Consider this scenario - Would a guilty person keep their case alive for many years?

[Alice Purjorick]

Imagine this scenario:
You are an aspiring model driving home with your boyfriend when a heated argument starts. He stops the car and you both get out ; you stab him 42 times from which injuries he dies.
You have a press conference at which you say your boyfriend was killed in a road rage attack by a fat man with staring eyes who stabbed your boyfriend over 30 times emotionally you ask for anyone with information to come forward.
Why the kin hell would you want to make up a story like that and appear before cameras telling the tale?

[mercury]

What you have posted makes absolute sense but do not expect everyone to see the perfect logic you have presented

Only assumptions and beliefs here

[Mr Gray]

Imagine this scenario:
You are an aspiring model driving home with your boyfriend when a heated argument starts. He stops the car and you both get out ; you stab him 42 times from which injuries he dies.
You have a press conference at which you say your boyfriend was killed in a road rage attack by a fat man with staring eyes who stabbed your boyfriend over 30 times emotionally you ask for anyone with information to come forward.
Why the kin hell would you want to make up a story like that and appear before cameras telling the tale?

In order to get away with the crime
If the crime had not been solved and she had not been imprisoned would she then have campaigned to have the case re opened

[lordpookles]

Imagine this scenario:
You are an aspiring model driving home with your boyfriend when a heated argument starts. He stops the car and you both get out ; you stab him 42 times from which injuries he dies.
You have a press conference at which you say your boyfriend was killed in a road rage attack by a fat man with staring eyes who stabbed your boyfriend over 30 times emotionally you ask for anyone with information to come forward.
Why the kin hell would you want to make up a story like that and appear before cameras telling the tale?

I think I remember that case - an american girl. IMO it's often a case of "Look what I've done and I'm getting away with it."

There have been many killers over the years who have been on TV all the time lapping up the attention and are narcissists. This is unprecedented though and would they keep going to these extraordinary lengths? Maybe the true narcissist is also deep down hoping to get caught? All that extra attention when caught like the court case, post prison interviews etc.

FWIW I don't think that to be the case here. There's always a counter argument though and there are many examples of killers basking in the limelight. I can think of several examples, but terrible with names. 1 guy taunted the police for years, was on TV all the time and when the case went cold handed himself into the police.

[Alfie]

I think I remember that case - an american girl. IMO it's often a case of "Look what I've done and I'm getting away with it."

There have been many killers over the years who have been on TV all the time lapping up the attention and are narcissists. This is unprecedented though and would they keep going to these extraordinary lengths? Maybe the true narcissist is also deep down hoping to get caught? All that extra attention when caught like the court case, post prison interviews etc.

FWIW I don't think that to be the case here. There's always a counter argument though and there are many examples of killers basking in the limelight. I can think of several examples, but terrible with names. 1 guy taunted the police for years, was on TV all the time and when the case went cold handed himself into the police.

What you have described, criminals repeatedly drawing attention to their crimes, taunting the police, challenging them to come after them is well documented and tends to point to some serious pathological character traits in the criminal.  In my opinion this could be the only logical explanation that comes anywhere close to explaining the behaviour I have described in my scenario. 

[mercury]

What you have described, criminals repeatedly drawing attention to their crimes, taunting the police, challenging them to come after them is well documented and tends to point to some serious pathological character traits in the criminal.  In my opinion this could be the only logical explanation that comes anywhere close to explaining the behaviour I have described in my scenario. 

The part you are missing is the killings were intentional in those cases


In ths hypothesis the motive was survival of a family

[Brietta]

Why anyone would put their lives and their children's lives on hold for several years maintaining a campaign on behalf of their missing child if they had any part in their disappearance, is beyond my comprehension.

[lordpookles]

What you have described, criminals repeatedly drawing attention to their crimes, taunting the police, challenging them to come after them is well documented and tends to point to some serious pathological character traits in the criminal.  In my opinion this could be the only logical explanation that comes anywhere close to explaining the behaviour I have described in my scenario.  so I guess the next question is - do sceptics really believe that the McCanns are both brazen psychopaths?

Yeah it's the only possibility I could imagine. What does a brazen psychopath look like? Does one necessarily need to be a psychopath? Though I guess extreme narcissism seems to manifest psychopathic traits. I mean if we were shown 5hrs worth of a psychopath chatting,conversing etc would any of us even know?

[Mr Gray]

Yeah it's the only possibility I could imagine. What does a brazen psychopath look like? Does one necessarily need to be a psychopath? Though I guess extreme narcissism seems to manifest psychopathic traits. I mean if we were shown 5hrs worth of a psychopath chatting,conversing etc would any of us even know?

I think we would...and it would not be a professor of cardiology....the sort of people we need who dedicate their lives to helping others...we don't need those who dedicate their life to persecution...what use are they... no use at all ...think about it.


[ edited ]

[G-Unit]

I think we would...and it would not be a professor of cardiology....the sort of people we need who dedicate their lives to helping others...we don't need those who dedicate their life to persecution...what use are they... no use at all ...think about it.


[ edited ]

You clearly don't know much about psychopaths. They aren't all serial killers or criminals. Many very successful people are psychopaths too.

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-neuroscientist-who-discovered-he-was-a-psychopath-180947814/?no-ist
http://www.alternet.org/culture/10-careers-most-psychopaths

[G-Unit]

Yeah it's the only possibility I could imagine. What does a brazen psychopath look like? Does one necessarily need to be a psychopath? Though I guess extreme narcissism seems to manifest psychopathic traits. I mean if we were shown 5hrs worth of a psychopath chatting,conversing etc would any of us even know?

One trait shared by psychopaths and narcissists is lack of empathy. Empathy is needed when dealing with children because you have to be able to see things from the child's point of view.

[slartibartfast]

I think we would...and it would not be a professor of cardiology....the sort of people we need who dedicate their lives to helping others...we don't need those who dedicate their life to persecution...what use are they... no use at all ...think about it.


[ edited ]

Interesting that you put different value on different people's lives.

[Alfie]

One trait shared by psychopaths and narcissists is lack of empathy. Empathy is needed when dealing with children because you have to be able to see things from the child's point of view.

Given that if what you say is correct, and that a significant percentage of all parents are psychopaths (for example all those who parents who have used holiday creches and who adopt the "leave them to cry themselves to sleep" method of baby rearing), then would you say that psychopathy is at play in the scenario I have outlined?  Does it perhaps explain why, *you* simply won't let the world forget about *your* missing child and go to great lengths to getting the case reviewed by the best police force in *your* country?  Does that sound realisitc and plausible to you?

[slartibartfast]

Given that if what you say is correct, and that a significant percentage of all parents are psychopaths (for example all those who parents who have used holiday creches and who adopt the "leave them to cry themselves to sleep" method of baby rearing), then would you say that psychopathy is at play in the scenario I have outlined?  Does it perhaps explain why, despite the case being shelved, *you* simply won't let the world forget about *your* missing child and go to great lengths to getting the case reviewed by the best police force in *your* country?  Does that sound realisitc and plausible to you?

In trying to erase all blame in the case, yes.

[Mr Gray]

Interesting that you put different value on different people's lives.

I certainly put different values on different people...