Smart Case, July 25, 2002

07/25/02 | Jolly Green

[Jolly Green]

Wild-Eyed Speculation, Half-baked Theories and Myths
Theory(?)	Facts
Richard Ricci has been identified as the prime suspect in the case, though several of his "theme park" pals are under suspicion.	- Ricci is a 5-time loser, having been convicted of burglarizing a food bank and shooting a police officer. He has recently been indicted on three additional state charges including theft at the Smart residence and burglary of a Smart neighbor. Additionally, he has been recently indicted on three federal charges related to two bank robberies. - Ricci worked for the Smarts last year for several months and was paid with a white Jeep in lieu of cash. He had full access to the house and may very well have had a key to the Smart residence. Ricci and two others were fired when some items were stolen from the home. Ricci later approached Ed Smart and said he wasn't involved and wanted his job back. Ed Smart declined to rehire him. - Ricci lives in a trailer park in West Jordan that is now referred to as a "theme park" because of the large number of Ricci convicted felon friends living there. - Ricci has no credible alibi for the period during and shortly after the abduction. He is believed to have put an additional 1000 miles on the Jeep during a period when he claimed the Jeep was in Moul's shop. Moul also reported that Ricci removed several trash bags, the seat covers and a post hole digger and carried them across the street. - Ricci had both opportunity and motive.
Ed Smart and Richard Ricci were gay lovers. This is based upon Ed Smart's pleading before the media for Ricci to come clean, where he used phrases like "Help me, Richard".	This theory was eloquently refuted by Jengaio and it hasn't reared its ugly head recently.
Elizabeth Smart had a nose ring, must have been rebellious and ran away. Later, proponents shifted emphasis to "piercings".	Numerous photographs of Elizabeth Smart show no indication of a nose ring and the existence of a nose ring has never been reported by any credible news source.
Moul, the mechanic, lied to the grand jury and in TV interviews. Some of the scenarios: He knows more than he is telling; his eyesight is bad; he made it up; he is in cahoots with Ricci; he used Ricci's Jeep without Ricci's permission.	Moul has no criminal record and no motive. What's more his vehicle logs corroborate his testimony. If Moul had "borrowed" the Jeep, he certainly would have washed it to remove the bugs, mud and pine needles.
Elizabeth Smart's aunt, in a televised interview said the police "are working with us". Implications: This surely must mean that the Smarts and their influential friends and church must be controlling/thwarting the 100-man SLCPD/FBI task force	We will ask Jengaio to analyze the phrazing.

Motive	Possible Suspect	Details
Kidnapping	All	- The SLCPD has said there has not been any credible ransom demands. This may be due to the massive search and media blitz within 5 hours of the abduction i.e. the perps may have realized that their chances of getting caught were very high and they decided to get rid of the evidence.
	Ricci & cronies	- Ricci and his colleagues have recently been indicted for several Utah bank robberies, each producing only a modest amount of cash i.e. $1800 split 3 ways. It is likely that they were looking for a bigger "score".
	Unknown	N/A
Burglary	Ricci	- Ricci has five previous convictions for theft, burglary, and assault (shooting a police officer). He has recently been indicted on three additional state charges including burglary of a Smart neigbor while they were sleeping (a M.O. similar to the Smart kidnapping) and theft of the Smart home. He has also been indicted on three federal charges including two bank robberies. - The Smarts, like most people, wouldn't keep large amounts of cash around. It seems likely that a simple burglary would not produce much in the way of cash or jewelery. - The SLCPD has said some things were taken but haven't identified those items.
	Unknown	N/A
Burglary Gone Wrong	Ricci	- The Smart perpetrator may have been surprised by Elizabeth Smart and decided to remove the only witness.
	Unknown	Same as above
Sexual Predator	Ricci	- Fox News reported Ricci had attempted an "inappropriate relationship" with one of his old girlfriends 16 yr old daughters.
	Unknown	N/A
Revenge	Ricci	- Ed Smart wouldn't rehire Ricci even though Ricci claimed he had no involvement in the theft of the Smart house.
	Unknown	N/A
Runaway	Elizabeth Smart	Unknown possible motive
	Unknown	N/A

