Psyche's Knot

Is That a Camel in Your Pocket or Are Ya Just Glad To See Me?

I love oddball newstories. Today's entries weren't all that funny but I liked the line I stole from Mae West and modified to title this entry, in connection with this story from Reuters.
Man Caught with 177 Cigarette Packs in Trousers

I am trying to envision his three loser friends attempting to shield his bulging trousers by holding newspapers in front of him as they all walked out of the store. Yeah.... that'll work, no one will think we look odd. Makes me think of that hilarious old movie Bringing Up Baby and the scene in which Katherine Hepburn's character splits her formal gown right down the back, exposing her backside to a room full of tuxedo'ed highbrows. Cary Grant tries to hide her derriere first with his hat then melds his body to her backside spoon fashion and they toddle quickly as a single four legged unit out of the ballroom. Actually something similiar to that happened to me. Unfortunately Cary Grant was not around to spoon me. Had he been, the embarassment might have been worth it.

Another oddball news story with environmentalist implications.
Gray Squirrels' Faulty Memories Help Forests

Hmmmm.... the red squirrels must be Republicans.

And this one.... well of course California would lead the way to PC'ing PC's.
Article L.A. Wants to End 'Master' and 'Slave' Equipment

Lastly.... It has to be a conspiracy by or against the Democratic donkey mascot. But I just can't figure out if its a Left wing conspiracy.... or a vast Right wing conspiracy.
Life Worsens for Donkeys Under Suspicion

and

Gang Faces Court Over Donkey Meat Scam

Now from the Modesto Bee, news that is "odd" in a different way. An article on the "oddness" of Scott Peterson's "fishing" trip on Christmas Eve 2002 after which his pregnant wife mysteriously went missing.
Few bites from fishermen on Peterson sturgeon alibi

But just how odd was it, at face value at least? I never found the idea of a guy going fishing on Christmas Eve all that damning. Even at the wrong hour of the day. You know, not all of us who like to play around fishing necessarily do everything right. It's not always about catching fish. Sometimes it's just about getting out on the water, alone, in the peace and quiet and fishing is a convenient excuse for that. Going on Christmas Eve? So what, I have to say. Scott Peterson was an adult male with no children who required his attention on a holiday. He had already seen his own family for the holidays the previous week. He was to socialize with his wife's family that evening. To a guy like that, the morning of Christmas Eve is just some free time to play about. Ron Grantski, Laci's stepfather, himself said he went fishing on Christmas Eve morning.... Sharon didn't go missing.

All that said, the odd fishing trip is still a concrete block in the foundation of conviction for Scott Peterson. I pray for a sensible jury, a skillful prosecution team, some measure of peace for the Rochas and most importantly.... justice for Laci and Conner.

Scott Peterson Trial - Would you like a "Small Frey" with that?

Rita Cosby of Fox News reported on November 26, that Amber Frey is four months pregnant. If Ms. Cosby's sources are correct then those who have followed the Laci Peterson case must consider how this impacts Frey's role and effectiveness in the coming jury trial. Is it a factor? Should it be?

Upon hearing this "breaking news", my immediate response was "damn it, Amber". Why now? Defense attorney Mark Geragos is undoubtedly as pleased as pig in a mud wallow to hear this bit of news. One prominent prong of his defense of Scott Peterson is to attack the character of Amber Frey with vigor. A second out of wedlock pregnancy is like loading the second barrel of the shotgun he wants to aim at her.

First let me say that I have no problem with a single woman having children. Having unwed mothers in my own family and having known people who themselves were born out of wedlock and turned into fine people, I see no value or virtue in being one of those smug, self righteous biddies who so quickly and happily pick up a rock and throw it at their fellow women. I do not however understand an adult woman in this country, in this day and age, possessing at least average intelligence, becoming pregnant accidentally.... twice. Once, yes, but twice? That leads me to question whether or not Amber planned this second out of wedlock pregnancy and if so.... as I said before "why now"? Knowing that Mark Geragos, or whomever eventually tries this case in Scott's defense, wants to dig up dirt on you, why Amber, why get pregnant now? You've got more than a few ticks left on your biological clock. You are old enough and experienced enough to know about birth control. You have claimed to want to 'do the right thing' to further justice for Laci and Conner. I just don't get it.

Ultimately though I must concede that Amber's judgement and pregnancy is none of my business and none of the business of the public, but Mark Geragos will surely make it his business in some manner, overt or covert. I have to wonder if one of Ms. Cosby's "sources" might not be a private detective in the employ of Mr. Geragos' office? But to be fair, it's obvious that in cases like this there always seems to be a friend or family member willing to do the "blab to the tab" dance.

