? How is it now? Did it change it?
MP: Uh, some things have changed. We’re still working through some issues. Um, I hope they find some comfort in the report, what actually happened. We’ve always reached out to them. They have not accepted that (smiles) and I understand that—they’ve lost a sister. We’ve always been close. I’ve always been close to the family. Some of the family has come to me and, um, really supportive. Some people have been completely silent. (smiles) And other people just don’t say nothing. I think they could’ve been more supportive through this to tell you what kind of person I really am (smiles) instead of people reading or not reading the whole story in news reports or police reports and so on. ‘Cause they’ve known me for 14 years, and probably 17 years. Three years before we even got married.
JM: Do you feel like they had some suspicions?
MP: Uh, they at first, uh . . . Arlene was drivin’ a lot of suspicions. Unfounded. (smiles) To everybody. And unfortunately you can’t always defend yourself because if you say something it’s going to be taken one way or another. (smiles) And we chose as a family a plan to remain silent and to keep the focus on finding Gail. And it’s like that was the whole goal, it’s like unless they came and started doing something to the kids, or something detrimental, we were going to stay silent. We were going to have the best people on this, support LE and everybody else on finding Gail.
JM: What was your relationship before Gail went missing as far as Arlene Durham?
MP: Arlene’s not Gail’s best friend. (shakes head no) She is not. I mean, they printed that over and over again. Uh, media outlets have had communication from both sides of the family explaining that she’s not a spokesperson for us, for Gail’s side of the family, or my side of the family. Uh, we have asked them not to print stuff that’s not true. If you go back and take all the radio interviews and stuff, now that we know the outcome of the event, they’re lies. They’re lies to stir up stuff and to hurt me. Which ended up not just hurting me, but my kids.
So the relationship’s never been good. She’s been a caretaker of our houses. She’s done odd jobs for us. But beyond that, yeah, we’d go down and visit her little farm with the kids. But beyond that . . . (shakes head no). She’s not . . . we know who Gail’s best friends are. We contacted them early. One lives in California and one lives in Ohio, and a couple live in Buffalo, New York. And those are Gail’s true best friends.
JM: Do you feel like you were slandered?
MP: I think so (nods). I think people took things out of context. (smiles) I think things . . . uh . . . they’re definitely untrue. I’m not that type of person. I’ve never abused Gail. I’ve never verbally abused Gail. Only one person’s come out and said that. The kids know the truth and I know the truth and that’s what we stuck by through the whole thing.
JM: How hard has it been to live on Signal Mt. with all the things that were going on?
MP: Uh, you’re more vigilant, I won’t say it’s hard. There are some tremendous people up there. And those people just asked to not to be brought into the Facebook stuff, the things that were going on, the slander stuff. I got personal phone calls that said ‘we’re there for you’ and ‘what do you need us to do for the kids?’ I’ve had people who took J on a canoeing trip several weeks after who said ‘I will make sure he’s by my side every second of this trip and you don’t have to worry about it, and that’s what he needs.’
Then I have other people who just ran and hided (sp) and then aided some of this stuff. (smiles) So you had both things, but we tried to stay above that. I mean, the kids wanted their friends up there.
JM: Did you feel like people were staring at you or judging you with all the innuendo that was out there?
MP: I don’t . . . they might have been . . . but it really didn’t bother me because if you stick to the goals that we talked about it doesn’t really matter. Let’s find Gail. You know, and I wish we didn’t get distracted over some of this stuff (smiles) that was being said and maybe did some more of the other stuff—research and walking and thinking about it—that’s out there, you know.
JM: After the Jeep was discovered, and the investigation was leaning towards an accident at that point, Clive Bonnick, who had been critical of you, had some innuendo from his part there.
MP: (drinks water, nods)
JM: He apologized directly to you. Did you see that or hear it?
MP: I saw it a few days later. I didn’t . . . one of the things I stayed away from was the news (smiles) a little bit. And the newspapers. And my family when we sat down and talked about who’s role was to look at that stuff and contact me or the team we put together to look at some of those things because there might have been some clues in there. A lot of things Arlene said or whatever . . . there might have been some clues to where Gail went. But, uh, with Clive—I’ve known Clive five . . . we coached Soccer together. He coached the girls team, I coached the boys team for the spring leagues up there. I think Clive was just lookin’ . . . uh . . . I’m not sure where Clive was goin’ with some of the things he was sayin’. I think some of it was frustration on his part. But that’s up to Clive and not to me to figure out what he was thinkin’.
JM: Clive did not know Gail, did he? Or did he?
MP: Clive met Gail on April . . . in April . . . my soccer team played his soccer team. Uh, Gail was across the field because I remember it. I introduced Gail to Clive around April of 2010, I believe.
JM: What did you think of his apology?
MP: I’m glad he apologized. (smile) He stepped back from that apology all ready. Uh, but I mean, that’s up to him. He has to figure out what he’s thinkin’ and find closure on his own. My thing is to protect my kids away from some of that stuff. (smiles)
JM: Do you think other people owe you an apology?
