Do you mean premeditated for weeks or months, Mr Apples? It could hardly have been premeditated on the day of the murder, as LM couldn't have known that Jodi would be ungrounded at 4.30 that day.
Thats what I was saying, if LM is guilty then he must have decided on the spur of the moment to kill Jodi that day, albeit having had those thoughts in his mind for weeks or months before hand.
But of course, this takes us back to the sheer stupidity of his alleged actions, rushing to kill Jodi with others knowing they were going to meet at that time, ie, Jodi's family. Does this make sense?
Of course, you cover the other option , Mr Apples, of Luke killing Jodi in an unplanned fit of rage about Kim, but if this is the case, why did Luke 'allegedly' change his clothes before leaving to meet Jodi?
You also say that LM found out on the spot that he enjoyed killing Jodi, but again, only a psychopath could have inflicted the horrific post mortem injuries surely?
I dont think there is actually any evidence of Luke being mentally ill in any way, is there?
Anyway, the prosecution claim that LM and Jodi met at the Easthouses end of RDP as witnessesd by Andrina Bryson, yet Jodi's body was not found in that area.
Jodi's body was actually found at the 'v' break, roughly two thirds along RDP in the Newbattle direction.
So again, you could argue that this backs up LM claim of meeting at his mums house in Newballe.
For want of a better description, you could say that Jodi did indeed appear to be heading to Lukes house in Newbattle when she was attacked behind the 'v' break!
Indeed, why would Jodi end up two thirds along RDP if the claim by Judith was that Jodi told her that she would be mucking about in Easthouses?
Isn't the logical answer, that Luke was telling the truth and Jodi was indeed on her way to his house when she was attacked?
It is suggested that Luke/Jodi were arguing when Andrina Bryson saw them and that a blazing row ensued, but if this is the case, Jodi certainly wouldn't be in any mood to go home with Luke for the evening, so how on earth did Luke manage to persuade Jodi to walk two thirds back along the path heading for Newbattle?
The prosecution case simply fails on a lot of points, Mr Apples.
I think it wasn't premeditated, if I was pushed to go with my gut feeling. Premeditation, however, could have been lingering in his subconscious for months, weeks, days -- ready to come to the fore at any moment. I wouldn't rule premeditation out, by any means. I think Parky made an interesting point about what AB saw: she said the male standing at the top of the entrance to RDP had his arms by his side and palms outstretched, gesticulating to the girl; Parky suggested the male was 'beckoning' the girl to come with him westbound along the RDP to Newbattle, possibly having made up his mind to lure her behind that wall for a joint and murder her there (ie, premeditated). Certainly a plausible theory, but, given the time of evening and the time of year, I think premeditation was unlikely (even though the murder site itself was off the beaten path). But, you're right: it didn't make any sense for him to go out and do what he did, especially as Judith knew he was the only one who was to meet with Jodi that night; that's why I think the 'lost it in a blind rage' theory is more likely. I think they decided to go to the area behind the V away from prying eyes for a quick smoke/joint as it was sometimes used as a rendezvous point at the time for teens to drink alcohol and smoke marijuana, etc -- and their falling out at school/argument continued as they were walking down the RDP and LM snapped. (I remember reading somewhere that people testified in court that they thought LM & Jodi had had an argument in school as they had their backs to one another during an interval or luchtime on 30.06.03, which would make sense, since a newspaper article stated that Jodi had her head on the desk with her hands covering it and was crying.) Luke changing clothes before heading out to meet Jodi can be explained away by common sense: most teenagers change out of their school clothes when they get home, especially when they are going out to socialise for the evening; also, it was overcast that day and threatening to rain -- this probably explains why LM opted to wear a jacket with a hood (ie, his parka). The V-break in the wall is literally a mere 10 minute walk from Jodi's home and about 15 minutes from LM's, and LM moved the body 16.3 meters west from the V, out of necessity; where he moved the body to was off the beaten path, amongst many trees, shrubs and foilage (suggesting it was a local person who did it, as only they would know to move the body there, hidden). As for Jodi being persuaded to walk down the path after a row, it was only a teenagers' tiff. Besides, Jodi really liked Luke and he was her first serious boyfriend; she'd even put in her diary that she thought she loved him and would die if he finished with her, so probably had forgiven him and was willing to fight for their relationship. It was LM's disproportionately bad temper that escalated into murder. Just because some professional assessed him as not being mentally ill, doesn't mean he wasn't ; it is not an exact science. Maybe he was only mentally ill during the time he murdered Jodi. As discussed, there were signs he was troubled from as young as 7, and was referred for psychological counselling in both primary school and high school. Also, sometimes, things like murder just cannot be explained and are anomalous and beyond human understanding.
