MURDERED: 8 yr old Leila Fowler - 12 yr old brother charged

[BlueTiki]

I'm curious as to the identity of the boy/man with Lelia's name tattooed on his arm.

That picture gave me the willies.

How could you not be curious as to why someone would immediately get a tat with the victim's name?

[HairOfTheDog]

I'm curious as to the identity of the boy/man with Lelia's name tattooed on his arm.

That picture gave me the willies.

How could you not be curious why someone would immediately get a tat with the victim's name?

Yep. Even weirder, what if he had the tat before she was killed?

I'm no Miss Marple, but it makes me suspicious either way.

What the hell happened to this little girl in that house? I think LE knows, but they're really keeping things close to the vest on this one.

[Jimbone]

Someone in that picture did it.

[HairOfTheDog]

Someone in that picture did it.

Searched a bunch of reports from different media sources trying to find missing pieces about the family/home. No real answers, but some questions and clarifications.

1. The time line and sequence of events
Leila was pronounced dead at 1 p.m. at the hospital. She was attacked at least 45 minutes earlier, at least that's when the brother allegedly called the parents to tell them that an intruder was in the house.

From the Union Democrat paper (Northern California):
Leila was pronounced dead at 1:01 p.m. Saturday at Mark Twain Medical Center. She died of shock and hemorrhage due to multiple stab wounds.

Leila’s 12-year-old brother called their parents, who were at a baseball game nearby, to tell them someone was inside the home on the 5600 block of Rippon Road, according to the Sheriff’s Office. The parents phoned 911 dispatchers about 12:15 p.m.

The boy briefly pursued the intruder, who then fled the home, the Sheriff’s Office said.

When the brother went to check on Leila, who had been in a different room, he found she had been stabbed.

Lots of missing details in my mind:
-Brother heard no screams?
-What time did the brother call his parents?
-Did he/they know then that Leila was stabbed?
-Did parents call 911 from the baseball game and then rush home, or did they go home first and then call 911?
-Leila didn't die in the home but in the hospital?

2. The attack
A piece from the same paper yesterday noted that Leila had been stabbed 21 times. No source given and I hadn't heard that before or seen it anywhere else.

If it's true, the killer had to have been very bloody, running through a neighborhood in the middle of the day on a Saturday?

3. Where's Mom?
Krystal Walters (some media spelling it "Crystal") has been called Leila's mother in most reports and photos. I assumed she was the biological mother.

Gramps Fowler said his son lived with a fiancee. Several other media sources report that Leila lived with her dad and stepmother. All over the map.

Now I'm wondering if Krystal Walters is the live-in girlfriend/wife who is oft being called "Leila's mother". Somebody's missing in all of this; either the bio-mother or the dad's live-in/wife is totally off the radar.

Seems to me now that it's the bio mom who's not been heard from or seen because Krystal seems to be Barney Fowler's current live-in/spouse. If so, where's mom?
------------------------------------------------------

Really basic details missing from all reports. Weird.

[HairOfTheDog]

Finally. Bio-mom surfaces.



This article just released by CBS Local Sacramento.

VALLEY SPRINGS (CBS13) — Leila Fowler’s mother says she hasn’t accepted that her daughter is gone, and the fact her killer hasn’t been caught is only making it worse.

Eight-year-old Leila Fowler was stabbed to death by an intruder in her home on April 27. Services were held on Tuesday.

“No mother wants to bury her child,” said Priscilla Rodriquez.

Priscilla is mother not only to Leila, but to her 12-year-old brother. He’s the one who told investigators he saw a man running away the day of the killing, and then discovered Leila stabbed to death inside the home he shared with his sister and their father.

“I know my son has always been protective of his sister,” Priscilla said.

The hardest part is not knowing who took her daughter away and why.

“When I think of what she went through and what happened to her,” she said before tearing up.

Priscilla says a bitter custody battle drove a wedge between her and the children’s father. Now, she’s a mother in mourning, yearning for closure.

She knows an arrest won’t bring Leila back, but hopes the killer is locked up soon.

“I don’t understand how anyone could hurt a child, a defenseless little girl, in her room.”

[HairOfTheDog]

We just got a call from a friend in Sacramento; local news there has announced that Leila's 12 year old brother was arrested for homicide.

Will search and post an official announcement and more details shortly.

No surprise, but still maddening and heartbreaking.

ADD:

Here's the official confirmation:

Fowler's 12-year-old brother was arrested in connection to her death around 5:10 p.m., said Sheriff Gary Kuntz during a news conference at the sheriff's Valley Springs substation.

On April 27, Fowler died after being stabbed in her family's Valley Springs home. Her 12-year-old brother told investigators that a man broke into their home that afternoon. The boy also told detectives when he went to hide from the intruder in a different room, he found Fowler with severe injuries. Fowler was transported to the hospital where she later died.

Kuntz said the 12-year-old boy will be charged with homicide. He did not release details on what lead detectives to the boy as a suspect in Fowler's murder.

"During the past 15 days, we have conducted an expansive investigation," Kuntz said. "These types of cases require a considerable amount of time. It was our commitment to make sure that we did as thorough a job as possible."

