Scared Monkeys Discussion Forum

Missing, Exploited and True Crime => Unsolved Crimes => Topic started by: texasmom on July 15, 2011, 09:13:12 AM



Title: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on July 15, 2011, 09:13:12 AM

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/14/rebecca-nalepa-found-hanging-jonah-shacknai-mansion_n_899435.html?icid=main%7Chtmlws-main-n%7Cdl1%7Csec3_lnk3%7C218988
      
Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai

By ELLIOT SPAGAT   07/14/11 07:11 PM ET    


SAN DIEGO -- A woman found dead at a historic mansion was nude and hanging from a balcony with her hands tied behind her back and her feet bound, investigators said Thursday.

Rebecca Nalepa, 32, was discovered at the Coronado home of her boyfriend, Jonah Shacknai, chairman and chief executive of Medicis Pharmaceuticals Corp., an Arizona company that makes acne and facial wrinkle treatments.

Investigators have not determined if Nalepa was a crime victim and have not ruled out suicide, said San Diego County sheriff's Capt. Tim Curran. He declined to comment on the evidence.

"This is a very bizarre death, there's no doubt about it," Curran said at a news conference. "There is roughly 200 years of experience in the sheriff's homicide unit, and they all agree these are very unusual circumstances."

Shacknai's brother, Adam, called 911 Wednesday to report the woman appeared to be dead, Curran said. The brother was staying in a mansion guesthouse. Jonah Shacknai was not at home.

Curran said sheriff's investigators have not established any connection between the woman's death and a serious injury at the home two days earlier to Jonah Shacknai's 6-year-old son with his ex-wife.

On Monday, paramedics found the boy was not breathing and did not have a pulse after falling down some stairs, said Coronado Police Chief Louis Scanlon.

The boy was being treated at Rady's Children's Hospital San Diego. Hospital spokesman Carlos Delgado declined to comment Thursday on his condition.

"At that time, and at this time, we have no information that would lead us to believe that this is anything other than a tragic accident with the child," Scanlon said.

 ::snipping2::
Edit to add "suicide" to subject line. MB


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MOMDET on July 15, 2011, 01:01:13 PM
Wowee Tex...thanks for sharing.  This sounds like something out of a movie.  Are there any articles on they little boy's accident?  How is he doing?  Keep us updated.  This sounds like it could be quite a mystery!   ::MonkeyEek::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: pharlap on July 16, 2011, 03:39:36 PM
http://www.wmctv.com/story/15091608/memphian-discovers-body-in-brothers-san-diego-mansion (http://www.wmctv.com/story/15091608/memphian-discovers-body-in-brothers-san-diego-mansion)

Not an update, but a news video...

Wonder what really happened... ::MonkeyShocked::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MOMDET on July 19, 2011, 01:15:05 PM
I am hoping more details will be released on this.  It appears to be to "coincidental" to me.  I am not a strong believer in "coincidences".  I hope the little boy is out of the coma.  Has anyone heard?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on July 19, 2011, 01:36:48 PM
I am hoping more details will be released on this.  It appears to be to "coincidental" to me.  I am not a strong believer in "coincidences".  I hope the little boy is out of the coma.  Has anyone heard?

Little Max died.   ::MonkeyNoNo::

http://abcnews.go.com/US/spreckels-mansion-death-boy-max-schacknai-dies/story?id=14097880
Spreckels Mansion Boy Max Shacknai, 6, Dies From Injuries
Millionaire Jonah Shacknai, already grieving for his girlfriend who was found hanged in his California mansion last week, has said that his young son has died from injuries suffered in the mansion.

Max Shacknai, 6, was injured at the historic Spreckels mansion in Coronado, Calif., last Monday. He was rushed to the hospital with serious injuries and his death was announced Sunday.


Two days after Max was injured, Jonah Shacknai's girlfriend Rebecca Zahau was found dead, hanging naked from a balcony at the mansion.

Police are investigating whether Zahau's death was a murder or a suicide. During a press conference last week San Diego Sheriff spokesman Tim Curran said the crime scene appeared "suspicious."

At the time they did not believe there was a connection between Zahau's death and Max's injuries.
 ::snipping2::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on July 19, 2011, 02:25:27 PM
http://www.kxan.com/dpps/news/national/west/arizona-ceos-son-girlfriend-die-within-a-week-nt11-jgr_3885404
CEO's son, girlfriend die within a week
Investigators decline to discuss evidence

July 19, 2011

CORONADO, Calif. (AP) — Residents of a wealthy San Diego suburb known for its safe streets, world-class beaches and small-town feel are shocked by two mysterious deaths within a week, both tied to a historic mansion.

The first came when Rebecca Zahau, the 32-year-old girlfriend of Arizona pharmaceuticals tycoon Jonah Shacknai was found dead Wednesday, her nude body hanging from balcony of his Coronado home, her wrists and ankles bound.

Two days earlier, Shacknai's son, Max, 6, who was being cared for by Zahau, fell down the stairs and was hospitalized. His parents said late Sunday that he died from his injuries.

Investigators say the son's death was an accident. They say Zahau's death is suspicious, but haven't ruled out suicide. Authorities repeated Monday they haven't established any link between the boy's fall and the woman's death.
 ::snipping2::
"Suicides can appear odd," San Diego County Sheriff's Sgt. Roy Frank said. "It's not unusual to have a suicide that appears to be something else."
 ::snipping2::
Zahau was at home with another woman, whom authorities won't identify, when Max fell down the stairs last Monday, Coronado Police Chief Louis Scanlon said. Paramedics found he wasn't breathing and did not have a pulse. He was treated at Rady Children's Hospital San Diego.

Scanlon called the boy's fall a "tragic accident."

Ted Greenberg, owner of Camp Diggity Dog, said Zahau called the Coronado kennel last Monday, shortly after the boy's fall, to ask that someone pick up her 14-month-old Weimaraner, Ocean. She said her child was hospitalized after an injury.

"She described it as her child," he said.

Greenberg went to the home Tuesday.

"She was crying on the phone on Monday and Tuesday she was quiet," he said.

Shacknai's brother, Adam, called 911 Wednesday to report that Zahau appeared to be dead, investigators said. The brother was staying in a mansion guesthouse. Jonah Shacknai was not at home.

On Sunday, Jonah Shacknai and his ex-wife, Dina, Max's mother, announced that their son had died from his injuries.
 ::snipping2::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: cookie on July 19, 2011, 02:54:47 PM
This is tragic!
In my opinion, there is not a woman in the world who would commit suicide in the nude!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: Shell on July 21, 2011, 12:31:53 AM


I wonder if Shacknai's brother, Adam, was living on the grounds of the mansion when the boy had his accident. Adam was the one who found the girlfriends body hanging...so he is my first person of interest. Just my first reaction. Tonight (I think) Dr. Drew is doing a segment on it.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on July 21, 2011, 11:46:06 AM
http://news.lalate.com/2011/07/20/rebecca-nalepa-has-police-secrecy-helped-the-investigation/
Rebecca Nalepa – Has Police Secrecy Helped The Investigation?
July 20, 2011


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on July 21, 2011, 11:50:55 AM
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/125764328.html
Forensics Key in Solving Mansion Mystery
July 19, 2011

Forensic evidence will be key in determining whether the death of a woman at a Coronado mansion was a suicide or a homicide.
 ::snipping2::
On Sunday, Shacknai announced his 6-year-old son Max died from injuries he sustained in a fall Monday at the same home.

Coronado police are investigating the child’s death. San Diego County sheriff’s investigators are investigating Zahau’s death. It has not been determined whether the two cases are related. Both departments are working to determine what may have happened in the days before the two deaths.
 ::snipping2::
Sheriff’s investigators are being extremely methodical in the investigation while going over evidence found in and around the home said Sgt. Roy Frank.

There are no suspects or persons of interest in the case that has yet to be classified as a suicide or homicide. Everyone who has been interviewed is considered a witness Frank said. Everyone has cooperated with detectives he said.

Jonah Shacknai’s brother Adam found Zahau’s nude body and called 911. She was hanging from a rope on a second-floor balcony with her hands tied behind her back and her feet bound deputies said.

Max Shacknai was not breathing after a fall down some stairs on July 11, said Coronado Police Chief Louis Scanlon.
 ::snipping2::
The family asked that any memorial contributions honoring Max be made to Whispering Hope Ranch Foundation either by mail to 9045 E. Pima Center Parkway, Scottsdale, AZ 85258, or via their website, www.whisperinghoperanch.org.

Source: Forensics Key in Solving Mansion Mystery | NBC San Diego





Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on July 21, 2011, 11:53:42 AM
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/07/team-of-15-detectives-probing-womans-death-at-coronado-mansion.html
Fifteen detectives probe woman's death at Coronado mansion
July 20, 2011

A team of 15 detectives is investigating the death of a woman at the Spreckels Mansion in Coronado but determining the cause could take weeks, sheriff's officials said Wednesday.

Detectives from the San Diego County Sheriff's, Coronado Police and the California Justice departments are investigating the circumstances around the death of Rebecca Nalepa, 32, the girlfriend of mansion owner Jonah Shacknai, a pharmaceutical industry executive.

Nalepa -- also known by her maiden name, Rebecca Zahau -- was found in the courtyard of the mansion on July 13. The Sheriff's Department has said it cannot yet conclude whether her death was suicide or a "criminal event."
 ::snipping2::

The homicide unit is waiting on results from forensic evidence and toxicology tests. A search warrant was served on the mansion but investigators declined to say what was found.
 ::snipping2::
Separately, the Coronado Police Department is investigating the death of 6-year-old Max Shacknai, the son of the owner. The boy fell down the stairs at the mansion on July 11 and was rushed to Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego, where he died July 17.

The Coronado police have tentatively labeled the boy's death accidental. Investigators have said they have found no connection between the two deaths.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on July 21, 2011, 11:57:43 AM
http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2011/07/jonah-shacknai-hires-pr-firm-as-police-probe-death-of-rebecca-na/
Jonah Shacknai Hires PR Firm as Police Probe Death of Rebecca Nalepa
July 21, 2011

While two deaths at his Coronado, Ca., mansion are still under investigation, Jonah Shacknai has hired a high-profile public relations agency, reports say.

Shacknai hired Sitrick and Company, a powerful PR firm out of L.A.

His six-year-old son Max suffered a fatal fall down the stairs last week, just two days before Jonah's girlfriend Rebecca Nalepa was found dead.

Coronado police have ruled the boy's death a tragic accident. The death of Rebecca Nalepa, also known as Rebecca Zahau, is a bigger mystery.
 ::snipping2::
An executive at Shacknai's company, Sitrick, said the pharmaceutical CEO hired them to help him as he grieves and takes care of two funerals.
(Video at link)




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on July 21, 2011, 05:20:36 PM
http://tinyurl.com/3nubbvc
Sister of Woman Found Dead Inside CEO's California Mansion Claims It Was Not Suicide
July 21, 2011
FoxNews.com

 
 ::snipping2::
Police are probing the death of Rebecca Zahau, who was found July 13 hanging by her neck -- naked with her hands and feet bound -- from a balcony inside the Coronado mansion of Jonah Shacknai, chairman and chief executive of the Medicis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
 ::snipping2::
Mary Zahau-Loehner, the woman's sister, said in statement to KFMB-TV in San Diego that she does not believe her sister took her own life.

"Obviously, the investigation is not complete yet, but as far as what I know about my sister, my sister did not commit a suicide," Zahau-Loehner reportedly said in the statement. "My sister was not depressed, my sister was not frantic, my sister was planning to call my parents the next day and was planning to keep me posted about Max the next day."

Police have called Zahau's death "bizarre," and say they're investigating whether it was a suicide or a homicide. They're also working to establish a connection between her death and Shacknai's 6-year-old son.

The San Diego Sheriff's Department said Tuesday that it is looking into the "possibility other people may have been staying inside the house" the night before Zahau died.

The department also said autopsy records, as well as a search-warrant affidavit, will remain sealed during the course of the death investigation.
 ::snipping2::
Shacknai's brother, Adam, who was staying in the mansion guesthouse at the time, found Zahau's body in the early morning on July 13 and called 911. He reportedly cut the rope in an attempt to save her. His brother, Jonah, was not at home, according to reports.
Zahau and a 13-year-old girl, whose name has not been released, were with Max Shacknai when he fell down the stairs two days earlier in what authorities have called a "tragic accident," according to Fox5SanDeigo.com.

The child was not breathing and did not have a pulse when paramedics found him and took him to Rady Children's Hospital, where he died six days later.
 ::snipping2::








Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: Nut44x4 on July 22, 2011, 08:39:40 AM
I have been following this. Too strange..... ::MonkeyEek::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: cookie on July 22, 2011, 10:46:31 AM
very strange indeed


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MOMDET on August 08, 2011, 12:42:44 PM
Anyone heard anything?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: cookie on August 08, 2011, 05:14:51 PM
not a word Monken...not a word..very strange


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on August 08, 2011, 05:29:51 PM
http://www.10news.com/news/28689113/detail.html
Forensic Expert Discusses Coronado Death Investigation
Dr. Werner Spitz Served As Expert Witness In OJ Simpson, Phil Spector, Casey Anthony Trials

July 27, 2011




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on August 08, 2011, 05:32:48 PM
http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/national/report%3A-autopsies-completed-but-without-answers-in-%27mansion-mystery%27-deaths
Report: Autopsies completed but without answers in 'mansion mystery' deaths
July 27, 2011

Video at Link


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: cookie on August 08, 2011, 05:33:55 PM
thanks Muffy...


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MOMDET on August 10, 2011, 12:19:25 PM
Yes, Thanks Muffy ...this one really has my curiousity going! ::MonkeyEek::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on August 10, 2011, 02:40:03 PM
http://www.cbs8.com/story/15235335/jonah-shacknai-speaks-out-about-deaths-at-coronado-mansion
Jonah Shacknai speaks out about deaths at Coronado mansion
August 9, 2011

SAN DIEGO (CBS 8 ) - The boyfriend of a woman found dead inside a Coronado mansion is speaking about the tragedy.  ::snipping2::
Video at Link


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MOMDET on August 22, 2011, 12:15:11 PM
Why aren't we hearing anything more on this case?  Is this just another case of money can hide sins of the rich?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: Nut44x4 on August 23, 2011, 10:22:25 AM
Good question!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on September 01, 2011, 04:05:39 PM
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/09/01/investigation-results-into-death-at-ceos-calif-mansion-to-be-released-friday/
Police to Release Results of Investigation Into Girlf's Death at CEO's California Mansion
September 1, 2011

The results of an investigation into the mysterious hanging death of a pharmaceutical CEO’s girlfriend at his Southern California mansion will be released on Friday, the San Diego Sheriff’s Department said Thursday in a written statement.

Until then question remains: Was it a suicide or homicide?
 ::snipping2::
Police have called Zahau's death "bizarre" and said they're investigating whether it was a suicide or a homicide.
 ::snipping2::
The sheriff will be joined at a news conference Friday by the county’s medical examiner and other police officials.






Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on September 01, 2011, 11:01:19 PM
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/09/01/national/main20100761.shtml
Sister: Mansion death ruled suicide
September 1, 2011

(AP)

SAN DIEGO - Investigators have ruled that a woman who was found hanging naked from a second-floor at a balcony at a historic mansion with her wrists and ankles bound committed suicide, the woman's sister said Thursday.

Mary Zahau-Loehner said she found investigators unconvincing during a visit to her home Wednesday in St. Joseph, Mo., to break the news.

"It doesn't add up," she told The Associated Press. "Nothing adds up."

San Diego County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Jan Caldwell declined to comment. Sheriff Bill Gore planned a news conference Friday to discuss investigators' findings.
 ::snipping2::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on September 02, 2011, 08:52:36 AM
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/09/spreckels-mansion-suicide.html
Spreckels mansion death was a suicide, investigators conclude
September 2, 2011

Investigators have concluded that Rebecca Zahau, the girlfriend of pharmaceutical executive Jonah Shacknai, committed suicide at his Coronado mansion, according to Zahau's sister, who was briefed by San Diego County Sheriff's Department detectives.

Mary Zahau-Loehner, in emails and interviews, told reporters Thursday night that the family does not believe Zahau took her own life.

But San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore, backed by detectives and the medical examiner, plans a news conference Friday morning to explain how forensic evidence and interviews with people who talked to Zahau in the days before her death led to the overwhelming conclusion that she committed suicide and was not the victim of foul play.
 ::snipping2::
Zahau’s nude body was found in the courtyard of the historic Spreckels mansion on the morning of July 13. Her hands and feet had been tied, a noose was around her neck, a rope was tied to a second-story balcony.

She had apparently jumped off a small table in the courtyard. Her lifeless body was found by Shacknai's brother, Adam, a guest at the mansion.

Almost immediately, a media-fanned “mystery” suggested that the 32-year-old Zahau  may have been murdered.

But investigators said that it is not unknown for suicide victims to tie their hands and feet to avoid having “second thoughts.” The Sheriff's Department delayed making its determination until forensic tests were completed and interviews done to assess Zahau's mental state; Shacknai, his brother, and his ex-wife were interviewed.
 ::snipping2::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: Nut44x4 on September 02, 2011, 11:03:03 AM
Thanks Muffy.........I was reading about this today

Coronado Mansion Death Ruled a Suicide, Family Calls it Murder
Officials have ruled the death of Rebecca Zahau, the girlfriend of San Diego billionaire Jonah Shacknai, as a suicide, but family members say they believe she was murdered and they have an inkling who did it.
snipped
http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/207719/20110902/coronado-mansion-rebecca-zahau-jonah-shacknai-death-ruled-a-suicide-family-calls-it-murder.htm


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on September 02, 2011, 12:09:37 PM
http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/
CORONADO DEATH INVESTIGATION    

NEWS ROOM

 News Release
   
Any news releases concerning the Coronado death investigation will be posted on this page. When a news conference is scheduled, details will be found here and distributed pursuant to normal distribution practices.

September 1, 2011
http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/0901.pdf
Coronado Death Investigations
Media Briefing
The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department will hold a media briefing about
the death investigations in Coronado on Friday, September 2nd at 11:00 a.m. The
briefing will be held in Training Rooms 1 through 4 of the Sheriff’s Department
Main Office at 9621 Ridgehaven Court, San Diego, CA 92123.
Sheriff Bill Gore will lead a panel of experts from the Sheriff’s Homicide
Detail, Sheriff’s Crime Lab, County Medical Examiner’s Office, and Coronado
Police Department to discuss the findings on the deaths of Rebecca Zahau and
Max Shacknai. There will be a Q and A portion after the media briefing.
Media packets will not be distributed during the briefing. Power Point
presentations, photos, video and graphics presented at the briefing will be posted
on www.sdsheriff.net/coronado. Information that does not come from this web
page, the Sheriff’s Department or Coronado Police Department should not be
relied upon.
Only national media with current, valid credentials and local media with
media badges from SDPD will be allowed into the briefing. Given the facility
limitations, the Sheriff’s Department reserves the right to refuse entry in order to
ensure the broadest dissemination of information. The media briefing will start
promptly at 11:00 a.m. Latecomers will not be admitted.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on September 02, 2011, 12:11:20 PM


http://twitter.com/#!/sdsheriff (http://twitter.com/#!/sdsheriff)

SDSheriff San Diego Sheriff
Media Briefing on the Coronado Death Investigations on FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 2ND AT 11:00 A.M. Visit bit.ly/nw7UHk (http://bit.ly/nw7UHk) for more information.
1 Sep


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound At Historic Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai
Post by: MuffyBee on September 02, 2011, 03:02:18 PM
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/09/spreckels-mansion-sheriff.html
Spreckels mansion death was a suicide, San Diego sheriff says
September 2, 2011

Rebecca Zahau, the girlfriend of pharmaceutical executive Jonah Shacknai, committed suicide at his Coronado mansion and her death was not the result of a criminal act, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore said at a news conference Friday.

Investigators based their conclusion in part on forensic evidence.

The evidence is "compelling" and points "persuasively" to suicide, Gore said.
 ::snipping2::
Gore, backed by detectives and the medical examiner, explained how forensic evidence and interviews with people who talked to Zahau in the days before her death led to the overwhelming conclusion that she committed suicide and was not the victim of foul play.

Zahau may have been despondent over a sense of responsibility for the injury suffered by Shacknai's 6-year-old son Max during a time when Zahau was supposed to be watching him, authorities said. The boy's death was ruled an accident.

Zahau’s nude body was found in the courtyard of the historic Spreckels mansion on the morning of July 13. Her hands and feet had been tied, and a noose was around her neck and tied to a second-story balcony.

She had apparently jumped off a small table in the courtyard. Her lifeless body was found by Shacknai's brother, Adam, a guest at the mansion.

Almost immediately, a media-fanned “mystery” suggested that the 32-year-old Zahau  may have been murdered.

But investigators said that it is not unknown for suicide victims to tie their hands and feet to avoid having second thoughts about dying.

The Sheriff's Department delayed making its determination until forensic tests were completed and interviews done to assess Zahau's mental state. Shacknai, his brother and his ex-wife were interviewed.
 ::snipping2::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on September 02, 2011, 03:07:21 PM
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/sep/02/coronado-mansion-death-ruled-suicide/
Live coverage: Coronado mansion death ruled suicide
September 2, 2011

SAN DIEGO — The shocking hanging death of Rebecca Zahau, the girlfriend of Arizona pharmaceutical tycoon Jonah Shacknai, has been ruled a suicide, authorities announced Friday.

After a seven-week investigation, authorities concluded that Zahau, 32, bound her own hands and feet and hung herself naked off a second-floor balcony of Shacknai’s Coronado mansion, said Sheriff Bill Gore.


The finding that Zahau was not the victim of a homicide was backed up by the results of extensive tests by the sheriff’s crime lab and the Medical Examiner’s Office, Gore said.

The announcement was made during a packed media briefing at the sheriff’s headquarters in Kearny Mesa, where a panel of law enforcement and forensic experts provided details into the mystery that has riveted the public and sparked widespread speculation.

Zahau’s family has been adamant in their belief that she did not commit suicide. They have hired high-profile attorney Anne Brenmer of Seattle and have already asked the Sheriff’s Department for further investigation.
 ::snipping2::
Authorities on Friday also confirmed that the death of Shacknai’s 6-year-old son, Max, was an accidental fall.
 ::snipping2::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on September 03, 2011, 08:50:02 AM
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/09/02/MNQR1KVKL9.DTL
Jonah Shacknai girlfriend's death ruled suicide
September 3,

Rebecca Zahau, the girlfriend of pharmaceutical executive Jonah Shacknai who committed suicide at his California mansion, was distraught over injuries his son suffered in her care - which led to his death - and that is apparently why she decided to hang herself, authorities said Friday.
 ::snipping2::
Although how she killed herself may have been unusual, there is no evidence that it was foul play, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore said at a Friday news conference.

Her fingerprints and DNA were the only ones found on the rope as well as the knife she used to cut it into pieces and place sections around her feet, hands and around her neck, Gore and other authorities said. Investigators also conducted an experiment with a woman of similar size to see if she could tie herself up in the same way with the same knots, and they concluded that she could, authorities said.
 ::snipping2::







Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on September 03, 2011, 08:57:39 AM
http://www.760kfmb.com/story/15388199/autopsy-rebecca-zahau-found-gagged-with-t-shirt-in-mouth
Autopsy: Rebecca Zahau found dead with T-shirt in mouth
Posted September 2, 2011, Updated September 3, 2011


CORONADO, Calif. (CBS8) -- Explosive new details contained in an autopsy report suggest Rebecca Zahau was not only found naked, bound and hanging at the historic Spreckels mansion in Coronado; but she was also gagged with a T-shirt wrapped around her mouth and neck.

"She had a reddish-orange rope ligature around her neck and a blue piece of fabric, possibly a shirt, around the neck outside of the ligature. A portion of this shirt was reportedly originally in the decedent's mouth," Deputy Medical Examiner Jonathan Lucas wrote in the autopsy report obtained by News 8.

The new revelations came just hours after the Medical Examiner and the San Diego Sheriff's department ruled the woman's death a suicide.
 ::snipping2::
During a 90-minute news conference Friday, San Diego Sheriff William Gore said Zahau was distraught that her boyfriend's 6-year-old son, Max Shacknai, was gravely injured in a fall down the stairs July 11. The boy died July 16, days after Zahau's hanging.

Investigators said nobody witnessed the fall but the boy's autopsy report revealed new information about the possible cause of that incident.

"Rebecca was in the restroom (and) she heard a loud crash. She found Max unresponsive on the floor beneath the banister," the report said. "She heard Max say the dog's name ‘Ocean' and (Max) then became unresponsive."

"A ‘Razor' type scooter was lying across his right shin," the report continued. "(Max) had been told in the past not to ride his scooter in the hallway."

Max was rushed to the hospital and "a pulse was regained after approximately 25 – 30 minutes," the report said.
 ::snipping2::
Two days later, on the morning of her death, phone records showed Zahau retrieved a voicemail at 12:50 a.m. that Max's condition had worsened and that he was unlikely to survive, investigators said.

The autopsy and investigation concluded Zahau bound her own hands and feet, before looping the rope around her neck and rolling off the balcony.

"The relatively well-preserved bare footprints on the balcony and the lack of signs of a struggle or other footprints on the balcony indicate that she went over the balcony on her own," Deputy Medical Examiner Lucas wrote.

Medical Examiner Investigator Dana Gary also described a message found painted on a door inside the house.

"I noted black painted writings on the bedroom door that led into the room with the balcony," Gary wrote. "The writing ‘She Saved Him Can You Save Her' in black paint was on the hallway side of the bedroom door," the report said.

The autopsy report does not explain why Zahau may have fashioned the T-shirt to gag herself. Investigators did not mention the gag during their media briefing Friday. However, the report does describe in great detail how the T-shirt was wrapped:

"There is a light blue or turquoise long sleeve T-shirt also around the neck on top of/outside of the rope. It was fashioned by tying the two ends of the long sleeves together near the cuffs in a double knot. The sleeves are wrapped three times around the neck with the abdominal and lower chest portion of the shirt extending from the anterior aspect of the ligature. The end of this has a small amount of what appears to be dried secretions."


Zahau's family said Friday they do not believe the suicide conclusion of the autopsy.
The family has hired high-profile Seattle-based attorney Anne Bremner to represent them. Bremner told News 8 she plans to formally request the Sheriff's Department re-open Zahau's death investigation.
 ::snipping2::

(Video at Link)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on September 03, 2011, 09:01:58 AM
http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/09/02/california.mansion.deaths/
Sheriff: 2 deaths at California mansion not crimes
September 2, 2011

CNN) -- Police announced Friday that there is no indication of foul play in the deaths, within days of one another, of a 6-year-old boy and his father's girlfriend at the same southern California mansion.

Introducing a detailed presentation involving multiple officials, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore said a team of investigators has been working intently for weeks to probe the sudden deaths of Max Shacknai and Rebecca Zahau, who was dating the boy's father, Jonah Shacknai, and lived in the same house.

"Our responsibility is to answer the one very important question: Were these deaths the result of criminal conduct?" Gore told reporters. "Was Max's death a homicide? The answer is no, it was a tragic accident. Was Rebecca's death a homicide? Again, the answer is no. It was a suicide."
 ::snipping2::
The autopsy concluded Zahau was "alive when she went over the (second-floor) balcony" with a long-sleeve T-shirt wrapped around her neck, Lucas said. He told reporters Friday there was no evidence of a struggle or a sexual assault, or that she was in any way rendered unconscious or incapacitated, adding that "her feet were dirty consistent with standing on the dirty balcony."

Sgt. Dave Nemeth, also with the sheriff's office, told reporters Friday that the fingerprints and DNA in the room from which she fell -- including on the bindings tied around her hands, feet and neck -- "were only from Rebecca."

He added that one witness told police that Zahau, when they met in January, had "lost weight, seemed stressed, was not sleeping well and was not exercising, which was abnormal for her." Other witnesses indicated that "Rebecca was distraught over Max's injury."

"The (investigative findings) are all compelling, and all point persuasively to a single conclusion: These deaths are not the result of any criminal acts," Gore said. "Science is our best witness in this case. Science is not biased, nor does it lie."

But Bremner, the lawyer for Zahau's family, criticized the investigation -- including the use and analysis of forensic and other evidence -- as incomplete, saying it appears "they were myopic, looking at this (as if it) has to be a suicide." She said that one of Zahau's sisters, who talked to her the night before her death, said Zahau "was completely fine" and didn't feel guilty about Max Shacknai's death.

"This investigation is woefully inadequate right now for the family," Bremner told HLN, adding that investigators did not meet with anyone in Zahau's family until two days ago.
 ::snipping2::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on September 06, 2011, 11:34:11 AM
Anne Bremner .... cool


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: KittyMom on September 06, 2011, 12:32:51 PM
I can see how the woman may've been overcome with guilt and killed herself.  Can you imagine finding your SO's young child like that when you were the caregiver?  It would eat me up.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cadillac on September 06, 2011, 03:34:56 PM
It seems that somewhere on the property are surveillance cameras?  Like outside to review comings or goings, and possibly inside to monitor movement?  Such a prestigious address, and proprietor, it would be interesting for me to know this?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Babybear on September 06, 2011, 08:40:07 PM
Money talks.

I do not believe this woman committed suicide. 

Another thing which really bothers me.  Shaknai's brother just cut her down and let her drop to the lawn below.  That seems so inhumane to me.  Shouldn't he have lifted her up to the balcony?  There is something very, very wrong here.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cookie on September 06, 2011, 09:15:42 PM
I don't think that this was a suicide..
this woman may have felt very guilty over the little boy's death..but I just think that she would have picked a different way of killing herself..Do very many women hang themselves?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 06, 2011, 09:33:28 PM
Just listend to JVM and NG -

Man - this woman, Rebecca, had 4 hemorrages at the top of her head.  No way that happened by suicide.

