Etan Patz Killer Arrested
Police knew about Pedro Hernandez, but he was never one of the suspects in the killing of 6 year old Etan Patz 33 years ago. Now, Pedro has confessed to the killing of the boy as he was on his way to school. When you think about times today, you wonder if a 6 year old boy would ever be allowed to walk to school by themselves. I used to walk to school all the time, but can't remember anything before age 12 basically because of all the drinking I have done, I pretty much used up all those brain cells. I don't know if the world was a much safer place back in 1979, or parents were just not as paranoid. How many 6 year old kids in New York City walk to school on their own today? How about if you live in some random suburb or small town? Are they really any safer?
It was the first time they let Etan walk to the school bus stop by himself (he wanted to do it and feel like a "big boy") he looks so adorable I can see it would be hard to say no to him. The parents watched through the window. It was only somethng like 20 feet from their apt building. They thought he was at the bus stop I believe. The whole thing makes no sense. Pedro lured him into the store for a promise of a free soda and strangled him. Why do that? They had no relationship with each other. I can only assume it was a thrill kill. But the police haven't said where the body is. Just all so very sad.
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ReplyDeleteI drink a hell of a lot more than you do and for quite some time, and I recall every detail before the age of 12! I wish I didn't though in some ways.
ReplyDeleteI grew up in LA in the 70's/80's...I took the bus to school alone for the last 2 weeks of 2nd grade when we moved. I think abduction is random. It happens everywhere but not to every kid.
I grew up in a suburb of Cleveland and remember walking to and from school with my older sister when I was in 1st grade and she was in 5th grade(we lived almost a mile from the school, there were TONS of other kids in our neighborhood doing the same thing, and this was the mid to late 70s.) Now I wouldn't dream of letting my elementary school age kids do the same thing. (My high school age kids do it occasionally and I freak out - mainly because they have to walk a mile and a half on an extremely busy 4 lane state route.)
ReplyDeleteWhat I don't get is why his sister and her husband didn't tell the cops back when he confessed to it 33 years ago.
ReplyDeleteMy kids (age 8 and 10) walk to school on their own, a 7-block walk. When it's light in the evenings (i.e. not winter dark), they walk home too.
ReplyDeleteI feel ok about this, as there are many children along the same route at the same time, and their babysitter meets them at the school.
I actually worry more about when they get to be 13 - 15 and are out riding the subway or walking to school on their own every day. I think that age is much more of a target, as strangers might think they are carrying valuable possessions.
I used to walk to school in Phila in th 90's with my brother. He is 2 years younger than me so I think by 5th grade we were walking together with some neighborhood friends. There was also 3 crossing guards on our way to school, 2 of which were specifically for the 12 lane boulevard we had to cross. Our parents also had talks on to stay together and what to do in emergencies.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter is 7 now and she takes a bus to school. I would never allow her walk alone if it were in walking distance.
This case is particularly close to me - my husband lived on the same block at the time and later he found out his phone was tapped. Fortunately they didn't care about all the pot deals he was talking about!
ReplyDeleteI grew up in Brooklyn and was walking a few blocks to school at 6. It just was a different time. My mil used to leave my husband in his baby carriage outside when she went into the market. Nobody thought about abduction.
The Patz' still live in the same place and have the same phone number just in case Etan ever came home or called. So so sad. Even tho he was declared dead about 10 years ago obviously they still held out hope.
Why did this guy do this, so bizarre, he had his own children too. Horrible/
His family claims he has a history of mental problems.
ReplyDeleteI grew up in small town usa. My best friend has been missing since late 70"s. I will never let my 5 year old walk anywhere alone
ReplyDelete"Now aged 51, Hernandez has finally only come forward after being diagnosed with cancer which 'made him think about the skeletons in his closet', sources said."
ReplyDeletefrom daily mail UK news
I, too, grew up in a suburb of Cleveland in the early 80's and we were too far from school to walk, but at 8 we (my girlfriend and I) rode our bikes to school over 3 miles. My parent's used to let us run wild in our neighborhood as long as we were home by dusk. I don't know, seems like simpler times or maybe we just hear about this stuff more often now because of the 24 hour news cycle.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter is almost 10. I don't even allow her to ride her bike around our block. Sad state of our world. I'd go everywhere all day at her age. Fucking sickos ruin our kids childhood.