More than 2,000 hours were put into the investigation. Detectives studied several knives to determine if one was used as a weapon in Fowler's death; the sheriff's department did not say from where investigators had recovered the knives but that the information would "come out eventually."


http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2013/05/1...er-murder/

[username]

Damn. While everything pointed to the 12 y/o, I wished it wasn't him.

[JsMom]

Damn, I was really hoping it wasn't the brother. Them poor parents. I bet they are beside theirselves over the arrest. Wow, just Wow! Although, I shouldn't be suprised but I am.

[Duchess]

The cops probably knew it was the brother almost immediately.

[JsMom]

The cops probably knew it was the brother almost immediately.

I kinda had a feeling by the picture of the brother and family upthread. That's when I really thought he might have done it. He couldn't even look; he had to cover his face.

[ramseycat]

How sad but I am not surprised. I too thought it was the brother. I would really like to head the whole story. What made this little boy kill?

[HairOfTheDog]

LE isn't releasing the name or photo of the brother at this time.

Justin Fowler, Leila's oldest brother, is the one with the Leila tattoo. He spoke at her vigil. He is not the alleged killer. The boy with his hands over his face in the picture upthread is not the alleged killer either (the 12 year old is not in that photo) . Aside from the parents and later the oldest brother, names and confirmation of family members pictured haven't been provided for media photos that I've seen.

I believe that the boy on the left end, next to the one in the cap, is the alleged killer. He hasn't been pictured much; looks kinda blank to me.



I'm curious as to whether he had help in trying to throw police off. Where did his bloody clothes go? Who asked the neighbor to lie and corroborate the brother's bogus intruder description? Where was the knife/knives found (house or reservoir)? Did the brother confess? Was there any sexual assault? WHY?

Since the alleged killer is a minor and, in my mind, it's possible that there might be other arrests forthcoming, those details may be slower to be released.

[JsMom]

Boy was I wrong.....

[HairOfTheDog]

Another pic:

He's cut off in this photo, but I understand that the one on the far left is the 12 year old brother (again, not confirmed).



P.s. The little girl in the pink is absolutely devastated. She was Leila's best friend and was interviewed at the vigil.

[HairOfTheDog]

Boy was I wrong.....:shamed:

Don't worry.

Blended family, names and ages not given in photo captions, and the 12 year old wasn't the focus of most pics. Understandable confusion.

[JsMom]

Gosh, I can't even imagine what these family members are feeling. They basically lost two children. I am wondering what drove him to kill, as well. Just when you think we've heard it all....WHAM! We are shocked once again.

[username]

Gosh, I can't even imagine what these family members are feeling. They basically lost two children. I am wondering what drove him to kill, as well. Just when you think we've heard it all....WHAM! We are shocked once again.

I wouldn't be surprised if some in the family knew and tried to help cover it up. The parents have seemingly been in a hurry to put this behind them since it happened.

[JsMom]

Gosh, I can't even imagine what these family members are feeling. They basically lost two children. I am wondering what drove him to kill, as well. Just when you think we've heard it all....WHAM! We are shocked once again.

I wouldn't be surprised if some in the family knew and tried to help cover it up. The parents have seemingly been in a hurry to put this behind them since it happened.

I wouldn't be suprised either.

[HairOfTheDog]

Gosh, I can't even imagine what these family members are feeling. They basically lost two children. I am wondering what drove him to kill, as well. Just when you think we've heard it all....WHAM! We are shocked once again.

I wouldn't be surprised if some in the family knew and tried to help cover it up. The parents have seemingly been in a hurry to put this behind them since it happened.

If the 12 year old is the killer, I don't believe that he orchestrated the cover up on his own either.

I believe that at least the parents and the neighbor knew from the get-go that there was no intruder. LE wasn't far behind.

IMO, LE appears to have done a very thorough and professional job in this case. If the brother is the killer and there is no verified confession, a defense attorney will have a hard time trying to sell the standard line, "the police only focused on the defendant and didn't pursue other possible theories/suspects" if this goes to trial.

[HairOfTheDog]

Because this crime is allegedly in-the-family and both the victim and the suspect are minors, just a quick reminder that this is still Lady Cop's Cell Block and her rules apply.

Lady Cop's Crime Forum Rules


thankyou for reading. and i really appreciate everyone who comments here. i have a few ethical standards by which i want to adhere.
don't name juveniles as suspects. NO PHOTOS OF CHILDREN OTHER THAN VICTIMS or those in MSM (mainstream media). don't post gossip/rumors as fact. don't accuse anyone not named by Law Enforcement. don't use facebook friends' names if they are not directly involved in a case. initials OK.
feel free to post your opinions. but mark them as opinions only.
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I've located some photos that I'd like to post because they lead me to believe that the 12 year old may have been off for some time. JMO. They have not been published by mainstream media, however, and therefore won't be posted. LC had good reasons for the rules that she established.

Any photos and names of minors related to the case that you find published by a media source are fair game. However, Facebook, personal blogs or other social media content don't qualify in relation to minors' images or identifications being posted here.

Please PM me if you're not sure whether something is okay or not. Thank you!

This is a tragic and intriguing case; really wanna hear everyone's opinions and theories. Please don't hold back, just remember the parameters.

ETA: Since the brother has been named as a suspect by LE, it's okay to speculate about his involvement/motive, etc... Same with the adults featured in MSM. Just don't use names or photos not published by mainstream media or LE.