There IS a problem here that is being covered up, IMO.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 06, 2011, 09:35:43 PM
Money talks.

I do not believe this woman committed suicide. 

Another thing which really bothers me.  Shaknai's brother just cut her down and let her drop to the lawn below.  That seems so inhumane to me.  Shouldn't he have lifted her up to the balcony?  There is something very, very wrong here.


How or why did the brother find her - the picture of the front of the house shows no balcony - so did he walk outside in the middle of the night and see the body hanging there?  If he was in the bedroom and walked out onto the balcony, then surely his shoeprints would have been on what was called a "dusty" balcony.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 06, 2011, 09:44:05 PM
So much of this makes no sense...I don't believe she gagged herself - maybe someone gagged her to keep her quiet if they were going to hit her on the head.  Someone was close to her - close enough to surprise her with the gagging.

Someone hit her on the head 4 times....no matter how you look at it - you can't hit yourself in the head 4 times while going over a balcony.

The balcony - said to be "dusty" - a few "toe" prints - how does a person with their legs bound get from the bedroom to the balcony and over the balcony without more than a few toe prints?

"What" was the uncle, the father's brother, doing at the home in the wee hours of the morning?  We heard that the body was discovered in the early morning hours.  She was called at 12:15 a.m. and told the boy was not going to make it (words to that effect) and was found in the early morning hours - determined to be dead 3-4 hours when found by the uncle.

Uncle, father and bio mother had dinner together the evening before.

So, the father was at the hospital when the body was discovered.

Where was the father when the body was killed, hours before?

Where was the brother then?
Where was the bio mom then?




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 06, 2011, 11:20:25 PM
WARNING - potentially disturbing photos to some - crime scene photos - body on ground (not "clear" pictures - but somewhat graphic) and picture of rope tied to bed and the paint brush used with black paint on it (on TV tonight I saw a slightly different picture that included a small tube with black paint in it) and a picture of the back of the house where the balcony is.

http://celebritydaily.net/tv/snowem-horwath-and-mary-zahau-loehner-are-rebecca-nalepas-sisters/



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 06, 2011, 11:28:43 PM
Seems Shacknai's ex-wife had problems with him:

http://crimesceneusa.blogspot.com/2011/07/rebecca-nalepas-boyfriend-set-dog-on.html

REBECCA NALEPA'S BOYFRIEND SET DOG ON HIS EX-WIFE


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 06, 2011, 11:45:31 PM
Scroll down to: Maxfield Aaron Shacknai

http://www.sdcounty.ca.gov/me/press/press.html


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 12:05:38 AM
According to JVM and NG shows tonight - the family says that Rebecca didn't know about "sailor's knots".

If that's the case - would she be able to tie those knots and measuring lengths from the bed to balcony to rail, etc., and fixing the loops for adsustment?  Could any person just get that lucky without some knowledge of what they're doing?

If you didn't know about knots and how to tie properly, wouldn't the chances be greater that you would just make one big tangle of knots - especially if one is so distraught as to be committing suicide?

Look at the picture of the knot on the bedpost (link in post above that begins with WARNING)...I know I couldn't tie a knot like that - look how neat it is.  Looks to me like it's a knot tied by someone who "knows how" to tie sophisticated knots.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 12:19:41 AM

A timeline of events: 

http://www.bnet.com/blog/drug-business/shacknai-mansion-death-suicide-finding-wont-end-the-drama/9556


(snip)
Wednesday July 13, 12.05 a.m.: Rebecca calls her voicemail and listens to a message that says Max is likely to die imminently.
 6.45 a.m.: Shacknai’s brother, Adam, discovers Nalepa hanging naked from an outdoor balcony by her neck, with her hands and feet bound in orange cord. He calls 911. No suicide note is found. Adam and Nalepa are the only people on the property at the time, police said. Adam is currently not considered a suspect. Later, Jonah’s ex-wife Dina Shacknai is reported to be “a witness in Zahau’s death.”
(snip)

BBM above - what?  what does it mean that Jonah's ex-wife is reported to be "a witness in Zahau's death"???




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 12:37:30 AM
Four hemorrhages on the underside of the scalp, tape residue on the legs, gagging with a blue shirt - something bad wrong here:


Pathologist:Zahau’s head injuries unexplained by hanging scenario


http://www.cbs8.com/story/15388199/autopsy-rebecca-zahau-found-gagged-with-t-shirt-in-mouth


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 12:53:47 AM
Some interesting information in this article.  I noted July 24 and August 12.


Who is Jonah Shaknai? Who Killed Rebecca Nalepa-Zahau?Update: Police said it was suicide!


http://kims3003.hubpages.com/hub/Who-is-Jonah-Shaknai-Who-Killed-Rebecca-Nalepa-Zahau




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 01:30:39 AM
Detailed report on suicide findings in death of Rebecca Zahau


Click on the Slideshow where the picture of a blue figure is falling off the stairs for crime scene photos


Scroll down to the bottom for an interview with Ann Bremner: Interview with Anne Bremner - Zahau family attorney debunks suicide findings


http://www.examiner.com/news-analysis-in-national/detailed-report-on-suicide-findings-death-of-rebecca-zahau







Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 01:46:23 AM
Link to video:  http://www.examiner.com/news-analysis-in-national/coronado-death-now-ruled-suicide-video


Two things stand out to me - LE shows a woman perfoming how Rebecca could have tied the rope around her hands, but to me the rope the girl is using is much more soft and pliable than the red rope in the video tied around the bed and the balcony looks.  Also, the picture of the rope over the balcony doesn't look like it's hanging low enough for the brother to have gotten up on a table and cut it off - in other words - the end of the rope looks to be "too high off the ground".


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Babybear on September 07, 2011, 11:14:30 AM
Good morning Monkey,

Last night Dr. Drew Pinsky repeatedly referred to someone as a "Tug boat captain."
I was busy with other things, but I think he was referring to Max Shancknai's brother, the one who thoughtlessy cut Ms. Zahau down and let her drop to the ground.  Did anyone else hear this? I can't understand why anyone would bind their own wrists with about a zillion loops of a rope rather than one or two.  When one is trying to prove something, a person with an agenda would use this "Overkill," as I believe LE did in this case.

Anyway, the knots look to me as if they were tied by a person familiar with boats and knots, such as maybe a tugboat captain, certainly not a beautiful young slip of a girl. 
I do not usually entertain unproven conspiracy theories, but this looks to me like a hot potato the police and trying to get off their hands, rather than call it a murder, which is what it seems to be by the evidence as we know it.

And the head injuries--four of them as she hanged herself?  With no apparent obstacle on which to hit her head?  Even the Medical Examiner said they were not consistent with a suicide.  It's true that science doesn't lie, but I see a significant lack of scientific evidence of a suicide here.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on September 07, 2011, 11:36:37 AM
ITA......super fishy to me.

Autopsy report reveals new details in Coronado mansion death

Authorities stand by suicide ruling

The autopsy report for Rebecca Zahau revealed the unexplained presence of possible tape residue on her legs and that a shirt sleeve was stuffed into her mouth when her body was found.
snipped

According to the autopsy report, a piece of gray material and sticky residue, possibly tape residue, were found on Zahau’s lower legs.

The Medical Examiner’s Office issued a statement Tuesday saying the significance of the tape is unclear, although its position and small size of about an inch would have been unusual for evidence of leg binding.

The report also states that when Shacknai’s brother, Adam, discovered her body, he removed a piece of a long-sleeved T-shirt from her mouth. The light blue shirt had been wrapped around her neck under the rope.

Dr. Jonathan Lucas, deputy medical examiner, said it was not clear why the shirt was in her mouth, although it is not unusual in suicides.

Investigators said there was no sign of a struggle, either on Zahau’s body or at the scene, and that there was no evidence of her being drugged or sedated. According to the autopsy report, bruises were found on the right side of her scalp, and some small abrasions were on her forehead. Lucas said Tuesday that the wounds were “relatively minor” and possibly came from her striking her head as she fell from the balcony.

snipped
Investigators said all evidence points toward the following scenario: Zahau tied a piece of water skiing rope to a bed leg, tied her ankles, put the shirt and rope around her neck and tied her hands behind her back. She then shuffled to the balcony railing and leaned over until she fell.  :roll:

snipped
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/sep/06/autopsy-report-reveals-new-details-coronado-mansio/
anyway.....there is much more at the link


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: tcumom on September 07, 2011, 12:48:06 PM
The brother is the tugboat captain . . . interesting.  Wonder if his trip was planned or last minute.

If no other fingerprints were found on the rope, then how did the brother (Adam, I think is the name) cut her down?

Can't believe this site isn't blocked (yet!) . . . I'm at school shoveling in my lunch, and thought I'd give the monkeys a try ~ our district blocks *everything* .  sigh.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 01:40:28 PM
San Diego Sheriff's Department Attempts To Explain Rebecca Zahau’s Stunning Autopsy Report

http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/rebecca-zahau-autopsy-report-explained-san-diego-sheriffs-department



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 01:57:18 PM
Yes, this is very fishy circumstances.

I read somewhere that San Diego LE is not experienced in "murder" cases.  If not, the public is going to give them a very, very hard time because this case is not going away.

LE needs to explain how Rebecca had 4 hemorrahges on her head, where the blood came from on her legs, the tape residue that brings up the thought that her legs were taped before she was tied up.

No fingerprints on anything simply implies that someone else could have worn gloves or the prints were smudged.  Footprints on the dusty balcony could have been there from some "other" time of having stepped out onto the balcony.  Those type balconies are small and IMO a person could have bound Rebecca and carried her to the balcony, leaned out of the bedroom door and put her onto the railing and shoved her off.  The police reports say she did not fall straight down and IMO the footprints are too clear for someone who was bound to have hopped onto the balcony and maneuvered over to the edge of the balcony in order to go over it.

There are elements of rage in his death.  This woman was humiliated in death.  Nude, in the open, blood between her legs, hit on the head mulitple times, tied up, gagged and that cryptic note on the door - she didn't write that note - someone filled with rage "expressed" themself by painting on the door.   

The "knots", which her family says she did not know about, and the rope, which the homeowner said he wasn't even sure if there was any rope on the shelves anywhere in the house, all sound like someone who knows how to tie knots and would have access to that kind of rope would have used.  In the pictures, the rope looks like it's manufactured with "slips" in it.

Another thing that bothers me - look at the pictures of the balcony with the rope hanging off and of Rebecca on the ground.  She has her legs bent and they aren't laying together - they're apart a little bit.....looks like (pardon my language) she's in rigor a little bit, else the legs would lay down together - automatically - and if that's the case, then she would have had to be in a position like that for a while - almost like she had been sitting in a chair - legs bent and apart.   It's wierd and notable.
 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Babybear on September 07, 2011, 02:02:54 PM
The brother is the tugboat captain . . . interesting.  Wonder if his trip was planned or last minute.

If no other fingerprints were found on the rope, then how did the brother (Adam, I think is the name) cut her down?

Can't believe this site isn't blocked (yet!) . . . I'm at school shoveling in my lunch, and thought I'd give the monkeys a try ~ our district blocks *everything* .  sigh.

tcumom--About the lack of fingerprints on the rope--That's a very good point.  Hope they don't block you from us.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Babybear on September 07, 2011, 02:19:18 PM
Yes, this is very fishy circumstances.

I read somewhere that San Diego LE is not experienced in "murder" cases.  If not, the public is going to give them a very, very hard time because this case is not going away.

LE needs to explain how Rebecca had 4 hemorrahges on her head, where the blood came from on her legs, the tape residue that brings up the thought that her legs were taped before she was tied up.

No fingerprints on anything simply implies that someone else could have worn gloves or the prints were smudged.  Footprints on the dusty balcony could have been there from some "other" time of having stepped out onto the balcony.  Those type balconies are small and IMO a person could have bound Rebecca and carried her to the balcony, leaned out of the bedroom door and put her onto the railing and shoved her off.  The police reports say she did not fall straight down and IMO the footprints are too clear for someone who was bound to have hopped onto the balcony and maneuvered over to the edge of the balcony in order to go over it.

There are elements of rage in his death.  This woman was humiliated in death.  Nude, in the open, blood between her legs, hit on the head mulitple times, tied up, gagged and that cryptic note on the door - she didn't write that note - someone filled with rage "expressed" themself by painting on the door.   

The "knots", which her family says she did not know about, and the rope, which the homeowner said he wasn't even sure if there was any rope on the shelves anywhere in the house, all sound like someone who knows how to tie knots and would have access to that kind of rope would have used.  In the pictures, the rope looks like it's manufactured with "slips" in it.

Another thing that bothers me - look at the pictures of the balcony with the rope hanging off and of Rebecca on the ground.  She has her legs bent and they aren't laying together - they're apart a little bit.....looks like (pardon my language) she's in rigor a little bit, else the legs would lay down together - automatically - and if that's the case, then she would have had to be in a position like that for a while - almost like she had been sitting in a chair - legs bent and apart.   It's wierd and notable.
 

Puzzler, I noticed the position of her legs too.  It occured to me that if she were hanging by the neck when she died, her legs would be straight down and would have stayed in that position had she been dead long enough for rigor mortis.  I guess everybody loved little Max and the fact that his accident occured when Ms. Zahau was watching him, must have been a bitter pill to swallow for some.  I'm not accusing anyone, but it is quite clear that this case has been hushed up by LE for some reason and that their judgement that she committed suicide is not substantially supported by the evidence, IMO. You are right.  I will go further and say this woman was sitting in a chair when she died and she remained there for some time after her death.

I lived in a small town once where the local librarian was found dead in her home with a telephone cord wrapped around her neck.  It was called a suicide, but that method of suicide seemed impossible.  I think if she were holding the telephone cord, it would be released as she lost consciousness and she would not have died.  But no one ever challenged LE.  This seems similar to me.   


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Babybear on September 07, 2011, 02:23:23 PM
And further, I thought her legs were tied together.  That's what the cops say.  What about if her legs were taped to the legs of a chair when she died and that accounts for the position.  Maybe someone straightened them and tied them together before they threw her over the balcony, but they sprang back into that position when the bindings holding her legs together were loosened.  Anyway, Unless Adam released her legs, how is it she fell to the ground in that position.  Fishy, fishy, fishy.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Babybear on September 07, 2011, 04:53:38 PM
And further, I thought her legs were tied together.  That's what the cops say.  What about if her legs were taped to the legs of a chair when she died and that accounts for the position.  Maybe someone straightened them and tied them together before they threw her over the balcony, but they sprang back into that position when the bindings holding her legs together were loosened.  Anyway, Unless Adam released her legs, how is it she fell to the ground in that position.  Fishy, fishy, fishy.

 I took another look at the photos and her ankles are still tied together on the ground.  I had thought that the orange rope was part of the orange drawing pen that someone had used, probably LE, on the pic.  Still, I think if she died by hanging her legs would have been straight down and not in a sitting position.  I do think she died while sitting, with her arms tied behind her.  There was residue of some kind of tape on her legs, but according to the coroner, not on the legs where they would have been tied together. I wonder if it was in a position where her legs could have been taped to a chair.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 05:01:19 PM
IMO - there's more to Shacknai that we know now - he's arrogant and does as he pleases (if you read the account of the HOA where he lives) and if he's like that with an "historical" home, he'd be like that in other aspects of his life.  He acts like he's "entitled" to do as he pleases.  That type personality can brings surprises in what they are willing to do - at least surprises to me and how I think.

Here we go:

Shacknai attorney warns Zahau family attorney to 'cease and desist'

http://www.cbs8.com/story/15406681/shacknai-sends-cease-and-desist-letter-to-zahau-family-attorney

(snip)

SAN DIEGO, Calif. (CBS8) - Millionaire pharmaceutical tycoon Jonah Shacknai is coming out swinging in the media battle over the death of his son and girlfriend at his Coronado mansion.
 
Chicago-based attorney Dan Webb emailed the following "cease and desist" letter Tuesday to Seattle-based attorney Anne Bremner, following her appearance on CNN Headline News and interviews with several media outlets including News 8.




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 05:13:16 PM
And further, I thought her legs were tied together.  That's what the cops say.  What about if her legs were taped to the legs of a chair when she died and that accounts for the position.  Maybe someone straightened them and tied them together before they threw her over the balcony, but they sprang back into that position when the bindings holding her legs together were loosened.  Anyway, Unless Adam released her legs, how is it she fell to the ground in that position.  Fishy, fishy, fishy.

 I took another look at the photos and her ankles are still tied together on the ground.  I had thought that the orange rope was part of the orange drawing pen that someone had used, probably LE, on the pic.  Still, I think if she died by hanging her legs would have been straight down and not in a sitting position.  I do think she died while sitting, with her arms tied behind her.  There was residue of some kind of tape on her legs, but according to the coroner, not on the legs where they would have been tied together. I wonder if it was in a position where her legs could have been taped to a chair.

Yes, you would think her legs would be straight.

Even "if" they were bent when she was laid down, "why" aren't they laying together?  The weight of a leg would automatically fall down....since it's apparent in the photo that one of the legs is in the air a little bit - this it does make one want to specualte that she died while sitting and was left in that position for a sustained period of time.

Either that, or the rope over the balcony was so long that her feet hit the ground and her legs bent - that doesn't make sense, because then she wouldn't have been hanged - at least not from that balcony with that rope.

Rope - another thing - the pictures of the balcony with the cut off rope...isn't that high up? Doesn't look like he could stand on that table and cut a rope off that high up...

This is pure speculation - what if she was hung somewhere else and that balcony scene was staged?

After all - there's only the brother's word that he cut her down from hanging off that balcony.

DNA - another thing - Only her DNA on everything?  Hello?  If the brother cut her down and "looks like" he carried her to lay her down and says he pulled out the blue shirt from her mouth and tried CPR...if all that...then "WHY" isn't his DNA anywhere on the rope off the balcony or on her body, or DNA on her mouth, or on the blue shirt, or on her chest?  I'm thinking this wasn't the best CSI team - DNA can be discovered even by "touch" these days.

Another thing, how do you perform CPR on a person when their hands are tied behind their back?

Another thing, why didn't LE put a covering over Rebecca, rather than leave her exposed to the sun with helicopters flying overhead?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 05:19:47 PM
I wonder - was she wearing that long sleeved blue t-shirt to sleep in?  Could someone have used that to pull over her head and apprehend her....then wrapping it around her neck and stuffing the sleeve ends in her mouth?

She was hit on the head.  4 hemorrhages underneath the scalp - now they're trying to say that she had superficial wounds to the right side of the head and that she probable got them during the fall.  However, ME on JVM or NG last night (can't remember which show now) said that the hemorrhages were not superficial and would not have been sustained by a fall from the balcony - there were 4 on top of the head.  So there's some difference there - you know?

Another difference - Shacknai, they keep saying, was at the hospital when Rebecca's body was discovered around 7:00 a.m....okay, where was Shacknai around 3:00 a.m. when the body was killed?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 05:21:29 PM
One last thing (for now...ha ha), Shacknai is johnny-on-the-spot after Bremner - just like he was johnn-on-the-spot to tell Rebecca's sister (right up front) that Rebecca committed suicide.  Huh?  How did he know that?  Or was that what he decided it should be called?  Sorry.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 05:43:04 PM
Bizarre Mansion Death a Suicide?

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/09/07/rebecca-zahau-suicide-at-shacknai-mansion-ruling-questioned.html

Another thing - that LE produced video of the woman shown wrapping rope around her arms - that was a much larger rope, and very soft, supple looking as compared to the smaller and harder looking rope in the close-up pictures of the rope attached to the bed - that rope doesn't look supple at all - and at the time of the picture - the body had been cut down and if that rope was supple, why does it look so stiff on the bed post?

If LE is to be credible in their video - they should have used the "exact" type of rope.

Now...the big supple rope is easy for the woman to flip and flop around her wrists, etc.....but what about a stiffer, less supple rope...shouldn't the video have used the same kind and size of roping?



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 06:05:09 PM
Kobilinsky and Godwin

Rebecca Zahau's Death a Ritualistic Killing?

http://abcnews.go.com/US/rebecca-zahaus-death-ritualistic-killing-expert/story?id=14463695



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: pharlap on September 07, 2011, 06:27:11 PM
I wonder - was she wearing that long sleeved blue t-shirt to sleep in?  Could someone have used that to pull over her head and apprehend her....then wrapping it around her neck and stuffing the sleeve ends in her mouth?

She was hit on the head.  4 hemorrhages underneath the scalp - now they're trying to say that she had superficial wounds to the right side of the head and that she probable got them during the fall.  However, ME on JVM or NG last night (can't remember which show now) said that the hemorrhages were not superficial and would not have been sustained by a fall from the balcony - there were 4 on top of the head.  So there's some difference there - you know?

Another difference - Shacknai, they keep saying, was at the hospital when Rebecca's body was discovered around 7:00 a.m....okay, where was Shacknai around 3:00 a.m. when the body was killed?

How did she get blows to her head if she hung herself??
This does not add up. 
You think someones getting paid off????
 ::MonkeyEek::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 06:41:39 PM
http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/images/ms01.jpg


Check out this LE rendering of what they think happened to Maxie.  Looks like he was running with his head turned and not looking where he was going and he ran into the bannister and his forward motion propelled the just turned 6 y.o. child over the bannister.  I see one thing wrong, IMO.  The stick figure looks like an adult size and the body is hitting the top of the bannister below hip level - in that instance, I could understand forward motion causing a body to go over the bannister.  However, this was a little boy - SURELY his body did not hit the bannister at the thigh level - how tall is a boy who just turned 6?  How tall is a bannister?  I just can't imagine that this boy hit the bannister with his thighs.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 06:43:09 PM
I wonder - was she wearing that long sleeved blue t-shirt to sleep in?  Could someone have used that to pull over her head and apprehend her....then wrapping it around her neck and stuffing the sleeve ends in her mouth?

She was hit on the head.  4 hemorrhages underneath the scalp - now they're trying to say that she had superficial wounds to the right side of the head and that she probable got them during the fall.  However, ME on JVM or NG last night (can't remember which show now) said that the hemorrhages were not superficial and would not have been sustained by a fall from the balcony - there were 4 on top of the head.  So there's some difference there - you know?

Another difference - Shacknai, they keep saying, was at the hospital when Rebecca's body was discovered around 7:00 a.m....okay, where was Shacknai around 3:00 a.m. when the body was killed?

How did she get blows to her head if she hung herself??
This does not add up. 
You think someones getting paid off????
 ::MonkeyEek::

Possibly.  Possibly she was ordered killed.  By whom?  Don't know.  But that message was written in 3rd person. 

She saved him, can you save her?



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 07:38:49 PM
Check out the 2nd comment posted by Harold Klein MD, UCLA Professor


Girlfriend of Medicis CEO Is Found Dead


http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304203304576446184124867402.html?KEYWORDS=rebecca+nalepa#articleTabs%3Dcomments



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 08:02:25 PM
LE says there was no sign of struggle, but check out these pictures - eventually you'll come to one of a white wicker chair knocked over on its side.


http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/rz.pdf


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 08:41:57 PM
San Diego Sheriff’s Department Willing To Reopen Rebecca Zahau Case


http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/rebecca-zahau-death-san-diego-police-willing-reopen-case-ruled-suicide


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 07, 2011, 08:46:45 PM
Rebecca's Autopsy Report


http://www.scribd.com/doc/64114521/Reports




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: labubske on September 07, 2011, 11:33:54 PM
This is an interesting read about those that commit suicide naked.  Why?  And so on...

http://www.jaapl.org/cgi/content/full/36/2/240


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: labubske on September 07, 2011, 11:38:35 PM
National Suicide Statistics:

http://www.afsp.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewpage&page_id=050fea9f-b064-4092-b1135c3a70de1fda

http://www.afsp.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=04ECB949-C3D9-5FFA-DA9C65C381BAAEC0



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: labubske on September 07, 2011, 11:49:06 PM
After a quick glance through I didn't see this posted:

Billionaire's Girlfriend's Last Note Inconsistent with Suicide

http://www.forbes.com/sites/shenegotiates/2011/09/06/billionaires-girlfriends-last-note-inconsistent-with-suicide/


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 08, 2011, 11:55:30 AM
 
Family Of Rebecca Zahau Beg Police: ‘We Want Her Things Back’

http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/rebecca-zahau-belongings-not-returned-police-family-after-suicide




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Babybear on September 08, 2011, 12:03:46 PM
This is an interesting read about those that commit suicide naked.  Why?  And so on...

http://www.jaapl.org/cgi/content/full/36/2/240


This article is very interesting and thanks for posting it.  The two most important suicides to which the author points, Marilyn Monroe and Robert Maxwell had elements which could also point to murder.  Marilyn Monroe died in her bed, nude.  But her housekeeper said that she habitually slept in the nude.  Also, there were and are suspicions that she was murdered, i.e. her well-known journal being missing in which many said that she kept details of her sexual affairs with two highly placed politicians, and she was murdered to prevent her exposing these affairs.  In Robert Maxwell's case, since he drowned, he could very well have been swimming in the nude.  He, too, had enemies in the publishing world and could well have been murdered.  As to the third, Cleopatra, there is no reliable source as to her state of dress or undress, but artists many centuries later did depict her as being nude, although the only eyewitness said she was dressed in her royal regalia.

In the absence of any factors which could point to murder, I would say that Ms. Zahau committed suicide.  However there are many circumstances which have yet to be explained satisfactorily, circumstances which could point to murder.  Last night on one of the HLN shows, it was revealed that blood had pooled on the back portion of Ms. Zahau's body, indicating without doubt that she met her demise while lying on her back.  There is no proof that she wrote the message on the door, and her family insists it is not her style of writing.  It is also enigmatic in it's message and no one to my knowledge has yet to decifer its meaning  and connect the meaning to Ms. Zahau's death.  LE seems to feel that a telephone call to Ms. Zahau from Mr. Shacknai in the form of voice mail, advised her that Mr. Shacknai's son, Max, would not survive his earlier fall, was the catalyst.  However, according to Ms. Shacknai's sister's attorney, Anne Brenmer, no such message now exists and had been erased if it did exist.  I believe that this information about the message came from Mr. Shacknai.  Certainly any messages which had been erased could be retrieved by technical experts in the field, but apparently this was not done.

The question of the rope and the nautical knots also play into the  suspicions of murder.  Ms. Zahau's family insists that she would not know how to tie those nautical knots, nor is anyone aware of where this particular kind of nautical rope was obtained by Ms. Zahau, although her boyfriend, Mr. Shacknai said it "Might have been lying around somewhere."  LE says she obtained it from a shelf in the garage, but fail to explain how they have determined this.  Mr. Shacknai's brother Andy was staying at the house and it is he who claims to have discovered the body of Ms. Zahau and cut her down, apparently letting her fall to the ground.  Adam Shacknai is reported to be a tugboat captain.

Our poster, Puzzler, and I have both questioned how Ms. Zahau's legs were positioned as they were at death as shown in photographs of her body carelessly left exposed on the lawn after Mr. Shacknai's brother thoughtlessly IMO cut her body down and apparently let it fall to the ground. I am not an expert in this field, and indeed have limited knowledge of it, but it seems to me that a person who hanged himself would have their muscles completely relaxed at death and their legs would hang straight down, not in a sitting position as the photos seem to indicate was the case.  I do know enough to know that if Ms. Zahau had been dead long enough for rigor mortis to have set in, and if no one moved her during that period, her legs would be in the position they were when she died. And in this case IMO there is no doubt she was sitting in a chair, perhaps the chair having been turned over backwards, when she died. 

LE insists that they have answered every question to their satisfaction and their discoveries prove yjat Ms. Zahau was responsible for her own death.  Perhaps to their satisfaction, but if so, they have failed to explain the above circumstances to the public and I think they have a duty to do so.  If not to the public, at least to Ms. Zahau's immediate family.

If any murder warrants further investigation, it is this one.  It could be that Ms. Zahau killed herself, but there are too many contraindictations that this is not true.  It is unfair to Ms. Zahau, Mr. Shacknai, and Ms. Zahau's family to not seek further answers to these troubling questions.

It is also troubling to me that Mr. Shacknai obtained the services of an attorney to specifically threaten Ms. Brenmer with legal action.  I haven't heard Ms. Brenmer indicate that she is accusing Mr. Shacknai of anything.  As far as I can tell, her questions are directed toward LE and from what she has said, she feels further investigation is needed by LE, but not directed at Mr. Shacknai in particular.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 08, 2011, 03:02:54 PM
Link to San Diego Sheriff's site re: Coronado with news releases, briefing documents and pictures.


http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/index.html



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 08, 2011, 03:09:11 PM

CEO Shacknai Wields Small Army Against Speculation on Death of His Girlfriend

(snip)
In the letter, Shacknai’s lawyer told Bremner that her statements that he is rich and powerful enough to influence law enforcement officials’ investigation of the deaths are “false” and “constitute defamation, per se.” The letter claims that Shacknai “never once considered retaining an attorney” throughout the investigation and that “it is only now,” because of Bremner’s allegations, that he has had to do so. That statement stands in contradiction to Sheriff Bill Gore, who told the Sept. 2 press conference that Shacknai had lawyers present when his department briefed the family on their findings prior to their public release.

http://www.bnet.com/blog/drug-business/ceo-shacknai-wields-small-army-against-speculation-on-death-of-his-girlfriend/9609


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 08, 2011, 11:45:11 PM
 
Rebecca Zahau Did Not Get On With Boyfriend’s Ex-Wife, Says Sister

http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/rebecca-zahau-didn-t-get-jonah-shacknai-s-ex-wife-dina-says-sister



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 09, 2011, 12:26:01 AM
http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/images/rz8714.jpg

Collection of pictures
look at 2nd row, middle picture
bed and ruler
note bed post is moved approx. 7" from where it was originally (indendation in the carpet)

question:  if the bed moved when Rebecca went over the balcony, why doesn't the carpet look like the bed moved across the carpet, making the carpet look disturbed?

