CA - Joey, Summer, Gianni, Joseph Jr McStay Murders - Feb 4th 2010 #10

[missy1974]

Snipped for focus. DNA of three men and one woman = 3 male McStays and Summer McStay?
Ooh, sneaky.

Apparently it didn't match the McStay's either, according to the OS from the defense.

 

[SuziQ]

Thanks Mony!

" Members of the Los A.ngeles police Hillside Strangler Task Force arrested Merritt Friday night in connection with a reported rape and robbery of an unidentified woman Nov. 12. LAPD spokesman Lt. Dan Cooke said over the weekend it did not appear from the initial investigation that Merritt was involved in the series of 10 young female killings but that detectives were checking out all possibilities. Investigators also said Merritt. when arrested, had women's clothing in his auto, a gray Cadillac with a white top. Sepulveda neighbors of the 10th victim linked to the strangler case. 18-year-old Lauren Rae Wagner, said they saw her being taken into a large car with a light top and a dark bottom by two large persons An LAPD spokesman said Merritt's sister contends the clothing was hers and that she had given it to him to be taken to the cleaners."

Omg, although l never met Lauren, we had a lot of common friends. She was kidnapped not far from my house. Creepy that Merritt was in the same area.

 

[katydid23]

Apparently it didn't match the McStay's either, according to the OS from the defense.

Couldn't it be from someone that shook hands with the killer? If it could work that way in the Trooper it could work the same way in the graves, right?

 

[InspectorGadget]

I think the 'assumptions' made by the prosecution make more common sense than some of the explanations by the defense.

It is basic common sense that Chase was doing something shady with that QuickBooks stuff. It looks very sneaky and suspicious.
Is the jury really going to believe that Joey handed over passwords to his bank account to a gambling addict, thieving ex-con, who had financial issues?

And then Joey and his family vanish, and Chase is the last one known to see Joey? But we aren't supposed to see that as 'connected' somehow?

Chase never had password access to Joey's bank accounts. He gave Chase the ability to print checks so they didn't have to waste time & fuel driving between Rancho cucamonga and fallbrook.

 

[katydid23]

Chase never had password access to Joey's bank accounts. He gave Chase the ability to print checks so they didn't have to waste time & fuel driving between Rancho cucamonga and fallbrook.

Why wouldn't Joey just send him his checks, like many employers do?

Why give a gambling addict with a criminal history for theft and fraud, the ability to write checks from your account?

 

[katydid23]

Chase never had password access to Joey's bank accounts. He gave Chase the ability to print checks so they didn't have to waste time & fuel driving between Rancho cucamonga and fallbrook.

You don't find it suspicious that this 'new arrangement' happened to coincide with the family vanishing into thin air?

 

[InspectorGadget]

Why wouldn't Joey just send him his checks, like many employers do?

Why give a gambling addict with a criminal history for theft and fraud, the ability to write checks from your account?

Because Metro sheet metal were used to getting checks & the old man didn't "do" internet banking.

 

[katydid23]

Because Metro sheet metal were used to getting checks & the old man didn't "do" internet banking.

So? They get mail don't they?

 

[katydid23]

Because Metro sheet metal were used to getting checks & the old man didn't "do" internet banking.

Also, If Metro needed a check, why were their checks backdated and then the entries deleted from QB? Why would Chase do that if this was something Joey asked him to do?

And why did Chase tell the detectives that Joey gave him those Metro checks at lunch on the 4th? Because that was a lie. If this was something Joey asked him to do, why lie about it?

 

[InspectorGadget]

You don't find it suspicious that this 'new arrangement' happened to coincide with the family vanishing into thin air?

Yes its suspicious, so worth investigating, but I had understood that Joey took him the cheque blanks on 4th & Chase printed on 5th. I might have it wrong as audio is so bad! But there was good reason for him to create the custom quickbooks account if they were going to be busy. DKs use of the PayPal was equally worth investigating and LE didnt even find out they were using PayPal.
What I cant figure out is how they place Chase on the computer in the fallbrook house on 5th. I need to see more evidence that the check he cashed was printed in the house.