So, forget morals or good judgement in the case of Amber's pregnancy, not our business as said. But how will this affect the jury trial? One aspect I see is timing. Some legal talking heads have stated that the defense's best bet would be to push for a quick jury trial because it seems to them that the prosecution is not quite prepared. But neither Geragos nor any other defense attorney would think it tactically prudent to aggresively question a heavily pregnant woman on the stand. Can you visualize that picture. Defending the accused murderer of a pregnant wife.... by attacking the visibly pregnant girlfriend? It would look like a meeting of "Misogynists Unanimous". Amber's pregnancy I believe, will cause both defense and prosecution to prefer the trial be delayed until at least summer of 2004. If Geragos remains on the case his normal tactic is to delay jury trials as long as possible anyway.

Then there is the obvious aspect of assault on her "character". I don't like this tactic much at all. Your idea of good character may be quite different from mine. I don't like the idea of a jury deliberating Amber's sex life instead of Scott's guilt. This second pregnancy conceived out of wedlock makes it even easier to portray her as loose, conniving, immoral, or otherwise in a very poor light. By doing that it can be inferred that her testimony should be negated, looked at askance. It is a sad fact that guilty people have been set free because juries did not like an important witness.

In my opinion, little to nothing in Amber's past or present should matter in the Scott Peterson trial. In a more perfect world nothing should matter but that she tell the truth under oath. Most of what she has to say can be corroborated with the tapes of telephone conversations with Scott. Nothing Amber did before or after changes what Scott himself said on those tapes. Since her actions good or bad do not change Scott's recorded words, the savaging of her character holds no purpose except to attempt to make a jury dislike her more than they do Scott Peterson. Where is the justice in that for anyone?

All that said, I have to admit I do have issues with Amber Frey. I have been told that there was indeed some sort of plan considered by Amber to make money from this whole ordeal. That she and her friend Saki did discuss the best way to realize money from it. That Amber did have something to do with, or at least prior knowledge of the sale of photos of she and Scott Peterson. Questioning Amber about this on the stand, is valid. A witness is always suspect when the prospect of monetary gain is introduced. Whether Amber completely dropped this plan or it was only a brief aberration on her part isn't clear as yet but in my opinion she is brokering deals for the future. To be honest, most people would, especially after being pillaried as Amber has been for months. I wouldn't blame her if she did, her life has certainly been inconvenienced in major way by all this. Like it or not, money does salve some wounds. We can only hope that she continues to remain publicly quiet until her role in the jury trial is over and her testimony is untainted by paid interviews and appearances.

As always, any comments I make on the Peterson case and the persons involved is opinion and speculation on my part based on media reports and conversations with Modesto friends which must be construed as rumor until proven otherwise.

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Other notes --

*I am reconsidering my opinion that Mark Geragos will bow out of Scott's case, citing Michael Jackson's needs as prior and more pressing. I still think it is a good possibility, but it does seem that funds for the defense, i.e. "experts", are being garnered. Plus Mark Geragos may just have such a enormous ego that he will never give up the spotlight willingly in either case. Jeffrey Fieger, frequent legal commentator on Greta Van Susteren's show has voiced exactly the opposite prediction, i.e. that Geragos will bow out of the Michael Jackson case. His reasoning is amusing.... that Geragos' association with Scott Peterson will taint people's opinion of Jackson. Giggle.... maybe so Mr. Fieger.

*The recently reported "loan" of $100,000 to Scott Peterson from his parents using the Covena house as collateral was a smart but nasty bit of work by the Peterson's in my opinion. As I understand it, the first in line for any money realized from the sale of that house in future, is the first mortgage holder, whatever loan company that may be. Next would be any other lien holders, and that would be the Peterson parents because of this recent "loan". Since it is doubtful there would be much equity in that home after both these debts were paid, the Rochas, who would be Laci's heirs if Scot is convicted, are effectively blocked from receiving anything from the sale of the home. I doubt Sharon, Dennis, Amy or Brent give a squat about dollars. But I also doubt they relish the thought of the eventual profit from Laci's home being used to finance Scott's defense. That seems obscene to me.

A Notice of Action was filed on November 26, 2003 in Stanislaus Co. Sharon Rocha is the grantee, Scott Peterson is the grantor. No other information was available online and just who is being served is not clear to me. I can only hope this is an action taken by Sharon Rocha to block the efforts of the Petersons. Good thoughts sent Sharon's way from Psyche.
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Read related Laci Peterson Case entries:
Click here Laci Peterson Case past entries
Scroll to bottom of page to read earliest entries.
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As always, any comments I make on the Peterson case and the persons involved is opinion and speculation on my part based on media reports and conversations with Modesto friends which must be construed as rumor until and unless proven otherwise.