Tonight, on Dr. Drew's show was Ann Bremner who said experts pointed out to her that the carpet doesn't look like the bed moved under the forced of someone jumping over a balcony - it looks like someone picked up the end of the bed and moved it slightly.

I "had" to go look at the picture - it that's right!  The carpet does not indicate that the bed pulled along the floor.   Stunning!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 09, 2011, 07:06:45 AM
http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/images/rz8714.jpg

Collection of pictures
look at 2nd row, middle picture
bed and ruler
note bed post is moved approx. 7" from where it was originally (indendation in the carpet)

question:  if the bed moved when Rebecca went over the balcony, why doesn't the carpet look like the bed moved across the carpet, making the carpet look disturbed?

Tonight, on Dr. Drew's show was Ann Bremner who said experts pointed out to her that the carpet doesn't look like the bed moved under the forced of someone jumping over a balcony - it looks like someone picked up the end of the bed and moved it slightly.

I "had" to go look at the picture - it that's right!  The carpet does not indicate that the bed pulled along the floor.   Stunning!
In addition to your observations of the carpet appearing undisturbed by the foot of the bed, I couldn't help but notice several things myself.

In the photo of the leg of the bed with the ruler/rope, I noticed the bed frame appears to be rusted.

The balcony appears to be rusty as well. You would think financially well off people would have their home in better repair.  A small paint job wouldn't cost that much.

I am curious, according to the documentation from the autopsies, both Max's and Rebecca's were done by Jonathan Lucas, ME.

According to Max's autopsy, he suffered:

Anoxic/ischemic encephalopathy
Due to resuscitated cardiopulmonary arrest
Due to cervical spinal cord contusion
Due to blunt force trauma of head and neck
( http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/me-ms.pdf ).

How does one, especially a child, with these type of injuries retain their senses/composure/frame of mind to say "Ocean" in reference to the dog?




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 09, 2011, 07:54:19 AM
The last picture in this report, shows two heel prints, a boot print (allegedly from LE) and toe prints- . 

Where are the other boot prints and how does an individual with bound feet, leave two side by side heel prints, and nothing between those prints and the toe prints when she would have to "shuffle" her feet to walk, leaving some sort of trail/disturbance? After all, she was nude and barefoot.

Who jumps nude?

Any indication of what the temp was that night?

Where were her clothes that she "removed"?



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 09, 2011, 07:42:05 PM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/09/rebecca-zahau-case-how-maxs-accident-didnt-happen/

Rebecca Zahau case: How Max’s accident didn’t happen


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 09, 2011, 07:43:50 PM


http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/08/rebecca-zahau-case-a-review-of-the-autopsy-report/

Rebecca Zahau Case: A review of the autopsy report


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 09, 2011, 08:03:34 PM
Wow!!!  Check out this great post by Valhall on Hinky Meter - especially about the red dog bone.  I DID notice that dog bone in in the picture of the bed with the tow rope  - looked at the scene depiction with the notes and never picked up on the fact that the dog bone was NOT a part of LE's notes:

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=1341

I believe, if I was a member of Rebecca's family, I would be demanding the release of the following evidence, and I would not stop fighting until it was ALL produced:

1. ALL UNEDITED photographs of crime scene.
2. Complete autopsy report with photographs.
3. ALL DNA test results.
4. ALL fingerprint analyses.
5. ALL toxicology reports.
6. ALL of her cell phone records (including text messages and voicemail recordings) from the beginning of the day that Max's accident happened until the end of the day upon which she was found dangling dead from a rope.
7. ALL written communications.
8. ALL testimony of witnesses. Including EMTs at the scene and their medical reports.

I would also be demanding to know why:

1. Why the rubber dog bone was not listed as a piece of evidence at the immediate crime scene.
2. Whether the rubber dog bone was tested in anyway.
3. What the red stain on the carpet was.
4. Any and all testing done on the towel found in the hall.
5. Where her clothes were found and what condition they were in. And any test results that were conducted on them.
6. Why the dryer sheet that was lying in the immediate crime scene area was not listed as an item of evidence, and whether any testing was done it, and where those results are.
7. What the reddish marks are on the carpet in the guest room. Are those footprints? Is it blood? What is it?
8. I would want the name of the officer who owned the "boot" that left the print on the balcony, and I would want the forensic testing results that prove that boot made that shoe imprint on the balcony....and I'd want to be able to ask him if he actually stepped out there prior to pictures being taken.

I would want to hear with my own ears that the last voicemail she received was that Max's condition and turned grave with imminent death. And I would want to hear who the person was that told her that, and hear the tone in their voice.

I would want confirmation from the hospital that at somewhere between midnight and 10 minutes till 1 in the morning that Dinah and Jonah had been told that their son's status had turned to "grave with imminent death".

I bet I think of some more...I just bet I do.

If this was my daughter and I was being fed this insulting package of information - replete with a model to back up the bizarreness....I'd be spitting lightning bolts.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 09, 2011, 08:09:52 PM
Here's a link to pictures.  The red dog bone is very noticable in several of the pictures, even the one with the layout of the room and LE's notes listing what was found in the room.  LE's list does not include the red dog bone, nor the dryer sheet laying on the floor (or what looks like a dryer sheet to me).

http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/index.html



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: sunshine12 on September 09, 2011, 08:49:53 PM
hey puzzler! i have been following this case over on the hinky too.  i don't post there but i read everything and i am very impressed with all the information they have over there. this case is truly baffling. i do NOT believe she killed herself. she was murdered


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 09, 2011, 09:42:17 PM
hey puzzler! i have been following this case over on the hinky too.  i don't post there but i read everything and i am very impressed with all the information they have over there. this case is truly baffling. i do NOT believe she killed herself. she was murdered

Sunshine - there are some GREAT posts on Hinky about Rebecca and Max.  I do not think that Rebecca killed herself and it's really beginning to look like LE's investigation was not as complete, nor accurate, as it should have been.

It is intriquing for "sleuthers". 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cookie on September 09, 2011, 10:20:19 PM
I think that the little boys death did not happen the way that it has been described..especially about the bannister..
I do not think that Rebecca killed herself either..both of these deaths should be looked at closer if you ask me..just ridiculous...


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 09, 2011, 10:23:09 PM
Just had another thought. 

Rebecca's hands...nothing has been said about her hands....if it were me, I'm not used to handling marine tow rope and I think if I used that rope in all the maneuvering she would have had to do with binding her ankles and her wrists, etc., that there would be some indications on my hands.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cookie on September 09, 2011, 10:28:22 PM
Just had another thought. 

Rebecca's hands...nothing has been said about her hands....if it were me, I'm not used to handling marine tow rope and I think if I used that rope in all the maneuvering she would have had to do with binding her ankles and her wrists, etc., that there would be some indications on my hands.



the marine ropes that we use for our boats has like a smooth coating on them I think...not really rough or splintery feeling..was it that kind of rope ya think?
she didn't tie those knots by herself..it takes some practice to do those knots..jmo


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 10, 2011, 12:02:30 AM
Just had another thought. 

Rebecca's hands...nothing has been said about her hands....if it were me, I'm not used to handling marine tow rope and I think if I used that rope in all the maneuvering she would have had to do with binding her ankles and her wrists, etc., that there would be some indications on my hands.



the marine ropes that we use for our boats has like a smooth coating on them I think...not really rough or splintery feeling..was it that kind of rope ya think?
she didn't tie those knots by herself..it takes some practice to do those knots..jmo

Cookie - that rope that was used for the hanging looks harder and smoother to me than the rope that LE used for their video which looks larger, looser and more supple.  Does it appear that way to you?

Also, wouldn't any video that LE produces had to have used "like" material (rope of the same kind) to be credible?



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 10, 2011, 12:24:43 AM
http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/rz.pdf

Please look at page 17 - prints

toe prints - don't look human to me - which are rounded, especially if a person is standing on their toes.

Looks more like the pads of a dog's print to me.

Also, heel prints - supposedly entire foot prints - Rebecca must have been flatfooted because there's no pattern for the arch areas of the feet


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 10, 2011, 04:45:38 PM
Hey All!!

Glad to see there's an interest in this "closed" case.

The findings in this case are obviously incorrect.  It seems as though the case was signed off rather quickly. 

Doesn't it take weeks/months for toxicology reports to come back?
Wouldn't this be important information in making a determination as to cause of death?

According to my way of thinking, in order to understand Rebecca's death, we need to examine the information available on Max's death.

We observed the reinactment of Max going over the railing using the mannequins.  Max was 45 inches= 3.75 feet.  It shows him towering over the railing.  I was told an adult mannequin was used in this demonstration.  The majority aren't going to question this visual, but will accept it as it is from an offical source.

Also, from my understanding, at the scene was a soccer ball and a scooter.  The scooter was on (?) Max's leg.  Thiws makes no sense unless it was downstairs and fell on top of Max.  But then again, if we are to believe reports that Rebecca attempted CPR on Max, this would have had her flipping him over- why would the scooter then be on top of him- again, unless it fell over on top of him.  His facial injuries would suggest alot of blood since the floor was carpeted over cement.

What seems more plausable to me is that Max was playing with the soccer ball and either kicked it, threw it or had it thrown to him (by the 13yr old sister, or his siblings) and it landed in the chandalier, Max then tried to retrieve it by grabbing ahold of the swinging chandalier, lost his balance and fell.

According to reports, Rebecca was stated as saying Max said "Ocean" in reference to the family dog.  I believe this was a made up attempt to protect the other child(ren) to spare them the trauma of the investigation following the injury/death of their brother.

Max's death was caused by going "over a railing".

Rebecca's death also appears to be caused by "going over a railing".

Neither had witnesses. 









Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 10, 2011, 04:53:22 PM
Monkey King:

OCCAM'S RAZOR!!

Max went over the railing and died.

Rebecca went over the railing and died.

(Gives me cold chills.)

Eye for an eye?

Good point about the soccer ball - I hadn't thought of that aspect - could have happened that way.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 10, 2011, 05:02:43 PM
How did Rebecca manage to get across the balcony with only one alleged pair of heel prints and a few alleged toe prints to where she allegedly jumped/fell/dove from while being bound, gagged and bound again?

How about someone called her out there, so she had her prints on the door while someone else entered her room wearing gloves. She was then hit in the head, undressed, bound, gagged and bound again then handed off to someone (boot print) out on the balcony who threw her off. The person handing her off put her in a standing position to get the dirt on her feet, the person throwing her off balcony leaned her over the railing, thus the evidence of her touching the railing.  Look at the position of the alleged heel prints facing the boot print.

All items involved were placed in her hand, while knocked out, to transfer prints.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 10, 2011, 05:10:45 PM
What do we know about Jonah's brother?

How long was he there?

Where did he come from?

Why was he there?

Was he there alone?

How close was he to the ex wife Dina?

Does he have a criminal record?

Does the ex wife?

Lot's of questions......


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 10, 2011, 05:12:56 PM
What do we know about Dina's sphere of friends/family?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 10, 2011, 05:21:25 PM
Good questions about Adam Shacknai.

I know a few of the answers.

Rebecca picked up Adam at the airport.  Then Adam, Rebecca and Jonah had dinner together (somewhere close to the hospital). A few hours after dinner, Rebecca was dead.

Adam came by himself.  Don't know if he's married or not.  I believe he's 49 y.o. (younger brother to Jonah)
Don't know when he left.

Don't know if Adam has a criminal record.  Do know he's worked on tow boats.  Probably, therefore, has knowledge of sailor's knots.

Don't know the answer to Dina/Adam relationship.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 10, 2011, 05:21:57 PM
What do we know about Dina's sphere of friends/family?

Another good question - don't know any details at this time.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 10, 2011, 05:36:29 PM
How did Rebecca manage to get across the balcony with only one alleged pair of heel prints and a few alleged toe prints to where she allegedly jumped/fell/dove from while being bound, gagged and bound again?

How about someone called her out there, so she had her prints on the door while someone else entered her room wearing gloves. She was then hit in the head, undressed, bound, gagged and bound again then handed off to someone (boot print) out on the balcony who threw her off. The person handing her off put her in a standing position to get the dirt on her feet, the person throwing her off balcony leaned her over the railing, thus the evidence of her touching the railing.  Look at the position of the alleged heel prints facing the boot print.

All items involved were placed in her hand, while knocked out, to transfer prints.

Yes, the placement of the feet is odd...normally you walk out and one foot would end up slightly in front of the other.  This is like she was place there specifically.  Weired IMO that there's one set of foot prints and then "supposed" toe prints (doesn't look like human toe prints to me AND looks like too many toes, too).  Would she have hopped onto the balcony and then hopped onto her toes?  Boy...wouldn't that take some balancing act with your ankles tied together and your hands behind your back.  AND if those are "toe prints" then why aren't there toe prints for both feet?

How about this.  What if she was hit on the head just enough to incapicate her (not necessarily knock her out); then, someone leaned over the railing and lowered her?

The pictures of the railing show it to be in perfect condition (other than age and rust, etc.).  The rope expert said that her weight of 100 lbs. falling 9 ft. would be 600 lbs. of thrust and that the railing would have an indentation - which I take to be a slight bending - but the pictures show the railing to look just fine.

Also, the pictures indicate that the rope went over in a "straight" line.  While pictures from the bedroom and the rope on the balcony seem to be at an angled position and the coroner said she went off the balcony off-center (or words to that effect)...in other words - WHY is the picture indicating the rope went straight over (area of dust cleared on the railing) rather that showing an angle?

If she went over the rail it was a long fall - usually decapitates a person - but even considering she was only 100 lbs and that didn't happen - the neck was badly injured but NOT as though it were getting ready to separate.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: TURBOTHINK on September 10, 2011, 11:19:43 PM


I wonder if Shacknai's brother, Adam, was living on the grounds of the mansion when the boy had his accident. Adam was the one who found the girlfriends body hanging...so he is my first person of interest. Just my first reaction. Tonight (I think) Dr. Drew is doing a segment on it.

He lived in the guest house.  How in the world could someone commit suicide with their legs bound and their hands tied behind their back? How do you tie your own hands behind your back? Another case of insanity run rampant using no common sense.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: darla on September 10, 2011, 11:27:05 PM
Good Evening Monkeys and Guest.

I just found this case tonight and was reading over it. If Rebecca had jumped or went over that rail headfirst her neck would have broken. This is just not jiving. Who would go to the trouble of binding their hands and feet to hang themselves?   


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 10, 2011, 11:53:46 PM

Below is a Hinky Meter blog article written by NZ about Max's Autopsy Review.
In the article is a "link" to Max's Autopsy Report.
I can't get the link to open.
If someone else is able to open the link, please copy the link and post it on this thread.
I would appreciate it very much.

Rebecca Zahau Case: Max Shacknai Autopsy Review

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/10/rebecca-zahau-case-max-shacknai-autopsy-review/..


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: darla on September 11, 2011, 12:01:38 AM
https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/ficg6jc7s02q1av71kumv6mv6h8hcaro/1315712700000/ZXhwbG9y

Hope I did this right. This is the autopsy report for Max.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 11, 2011, 12:03:44 AM
https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/ficg6jc7s02q1av71kumv6mv6h8hcaro/1315712700000/ZXhwbG9y

Hope I did this right. This is the autopsy report for Max.


Darla - TY

But this is what I get when I try the link:   The website declined to show this webpage

Any other suggestions?  Thanks.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: darla on September 11, 2011, 12:47:38 AM
Let me post the link again in case I messed up the first one.

https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/ficg6jc7s02q1av71kumv6mv6h8hcaro/1315712700000/ZXhwbG9y

One thing that stuck out to me in the report is that he had 30cc's of black liquid consistent with charcoal in his stomach 6-7 days after his fall. Why would a six year old have charcoal in his stomach.

Puzzler if that doesn't work I will try to download it to my computer and and get it to you that way. Or maybe some smarter Monkey knows how to post it. I am too tired tonight to do it. But will tomorrow afternoon, if no one else has.   


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: darla on September 11, 2011, 12:48:40 AM
Let me post the link again in case I messed up the first one.

https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/ficg6jc7s02q1av71kumv6mv6h8hcaro/1315712700000/ZXhwbG9y

One thing that stuck out to me in the report is that he had 30cc's of black liquid consistent with charcoal in his stomach 6-7 days after his fall. Why would a six year old have charcoal in his stomach.

Puzzler if that doesn't work I will try to download it to my computer and and get it to you that way. Or maybe some smarter Monkey knows how to post it. I am too tired tonight to do it. But will tomorrow afternoon, if no one else has.   


Well just cloicked on the link when it posted and it doesn't work either.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 11, 2011, 02:11:22 AM
Let me post the link again in case I messed up the first one.

https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/ficg6jc7s02q1av71kumv6mv6h8hcaro/1315712700000/ZXhwbG9y

One thing that stuck out to me in the report is that he had 30cc's of black liquid consistent with charcoal in his stomach 6-7 days after his fall. Why would a six year old have charcoal in his stomach.

Puzzler if that doesn't work I will try to download it to my computer and and get it to you that way. Or maybe some smarter Monkey knows how to post it. I am too tired tonight to do it. But will tomorrow afternoon, if no one else has.   

Darla, I had not heard about the charcoal - does sound odd - wonder why nothing is being written about it?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 11, 2011, 12:17:50 PM
Charcoal? 

I can honestly say I am at a loss here with this information.

Charcoal is usually given in many emergency rooms, following someone getting their stomach pumped, to absorb toxic substances that have been ingested- as in a drug over dose.

I'm not familiar with other uses or how charcoal would benefit Max's condition, anyone else?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Found Hanging, Bound Mansion Owned By Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 11, 2011, 01:56:18 PM
Let me post the link again in case I messed up the first one.

https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/ficg6jc7s02q1av71kumv6mv6h8hcaro/1315712700000/ZXhwbG9y

One thing that stuck out to me in the report is that he had 30cc's of black liquid consistent with charcoal in his stomach 6-7 days after his fall. Why would a six year old have charcoal in his stomach.

Puzzler if that doesn't work I will try to download it to my computer and and get it to you that way. Or maybe some smarter Monkey knows how to post it. I am too tired tonight to do it. But will tomorrow afternoon, if no one else has.   


Well just cloicked on the link when it posted and it doesn't work either.

Didn't work for me either.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: klaasend on September 11, 2011, 03:01:31 PM
MAX SKACKNAI - autopsy

www.autopsyfiles.org/reports/Other/shacknai,%20max_report.pdf




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 11, 2011, 03:51:48 PM
REBECCA ZAHAU - Autopsy

https://viewer.zoho.com/docs/ubzLg

(Hat Tip:Valhall/The Hinky Meter)

https://viewer.zoho.com/docs/ubzLg


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on September 11, 2011, 04:48:12 PM
https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/5h8brlh0h2g4q71g6vldp82d0cqjjlhf/1315646100000/ZXhwbG9yZXI=/AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6/MEI1NE10ZlhseFJKYlpEYzNaamc1T0RjdFpHUmpNeTAwT0RWa0xUazFZV0l0T0RBeFpqQXhNekU1T1RWbA==?a=gp&filename=max_autopsy.pdf&chan=EAAAADd31XzJzvta%2B2Zxf5UnrEMiRBAXReo/1/aClWvsTHtX&docid=2d26e1b2393b264ec504a1068c4026ed%7C2aa850319a88e924b47ca245e4919382&sec=AHSqidYErTZDtzmPmUOsTxL0inAsEAlD-dPIFLqUMTH9cQU7BGTpah7_9sgjCOIbE0yvZEUX1wUa&nonce=4gmejesfr7fl4&user=AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6&hash=3rnujadjkn9ul1in7jhpfd4u93glvb8o (https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/5h8brlh0h2g4q71g6vldp82d0cqjjlhf/1315646100000/ZXhwbG9yZXI=/AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6/MEI1NE10ZlhseFJKYlpEYzNaamc1T0RjdFpHUmpNeTAwT0RWa0xUazFZV0l0T0RBeFpqQXhNekU1T1RWbA==?a=gp&filename=max_autopsy.pdf&chan=EAAAADd31XzJzvta%2B2Zxf5UnrEMiRBAXReo/1/aClWvsTHtX&docid=2d26e1b2393b264ec504a1068c4026ed%7C2aa850319a88e924b47ca245e4919382&sec=AHSqidYErTZDtzmPmUOsTxL0inAsEAlD-dPIFLqUMTH9cQU7BGTpah7_9sgjCOIbE0yvZEUX1wUa&nonce=4gmejesfr7fl4&user=AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6&hash=3rnujadjkn9ul1in7jhpfd4u93glvb8o)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_01.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_02.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_03.jpg)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on September 11, 2011, 04:56:24 PM
https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/5h8brlh0h2g4q71g6vldp82d0cqjjlhf/1315646100000/ZXhwbG9yZXI=/AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6/MEI1NE10ZlhseFJKYlpEYzNaamc1T0RjdFpHUmpNeTAwT0RWa0xUazFZV0l0T0RBeFpqQXhNekU1T1RWbA==?a=gp&filename=max_autopsy.pdf&chan=EAAAADd31XzJzvta%2B2Zxf5UnrEMiRBAXReo/1/aClWvsTHtX&docid=2d26e1b2393b264ec504a1068c4026ed%7C2aa850319a88e924b47ca245e4919382&sec=AHSqidYErTZDtzmPmUOsTxL0inAsEAlD-dPIFLqUMTH9cQU7BGTpah7_9sgjCOIbE0yvZEUX1wUa&nonce=4gmejesfr7fl4&user=AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6&hash=3rnujadjkn9ul1in7jhpfd4u93glvb8o (https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/5h8brlh0h2g4q71g6vldp82d0cqjjlhf/1315646100000/ZXhwbG9yZXI=/AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6/MEI1NE10ZlhseFJKYlpEYzNaamc1T0RjdFpHUmpNeTAwT0RWa0xUazFZV0l0T0RBeFpqQXhNekU1T1RWbA==?a=gp&filename=max_autopsy.pdf&chan=EAAAADd31XzJzvta%2B2Zxf5UnrEMiRBAXReo/1/aClWvsTHtX&docid=2d26e1b2393b264ec504a1068c4026ed%7C2aa850319a88e924b47ca245e4919382&sec=AHSqidYErTZDtzmPmUOsTxL0inAsEAlD-dPIFLqUMTH9cQU7BGTpah7_9sgjCOIbE0yvZEUX1wUa&nonce=4gmejesfr7fl4&user=AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6&hash=3rnujadjkn9ul1in7jhpfd4u93glvb8o)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_04.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_05.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_06.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_07.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_08.jpg)

to be continued...


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on September 11, 2011, 04:58:43 PM
https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/5h8brlh0h2g4q71g6vldp82d0cqjjlhf/1315646100000/ZXhwbG9yZXI=/AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6/MEI1NE10ZlhseFJKYlpEYzNaamc1T0RjdFpHUmpNeTAwT0RWa0xUazFZV0l0T0RBeFpqQXhNekU1T1RWbA==?a=gp&filename=max_autopsy.pdf&chan=EAAAADd31XzJzvta%2B2Zxf5UnrEMiRBAXReo/1/aClWvsTHtX&docid=2d26e1b2393b264ec504a1068c4026ed%7C2aa850319a88e924b47ca245e4919382&sec=AHSqidYErTZDtzmPmUOsTxL0inAsEAlD-dPIFLqUMTH9cQU7BGTpah7_9sgjCOIbE0yvZEUX1wUa&nonce=4gmejesfr7fl4&user=AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6&hash=3rnujadjkn9ul1in7jhpfd4u93glvb8o (https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/5h8brlh0h2g4q71g6vldp82d0cqjjlhf/1315646100000/ZXhwbG9yZXI=/AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6/MEI1NE10ZlhseFJKYlpEYzNaamc1T0RjdFpHUmpNeTAwT0RWa0xUazFZV0l0T0RBeFpqQXhNekU1T1RWbA==?a=gp&filename=max_autopsy.pdf&chan=EAAAADd31XzJzvta%2B2Zxf5UnrEMiRBAXReo/1/aClWvsTHtX&docid=2d26e1b2393b264ec504a1068c4026ed%7C2aa850319a88e924b47ca245e4919382&sec=AHSqidYErTZDtzmPmUOsTxL0inAsEAlD-dPIFLqUMTH9cQU7BGTpah7_9sgjCOIbE0yvZEUX1wUa&nonce=4gmejesfr7fl4&user=AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6&hash=3rnujadjkn9ul1in7jhpfd4u93glvb8o)


CONTINUED...

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_09.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_10.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_11.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_12.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_13.jpg)

to be continued...


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on September 11, 2011, 05:03:27 PM
https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/5h8brlh0h2g4q71g6vldp82d0cqjjlhf/1315646100000/ZXhwbG9yZXI=/AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6/MEI1NE10ZlhseFJKYlpEYzNaamc1T0RjdFpHUmpNeTAwT0RWa0xUazFZV0l0T0RBeFpqQXhNekU1T1RWbA==?a=gp&filename=max_autopsy.pdf&chan=EAAAADd31XzJzvta%2B2Zxf5UnrEMiRBAXReo/1/aClWvsTHtX&docid=2d26e1b2393b264ec504a1068c4026ed%7C2aa850319a88e924b47ca245e4919382&sec=AHSqidYErTZDtzmPmUOsTxL0inAsEAlD-dPIFLqUMTH9cQU7BGTpah7_9sgjCOIbE0yvZEUX1wUa&nonce=4gmejesfr7fl4&user=AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6&hash=3rnujadjkn9ul1in7jhpfd4u93glvb8o (https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/5h8brlh0h2g4q71g6vldp82d0cqjjlhf/1315646100000/ZXhwbG9yZXI=/AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6/MEI1NE10ZlhseFJKYlpEYzNaamc1T0RjdFpHUmpNeTAwT0RWa0xUazFZV0l0T0RBeFpqQXhNekU1T1RWbA==?a=gp&filename=max_autopsy.pdf&chan=EAAAADd31XzJzvta%2B2Zxf5UnrEMiRBAXReo/1/aClWvsTHtX&docid=2d26e1b2393b264ec504a1068c4026ed%7C2aa850319a88e924b47ca245e4919382&sec=AHSqidYErTZDtzmPmUOsTxL0inAsEAlD-dPIFLqUMTH9cQU7BGTpah7_9sgjCOIbE0yvZEUX1wUa&nonce=4gmejesfr7fl4&user=AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6&hash=3rnujadjkn9ul1in7jhpfd4u93glvb8o)

CONTINUED

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_14.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_15.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_16.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_17.jpg)

END OF REPORT


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 11, 2011, 06:22:49 PM
Texasmom!  Thank you!

I haven't been able to see this before...surely appreciate your efforts.

Puzzler


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 11, 2011, 06:26:43 PM
Texasmom!  Thank you!

I haven't been able to see this before...surely appreciate your efforts.

Puzzler

Thank you from me too!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cookie on September 11, 2011, 06:35:10 PM
ugh...that autopsy report is brutal....

I think that the poster who said above that Max may have reached for the chandelier and fell from there makes a lot of sense...not him tripping over a bannister....but...strange that the sister and Rebecca were both doing something else when this happened to Max...how old is Xena?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 11, 2011, 06:40:42 PM
https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/5h8brlh0h2g4q71g6vldp82d0cqjjlhf/1315646100000/ZXhwbG9yZXI=/AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6/MEI1NE10ZlhseFJKYlpEYzNaamc1T0RjdFpHUmpNeTAwT0RWa0xUazFZV0l0T0RBeFpqQXhNekU1T1RWbA==?a=gp&filename=max_autopsy.pdf&chan=EAAAADd31XzJzvta%2B2Zxf5UnrEMiRBAXReo/1/aClWvsTHtX&docid=2d26e1b2393b264ec504a1068c4026ed%7C2aa850319a88e924b47ca245e4919382&sec=AHSqidYErTZDtzmPmUOsTxL0inAsEAlD-dPIFLqUMTH9cQU7BGTpah7_9sgjCOIbE0yvZEUX1wUa&nonce=4gmejesfr7fl4&user=AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6&hash=3rnujadjkn9ul1in7jhpfd4u93glvb8o (https://doc-10-14-docsviewer.googleusercontent.com/viewer/securedownload/dsn1aovipa7l846lsfcf94nedj8q2p4u/5h8brlh0h2g4q71g6vldp82d0cqjjlhf/1315646100000/ZXhwbG9yZXI=/AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6/MEI1NE10ZlhseFJKYlpEYzNaamc1T0RjdFpHUmpNeTAwT0RWa0xUazFZV0l0T0RBeFpqQXhNekU1T1RWbA==?a=gp&filename=max_autopsy.pdf&chan=EAAAADd31XzJzvta%2B2Zxf5UnrEMiRBAXReo/1/aClWvsTHtX&docid=2d26e1b2393b264ec504a1068c4026ed%7C2aa850319a88e924b47ca245e4919382&sec=AHSqidYErTZDtzmPmUOsTxL0inAsEAlD-dPIFLqUMTH9cQU7BGTpah7_9sgjCOIbE0yvZEUX1wUa&nonce=4gmejesfr7fl4&user=AGZ5hq8BgbJY1gwaOYx83cPOdNw6&hash=3rnujadjkn9ul1in7jhpfd4u93glvb8o)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_01.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_02.jpg)

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/Shacknai%20-%20Zahau/MaxShacknaiAutopsy_03.jpg)


Is there an "error" on this report?  Last page toward the bottom - Antemortem - says samples were collected on 6/16/2011 - 6 = June - shouldn't that be JULY?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 11, 2011, 06:41:31 PM
ugh...that autopsy report is brutal....

