Well said! I totally agree.
I know it frustrated a lot of listeners but I respect the way SMS answered those questions. Actually, I had another question I planned on leading with but Tricia had already done all she could do to get him to commit more specifically. It clearly was not going to happen. I knew how limited our time was with him, so I tossed my original question (which would have elicited the same responses we had already heard) and chose to move on to others I felt like he might answer.
With two perps already arrested, clearly SMS is in constant contact with the DA's office. The last thing he wants to do is make their job more difficult and by saying anything that will cause them problems in securing a conviction on ANY one of the people eventually charged. He is being very careful not to play into a defense attorney's hands. A very popular defense tactic (and often a very successful argument when presented to a jury) is to accuse LE of having tunnel vision, focusing on one person and railroading (MS, in this case) while ignoring other possible leads. In short, SMS is being very wise to avoid handing the defense that gift of argument served up on a silver platter.
One thing I respect and find fascinating about SMS, he is without a doubt the best LE official I have ever seen when talking to the media. He ALWAYS chooses his words very carefully. We're always opining around here how SMS divulges exactly what he wants others to hear/know. (And by "others", I don't just mean the listening audience tuned in to last night's show.) There is always a method to his madness. For me, it is absolutely fascinating to watch that man work his magic. He is darn good at it, too.
So, all that stuff re. the "envelope" including POIs, suspects, witnesses and/or vicitims - I don't read much into that at all. I simply interpret it only as "Nope, not going to pin me down and get me to divulge who I feel (know?) specifically falls into each of those categories."
ddsmiley:
