TX TX - Julie Moseley, 9, Mary Trlica, 17, Lisa Wilson, 14, Fort Worth, 23 Dec 1974 - #2

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TGwebs said:
K-Mac that's a legitimate question so I'm more than happy to answer. As I said, I'm happy to answer questions about sourcing or information. The reason I didn't say what Tommy was doing at the time of the disappearance is because I wasn't able to establish the answer to that question with professional certainty. If you feel you can, you should absolutely publish an article in an outlet based on your own research.

I might also add that I'm new to this forum. I'm trying to be professional and polite, while you have been sarcastic and hostile since my first post. Is this really how you want to treat new contributors to this important discussion? Particularly those who have researched and are knowledgeable about the case? Many people lurk on WS before posting and this sort of attitude might make others think twice before contributing. I know you're passionate about the case and have good intentions, but it might be something to think about. Most discussions are enriched when numerous voices are able to participate and be heard.
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don't feel that I have been hostile or sarcastic referring to you.
I have thanked you for your time and validated your replies.
told you I thought your article was beautifully written???
there is no hidden agenda with me. I state things black and white.
my last post could be interpreted maybe hostile rereading it but that isn't the intention. sorry for affending you.
journos usually have pretty thick skin!
just frustrated that I am sure you know more and for whatever reasons you inadvertently are keeping the silence going, hope you understand what I am saying.

lets start again.
tamara,
tell us more!!!!

please:)
 
k-mac said:
one more thing...shame you aren't going to reply anymore because I would really like to know....
you go to great lengths to describe what mum dad the brother the sister etc all do on the day the girls go missing but you don't tell us what the husband was up to???
the only mention he gets in your entire article is he went on to live his life.
right......very balanced and informative .
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To be honest, the fact that Tommy was NOT mentioned seemed quite intentional. IMO, anyone interested in true crime and who would be coming at the article at an objective angle (having never heard of this case and all the tangled web of characters and emotions involved) would easily pick up on the fact that he wasn't involved in the search nor is he involved now.
 
Thewop356 said:
wonderful post/article and welcome to websleuths...great research. I have been following this case for years and I never heard who the present in the back of the car was for or exactly where the fathers had posted up when watching the car. I really appreciate the efforts you made. One thing that I a m just about convinced of us that the letter and the envelope were written by two different people. I know that has been discussed here many times, but the Ts and Os are completely different a long many other notable differences. What kind of LE department would need to wait for FBI confirmation about that. IMHO, that alone along with many other things should make TT one of those five suspects.
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Thank you TheWop356! I'm personally not sure if I think the letter and the envelope were written by two different people. I'm not disputing your conclusion, it's just not something I feel certain about when I look at it, although I do think it is definitely possible. If it was written by two people it would most likely mean one of two things since the post mark was verified to be valid.

1) The letter writer and the envelope writer were together at one point. The letter was placed into the envelope by one of them and mailed.

2) I know there are also theories that the envelope is a random envelope and that the letter wasn't inside it when it was mailed but rather married to it later. In order for that to be true Tommy would have had to have received mail that morning with a postmark corresponding with the last date and known location of the girls. The piece of mail would have had to have been addressed to him alone, which makes it unlikely it was the envelope from a random Christmas card in my opinion since those are normally addressed to Mr. and Mrs. In this scenario the sender of the envelope would have also had to leave the return section of the envelope empty so someone could write Rachel's name in later. None if this is impossible, but it doesn't seem very likely that all of these three things would have happened in my own opinion.

That being said, I have no idea who wrote the letter but I've always believed the girls did not run away and that if Rachel did write the letter it was under duress. Another theory about the letter that has probably been discussed somewhere, although I don't remember reading it, is that it could have been written and sent by a person or persons with no relationship to the case. A certain segment of the general public always inserts themselves into cases like this. They make false reports to police, make fake phone calls to grieving families, etc. Since the girls were reported missing on the 23d the letter could very well have been sent by such an individual. Again, I don't know but it's an idea worth considering.

The one thing I do believe is that the handwriting is feminine, not the "childish scrawl" generally described in the papers.
 
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k-mac said:
don't feel that I have been hostile or sarcastic referring to you.
I have thanked you for your time and validated your replies.
told you I thought your article was beautifully written???
there is no hidden agenda with me. I state things black and white.
my last post could be interpreted maybe hostile rereading it but that isn't the intention. sorry for affending you.
journos usually have pretty thick skin!
just frustrated that I am sure you know more and for whatever reasons you inadvertently are keeping the silence going, hope you understand what I am saying.

lets start again.
tamara,
tell us more!!!!

please:)
Click to expand...
K-Mac, I don't have anything more to tell. I'm not a case insider and I'm not privy to any secret facts about the case.
 
k-mac said:
don't feel that I have been hostile or sarcastic referring to you.
I have thanked you for your time and validated your replies.
told you I thought your article was beautifully written???
there is no hidden agenda with me. I state things black and white.
my last post could be interpreted maybe hostile rereading it but that isn't the intention. sorry for affending you.
journos usually have pretty thick skin!
just frustrated that I am sure you know more and for whatever reasons you inadvertently are keeping the silence going, hope you understand what I am saying.