I think that the poster who said above that Max may have reached for the chandelier and fell from there makes a lot of sense...not him tripping over a bannister....but...strange that the sister and Rebecca were both doing something else when this happened to Max...how old is Xena?

Xena is 13 y.o.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 11, 2011, 06:48:11 PM
Cookie:

I said it makes more sense that he was going after the soccer ball when he went over the railing than riding the scooter and grabbing the chandalier while holding onto the scooter while going over the railing.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cookie on September 11, 2011, 06:56:30 PM
Cookie:

I said it makes more sense that he was going after the soccer ball when he went over the railing than riding the scooter and grabbing the chandalier while holding onto the scooter while going over the railing.



thought it was you but I didn't scroll back that far...I think your theory makes the most sense of anything else that I have read on all of this..poor Max...way too young to die...RIP


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 11, 2011, 07:07:39 PM
I read an explanation of the autopsy report on Max, by I want to say KZ, on The Hinky Meter.  It was very well written.  I'll try and locate it and repost. 

I still believe in order to understand Rebecca's death, we have to look at Max's.  Allegedly, Rebecca's "decision" to take her own life, was based on Max's deteriorating condition/imminent death.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on September 11, 2011, 07:14:02 PM
You're welcome to all.  Just wanted to make the report available for those who were having trouble with the link opening.

Good eye Puzzler, I believe that is an error and should be July instead of June.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 11, 2011, 07:44:40 PM
Very good posting on The Hinky Meter well worth the read:

Rebecca Zahau Case: Max Shacknai Autopsy Review

Posted on September 10, 2011 by K Z

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/10/rebecca-zahau-case-max-shacknai-autopsy-review/#more-7892


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cookie on September 11, 2011, 08:39:29 PM
Very good posting on The Hinky Meter well worth the read:

Rebecca Zahau Case: Max Shacknai Autopsy Review

Posted on September 10, 2011 by K Z

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/10/rebecca-zahau-case-max-shacknai-autopsy-review/#more-7892

very good read..thanks..


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 11, 2011, 08:40:30 PM
Can someone hunt down the 911 calls?

I would imagine they have been released since both cases are closed, no?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 11, 2011, 10:29:14 PM
Can someone hunt down the 911 calls?

I would imagine they have been released since both cases are closed, no?

No...police won't release 911 calls



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 11, 2011, 11:12:25 PM

Bringing over this post from The Hinky Meter:  http://www.thehinkymeter.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=57&t=1342&start=250

Posted: Sun Sep 11, 2011 8:57 am
Mili wrote:

If the SDSD can be hard-azzed enough to call this a suicide as they slam the door on further investigations, then I can be hard-azzed enough to call this an Assisted Suicide. Semantics don'cha know.

I am not convinced either that there was only one person doing the flinging of RZ over the balcony rail. I may not be the best at using filters, but I did my damn-dest and came up with an unexpected image. Hope this link shares well with anyone who's interested.