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Update on the Broken Turkey entry -- We all survived. The Ex babbled through almost entire meal, small talk thankfully. Son was a near monolith. It wasn't as uncomfortable as I feared but very sad. The Ex is pitiful and I can't bear to see it. Toward the end, the Ex asked to ride along with Son to take the mother in law back to the nursing home. He'd behaved so far, but I knew he'd have to try something. He couldn't be satisfied that I had finally gotten his son to at least see him, he had to push. I knew if they were in a car together alone some emotional scene would ensue and Son would never forgive my meddling. He abhors emotional scenes. I had to get the Ex aside and nix that ride quickly. So a sad scene of leavetaking followed in the parking lot. This is awful, awful, awful and I don't see it getting better.

Click on "Laci Peterson Case" in the Categories list to the right to read related entries.

Broken Turkey

This is not the first Thanksgiving since my divorce. But it may be the hardest (thus far) since my ticket on the Guilt Trip Express keeps getting punched for another run. I wanted the divorce, my idea not his, I don't mind at all not having big Rockwell style holidays.... been there, done that, put on a good show but I got tired of being a cooking doormat.

So why care this year about what the Ex is doing? It's taken him less than three years of life without me to deteriorate, lose his job, spend all the cash he received when I bought out his share of our house, destroy his relationship with our adult son, ruin both his mental and physical health and now be staring down the barrel of homelessness within weeks. Someday in this weblog I'll tell you why he probably deserves every second of the misery he's created for himself.... but it's going to take a lot of entries. Why would I care about him and his Thanksgiving? Damned if I know, by rights I should revel in his torment and loneliness. I don't.

Adding to the passenger list on my guilt trip is his elderly mother. Living in a nursing home, her only chance for a dinner out or a change of scenery is my Ex or my son. It's sad for her to be one of those old people no one comes to pick up on a holiday. Why would I care about her either? She caused me enough frustration over many years, I should revel in her loneliness as well. I don't.

Fool that I am, I donned a mantle of holiday peacemaker, meddler may be more the title I'll receive. Yes the day before Thanksgiving, I attempted a task commensurate with planning a small scale D-Day, getting myself, my Ex, my son and my ex-mother in law at a table together for a meal. I think the trick was waiting until nearly the last possible second.... 30 minutes ago to be exact. Another manuever, I chose a public restaurant hopefully to ward off any ugly scenes.... although that's never stopped my Ex from showing his derriere in the past. That was a specialty of his to the acute mortification of my son and myself on many an occasion.

Kismet was with me. I found a nice restaurant who still had a reservation for Thanksgiving left open. This was important. I didn't want this little group of disjointed turkeys that we are to be sitting in a restaurant lobby trying to make cordial conversation while we waited for a table for an hour. With that element being taken care of, next I had to get my son to agree to sit a table with his father. No, no, no.... he'll just start a fight in front of everyone, said son. I'll make him agree to behave, to talk about nothing but the meal, I promised. Son laughed, not merrily, a grim laugh, yeah right says my fair haired boy.

Next the Ex. Immediately upon hearing the invitation he starts with the whine.... son doesn't want to see me any other day, son hates me, son doesn't care what happens to his father. STOP.... forget it if you are going to start says I. It is a sign of his deep desperation that he actually got himself under quick control and backtracked to say he would meet us. Do you promise to avoid any recriminations, anger, whining? Yes says the Ex.

Call to son, son calls grandmother, Ex calls back, call to restaurant to confirm reservation.... I restrain the inclination to ask if they can give us four separate tables or at the very least seat us the minute we hit their door. The less time sitting without food to engage our mouths with something to do besides talking, the better. If this goes bad, I'll be stoned to death with bread rolls by them all. I am a fool, I should have just left it alone. Taking my Ex out to dinner on the verge of him becoming homeless is probably like bringing home a stray dog for a meal.

Broken turkey, I should have just left it in pieces. No wonder I am an introvert, it's easier on a psyche like mine.

Black & Decker® - You're Scaring Me!

Black & Decker®, you've been a fine innovator of tools and gadgets for the household handymen and women of America, there's no doubt of that. Whether you're a cook, a carpenter or a compulsive cleaner, Black & Decker® has made a tool to make your task easier. But Black & Decker®.... you're scaring me!

I know that maids, butlers, cooks and all manner of servants have been replaced by household conveniences like vacuum cleaners and crock pots. I mean who needs to lay out money, food and a room for live in maid when you can just buy a robotic vacuum cleaner, electronic dishwasher and programmable coffee maker? They don't take up a bedroom and they only eat a kilowatt or two now and then.

But apparently now Black & Decker® wants our elbows and wrists replaced via evolution by eliminating the need for them to move. They're inventing tools so we needn't open jars or move a utensil. Our future purpose on earth seems to be as brain stems searching for a place to plug in a kitchen gadget and then consume what ensues from their singular and narrowly targeted tasks.

