August 17, 2006

Mea Culpa (and probably You-a Culpa too)

It's all the news here in the Denver area - and the rest of the country - that the killer of JonBenet Ramsey has most likely been caught.

What is there to say that hasn't already been said? I mean, other than the fact that the guy wears his chinos way too high and has an usually thin neck. Oh, and that most of us, if we love someone, don't try to kidnap them for ransom and then end up killing them when it all goes horribly wrong.

Details, details.

I admit to being one of those that thought maybe Mrs. Ramsey had a hand in her death. There was the ransom note that matched Mr. Ramsey's bonus. There was the hidden nook into which her body had been stuffed. There was the crime scene, contaminated by the actions of Mr. Ramsey.

And, of course, there was the fact that taking your six year old daughter and dressing her up like an adult and parading her around on stage like some kind of organic Barbie wanna-be is a bit disturbing and strikes me as an attempt by a mother to vicariously live a life without the failings of her own childhood.

Putting all of that aside, however, I am going to - and this doesn't happen often, folks! - admit that I was wrong about all of that. Except for the child beauty pageant stuff; that's just weird.

Patsy Ramsey was tried in the media, judged by the public, and spent ten years under a cloud of suspicion and loathing. I'm glad that, before she passed away, she knew that her name might soon be cleared.

Those of us who judged her too soon should feel at least some shame*.

On the other hand, everyone knows that OJ was guilty.

Update: Hmmm... now Karr's ex-wife says he was in Alabama at the time of the murder. Denver is a good 20 hour drive from Alabama - and flying back and forth would take two days, given the timing of the murder.

Also, Karr's father says he thought his son was dead.

Of further interest is Karr's apparent fascination with the Ramsey and Klass child killing cases, to the point that a professor of Karr's (he attended college late to study education) recommended he write a book about the Ramsey murder.

Could it be that he's not the killer, but rather a delusional, obsessive pedophiliac nutjob?

* And, yes, Mr. Karr, the accused, is "innocent until proven guilty." However, when one admits to the love and murder of a child, it's a wee bit damning.