lets start again.
tamara,
tell us more!!!!

please:)
Click to expand...
ignoring my heart felt apology to clarify there was no malice in my comments after you defamed my character by a misinterpretation of my statements is disappointing.
you chose to ignore my positives again and highlight a negative.
 
sloane7777 said:
I think it was a great article and I have NEVER caught the Dolphin ring description!!!! and I swear Ive seen an unidentified with a dolphin ring , so now I feel obsessed to search that ![/QUOTE

sloane7777, thank you very much. I've never read a description of the ring either and I've read just about everything on this case. When Terry Moseley told me what it looked like I knew I had to include it. It may be the type of information that could jog someone's memory, especially if the ring is still around. If you find a description of something like that I'd love to hear.
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I just noticed that Rusty's Missing FT Worth Trio Facebook site is public again. It was set to private for about a month or so. I'm guessing it's public again because they are doing another fundraising push to raise funds to drag the cars out of Benbrook Lake. There is a new GO Fund Me account and the Go Fund Me account Rusty started for this purpose in 2015 is still active as well. Perhaps they plan to combine them. I read through several interesting threads.
Shawn Trlica, who was Rachel's two year old step son has started to participate. He says he was picked up a day early by his mother the morning of the disappearance. Apparently she pulled in as Rachel was backing the Oldsmobile out of the driveway. What he doesn't say, however, is if this is something he remembers or has been told. Two is pretty young. I don't have any memories that early, but I know others do.
 
TGwebs said:
I just noticed that Rusty's Missing FT Worth Trio Facebook site is public again. It was set to private for about a month or so. I'm guessing it's public again because they are doing another fundraising push to raise funds to drag the cars out of Benbrook Lake. There is a new GO Fund Me account and the Go Fund Me account Rusty started for this purpose in 2015 is still active as well. Perhaps they plan to combine them. I read through several interesting threads.
Shawn Trlica, who was Rachel's two year old step son has started to participate. He says he was picked up a day early by his mother the morning of the disappearance. Apparently she pulled in as Rachel was backing the Oldsmobile out of the driveway. What he doesn't say, however, is if this is something he remembers or has been told. Two is pretty young. I don't have any memories that early, but I know others do.
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Well THAT'S interesting information...
 
TGwebs said:
This is my first post here on Websleuths but I've been reading the posts on this thread for a long time. I wanted to post an article I published on this case a couple of days ago. I tried to compile as much information as I could into one spot in order to wade through much of the speculation and misinformation on the case. It's a members only Medium story, but non members get 3 free articles a month so everyone should be able to read it. Non-members can even register for a free account if they want to post or ask a question. I hope it will help bring more publicity to the case. What Happened to the Fort Worth Trio? – Tamara Gane – Medium
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I really enjoyed your article and I thought it was very well written. I especially appreciate the time and effort you put in to report so many details and to present so much information in an organized manner. IMO the article stands on its own merit regardless of whether or not you chose to speculate on personal theories that may or may not suggest a perpetrator.
 
TGwebs said:
Hi, K-mac, I'll answer this last post from you and then I'm not going to address this anymore.

The police have never released the name, description, or a sketch of any suspects. I did include verifiable leads in the case in the section called "The Investigation." These are primarily reported sightings of the girls.

Yes, there are plenty of theories out there beyond that, but most of these are based on speculation and conjecture. They are not verifiable and therefore I didn't include them. This was a reported article, not an essay. If I could not verify a fact via multiple sources or if something wasn't reported contemporaneously, it didn't make the cut.

Now, if someone has any questions about how I came across a particular piece of information or sourced the article I'm happy to answer questions, but I won't address my journalistic intentions again. I think three posts explaining that I was focusing on facts alone and not theories should be sufficient.
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Who was the one person that was seen with the girls at the mall?
 
TGwebs said:
This is my first post here on Websleuths but I've been reading the posts on this thread for a long time. I wanted to post an article I published on this case a couple of days ago. I tried to compile as much information as I could into one spot in order to wade through much of the speculation and misinformation on the case. It's a members only Medium story, but non members get 3 free articles a month so everyone should be able to read it. Non-members can even register for a free account if they want to post or ask a question. I hope it will help bring more publicity to the case. What Happened to the Fort Worth Trio? – Tamara Gane – Medium
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Thank you for the article. It was very thorough.

Do we know why Dan James rescinded the $25k reward?

The envelope that the letter came in, was the flap on the back intact? If not, that could be where the return address was, and why Rachel could be written in the top left corner of the envelope. It looks to me like the address handwriting and the handwriting of Rachel's name in the return address are the same, but I'm not sure.

Can you share the source about the layaway jeans not being found in the car? I'm having trouble imagining a circumstance where you would take jeans that you just purchased with you to go shopping in a mall.

Do you know what theory prompted everyone but Rachel's mother to request Debra to undergo a polygraph test?

Was the case covered at all in the Houston media? The reason that I ask is that my mother was the same age as Renee when this happened and lived in Houston and had never heard of the case. Since they thought the girls had left town willingly, I wonder if they were looking for them in Houston and getting their pictures out to as many people as possible via newspapers and broadcast news.
 