Case in point.... the Black and Decker® Lids Off™ Automatic Jar Opener. Ah, silly me.... I've just been giving those pesky, stubborn jar lids a couple of whacks with the handle of knife. The lids loses it's grip on reality and the knife goes in the dishwasher, job done, whew! But now Black & Decker®, bless 'em, have made me realize what a simplistic simpleton I have been, laboring with such a primitive tool every time I come across a stubborn lid. They invented Lids Off™. Let a jar lid refuse to yield.... hah! You just forget that tap tap with a knife handle....shove that mama into the Lids Off™! Way easier. All you have to do is get the gadget out of the cabinet, pop it up out of it's convenient storage position, plug it in, lift the handle, put the jar on the turntable, lower the upper body, press and hold the button and voila .... la lid is loose! Now all you need do is take the jar out, unplug the machine, push it back down into storage position and shove it away again.

As I said.... way easier.

Moving on to another ingenuous, labor saving device from Black & Decker®.... the Gizmo Grater™! Now I know not a day goes by that I don't grate chocolate, or cheese.... you too, right? Don't you find that chore of actually moving the food item across the grater terribly tiring? I know I'd rather plow a field than haul that heavy hunk of cheese across my old fashioned grater. Gizmo Grater™ saves the day and your arm. All you have to do now is turn on the Gizmo Grater™, hold it one hand and the cheese in the other. You do need to move your arm but only enough to bring the cheese in contact with the grater. After you make contact you need only stand there like a stalk of broccoli until your hunk of cheese is niftily transformed into a molehill of mozzarella without you moving a millimeter. This is a good time for transcendental meditation or Pilates. Just don't let Gizmo grate your French tip manicure. Oh, did I mention it's cordless? Very handy in case you want to grate chocolate on the way to the mailbox.

I just don't know how I've lived without these two miracles of modern ingenuity so long but when I sit on Santa's lap I'm asking him to stuff these in my stocking. I had been planning to ask for a pair of diamond earrings but please.... what woman wants jewelry when she can have kitchen gadgets?

Checking out the Black & Decker® homepage.... Eureka! I made a discovery, a new gadget I didn't know of yet! The Black & Decker® Arepa Maker! It makes four arepas in seven minutes. I might be impressed by that if I knew what a arepa is and how long it takes to cook one without a dedicated arepa maker. In addition it stands upright for compact vertical storage. That's important because I already have to make room in my cabinets for the Lids Off™ and Gizmo Grater™. One more thing, it has non-skid feet. Good.... I wouldn't want it to slip and fall while it's running around making arepas. Sounds like arepa making is pretty strenuous and Black & Decker® has spared me another heavy chore. Thanks guys!

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Dear Black & Decker®, the essay above was done with tongue firmly in cheek and isn't meant to malign your wonderful products... of which I have a number. I am also cognizant of the fact that all of the products above do have a very valid use for persons with hand strength limitations .... and those who want to make Venezuelan cuisine items. Love ya.

What the Jury Needs to Know - A Letter to Distaso & Harris

Dear Mr. Distaso and Mr. Harris:

I am going to be very presumptuous and offer my suggestions on your presentation of the case against Scott Peterson. Due to my intense interest in this case, observing the opinions and inquiries of many people on various internet forums, researching for hours the details of the case, reading the transcripts of the preliminary several times and speaking with someone who attended it, I have some strong opinions on what a jury needs to hear from you. I offer this from over 2000 miles away, so have no fear that I am a potential juror.

I am certainly not implying I know more than you about how to try a case, far, far from it. But I believe I may have a better picture of what the sorts of persons who will sit on the Peterson jury will question or be confused by. I noted a number of areas in the preliminary where I was certainly left mystified as to why something was being asked or what you were getting at and I have followed the case very closely. You need to follow through on everything, make it doubly clear, spoon feed the jury. Believe me, after reading the discussions of some people on crime forums, I know some things can't be made clear enough!

Presumptuous, again I admit, but to that end I submit my thoughts here beginning with letter #1, regarding the remains of little Conner.

The jury should know that Conner's condition as described by the pathologist is the same as those of a fetus who died in utero, under stress and is retained in the uterus for some time.

A fetus that dies in utero and is retained begins to decompose somewhat differently than a live birth infant. The skin macerates. The internal organs liquefy. The brain liquefies and the skull collapses because the plates of the skull were not fused. No brain mass, nothing to keep these plates from collapsing. The pathologist on the stand mentioned all these things in describing Conner... maceration, liquified organs and collapsed skull.

