I do not typically post on these discussions, but I have read all the comments and many are quite informative. I apologize for the long post, but some of the comments here opine that FD is not going to be held accountable for Jennifer's murder. For lots of reasons, I do not agree, which I will try to explain. First, the one thing seems pretty clear is that MT is cooperating with LE. She has met with the prosecutor and LE at her lawyer's office for 3 hours and she accompanied them to FD's home, where additional items were seized. Combine those meetings with the fact that the prosecutor agreed to let her leaving the state and I think her intentions are clear. FD and his counsel must be really nervous about that, which is why we saw those pathetic efforts by NP to "bring her back into the fold." Interestingly, the protective order barring FD from contacting MT in ANY fashion (directly of indirectly) also included NP and that is not a common practice. Even if MT doesn't know all the details of FD's activities on the day of the murder, she surely knows enough to help LE develop more leads and gather more evidence against her boyfriend. Her lawyer enjoys an excellent reputation in the legal community and you can be sure he has told her to cooperate with LE 110%! Whatever her involvement, she will be required to disclose everything she knows about FD and his criminal activities, in this case and others. As for FD's lawyer, his scattershot tactics have not served his client well. No reputable criminal defense attorney would ever take a millionaire's (from Jennifer's resources, but a millionaire nonetheless) case pro bono! Yes, he is getting "free" publicity, but respected criminal defense attorneys don't need that kind of publicity. These cases can run into the 100's of 1000s of dollars just in costs alone and often, as we see here, the publicity the lawyer receives is not the kind of publicity respected attorneys seek. NP's constant and often contradictory statements in this case only make sense when you understand that his tactics are designed to get HIM the attention he so clearly craves. For example, a reputable criminal defense attorney would never, ever claim his client has an ironclad alibi and then later contradict himself by saying there is no alibi for the hours between 9 and 1:30, the very time frame for when the murder occurred! There is also the now discarded claim the MF could provide an alibi for FD, which NP has now had to walk back. Then there is NP's absolutely preposterous claim that JD staged her own disappearance! There is also the matter allowing FD to demand custody of his children and then having him invoke his 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination at a hearing on the motion! That is just plain dumb. His attorney also arranged media interviews with FD and those interviews were a disaster from a defense perspective. FD's interviews can only be described as a cringeworthy. When asked about his missing wife, FD shrugged his shoulders and mumbled that his sister had already given a statement about her! Awful, just awful. In that moment, the world saw who FD really is. When this case eventually goes to trial, look for the prosecutor to play the part of the interview where FD asks who is "really affected" by JD's disappearance because, poor thing, he has to wear an ankle bracelet and cannot water ski, while his wife is...dead. I won't even discuss the mannerisms on display, except to say that a forensic psychologist would have a field day explaining how his body language screams, "I killed her, I am going to get away with it, and I have absolutely no remorse for my conduct." When he smirks during the interview, while bragging about "what he has done", I immediately knew he has no conscience. FD appears to be a classic malignant narcissist and it appears NP is throwing out outrageous theories to the media to see if any of them will stick. If an attorney choses to "try their case in the press", that attorney better durn well know what case they are trying! NP's misogynistic rants about both the victim and a bestselling author make his client look like a cruel and vindictive spite-fighter, and that is exactly the opposite of an effective defense strategy. Finally, I think FD had been planning this murder for a very long time. Those garbage dumps were clearly preplanned and timed to ensure evidence of Jennifer's murder was destroyed. As seems to be consistent with his arrogance, FD thought he had planned the perfect crime. He did not account for LE's fast acting investigation. The police officer who snagged FD's phone when FD voluntarily came to the police station is a true hero! My understanding is that a search warrant was obtained before the cops got into the phone, so NP's claim that the search of FD's phone was unlawful is going nowhere. Those pings allowed LE to confiscate tangible, damning evidence - evidence that FD believed would never be found. Jennifer's body (or what sadly remains of it) is nearby, in a place FD had preplanned. He had this murder timed to the minute, but he did not take into account Jennifer's bravery in fighting off his attack. By fighting him off, she ensured there was physical evidence at the scene to tie FD to her murder; I hope that provides some small measure of comfort to her family. She also threw off FD's planning such that he made a series of mistakes that produced evidence which will tie him to her murder. I hope her children will be told how brave she truly was! Each day, I read the news, hoping her body will been found quickly and Jennifer's children will not continue to suffer; if FD loved his children as much as he claims to, he would at least give those kids the peace of knowing where their mother is. I'm not holding my breath. Even if Jennifer is never located, however, there is zero doubt in my mind that FD will be charged with first degree murder. The forensic evidence is going to be overwhelming. He may have thought he was the smartest guy in the room (guys like him always do), but when all the evidence is gathered and analyzed, I feel certain that FD's waterskiing days will be over. I hope Jennifer's children will be protected from ever having to see that monster again!