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ReplyDeleteI walked to elementary school all the time in the 70s. Usually I walked with other kids in the neighborhood, but sometimes I walked home alone. The walk was all residential streets in the suburbs, and I felt safe. I would also ride my bike to school by myself. At age 6, they are still young to be by themselves, but by the time they are in 4th grade, kids should be able to handle shorter walks, as long as they live in a safe neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteI don't have kids, but my niece and nephew have never been allowed to walk to school. Every morning their mom or dad takes them and picks them up that afternoon -- I don't know that their schools even allow kids to bike or walk themselves. Crazy, and one more sign that our culture is *too* overprotective and creating co-dependent kids.
The teacher told my mom to stop walking me to school and let me do it on my own, or I would forever be holding onto her apron strings. I was 4-1/2. I started kindergarden younger than most and was always the youngest in my class. Everyday I walked to kindergarden by myself. It was a 10 minute walk. It was considered normal and everyone did it. Now-a-days. No way. Not even in the tiny suburban town I grew up in.
ReplyDelete"Mr. Hernandez’s name was mentioned in a 1979 detective’s report as part of the investigation into Etan’s disappearance. The report listed him as an employee of the bodega, but Mr. Hernandez was never questioned by investigators" NYTimes
ReplyDeleteThere is a 2nd source out there stating that the police were called by family and he was reported 33 years ago..this could be really shoddy police work wouldn't jump to the conclusion that the family did nothing for 33 years. not yet, anyway.
@msgirl - them living in the same place with the same phone number - that gave me chills and brought tears to my eyes. I really can imagine, as a parent, doing that exact same thing. You could never never give up on your beloved child. I sure hope they can find closure after all these years.
ReplyDeleteAnd we're very fortunate to live in a neighborhood where my kids can roam, but they're older. When they were little, you better believe I was outside with them when they were. You've got lots of other stuff to worry about besides abductions - injuries to name one.
I was a kid in the 70's, just 6 YRS older than he was. I was always outside on my own(didn't come in until dark), walked a great distance to school on my own, travelled all over the big city on public transit on my own, and left at home alone. Only once did a creep follow me but I lost him. It was a safer time then.My kids now are never allowed to go anywhere alone and in fact one of them was even almost kidnapped out of our fenced in yard!
ReplyDeleteI wonder why after 33 YRS the guy finally confessed? I wonder if maybe he's dying now or something and wanted to clear his conscience?
I grew up in the '70's and my sister and I would walk to school. My mom wasn't paranoid, but my aunt and uncle were, and they had 5 kids. Whenever we went to their house we always had to stick together and were always warned to be careful of kidnappers.
ReplyDeleteI don't know that it was safer back then. My female cousin, my sister and myself had all been flashed by men in cars asking for directions on our way to school when we were about 6 or 7. That was quite common, having some guy in a car flash his peepee at you if you were a child.
My mom was almost kidnapped when she was a child back in the '40's, and again by a group of guys trying to pull her into a car in Cleveland in the '60's. She was rescued by an African American man who told them to get lost, and that she was his girlfriend. He then apologized profusely to her for even suggesting such a thing. Strange times.
I used to let my daughter walk the block to school, but she walked with a group of about 6 kids, and of course I admonished her to be wary of strangers.
As for this case - I dunno. I would like to see the evidence before being convinced this guy didn't confess for attention. Then again, maybe his conscience got to him after all these years. I think about all the kids who never made it to adulthood, and what kind of world it would be if they had. Very heartbreaking. :(
Is this the same guy they suspected all along? It doesn't sound like it.
ReplyDeleteI walked to school usually with an older sibling or friends. However, I would never let my 8-year-old walk without a parent. He has never met a stranger and will talk to anyone - no matter how much fear we put into him about stranger danger.
@MadLyb - what is it with dudes flashing little kids?That happened to me, too. It really scared me - I thought I was going to be kidnapped for many weeks after that since they never caught the dude doing it.
ReplyDeleteBut really, you've got to bear in mind that stranger on stranger violence is extremely rare. It's tragic, it makes headlines, but it's the exception. Kids on the whole are in much greater danger of being abducted or harmed by a parent or relative. Ask any elementary school secretary - it's the noncustodial parents who are on their watch lists. And, of course, just a small percentage of noncustodial parents.
ReplyDeleteMe too with the creepy weiner-wagger experience. So scary and disgusting. Freaking pervs.
ReplyDeletemsgirl...
ReplyDelete"The Patz' still live in the same place and have the same phone number just in case Etan ever came home or called"
I'd never heard that, brought tears to my eyes. I think losing a child has to be one of the worst things that can happen to a parent.