Viewing the photos of in utero deaths at this site (warning, graphic!)http://www.wisc.edu/wissp/wisspers/jan95001.htm ...
a juror might point out how severely decomposed the fetus which was retained in the uterus for over 72 and conclude that Conner should look even worse than those fetuses. They might be convinced this means Conner was born and kept alive for some time before being put into the water. Why didn't Conner look as decomposed or mummified as those photos?

You must get an expert who can explain, simply, that those fetuses were inside a living mother. Her body was warm and contained oxygen. This allows the decomposition to take place. The whole process of Conner's decomposition was extremely slowed down because he was inside a dead mother who was in cold water. Conner was in a sealed, dark, cold, sterile environment. Decomposition was slowed greatly by these factors just as it would have been for a body stored in a morgue. So the maceration, organ liquification and skull collapse typical of an in utero death occured but just on a much slower timetable. Cold, sealed, sterile.... decomposition decelerated..

Another possible indicator of in utero death of Conner? The pathologist testified that part of the colon was protruding from the anus. Past media reports stated meconium was found on the fetus. When an expectant mother dies, it takes the fetus about 8 minutes to die from lack of oxygen. As the oxygen dissipates the fetus inside her struggles for oxygen just as any living creature would. This desperate straining can cause the fetus to pass meconium. I have found no mention of it in my research but I think prolonged, hard struggling could have also caused the rectal prolapse (colon protruding) that the pathologist mentioned. I am sure you can get an opinion on that from a medical expert. Creating a detailed picture of those minutes, a fetus struggles within a dead mother, could help a juror understand that the meconium and colon protruding indicate his death in utero, not a live birth through an opening in the uterus. It also illustrates the horror of this act, a tiny infant struggling to live inside his mother.

Juror - "But what about the umbilical cord? Where did it go? Somebody had to cut that thing, they're tough! Yeah and where's the placenta for that matter?"

I researched what happens to an umbilical cord if it is not cut. I found something called "Lotus Birth". It is a component of some natural birthing practices in which the umbilical cord is not clamped, not cut but rather left attached to both the baby and the placenta for days. Baby, cord and placenta all stay in one unit so to speak for several days until the cord becomes friable due to lack of blood flow and naturally breaks away on it's own. Where does it break away when left to it's own devices? Almost flush with the abdomen, leaving about a quarter inch of umbilical cord behind that heals and forms a perfect belly button. The autopsy described what was left of Conner's umbilical cord as being friable and about a quarter inch long. If presented well a juror should be able to understand that Conner's umbilical cord deteriorated in the same manner as a natural "Lotus birth" procedure details. It just did it more slowly due to the cold, protected environment. Having already naturally deteriorated from the lack of blood flow from Laci it probably broke away immediately or soon after Conner was expelled through the abraided opening of the uterus.

Juror - "But what about that tape thing tied around the baby's neck?"

You need to show a picture or diagram of this "loop". I do not understand how something is "one and one half loops, yet is knotted. Without understanding how this loop of tape looks I can't explain it to my own satisfaction. I do believe it is nothing but debris that ended up around Conner's neck but this needs to have some plausible explanation for a juror. Was it a closed loop or was there just a knot at the end of one part of the tape? A free knot rather than a connecting knot? Is this an item that could have been looped and knotted already before it went into the water? Or was it a long section of some thin tape that tangled and knotted after it went into the water. If people have difficulty envisioning that happening you should just draw the parallel for the women in the jury who have made the mistake of washing and drying panty hose in machines. Just that short amount of time produces a tangled mass of hosiery with other clothing items tangled into them. Imagine what a couple of days in turbulent waters after a storm could do.

Juror - "But could Conner have decomposed in just this same way if he was put in the water in that plastic bag?"

First you need an expert to explain if there would be differences in the manner of decomposition if he were in a plastic bag. But were I posed with the above question I would answer with questions of my own. If he were in a plastic bag, it would have to be separately weighted or the whole bundle of baby and bag would have come to the surface at some much earlier point in time. If weighted and if the bag remained intact all those months... what a coincidence that they would come to shore so closely in time and distance. How plausible is it that someone would place Conner on the shore the day before Laci washed up? Were the Satanic cult members also psychics?

Sorry I couldn't resist that one.

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Read related Laci Peterson Case entries:
Click here Laci Peterson Case past entries
Scroll to bottom of page to read earliest entries.
-----------------------------------------
As always, any comments I make on the Peterson case and the persons involved is opinion and speculation on my part based on media reports and conversations with Modesto friends which must be construed as rumor until and unless proven otherwise.

Jackie P & Mark G - Not a Love Story

"Jackie Peterson (Scott's mother) said, and this is a quote, 'I'm so happy for Michael Jackson that he gets to have Mark defend him also,'" Geragos said.

The above is a quote from a Contra Costa Times article. http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimes/news/7325964.htm

My personal opinion of this quote attributed to Jackie Peterson by Mark Geragos....

