Monday, September 24, 2007

Criminal Profiling Topic of the Day: Out of Sight, Out of Mind

Many Americans are closely following the story about missing Madeleine McCann, a child who is not even from the United States or went missing in the United States. Meanwhile, little Devon Epps, age seven, hardly makes the news. Such is the problem with being dead rather than being a missing person. An incredible amount of money is spent on publicity if a child's fate is unknown, but if the poor little creature is brutally murdered and the body is found, the story is often yesterday's news even if no justice has been served and the killer is still out there. Sadly, this means a lot of money and effort is often wasted on pointless searching for children who are likely just as dead as those whose bodies aren't still undiscovered.

Devon Epps' story is quite tragic. In May, this little boy's bedroom ended up on fire and he barely escaped alive. He had to use a cloth to open the burning knob on the bedroom door to escape and then he ran to wake up Mom who seemed not to want to deal with him at that moment.

Then, in August, his mother, 26-year-old Amanda Reagan Smith, claims she got carjacked, and while she survives (with hardly a scratch) the big, brutal criminal who wielded a knife and made her drive to a lonely spot in a wooded area, little Devon is smothered to death by the carjacker. Ms. Smith claims the man made her get out of the car, and when she did, he locked the doors and proceeded to snuff out her son.

I hope Devon Smith gets justice since he did not get to live a full life, but I wonder if his own community will spend more time paying attention to where Madeleine McCann is rather than ensuring that their own community is safe and that someone pays for the murder of this young, innocent child. I wish we would get our priorities straight and put our concerns and energy toward what would really make a difference in making our world safer.

Criminal Profiler Pat Brown

8 comments:

  1. I hope they are investigating the mom.

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  2. Obviously the mother never heard the old southern saying: "Don't let your mouth overload your tail." Meaning shut up - because you are making it WORSE by flapping your jaws!

    She gave the most ABSURD story I have ever heard of. There's no sex assault, there's no theft no nothing! And we are supposed to believe a carjacker jumps in to kill the boy, with the weapon a pillow already in the car, and then leaves the victims mom there, leaves the car, leaves the pocketbook, leaves everything! HOW STUPID.

    Anyone that believes this story has to be three sheets to the wind (DRUNK).

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  3. Poor poor little man, someone really didnt want him around, what a cruel world we live in.
    I too hope that the person responsible, and maybe it seems - not too far away, is brought to justice, although what justice will there ever be for Damon, a child that was allowed only a short and traumatic life, died at the hands of evil, and soon forgotten by his own people caught up in the Mccann spin.

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  4. Locals are concerned, and some are posting on the Greenville Online forum following the case. They're joined by others at Websleuths, CourtTv and on websites popping up on the web in memoriam for Devon.

    They're all anxiously awaiting an arrest but understand LE has to investigate.

    As in any case, rumours abound, among which is one regarding the time of death being earlier than when it was reported. Locals have heard that the mother has been in to take two polygraphs.

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  5. If you do a search for Websleuths, and bring up the Crimes in the News section, then open the topic titled "Mother Says Carjacker Suffocated 7-Year-Old" you can see what we think at Websleuths. What the mother says just doesn't add up. There's an error in your post btw, his name is Devon, not Damon

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  6. Thank you katk!! Our sincere apologies for the error. Devon's name has been corrected.

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  7. What a terrible story. By the way I want to say thank you for your sensible posts on the Madeleine McCann story.
    I find it incredible that the parents are getting away with their ridiculous story of abduction. Why are the British authorities protecting them?

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