I got flashed too when I was about 10, and walking home from the bus stop. The guy was driving next to me, and he would pull into each driveway in front of me and jerk off. I ran as fast as I could to a park near my house because I didn't want him to know where I lived.
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of the kids who are young now-a-days are missing out on a lot, because of predators and psychos. @Poque reminded me. In the 70's, ALL the kids were in the neighborhood playing capture the flag, kick the can, hide and seek. If you couldn't find a kid, it wasn't because you thought something happened to them...it was because they were really good hiders. We'd look and look for hours. We wouldn't get home until 10pm in the pitch dark. There was never a worry. Those were the days. The best memories. It's rare now-a-days for kids to be able to do that. It's sad that they are unable to experience some of the best times I and my siblings remember from our childhood, all because of these sick people out there.
ReplyDeleteShout out to all my fellow Cleveland suburbanites!!!
ReplyDeleteI was 11 in 1979. I can remember my mom taking me to the downtown library when I was in the 7th or 8th grade and me taking the bus home, which required 1 transfer. I could never imagine allowing my kids to ever do that. And they are teens. We moved a few years ago to a safer community than the last one. Sometimes they walk home from school, which is 2 miles and my major concern is crossing the street safely. Before we moved, they were not allowed to go around the block till they were about 10 or so, and then they had to be with each other. Never alone.
This post and the comments make me sad.
ReplyDeleteIt's because of high-profile cases like this one and Adam Walsh's that kids don't walk to bus stops or play outside on their own anymore. I don't think it was particularly safer then. It just felt safer because we were blissfully unaware of what could happen.
ReplyDelete(And yes, it's terribly sad. I remember when this happened.)
ReplyDeleteStatistically kids are safer now - but is that because nobody lets them out anymore?
ReplyDelete@Ms Cool - I don't know, but it happened a lot back then. Probably not so much today because kids are inside playing video games. My poor sister used to get flashed all the time, but when she was older, she would just yell at the guy and tell him he ought to be ashamed of himself, LOL.
ReplyDeleteAs far as this guy's confession - I hadn't read about that. There probably should be a line re: disclosure of a confession when it comes to murder, or any type of assault, really.
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ReplyDeleteI hope they got it right - there is little or no evidence. The guy said after he lured him into the basement with the promise of a soda, he strangled Etan and put him in a garbage bag and then in a box and left him a block up at the curb with trash to be collected.
ReplyDeleteIt makes no sense - the guy apparently has a history of mental problems. This case has been worked on for all these years... All you can do is say a prayer for Etan and his parents.
Some freak flashed me and my cousin and some of our friends when we were walking home in the summer, in the 80's . The funny part was my cousin had a camera, A Polaroid and she took a pic of him and he ran off We were not scared because we were in a group . But now I wait outside with my 12 yr old until his bus arrives each morning .
ReplyDeleteAgent**it - The early reports on the local news said that the Hernandez family had reported this all years ago, and the police thought the guy was insane, literally. Then the police chief said they had a bunch of nutty people who confessed to the crime back then. I don't know if those stories match or if Kelley was just trying to spin it.
ReplyDeleteNo way in hell I would allow a 6 year old to walk alone to school. no WAY!
ReplyDeleteI also got flashed at about 9 walking home from the library. Sick people.
ReplyDeleteI do feel really bad for kids today, it's all organized play activities and such, no more running around the neighborhood til dark. It's a difficult line for a parent to give their kids the much needed independence, and not swamp them with fear and paranoia. I was fortunate in that my son was a huge kid - very tall and started developing in 5th grade so looked much much older.
I do think parents are way overprotective these days, not letting their kids run around and get dirty - germ phobia! But when it comes to teaching and being careful about abduction, that's a different story.
@Dementia, I fear that it might be spin.The guy is dying of cancer, so who knows what is in his mind.The police had his name all that time but did not investigate him.The agony of it all is unbearable.I cannot even fathom how the Patz family have carried on.I remember the milk carton vividly. Bless them.
ReplyDeleteever notice that 99% of these abduction/flashing/perv crimes are alway committed by men. W T F is wrong with the male species. I'm not hating on guys but seriously what is it in their DNA that make them commit these heinous crimes? You never hear of a woman doing this. You may hear about a woman accomplice but almost never committing the act.
ReplyDeleteThis same story happened again just last year in NYC to 8 year old Leiby Kletzky. He asked his parents to let him walk alone, it was his first time & he was abducted & killed by Levi Aron.