Significant Links
Date	Title	Comments
06/16/02	Sister reported the abduction relatively quickly Wait was quite short for child, an expert says	Certified forensic psychologist Gerald P. Koocher said it is remarkable the child notified the parents as soon as she did. Koocher, dean of Health Studies at Boston's Simmon's College and a faculty member at Harvard Medical School, pointed out that in other scenarios such as sexual abuse, a child will refrain from telling on or speaking ab
07/24/02	Katie Couric Boylan Interview on NBC	Complements of Neenah. See post #74

[Sherlock]

I'll be back when the people with a rational perspective on the case are back on the tread. In the meantime your club has full reign to engage in your only interest in following the case, devouring the Smarts. You'll never get it.

[lakey]

I have no theory on who kidnapped Elizabeth, except it was someone she knew. If we've been told the truth about MK seeing him talking to Elizabeth, lingering in the house for several minutes, it doesn't add up - unless he's another Avila, showing off.

My uninformed opinion of Salt Lake P.D. varies. Not giving out pertinent investigative information, in fact, false information in some cases, is standard procedure.

Using Ricci as an easy media distraction is, in my opinion, because they have no one else to pin it on, or they don't want to say just yet....to protect Elizabeth.

Somebody has an idea of who the culprit might be. If it were Ricci's puss on that composite, wouldn't they have said so by now?

One more thing before I leave (thunderstorms are brewing), many of us who are not Mormons found it strange when Elizabeth's uncles referred to her as "a woman." Fourteen is a woman! Does Elizabeth think of herself as a woman? Early on, her father said she wasn't "into boys".... Make what you will of it, but I wonder if this attitude, belief, isn't part of what has happened.

[varina davis]

The instructor states, "It's not like they're (Elizabeth and Mary Katherine) gifted, it's like they work very hard at it." The instructor also said that Elizabeth never missed a lesson. She even described a time when Elizabeth was quite young, and she showed up for a lesson feeling "terrible" with "her face as white as her hair."

Makes it sound as though they were pushed to be over-achievers. That could cause a lot of stress for youngsters.

[varina davis]

Can anyone name another kidnapping where the victim was found ALIVE after 51 days?

That's assuming this is an actual "kidnapping."

[varina davis]

Ricci's employer also made statements to try to cover up for Ricci which made me wonder if he might not be suspect in this.

Good heavens! Not everyone in the entire state of Utah is a suspect!

[varina davis]

ED was asked some pointed questions which he avoided. He wouldn't discuss the sketch at all, but said the police are handling it..Also, he didn't make eye contact..

It was just more of the same old double talk, IMHO. I understand why the family wants to stay in the news, but they ought to consider letting Mrs. Smart do the talking. I notice they have cut her off pretty effectively. I thought that would happen the last time she was on TV. She actually made a few comments that made sense. Maybe they thought she would inadvertantly reveal more.

[Neenah]

For what it is worth, I SAW the interview with Mitchell. It was on the TODAY SHOW or GOOD MORNING AMERICA, I believe.

I have been trying to find transcripts, and boy, is that hard to do !!! But I remember him saying that Recci was very well liked (yeah, I know he is scum), and that he had a friendly demenor with the customers. He said he was at work the next day after this abduction, and that he was just in a normal demenor.

He did say on the t.v. interview what time he came in. I THINK (as best as I can remember) he came in at different times, because of the nature of their business... (Garden shop), but I believe he checked his time ON THE TIME CLOCK.

Boy this is frustrating when you remember something, and then try to remember what ch. or net. you saw it on. I am trying to rembember what day they interviewed him. That is what is stopping me find it. It has to be after Recci came into play here.DUHHHHH, Neenah !! Grrrrrrr...my sluething skills are waining here.( *applaud now*

[Jolly Green]

They do? It is almost 2 months now, they know the kidnapper, but he is not arrested?