http://photobucket.com/RZ_Balcony_Worked

What I had NOT expected was to see a trail of red stains along the length of the rail. I could be wrong, I could be right. But bottom line is that I'd like to see this case re-opened, or else see all of the cards laid out on the table as to how the proof of suicide is arrived at.       
~~~~~~~~~
 
Me:  I did notice the red "dripped" stain.  What is that?  It's fresh!! It's NOT the blood on Becky's toe.  This blood drop has NOT been disturbed.  The "filters" used by the poster above just allows you to see more clearly that some of the other dark spots/specks are blood, too.  Bothers me a lot that the coroner did not take samples of the blood on Becky's toe or fingers for testing - nothing noted in the autopsy report. 

NOTE: the red specks are on "top" of the alledged footprint and are NOT smudged.  Those spots occurred "after" the footprint occurred.




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: tcumom on September 12, 2011, 07:34:06 AM
Puzzler ~ thank you for your postings.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on September 12, 2011, 08:02:28 AM
Thank you to everyone that has added more information.  Neither of the two cases have ever set well with me.  It seems like something is going on with both cases, and I think it was attempted to neatly package them up and tie them nicely with a bow to try to pass them off as just two tragic events.  If only one of the events had occurred, it would still raise a lot of questions.  But two cases with highly unusual circumstances in a short period of time?   ::MonkeyNoNo::  What's going on here?!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Kimmy53 on September 12, 2011, 01:02:59 PM
Reading the autopsy report, this is the first time I realized that appr 20 mins or so passed before Max was found.  It also indicated that the brain damage he had came from those minutes without oxygen. 

Could it be that Rebecca was blamed for not helping Max soon enough after the fall?  Even though it was initially an accident, she was blamed for not taking action soon enough and causing his death?  Could Jonah think that if she had found him sooner he might not have suffered the brain damage?

I would also like to know the financial status of Adam. Did he have money troubles? or did he rely on Jonah as a supplement income?   Also, how close are Adam and Jonah? Were they the kind of brothers who would do anything for the other?  Anything in the heat of the moment?  Or as someone asked before, how close are Dina(Mom) & Adam?  Could someone have conspired to make Rebecca pay for what happened to Max?

I would also like to know how someone could bind their own hands and feet, then go over a balcony?  Would she have just flung herself off the balcony, if so, wouldn't there have been markings on the dusty balcony showing her footprints kinda slipping?   I don;t see how she could have climbed over herself - being bound and all.

It all just doesn't make sense.  Too many far reaching explanations. All MOO.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 12, 2011, 04:49:33 PM
Puzzler ~ thank you for your postings.

You're welcome.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 12, 2011, 04:55:51 PM
Reading the autopsy report, this is the first time I realized that appr 20 mins or so passed before Max was found.  It also indicated that the brain damage he had came from those minutes without oxygen. 

Could it be that Rebecca was blamed for not helping Max soon enough after the fall?  Even though it was initially an accident, she was blamed for not taking action soon enough and causing his death?  Could Jonah think that if she had found him sooner he might not have suffered the brain damage?

I would also like to know the financial status of Adam. Did he have money troubles? or did he rely on Jonah as a supplement income?   Also, how close are Adam and Jonah? Were they the kind of brothers who would do anything for the other?  Anything in the heat of the moment?  Or as someone asked before, how close are Dina(Mom) & Adam?  Could someone have conspired to make Rebecca pay for what happened to Max?

I would also like to know how someone could bind their own hands and feet, then go over a balcony?  Would she have just flung herself off the balcony, if so, wouldn't there have been markings on the dusty balcony showing her footprints kinda slipping?   I don;t see how she could have climbed over herself - being bound and all.

It all just doesn't make sense.  Too many far reaching explanations. All MOO.



Kimmy - I may be wrong, but the way I understand it is that a loud crash was heard and Becky went to him immediately - it was that it was 20-25 minutes before "breathing was restored" - that was after Becky attempted CPR and the EMTs used their equipment - he had a fatal injury in his fall and basically died then - but the EMT's revived him much later after adding drugs to his heart - twice - and too much time had elapsed for the brain to survive.  But...it was a fatal fall - he would have died no matter what.  Very sad to say - but he was dead at the fall....it's amazing that they were able to get a heartbeat again and it was sustained by all the equipment.

All that to say that it doesn't appear Becky didn't attend to him for 20 min. "after" the fall. 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 12, 2011, 05:27:01 PM
Bringing over this post from The Hinky Meter:

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=57&t=1345

KZ Posted: Mon Sep 12, 2011 10:58 am

Regarding the possibility of Max ever regaining consciousness, I'll say that is 100% medically impossible, given the extent of his injuries. I don't even need to see the medical records to state with complete confidence that he never regained consciousness after the fall, which is a small blessing, imo. Whether he had a brief, fleeting moment of consciousness after the fall is a small possibility, but I even highly doubt that he would have maintained consciousness during the process of Rebecca turning him over at the bottom of the steps, to utter the word "Ocean".

He was in a full cardiac arrest for 30 min at the scene, and would have been intubated before transport to the ER. (A breathing tube in the windpipe.) Given his decorticate posturing in the ER (a sign of extensive, usually irreversible neurological damage), massive cerebral edema, and 7 inch sagittal skull fracture, as well as the shredding of the top 2 cm of his spinal cord, regaining consciousness under those circumstances is not a possibility. He had NO intrinsic respiratory effort at that point-- his spinal cord injury was too high. Even if he had somehow lived beyond his few days in ICU, he would have likely been in a persistent vegatative state, on a ventilator forever, quadriplegic, and not able to think or communicate, for whatever remained of his life.

It is a heartbreaking tragedy, but there was never any hope for Max to wake up and be normal again. There was never any real hope that he would even live at all, imo, even in a vegetative state. What I find impossible is that the docs would have held out any hope at all to Jonah, Dina, and Rebecca. You see, I strongly believe from my nearly 30 years in acute care (ICU's and the operating room) that they told the family very early on that there was no hope, and that it was just a matter of time until he either died on his own, or was confirmed to be irreversibly brain dead. Confirmation of brain death in someone whose heart is still beating takes 48 to 72 hours, using a number of well-established criteria. Many times patients in these situations are having multiple episodes of cardiac arrest and arrhythmias in the ICU, but do not have a "do not resuscitate" order yet. So we give lots of different meds to support the heart function, BP, etc, while brain death is being confirmed. Sometimes this is because the family is still in such shock they don't want to allow a DNR order. Sometimes we maintain the patient because organ donation is desired by the family, and a beating heart donor can donate more organs and tissues than a donor who has arrested and been pronounced dead. Perhaps Jonah and Dina jointly decided to donate Max's organs very early on, and the brain death criteria was being documented in prep for beating heart donation.

So I find it nearly impossible that Rebecca believed there was hope for Max's recovery right up until she got a troubling voice mail informing her he was going to die. The ONLY way that story could make any sense to me is if Jonah and Dina held back the true extent of the damage and prognosis from Rebecca, and falsely lead her to believe there was ANY hope.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 12, 2011, 06:04:51 PM
Just had a thought.

What if:  Becky's footprints got on the balcony because she stepped on it to call to Adam who was in the guest house (and this balcony bedroom is in a wing that juts perpendicular from the main house and is the closest to the guest house).

She reportedly got a call from Jonah at 12:50 a.m. and it was news that Max was not going to make it.

Could Becky have stepped out onto that balcony to call to Adam to give him the news?



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 12, 2011, 10:52:43 PM

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=57&t=1342&start=250

Alessandra wrote:Yes. I don't believe that a person without boating experience could have tied those nautical knots. Also, the manner in which the rope was tied to the foot, and the frame of the bed, seems to have been done by someone with knowledge on how to properly and securely attach a rope.

From the autopsy report:

"The balcony from which she was hanging was attached to samll bedroom, and, the end of the rope was fastened in a slip loop to one of the legs and frame of the bed. The rope was attached to the bed in such a way that both ends of the rope were required to secure it."

Photo from the press conference:

http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/images/rz8714.jpg

notagrandma wrote:
Yea, I cannot even begin to figure out what that means. I would tie a knot at one end of the rope, so what does it mean that both ends were required? That sounds complicated to me. And if they are so certain she could do it, why don't we see a few demonstrations of how the bed knot was tied, the legs were tied, and the noose was tied. Why did they focus on showing how easy it would be for her to wrap her wrists with figure 8 loops, a complicated knot which could then be "drawn", loosened so her hand could slip in and out, etc. Bullshit.
Valhall wrote
In order to make a slip knot you have to draw the opposite end of the rope through the loop.     
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
Me: Wait!  Does anyone know what kind of "knot" was tied around Becky's neck?
 
I thought it was a slip know - you know - one that get's tighter and tighter the more pressure that is put on it.
 
BUT...The pictures indicate a slip knot was around the bedstead - see Valhall's post above - slip knot requires "opposite end of rope through loop"....
 
With the slip knot on the bedstead, then it wouldn't be possible for a slip knot to be around Becky's neck. 
 
So, what kind of knot was it...was it the kind of knot sufficient to asphyxiate a person - or was a slip knot used and then removed and another knot tied to Becky's neck.
 
Confusing...sorry...in other words...staged?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 12, 2011, 11:06:55 PM
Okay, I looked at Becky’s Autopsy Report and at the top of page 8, Neck, it says:

There is a rope ligature around the neck and over the decedent’s long hair. It is has two free ends extending from it and the knot is a “slip knot”.  The free slipping portion of the rope which passes through the knot extends 5 inches from it and has an additional 1-1/4 inch extension of frayed fibers.  A 22 inch segment of rope extends from the knot itself and is fixed to the knot.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/64114521/Reports


Me:  so the rope around the bedstead is a “slip knot” and the rope around the neck is a “slip knot”.  According to Valhall's post above, a slip knot requires that the "opposite" end of the rope be drawn through the loop.

HOW can there have been the "opposite end of the rope" pulled through both uses at the bed and the neck? (It was all one rope...3 pieces of rope...one around neck, one around wrists and one around ankles).

What am I missing?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 12, 2011, 11:45:22 PM
Bringing over the post from Websleuths.

"Cynic"
Today  08:53 PM

http://websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=148961&page=3

Can't copy and paste as it include pictures.

Talks about whether or not Becky hit her head going over the railing and depicts a picture of approximate areas of 4 hits to the head on the right side.

My question is....Autopsy Report states a small amount of dirt of her "left" side...so if she went over the rail at an angular fall from the left side - how would it be possible to get 4 hits to the head on the "right" side?


 



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on September 13, 2011, 03:03:01 AM
I had read early on that Adam lives in downtown Memphis, TN . I wasn't able to find where I read it the first time but here is an article mentioning the same thing with video at link.

http://www.wmctv.com/story/15091608/memphian-discovers-body-in-brothers-san-diego-mansion  (http://www.wmctv.com/story/15091608/memphian-discovers-body-in-brothers-san-diego-mansion)

 ::snipping2::


Memphian discovers body in brother's San Diego mansion


Posted: Jul 15, 2011 9:14 PM CDT Updated: Jul 15, 2011 10:46 PM CDT

Adam Shacknai lives in an apartment in Midtown Memphis.  His leasing agent neighbor, Robert Sanders, said he last saw him a few days ago.

"He said that he was going to have to go back out on the tugboat company he works for," said Sanders.

Instead, Adam Shacknai ended up in San Diego in a guest house in his brother's mansion.

Adam Shacknai said from San Diego that the police were questioning him but he did not have anything to do with Nalepa's death.

Investigators said Adam Shacknai and Nalepa were the only people in the mansion when the body was found.  His brother and ex-wife were at the hospital.
 ::snipping2::




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 13, 2011, 02:29:00 PM
Zahau was "very religious. She did believe if you commit suicide you go to hell," Bremner said. "The case is being prematurely closed."

http://abcnews.go.com/US/rebecca-zahau-autopsy-raises-questions/story?id=14451270

(This statement from Bremner is on page 2)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 13, 2011, 02:58:12 PM
This is the first time I've come across anything stating Adam, Jonah's brother polygraphed and cleared:

 ::snipping2::

Who in the short two hours between the news that Max had taken a turn for the worse and the hanging could have accomplished this impossible feat? The sheriff has determined that cell phone evidence and video cameras at the hospital confirmed that Jonah Shacknai was at the hospital standing vigil for Max the entire time when Rebecca Zahau’s suicide occurred. Video cameras at the hospital also showed Dina was there during that time period. And Jonah’s brother Adam, who discovered Rebecca’s body, was polygraphed and cleared as well.

 ::snipping2::


http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/09/10/roy-black-max-shacknai-babysitter-rebecca-zahau-s-death-no-murder.html


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 13, 2011, 03:16:46 PM
 ::snipping2::

According to reports, Zahau, who moved to the United States from Burma 10 years ago, began dating the pharmaceutical mogul about two years ago.  Shacknai had divorced Dina Romano  , a clinical psychologist,  in 2008  . He has two children from a previous marriage to a woman named Kimberly James. Zahau quit her job as an ophthalmic technician last December to spend more time with Shacknai and his family.

 ::snipping2::

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/09/02/rebecca-zahau-death-ruled-a-suicide-shacknai-mystery-s-sad-ending.html?obref=obinsite

I wonder if this was after he started seeing Rebecca.  Some reports have them together for 3 years, for two years and others at over two years.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 13, 2011, 04:17:22 PM
OK< I just found these posts on another forum.

When I attempted to locate this statement in the actual transcripts, I couldnt locate it.

Perhaps I over looked it and someone else can read through them, I've got a busy afternoon!

First post from forum:
http://forums.about.com/n/pfx/forum.aspx?tsn=27&nav=messages&webtag=ab-crime&tid=23667

Post # 23667.28 (28 of 44) Reply to 23667.26

::SNIPPED::
 Her family said the note appears to be written by a right handed person and Rebecca was left handed. They went on to say it was not her handwriting, but 'block lettering' which she didn't 'use'. All this on JVM tonight.
::SNIPPED::

Second post# 23667.31 (31 of 44) Reply to 23667.28 :

OK.  Thanks for the transcript, and leaving so many more questions, that need to be explained.
Mixed dna, she was left handed, and the note was written by someone right handed.????  Much more I'm sure. I can't imagine all this being a suicide.

Money was exchanged in this case,  or there was someone else in the house. 
----------------------------------------------

ISSUES WITH JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL

Mansion Death Ruled a Suicide; Murderer Allegedly Creates Trip Cover Story for Victim`s Family

Aired September 2, 2011 - 19:00:00   ET

LINK:  http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1109/02/ijvm.01.html





Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 14, 2011, 08:50:55 AM
Very interesting reading:

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/14/rebecca-zahau-case-the-geometry-in-rebeccas-fall/
 

Rebecca Zahau case: The geometry in Rebecca’s fall

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Valhall



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 14, 2011, 06:04:30 PM
Very interesting reading:

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/14/rebecca-zahau-case-the-geometry-in-rebeccas-fall/
 

Rebecca Zahau case: The geometry in Rebecca’s fall

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Valhall



Very, very good blog.

How, in the scientific community, can anyone dispute this formulation showing how physically impossible (and ridicuous) it would be for Rebecca to go over the railing as it has been relayed to us, the public, based on photographic evidence at the scene on the railing itself and footprints/toes prints.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 15, 2011, 11:14:50 PM
Jonah notified the family very soon that Rebecca died of a suicide.

Official determination of cause of death wasn't issued for about 7 weeks.

Autopsy Report:


DOD 7/13/11

Date of autopsy 7/14/11 - ruled a suicide (so "WHY" did it take until September to release the information to the public - they kept saying they were investigating to make a determination; however, autopsy of 7/14/11 says suicide????   Geesh!  That's a red flag to me.)

Medical Examiner Investigator signed off on 8/21/11

Deputy Medical Examiner signed off on 9/2/11 - LE couldn't release until then????

Note last page of report:  SPECIMENS
There were no specimens taken of the blood on her big toe or the blood on her fingers - HELLO??? That blood was noted in the autopsy, WHY don't they want to know where that blood came from?


http://www.scribd.com/doc/64114521/Reports




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 16, 2011, 12:01:53 AM
Well worth the read:

http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2011/sep/14/citylights2-rebecca-zahau/
Edit to fix link.  MB

The True Heart of Rebecca Zahau


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 16, 2011, 12:09:56 AM
Well worth the read:

http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2011/sep/14/citylights2-rebecca-zahau/
Edit t fix link MB

The True Heart of Rebecca Zahau


(snip from above linked article)


“I don’t know. It would have to be whoever was involved. We don’t know if it’s one or two persons. We don’t know.”

It takes a moment to absorb the intriguing possibility. Two persons? After all, there were two paint brushes and two knives left at the scene.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 16, 2011, 12:23:58 AM
There are also "comments" - you might really be interested in the first comment written by Fred Williams
former member San Diego Crime Commission



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on September 16, 2011, 12:49:30 AM
Thanks Puzzler, interesting indeed.

I hope the truth eventually comes out about this, I don't believe it was suicide. ::MonkeyNoNo::

jmo


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 16, 2011, 05:10:26 PM
Just had a thought.

What if:  Becky's footprints got on the balcony because she stepped on it to call to Adam who was in the guest house (and this balcony bedroom is in a wing that juts perpendicular from the main house and is the closest to the guest house).

She reportedly got a call from Jonah at 12:50 a.m. and it was news that Max was not going to make it.

Could Becky have stepped out onto that balcony to call to Adam to give him the news?



My guess would be no- not enough footprints.

One boot print, 2 heel prints, and alleged toe prints.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 17, 2011, 01:49:35 AM
A WS poster by the name of Cynic has posted some visual aids - pictures of injuries to Rebecca's head and necks, based on the Autopsy Report.

http://websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=148933&page=3

Post #54
Yesterday, 03:09 AM

9/16/2011



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 17, 2011, 01:59:58 AM
Thoughts?

First picture (at the link above) shows there are "two" lines (one thin) with pallor inbetween the two lines - it "is" noted in the Autopsy Report.

How did THIS happen?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 17, 2011, 05:26:21 AM
Records reveal final cell phone calls to Rebecca Zahau

http://www.760kfmb.com/story/15485069/records-reveal-final-cell-phone-calls-to-rebecca-zahau

(snip) The cell phone records confirm Zahau listened to her voicemail for two minutes at 12:50 a.m. on July 13, about two hours before her estimated time of death.  (snip)

Me:  Okay, I'll admit I'm jaded on this one.  To me the cell phone records "confirm" that SOMEONE listened to the voice mail - there is NOTHING to confirm that Rebecca was the one who listened to the voicemail IMO.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 17, 2011, 10:31:33 AM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/17/rebecca-zahau-case-the-voice-mail/
 
Rebecca Zahau case: The voice mail


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 18, 2011, 02:13:48 AM
http://www.760kfmb.com/story/1548506...-rebecca-zahau

Records reveal final cell phone calls to Rebecca Zahau

(snips) (Nina – Dina’s twin sister)

Family members said Rebecca had picked up Romano at a San Diego airport on Monday afternoon, several hours after Max Shacknai's fall down the stairs.

"I just wanted to talk to her about the accident," Romano said. "And so I sent her a text message that said, ‘Hey are you around? I'd like to come by,' and I never heard from her. She never responded to me."

Romano recalled sending the text earlier in the evening, though, and questioned the 10:41 p.m. time stamp on the AT&T call log.

While she was in town, Romano said she stayed at her sister Dina's house, which is also in Coronado. Romano said she left San Diego on Saturday, July 16, the same day her sister's son, Max, was taken off life support.




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 18, 2011, 02:37:50 AM
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/jonah-shacknai-girlfriend-rebecca-zahau-death-ruled-suicide

Rebecca Zahau’s Death Ruled Suicide

(snip)  The San Diego Sheriff's Department will formally announce their findings on Friday morning.

A source close to the situation tells RadarOnline.com: "Rebecca killed herself. That is what the investigation determined. There was no foul play, and the evidence is ironclad that Rebecca killed herself."




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 19, 2011, 12:37:27 AM
Websleuth's had a  radio show tonigh that was very interesting.

Dr. Wecht was on to discuss the autopsy and answered numberous detailed questions by a poster named "Cynic", who asked great questions.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/websleuths ... uths-radio
Blog Talk Radio - Websleuth's Radio Show 9-18-11



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 19, 2011, 02:43:50 AM
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7mp6s_cheaper-by-the-dozen-swing-from-cha_lifestyle


Wonder if the Shacknai children ever watched this movie?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 19, 2011, 05:16:11 AM
This is an interesting article to read.  There are a few errors in the article and, also, a couple of items I haven’t read before, that stand out to me.

Page 4, para. 5
(snip)  Zahau’s body was “in an open casket,” says Christian. “It was difficult for me to look at her. She’s a beautiful girl, and she had this disturbing raised prominence on her upper right forehead. I had a lump in my throat watching her mother. They had to peel her off the casket. She was so profoundly devastated.”

Me:  Raised prominence on her upper right forehead?


Page 5, para.3
(snip)  “I’m disappointed in the San Diego Sheriff’s Department,” Mary says. “They never tried to investigate ... They told us there were extra fingerprints and DNA, but ‘we didn’t see the need to analyze them.’ ” Sheriff Gore refutes that, saying, “Every print that we lifted was analyzed, and there was no unknown DNA.” And detectives found no evidence of another person in the room or on the balcony.

Me:  Mary and Gore statements are completely opposite. 

http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2011/09/18/what-really-happened-in-the-coronado-mansion.html

What Really Happened in Coronado
Sep 18, 2011 10:00 AM EDT




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 19, 2011, 05:36:20 AM
This is an informative article.  Part of the information is quoting Anne Bremner’s listing of “experts that have been formally added to the team”.

Additional information from within the article:

(snip)  One fireman who works in Coronado whom we interviewed under conditions of anonymity, thought that the finding of suicide was based on "a balance between efficiency and effectiveness", claiming that the City of Coronado's police department was highly efficient, but not as effective in responding to high profile suspicious death incidents.

He also told us that Coronado wanted to protect its revenue sources that were highly dependent on tourism, that the County Sheriff's office saw this as a "political hot potato", and that both departments, because of political and other concerns, wanted the case closed and forgotten.

http://www.examiner.com/news-analysis-in-national/jonah-shacknai-doubted-rebecca-zahau-committed-suicide

Jonah Shacknai doubted Rebecca Zahau committed suicide
Joel Siegfried, News Analysis Examiner  September 13, 2011



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: tcumom on September 19, 2011, 07:06:52 AM
Puzzler and MonkeyKing and all others I may have forgotten ~  Thank you so much for continuing and adding to this thread.  I have 6 links open to read what y'all brought over!

Surely this won't be kept under the rug . . . just saw that there will be a segment on GMA this morning about Rebecca.

Thanks again for keeping this going. 

Wish something would happen with little Celina Cass, too.  sigh.

joan


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on September 19, 2011, 11:05:04 AM
Rebroadcast of Websleuth's radio show if you missed it last night:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/websleuths/2011/09/19/websleuths-radio

Dr. Cyril Wecht, Cynic from Websleuths (created those diagrams of Rebecca's neck injuries)



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on September 20, 2011, 12:56:41 AM
Thanks for all the info Puzzler and others!

Hopefully the case will be reopened.   ::MonkeyGavel::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 20, 2011, 01:08:52 PM
http://abcnews.go.com/US/mansion-deaths-jonah-shacknai-files-letter-investigation-rebecca/story?id=14562097

Jonah Shacknai, the California millionaire whose son died in an accident and whose long-time girlfriend, Rebecca Zahau, died in a mysterious hanging, has asked the California attorney general to look into the investigation of their deaths.


http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/page/letter-j ... l-14563347

---jonah's letter to the Attorney General Kamala D. Harris--September 19,2001--   


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 03:21:57 AM


More indication that the rope was moved before /during official crime scene photos being taken:
 
https://viewer.zoho.com/docs/tQpbdi


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 03:22:37 AM

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=57&t=1304&start=900

Posted: Wed Sep 21, 2011 2:25 am

..i would think---since LE at the beginning thought this case to be ( SD Captain Tim Curran ): "bizarre", "unique" "unusual" ---and couldn't rule out homicide/suicide either way without forensic findings ( that would take weeks ) that they would be looking at the cell records of all "players" ..

..NOT so---according to the S/W's.

..they did get the 1st S/W immediatley, july 13th --for items from the mansion.

..a speedy----42 DAYS later-----they got looking into the AT&T and Verizon cell records.

..S/W's AT&T and Verizon-----both dated august 24th, 2011.

http://www.10news.com/pdf/29245451/detail.html
--S/W AT&T--

http://www.10news.com/pdf/29245515/detail.html
--S/W Verizon--


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 03:23:04 AM
http://www.10news.com/pdf/29245478/detail.html

Page 9 at the bottom, Opinions and Conclusions that the officer states he believes “that she was a victim of “homicide”.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 03:24:42 AM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=57&t=1304&start=900


Posted: Wed Sep 21, 2011 1:37 am


Valhall wrote:Well, considering he left 10 minutes after he left the "voice mail"...yeah. Guess he went to a hotel.


..no---on the 1st night the ronald mcdonald house was full...jonah checked into a hotel.
..the 2nd night he did stay at the ronald mcdonald house.

http://www.10news.com/pdf/29245451/detail.html
---S/W--

..rebecca died on july 13th.
..maxie's accident was on july 11th.

..on july 11th jonah was @ the hospital, went home (showered, grabbed a change of clothes) went to the ronald mcdonald house @ 0155 hrs. (full) so he got a room at the homestead inn...back to the hospital @ 5:30-6:00 on july 12th.

..on july 12th, after dinner with rebecca and adam, jonah returned to the hospital around 20:00 hrs (8 p.m.) ----left at 1 a.m. on july 13th ( 1/2 hr. after leaving rebecca the "maxie's condition is grave/death is imminent" voice mail----and 10 minutes after she retrieved the message )-- to go to the ronald mcdonald house, where he stayed until approx. 7 a.m.

..while he was sleeping at the ronald mcdonald house on july 13th, rebecca killed herself----when he woke up adam sent him a TEXT message, around 6:48 a.m. ( either at the ronald mcdonald house or at the hospital ) that "rebecca hung herself".



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 04:09:36 AM
WARRANTS UNSEALED!!!


http://www.10news.com/pdf/29245451/detail.html
-----search warrant #1--AT&T--


http://www.10news.com/pdf/29245478/detail.html
------search warrant #2--items seized from mansion--


http://www.10news.com/pdf/29245515/detail.html
------search warrant #3--Verizon wireless--


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 04:24:08 AM
http://www.cbs8.com/story/15505829/some-shacknai-search-warrants-to-be-unsealed

Coronado mansion search warrants unsealed


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 04:37:19 AM
http://www.10news.com/pdf/29245451/detail.html

Search Warrant #1
Page 10, Line 10-

(snip) July 13, 2011, Detectives H. Lebitski #2079 and D. Hillen #1635 interviewed Adam Shacknai. Later that same day, Detectives Lebitski and D.Hillen facilitated a polygraph examination of Adam Shacknai with Polygrapher Paul Redden.  Redden said, based on the analysis of the polygraph charts he couldn’t draw a conclusion, but felt Adam was being truthful during the examination.


(Me: and we all know that a person can take certain drugs that will affect your results during a LDT)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 05:53:23 AM
Dueling Petitions and another set of footprints


http://www.cbs8.com/story/15505829/some-shacknai-search-warrants-to-be-unsealed


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: tcumom on September 21, 2011, 06:41:53 AM
Puzzler  ~  Wow!  Thanks for all the info and links.  I have my reading material set for the morning.....have to take my husband in for medical tests, so this will be a nice (bad choice of words) diversion .  ::MonkeyEek::

I appreciate all your work in here!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 06:58:48 AM
Puzzler  ~  Wow!  Thanks for all the info and links.  I have my reading material set for the morning.....have to take my husband in for medical tests, so this will be a nice (bad choice of words) diversion .  ::MonkeyEek::

I appreciate all your work in here!

Thank you.  I sure wish more posters would chime in.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 06:59:03 AM
The sheriff's department has posted Jonah's letter to the Attorney General on their website:

http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on September 21, 2011, 08:46:11 AM
Thank you for the information and links Puzzler.  I will sit down and read through them after I catch up on some other things this morning.  I don't think Rebecca committed suicide, and I also find Max's death as an accident questionable. 

While the initial investigation into Rebecca's death was going on and before it was announced as a suicide, I remember reading an article (and I will try to find the article with link) that basically said the cause of death, whether murder or suicide would be determined with the knots that  were tied.  Does anyone remember this?  It was at the beginning of the case, and it's kind of stuck in my mind since.  We've had discussion about the knots and also about a number of other things, including the writing on the alleged suicide note.  As I said, I'll come back in here and read through again and look closely at the links you've posted this morning Puzzler.  I just wanted to reply to your request that more of us weigh in. 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 09:00:09 AM
Thank you for the information and links Puzzler.  I will sit down and read through them after I catch up on some other things this morning.  I don't think Rebecca committed suicide, and I also find Max's death as an accident questionable. 

While the initial investigation into Rebecca's death was going on and before it was announced as a suicide, I remember reading an article (and I will try to find the article with link) that basically said the cause of death, whether murder or suicide would be determined with the knots that  were tied.  Does anyone remember this?  It was at the beginning of the case, and it's kind of stuck in my mind since.  We've had discussion about the knots and also about a number of other things, including the writing on the alleged suicide note.  As I said, I'll come back in here and read through again and look closely at the links you've posted this morning Puzzler.  I just wanted to reply to your request that more of us weigh in. 

Muffy Bee - TY

Next post is Valhall's new blog - she gets everything in it - Jonah was not at Max's bedside when Rebecca said and LE told the public, Adam didn't technically pass his poly as LE told the public and "new" footprints.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 09:01:34 AM
Really good blog with lots of "facts" from the search warrants.

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/21/rebecca-zahau-case-new-documents-new-footprints/

Rebecca Zahau case: New documents…new footprints?




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on September 21, 2011, 07:32:44 PM
I am still not buying it. The comments at the article link are interesting. There are errors in the dates in the article.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/sep/20/shacknai-asks-coronado-mansion-death-be-reviewed/ (http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/sep/20/shacknai-asks-coronado-mansion-death-be-reviewed/)

Shacknai asks AG to review death investigation

12:40 p.m., Sept. 20, 2011
Updated 5:16 p.m.

 ::snipping2::

In his July 13 request for a warrant to search the mansion and a vehicle parked in the garage, Detective Brian Patterson wrote that based on the way Zahau was found he believed the death was a homicide.

“The circumstances being what they were he may have been of that opinion,” homicide Lt. Larry Nesbit said Tuesday. “Obviously, it didn’t turn out that way.”

Nesbit said the warrant laid out the facts after the detective had been at the home for one hour.

Asked if Patterson was still of that opinion, Nesbit said, “Absolutely not.”
 ::snipping2::

Investigators also obtained information from cellphones belonging to Shacknai and his ex-wife, Dina, used between July 11, when Max was injured, and July 13, when Zahau’s body was found.

An affidavit filed in support of one of the search warrants said the only people at the mansion the night before Zahau’s body was found were Zahau and Adam Shacknai, Jonah’s brother. The brother found her body. He was the only home at the time.

Adam Shacknai had arrived July 12 and was staying in a guest house on the property.

He was given a polygraph exam. The polygrapher said he couldn’t draw a conclusion based on an analysis of the polygraph charts, but he “felt Adam was being truthful during the examination,” according to the court documents.

Dina Shacknai was at the hospital with her son when her ex-husband called about 7 a.m. on July 13 to tell her Zahau had killed herself, according to the documents.

That day, detectives interviewed Jonah Shacknai, who said he hadn’t returned home since the early evening of July 11 when his son was injured. He said he showered, packed some clothes and returned to the hospital.

Two days later, he received a text message from his brother saying that Zahau had hanged herself.
 ::snipping2::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on September 21, 2011, 07:46:25 PM
Who sends a text to another person regarding the death of their loved one? 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on September 21, 2011, 09:53:26 PM
Puzzler, thanks again for keeping us updated on this case.  ::MonkeyAngel::

http://www.10news.com/news/29253139/detail.html  (http://www.10news.com/news/29253139/detail.html)
Here is another article from on of Puzzlers earlier links:

Attorney Obtains New Info In Zahau Death Case
Anne Bremner Represents Rebecca Zahau's Family, Claims New Information Could Help Re-Open Probe

POSTED: 5:28 am PDT September 21, 2011
UPDATED: 4:39 pm PDT September 21, 2011

 ::snipping2::

On Wednesday, Bremmer said a witness provided her with new information -- which has not been confirmed -- that indicates Zahau died before midnight, contradicting facts released by the sheriff's department.

"Because police said she received a call at 12:30 in the morning stating that Max was gravely ill or injured, had taken a turn for the worse, and they say she retrieved that message at 12:50 and that's why she killed herself, because she was despondent about that information. So the timeframe is very important because this information indicates she may well have died before that. The phone records that we have, and that's new information, indicates there was no incoming call at 12:30. Also, the message that was retrieved at 12:50, which we don't know who retrieved it, was erased."

 ::snipping2::




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on September 21, 2011, 10:22:20 PM
Renowned Polygrapher: Jonah Shacknai's Brother Needs To Take Another Lie Detector Test

Posted on Sep 21, 2011 @ 01:00PM

By Jen Heger
Radar Legal Editor
 ::snipping2::
Adam Shacknai needs to be given another lie detector test in connection with the death case involving Rebecca Zahau, according to famed polygraph expert Jack Tramarco, RadarOnline.come is exclusively reporting.

 ::snipping2::

On July 15, 2011, Adam Shacknai was given a lie detector test. Search warrants that were unsealed by a San Diego judge reveal, that "Detective Lebitski and Detective Hillen facilitated a polygraph examination of Adam Shacknai with Polygrapher Paul Redden. Redden said based on the analysis of the polygraph charts he couldn't draw a conclusion, but felt Adam was being truthful during the examination."
 ::snipping2::

"For someone with Paul Redden's credentials and reputation, to say that he wasn't able to draw a conclusion, but FELT Adam Shacknai was telling the truth, simply isn't acceptable. Polygraphers don't let emotions or gut feeling or observations to include body language, and verbalizations taint the results," Trimarco says.
 ::snipping2::
"If the test is inconclusive, as it was in this case, you state that you have no opinion, period, end of discussion. This means you run another test, with new questions. Polygraphers aren't trained to judge people's feelings, it's just not something we do, or have the capability of doing. Adam Shacknai needs to be given another polygraph test," Trimarco says.
 ::snipping2::

http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/renowned-polygrapher-jonah-shacknais-brother-needs-take-another-lie-detector-test  (http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/renowned-polygrapher-jonah-shacknais-brother-needs-take-another-lie-detector-test)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on September 21, 2011, 11:14:57 PM
Rebecca's family set up a website (according to bnet.com  http://www.bnet.com/blog/drug-business/cellphone-records-leave-medicis-shacknai-stuck-in-catch-22/9758 (http://www.bnet.com/blog/drug-business/cellphone-records-leave-medicis-shacknai-stuck-in-catch-22/9758))

 http://rebeccazahaufund.com/Rebecca_Zahau_Case.html (http://rebeccazahaufund.com/Rebecca_Zahau_Case.html)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 21, 2011, 11:16:08 PM
"FELT" - that word used in a sentence by a polygrapher to say that they FELT that Adam was telling the truth is tantamount to "voo doo" IMO.  I was totally digusted when I read and am still shaking my head over it.  I'm hoping the public will pick up on it and it will "backfire" on the Coronado Police/San Deigo Sheriff's departments.

Also, how coincidental can things be before someone says there can't be this much coincidence:

Rebecca/sailor's knots, tow rope - Adam/works on a tow boat

Rebecca/death between 1:00 - 3:00 a.m., police called 6:38 a.m. - Jonah/away from hospital from 1:00 - 7:00 a.m.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 22, 2011, 12:12:57 AM
http://www.10news.com/news/29253139/detail.html

Attorney Obtains New Info In Zahau Death Case

Anne Bremner Represents Rebecca Zahau's Family, Claims New Information Could Help Re-Open Probe