Sally Kimball said:
Thank you for the article. It was very thorough.

Do we know why Dan James rescinded the $25k reward?

The envelope that the letter came in, was the flap on the back intact? If not, that could be where the return address was, and why Rachel could be written in the top left corner of the envelope. It looks to me like the address handwriting and the handwriting of Rachel's name in the return address are the same, but I'm not sure.

Can you share the source about the layaway jeans not being found in the car? I'm having trouble imagining a circumstance where you would take jeans that you just purchased with you to go shopping in a mall.

Do you know what theory prompted everyone but Rachel's mother to request Debra to undergo a polygraph test?

Was the case covered at all in the Houston media? The reason that I ask is that my mother was the same age as Renee when this happened and lived in Houston and had never heard of the case. Since they thought the girls had left town willingly, I wonder if they were looking for them in Houston and getting their pictures out to as many people as possible via newspapers and broadcast news.
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SallyKimball sorry I goofed and hit reply before typing. To answer your questions:

Dan James said he would offer a $25k reward while he was working on the case, but he never set up a reward account as people normally do, so it's hard to know if it was a real offer. He is no longer working as a private detective and so the reward, if it ever existed, is no longer being offered.

I've never seen a pic of the back of the envelope. I assume it was intact based on descriptions.

The layaway jeans were not in the car. There is video of the interior of the car that was shot by a local news crew either the evening of the disappearance or the following day. I'm not sure which, but the parking lot was very crowded so the mall was definitely open. You can see a security guard in the background, apparently guarding the car at that point. The car was completely empty except for the gift Renee brought along for Shawn. Rachel's sister Debra has speculated on thread number one that Rachel might have brought the jeans into the mall in order to try them on with a top. This seems very likely to me but only Rachel and the girls know for sure.

According to Debra, she took two polygraphs. The families posted the letter in the paper asking for her to take a polygraph during the time period when Rusty was working closely with Dan James. There were many wild theories being bandied about by the two of them. They were certain Rachel was still alive and believed on several occasions they were only days away from finding her. Rusty no longer appears to believe this is true.

The case was covered by local television and local papers, with the majority of the stories being published by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (and unfortunately they repeatedly get many key details wrong. For instance, they keep reporting that the car was "full of gifts". This is very important because it implies A. The girls were in the mall for a significant amount of time. B. They had quite a bit of money C. They made it back to the car).
 
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TGwebs said:
SallyKimball sorry I goofed and hit reply before typing. To answer your questions:

Dan James said he would offer a $25k reward while he was working on the case, but he never set up a reward account as people normally do, so it's hard to know if it was a real offer. He is no longer working as a private detective and so the reward, if it ever existed, is no longer being offered.

I've never seen a pic of the back of the envelope. I assume it was intact based on descriptions.

The layaway jeans were not in the car. There is video of the interior of the car that was shot by a local news crew either the evening of the disappearance or the following day. I'm not sure which, but the parking lot was very crowded so the mall was definitely open. You can see a security guard in the background, apparently guarding the car at that point. The car was completely empty except for the gift Renee brought along for Shawn. Rachel's sister Debra has speculated on thread number one that Rachel might have brought the jeans into the mall in order to try them on with a top. This seems very likely to me but only Rachel and the girls know for sure.

According to Debra, she took two polygraphs. The families posted the letter in the paper asking for her to take a polygraph during the time period when Rusty was working closely with Dan James. There were many wild theories being bandied about by the two of them. They were certain Rachel was still alive and believed on several occasions they were only days away from finding her. Rusty no longer appears to believe this is true.

The case was covered by local television and local papers, with the majority of the stories being published by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (and unfortunately they repeatedly get many key details wrong. For instance, they keep reporting that the car was "full of gifts". This is very important because it implies A. The girls were in the mall for a significant amount of time. B. They had quite a bit of money C. They made it back to the car).
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Thank you for your answers. Are you accessing the Star Telegram’s archives through like a Newspapers.com subscription? I’m wondering if the Houston Chronicle would have anything that the papers here overlooked...just like how that paper out of Vernon had a small piece of info that didn’t turn up anywhere else.
 
Sally Kimball said:
Thank you for your answers. Are you accessing the Star Telegram’s archives through like a Newspapers.com subscription? I’m wondering if the Houston Chronicle would have anything that the papers here overlooked...just like how that paper out of Vernon had a small piece of info that didn’t turn up anywhere else.
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Yes, I did use Newspaper.com. Unfortunately the Fort Worth Star-Telegram wasn't archived there. I had to find copies of their stories elsewhere poking around the internet. Newspaper.com had several stories from a few other local papers, I can't remember if Houston Chronicle was one of them off the top of my head. The Cuero Daily Record had several stories. Newspaper.com is where I found the clipping from Vernon also. I was really pleased to find it, because I'd seen that lead pop up before but till then I'd never been able to trace it back to a contemporaneous source. There was also a paper with a story in France I remember, because one of the girls had an Uncle that lived over there, but it didn't contain any new information.
 
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