 

[katydid23]

Yes its suspicious, so worth investigating, but I had understood that Joey took him the cheque blanks on 4th & Chase printed on 5th. I might have it wrong as audio is so bad! But there was good reason for him to create the custom quickbooks account if they were going to be busy. DKs use of the PayPal was equally worth investigating and LE didnt even find out they were using PayPal.
What I cant figure out is how they place Chase on the computer in the fallbrook house on 5th. I need to see more evidence that the check he cashed was printed in the house.

The problem with the above info is that Chase began creating these checks on Feb 1st. And he cashed one on Feb 2nd. So that is not true about Joey bringing him those blank checks on the 4th.

Chase backdated the checks that he created, on the 5th, to the date of Feb 4th. Then he told the detectives that Joey gave him those checks, on the 4th. <<<<the last date that Joey was known to be alive.

There was no reason for Joey to give up his password to that account. Joey was not too busy to slap a stamp on an envelope and send it to Chase if need be.

Would you give an employee that had a criminal history, a gambling problem, and financial problems, the passcode to your QBooks account? Joey had 90thousand bucks in that account. I don't think the jury is going to believe that Joey did that.

Here is how they place Chase in Fallbrook on the 4th:

Feb 4th:
7:59 McStay home computer accessed. Check was created for “chase merritt” for $4000 with “paul mitchell” on the memo line.

8:05 Check for $4000 to “chase merritt” is deleted.

Feb 5th:

12:06 Quickbooks accessed, check created for “chase merritt” for $4500 with ‘paul mitchell” on the memo line.

12:12 Check printed. Then the check date was edited from February 5 to February 4, 2010.

12:19 User creates vendor “metro sheet metal”.

12:21 Check created for $1650 with “Miscellaneous Manufacturer” on memo line. Backdated to February 4. Printed and deleted.

12:25 Check created for $250 to “metro sheet metal”, backdated to February 4.

12:29 Check created for $6505 to “charles merritt” with “Balance sa (1001), period.”. Backdated to February 4. Deleted.

12:33 Check for $2350 to “charles merritt” created, backdated to February 4, printed and deleted. This check would later be deposited at Bank of America.

12:38 $4500 check deleted. This check would be cashed at BOA on the same day.

In retrospect on this day, 5 checks would be created – all backdated to February 4 – for the sum of $15,255 in the span of 35 minutes.


[ So Chase writes checks for 15, 000 bucks from Joey's account, all on the day Joey and his family go missing---and we are supposed to believe it was a coincidence?]

 

[katydid23]

InspectorG,

The other problem is the signature. If Joey wanted Chase to be able to write checks legally, he would have added him on the account as a signee.

But he didnt do that. NOR did he give him his own log in password. When my son was in college we gave him a password and log in so he could get checks for tuition and books from one portion of our checking account set aside for that.
But I never told him to FORGE my signature. He was an authorized signature on that account. And had his own passcode to just that section.

WHY didn't Joey do that if he really wanted Chase to have access to that banking info?
WHY would he allow Chase to forge Joey's signature? That makes no sense.

 

[mrjitty]

I hope the prosecution make a big deal of the missing blanks in closing.

If this was "non-traditional accounting" where are the unused blank cheques Joey supposedly gave Chase?

Did Chase destroy evidence? Did he lose them?

Only Chase can testify to this point.

Failure of the accused to testify to signature and missing blanks and content of supposedly contemporaneous phone calls places this theory in the dustbin IMO

 

[mrjitty]

Joey took him the cheque blanks on 4th

So where are they then?

 

[mrjitty]

You would think. It appears the cops dropped the ball on multiple occasions, it seems they discounted the disappearance because JM was a surfer dude.