September 21, 2011

(snip)  On Wednesday, Bremmer said a witness provided her with new information -- which has not been confirmed -- that indicates Zahau died before midnight, contradicting facts released by the sheriff's department.




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 22, 2011, 03:29:37 AM
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/rebecca-zahau-death-timeline-key-players

Timeline Of Key Players In Rebecca Zahau Death Mystery
Sep 21, 2011

(snip)  A new timeline is emerging in the Rebecca Zahau death case, that is creating more questions than answers, RadarOnline.com is exclusively reporting.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 22, 2011, 05:30:44 AM
http://www.cbs8.com/story/15520745/sheriff-launches-forensic-exam-of-zahaus-cell-phone-new-witnesses-accounts-reported

Sheriff launches forensic exam of Zahau’s cell phone; new witness accounts reported

SAN DIEGO (CBS8) - The San Diego County Sheriff's Department has opened a new examination of data contained in the cell phone of Rebecca Zahau, the woman found hanging at the Spreckels mansion July 13.
 
Sheriff's homicide Lt. Larry Nesbit said that within the past week technology experts from his department started using newly-identified software to download data from Zahau's phone for forensic review.
 
"It constitutes a new examination of the evidence," Lt. Nesbit told News 8.
 
Sheriff investigators want to copy and save all the data contained in the smart phone used by Zahau, 32, in the days and weeks before she was found hanging from a balcony at the Coronado mansion.
 
"If it leads us to new information that's relevant to the case, then yes, you could consider that a re-opening of the case," Nesbit said.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 22, 2011, 05:48:37 AM

http://www.cbs8.com/story/15520745/sheriff-launches-forensic-exam-of-zahaus-cell-phone-new-witnesses-accounts-reported

Sheriff launches forensic exam of Zahau’s cell phone; new witness accounts reported


(snip)  "We are now confirming information from a witness that there may have been a cry for help from a woman in the mansion around 11:30 p.m. the evening prior (to Zahau's death)," Bremner said. "So that's important in terms of the time of death and in terms of the surrounding circumstances."


Wow! That's long before any alleged phone call/voice mail message from Jonah about Max.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 22, 2011, 07:44:11 AM
Excellent!

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/22/rebecca-zahau-case-a-case-of-assumptions-and-factoids/

Rebecca Zahau case: A case of assumptions and factoids

Posted on September 22, 2011 by Valhall



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Buckeye on September 22, 2011, 08:24:46 AM
How well did Adam know Dina's twin sister?

Is Jonah saying he was told (no evidence) that Max's death was imminent....he text that message...and then went to the Ronald McDonald house?  I would think if you believe your son's death is imminent, you don't leave the room???


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on September 22, 2011, 08:32:55 AM
Excellent!

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/22/rebecca-zahau-case-a-case-of-assumptions-and-factoids/

Rebecca Zahau case: A case of assumptions and factoids

Posted on September 22, 2011 by Valhall



 ::MonkeyShocked::

It would appear there were a lot of azz-umptions made on the part of the investigators.   ::MonkeyNoNo::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 22, 2011, 07:31:47 PM
Search Warrant for Mansion Items
http://ftpcontent.worldnow.com/kfmb/misc/warrant_41290.pdf
Search Warrant for Mansion phone records:
http://ftpcontent.worldnow.com/kfmb/misc/warrant_41373.pdf
Search Warrant for Survelliance Video:
http://ftpcontent.worldnow.com/kfmb/misc/warrant_41432.pdf


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: darla on September 22, 2011, 09:46:41 PM
Good Evening Monkeys,

Just checking in to see if anything new had been found. I have a question about the Ronald McDonald house or rather a statement. I think when parents are staying at the house they have to sign in and out so they will know who is there.  I wonder if they even checked to find out. If that was my child I would not have left his side to go sleep.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: AZSunny on September 22, 2011, 10:46:26 PM
"FELT" - that word used in a sentence by a polygrapher to say that they FELT that Adam was telling the truth is tantamount to "voo doo" IMO.  I was totally digusted when I read and am still shaking my head over it.  I'm hoping the public will pick up on it and it will "backfire" on the Coronado Police/San Deigo Sheriff's departments.

Also, how coincidental can things be before someone says there can't be this much coincidence:

Rebecca/sailor's knots, tow rope - Adam/works on a tow boat

Rebecca/death between 1:00 - 3:00 a.m., police called 6:38 a.m. - Jonah/away from hospital from 1:00 - 7:00 a.m.



If Jonah was away from the hospital during the 1 -7 AM time frame, and he was staying at the Ronald MacDonald house, as stated, I am sure there were employees there that were aware of his comings and goings. Checks in are most probably mandatory. You sign in and get a sticker badge...that is the way I understand it.  Is there a way to find this info?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: AZSunny on September 22, 2011, 10:49:53 PM

http://www.cbs8.com/story/15520745/sheriff-launches-forensic-exam-of-zahaus-cell-phone-new-witnesses-accounts-reported

Sheriff launches forensic exam of Zahau’s cell phone; new witness accounts reported


(snip)  "We are now confirming information from a witness that there may have been a cry for help from a woman in the mansion around 11:30 p.m. the evening prior (to Zahau's death)," Bremner said. "So that's important in terms of the time of death and in terms of the surrounding circumstances."


Wow! That's long before any alleged phone call/voice mail message from Jonah about Max.



Wow is right. Are they saying that this is the same night  that she died, but one hour prior or more before they 'think' she took her life??


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on September 23, 2011, 12:47:10 AM
Good Evening Monkeys,

Just checking in to see if anything new had been found. I have a question about the Ronald McDonald house or rather a statement. I think when parents are staying at the house they have to sign in and out so they will know who is there.  I wonder if they even checked to find out. If that was my child I would not have left his side to go sleep.
Hi Darla,
When we stayed at the Ronald McDonald house in Galveston, we had to be there by a certain time (like by 11 pm) and then the doors were locked and no one could enter the house. You could leave, but you could not get back into the house till like 6 AM in the morning. We (the family) each had responsibilities assigned as well, like taking out the trash or sweeping a kitchen. When my son was badly hurt, I did not leave his bedside for a month. I slept on the floor, chair or anywhere else I could. Every day was a rollercoaster with him, but I couldn't even fathom leaving him for a second.
I don't understand the father leaving if he knew the child was dying. And the mother left for "12 hours" to get some sleep? I could understand maybe 6 or so hours but 12? Did a nurse give the parents false hope that the child had a chance of survival? Or are they really that detached? Also, I do not get why Dina's (the mom) twin sister Nina felt it was necessary to speak with Rebecca regarding the accident at 9 or 10 at night. It had to be obvious to her how Nina felt about Rebecca. Was she fishing for information for Dina? 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 23, 2011, 04:03:58 AM

http://www.cbs8.com/story/15520745/sheriff-launches-forensic-exam-of-zahaus-cell-phone-new-witnesses-accounts-reported

Sheriff launches forensic exam of Zahau’s cell phone; new witness accounts reported


(snip)  "We are now confirming information from a witness that there may have been a cry for help from a woman in the mansion around 11:30 p.m. the evening prior (to Zahau's death)," Bremner said. "So that's important in terms of the time of death and in terms of the surrounding circumstances."


Wow! That's long before any alleged phone call/voice mail message from Jonah about Max.



Wow is right. Are they saying that this is the same night  that she died, but one hour prior or more before they 'think' she took her life??

YES


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 23, 2011, 04:06:19 AM
http://www.azcentral.com/business/articles/2011/08/06/20110806shacknai-girlfriend-mystery-lingers.html#ixzz1YjXS45OI

Shacknai's girlfriend called full of life as answers lag


(snip)  Her name in her native Burmese was Springtime Beauty.

(snip)  "At first I thought he was her kid. He would hang on to her leg. The kid was really happy," Zahau's personal trainer, Scott Marquis, said. "He loved her. Totally loved her."



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 23, 2011, 06:00:21 AM


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fz69uA_WR58&NR=1

Video worth watching - Becky's sister Mary and her husband - talks about talking with Becky shortly before she died


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 23, 2011, 06:29:16 AM
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/adam-shacknai-polygrapher-recommended-another-lie-detector-test
Edit to fix link error.  MB

Adam Shacknai Polygrapher Recommended Another Lie Detector Test
(snip) "The test results from the polygraph that I gave Adam Shacknai were inconclusive, therefore, I wasn't able to form an analysis from the results of the polygraph test. Adam did not necessarily pass or fail the test. Whenever I deal with an inconclusive result, I always recommend a follow-up test. I have never been asked to do a follow-up test for Adam Shacknai.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 23, 2011, 02:47:22 PM
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/new-witness-mansion-deaths-says-they-heard-woman-scream-help-hours-cops-claim

New Witness In Mansion Deaths Says They Heard Woman 'Scream For Help' -- Hours Before Cops Claim Rebecca Zahau Committed Suicide

(snip)  "The witness contradicts the facts released by the sheriff's department," a source close to the the family's legal team told RadarOnline.com. "This individual, whose name is not being disclosed, was unequivocal about what they heard: a woman scream for help -- from inside the mansion -- at 11 pm PT"



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on September 23, 2011, 05:03:27 PM
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2040813/Rebecca-Zahau-Police-ignored-witness-heard-scream-Shacknai-mansion.html
Police 'ignored witness who heard scream for help from Shacknai mansion hours before Rebecca Zahau was found dead'



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 23, 2011, 08:30:56 PM
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/rebecca-zahau-witness-heard-screams-went-cops-blown

Rebecca Zahau Death Mystery: New Witness Went To Cops To Report 'Scream For Help', Was 'Blown Off'

(snip)  The witness went to law enforcement not once, but twice, but was blown off," a source close to the Zahau family told RadarOnline.com. "This witness is credible and their information has been verified, so one is left to wonder why police did not listen to this individual. The witness' information contradicts the theory released by the sheriff's department and questions the timeline, as police claimed. We are left asking, why was this person not taken seriously?"


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 23, 2011, 11:34:23 PM
http://www.cbs8.com/story/15538406/family-releases-200-pages-of-zahau-phone-records

Family attorney releases 200 pages of Zahau's phone records

(snip) An attorney representing the family of Rebecca Zahau has released more than 200 pages of phone records to News 8; records that were not obtained by law enforcement during its investigation of Zahau's death at the Spreckels mansion.

(snip)  The phone records show a flurry of text messages and phone calls in the 24 hours prior to Zahau's hanging; including 34 messages and calls to and from the phone of Jonah Shacknai; 20 contacts with her sister Mary Zahau-Loehner; 10 calls or texts involving Adam Shacknai; and 7 contacts with a phone owned by Jonah Shacknai's friend, Phoenix-based dermatologist Dr. Howard Luber.

There were three text messages and one phone call – all on July 12 – from phones registered to Jonah's father and step mother, Gideon and Marcelle Shacknai, who live in New York State.




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 23, 2011, 11:56:39 PM
http://www.cbs8.com/story/15538406/fami ... ne-records


There's a video at the link, too - about the release of hundreds of pages of Rebecca's phone records.

On the video, 2 differnet times, they show a picutre of Nina - twin sister of Dina - they look very similar, but not identical IMO


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 24, 2011, 03:49:33 AM
According to AR, Rebecca hung from the ground 26-1/2 in.
She was 5 ft. 3 in. tall or 63 in, which added to the 26-1/2 in. totals:  89-1/2 in.

Assuming Adam is 5 ft. 11 in. or 71 in.
Then he raised his arms,  extending up another 20 in., which added to the 71 in. totals: 91 in.

Adam could have reached the rope to cut Becky down without using the table.

Even if his height or arm inches varies a little bit, that could be regained by standing on his toes.
Seems like did not need to use the table to cut her down – hmmmm.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 24, 2011, 12:19:40 PM
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/rebecca-zahau-death-shoe-print-found-bedroom

Another Unexplained Shoe Print Found At Rebecca Zahau Crime Scene

(snip)  Dr. Maurice Godwin, a forensic expert hired by the Zahau family, told RadarOnline.com that a shoe impression on the carpet in the bedroom is unknown and may not have come from police but from someone else not yet identified.




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 24, 2011, 12:49:54 PM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Qmpnr3ZyRw&feature=youtu.be

Forensic expert examines Zahau case [CNN 9-08-2011]

Rope expert on Dr. Drew’s show



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 25, 2011, 01:48:07 PM
Article by Anne Bremner:

http://womenincrimeink.blogspot.com/2011/09/more-questions-than-answers-justice.html


Sept. 22, 2011

More Questions Than Answers - Justice Requires That Rebecca Zahau Case Be Reopened


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on September 25, 2011, 08:30:06 PM
New documents question whether Max Shacknai suffocated before fall

Posted: Sep 22, 2011 3:27 PM CDT Updated: Sep 23, 2011 8:07 AM CDT
By Matt Hamada

 ::snipping2::
According to the court records, investigators said a trauma doctor at the hospital where the 6-year-old was treated said the boy may have suffocated before falling from the banister.

According to the report, Jonah Shacknai's girlfriend, Rebecca Zahau, had been in the bathroom for about 10 minutes when she heard a crash. She then found the boy lying on the floor face down with a broken chandelier next to him. Rebecca yelled for her 13-year-old sister, Xena, to call 911. Maxfield was taken to the hospital.

In a follow-up investigation, Dr. Brad Peterson said after four days of medical testing, they could not determine the cause of a cardiac arrest suffered by Maxfield Shacknai.
 ::snipping2::
The search warrant goes on to say "Dr. Peterson did not feel the visible injuries were consistent with the cardiac arrest and brain swelling experienced by Shacknai. Dr. Peterson expressed concerns made based on the above factors, suffocation may have occurred prior to Shacknai's fall. Maxfield later died."
 ::snipping2::

http://www.kpho.com/story/15527429/new-search-warrant-suggests-maxfield-shacknai-suffocated-before-fall (http://www.kpho.com/story/15527429/new-search-warrant-suggests-maxfield-shacknai-suffocated-before-fall)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 25, 2011, 11:59:02 PM


http://coronado.patch.com/articles/suspect-arrested-in-sat-morning-assault

joe2
12:07pm on Sunday, September 25, 2011

Adam did NOT need the 28 inch, 3-leg wooden table in order to cut Rebecca down, as Roger proves in the following illustration, drawn according to specifics stated in Rebecca's autopsy report and based on Adam's approx height of 5 feet 8 inches. Check it out:

https://viewer.zoho.com/docs/f4x6h



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 26, 2011, 12:32:28 PM
http://www.bnet.com/blog/drug-business/medicis-settles-case-alleging-ceo-shacknai-cooked-the-books/9829

Medicis Settles Case Alleging CEO Shacknai Cooked the Books

September 26, 2011

(snip) Medicis‘ (MRX) $11 million settlement of a lawsuit alleging it cooked its books by channel-stuffing — claiming extra product was sold to customers when the company knew the unwanted stock would be sent back — understates the scale of the allegations against CEO Jonah Shacknai and COO Mark Prygocki.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 27, 2011, 01:26:45 AM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/09/26/rebecca-zahau-case-floorplans-and-yet-more-issues/


Rebecca Zahau case: Floorplans and yet more issues

Posted on September 26, 2011 by Valhall


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 27, 2011, 01:54:00 PM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/zahau-family-presses-for-new-probe-death-suicide-hanging-shacknai-mansion

Zahau Family Presses for New Probe

As Rebecca Zahau's loved ones prepare to submit new evidence to the state, her sister describes the initial investigation as sloppy and inadequate.

(snip)  That memory, Horwath said, was a small part of a nearly two-hour talk with a female detective who she now accuses of taking her words out of context to bolster the suicide finding.

(snip)  An expert who contends the condition of Zahau's remains indicate she could not have died in a hanging.




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Kimmy53 on September 27, 2011, 03:52:24 PM
I am very suspicious of Adam.  The polygraph - inconclusive.  Finding Rebecca - cutting her down and suposedly trying to resusatate her... I would bet, if the time of death was correct, that it was quite obvious Rebecca was dead.  Why would he cut her down?  He has experience with knots.  He texted Jonah that Rebecca was dead.  Who does this?  Jonah was going thru a very difficult time.  You would think he would at the very least break this kind of news in person, knowing Max's condition was grave.  He left town IMO pretty quickly. 

Did he return for the funeral for Max?  He cared enough to fly out to CA, but with all this going on, he didn't stay or come back as far as I know, to support his brother?

I just don;t know what to think - but I am convinced this is not suicide...all IMO


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 28, 2011, 06:45:58 AM
I am very suspicious of Adam.  The polygraph - inconclusive.  Finding Rebecca - cutting her down and suposedly trying to resusatate her... I would bet, if the time of death was correct, that it was quite obvious Rebecca was dead.  Why would he cut her down?  He has experience with knots.  He texted Jonah that Rebecca was dead.  Who does this?  Jonah was going thru a very difficult time.  You would think he would at the very least break this kind of news in person, knowing Max's condition was grave.  He left town IMO pretty quickly. 

Did he return for the funeral for Max?  He cared enough to fly out to CA, but with all this going on, he didn't stay or come back as far as I know, to support his brother?

I just don;t know what to think - but I am convinced this is not suicide...all IMO

Actually, Adam I believe stayed in CA until Max's funeral, which he attended.  We're just not sure when he left afterwards.

IMO Adam cut Becky down, pulled the gag out of her mouth and loosened the rope on her wrists - all - to explain any of his DNA that LE might find of his.

It's possible that Becky was dead before the time of death was set because Anne Bremner now has a witness that has been checked out and verified that heard a female cry for help from the mansion around 11:30 p.m. that night - and the screams were reported to LE TWICE.  Official reports indicate that Becky was cold to the touch and in rigor - IMO - Adam did not attempt CPR.

Adam's LDT was inconclusive - in other cases, people who have inconclusive answers have "assumed" to be lying and have been blistered for months and months.  We know that drugs can skew the reactions on a LDT and make it inconclusive.  Also, the polygrapher advised LE to have another LDT taken but LE said that the polygrapher "thought"  Adam was being truthful so LE announced to the public that Adam "passed" his LDT.  LE lied.

Jonah - repeatedly told one story about where he was that night and then changed his story; LE told the public over-and-over that Jonah "was by Max's beside" during the night that Becky died and was found.  The recent search warrants that were "unsealed" clearly reveal that Jonah wasn't even in the hospital at all that night from 1:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m.  More lies.



 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 28, 2011, 06:49:56 AM
Another point:  Adam admits loosening the rope around the wrists before LE arrived.  Yet the ME/LE makes a determination that the rope was loose and Becky could have moved her hand in and out of the ropes to secure it behind her back.

I just think this is egregious - HOW in the world could everyone buy that story when Adam admitted messing with the rope - in other words, how could there be any integrity to a decison about her moving a hand in and out of the rope - there's NO way to "know" how the rope was "originally".



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 28, 2011, 06:51:37 AM
Another point about integrity:  LE put out a video of a woman showing how Becky could have tied the rope around her wrists; however, the rope used by LE for the video is larger and more pliable than the rope used on Becky.  How can anyone view LE's video with integrity when they haven't even use the "same type of rope"?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Kimmy53 on September 28, 2011, 01:25:38 PM
Another point about integrity:  LE put out a video of a woman showing how Becky could have tied the rope around her wrists; however, the rope used by LE for the video is larger and more pliable than the rope used on Becky.  How can anyone view LE's video with integrity when they haven't even use the "same type of rope"?

There are so many things, the list would be very long of the things that were "far reaching" to make  a theory work.

There are too many assumptions made by LE.. WHY? 



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on September 29, 2011, 08:58:26 PM
Puzzler~ Thank you so much for keeping this in the forefront with updates. You bring up some very good questions. I hope someone else who is not looking to impress Mr Shacknai can prove what the majority of us know, that this case is......a homicide! (JMO)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 30, 2011, 06:46:09 PM
cartfly - you're welcome

this case is a mess and I hope Bremner can get the CA AG to order and independent investigation

last I understood is that Bremner is still trying to get complete investigative information from the San Diego Sheriff's Office


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 30, 2011, 07:09:59 PM

LE trying to answer all the questions brought up by the family and Bremner - says they think the cry for help was "kids on the beach"

http://coronado.patch.com/articles/today-show-features-zahau-case#comments

'Today’ Show Features Zahau Case

(snip)  The 9-minute segment included a taped portion featuring Sgt. Dave Nemeth of the San Diego County Sheriff's Department. Nemeth said what the alleged witnesses may have heard “was unrelated to what happened in the mansion.”


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 01, 2011, 10:16:58 AM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/10/01/rebecca-zahau-case-worth-a-thousand-words/

Rebecca Zahau case: Worth a thousand words
Posted on October 1, 2011 by Valhall



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 03, 2011, 12:07:26 AM
We hear that the message written on the door inside the mansion was in block letters and that Becky's family says she didn't write like that.....now....attached is a link to Medicis Annual Report....please open it and scroll to page five....look at the signature on page 5, how it's written and who it is:

http://www.medicis.com/company/AR09.pdf




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on October 03, 2011, 12:34:33 AM
We hear that the message written on the door inside the mansion was in block letters and that Becky's family says she didn't write like that.....now....attached is a link to Medicis Annual Report....please open it and scroll to page five....look at the signature on page 5, how it's written and who it is:

http://www.medicis.com/company/AR09.pdf


http://www.medicis.com/company/AR09.pdf

Page 5

 ::snipping2::

(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b258/texasmom55/10022011.jpg)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on October 03, 2011, 12:41:51 AM
You're doing great work here Puzzler!  ::MonkeyCool::

Thank you for all the thought provoking information you've posted, hopefully there will be justice in this case.

 ::MonkeyGavel:: ::justice2NJ::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 03, 2011, 08:09:01 PM
You're doing great work here Puzzler!  ::MonkeyCool::

Thank you for all the thought provoking information you've posted, hopefully there will be justice in this case.

 ::MonkeyGavel:: ::justice2NJ::

Texasmom - you're welcome.

Thank you for posting that "signature" hear (I don't know how to do that)....isn't it very interesting!?!?!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 03, 2011, 08:11:07 PM
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/10/rebecca-zahau-family-not-received-evidence-about-her-death-cops


Rebecca Zahau's Family Still Hasn't Received Evidence About Her Death From Cops


Posted on Oct 03, 2011

(snip)   The San Diego County Sheriff's Department still hasn't turned evidence in the Rebecca Zahau death case over to her grieving family, RadarOnline.com is exclusively reporting.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 05, 2011, 12:24:54 AM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/10/04/rebecca-zahau-case-a-dynamic-loading-analysis-of-the-fall/

Rebecca Zahau case: A Dynamic Loading Analysis of the Fall

Posted on October 4, 2011 by Valhall


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on October 05, 2011, 08:44:27 AM
Thank you for all the interesting information, Puzzler.   I believe Max and Rebecca's deaths  both are very suspicious and I don't know what it's going to take, but they need to be investigated again.  JMHO


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 05, 2011, 11:34:25 PM
Thank you for all the interesting information, Puzzler.   I believe Max and Rebecca's deaths  both are very suspicious and I don't know what it's going to take, but they need to be investigated again.  JMHO

Muffbee - TY

Yes - an "independent" investigation is what is needed.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 05, 2011, 11:39:33 PM
BBM below - I guess we'll eventually find out what "very soon" means to LE.

http://www.10news.com/news/29400834/detail.html

Investigators Finish 2nd Review Of Zahau Cellphone

Extended Probe Does Not Uncover New Information, Investigators Say
October 5, 2011

Nesbitt told 10News investigators initially conducted a manual search of Zahau's phone, a Samsung Focus, but new technology was used in the latest review to closely examine anything the phone's contents might reveal.

"We have received no new information," Nesbitt said. "We are willing to receive any new information, but we have not."

Nesbitt said investigators finished their reports and will eventually give the phone back to the Zahau family very soon.




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 06, 2011, 07:09:23 AM
http://www.cbs8.com/story/15628858/sheriff-to-release-cell-phone-and-case-files-to-zahau-family-attorney

Sheriff to release cell phone and case files to Zahau family attorney
October 6, 2011

(snip)  Lt. Nesbit said the intact cell phone and other items belonging to the victim will be returned "in about one week" to the Zahau family attorney, Anne Bremner. The Seattle-based lawyer wants the cell phone and evidence in the case turned over as soon as possible.

"We going to do everything we can to investigate and have the phone forensically examined," Bremner said.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: tcumom on October 06, 2011, 07:53:52 AM
We hear that the message written on the door inside the mansion was in block letters and that Becky's family says she didn't write like that.....now....attached is a link to Medicis Annual Report....please open it and scroll to page five....look at the signature on page 5, how it's written and who it is:

http://www.medicis.com/company/AR09.pdf

oh, my.  How very interesting.

I haven't checked in here for a few days. 

Saw you were on the forum this morning, and was hoping you'd be over here.....thanks, as always, for your wonderful work on this thread.  ::MonkeyKiss::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 06, 2011, 11:59:16 AM
We hear that the message written on the door inside the mansion was in block letters and that Becky's family says she didn't write like that.....now....attached is a link to Medicis Annual Report....please open it and scroll to page five....look at the signature on page 5, how it's written and who it is:

http://www.medicis.com/company/AR09.pdf

oh, my.  How very interesting.

I haven't checked in here for a few days. 

Saw you were on the forum this morning, and was hoping you'd be over here.....thanks, as always, for your wonderful work on this thread.  ::MonkeyKiss::

Thank you.  Did you get a chance to read the latest: LE is now saying that Becky's things will be returned to the parents "soon".

That's progress and then Bremner can review all the LE investigative files, too.

However, it still makes one wonder....why soon...the parents have just been requesting these items for over a month now and the case is closed...why soon...why not now?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 07, 2011, 12:18:45 AM
Very interesting post from Coronado Patch - if true about the curfew for minors on the beach (and it probably is), the it would seem that LE has been remiss....yet again....wrt the witness reporting hearing a cry for help around 11:30 p.m.

BBL
 
12:15pm on Thursday, October 6, 2011

http://coronado.patch.com/articles/coro ... overturned

Coronado has a curfew for minors (under 18). It is from 11pm until 5am. For the police to dismiss the witness account of screams to be "teens on the beach" means that they were not doing their job of enforcing curfew. I find that unlikely because history shows that the Coronado police love to patrol the beach/fire pits and love to enforce the curfew. Absolutely does not make sense that the police immediately dismiss the witness hearing screams because they should be aware of the curfew. Just something to think about.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 09, 2011, 06:44:12 PM
http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2e4f9p/www.examiner.com/news-analysis-in-national/police-release-second-review-of-rebecca-zahau-cell-phone-records

Police release second review of Rebecca Zahau cell phone records

October 8, 2011


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on October 09, 2011, 11:37:16 PM
Wow Puzzler!! Thanks so much for the updates! By the way I just love your dancing Snoopy, he makes me feel happy when I see him, lol :) Again, thank you for all of the interesting updates. ::MonkeyAngel::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 11, 2011, 01:35:07 AM
Wow Puzzler!! Thanks so much for the updates! By the way I just love your dancing Snoopy, he makes me feel happy when I see him, lol :) Again, thank you for all of the interesting updates. ::MonkeyAngel::

You're welcome. 

I think Snoopy's cute, too.  Thanks.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 11, 2011, 01:35:30 AM
New article by Valhall:

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/10/10/rebecca-zahau-case-the-t-shirt/

Rebecca Zahau case: The T-shirt
Posted on October 10, 2011 by Valhall



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 11, 2011, 01:36:26 AM
Another new article by Valhall:

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/10/10/rebecca-zahau-case-attempting-the-impossible/

Rebecca Zahau case: Attempting the impossible
Posted on October 10, 2011 by Valhall




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 12, 2011, 04:51:09 AM
One more new blog article by Valhall:

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/10/11/rebecca-zahau-case-the-gag-another-impossibility/

Rebecca Zahau case: The Gag, another impossibility

Posted on October 11, 2011 by Valhall


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 12, 2011, 11:30:47 PM
http://www.writing-world.com/mystery/suicide.shtml

Murder or Suicide? How You (and Your Detective) Can Tell the Difference

(snip) Hanging

While accidental hanging is rare, and homicidal hanging is even rarer, hanging is the third most common form of suicide and accounts for 16% of all male, and 13% of all female suicides. Most people who commit suicide by hanging, jump from a chair or a ladder, choking to death slowly. Rarely is the neck broken. In order to break a neck, a drop of six feet or more is required, which rarely happens except in execution hanging.

Hanging, whether done with rope, an electrical cord or a belt, always leaves an inverted V bruise, and is easy to tell from ligature strangulation (murder), which leaves a straight-line bruise. Hanging compresses the veins, but arterial blood flow continues, causing small bleeding sites on the lips, inside the mouth and on the eyelids. As with ligature strangulation, the face and neck are congested with blood and become dark red.

Ligature strangulations are almost always homicide and the victims are almost always women. Often the murderer uses more force than necessary to kill the victim, causing deep bruises and abrasions around the neck. The victim will usually struggle, which results in damage to both the interior and exterior structures of the neck and throat.






Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Monkey King on October 13, 2011, 02:37:05 AM
Rebecca's Autopsy Report

http://www.scribd.com/doc/64114521/Reports
Page 4, bottom paragraph

Why does he say Carlsbad Police Dept instead of Coronado Police Dept?   ::MonkeyEek::

Here, the ME states, he viewed the guest room from outside the bedroom door.

Was not the painting on the door OUTSIDE the ROOM- facing the hallway?   ::MonkeyShocked::

Wouldn't he potentially be contaiminating potential evidence- by standing in that spot? Footprints, shoeprints, trace evidence?

WHY was the ME permitted anywhere IN that house until the scene was processed since SDSO was in charge of the scene? 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 13, 2011, 02:38:48 AM
Rebecca's Autopsy Report

http://www.scribd.com/doc/64114521/Reports
Page 4, bottom paragraph

Why does he say Carlsbad Police Dept instead of Coronado Police Dept?   ::MonkeyEek::

Here, the ME states, he viewed the guest room from outside the bedroom door.

Was not the painting on the door OUTSIDE the ROOM- facing the hallway?   ::MonkeyShocked::

Wouldn't he potentially be contaiminating potential evidence- by standing in that spot? Footprints, shoeprints, trace evidence?

WHY was the ME permitted anywhere IN that house until the scene was processed since SDSO was in charge of the scene? 


Ah...yes...because the "towel" and "red spot" were out in the hallway, just outside the bedroom doorway.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 16, 2011, 05:01:34 AM





http://blog.eyesforlies.com/2011/09/rebecca-zahau-suicide-or-murder.html

Rebecca Zahau: Suicide or Murder?
by Eyes at 11:18 PM

Video: Dr. Drew, Mary (RZ's sister) and other experts




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 18, 2011, 02:24:03 AM
I’ve made a point before about LE’s integrity with the rope tying video they released to the public. It bothers me how badly they manipulated even the “rope” to fit their scenario, so I’m still on that trail. The rope in the video is much larger than the actual rope. The Autopsy Report, page 10, BINDINGS/LIGATURE states that the reddish-orange, braided, synthetic rope is 7/16”.

The original rope used is actually “small” and it’s easy to see how it would have done a lot of damage to the neck muscles. The 7/16” rope is a little bit larger than half the width of a dime; whereas, the rope in LE’s video is larger and softer.

The second link below shows the rope that LE used and, if you scroll down, there’s the video LE made. You can see how easily the woman whips this rope around. IMO, the actual rope used with the plastic coating would stiffer and smaller to grab and not be that easy to maneuver. Picture the size of the rope used on RZ as a little more than half the width of a dime and decide for yourself if LE’s video is above board or is manipulative and without integrity.

Autopsy Report: http://www.thehinkymeter.com/Library/RZ/rzautopsy.pdf

LE rope tying video: http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/09/rebecca-zahau-suicide-reenactment-video-woman-was-police-officer



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 18, 2011, 02:26:24 AM
I'm bringing over this excellent post by Perspective on The Hinky Meter.
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=57&t=1369&start=350

What happened? Could she have been subdued in another area and drug across the lawn before her wrists were bound behind her?
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/Library/RZ/rzautopsy.pdf

Check out page 11


Perspective wrote:

.............................THE BACK AND ARMS..................................
The AR continues to amaze me in it's revelations.
Here is all he has to say about external injuries (other than neck) in the OPINION part of the AR.
"Scattered superficial abrasion on her back and legs appeared consistent with impact with large plants under the balcony."
That's it. Nothing about the head, face, or under the bindings.

But I decided to see if the torso injuries back up what he says.

There are hardly any marks on her front. You would expect some on the shoulders as she went hurdling into the little sapling (the only plant that could inflict injuries, even though it is on the wrong side). But only one on one shoulder. Now to the back, where we find a bonanza:

"There are many punctate, linear, and slightly irregular abrasions on the back, extending from the neck to the mid buttocks and from each side of the back to the other." Writes Dr Lucas.

So the back is a mess. But surely not under where the bound arms and hands protect the back?

Wrong.

Writing of injuries he says there are "groups across the lower lumbar back at the upper buttocks..."

So in that case the arms and hands must be really tore up, since it is obvious that her back went into the tree and her bound arms were farther back than her back was.

WRONG AGAIN!

Let me describe the injuries: There are a few on the right hand, but, from the hand up, the whole right arm, there is "a 1/8 inch faint, pale red abrasion" on the elbow.
Now the entire left arm: a 1/8 inch mark on the forearm and a 1/8 inch abrasion on one finger.
That,s it folks. No more. Now how do you explain that?



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 19, 2011, 02:38:05 AM
The AR for Rebecca doesn't indicate that the ME took any samples for testing of the dirt on the feet and of the apparant dirt on RZ's thigh. How can the ME make the leap that, therefore, it must be from the balcony and then leap to, therefore, RZ committed suicide?

Does this sound like a "credible" thought process for a trained ME?

Subsequently, in the AR, the ME does indicate that all of this has been washed away. The end.

UNLESS, LE did take samples for testing of the dirt on RZ's feet and thigh and on the dirt on the balcony. The ME made no indication of that being done either. Based on what we know of LE's investigation, I'm doubtful that any samples of dirt were taken for testing.

IMO, it's just as reasonable a leap that RZ could have gotten that dirt from walking or running on the ground outside or on the large lanai outside (ditto for the thigh if she fell down or brushed against that teak table), which would have basically the same dust componets as the balcony.

EXCEPT for something important....the test of dust on the balcony might very well have shown flecks of paint and rust from the balcony. If so, would have been an important comparison to have made with the dust on RZ's feet.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 20, 2011, 02:14:17 AM
http://twitter.com/#!/annembremner (http://twitter.com/#!/annembremner) Edit/hyperlinking MB

annembremnerAnne Bremner
Several of you have been wondering how the Rebecca Zahau case is progressing. Over a month ago we were told we... http://fb.me/PKik0MSi
11 hours ago


http://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=296567563689700&id=179843258695465

Anne Bremner
Several of you have been wondering how the Rebecca Zahau case is progressing. Over a month ago we were told we would get the police reports in 7-10 days. We have received nothing! We need those to make our request for an independent investigation to the AG.

Andrea D Brower Anne: That's not right why are they not producing the info you and family need, and can you supeanea them to?  10 hours ago

Anne Bremner We may have to take action. This is so upsetting to Rebecca's family. They just want answers. There are so many unanswered questions.  about an hour ago

Andrea D Brower Do you think there has been a "payoff" that is why the police are so adamnt about her death being a suicide,and not wanting to open investigation? Her husband was a millionare...just seems like someone is intentionally keeping the truth to be told, I know that's reaching a bit.....just seems to fit tho...about an hour ago


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 20, 2011, 02:19:06 AM
Bremner said this evening on her Facebook account that they have "received nothing" from LE.

Without those reports, she cannot make a request to the CA AG.

IMO, more of LE's obfuscation and manipulation of the public by way of announcing publicly that they would be turning over the records soon...in about a week...and then they don't do as they said.

The "Digust Meter" remains pegged out!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 21, 2011, 10:05:56 AM
This comment was just posted on Anne Bremner’s Facebook.

Priscilla Goslin Anne, there are literally THOUSANDS of wondering, if not more. What happened to the CA Open Records Act??
25 minutes ago

http://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=296567563689700&id=179843258695465


