It wasn't the "FIRST" thing they did. They called the police. And if you were paying the best lawyers in town and they told you to hire a PR firm, you'd hire a PR firm, just because you had no experience in this and you'd trust your lawyer. Just because we don't like the way people act, doesn't mean they're guilty. Go rent A CRY IN THE DARK, one of the best movies about this kind of things ever made.
When a female is murdered,the males (men) around her,or who were once connected to her,have to understand that the police will eventually knock on their door.When a young girl is murdered,the father,stepfather,uncles,older brothers,male neighbors,clergyman,male teachers,etc *must* expect to be contacted by the cops.
If my young daughter (or son) was murdered and I knew that I wasn't responsible,I'd
1)Call a lawyer.
2)Cooperate *fully* with any/all requests made of me by the police (lie detectors,DNA samples,phone records,interrogation sessions,etc,etc) *regardless* of what my lawyer advised.
And under *no* circumstances would I hire a PR firm.Regardless of how loudly my lawyer demanded that I do so.
< Go rent A CRY IN THE DARK, one of the best movies about this kind of things ever made. >
A similar movie to watch that shows just how police tactics can comepletely screw up an investigation and actually get an innocent person to admit to a crime they didn't commit, try "A Death in Canaan". I used to think it was impossible for people to admit to a murder they didn't commit...then I read about this case and saw the movie.
Don't get me wrong, I think this is a rare and extreme case and in almost every case I think it's rectified, as it was in "Canaan". Police need some leverage.
Here's a blurb of the movie:
"A Death in Canaan is an utterly brilliant film based on the real-life murder mystery of teenager Peter Reilly,accused of the brutal murder of his own mother.Paul Clemens stars as the accused young man in question,and the entire cast of this 1978 made -for television film features allstars. Stephanie Powers,Brian Dennehy,and the late Kenneth McMillan lead the way in this outstanding masterpiece.The film takes the viewer on all the twists and turns of the trials,and the ending is perfectly done and intensifies the mystery,which to date remains unsolved."
You don't know for sure that the first thing they did was call police. It might have been to write a ransom note.