48 Hours: Renee Ohlemacher

Here are my thoughts from last night’s 48 Hours. This show original ran in November 2008.

What did you think of the show?

48 Hours Tonight

The Mortgage and The Murder

Watch a preview here.

Check back for my thoughts of tonight’s episode next week!

*This show is a re-run from last November.

Nathan Gann and Brae Hansen

Both Nathan Gann and Brae Hansen give me pause when they tell their stories, even after they admit to involvement. Many of you commented on what you saw as deceptions in Brae’s 911 call, and you did a great job! You didn’t leave much left for me to say, but here are a few of my thoughts.

Read morePlease realize we know this 911 call is deceptive, so I am looking at it as if we didn’t know the truth, to show you all the hot spots to deception:

  1. Brae says, “I think we’ve been robbed and my Dad’s been shot.” What is fascinating about this is that there is no urgency on Brae’s part to save her dad. Did you notice? The order of things often points to the importance of things. If Brae wanted her dad to live, she would have begged the 911 operator for help for her dad before discussing anything else. She would have also likely gone to his side and tried to help him, but instead we have to wait for the operator to ask Brae if her dad needs paramedics. It’s haunting and then she doesn’t say yes, she says “I think he is dead” without confirming that this is true. It’s chilling. Did she already know he was dead because they checked his pulse?
  2. When the 911 operator asked Brae what did the intruder say, Brae says, “He asked for the combination to the safe.” You would think she would have recollected more details here, point of references of where she was when she noticed the intruder, specific words he said, etc. The lack of detail is an immediate red flag.
  3. Again when 911 operator asks Brae “What did your dad do?” Brae says, “He just refused and then he shot him.” The word “just” stands out to me here. It’s a minimizer. It doesn’t fit the scenario. Also, Brae doesn’t give us any conversations or details. Again, it’s a red flag.
  4. When the 911 operator asks Brae, “Where is your dad right now?” listen to Brae’s response. The tone of her voice indicates frustration–almost annoyance. Isn’t frustration/annoyance an odd emotion to be feeling when her dad is lying on the floor in a pool of blood dead or dying? It’s like she is annoyed by all the questions from the 911 operator. Isn’t that odd?
  5. When the 911 operator asks Brae about the intruder and says, “So he didn’t take anything?” Brae first responds, “I don’t know.” Isn’t that interesting considering she first said they were robbed? It’s a big inconsistency. After a pause, she says, “He took my watch and my ring.” Would that make any sense for an intruder? If he ties them both up, wouldn’t he want more expensive items that just Brae’s watch? Why wouldn’t the intruder bug her for the safe combination? Ask her for jewelry? Steal her dad’s wallet? Her purse? It raises more red flags.
  6. Was Brae tied up to anything? If not, what intruder would just tie someone’s hands behind their back yet leave them free to wander?
  7. When the 911 operator asks Brae if she can tell if her dad is breathing, listen to the amount of time it takes before Brae answers. Clearly, Brae has no urgency whatsoever to get help. It’s chilling. It’s like she is thinking before she speaks and doesn’t know what to say. Then she finally pipes up and says, “I’m too far away to check.” If Brae wasn’t tied down to anything, this is an absolutely cold and callous response–a response of someone who doesn’t give a damn about the person lying on the floor. That’s for sure. If she was tied up, I would expect her to say, “I can’t get to him…please get here quickly” but she doesn’t do that either. Nothing Brae does shows compassion for her dead or dying step-father.

Returning back to Nathan, when he spoke in his police interrogation, his body language was less than supportive of his story. Furthermore, when I listened to the account of “convicted drug dealer” who testified against Nathan, I believe him for the most part. First, he talks about facts that pan out. Second, his account matches what the police know. He also knew that Nathan bought clothing at the Goodwill for which they have a receipt. This is very damning and worse, Nathan’s answer doesn’t hit me as sincere. Nathan says,”…But I don’t tell him anything. I never – this man is not all there. There’s no reason why I would trust or confide in this guy.”

If Nathan just wanted to shake up his step-father and scare him, then there would be absolutely no reason for him to have bought black clothes at the Goodwill, would there?

These two people were in cohoots to kill their step-father. There is no doubt about it. Brae may have had doubts during the killing, but in the end, she didn’t seem to show any regrets or desire to help her father immediately thereafter, did she? It’s very chilling.

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Remains Found: Are They Stacy Peterson?

Human skeletal remains were found on the Des Plaines River near Channahon, Illinois, on Wednesday not far from where two women disappeared: Stacy Peterson and Lisa Stebic.

Read moreFrom ktla.com:

They were found by Chad Pregracke, the founder of Living Lands & Waters in East Moline, a nonprofit group that cleans up waterways in nine states.

Pregracke, 34, was alone on a 30-foot flat bottom work boat Wednesday shortly before 2:30 p.m., pulling garbage out of the Des Plaines River when he came across the bones.

The article also says:

A plastic blue barrel was spotted in the vicinity of the body. Channahon resident Michelle Williams told WGN Radio host John Williams this morning that she and her husband saw the barrel in heavy brush on the riverbank on Sunday and she saw it again on Tuesday.

However, people who are familiar with the river say that seeing a blue barrel on the river in not an uncommon sight.

Police say it will take several weeks before they will get any DNA lab results back. You can read more here at CNN as well.

Thanks A.S. for the story update.

Brae Hansen’s 911 Call

We know Brae Hansen’s 911 call is deceptive from the 48 Hours show, Daddy’s Girl. What clues to you see that she is being deceptive?