Posted on 03/14/2005 12:44:23 PM PST by EveningStar
The woman who was held hostage in her apartment by the suspect in Atlanta's courthouse slayings came forward to give an account of her ordeal, saying he let her go after they bonded while discussing God, family, pancakes and the massive manhunt going on outside her apartment.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
Because that is not how she appeared.
OK, works for me.
I wasn't pissing on her. What she did was tremendous. I just don't want her compassion for the criminal to lead to a sympathy movement for him and possibly spare him from the punishment he deserves. And what's wrong with hating a quadruple murderer?
Sorry thread. A little TMI on my account. Won't happen again.
You didn't do anything wrong. People just took your remarks out of context. For what it's worth, I too have said a few things that I wish I hadn't said (like questioning whether or not Smith and Nichols had a prior connection). Emotions run high on threads like these. Hopefully we can forgive one another at the end of the day.
That's my hope too.
I feel she is giving too much empathy to the killer (no, not alleged killer.....THE BRUTAL RAPIST AND MURDERER.)
I also find the fact that she is hitting all the talk show and TV shows today troubling. I truly think that if that happened to me, I'd be with my daughter, in seclusion. Certainly her daughter has heard about what happened, and needs reassurance and comforting from her mom.
In addition, could she be compromising herself as a potential witness for the prosecution by speaking out to any media outlet who will listen?
Like I said, something isn't right here, you can take it to the bank.
I've seen too many criminals get better treatment when they suddenly "got religion" in prison. This guy didn't even wait that long. I think some are people are just pure evil, and this man is in the same category as so many others, Manson, Peterson, Bundy...the man who brutally murdered my cousin. The list goes on and on.
They are manipulative, self-serving, and sociopaths.
This woman may have had an incredible testimony to give, but at the right time. Hitting the media circuit (circus) now, is not that time, in my opinion.
Looks like they both will benefit from their chance meeting.
I had not thought of that. Good point.
I heard her say that she felt sorry for him & his mother. I don't remember anything said about feelings for the victims. She will probably visit him in jail if she is allowed. I agree that she did what she could to save her life but she drove back to the apartment when she could have called the police instead.
I agree that this woman showed deep spiritual conviction to defuse the situation. SHE IS A HERO!!
And she could have risked that he would rage at that betrayal, kill her and flee back into public where he'd need to take yet another hostage. To find yet another safe haven for himself. In her way, she diffused a killing spree into a quiet peaceful arrest.
But don't let that stop you from being a critic ;~D
" How could Wilhelm have still been alive?"
We know he was shot, but, we don't know the extent of his injuries.
And neither did she.
And neither did Nichols.
" I can't help but think you want to think poorly of her for saying what you did about her having a chance to save Wilhelm. That's simply not true."
I don't question her motives, just her judgement-after 6 am.
If she could call the police at 10 am, why couldn't she call them at 6 am ?
He was armed at 10 am, but, unarmed at 6 am.
The risk of a shoot out was greater at 10 am than earlier.
Just trying to figure out the timeline and asking questions should not be construed as disparaging this woman or condemning her.
This is what he said, not what she said. This is from the transcript and last night's interview.
I said, "You know, your miracle could be that you need to -- you need to be caught for this. You need to go to prison and you need to share the word of God with them, with all the prisoners there."
I guess she could have said you need to be caught for this and fry in the electric chair. But I think she was in survival mode and was saying what she thought would free her. Watch the interview and look at her eyes. She still looks somewhat in shock to me. And remember this all transpired at 2 a.m. in the morning - just how quick on our feet would any of us be with little or no sleep and in a hostage situation?
Wow, I just walked in the office in time to see the end of a statement she just gave.
She has my respect.
That's sad for you. Hearing problem?
She had plenty to say about the victims.
She just gave a brief statement- live. She thanked everyone for their kindness and support- but asked for peace and quiet- to please respect her need to spend time out of the spotlight etc...
I also pray Ashley Smith does not let stardom get to her head and remembers who, what, why, how she is still alive.
She showed him the autopsy report of her husband. He had been stabbed in the heart 4 years before. She told him about the suffering that she and her extended family went through with her husband's murder and how the families of Nichol's victims were suffering. I do not see her having more sympathy for him than the victims. She was amazing. He couldn't believe that she had kept the autopsy report and looked at it often.
Does anyone remember the woman who tape recorded her own murder by an intruder? She deliberately turned a tape on while she was trying to talk him down. The tape told the tale of how he became calmer while they talked and then suddenly he went into a rage and killed her - all on tape. This girl well knew what he was capable of - she had seen the news. So she made him pancakes - so would I - while asking how many. It seems that some here have personal issues shading their negative opinion and I wish them well in working them out. I can give the girl respect and thanks for doing what she did and at the same time feel anguished grief for the families of those murdered, not to mention anger at the killer.
The police here in Atlanta said that she did everything right. Whether you agree or not, because of her actions no one else died.
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