Hundreds of thousands of perps, if not millions, are wandering the streets of America. The cops know they did it, but can't prove it YET. And they won't be arrested until they can prove it "beyond a reasonable doubt".

[Neenah]

Ricci was not the kidnapper

He wasn't ??

Geez, I am getting confused by your posts. I can understand facts, I can understand different points of view of how each poster leans, and that is just fine. We all are gussing......

But you state it like it is a fact. I don't mean to sound confrontational, but that is how I read what you say.

[MiloMarch]

I wondered about the variation in the miles at first too, but now I'm fairly confidant that this is due to rounding the mileage.

Moul probably just records something like "87k" for the mileage. If he wrote 87k at first check-in, (doesn't matter what he wrote the 2nd time, because they have the Jeep to check the exact reading), then that might mean it had 86,501 miles, or it could have been 87,499.

So, if it read exactly 88,000 miles when it was returned, that could mean it was driven between 501 - 1,499 miles.

[Jolly Green]

It started at 500, went up to 750 or so, then up to 1000. There is quite a difference between 500 and 1000. I would like to know why this discrepancy is tossed around like it's nothing.

I recall the Banfield interview with Moul vividly that evening. I also recall that the SLCPD/FBI asked for assistance in determining where Ricci's Jeep was on a range of dates within a 500 mile radius i.e. 1000 miles THAT MORNING.

My take is that Moul didn't know the exact mileage because the cops had taken his records. Banfield was pushing him toward 1000 miles. I don't see that as particularly significant other than she thought her information, based upon the press release, was better than Moul's recollection without his records.

[Jolly Green]

Moul probably just records something like "87k" for the mileage. If he wrote 87k at first check-in, (doesn't matter what he wrote the 2nd time, because they have the Jeep to check the exact reading), then that might mean it had 86,501 miles, or it could have been 87,499.

Moul recorded exact mileage. He showed Banfield some of his other customer's records, but couldn't show her Ricci's because the cops had taken them.

[Neenah]

Makes it sound as though they were pushed to be over-achievers. That could cause a lot of stress for youngsters

Oh do I agree with that ! I have worked with children for years, have raised my own, and have seen parents that push their children.

I have seen boys want to play baseball, or girls joing scouts, but I have never met a child who had on his/her own an over-achieving nature. They couldn't achieve even if they wanted to without parent/parents behind them, buying instruments,sports equipment, dedicating themselves to take them to lessons, etc.

I have worked with gifted/talented Programs, and these students excell scolastically so well, that they are encouraged to broaden their scope, but that is a part of the daily school routine.

Children, by nature (there are some exceptions, but believe me, any parents out there KNOW it is rare) need to be ENCOURAGED TO STUDY OR ACHIEVE. By nature, when the bell rings, they want to get home, get the peanut butter and play.

Well, I rattled all this off to say, I am sure these children did a beautiful job. But I know from working with kids for a long time, that STRESS shows up earlier and earlier these days in kids that are pushed too hard with too much to achieve in. These parents want them good in EVERYTHING.

SIGHHHHHH...what ever happened to hopscotch, wax lips, Kick the can, and reading comic books ?

Wow, didn't mean to get off on a rant here.!! LOL

[Neenah]

YOU ARE CORRECT, SIR !!! Ashley did that !! I remember sayng at the time that she was upping the usage, and all media outlets took that and ran with it !

Thanks for pointing that out.

[Jolly Green]

many of us who are not Mormons found it strange when Elizabeth's uncles referred to her as "a woman." Fourteen is a woman! Does Elizabeth think of herself as a woman?

You are not the first, or probably the last, to raise that issue. The Church has a Young Women's program that includes all young girls when they turn twelve until they graduate from high school. Young Women are taught spiritual, Christian lessons on Sunday in their own classes. One night during the week, they have an Activities Night or Mutual, where they learn crafts or have sports activities. Much of the training they recieve in the program teaches them skills required to be good wives, mothers and patriotic citizens. They also attend a week-long summer camp.

Church members refer to "young women" weekly without the connotation you are implying. ES difinitely considered herself a young woman.