Horsecrap....but possibly true horsecrap, tongue in cheek horsecrap, horsecrap with a double meaning or snide and snotty horsecrap?

I had a very long and very illuminating phone call from Modesto last night. Many offbeat details and backstories were recounted. My reactions varied from outrage to nausea to raucous laughter. I have to be vague, I won't hurt the people who talk to me. But Lord help me I wish some of these things were more widely known. The following are my opinions and my speculation. But they are based in great part on what I have been lucky enough to hear from "the connected". I trust them, you have no reason to.

Now why do I say that statement attributed to Jackie Peterson may be true? If you follow the Laci Peterson case you of course remember the brouhaha over Mark Dalton leaving the case. Reported rumors were that Dalton tried to "steal" the case, that both Scott and the Petersons were livid at Geragos' lack of attention to his case. But Jackie denied them, told a reporter they were very happy with Mr. Geragos representation of Scott. What's true? The word I have is that Jackie despises Geragos, hates him.... especially now that the preliminary is over, that Scott was indeed angry at Geragos' lack of attention and it was quite true that Dalton tried to take the case from Geragos.

So you can see why I perceive Jackie saying that she is happy that Michael Jackson gets to have Geragos "defend him also" may have a double meaning on her part. If she has a low opinion of Jackson perhaps she thinks he deserves to be left to the tender mercies of representation by Geragos, a man she now despises. Or perhaps.... and more likely I think.... that quote Geragos gave the media was a word for word exchange from Jackie but not one delivered in kindness. I think it quite plausible that it was part of heated exchange between them over his ability to jockey both these high profile cases at once and that quote was probably delivered with Jackie's distinctive brand of sarcasm.

Personally I think Jackie is incensed that any lawyer would not give her son and his case their exclusive and intense attention, dropping all other pursuits to focus on the crusade to save her persecuted pride and joy. It is to be noted that in the first days of the preliminary Geragos and Jackie performed their contrived tableau of walking arm in arm, Jackie ever portraying herself the wilting flower mother of the falsely accused "perfect son". I didn't see this happening in the closing days of the trial. Somewhere along the way the pretenses started falling away. I think Jackie expected miracles from Geragos, demanded them. Seeing him keep her son waiting while he closed out the Terteryan trial in Los Angeles had already incited her quite enough. I believe she caught wind of the coming Jackson case a bit ahead of the rest of us and she'd had her fill of Geragos. Most likely she was unimpressed with his performance in court as well. She thought she'd paid for Perry Mason, instead she got Shecky the Sheister.

The Peterson parents would seem now to be in a bind. How much money have they given to Geragos? I doubt it is refundable and they no doubt owe him much more. This could severely hamper any effort they might want to make to find Scott a new lawyer. There is word that they have not paid Geragos the bulk of his fee as had been reported. There is a reason why in the final moments of the preliminary, Geragos made that request that Scott's truck and the $15,000 be released. He wants them.

Buying the names and media profiles of the likes of Cyril Wecht and Henry Lee does not come cheap. I can't say much about what I heard about those two gentlemen in regards to Laci's case, but suffice it to say that was one of the points in my conversation when I was assaulted by nausea. In my personal opinion they do not deserve the respect they have been granted, they deserve to be exposed as the self aggrandizing, insensitive, media addicted, walking egos they are, in my estimation.

Also to be noted, Ken Faulkner in particular and other members of the Stanislaus County Public Defender's office have attended much of the preliminary proceedings. They claim to be just "interested" in the case like some of the rest of us. Maybe. Preparation for their possible reentry into Scott's case seems more feasible to me but thus far they coyly deny this. Kirk McAllister continues to refuse to comment on Gloria Gomez's Court TV report that he is no longer a member of the defense team. He'll have to acknowledge it soon enough I think. Another knowledgeable friend told me that since McAllister is "an attorney of record" on Scott's case, papers must be filed with the court if he will no longer be representing Scott. Those documents will be public record.

Again...personal opinion and speculation.... Mark Geragos has picked the Peterson pockets and purses nearly clean and will in future unceremoniously dump the case. One factor in this eventual "dumping" that I predict is that he and his team didn't appreciate the surprise factor during discovery. Sorry, perhaps I should have said he will "ceremoniously" dump him. He will squeeze out the attention a bit longer, make a few more motions, a few more soundbites on Scott's behalf but will eventually relinquish the case with phrases like "with great regret" and "in fairness to Scott" , "he deserves the full attention of his attorney but regretfully Michael Jackson had a prior claim on my services". He will enjoy the money (and goods?) he has received from the Petersons, and use the experience for years to come to assure himself a seat on shows hosted by Larry King, Greta Van Susteren, et al in perpetuity. That is in my opinion his true goal..... recognition and media. Maybe I'm wrong....about the dumping that is.