ReplyDeleteI was 6 in 1979, and we walked the 5 blocks to school on our own. When I was about 10, two men in a car invited me to go for a ride. I've never ran so fast in my life. I was terrifying. Fast forward 30 years. We live a block from our kids school, but I'll be damned if my 9 and 11 year old will ever walk alone. It doesn't help that our beautiful neighborhood has a "meth lab" house 2 doors down, and there are always men lurking behind fences waiting to buy drugs.
ReplyDeleteCall me overprotective, but I would never let my 6 year old walk by himself to school.
ReplyDeleteI have been flashed sooo many times by men. Especially on Bart! The good 'ol ”it looks like i'm reading the newspaper but i'm really jacking off behind it” trick.
Call me overprotective, but I would never let my 6 year old walk by himself to school.
ReplyDeleteI have been flashed sooo many times by men. Especially on Bart! The good 'ol ”it looks like i'm reading the newspaper but i'm really jacking off behind it” trick.
I was allowed to pretty much run wild when I was younger, but there is no way that I would ever give my child that freedom. Stories like this absolutely terrify me. As a parent, it's hard to distinguish between keeping them safe and being overprotective. I think I will just err on the side of caution.
ReplyDeleteThis story makes me so sad. I feel so bad for his parents. The pain of losing a child is unimaginable. My heart goes out to them.
We live a block or two away from the elementary school my son will attend. There is another subdivision across the street from the school that is filled with sex offenders. When kid is school aged, I don't think I'll let him walk alone.
ReplyDeleteI am hoping that there is PROOF that this man did it. Too many false confessions, and with this being the anniversary of the day Etan disappeared, well I am going to be skeptical til there is concrete evidence. I hope and pray they have the right person this time.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a child, my parents were overprotective. They might let me ride my bike to school w/friends, but they drove behind me in their car like a detective. I was none the wiser and felt like such a big girl...lol
We moved overseas while I was still in elementary school. We traveled back and forth quite a bit. When we got to the International Airport in our new country, these bellmen fell in love with us. Every time they saw us, they would drop everything and run. One time my mother was taking care of something and left me w/my grandmother. I was just starting to mature. Well, this one guy had a disappearing coin trick, and it would reappear in my chest area. I was an innocent little kid, so I thought he was great. My grandmother saw this happen and just started beating him over the head w/her purse. I will never forget it. My mother showed up and the guy was promptly fired. I felt so bad. I had cost this poor man his job...Little did I know, he was a pervert, and my granny took care of business...lol
My MIL told me she had my husband walk all the way to the doctors office (in Philly no less)to get his allergy shots every week at FIVE. This was in the early 70's. She does say she she can't believe she did that.
ReplyDeleteI grew up in a smallish town and all of the kids on my street stayed outside all day until dinner time. I walked to school w/my older brother but he made me walk at least 10 paces behind him.
ReplyDeletea friend and I got flashed at a big rock that kids used to hang around when I was about 10 or so. but I was very near sighted and couldn't see anything anyway. but really, it wasn't even a big deal, not like it would be today.
I'm not sure if it was standard in nyc to let your 6 year old walk to the bus. I'm sure the patz's have suffered immeasurably because they did allow their son to do that.
in terms of this guy who has been arrested, I don't necessarily believe that he did it. he might just be wanting attention. the cops were desperate to arrest someone. not everyone who confesses to a crime did the crime. there are alot of reasons why people give false confessions. hopefully he is the right guy. but its odd for a person to kill a child (I imagine he sexually abused him first, whether he admitted to it or not) and then not do anything else violent or sick for 33 years.
So I wonder about the other guy who is in prison, who they suspected for years, and who admitted to trying to molest Etan but said he had nothing to do with his disappearance? Is that guy lying now? Or how many jerks did this poor child pass on his way to the bus stop??