MP: I don’t need one. If they have ‘em, they can. I think the big apologies need to go to my kids for some of the stuff that they’ve had to put up with. Let’s face it, people post things on Facebook, teenagers get to read it. Elementary Schools now read it. Kids get to read it. And that’s the stuff that gets back to your kids. And that’s why we’ve been so transparent with them. And their comments and several people’s comments get back to the kids. That’s what people have to remember through this whole thing.
JM: Clive had said this and others did ~ they wanted to know why you didn’t participate in the searches?
MP: Well, because some of the things at the beginning, Signal Mt. police force were making some innuendoes towards me. (smiles) And saying you’re guilty of something so I didn’t know what to actually do. So that’s what brought on bringing this team together with attorneys and everything. And I didn’t want the searches to become about me. We supported things on the backside. We had . . . you know I asked Lee Davis ‘who is the best person to go find Gail? Who knows these mountains? Who’s been here the longest?’ And that’s where Mike Mathis and his team came in to go look. We had people searching.
What I could do was look through things, find things, go through books, find anything we can turn over to get any inclination of what was going through Gail’s mind or where she might have gone. So we were working that side as a private matter. And to go walk through the woods—I’m glad people were doing it, I knew people were doing it. To have myself do it for several hours it might have looked good. But I could spend several hours going through Year Books and finding best friends and looking through some of her documents and say ‘is there something there we can turn over to LE to give these detectives a helping hand?’ and seeing where she was and following up on it? We were quite frankly following up on all the leads.
JM: What would you say to those around the dinner table and probably you had something to do with it?
MP: (shrugs) They’re wrong. I’ve said that from day one. I never had anything to do with it. It is not within me/my to do something like that. People that know me. If people actually ask the people that know me who was on Gail’s side of the family or on my side of the family or my best friends, even some of Gail’s best friends . . . if you took all these rumors (smiles) and put them aside, people knew that I didn’t . . . that I had nothing to do with Gail’s disappearance. And it’s like, so, I would tell them to go back and if they need to have closure and stuff, look back at what’s fact versus rumor.
JM: Speaking about fact versus rumor, I wanted to kind of circle back to this accident report. What do you think that will say to the public when it becomes public?
MP: It will say it’s a tragic accident. Uh, I think based on the science behind it, the thorough job the Ham. Co. Sheriff’s Department and all the experts . . . I mean Lee talked to me about all the experts they contacted so it’s just not their experts it’s every expert. It was a tragic accident that happened on a day. And . . . hopefully the public will come to some closure around it. To say, ‘this was a tragic accident.’ Things do happen tragically.
And it’s sad for me, it’s sad for the family, it’s sad for Gail’s family. It’s sad for the community out there.
JM: There’s a divide between what’s been out there in the public sphere versus what you knew privately. Does it make you feel any better to do this interview, to get some of this out?
MP: It makes me feel better. I want people to know about the kids and what we’re thinking. And the kids were part of the discussion on what we were going to release or not release. They were part of the discussion of whether I was going to get in front of the media or not in front of the media. If they had said ‘Dad, you need to get out in front of the media’ then I would have got out in front of the media. We all talked privately and like I say they’re smart little kids.
Attorney off camera: (paraphrase) No matter what the kids said about being in front of the media, I wouldn’t have let you.
MP: (smiling) Okay. (to JM) You can take that out, or leave it in. Never let me out in front of the media. But I mean it was really about the kids. And to see so much that was hurtful out there, no matter what I said publicly it was going to be twisted. (smiles) And that would just confuse the kids. So I was better off talking with them privately than I was anytime publicly.
JM: The last question I have is not a question. If there’s something you want to say or you want to interject, I’ll leave it open.
MP: I just hope the media channels and stuff just really look at it and base theirselves (sp) on facts and stuff in the future. Not listen to a single source. (smiles) Not listen to one person out there. And if they are going to, do a background check. Check out who these people actually are. Uh, don’t bury the facts as we know they have on some things. (smiles) Don’t spend a lot of time doing research only to come out with the research that says look to one area and making assumptions. I really hope they learn some lessons. Even the Times Free Press article about how they’re changing their blog-in policies and stuff . . . and who can actually post . . . on stories now because of things that have happened to me, with my job and with the kids reading that stuff. I hope people really take a self-reflection over . . . over this.
JM: I’ve asked you before if you thought you were slandered. Do you plan to take any action?
MP: I’m not sure at this time. Our goals are really . . . we’re still with the ‘tragic accident’ (smiles) . . . and I said it was like, go back seven months, eight months, you’re thinking one thing, and now you’re thinking . . . we’re still in the stages of ‘wow, what can we do best to memorialize Gail’? What’s the best thing we can actually do? So we haven’t even gotten to that stage yet. It’s more about talking to the kids and finding out what their future wants, to answer your previous question. That’s the important thing.