He is, in my opinion, milking the sad case of Laci Peterson's murder for his own benefit and purposes and he is not the only one. More on that later.

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Read related Laci Peterson Case entries:
Click here Laci Peterson Case past entries
Scroll to bottom of page to read earliest entries.
-----------------------------------------
As always, any comments I make on the Peterson case and the persons involved is opinion and speculation on my part based on media reports and conversations with Modesto friends which must be construed as rumor until and unless proven otherwise.

President Kennedy - The Day Mrs. Lewis Cried

Anyone with an I.Q. over 70 and birthday cakes with more than 46 candles usually has a distinct memory to recount of the day President Kennedy was assassinated. I meet both requirements so I present my memory and impressions of that day, 40 years ago, the third Friday in November.... the day Mrs. Lewis cried in school.

Fifth grade was the last year that I actually loved school and in that year I had hit the teacher lottery. I was assigned to Mrs. Lewis' fifth grade class. Mrs. Lewis was an amazing teacher, one who truly loved her career and made every single school day an adventure. In reality she was probably in her mid 30's but of course to 11 year olds that seemed ancient. Mrs. Lewis was never in a grumpy mood, no one ever entered or left her classroom without receiving a smile from her round, happy face framed by dark hair. She had a plump body held firmly in check by a girdle.... ALL women wore girdles in public in 1963!

This controlled body mass was perched on thin ankles so she gave a funny but oddly graceful effect of a large exotic bird as she moved around us in class. Odd that I should remember her body and how she moved but it was because she was not afraid to use it to hold our attention. Frequently she told the class stories to illustrate whatever we were learning, usually history related. She would stand in front of the class, sweeping an arm, pointing a finger, kicking a foot, marching those thin ankles to and fro....whatever was necessary to hold us in rapture while she spoon fed us a tasty lesson in whatever. She did not tell a story....she performed it! I adored the woman and am grateful to this day for her teaching skills.

On that day in November however it was not a story day. Our adventure was to produce a Thanksgiving mural to hang on the bulletin boards that lined the halls. Why we were so late at this task I don't recall but Thanksgiving was only days away. What I remember is kneeling on the hard linoleum floor, a long, long sheet of paper, my schoolmates and I all busily dipping brushes into jars of intensely colored poster paints. Ships were sailing, Pilgrims were landing, Indians were befriending the newcomers, feasts were being laid upon tables all by the stubby fingers of grade school artists. My most serious concern was keeping the paint off the skirt of my cotton dress.

Mrs. Lewis was pacing among us offering encouragement and suggestions. Then came a knock at the door. Mrs. Lewis opened it halfway and there was whispering and then a sharp gasp. The observant among us had our eyes trained on Mrs. Lewis, sensing something was wrong. She turned from the door but kept her back to the class and moved to her desk. Her funny, graceful birdlike walk was gone. Her steps were slow, deliberate, heel first with the rest of the foot slowly following almost bone by bone. Mrs. Lewis' normally proud posture now resembled a balloon losing it's air. It seemed as if she moved in slow motion but finally she reached the chair behind her desk and sat.

Then Mrs. Lewis cried.

The teacher with the ever ready smile cried in front of her class and terrified us all. Children are always terrified to see adults cry. I don't know who told us of the assassination. I think that Mrs. Lewis did, but on the other hand it may have been the principal over the intercom. I just don't remember another thing until leaving school. It seems like we were dismissed early. What I remember is Mrs. Lewis standing at the door as we left, walking not running, and in single file just as we always did. She liked to send each of us home with an individual goodbye, pat on the shoulder, a compliment or a reminder to try to do better tomorrow. But on that day when a President had been shot in Texas, she stood at the door, with tears still flowing, bending down, hugging and kissing each child and telling each one to go home and pray. Today those reassuring actions would most likely get her fired for improper physical contact with a student and violation of the separation between church and state.

I remember little else of that day, getting home, my parents' reaction. All I recall is being in the backseat of my parent's car, downtown, traffic and people milling about on the sidewalk looking shocked. When we stopped at a traffic light, Mama hurtled from the passenger seat and ran up to a man on the corner. He was selling papers, they still did that then. The paper man was yelling "President Kennedy dead. Get your Red Flash". A Red Flash....do they even exist anymore? Probably not, now we have cable news 24 hours a day, no need for special Red Flash editions of a newspaper to get the news into people's hands and minds. Somewhere in my attic is a box and in that box that Red Flash newspaper lies.

That's it. That is the memory I carry of the day an American President was shot to death. It's sharp and murky at the same time and carries with it the distinctive scents of tempura poster paint, the feel of a cotton school dress, the sound of fall leaves blowing across gray sidewalks.... and the fearful sight of tears on a teacher's face.