ReplyDeleteWhen my daughter was a baby, just 7 months old, I owned my own small retail store. I was working the store alone but had my daughter in a sling, strapped to my hip while I worked. Not trying to brag here, but my little girl was a stunning baby with black hair and big brown eyes and gorgeous skin.... we never went anywhere without people stopping me and commenting on her. This same day a man came in the store and was wandering around, but he kept staring at us... finally he walked up to the counter. He never took his eyes off my baby, and started reaching out his hands... saying "Can I just touch her? Can I just touch her skin???" I've heard of the expression "hair standing up on the back of your head" but never experienced it before that moment - every instinct I had said to run. I backed away, stared him down and told him she cried around strangers and I'd appreciate it if he'd step away - NOW. He eventually walked out of the store, and I locked the door behind him. I was shaking like a leaf and crying I was so scared. I also called the police but there wasn't anything they could do because he really didn't threaten us. Needless to say I rarely took my girl to work with me after that... I didn't want the SOB to come back. It still gives me the willys to this day and yeah, I'm one of those paranoid moms who doesn't let her child walk to school either, even though we live 3 blocks away. I walk her myself - with our 85 lb., extremely protective Golden Retriever...lol....
My kids have walked the three blocks to school since Kindergarten.
ReplyDeleteI refuse to let them grow up in fear of the world.
Yeah, I've done my best to educate them on the dangers out there, but bottom line they have to live their lives.
My mother strangled me with her apron strings and my personality is lesser for it. My kids will be much better off.
I admit to being a helicopter mom. My oldest son was a little wild man but he knew darn well that he better not leave my sight in a store or anytime we were out of our house because he knew I would flip out. I only let him start walking in our neighborhood alone to friends' houses when he turned twelve, was 5'4" and outweighed me by ten pounds. My third son sneaked out of his grandparents back yard (stacked boxes to reach a 6 ft gate) at age 3 and rode off on his tricycle. We had the whole neighborhood driving and walking around looking for him, he was nonchalantly pedaling his trike to Circle K. I was hysterical. So from then on, every gate had a lock and our doors plastic door handle thingies.
ReplyDeleteI guess the answer is hell, no I wouldn't deliberately let my younguns go out alone...not until they are big enough to hold their own and are able to see through any bullshit a perv might try.
Crilia-16
ReplyDeleteCan i assume the incident with the teacher insulting your mom re apron strings was in the 1950s....because today no one would suggest such a dangerous idea for a 4 1/2 year old child.
As a 1st grader, in the late 50s, i walked with 1-2 other kids approx 4 blocks to school.....but this was a different era & a very small town in Northern California.
@Reno - your story made me remember - at 5, my 4 year old friend and I got DROPPED OFF at the skating rink for a few hours. Being the anxiety-ridden person that I am, I was sure teenagers were trying to drug us (turned out to be Binaca, that breath spray stuff), and I was totally freaked out.
ReplyDeleteMay explain a few things!!
I'm relieved for the family that they have some closure finally after all these years. But I'm sure during the course of this investigation they will find out this sweet boy may have been the 1st victim - but probably not the last.
ReplyDeleteOkay, I have kept up w/this case for years - as I am sure many of you have. Guilty or not, I have read some reports that he was a nice church-going man (Mormon). I'm sorry, anyone can hide behind the "I go to church" card. It really makes me sick to my stomach though!
ReplyDeleteI will probably sound like an idiot here, but what meds are considered psych meds? NYPost said he is off his psych meds. Are anti-depressants and anti-anxiety meds considered psych meds, same w/bi-polar meds. I would guess - yes they are - but if someone says that a person is off their meds and a danger to society, I am not thinking about someone who quit taking Zoloft cold turkey.
I was was nine in 1979 and my mother watched me like a hawk! I could not go to school on my own until I was in the fifth grade. I went to a private school and had to take public transit.
ReplyDeleteI have an older brother who she never blinked at.
I just saw on TV that this is far from a slam-dunk. No one is really sure if his confession is real.
ReplyDeleteI lived in Manhattan in 1979 and it was a HELL of a lot more dangerous than it is now.
ReplyDelete@Snowstorms "he was a nice church-going man (Mormon " - do you remember where you read that ? I can't find the source, thanks.
ReplyDeleteIt was the Daily Mail or Inside Edition. NYPost also had contrasting stories on Thursday. All 3 Gossip rags, thank goodness, but still...
DeleteEver since you asked agent, I have been driving myself nuts trying to remember the exact site. I am thinking it was probably the Daily Mail, because they reference 2 different churches in the article I just read. In the updated version, they are members of a Maranatha Christian church. Later on, it states Latter Day Saints - same stupid article. I blame enty for me reading that garbage, but it is a guilty pleasure now...lol
DeleteMagicSpork - I'm a Port Richmond girl! I walked to elementary school. But it was a much more secure walk.
ReplyDeleteAnd Pedro "lived" (hiding) about 6 blocks from my house... not the way I want to see Maple Shade in the news..