IMO it was classic "The Wire"

No Homicide Department wants to catch a quadruple family murder when they can plausibly list it as missing persons

Out of interest, this is how the McCann case was originally archived in Portugal. Due to lack of evidence (the body), the prosecutor claimed not to know what crime was committed. This was simply a sleight of hand, to avoid having it on the books as an unsolved murder.

 

[mrjitty]

My recollection is that nothing much was said about the hammer? It was in the grave, a pic that showed some small stains on the side of it, and no mention of blood or dna.
I don't think it's a red herring and do believe it was the murder weapon based on their injuries. What little we could ascertain from their remains.

Also the paint on it.

It's obvious that it would be too risky to retain the murder weapon. The grave is the best place for it.

 

[mrjitty]

It's amazing how the word "proof" is tossed around like it functions as immediate dismissal of any possible reconstruction of events based on circumstantial evidence. When the jury retires to the jury room, they are going to have to review all the circumstantial evidence presented and then speculate how it all ties together. Yes, I said speculate. If they feel the resulting "big picture" extrapolated from circumstantial evidence demonstrates his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, he will be convicted.

Well that's the whole point about evidence and evidential burden - if the defence can establish an evidential basis for a new accounting system, then it would open an alternate inference for the defence and sink a key part of the case.

But what I have been patiently (and impatiently) saying, is that the "new accounting system" is something that lies 100% within the direct knowledge of the accused.

Maline / McGee cannot testify that cheques were handed to Chase on the 4th, or that they were discussed on same day calls, or that Joey told Chase to delete/backdate cheques, or that Joey authorised the forging of his signature or where the missing blanks are.

Nor can an expert testify to any of those matters.

 

[Sharyne]

Here is how they place Chase in Fallbrook on the 4th:

Feb 4th:
7:59 McStay home computer accessed. Check was created for “chase merritt” for $4000 with “paul mitchell” on the memo line.

8:05 Check for $4000 to “chase merritt” is deleted.

Feb 5th:

12:06 Quickbooks accessed, check created for “chase merritt” for $4500 with ‘paul mitchell” on the memo line.

12:12 Check printed. Then the check date was edited from February 5 to February 4, 2010.

12:19 User creates vendor “metro sheet metal”.

12:21 Check created for $1650 with “Miscellaneous Manufacturer” on memo line. Backdated to February 4. Printed and deleted.

12:25 Check created for $250 to “metro sheet metal”, backdated to February 4.

12:29 Check created for $6505 to “charles merritt” with “Balance sa (1001), period.”. Backdated to February 4. Deleted.

12:33 Check for $2350 to “charles merritt” created, backdated to February 4, printed and deleted. This check would later be deposited at Bank of America.

12:38 $4500 check deleted. This check would be cashed at BOA on the same day.

In retrospect on this day, 5 checks would be created – all backdated to February 4 – for the sum of $15,255 in the span of 35 minutes.


[ So Chase writes checks for 15, 000 bucks from Joey's account, all on the day Joey and his family go missing---and we are supposed to believe it was a coincidence?]

RSBM On which computer did CM create those checks?

 

[Sharyne]

The reason I ask which computer is because of these tweets by Cathy:
Cathy Russon on Twitter and
Cathy Russon on Twitter.

I don't know how to insert them.

 

[A lucas]

InspectorG,

The other problem is the signature. If Joey wanted Chase to be able to write checks legally, he would have added him on the account as a signee.

But he didnt do that. NOR did he give him his own log in password. When my son was in college we gave him a password and log in so he could get checks for tuition and books from one portion of our checking account set aside for that.
But I never told him to FORGE my signature. He was an authorized signature on that account. And had his own passcode to just that section.

WHY didn't Joey do that if he really wanted Chase to have access to that banking info?
WHY would he allow Chase to forge Joey's signature? That makes no sense.

And please let’s not forget CM’s attempt just a few days later to delete all evidence of his cheque writing by calling QB pretending to be JM and asking for the custom account to be deleted. It simply stinks.