Scott Peterson - Melodramatic Pretense Exposed

The Laci Peterson case has gripped me from the moment I heard the first reports. I refrain from imposed empathy and saccharine sympathy for people I have never even met. As Bette Davis said in All About Eve .... "I detest cheap sentiment". However I could not help feeling a bond with Laci for several personal reasons. I'd been made miserable, been left nearly abandoned and been attacked while pregnant. Something told me from the start that Laci was a sister in that sad club.

As a confessed cable news addict I have missed little that has been reported regarding this tragic mystery. I do take note that many inaccuracies and rumors have been reported by these shows with hosts attempting to be glib and programmers trying to fill 24 hours of airtime. I supplemented the television reports and commentary with copious doses of internet crime forums, an occasional magazine article and most importantly a well placed friend or two who passed on some juicy scraps of information that I snapped up as eagerly as my dog does a Milk Bone.

Yesterday one of those little Info Milk Bones was tossed my way...snap! I had asked an internet friend who attended the preliminary what impressions did she have of the proceedings? Any goodies...something the cable news folk had missed? Why yes, she did have something to tell me.

As you might recall Scott Peterson made the melodramatic move of asking to be excused from court during the testimony and presention of photographs from the autopsies of his murdered wife Laci and his unborn son Conner. The news outlets had been reporting Sharon Rocha and other family or friends of Laci leaving the courtroom or crying during other painful passages in the testimony. Not to be outdone, Scott made his grand gesture, presented of course by his ringmaster in this circus, Mark Geragos. We the public were supposed to think, "poor dear, he can't bear to hear of or see his wife and child in that way". We were intended to perceive that sensitive Scott did not want to hear this awful testimony lest it cause more tears that he must hide from his fellow inmates by hiding his head under a blankie. OK, if he were innocent, as we are told to presume him.... then it is entirely understandable he might not want to hear the horrible details or see the photos of their remains.

Right. I buy that. I was born yesterday....right after my mother fell off a turnip truck. NOT.

My Modesto friend told me that just moments before making that sad appeal that he be spared the horror of being present for those details.... Scott Peterson was sitting in a jury room, flipping through the gruesome autopsy photos as if he hadn't a care in the world.

What a tall stack of natural fertilizer he is.

I had noted earlier that a reporter who attended the preliminary, Beth Karas?, Laura Ingalls?.... one of them had said she had no doubt that Mark Geragos had instructed Scott to make this request to leave the courtroom. Why was she so certain in that statement, I wondered? After hearing what my friend had passed on, now it was clear. Setup, phony, cardboard courtroom, "cheap sentiment" indeed and I indeed abhor it. Mark Geragos' machinations and Scott Peterson's melodramatic mugging for sympathy.... they go together like limburger cheese and stink.

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As always, any comments I make on the Peterson case and the persons involved is opinion and speculation on my part based on media reports and conversations with Modesto friends which must be construed as rumor until and unless proven otherwise.

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Tugging at the Knots

A couple of weeks ago I started a weblog for a variety of personal reasons. I wanted to make an attempt at committing some memories to print, comment on the Laci Peterson case, rant, rave, be catty, acidic and plain mean at times. In other words be me.

Instead I set up a somewhat chirpy, skewed Disney fantasy of a weblog that wasn't me. One kind internet friend was reading it and liked it. I had done several entries on Laci's case, then attempted some of the memory essays. One was a humorous pet story, the other a pleasant tome on some childhood mentors. Then I realized I had created a weblog that required I continue to wear a mask, talk of happy things in regards to my personal life instead of reflecting the truth of what inhabits my psyche. At the rate I was going it would take about two weeks to run out of happy memories to write about. In short it was a blog I would have to live up to rather than a conduit to release some tension. The damned thing was a lie and a wash and I clicked a button and made it go away.

This one I vow will be ME...the introverted woman who survived somehow for half a century....got stepped on, stepped on others, did nice things, did rotten things, did stupid things. I want to tug at and untie a few of the masses of knots that reside in my psyche. A knotted introvert full of contradictions and odd facets...yeah, that's me to a T. I don't really care much for fooling with people in person. I am happiest ALONE, sitting right here at the computer. I am not agoraphobic, I can function just fine among people, but I naturally seek out peace, quiet and solitude, reflective corners, observant perches. I like it that way and I think it is better to understand your own personality and accept it. Yet I feel a need to communicate and I want to do it here, on the 'net. So here goes....my good, bad, ugly, inquisitive observations, memories and commentary.

Bette Davis: "As it happens, there are particular aspects of my life to which I would like to maintain sole and exclusive rights and privileges." (All About Eve)

I agree, but as long as I can do it anonymously I think I'll just throw the covers back on a few of those "particular aspects". Stick around.