My mistake, there was a lawyer friend in the home at the time.
But I dispute the idea that John was oblivious. Some people compartmentalize their greif and panic and do what needs doing. JR was criticized for that too.
Perhaps that "non-verbal communication" was JR realizing Arndt was useless as he watched her mind "explode".
No, no lawyer was in the house when JonBenet's body was found.
John had already treated her as though she were invisible. He and Patsy were too good to talk to blue-collar police officers. They'd hire their own army of cops, John said. He actually wanted to hire the Russian Army and seal off the city.
That's how "out in the ether" they were at the time in their "money can buy anything" little world of megalomania they lived in. Not everyone who has a lot of money thinks or acts that way.