A Word About the Nature of these Crimes

Rape and murder are difficult subjects. When jamming on the data involved in this case, going through old files, and trying to sense patterns and make connections, it's easy to forget what's at the core of this and how serious and life-altering these crimes actually were. Complicating this is a culture that has traditionally minimized the effects that rape can have on its victims.

The victims of these crimes experienced an all-encompassing trauma. Being woken up in the middle of the night in your own home and sexually assaulted by a stranger is a horrific thing. The physical pain may fade (although for many victims some of the physical effects never fully went away, and sadly several had their lives taken away) and there are emotional remnants that remain for life. An empty house every time you're left alone, the phone ringing unexpectedly, noises outside, shadows and ski masks and news stories and pushy boyfriends and electrical wires and difficult conversations you've had to have with your father and husband and any and every medical appointment that reminds you of the harsh and degrading rape examination LE provided you with and so on and so forth... for many these can become part of daily life.

The internet being what it is, I've had a general frustration with the lack of sensitivity to rape victims in general. Most people mean well they probably doesn't realize the gravity of the situation these victims were forced into.

I respect everyone's right to have an opinion. But I think people do need to keep in mind that discussion of rape is a hot-button issue and there are going to be passionate responses.

I feel that sites like this one should strive to understand these things a bit more. The raw data in the way that we present things here tends to have a coldness to it, but I want to assure everyone that as far as the actual topic and the crimes go, we have nothing but empathy, compassion, and sensitivity to the subject.

It's these feelings that lie at the core of what I try to do here, and why I need to see this case solved. This is about justice, both for the victims and for society.