This confession just makes no sense to me. It reminds me of that creepy John Karr (?) dude who confessed to the JonBenet Ramsey killing and was taken seriously even when it was very easily proven that he was in another state at the time of the killing.
ReplyDeleteIn this case they've always had a very strong suspect in the man who was the nanny's boyfriend who is now serving twenty+ years for sexually abusing and killing a young boy. He apparently admitted in jail that he killed Etan Patz and that he had memorized his school bus route and also that he was seen with Etan either the day he went missing or the night before but the police never had more than circumstantial evidence. Now, this new guy who claims he gave the boy a soda then killed him and dumped him on the sidewalk and found he was gone when he came back for him several days later, pops up. A guy with a history of mental illness who has been telling his family that he killed a boy over thirty years ago and is coming forward because he is now suffering from cancer.
How likely is it that poor Etan had a potential molesting stalker in his nanny's boyfriend, but instead was killed by a random bodega worker just for kicks? SoHo in New York City in 1979 may have been a more dangerous place than it is today, but this just reads like a really horrible episode of Law & Order: SVU.
The whole thing just strains credulity and I don't believe it.
No motive, no forensic evidence and no body ? What evidence will be available to corroborate the confession ?
ReplyDeleteJose Antonio Ramos is scheduled to get out of prison in 2012.Wonder what happens legally with the lawsuit where he was found guilty?
This is horrible. I just cannot imagine the pain of this family.
Serial killers, sexual offenders etc have existed from the beginning of time. Our communication is different. Now, we know instantly when a girl disappears in Portugal. Or we know that Kyron Horman in a suburb of Portland was, allegedly, dropped off at school and disappeared from there. So, I walk my 2nd grader to her class and make sure she is in the building before I leave. And, unlike the parents of Madeleine McCan, I would never leave my daughter alone in a hotel room. I'm vigilant because the media constantly reminds me of the danger of an unattended child.
ReplyDeleteI grew up in Northern California in the 80's. Solano County (Zodiac killer territory) to be exact. Amanda Nikki Campbel and Jaycee Lee Dugard were BIG in the news. Despite all of that I walked to school by myself from Kindergarden until I got my drivers license and my first car. I was told to keep my head up, pay attention to my surroundings, and any adult that approaches you is bad news. There is nothing but bad when an adult has to talk to a kid about anything. I was also told to stay on the main streets and never take shortcuts or trails. i grew up neither scared or feeling like a potential victim. If parents would arm their children with knowledge instead of trying to shield them from reality we would have a a generation that is much more aware than we do. It irks me to no end when I see the kids nowadays walking around with their ipod earphones in and theirfaces buried in their cellphones texting, THAT is the reason kids aren't safe. They aren't safe because we haven't given them the tools they need to not make an easy target for the predators out there.
ReplyDeleteI can't imagine what his poor parents are going through. After 33 years and numerous leads that came and went. I hope they finally have the closure they deserve.
ReplyDelete@Gomez, I was thinking the same thing. I hope for Etan's parents' sake that this is true but you're right, too many strange things with this confession. JonBenet's pretend killer was just a psychotic attention seeker.
ReplyDeleteI've done quite a bit of research on kidnappings in the US. Truly there aren't that many, but each one is so scary and tragic. Back in the 50s a 10-year-old girl named Beverly Potts didn't return home from a concert one night--something like 2 blocks from her home. To this day they don't know what happened. The 50s! I wonder sometimes just how much uglier the world can get, and then I remember, actually it's always been that way. (There's beauty, too.)
Jenny S nailed it. Humans haven't evolved significantly in many, many, many generations. There have always been serial killers and sexual predaters among us. Modern communication methods have alerted and sensitized us to their crimes.
ReplyDeleteI remember walking with my BFF, we were about 13, and a car pulled up next to us. THe guy had his penis out and was touching himself. I didn't even notice, but when my BFF said "look" I got really scared. I grabbed her arm and started to run and she said "no, wait". she wanted to WATCH out of curiosity. So we stood there and she started laughing, and the guy took off in his car !
ReplyDeleteThanks, gossip rags some times have better info !
ReplyDeleteJust found one that says they are Christians. But that is in reference to the sister. Amazing what the "media" puts out , you and I could do better !
ReplyDeleteMay 28 update
ReplyDeleteCharismatic Christian group confession:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/28/nyregion/worshiper-recalls-admission-by-patz-suspect-decades-ago.html?google_editors_picks=true