The End
hollyblue
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ThoughtFox,
Thank you for transcribing that whole stammering debacle. It's permanent now and can't be lost. The interview was hard to follow on the video, and now it can be viewed and broken down and contemplated.
I noticed a few things..but the first was his shortness of breath. Maybe it was just his nervousness, but I'd be checked out if I was him. Second, I'm wondering who's idea it was to go public.....his or his attorney's...or family? JMO, but any future employers will now have a mini interview autonomously available....and by my own misconceptions of his intellect I don't think it will be a +. Now I can see why he had others always doing his talking for him or taking care of things.
Something was off....because beyond trying to squash emotions of resentment his telling his story was too broken up and too thought out. Maybe he had moved on mentally from GP prior to her missing, but the person who he once cherished, loved and was the mother of his children is now gone forever. I didn't see any sadness for that....even for his children....even after 8 mos to contemplate. He detaches easily....I'd rather be delusional.
IMO, JMO, etc.
Thank you for transcribing that whole stammering debacle. It's permanent now and can't be lost. The interview was hard to follow on the video, and now it can be viewed and broken down and contemplated.
I noticed a few things..but the first was his shortness of breath. Maybe it was just his nervousness, but I'd be checked out if I was him. Second, I'm wondering who's idea it was to go public.....his or his attorney's...or family? JMO, but any future employers will now have a mini interview autonomously available....and by my own misconceptions of his intellect I don't think it will be a +. Now I can see why he had others always doing his talking for him or taking care of things.
Something was off....because beyond trying to squash emotions of resentment his telling his story was too broken up and too thought out. Maybe he had moved on mentally from GP prior to her missing, but the person who he once cherished, loved and was the mother of his children is now gone forever. I didn't see any sadness for that....even for his children....even after 8 mos to contemplate. He detaches easily....I'd rather be delusional.
IMO, JMO, etc.
http://www.wrcbtv.com/link/532589/gail-palmgren-crash-report
Page 37 states her speed was gradually increasing the five seconds prior (from 16 mph to 22 mph) ... yet her brake lights were recorded "on" three times during that five second period?
Page 38 states "The gearshift position was recorded as "Drive" until 0.3 seconds before the MRE, then a "Neutral" position was recorded at 0.2 before the MRE when a "park" position was noted at 0.1 before the MRE."
Also noteworthy is the homeowner's Accident Report ... she heard a "horrific sound" ... "I heard a sound like crashing of metal, the extended sound of screeching tires, and then a rumbling sound and a loud bang. Concurrent with those sounds I also heard the sound of a car puliing into our drive then backing out and driving away."
Page 37 states her speed was gradually increasing the five seconds prior (from 16 mph to 22 mph) ... yet her brake lights were recorded "on" three times during that five second period?
Page 38 states "The gearshift position was recorded as "Drive" until 0.3 seconds before the MRE, then a "Neutral" position was recorded at 0.2 before the MRE when a "park" position was noted at 0.1 before the MRE."
Also noteworthy is the homeowner's Accident Report ... she heard a "horrific sound" ... "I heard a sound like crashing of metal, the extended sound of screeching tires, and then a rumbling sound and a loud bang. Concurrent with those sounds I also heard the sound of a car puliing into our drive then backing out and driving away."
hollyblue
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Monkey, I don't know if it's my computer or the link, but it's not bringing up the article....just part of their website. ??? Could you check? tia
OK, I see what's happening...I think. Here's the link to the article, but I can't get the link in the article to the PDF to open. Anyone else?...or is it just me? ???? Help.
http://www.wrcbtv.com/story/16445803/sheriff-to-hold-news-conference-on-palmgren-case
OK, I see what's happening...I think. Here's the link to the article, but I can't get the link in the article to the PDF to open. Anyone else?...or is it just me? ???? Help.
http://www.wrcbtv.com/story/16445803/sheriff-to-hold-news-conference-on-palmgren-case
Sorry Holly, possibly I posted it wrong.
If you go to this link http://www.wrcbtv.com/story/16445803/sheriff-to-hold-news-conference-on-palmgren-case
About one third way down it says "[Read the full crash report (11MB PDF)] " . I clicked on that. HTH
If you go to this link http://www.wrcbtv.com/story/16445803/sheriff-to-hold-news-conference-on-palmgren-case
About one third way down it says "[Read the full crash report (11MB PDF)] " . I clicked on that. HTH
hollyblue
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Does the PDF come up for you because it won't for me when I click that link for it....the WRCB headline appears, but not the actual PDF doc. ???
My understanding is Gail is the one who hired the PI..She was the one attempting to get information that would hold up in a Court of Law ...
In reference to this not being anything as sinister as a MFH, we'll just have to respectfully disagree...JMHO
To my knowledge MP didn't hire a PI until after he finally reported Gail missing...JMHO
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