Washington State Clerk Claims to Have Spotted Laci Peterson

kxtv ^

[HairOfTheDog]

if someone said they were kidnapped and that the guy was armed, would you wait for the guy to come back to the checkstand and say, "Are you kidnapping her?"

Absolutely not if I thought it was true. That is why I don't think she took it seriously, she did think it was a joke. 20/20 hindsight might be causing her to doubt herself and see things that might not have been there. How often have we all replayed things in our mind wondering if we did the right thing?

In all probability, it was a joke, this was not Laci, but a couple going to dinner.

The chances of a stranger-kidnapper taking a woman into a grocery store and to have her cooperate and pretend to be a couple are pretty far-fetched. If true, she could have screamed bloody murder.

[Texas Mom]

When the man returned, the clerk said she asked him if he was kidnapping the woman. The clerk said the man became angry, so she smiled and told him that her husband often kidnaps her to take her to dinner. At that, the man smiled and said "Yeah, I guess I kidnapped her."

Sheesh. This woman is a piece of work. She asks the guy if he kidnapped her then forgets to call the police because she got distracted? If she is doing this just to get her 15 minutes of fame she sure is painting herself one dumb B***H. For this convenience store worker Wish I could send it to her.

[SarahW]

The story has no gaps, if you concede that this clerk is slow on the uptake. Her reaction to the situation does not have her acting stupidly one minute and bravely and intelligently the next. She is relentlessly clueless throughout; there is no inconsistency in any of her statements and actions.

It makes sense that she wouldn't know how to take the comments of the woman customer, or know what to do with them. She is a plodding, simpleton person who has the ability to remember narrative, but processes information in terms of her known strategies and routines.

She didn't take it seriously because she didn't have enough sense to do so. If she had no "BOLO" for a missing person, and a frame of reference for interpreting the situation, she would have trouble stepping out of her tiny little boxed-in mind.

The details about the check the woman wrote are the clincher for me.

BTW, she didn't take any initiative and ask "are you kidnapping her". THe man asked a direct question, asked what the two women had been talking about. The simpleton answered.

[SteveH]

If it was a joke, then the real couple lives in the area and would contact police. It seems as if it would be worth a shot from the police perspective. If it was not a joke, no one would step forward and it would seem to have a chance of being taken more seriously (?).

[savedbygrace]

If this were Laci Peterson, what she should have done is to suddenly groan in pain and drop to the floor, screaming that the baby is coming out now. The kidnapper would be in a huge bind as to what to do.

Easy for me to say, huh?

[HairOfTheDog]

I am not jumping on the bandwagon yet that took Laci to Washington. I think her demise was closer to home, though I don't have any more reason to believe that than folk have of believing this clerk saw her.

Which means, I really think whatever this clerk did probably doesn't matter to Laci. The clerk might be slow on the uptake, it might have looked like nothing but a joke until later when she saw a picture, or it might have really been a joke. Even if Laci was there, it was a weird situation that only looks clear in hindsight with a known outcome. And we don't know the outcome yet.

[chance33_98]

If it was a joke, then the real couple lives in the area and would contact police. It seems as if it would be worth a shot from the police perspective. If it was not a joke, no one would step forward and it would seem to have a chance of being taken more seriously (?).

They should certainly follow every lead and judge the worth of the lead afterwards.

[landerwy]

I guess she doesn't read the tabloids at checkouts!!

[Hildy]

If true, this woman should be in jail for absolute stupidity. She herself said they looked to be an unlikely couple. He, older with ruddy complexion, she a classic beauty. Someone tells you that she's being kidnapped to call the cops, I don't care if it was all a joke by the couple. YOU ARE NOW REPONSIBLE. The first thing she does is TELL the guy accused of the kidnapping, would that possibly put the clerk in a dangerous position? Oh my, if this turns out to be the truth, then this woman has the blood of Laci Peterson on her fovever. Unfortunately, she's too stupid to realize it.

[jiggyboy]

It was also on KTVU (Fox Channel 2, Oakland CA) today, but they might have just cribbed it from your Modesto station.

A more recent story from KTVU says the family and the police are hopeful but dubious:

Candice Delong, a former profiler for the FBI, said on KTVU's Mornings On 2 Friday that she doubted the report.

"Either this clerk is confused or it didn't happen at all," Delong said. "First of all, she said the woman gave her a check and said just fill in the amount. According to police reports, Laci Peterson's purse and checkbook were left at the house. There may have been a pregnant woman who said I'm being abducted, but I don't think it was Laci Peterson."

[1Old Pro]

According to the clerk, at one point the man stepped out of line to get an item he forgot. The clerk said she remarked on the fact that the woman wasn't wearing a coat. The woman replied that she hadn't brought a coat because she'd been kidnapped, then said the man had a weapon.

The women had a good opportunity to flee but stayed in line to casual say she was kidnapped. If she was kidnapped wouldn't she either flee or demand that the clerk call the cops immediately?

[DoughtyOne]

I have seldom read a report that did as much damage to a person's reputation as this one. The clerk was told the lady was a victim of a kidnapping, so what does she do? She tells the kidnapper what the woman said. Then she just simply forgets to notify the police for a month or more.

My God, how could this woman hold down a job?

Instead of the police getting a good lead they could follow up on, they now have a cold trail that could lead to Alaska or Florida for all anyone knows.

While I'm glad this clerk finally came forward, it is possible she cost Laci and her unborn child their lives.

[DoughtyOne]

Have you ever seen an eight and a half months pregnant woman run? She could bolt on Tuesday morning and he'd catch her at the edge of the lot on Friday afternoon.

[Undivided Heart]

Yeah, or maybe screwed up the transaction on the cash register and had to figure out by hand how much change was owed the customer. This is a very a very disturbing experience for some clerks, making a possible sighting of a kidnap victim seem quite trivial and forgettable.

[TexRef]

I also just found another article, stating she tried to give the checkout clerk a check for payment before the man returned but was not quik enough to fill it out so she put it in her pocket and paid cash.

Sorry, but Laci left her purse at home.

This story just doesn't pass the smell test.

[1Old Pro]

Good point. What about asking the clerk to call the police and giving a description of the vehicle she was in.

[DoughtyOne]

If it was Laci and she was trying to pay with a check, she would have been better off to hand the blank check to the clerk and tell her to give it to police, then pay in cash.

Course this clerk would have asked the kidnapper if it was okay to do so.

[1Old Pro]

Course this clerk would have asked the kidnapper if it was okay to do so.

Yep, there were probably a few different & BETTER ways to attempt to get the message to the clerk. But, as you said, the clerk probably wouldn't have noticed.

[Kaslin]

This clerk should receive Brain-Donor of the Year award.

There was enough here to warrant a call to the police. If this was Laci, it might have saved her.

Check the report here Missing woman

In the FOX News report it says that she was trying to find a phone book to call the Police. My question is, has she never heard of 911. I am totally against people who call 911 unnecessary, but this call would have been justified and maybe saved the kidnapped woman's lfe

[snopercod]

This may shock you, but there are people out there who don't watch TV or read the papers. I'm sure of this.