Hi all. It’s been forever since I’ve posted here, but this is another story near and dear to my heart and location. I’ve read through most of this forum, and am astounded again at the intelligence and resources this site attracts. Here are my thoughts, building off what you all have written and my own experiences as a teen and now a mother of teens.
I believe KR was inebriated, but I don’t think she was wasted/blackout drunk/slurring her words/unable to make decisions about her safety and strangers. Her friends probably rightfully believed she was too drunk to drive, so they found sober drives home. But I think teen opinions about “she couldn’t have made it very far” have to be weighed with their own inexperience. The reason I don’t think she was too incapacitated is because she spoke on the phone with her mom at 11:30. Her mom believed she was the designated driver. I can tell when my 17 yo son is under the influence of anything, even if it’s just barely. He sounds overly reassuring, hesitant speech, etc. I think if KR’s mom heard anything in her voice that sounded off, knowing she’s the DD for other teens, she would have said “Nope, I’m coming over to pick you up right now. You sound funny and I don’t want you driving home.” So, KR must have been sober enough to pull off a phone call asking for a curfew extension.
She’s at a party with her high school graduating class. People know her, even if they’re not in the same social group. They know she’s got a boyfriend. I’m pretty sure if she were seen alone with a strange guy or with a group of strange guys at the end of the party or near her car, tongues would have been wagging. People would have noticed. So, I don’t think this happened.
Once she calls her mom, she’s on borrowed time. Her mom asks her to wake her up when she gets home, so she might be able to get away with being a little bit later than she said since her mom’s asleep. But she also doesn’t want her mom waking up at 3am and freaking out because she’s not home yet. If she was still at the party at 12:36, she’s already pushing the extended curfew.
I think at 12:36, she’s walking to her car to leave. She’s pretty sure she can leave without Sami, but because she’s intoxicated and maybe confused about their last exchange, and because she doesn’t want to accidentally leave Sami without a ride, she calls to make sure - “What’s going on? Do you still need a ride?” “Nope, we’re all good.” “Okay, love you, see you tomorrow!”
I think maybe we’re not hearing from other witnesses because there was nothing to see or add. Yes, we saw her there. No, we didn’t see her with anyone else and we didn’t see her leave.
I don’t see her being so drunk that she allowed some random guy hanging out by her car to drive her anywhere. The idea that she went to an after-party makes great sense, and is absolutely what I did as a teen. But not on nights I was expected home, and not with people I didn’t know, and not when I had early morning plans, and not if my phone were dead.
If KR did plan to go to an after-party, the first thing she likely would have done is either charged her phone on the way or at the party house when she got there. Because in case her mom called to find out where she is, she would need to explain that she’s delayed because she’s giving other people rides home, or some other cover. Charging her phone and driving, or being at a location charging her phone, would have caused pings. If she didn’t plug in her phone once in the car and keep it turned on, it’s probably because she planned to head straight home and didn’t need it. Based on how smart and resourceful she sounds, she wouldn’t have allowed a situation where her mom might wake up at 2 or 3am and send out an APB to all her friends because she’s not home yet and her phone is going straight to vm.
Even if something nefarious did happen at an after party, I agree with what another poster said. Someone would have talked by now. Some teens talk for the right reasons, because it’s weighing in them and they didn’t do anything wrong. Some teens talk for the wrong reasons, to look like the hero and get attention even if they were partly to blame. But they do talk.
It sounds like LE are not searching extensively on the side of I-80 where her house is. So I’m thinking they’ve checked the available surveillance cams around the few business sections/intersections where she might have crossed the freeway and didn’t see her car that night. That would mean an abduction leading to the interstate, or her making it further than the interstate on her own, are both unlikely.
Finally, silver cars have got to be hard to spot in brush and forested areas. And there are lots of areas where she could have swerved off the road to avoid wildlife or because she was inebriated. But I think she’s still in that area somewhere.
www.dailymail.co.uk
its been a long time since I engaged on a WS case!). Another motive for LE focusing on the gold necklaces could be the possibility that KR used them to buy drugs for self and/or others. That of course could then lead to either your pawn shop idea or as someone else mentioned, a dealer or his/her friend(s).