QUESTION: Does anyone know “if” CA does in fact have an “Open Records Act”?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 21, 2011, 10:10:50 AM
New article at The Hinky Meter

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/10/21/rebecca-zahau-case-so-whats-the-hold-up/

Rebecca Zahau case: So what’s the hold up?

Posted on October 21, 2011 by Valhall



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 21, 2011, 10:24:09 AM
CA Open Records Act



http://www.harp.org/og/cpra.htm


http://www.thefirstamendment.org/publicrecordsact.pdf


The Public Records Act is designed to give the
public access to information in possession of
public agencies: "public records are open to
inspection at all times during the office hours of
the…agency and every person has a right to
inspect any public record, except as . . . provided,
[and to receive] an exact copy” of an
identifiable record unless impracticable. (§
6253). Specific exceptions to disclosure are
listed in sections 6253.2, 6253.5, 6253.6, 6254,
6254.1-6254.22, 6255, 6267, 6268, 6276.02-
6276.48; to ensure maximum access, they are
read narrowly. The agency always bears the
burden of justifying nondisclosure, and "any
reasonably segregable portion . . . shall be
available for inspection…after deletion of the
portions which are exempt." (§ 6253(a))



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 24, 2011, 04:47:47 PM
The other night I was watching Mystery Theatre. In a portion of the movie, there was a scene where a woman was found hanging in a church. A detective is watching the ME examine the woman’s throat and the ME said: it doesn’t appear to be a homicide because there is “not” a thin ligature from strangulation under the ligature from hanging.

Stunning! I replayed that portion to make sure I heard it right…because…it reminded me so much of what was going on with RZ’s death.

RZ Autopsy Report: http://www.scribd.com/doc/64114521/Reports

Page 9 HEAD AND NECK: paragraph 3

There is a ligature furrow encircling the neck. It is generally horizontally oriented and of a relatively uniform width at 1/2 inch (ranging from 3/8 to 3/4 inch), on the left side of the neck and posterior neck and right side of the neck, the ligature courses upwards towards an apex between the right earlobe and the right angle of the mandible, although the apex itself is not visible. It is moderately deep, dried, and reddish-brown. Posteriorly, there is a parallel, thin, red line situated 1/8 inch below the dried ligature furrow for a distance of 2-1/2 inches and separated from it by an area of pallor.


Cynic’s posting on Websleuths – 9/16/2011, 3:09 AM http://websleuths.com/forums/showthread ... 933&page=3

Scroll down to first picture – Cynic indicates his visual aid should give a reasonable approximation of what is being described in the autopsy report.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 24, 2011, 07:19:50 PM
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2 ... hil-paying

Dr. Phil Paying For Rebecca Zahau's Body To Be Exhumed

(snips)

Rebecca Zahau's body is going to be exhumed and Dr. Phil is paying for the procedure, RadarOnline.com has exclusively learned.

As RadarOnline.com has exclusively reported, Rebecca's family does not believe she committed suicide and have insisted that she was murdered, and now Dr. Phil McGraw is going to have her body exhumed from her grave in Missouri and retested for any more evidence of foul play.

He will air the results on his show during the November sweeps season.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 26, 2011, 08:54:58 AM
Valhall has posted a new blog article:

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/10/26/rebecca-zahau-case-so-what-was-the-back-story/

Rebecca Zahau case: So what was the back story?

Posted on October 26, 2011 by Valhall


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 26, 2011, 09:36:33 AM
IMO, the actions of LE are totally disgusting and completely unprofessional. I hold a glimmer of hope in my heart that someone involved in the investigation can't live with how it was conducted and is surreptitiously informing Anne Bremner and pointing items of concern.

I question the early appearance of Pfingst.  As a 2-term former D.A., he "knew" he would be turned away from the death scene; however, he made his presence known anyway. I think there is more to that appearance; like an unspoken word type of thing.

Also, I question not just the LE but the ME. The ME wrote in his AR words to the effect that Rebecca tied the rope around her wrists loosely so she could get in and out of them and, therefore, she committed suicide. That was the ME's conclusion. We know that Adam told LE that he loosened that rope around the wrists. The ME, IMO, was totally wrong in his conclusion as to what happened.

How egregious and blatant can LE be? Here's the answer: LE knew Adam said he loosened the rope on Rebecca's wrist, yet they produced an elaborate video based on the ME's incorrect conclusion, even without using the same type and size of rope that was found at the death scene. LE showed their blatantly, egregious concept to the world as though "this is what happened"....even though they "knew" what Adam said.

This is so wrong that it must not be left alone. We can't allow law enforcement and medical examiners so arrogantly work their own agendas and it not be brought out into the sunshine. These are people that the public pays their salaries and pay for their honest expertise. Folks like this can't be left to paint the public's minds with such dishonesty and with such fervor - they keep insisting they're right, when it's obvious even to regular folks that the lies by LE are proven and, yet, LE arrogantly maintains them.

There must be justice for the family and, at this point, for the public.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on October 26, 2011, 03:46:50 PM
Thanks for all of the updates Puzzler! ::MonkeyAngel::

Here is another regarding the radar online article:

Body of hanging victim Rebecca Zahau to be exhumed

Posted: Oct 26, 2011 9:23 AM CDT Updated: Oct 26, 2011 9:23 AM CDT
Posted by Steve Stout

 ::snipping2::
SAN DIEGO (AP) -

The family of a woman who was found hanged in a San Diego mansion say they'll exhume her body for more testing and the findings will be aired on the "Dr. Phil" TV show in the future.

Relatives of Rebecca Zahau don't accept the medical examiner's conclusion that she committed suicide in July at the Coronado home.

The San Diego Union-Tribune quotes a family statement as saying a public donation fund will pay for the exhumation and a second autopsy.

 http://www.kpho.com/story/15879231/body-of-san-diego-hanging-victim-to-be-exhumed (http://www.kpho.com/story/15879231/body-of-san-diego-hanging-victim-to-be-exhumed)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 27, 2011, 11:28:52 AM
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2011/10/rebecca-zahau-investigation-forensic-expert-forced-case

Renowned Forensic Expert 'Forced Off' Rebecca Zahau Death Investigation

(snip)   Forensic expert Dr. Maurice Godwin, who was hired by Rebecca Zahau's family after the San Diego Sheriff's Department ruled her death a suicide, is no longer working with the family, and the renowned expert thinks Dr. Phil is the reason he was let go from the investigation, RadarOnline.com is exclusively reporting.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 27, 2011, 12:28:46 PM
Just heard on Fox News that RZ's autopsy will be performed tomorrow in Pittsburg.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Kimmy53 on October 27, 2011, 12:48:19 PM
Just heard on Fox News that RZ's autopsy will be performed tomorrow in Pittsburg.

This is all great news.  I don't really care for Dr. Phil, but if this helps re-open this case, I say go for it.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on October 27, 2011, 07:54:53 PM
http://abcnews.go.com/US/coronado-mansion-suicide-rushed-judgment-dr-cyril-wecht/story?id=14821376
Coronado Mansion Suicide Was 'Rushed to Judgment,' Says Dr. Cyril Wecht
October 27, 2011

When Rebecca Zahau's death in a Coronado, Calif., mansion was ruled a suicide investigators may have "rushed to judgment," according to a prominent forensic pathologist who will conduct a second autopsy on the woman Friday.

Zahau's body has been exhumed and will be examined by Dr. Cyril Wecht, the 80-year-old forensic pathologist who has weighed in on high-profile deaths such as the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the O.J. Simpson trial, and the JonBenet Ramsey case.

The fresh autopsy on Zahau's body will take place Friday in Pittsburgh, Pa., Wecht told ABCNews.com today.

 ::snipping2::
Zahau's family, which has repeatedly expressed frustration that investigators ruled her death a suicide, exhumed Zahau's body from a cemetery in St. Joseph, Mo., and transported it to Pennsylvania for the independent autopsy which should be finished in one and a half weeks, Wecht said.

"The first autopsy was quite thorough. I have not criticized the autopsy, I have raised questions with the haste with which they rushed to judgment regarding the manner of death," Wecht told ABCNews.com.

He added that he doesn't dispute hanging as the cause of death, but when investigators determined Zahau killed herself, he said, "I thought they concluded that too rapidly."

The family plans to discuss Wecht's findings with TV show host Dr. Phil McGraw next month, Zahau's sister, Snowem Horwath, told ABCNews.com.
 ::snipping2::
Was Zahau an Assault Victim?
Dr. James Lauridson, an Alabama forensic consultant who has done autopsies on 10 exhumed bodies during his career, said even though Zahau has been buried since July, the second autopsy could provide additional evidence about Zahau's death.

"At this point, what the second autopsy is going to add is a further delineation of injuries, primarily to the limbs and tissues of the skin and muscles," said Lauridson, who has 25 years of experience as a forensic pathologist. "Looking at the timing of those injuries and the distribution of those injuries may suggest there is more than one person involved in this, or that this amounted to an assault."

He described the case as "highly suspicious," especially because bodies are usually found hanging a short distance from where they were anchored. The rope around Zahau's neck, however, was 9 feet, 2 inches long.

"A long-drop hanging is just like, wow -- I personally have never seen a suicide do a long drop," he said.
After reviewing Zahau's first autopsy, Lauridson noted the only tissues that appeared to have been examined under the microscope were from her heart, liver and an endometrial polyp.

"None of those have anything to do with the death here," he said.

In a typical suicide, Lauridson added, a detailed tissue analysis isn't necessary. But because this is an unusual case, such an examination could prove crucial.

"It appears to me there's a possibility of detecting more injuries. For example, the binding of the hands, the binding of the feet -- she also had a gag in her mouth. I've got to wonder about all of that," said Lauridson. "Occasionally, an extensive dissection of the tissues under the skin and muscles will reveal injuries that are not apparent from just a visual inspection of the intact body."

It's also possible to investigate whether or not all of Zahau's injuries were fresh or if some of them had been inflicted earlier, he added.

Although Zahau has been buried since July, embalming fluid has preserved the body, which would allow an investigator to reexamine the tissues.
 ::snipping2::
Family Arranges for Second Zahau Autopsy

Exhuming a body and transporting it from Missouri to Pennsylvania could cost up to $10,000, Lauridson said.

Zahau's sister, Snowem Horwath, told ABCNews.com the family paid for the exhumation "through the generosity of others," and that Wecht has "donated his services."

His usual fee for private autopsies is $500 an hour, according to the New York Times.

The family has also set up a website where people can donate to their ongoing investigation into Zahau's death.
More...


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 27, 2011, 09:05:31 PM
Dr. Baden is good; however, I feel he does not know enough about the case to make some of his statements (specifically, the ropes – sounds like he doesn’t realize Adam loosened the rope and he said that she had dirt on her feet that matched the dirt on the balcony and there was no testing indicated to make that determination).

http://video.foxnews.com/v/1244218836001/new-autopsy-to-be-performed-in-mysterious-mansion-hanging/

New Autopsy to Be Performed in Mysterious Mansion Hanging

Oct 27, 2011  What will exhumation of Rebecca Zahau's body reveal?

Video – with Dr. Baden and Forensic Drawing


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on October 27, 2011, 09:35:31 PM
Dr. Baden is good; however, I feel he does not know enough about the case to make some of his statements (specifically, the ropes – sounds like he doesn’t realize Adam loosened the rope and he said that she had dirt on her feet that matched the dirt on the balcony and there was no testing indicated to make that determination).

http://video.foxnews.com/v/1244218836001/new-autopsy-to-be-performed-in-mysterious-mansion-hanging/

New Autopsy to Be Performed in Mysterious Mansion Hanging

Oct 27, 2011  What will exhumation of Rebecca Zahau's body reveal?

Video – with Dr. Baden and Forensic Drawing


I understand what you're saying, because I've seen other cases where the person discussing the case may be skilled and has a lot of experience , but sometimes they just haven't followed the case enough to know the intricacies and details involved.  They try to give their opinion but haven't done their homework. 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 28, 2011, 06:07:43 PM
2nd autopsy completed on San Diego hanging victim

(snip)
SAN DIEGO (AP) — A pathologist hired by the family of a hanging victim at a San Diego-area mansion has completed a new autopsy on the body.

Pennsylvania pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht said after his examination Friday that he will correlate his findings with the original autopsy report and police reports before making his own conclusion. He expects that will take a week or so.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jgSsmT3XeByAICizrNh1ShEvGyHw?docId=46627246e47948f4afa04b348e8c578c



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on October 31, 2011, 05:28:59 PM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/spreckels-mansion-has-been-sold-zahau-shacknai-suicide-investigation


Spreckels Mansion Has Been Sold

An investment group has bought the property, the focus of public curiosity since the deaths of homeowner Jonah Shacknai's girlfriend, Rebecca Zahau, and son in July.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: tcumom on October 31, 2011, 06:00:59 PM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/spreckels-mansion-has-been-sold-zahau-shacknai-suicide-investigation


Spreckels Mansion Has Been Sold

An investment group has bought the property, the focus of public curiosity since the deaths of homeowner Jonah Shacknai's girlfriend, Rebecca Zahau, and son in July.


Isn't that convenient .  Especially with the slow housing market in California .    cough cough . ::MonkeyNoNo::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 01, 2011, 06:40:39 PM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/spreckels-mansion-has-been-sold-zahau-shacknai-suicide-investigation


Spreckels Mansion: For Sale, Again



(snip)

The investment group behind the purchase, said real estate agent Scott Aurich, does not plan to hold on to the mansion, but will list it for sale for $14.5 million by Wednesday or Thursday.


Aurich would not disclose how much the investors paid Shacknai for the residence, but he said the deal has been in the works for about two weeks.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 01, 2011, 08:47:47 PM
http://www.cbs8.com/story/15928565/news-8-reenacts-the-coronado-mansion-mystery

Exclusive: News 8 reenacts the Coronado mansion mystery


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 01, 2011, 08:59:54 PM
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/news/kswb-zahau-attorney-releases-first-details-of-police-report-20111101,0,526310.story

Zahau attorney releases first details of police report


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 02, 2011, 01:13:53 PM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/11/02/rebecca-zahau-case-bremner-receives-files-romano-at-mansion/

Rebecca Zahau case: Bremner receives files, Romano at mansion?

Posted on November 2, 2011 by Valhall


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on November 02, 2011, 02:06:12 PM
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2011-11-02/suicide-mansion-sale/51041750/1
CEO's Calif. mansion where girlfriend, son died is sold
November 2, 2011

PHOENIX, Ariz. – Medicis CEO Jonah Shacknai has sold his Coronado, Calif., mansion to a group of investors three months after the high-profile hanging death of his girlfriend there this summer.
The buyer is an investment group, 1043 Ocean LLC, that intends to remodel and resell the historic Spreckels mansion located in an exclusive beachfront neighborhood, according to Scott Aurich, a real-estate agent with Pacific Sotheby's International Realty.

Aurich did not disclose the sales price or the names of the investors.

Shacknai hasn't returned to the 12,750-square-foot summer home since his girlfriend, Rebecca Zahau, was found dead July 13, hanging nude from a second-story balcony with a rope around her neck. Zahau's death came two days after Shacknai's son, Max, was gravely injured from a fall there while under Zahau's care. Max died later that week at a San Diego hospital.

"He has not come back to the house nor plans to come back to the house," said Aurich, adding that somebody else already has removed Shacknai's personal belongings from the mansion.
 ::snipping2::
Aurich said Shacknai purchased the 12-bedroom, 11-bathroom mansion in 2007 for $12.75 million. The sprawling home, built for prominent San Diego businessman and philanthropist John D. Spreckels in the early 1900s, is now listed by 1043 Ocean LLC for $14.5 million.

Aurich said that the home's historical appeal and prime location should trump any lingering concerns a buyer may have over the tragic events that occurred there.

"I don't see it (deaths) as an asset, but I don't see it as a huge impediment. It is the most spectacular location in Coronado," Aurich said.

Under California law, a home seller must disclose deaths that occurred on the property over the past three years. The one exception is individuals who died from complications from AIDS.

Holly Mabery, 2012 president of the Arizona Association of Realtors and an associate real-estate broker with Keller Williams Check Realty in Sedona, said that unlike California, Arizona does not require sellers to disclose a recent death in the home.

Still, Mabery said knowledge of a recent death can be a significant issue to some buyers, depending on their religious beliefs, and that full disclosure of such an event is considered good practice.

The impact of a high-profile death on the ability to sell a home depends on the quality and location of the home, she said.

"In a mansion on Coronado Island, it's not really going to affect the value," Mabery said.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 02, 2011, 11:19:18 PM
http://www.cbs8.com/story/15940480/mansion-mystery-news-8-reenactment-reveals-new-questions

Mansion mystery: News 8 reenactment reveals new questions
Updated:Nov 02, 2011 9:09 PM EDT

(snips)

"This is huge. It means that this was staged," Bremner continued. "She (Rebecca) could not have gone over the edge and have the bed only move a few inches."

"It didn't happen as a suicide," Bremner said. "Because if indeed she tied the ropes there and went over the edge that bed would have moved like it moved in your reenactment and it didn't."


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 04, 2011, 11:50:49 PM
http://www.10news.com/news/29679552/detail.html

Woman Who Died At Coronado Mansion Reburied


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 06, 2011, 12:22:58 AM
http://www.facebook.com/AnneMBremner/posts/304742209538902

Anne Bremner
I, members of Rebecca Zahau's family and Dr. Cyril Wecht (Dr. Wecht remotely), will be on the Dr Phil Show on Nov 10th. There is so much new information and so many unanswered questions in this tragic case.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 06, 2011, 01:56:57 AM
http://www.previewfirst.com/mls/photos/1349

4th row down and last 2 pictures to the right:  Lanai area– shows beams where a hanging could have taken place and out of sight of neighbors

5th row down and first picture on the left: good picture showing tile floor of lanai and brick walkways – RZ could have gotten dirty/dusty feet by walking in those areas

8th row down and first 2 pictures on the left: Gym area – shows beams where a hanging could have taken place

10th row down and 3rd picture from left – living/dining room area – shows beams where a hanging could have taken place.

It is obvious from these pictures that there are plenty of areas in the house where a hanging could have taken place.  The balcony scene was set up to humiliate the victim for all time!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 07, 2011, 08:00:24 AM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/11/07/rebecca-zahau-case-sdsos-hypocrisy-knows-no-bounds/

Rebecca Zahau case: SDSO’s hypocrisy knows no bounds

Posted on November 7, 2011 by Valhall


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 08, 2011, 12:06:45 AM
Good video – pictures and voice of Nina Romano

http://www.cbs8.com/story/15982091/exclusive-max-shacknais-aunt-talks-about-coronado-mansion-deaths

Exclusive: Max Shacknai’s aunt talks about Coronado mansion deaths


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 08, 2011, 11:57:25 AM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/11/08/rebecca-zahau-case-dead-men-tell-no-tales/


Rebecca Zahau case: Dead men tell no tales
Posted on November 8, 2011 by Valhall


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: sassifrass on November 08, 2011, 06:38:08 PM
Puzzler: I was skimming through the channels and saw that Dr. Phil is going to interview with Rebecca's sister on the show on Thursday, November 10, 2011.

I realize after him doing the Anthony interview it may be " a boycotted show" but maybe you can get a transcript of it.

Here is the link:

http://www.10news.com/news/29696995/detail.html (http://www.10news.com/news/29696995/detail.html)

I know you have been working hard on this case so I just wanted to get that info for you.  ::MonkeyAngel::

Keep up the great work!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 08, 2011, 06:49:22 PM
Puzzler: I was skimming through the channels and saw that Dr. Phil is going to interview with Rebecca's sister on the show on Thursday, November 10, 2011.

I realize after him doing the Anthony interview it may be " a boycotted show" but maybe you can get a transcript of it.

Here is the link:

http://www.10news.com/news/29696995/detail.html (http://www.10news.com/news/29696995/detail.html)

I know you have been working hard on this case so I just wanted to get that info for you.  ::MonkeyAngel::

Keep up the great work!

Sassi - TY!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 08, 2011, 06:50:58 PM
Okay, I find this change interesting - from one to two shows - IMO that doesn't mean the Dr. Wecht is going to tell the family that RZ committed suicide and drag them through that for 2 shows:

http://www.facebook.com/AnneMBremner

Anne Bremner
 Dr. Phil will now be airing two full shows on the Rebecca Zahau case. This coming Monday and Tuesday .......


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 12, 2011, 01:55:50 AM
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dr-phil-reveals-findings-of-independent-autopsy-report-in-the-mysterious-death-of-rebecca-zahau-2011-11-11

DR. PHIL Reveals Findings of Independent Autopsy Report in the Mysterious Death of Rebecca Zahau

(snips)
These episodes will feature members of the Zahau family -- Rebecca's sister Mary and her husband Doug -- as well as renowned forensic pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht who will detail the results of his autopsy performed late last month.

Also appearing on the broadcast are Zahau family attorney Ann Bremner, and their private investigator Paul Ciolino.

Having completed the second autopsy at the end of October, Wecht details the findings in his report and shares his medical opinion, as the family hears these results -- along with shocking new details -- for the first time.

Regarding the previous autopsy, Dr. Wecht says, "I have no criticism of the actual physical performance of the post mortem examinations. It's the findings that were there -- and some that were not there -- that puzzle me."


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 14, 2011, 06:58:29 AM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/11/14/rebecca-zahau-case-second-autopsy-results-to-be-aired/

Rebecca Zahau case: Second autopsy results to be aired
Posted on November 14, 2011 by Valhall




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 15, 2011, 06:45:09 PM
http://www.radaronline.com/print/52228

New Witness In Mansion Deaths Says They Heard Woman 'Scream For Help' -- Hours Before Cops Claim Rebecca Zahau Committed Suicide

(snip)

"The witness contradicts the facts released by the sheriff's department," a source close to the the family's legal team told RadarOnline.com. "This individual, whose name is not being disclosed, was unequivocal about what they heard: a woman scream for help -- from inside the mansion -- at 11 pm PT"


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 16, 2011, 02:21:23 AM
 http://www.cbs8.com/story/16049618/pathologist-hanging-would-have-broken-zahaus-neck

Pathologist: Hanging would have broken Zahau’s neckNov 15, 2011

(snip)
Dr. Wecht, appeared via satellite on the TV show and reported, "I lean very strongly toward it being a homicide – something involving foul play – and lean very strongly against it being a suicide."
Dr. Wecht said Zahau's neck was not broken and he believes it should have been, given the nine-foot drop off the balcony described in her initial autopsy report.
"I believe that if the body had just plummeted down with that sheer drop of several feet, then the cervical vertebrae would have been fractured or dislocated; separated one from the other, or from the base of the skull," Dr. Wecht concluded.





Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 17, 2011, 09:33:25 PM
http://www.760kfmb.com/story/16068012/mixed-dna-all-over-zahau-death-scene-some-evidence-not-tested

Mixed DNA ‘all over’ Zahau death scene; some evidence not tested
Thursday, November 17, 2011 By David Gotfredson




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on November 17, 2011, 09:55:58 PM
Thank you for all your work here Puzzler.   ::MonkeyCool::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 19, 2011, 09:09:33 AM
Thank you for all your work here Puzzler.   ::MonkeyCool::

texasmom - you're welcome

thank you for popping in now and then to see what's going on



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 19, 2011, 09:09:56 AM
Valhall posted a new blog entry on The Hinky Meter:

http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/11/19/rebecca-zahau-case-gore-loses-the-plot/

Rebecca Zahau case: Gore loses the plot
Posted on November 19, 2011 by Valhall


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 19, 2011, 09:11:18 AM
Do you wonder “why” Anne Bremner commented about William D. Gore and Ruby Ridge? Ruby Ridge was a huge scandal for the way it was handled and the government ended paying out $3.1M. Gore was heavily involved in Ruby Ridge. There is “much” on the internet covering Ruby Ridge. Three items are represented below with small snips for one to get a gist of the issue without doing a lot of reading. I would, however, encourage each of you to read the article at the first link below. You will get a clear picture of how much Gore has weathered and who he is: the man plead the 5th amendment during a Senate hearing in connection with Ruby Ridge. After reading all of this, I have an appreciation for just how brave Anne Bremner is in providing her services to and the difficulties she’s facing in valiantly trying to help the Zahau family:


The following is an insight as to how Gore performs in his work:

http://angiemedia.com/2010/04/20/bill-g ... o-sheriff/

Bill Gore Is Poor Choice For San Diego Sheriff
April 20th, 2010

(snip) But management inexperience may be a minor concern compared to the others arising out of Bill Gore’s history with the FBI and his ties to the corrupt political machine ruining San Diego County.
(snip) More concerning, Gore’s record as an FBI employee is fraught with problems. He was the agent in charge for the Ruby Ridge FBI assault on Randy Weaver’s family that resulted in multiple fatalities, including the death by shooting of a mother holding a baby and a child shot in the back as he fled law enforcement gunfire.
(snip) Gore is believed to be the government agent who issued the “kill on sight” orders to federal law enforcement agents that lead to the unnecessary and wrongful deaths.
(snip) Gore plead the 5th Amendment during an investigation of the FBI and US Marshall Service misconduct that resulted in the deaths at Ruby Ridge.
(snip) Gore was also involved in the failure of the FBI to apprehend 9/11 terrorists training in San Diego to use airplanes as manned flying bombs. An FBI informant working with the FBI San Diego office, of which Gore was in charge, was in contact with two of the terrorists. Yet the FBI missed the opportunity to catch them before they killed thousands.
….and there’s much more in the article.


The following is about a Senate hearing in which Gore plead the 5th

http://articles.latimes.com/1995-09-20/ ... ruby-ridge

FBI Agent Says He's Ruby Ridge Scapegoat : Hearing: Official who led siege claims the bureau engaged in damage control over killing of wife. Testimony comes as four more take 5th Amendment.
September 20, 1995

(snip) Glenn's testimony before the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on terrorism came as four more FBI officials involved in the siege took the unusual step of invoking their 5th Amendment privilege against self-incrimination rather than testify. Brendan V. Sullivan Jr., attorney for the four, said there also was a "security" question involving one of his clients.
(snip) Last week, Lon Horiuchi, the FBI sniper who killed Vicki Weaver as she stood hidden by the door of her husband Randy Weaver's cabin, took the 5th Amendment because of the criminal inquiry being conducted by Boundary County, Ida., prosecutor Randall Day into what took place at Ruby Ridge. Like Horiuchi, the four FBI officials were allowed by the panel to invoke their 5th Amendment privilege against self-incrimination in a closed session, as Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) said there was no intent to "humiliate" them.
(snip) In addition to former Hostage Rescue Team commander Rogers, those invoking the 5th Amendment included William D. Gore, now assistant director in charge of the FBI's inspection division; Stephen P. McGavin, former deputy commander of the team, and Lester B. Hazen, an agent on the team. Specter said none of the four sought congressional immunity in return for testimony.


http://www.uniset.ca/other/cs6/126F3d1189.html

United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit.
v.
Arthur RODERICK, Defendant, Richard Rogers, Defendant-Appellant, Steve McGavin, Defendant-Appellant, Les Hazen, Defendant-Appellant, Dale Carnege, Defendant-Appellant, William Gore, Defendant-Appellant, and Eugene F. Glenn, Defendant-Appellant.

Argued and Submitted April 7, 1997.

Decided Sept. 25, 1997.

(snip) OPINION BY: REINHARDT, Circuit Judge:
Kevin Harris brought a Bivens [FN1] action against thirteen named federal law enforcement agents, as well as several unnamed individuals and the United States for their actions at Ruby Ridge, Idaho during two days in August 1992. The individual defendants moved to dismiss the complaint, in part on the basis of qualified immunity. The district court granted the motion to dismiss in part, but denied the motion with respect to almost all of the Fourth Amendment claims. The defendants appeal the denial of qualified immunity with respect to the remaining claims, which constitute the heart of Harris’saction, and seek dismissal of his complaint in its entirety. We reject the defendants’ arguments in toto and affirm the applicable rulings of the district court.

(snip) Proceedings Below
Harris then brought this Bivens action in the district court, alleging violations of his Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendment rights, for the actions that took place at Ruby Ridge. Harris sued the following thirteen individuals: Deputy Marshals Arthur Roderick and Larry Cooper; Deputy Director of the United States Marshal’sService G. Wayne “Duke” Smith; Directors of the United States Marshal’sService, Jose Antonio “Tony” Perez and Henry Hudson; FBI Special Agent and Director of the Hostage Rescue Team, Richard Rogers; Larry Potts, Assistant Director of the FBI in charge of the Criminal Division; FBI Special Agent and Member of the Team Lon T. Horiuchi; FBI Special Agent and Supervisor of the Team, Steve McGavin; FBI Special Agent and Team Sniper Coordinator Les Hazen; FBI Special Agent and Team Logistics Coordinator, Dale Carnege; and FBI Special Agents William D. Gore and Eugene F. Glenn.

(snip) Summary
The complaint alleges that Cooper and Roderick conspired to cover-up their own [*1205] wrongdoing and to shift the blame for the initial shootout at the “Y” from themselves to Harris. In furtherance of this conspiracy, the complaint continues, the two officers concocted a false story, filed false official reports, and testified falsely before the grand jury and at Harris’sfederal trial. The complaint further alleges that the false reports led directly to Harris’snear-fatal shooting, as well as to his subsequent arrest, detention and federal trial. The officers do not enjoy qualified immunity for such conduct.

The complaint also asserts that the thirteen defendants, working together, promulgated the Special Rules which required FBI agents to “shoot on sight” in order to “kill.” The Rules directly infringed on the clearly established constitutional rights of those at whom they were aimed, including Harris. There is no qualified immunity for such conduct, either. Finally, the complaint alleges that in shooting Harris without warning, when he was retreating to the cabin, Horiuchi violated his clearly established constitutional rights. Because the law was firmly established that such a shooting contravenes the Fourth Amendment, and because a reasonable officer could not have believed that it was reasonable to shoot Harris under such circumstances, we affirm the district court’srefusal to dismiss this portion of the complaint as well.

Conclusion

We hold that the officers named in Harris’scomplaint are not, on the basis of the record before us, entitled to qualified immunity for the actions that took place at Ruby Ridge in August 1992. The case is remanded to the district court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

AFFIRMED AND REMANDED.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: cartfly on November 21, 2011, 03:29:09 PM
Attorney: 'Bondage porn' found on Coronado mansion computer



 ::MonkeyShocked::
Posted: Nov 19, 2011 7:32 PM CST Updated: Nov 20, 2011 1:50 PM CST
By David Gotfredson, Field Producer

 http://www.cbs8.com/story/16083634/zahau-attorney-bondage-porn-found-on-coronado-mansion-computer (http://www.cbs8.com/story/16083634/zahau-attorney-bondage-porn-found-on-coronado-mansion-computer)

 ::snipping2::

During a seven-week investigation into Zahau's death, investigators at the San Diego Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory took a close look at at least two computers inside the mansion, said Zahau family attorney Anne Bremner.

On at least one of the computers, the forensic examination found pornography, according to comments posted Friday evening on Bremner's Facebook page.

In a phone interview with News 8, Bremner later confirmed that more than a dozen searches of sexual content – using terms like "raped, sexy Asian girls, and bondage anime" – were accessed on a computer the day before Zahau's death.

"It's important to the investigation because there is an image from anime, and its called bond anime and it shows an Asian women bound; at least her hands are bound behind her back," said the Seattle-based attorney.

Bremner said it was not Zahau who looked at the online content and suggested the computer may have been accessed by someone using an airline account.
 ::snipping2::

Bremner said the computer forensic report shows no searches that indicated Zahau killed herself.

"When they searched computers and her phone, they didn't find any searches for rope, suicide, hanging – anything like that," said Bremner. "What they did find was this (pornography), which is consistent with somebody else doing it and it's important to find out who that is."

News 8 asked Sheriff Bill Gore whether porn was found on Zahau's computer at a news conference Wednesday, but he refused to comment on the content recovered.

"That information is now in the possession of Anne Bremner if she'd like to discuss that with you," said Gore. "We're not really putting out all the specifics of the information found on the computer."

Those specifics are contained in the forensic computer report that Sheriff Gore also said he is not inclined to release.
 ::snipping2:: ::snipping2::
Also on Bremner's Facebook page Friday evening was a posting that read, "…a person of interest in the case viewed porn on his iPhone before ‘discovering' her body.'"

The Facebook posting has since been removed but Sheriff's investigators have said it was Adam Shacknai who discovered Zahau's body around 6:30 a.m. on July 13.

Bremner said Adam Shacknai claimed during a lie detector examination that he was viewing pornography on his iPhone just before he walked out of the mansion guest house and found Zahau hanging.

Adam Shaknai did not respond to voicemail messages left on both his home phone and cell phone seeking comment.

Attorney Bremner said she is planning to submit evidence in the case to the California Attorney General in the next few weeks, which she hopes will lead to a new, independent investigation of Zahau's death.
 ::snipping2::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on November 25, 2011, 09:01:16 AM
http://www.examiner.com/news-analysis-in-national/doctor-maurice-godwin-says-rebecca-zahau-was-murdered


Doctor Maurice Godwin says Rebecca Zahau was murdered

 
Joel Seigfried, News Analysis Examiner, November 23, 2011


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on December 02, 2011, 07:18:57 PM
http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/dailyweekly/2011/12/rebecca_zahau_suicide_case_reo.php
Rebecca Zahau Suicide Case Reopening Sought by Seattle Attorney Anne Bremner; No Luck Yet
December 1, 2011

(Interesting comments)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 03, 2011, 03:39:31 AM
911 call released in hanging death at Spreckels mansion

http://www.cbs8.com/story/16150816/911-call-released-in-hanging-death-at-coronados-spreckels-mansion



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: labubske on December 04, 2011, 09:15:02 AM
911 call released in hanging death at Spreckels mansion

http://www.cbs8.com/story/16150816/911-call-released-in-hanging-death-at-coronados-spreckels-mansion



He does sound truly frantic.  He doesn't even know his nephews name though?  Maybe he just wasn't able to think but instead of saying "the kid" it seems he would have stated something like I don't know the address but it is the same place that you got my nephew, Max Shacknai from. 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 06, 2011, 06:23:13 PM
IMO he sounds detached, doesn't call his nephew by name, doesn't call Becky by name even though he had dinner with her the night before, doesn't mention his brother's name, who owns the house.

I could be wrong, but I believe the 911 call is all fake on AS's part....many people think they hear AS cutting down the body in the tape - but the LEO's reports indicate that AS came out of the guest house to get coffee, saw Becky, ran in the main house kitchen and got a knife and cut her down....THEN...AS called 911.

See?  All a fake!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 06, 2011, 06:25:41 PM
http://www.760kfmb.com/story/16194812/sheriff-warns-zahau-attorney-case-file-may-be-opened

Sheriff warns Zahau attorney; case file may be opened
Dec. 6, 2011



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 06, 2011, 06:26:44 PM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/12/06/rebecca-zahau-gores-box/

Rebecca Zahau: Gore’s box

Posted on December 6, 2011 by Valhall



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Buckeye on December 06, 2011, 06:49:34 PM
http://www.760kfmb.com/story/16194812/sheriff-warns-zahau-attorney-case-file-may-be-opened

Sheriff warns Zahau attorney; case file may be opened
Dec. 6, 2011



 ::MonkeyNoNo:: Wow!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Buckeye on December 06, 2011, 06:49:56 PM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/12/06/rebecca-zahau-gores-box/

Rebecca Zahau: Gore’s box

Posted on December 6, 2011 by Valhall



 ::rhino::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 07, 2011, 03:19:56 AM
http://www.760kfmb.com/story/16194812/sheriff-warns-zahau-attorney-case-file-may-be-opened

Sheriff warns Zahau attorney; case file may be opened
Dec. 6, 2011



 ::MonkeyNoNo:: Wow!

Can you believe this guy, Gore?!?  The more he tries to cover-up or one-up Bremner, the worse he looks.  It's bad and that's for sure.  I have a feeling that this case is going to get "nasty".


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 09, 2011, 05:35:30 PM
http://www.highlighthollywood.com/2011/12/08/bestselling-crime-author-ann-rule-to-pen-novel-on-rebecca-zahau’s-shocking-death-highlight-hollywood-world-exclusive/

Bestselling Crime Author Ann Rule To Pen Novel On Rebecca Zahau’s Shocking Death
December 08, 2011


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 09, 2011, 05:39:34 PM
http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/dailyweekly/2011/12/rebecca_zahau_suicide_case_reo.php

Rebecca Zahau Suicide Case Reopening Sought by Seattle Attorney Anne Bremner (Updated)

Snipped from article:

"Bremner says she considers the letter a threat to back off. Ironically, she says, "The personal info to which [Gore] refers doesn't even pertain to Rebecca. He erroneously believes it does. A result, again, of an inadequate investigation."

She is pushing ahead nonetheless, currently preparing a proposal to submit to the California attorney general seeking an independent investigation of the death."
December 9, 2011 11:10 AM


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on December 09, 2011, 05:59:32 PM
Thank you for continuing to update us on this case puzzler.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 10, 2011, 08:24:22 AM
Thank you for continuing to update us on this case puzzler.

MuffyBee - TY

 ::santawink::



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 14, 2011, 01:35:17 AM
http://www.760kfmb.com/story/16318354/millionaire-okays-zahau-family-investigation-inside-spreckels-mansion

Millionaire okays Zahau family investigation inside Spreckels mansion

Dec 13, 2011

(snip)  CORONADO, Calif. (CBS 8 ) - The millionaire boyfriend of Rebecca Zahau will allow her family's attorneys to launch a new investigation inside the Spreckels mansion before the end of the year.
 
Earlier this month, attorneys Anne Bremner and Marty Rudoy wrote a letter on behalf of the Zahau family to the mansion's owner, Arizona pharmaceutical tycoon Jonah Shacknai, and requested access to the historic mansion in Coronado.  (end snip)
Edit to take 8 smiley out.  MB


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 14, 2011, 06:48:46 AM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/12/14/rebecca-zahau-case-jonah-shacknai-agrees-to-let-zahau-family-investigate-mansion/

Rebecca Zahau case: Jonah Shacknai agrees to let Zahau family investigate mansion
Posted on December 14, 2011 by Valhall


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 14, 2011, 02:53:32 PM
http://www.highlighthollywood.com/2011/12/14/a-message-from-rebecca-zahaus-younger-brother-and-exclusive-interview-with-zahaus-brother-in-law/


A Message From Rebecca Zahau’s Younger Brother And An Exclusive Interview With Zahau’s Brother-in-Law Doug Loehner
December 14, 2011


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 24, 2011, 03:25:55 PM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/12/23/rebecca-zahau-case-the-oddities-of-the-rope/

Rebecca Zahau case: The oddities of the rope

Posted on December 23, 2011 by Valhall


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 30, 2011, 04:42:18 AM
http://www.10news.com/news/30099990/detail.html

Zahau Family Makes Final Push For Mansion Probe

(snip)  "The evidence we've looked at and we've developed indicate clearly that one or more persons were involved in Rebecca's death," said Marty Rudoy, a Zahau family attorney. "The family has ultimate confidence in Rebecca's character and they are certain she did not commit suicide." (snip)

(snip)  Last week, Shacknai's attorney said the family would not be allowed inside the home unless sheriff's investigators accompanied them.
However, the sheriff's department said they would not comply without new evidence.
Rudoy told 10News he believes the sheriff's department has been cooperative in other areas. He said he will meet with sheriff's investigators in two weeks and hopes he can convince them to enter the home together before it's too late.
Rudoy also said he will contact the mansion's new owners to see if they are willing to let them inside.
"We're hoping that the new buyers are sensitive to our needs and will schedule any renovations around out legitimate requests for inspection," said Rudoy.  (snip)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on December 30, 2011, 02:38:18 PM
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2011/12/30/rebecca-zahau-case-deadline-nears-no-search/

Rebecca Zahau case: Deadline nears, no investigation
Posted on December 30, 2011 by Valhall


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on January 04, 2012, 11:41:47 AM
http://www.highlighthollywood.com/2012/01/02/attorney-anne-bremner-and-rebecca-zahaus-family-vow-to-fight-for-justice-in-2012highlight-hollywood-exclusive/

Attorney Anne Bremner And Rebecca Zahau’s Family Vow To Fight For Justice In 2012, Highlight Hollywood Exclusive


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on January 04, 2012, 11:48:06 AM
http://www.highlighthollywood.com/2012/01/02/attorney-anne-bremner-and-rebecca-zahaus-family-vow-to-fight-for-justice-in-2012highlight-hollywood-exclusive/

Attorney Anne Bremner And Rebecca Zahau’s Family Vow To Fight For Justice In 2012, Highlight Hollywood Exclusive


It just has to be difficult for all Rebecca's family has been through.  I have a lot of respect for them in their continued quest for answers.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on January 07, 2012, 12:14:43 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/attorney-makes-formal-request-for-new-probe-into-zahau-s-death

Attorney Makes Formal Request for New Probe Into Zahau's Death


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on January 07, 2012, 12:15:29 AM
http://www.facebook.com/AnneMBremner


Anne Bremner

 Our letter requesting an independent investigation in the Rebecca Zahau case went to the AG's office today. We had every detail, every anomaly every question covered. Wish us luck! We need and thank you for your support!!



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on February 23, 2012, 04:14:26 AM
There’s a video at the link about the extensive renovation being done; workers have been brought from England to work on the restoration. Yes, they’re keeping the balcony.

http://www.cbs8.com/story/16984288/mansion-undergoes-facelift-after-mysterious-zahau-death

Mansion undergoes facelift after mysterious Zahau death


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Sister on February 23, 2012, 11:41:28 AM
http://www.facebook.com/AnneMBremner


Anne Bremner

 Our letter requesting an independent investigation in the Rebecca Zahau case went to the AG's office today. We had every detail, every anomaly every question covered. Wish us luck! We need and thank you for your support!!


I hope they get this investigation.  It seems only fair the family gets answers to their questions.  It may lighten the hurt in their hearts.
 :bigup:


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on March 05, 2012, 07:52:16 PM
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2012/02/spreckels-mansion-may-undergo-major-renovation-after-2-deaths.html
Spreckels Mansion may undergo renovation after 2 deaths
February 28, 2012



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on March 08, 2012, 04:08:24 PM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/shacknai-still-owns-spreckels-mansion

Shacknai Still Owns Spreckels Mansion

An investment group is overseeing day-to-day details, but Shacknai is the applicant behind a request to remodel the residence.

(snip)  When Realtor Scott Aurich went before a city commission Wednesday to pitch restoration plans for the Spreckels mansion, the chairman, Jon Ryan asked an unusual question – “Who is the applicant?”

Aurich acknowleged that person is Jonah Shacknai, despite the announcement in October that he had sold the residence. (snip)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on March 08, 2012, 11:44:42 PM
Posted today on Anne Bremner's facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/AnneMBremner


Anne Bremner

Our work for Rebecca Zahau's family continues. However, due to its current sensitive nature, we are managing this with the utmost confidentiality. We will report on the status in the months to come.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on March 09, 2012, 12:21:24 AM
Posted today on Anne Bremner's facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/AnneMBremner


Anne Bremner

Our work for Rebecca Zahau's family continues. However, due to its current sensitive nature, we are managing this with the utmost confidentiality. We will report on the status in the months to come.


Thank you Puzzler. 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on March 15, 2012, 01:32:37 PM
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/R ... 86415.html
Edit to replace link.  MB http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/Rebecca-Zahau-Birthday-Family-Mansion-Death-142786415.html

Rebecca Zahau's Family Marks Her Birthday


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on March 15, 2012, 11:58:32 PM
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/R ... 86415.html
Edit to replace link.  MB http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/Rebecca-Zahau-Birthday-Family-Mansion-Death-142786415.html

Rebecca Zahau's Family Marks Her Birthday


MuffyBee - TY for the edit.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on March 16, 2012, 09:46:11 AM
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/R ... 86415.html
Edit to replace link.  MB http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/Rebecca-Zahau-Birthday-Family-Mansion-Death-142786415.html

Rebecca Zahau's Family Marks Her Birthday

at
MuffyBee - TY for the edit.

You're welcome Puzzler.  I just really think there's so much about the deaths of Max and particulalrly Rebecca's that raise more questions than have been answered. 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 04, 2012, 01:20:20 AM
What on earth is going on?

http://twitter.com/#!/annembremner (http://twitter.com/#!/annembremner)
(Edit add url tags/hyperlink)  MB
Anne Bremner‏@annembremner
Dina Shacknai sues county for son's autopsy photos


http://www.fox5sandiego.com/news/kswb-dina-shacknai-sues-county-for-sons-autopsy-photos-20120403,0,5372696.story

Dina Shacknai sues county for son's autopsy photos


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 04, 2012, 01:21:13 AM

http://www.fox5sandiego.com/news/kswb-dina-shacknai-sues-county-for-sons-autopsy-photos-20120403,0,5372696.story
Edit to add corrected link supplied by Puzzler.  MB

 
Dina Shacknai sues county for son's autopsy photos

(snip) Court documents allege Dina Shacknai first asked the county for her son's autopsy pictures March 16, but was denied by state law that requires a court order before releasing such information.

San Diego Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Glenn Wagner could not comment on the Shacknai case specifically, but said lawsuits like this are a means to getting a court order.

Dina Shacknai's attorney's declined to comment on the reason for requesting the autopsy pictures. She is represented by a law firm out of Phoenix.

San Diego civil attorney Dan Gilleon, who has filed similar litigation, said Tuesday the action likely means a wrongful death lawsuit is in the works.

"What's unusual about this suit is they have not alleged any wrongdoing on anyone's part," Gilleon said. "They have filed this solely for those records. That suggests to me they're trying to get their case in order before they file it." (snip)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 04, 2012, 01:22:16 AM
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/news/kswb-dina-shacknai-sues-county-for-sons-autopsy-photos-20120403,0,5372696.story



Dina Shacknai sues county for son's autopsy photos

(snip) Anne Bremner, attorney for the Zahau family, said Tuesday she was unaware of the lawsuit. She is asking the San Diego District Attorney to "look at the case anew" and has submitted information with the Attorney General's office. (snip)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 04, 2012, 01:22:44 AM

http://www.fox5sandiego.com/news/kswb-dina-shacknai-sues-county-for-sons-autopsy-photos-20120403,0,5372696.story
Edit to add correct link supplied by Puzzler.  MB
 
Dina Shacknai sues county for son's autopsy photos

(snip) Court documents allege Dina Shacknai first asked the county for her son's autopsy pictures March 16, but was denied by state law that requires a court order before releasing such information.

San Diego Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Glenn Wagner could not comment on the Shacknai case specifically, but said lawsuits like this are a means to getting a court order.

Dina Shacknai's attorney's declined to comment on the reason for requesting the autopsy pictures. She is represented by a law firm out of Phoenix.

San Diego civil attorney Dan Gilleon, who has filed similar litigation, said Tuesday the action likely means a wrongful death lawsuit is in the works.

"What's unusual about this suit is they have not alleged any wrongdoing on anyone's part," Gilleon said. "They have filed this solely for those records. That suggests to me they're trying to get their case in order before they file it." (snip)

http://www.fox5sandiego.com/news/kswb-dina-shacknai-sues-county-for-sons-autopsy-photos-20120403,0,5372696.story

Thank you, Puzzler.  MB




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on April 04, 2012, 08:30:51 AM
Thank you for the article Puzzler.  I find this very interesting.  We'll have to keep an eye out to see where this is going for sure!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 05, 2012, 06:17:42 AM
Dina filing the lawsuit for the autopsy is also making news in Arizona:

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/coronado-mansion-deaths-focus-now-on-boy-04042012
Edit to replace link per Puzzler.  MB


Coronado Mansion Deaths: Focus Now on Boy
Updated: Wednesday, 04 Apr 2012

(snip) PHOENIX - The Coronado Mansion deaths are back in the spotlight again. But this time it's not about the girlfriend who was found hanging from the balcony.
The focus is on the little boy who accidentally fell down the stairs and later died.
The boy's mother is now filing a lawsuit and taking it to court. (snip)

(snip) And Gilleon suspects that case would likely be a wrongful death case.
“They wouldn`t be going through this expense right now unless they had some good evidence already. This could be the final bit of evidence they`re looking for, and we could be looking at a lawsuit fairly soon,” he said. (snip)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 05, 2012, 06:19:16 AM
Thank you for the article Puzzler.  I find this very interesting.  We'll have to keep an eye out to see where this is going for sure!

Thank you, Muffy.

Yes, this is getting very interesting.

Lately, I've been feeling like it was so still that it was like the calm before the storm. 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 05, 2012, 06:24:03 AM
Dina filing the lawsuit for the autopsy is also making news in Arizona:


http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/coronado-mansion-deaths-focus-now-on-boy-04042012
Edit to replace link per Puzzler.  MB


Coronado Mansion Deaths: Focus Now on Boy
Updated: Wednesday, 04 Apr 2012

(snip) PHOENIX - The Coronado Mansion deaths are back in the spotlight again. But this time it's not about the girlfriend who was found hanging from the balcony.
The focus is on the little boy who accidentally fell down the stairs and later died.
The boy's mother is now filing a lawsuit and taking it to court. (snip)

(snip) And Gilleon suspects that case would likely be a wrongful death case.
“They wouldn`t be going through this expense right now unless they had some good evidence already. This could be the final bit of evidence they`re looking for, and we could be looking at a lawsuit fairly soon,” he said. (snip)

Sorry about the link:

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/coronado-mansion-deaths-focus-now-on-boy-04042012
Fixed it.  Thank you.  MB



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Buckeye on April 06, 2012, 09:02:39 PM
Dina filing the lawsuit for the autopsy is also making news in Arizona:


http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/coronado-mansion-deaths-focus-now-on-boy-04042012
Edit to replace link per Puzzler.  MB


Coronado Mansion Deaths: Focus Now on Boy
Updated: Wednesday, 04 Apr 2012

(snip) PHOENIX - The Coronado Mansion deaths are back in the spotlight again. But this time it's not about the girlfriend who was found hanging from the balcony.
The focus is on the little boy who accidentally fell down the stairs and later died.
The boy's mother is now filing a lawsuit and taking it to court. (snip)

(snip) And Gilleon suspects that case would likely be a wrongful death case.
“They wouldn`t be going through this expense right now unless they had some good evidence already. This could be the final bit of evidence they`re looking for, and we could be looking at a lawsuit fairly soon,” he said. (snip)

Sorry about the link:

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/coronado-mansion-deaths-focus-now-on-boy-04042012
Fixed it.  Thank you.  MB



But who would she sue?  Rebecca is dead and I'm sure she does  not have a big estate.

Does she think the father was involved?  The fourteen year old?

Wasn't Max cremated?  How can you sue without a cause of death linking homicide??? :smt102 :smt102


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 08, 2012, 02:34:22 AM
Dina filing the lawsuit for the autopsy is also making news in Arizona:


http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/coronado-mansion-deaths-focus-now-on-boy-04042012
Edit to replace link per Puzzler.  MB


Coronado Mansion Deaths: Focus Now on Boy
Updated: Wednesday, 04 Apr 2012

(snip) PHOENIX - The Coronado Mansion deaths are back in the spotlight again. But this time it's not about the girlfriend who was found hanging from the balcony.
The focus is on the little boy who accidentally fell down the stairs and later died.
The boy's mother is now filing a lawsuit and taking it to court. (snip)

(snip) And Gilleon suspects that case would likely be a wrongful death case.
“They wouldn`t be going through this expense right now unless they had some good evidence already. This could be the final bit of evidence they`re looking for, and we could be looking at a lawsuit fairly soon,” he said. (snip)

Sorry about the link:

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/coronado-mansion-deaths-focus-now-on-boy-04042012
Fixed it.  Thank you.  MB



But who would she sue?  Rebecca is dead and I'm sure she does  not have a big estate.

Does she think the father was involved?  The fourteen year old?

Wasn't Max cremated?  How can you sue without a cause of death linking homicide??? :smt102 :smt102

IDK - time will tell.  Some say she may sue JS...wrongful death at his home.

Yes, I did read somewhere that Max was cremated.  I wish I could find again where I read that. 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 08, 2012, 02:35:54 AM
http://www.scottsdalesoccer.com/Tournament/Max_Shacknai/index_E.html

Scottsdale Soccer: Max Shacknai

(snip)  Max began formal playing in the “Tiny Tots” program, where he was the youngest player at 22 months. (snip)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 10, 2012, 01:40:16 AM
Anne Bremner

44 minutes ago.


In the Rebecca Zahau case, submissions have been made to the AG and DA. On behalf of her family, thank you for your support.


http://www.facebook.com/AnneMBremner


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 10, 2012, 05:46:38 PM


http://www.sandiego6.com/news/local/Shacknai--146844025.html

Dina Shacknai in Court to Fight for Autopsy Photos


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 10, 2012, 05:48:02 PM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/zahau-attorney-submits-new-files-to-investigators

 
Update 9:05 a.m. Tuesday: A San Diego Superior Court judge signalled Tuesday that he will approve release of autopsy photos in the July death of Max Shacknai, 6, but will wait to see if the District Attorney's Office has any objections.
 
The boy's mother, Dina Shacknai, sued to obtain the photos last month. If the DA opposes the release, the judge said, the office must submit any concerns by Friday. Neither San Diego County nor the Medical Examiner's Office objects to the release, according to an attorney from the County Counsel's office. A new hearing is set for April 20.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on April 11, 2012, 11:26:35 AM
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/apr/10/attorney-asks-for-new-investigations-into/
Attorney asks for new probes into Coronado hanging
April 10, 2012

CORONADO — An attorney for the family of Rebecca Zahau, the Arizona woman who was found hanging at the Coronado Spreckels mansion in July, has filed requests with the county District Attorney’s Office and state Attorney General’s Office asking for independent investigations into the death.
 ::snipping2::
Seattle-based attorney Anne Bremner said Tuesday that she had asked the attorney general to look at the case previously but was told to first try to get the investigation reopened by sheriff’s officials. Since the Sheriff’s Department declined, Bremner submitted the request again to state and local prosecutors, she said.

Bremner would not say what kind of new information or evidence was included with the latest requests.

An attorney general spokeswoman said Tuesday that they hadn't yet received the request.
 ::snipping2::
Investigators said Zahau was distressed about critical injuries suffered by Shacknai’s 6-year-old son, Max, who fell from a second-story staircase days earlier. Zahau had been baby-sitting Max that day. He later died.

They said no forensic evidence pointed to foul play in Zahau’s hanging.

Shacknai has already asked the attorney general for an independent review of the sheriff’s findings. His request cited confidence in the investigation, but he hoped another opinion would put minds at ease. His request was denied.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 13, 2012, 04:03:37 PM
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/l ... cation=rss Bad link.  Edit to replace with working link.  MB
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2017969771_staffordfrey13m.html

High-profile Seattle defense lawyers quit firm to form own



(snip) Over the past 40 years, attorneys at the law firm — led most visibly by Buck and Bremner — have distinguished themselves as fierce advocates of police accused of wrongdoing. The firm established a hard-nosed reputation for turning down deals and winning at trial, and became a favorite with officers, who insisted on their representation. (snip)

BBM - well..that should be excellent experience to have under the belt when trying to indicate what was not done by LE.    


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 13, 2012, 04:35:05 PM
http://twitter.com/#!/annembremner
 (http://twitter.com/#!/annembremner) Edit to add url tags (hyperlink)  MB

Anne Bremner‏@annembremner
 
We have asked the DA and the AG to look into both deaths.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 13, 2012, 11:53:21 PM
Muffy - TY for the help with the links


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on April 14, 2012, 12:12:17 AM
Muffy - TY for the help with the links

YW.   ::MonkeyWink::  I appreciate the updates you've been bringing.  ::bee::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 16, 2012, 02:30:17 PM
Dina Shacknai in Court to Fight for Autopsy Photos


(snip) The mother of a boy who died from a fall at the Spreckels Mansion is expected in court Tuesday.


 http://www.sandiego6.com/news/local/Shacknai--146844025.html



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on April 21, 2012, 01:27:52 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/judge-orders-release-of-shacknai-boy-s-autopsy-photos
 
Judge Orders Release of Autopsy Photos in Shacknai Death
 
A San Diego Superior Court judge on Friday granted Max Shacknai's mother access to photos taken during the autopsy that followed the boy's July death.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on May 28, 2012, 05:07:20 PM
NO!!!!!! Well, the AG had better approve an independent investigation. We "knew" the Sheriff and the DA are in the pockets of JS...but don't forget...the ME was the "first" to say it was a suicide.

http://www.facebook.com/AnneMBremner/posts/448115018534953


Anne Bremner
In the Rebecca Zahau case our requests to re-open the investigation have been turned down by the DA and SDSD. This was a stated condition precedent to our going to the AG for an independent investigation. We have now submitted a detailed request to the AG.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on June 03, 2012, 02:43:16 AM
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/may/29/attorney-requests-new-probe-of-zahau-hanging/

Attorney requests new probe of Coronado hanging
May 29, 2012



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on June 07, 2012, 06:05:12 AM
At the link below is SDSO’s rope-tying video:
http://www.sdsheriff.net/coronado/index.html

You can see that the size of the rope is larger and it’s floppy and not covered with the plastic-like covering that was used on RZ. This is evident without having to read it in words.


The link below is another reenactment, not done by the SDSO.
http://www.cbs8.com/story/15928565/news-8-reenacts-the-coronado-mansion-mystery
Edit to add article publication date.  MB  November 11, 2011 Please include date with article link.

It is evident in this video, the more appropriate rope size is used - if not just like, then very similar to the rope used on RZ.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on June 07, 2012, 06:16:49 AM
http://www.drmauricegodwin.com/zahaustateofmind.html

A Case for Murder Rebecca Zahau's State of Mind

Dr. Godwin's comments on RZ's state of mind


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on June 09, 2012, 01:48:25 AM
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/maxinmotion-seeks-to-resolve-financial-barriers-for-deserving-young-athletes-157833965.html
Edit to add date of article publication.  MB  June 7, 2012
MaxInMotion™ seeks to resolve financial barriers for deserving young athletes




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on June 09, 2012, 01:48:51 AM
http://www.maxinmotion.org/






Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on June 09, 2012, 01:53:05 AM
http://www.trademarkia.com/maxinmotion-85411367.html


MAXINMOTION




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on June 09, 2012, 03:16:26 AM
http://www.trademarkia.com/maxinmotion-85411367.html


MAXINMOTION




Date: 4/17/2012


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on June 09, 2012, 03:17:47 AM
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/maxinmotion-seeks-to-resolve-financial-barriers-for-deserving-young-athletes-157833965.html


MaxInMotion™ seeks to resolve financial barriers for deserving young athletes




Date: June 7, 2012


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on June 09, 2012, 03:18:59 AM
http://www.maxinmotion.org/






Date: 2012



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 12, 2012, 06:35:25 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/spreckels-mansion-one-year-later-the-community-moves-on-zahau-shacknai

Spreckels One Year Later: The Community Carries On
July 11, 2012


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on July 12, 2012, 08:38:22 AM
 ::MonkeyEek:: ::MonkeyNoNo::  I cannot believe it has been a year.........................  ::MonkeyEek::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Samantha on July 12, 2012, 09:50:25 PM
How sad.. Thanks for making me aware of this case. I don't know how the investigators could come to that conclusion and then a request to reopen the case is shot down... That's what happened right? (I didn't quite get the comment I bolded.. Does that mean an independent investigation is still possible?)

NO!!!!!! Well, the AG had better approve an independent investigation. We "knew" the Sheriff and the DA are in the pockets of JS...but don't forget...the ME was the "first" to say it was a suicide.

http://www.facebook.com/AnneMBremner/posts/448115018534953


Anne Bremner
In the Rebecca Zahau case our requests to re-open the investigation have been turned down by the DA and SDSD. This was a stated condition precedent to our going to the AG for an independent investigation. We have now submitted a detailed request to the AG.


I find the confusion (or smoke and mirrors) about who owns the house interesting.. Why say he sold it if he didn't? And his early request to reopen the investigation seemed half hearted and self serving (to make it look good that he would ask but that he didn't want one or expect one... How he said he trusts the current findings but thinks others would be helped by a second look)

And started to google the case and found one article where someone in the comments  vehemently argues and responds to every single opinion thats questioning the suicide conclusion. (sometimes I wonder if people who do that are personally invested in it.. Who has the time)

http://coronado.patch.com/articles/a-lurid-and-tragic-case-draws-attention-from-near-and-far-zahau-shacknai-year-anniversary
A Lurid and Tragic Case Draws Attention From Near and Far
For a time the death of Rebecca Zahau attracted the type of media spotlight that has fallen on other infamous investigations, from Laci Peterson to Natalee Holloway.
By Jennifer Vigil Email the author 5:20 am (July 12, 2012)
 Email Print  74 Comments



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Samantha on July 12, 2012, 09:54:53 PM
http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2012/04/rebecca-zahau-death-max-shacknai-mother-suing

Max Shacknai's Mother Suing Estate Of Rebecca Zahau
 57 221 
Posted on Apr 11, 2012 @ 04:30PM   print it send it

By Jen Heger - Radar Assistant Managing Editor

Dina Shacknai, the mother of six-year-old Max Shacknai who tragically died last summer at his father's Coronado mansion, is suing the San Diego Medical Examiner's office to obtain his autopsy photos because she doesn't believe that he died by falling and hitting his head, RadarOnline.com is exclusively reporting.
 ::snipping2::

"Dina doesn't believe that Max fell to his death, she never believed nor agreed with that finding. Dina is gathering as much information as possible pertaining to Max's death, and this includes seeking his autopsy photos. Remember, Rebecca Zahau's younger sister, Xena (13), was also at the house the day that Max died. The San Diego Sheriff's Department said that Rebecca was in the bathroom downstairs, and Xena was in the bathroom upstairs at the time they believe Max fell from the second story balcony area. The chandelier that had been hanging from the ceiling in that area was found next to Max's body, and Dina doesn't believe that Max had enough strength to attempt to grab onto it to break his fall, as the report from law enforcement stated. Dina is exploring all of her legal options, which could include filing a wrongful death lawsuit against Rebecca Zahau's estate. This isn't about money for Dina, she wants answers, period," a source close to the situation tells Radar.






Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 13, 2012, 12:03:03 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/a-lurid-and-tragic-case-draws-attention-from-near-and-far-zahau-shacknai-year-anniversary


A Lurid and Tragic Case Draws Attention From Near and Far

July 12, 2012


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 13, 2012, 11:11:26 AM




http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region_northeast_valley/paradise_valley/new-mansion-mystery-death-details-from-mother-of-max-shacknai-boy-who-died-at-coronado-home
 
New mansion mystery death details from mother of Max Shacknai, boy who died at Coronado home

July 13, 2012
 
(snip) Dina also reveals to the magazine that she and Jonah agreed on certain rules for Rebecca regarding Max. She tells the Outhier that Rebecca was not allowed to attend school functions, not allowed to take Max across state lines, and not allowed to babysit him alone while other Zahau family members were present.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 13, 2012, 11:18:49 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/zahau-s-sister-says-family-will-continue-to-press-for-new-probe-shacknai


Zahau's Sister Says Family Will Continue to Press for New Probe


Younger sister Snowem Horwath, of Germany, said even “if it takes many years” she will continue to challenge finding that Rebecca Zahau killed herself.

July 13, 2012


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Samantha on July 13, 2012, 11:37:02 AM




http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region_northeast_valley/paradise_valley/new-mansion-mystery-death-details-from-mother-of-max-shacknai-boy-who-died-at-coronado-home
 
New mansion mystery death details from mother of Max Shacknai, boy who died at Coronado home

July 13, 2012
 
(snip) Dina also reveals to the magazine that she and Jonah agreed on certain rules for Rebecca regarding Max. She tells the Outhier that Rebecca was not allowed to attend school functions, not allowed to take Max across state lines, and not allowed to babysit him alone while other Zahau family members were present.



This part stands out at me: "not allowed to babysit him alone while other Zahau family members were present." 

I wonder about the specificity of the rules about how Rebecca can interact with Max. I could understand not going to school functions and even not watching him alone  (I don't remember reading how long Rebecca and Jonah were together but its not uncommon for people to not want their spouses gf/bf to watch their children, at least until they know them well enough.)

The two that get me are not crossing state lines (It just seems odd to say..) and not being alone with Max while Rebeccas family were there. (I don't understand the inclusion of family and why that made a difference)

I wonder if something happened to want her family not around Max.. or if this is made up after the fact to explain that Max shouldn't have even been alone with Rebecca and her sister in the first place. (That Rebecca violated her wishes by allowing her sister over)

I wonder what kind of custody arrangement they had and if Jonah/Rebecca complying with Dina's wishes would be just a courtesy and not necessary. I am sorry I didn't read through all the articles and if it was somewhere in there.






Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 13, 2012, 11:43:39 AM
It's all curious...I wonder if that's an oral agreement or one that Dina has in writing...if in writing it probably applies to any of JS's "girlfriends". 

Also, if in writing, wouldn't that leave JS open to a lawsuit - afterall, JS supposedly was not at the mansion at the time of Max's death.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 14, 2012, 01:38:54 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/celebrated-author-ann-rule-turns-her-attention-to-spreckels-case-zahau-shacknai


Celebrated Author Ann Rule Turns Her Attention to Spreckels Case
Rule's look at the deaths at the mansion one year ago will be released in November.

July 12, 2012

(snip)   “I hope I give some new angles and some understanding of the characters,” Rule said, of Zahau, her boyfriend Jonah Shacknai, his late son and others involved in the case.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 14, 2012, 03:51:49 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/spreckels-mansion-one-year-later-the-community-moves-on-zahau-shacknai
 
Spreckels One Year Later: The Community Carries On
July 11, 2012


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on July 14, 2012, 10:06:32 AM
I wonder if we're ever going to know the truth about the deaths of young Max and Rebecca? 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 14, 2012, 01:46:58 PM
http://www.cbs8.com/story/19024331/coronado

Families speak out on anniversary of Coronado mansion deaths

 Posted: Jul 14, 2012 1:16 AM EDT Updated: Jul 14, 2012 1:42 AM EDT


(snip) Rudoy told News 8 that the San Diego County Sheriff still has not returned some of Zahau's personal belongs to the family, like her camera, computer or cell phone. He said the Sheriff did make the cell phone available for an independent forensic inspection by an expert hired by the family. That forensic report still is not complete, Rudoy said.  (snip)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 14, 2012, 01:50:09 PM
http://www.cbs8.com/story/19024331/coronado

Families speak out on anniversary of Coronado mansion deaths

 Posted: Jul 14, 2012 1:16 AM EDT Updated: Jul 14, 2012 1:42 AM EDT


(snip) Rudoy told News 8 that the San Diego County Sheriff still has not returned some of Zahau's personal belongs to the family, like her camera, computer or cell phone. He said the Sheriff did make the cell phone available for an independent forensic inspection by an expert hired by the family. That forensic report still is not complete, Rudoy said.  (snip)


Another snip....
The mansion's owner, Arizona millionaire Jonah Shacknai, 55, purchased a beachside vacation home last October in Del Mar for $3.3 million under the company Seafare Holdings LLC, according to real estate records.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: tupelohoney on July 16, 2012, 01:49:40 PM
http://www.azfamily.com/news/Mom-of-boy-in-Coronado-mansion-death-breaks-silence-162601416.html?utm_source=azfamily.com&utm_medium=twitter&utm_term=Arizona&utm_content=News

Mom of boy in Coronado mansion death breaks yearlong silence
Video report by Ryan O'Donnell
Posted on July 16, 2012 at 10:06 AM
Updated today at 10:25 AM

PHOENIX -- On the first anniversary of her young son's death inside his father's historic mansion on Coronado Island off the coast of San Diego, Dr. Dina Shacknai is finally breaking her silence.

Shacknai, the ex-wife of Scottsdale businessman Jonah Shacknai, scheduled a news conference at 11 a.m. to announce an initiative "to further the legacy of Max Shacknai."
 ::snipping2::

::snipping2::
Max's death was ruled an accident, but Shacknai believes there's more to it. Much more.

"It's still my job to find out what really happened to him, isn't it?" she reportedly said in an exclusive interview with Phoenix Magazine. That interview will appear in the new issue, which hits newsstands this week.

Shacknai also told the magazine she and her ex-husband had agreed that Zahau would not babysit Max, known affectionately by his family as Maxie. She also said she wished she could ask Zahau what happened the day Max fell.

Monday's news conference will be the first time Shacknai has spoken publicly about her son and his death. The foundation she has created, Maxie's H.O.U.S.E., is designed to protect children whose parents are divorced. "H.O.U.S.E." is an acronym for hope, outreach, understanding, safety and education.
 ::snipping2::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 16, 2012, 04:09:05 PM
Tupelo - TY!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 16, 2012, 04:12:38 PM
The attorney for Dina, who is on the board for Maxie's House, said that they have requested that SDSO sit down and speak with them so that they can provide information they have from an investigation that has been going on this past year - information that they say proves to them that Maxie's death was not due to an accident.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 16, 2012, 04:15:45 PM
The attorney for Dina, who is on the board for Maxie's House, said that they have requested that SDSO sit down and speak with them so that they can provide information they have from an investigation that has been going on this past year - information that they say proves to them that Maxie's death was not due to an accident.

Excuse me - strick out "that Maxie's death was not due to an accident" 

and insert: that the scenario put forth by the SDSO is inaccurate


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 16, 2012, 04:18:00 PM
The attorney for Dina, who is on the board for Maxie's House, said that they have requested that SDSO sit down and speak with them so that they can provide information they have from an investigation that has been going on this past year - information that they say proves to them that Maxie's death was not due to an accident.

Excuse me - strick out "that Maxie's death was not due to an accident" 

and insert: that the scenario put forth by the SDSO is inaccurate

I'm sorry, please excuse me "again":  strike SDSO and insert the Coronado Police Department


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 17, 2012, 04:30:26 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/shacknai-boy-s-mother-questions-his-cause-of-death-zahau-jonah-dina


Update: Shacknai Boy's Mother Questions Circumstances of His Death
July 16, 2012

Dina Shacknai calls for meeting with Coronado police, who determined the boy died as a result of an accident at Spreckels mansion one year ago. Police Chief Louis Scanlon said the department will oblige.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on July 17, 2012, 10:56:10 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/shacknai-boy-s-mother-questions-his-cause-of-death-zahau-jonah-dina


Update: Shacknai Boy's Mother Questions Circumstances of His Death
July 16, 2012

Dina Shacknai calls for meeting with Coronado police, who determined the boy died as a result of an accident at Spreckels mansion one year ago. Police Chief Louis Scanlon said the department will oblige.


Thank you for keeping this thread updated, Puzzler.  There is so much that doesn't make sense in the deaths of both Max and Rebecca, imo.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on July 17, 2012, 07:18:03 PM
 ::rhino::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 19, 2012, 06:15:10 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/shacknai-boy-s-mother-questions-his-cause-of-death-zahau-jonah-dina


Update: Shacknai Boy's Mother Questions Circumstances of His Death
July 16, 2012

Dina Shacknai calls for meeting with Coronado police, who determined the boy died as a result of an accident at Spreckels mansion one year ago. Police Chief Louis Scanlon said the department will oblige.


Thank you for keeping this thread updated, Puzzler.  There is so much that doesn't make sense in the deaths of both Max and Rebecca, imo.

You're welcome.

Dina has a reputation for going for the jugglar and never letting go - I don't blame her for wanting to find out what happened to her son - especially as she's investigated this and continues to have questions.

CPD handled Max's accident and SDSO handled Rebecca's death because it looked suspicious and CPD doesn't have that kind of expertise.  However, the reenactment of Max going over the railing was put out by SDSO. 

With Dina's reputation, I don't believe CPD could have done anything but agree to meet with Dina...and I'm sure she's armed with plenty - considerning she hired an engineer - and losts of posters have posted ad nausem that Max's accident couldn't possibly have happened the way SDSO's reenactment video suggests.

Now...what's CPD going to do?  Would you want to be Chief of a small police department and turn Dina down!?!

If CPD doesn't turn her down...it's a great big OPEN door to next go to SDSO.  This is already a big deal; we're just seeing the walkway to the steps to the front door....this will be WAR...as Dina won't let go - PLUS - Anne Bremner currently has her filing with the AG of CA, reqesting that the Rebecca Zahau be granted an independent investigation...which the AG is expected to decide on by the end of this summer.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Sister on July 19, 2012, 06:41:55 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/shacknai-boy-s-mother-questions-his-cause-of-death-zahau-jonah-dina


Update: Shacknai Boy's Mother Questions Circumstances of His Death
July 16, 2012

Dina Shacknai calls for meeting with Coronado police, who determined the boy died as a result of an accident at Spreckels mansion one year ago. Police Chief Louis Scanlon said the department will oblige.


Thank you for keeping this thread updated, Puzzler.  There is so much that doesn't make sense in the deaths of both Max and Rebecca, imo.

You're welcome.

Dina has a reputation for going for the jugglar and never letting go - I don't blame her for wanting to find out what happened to her son - especially as she's investigated this and continues to have questions.

CPD handled Max's accident and SDSO handled Rebecca's death because it looked suspicious and CPD doesn't have that kind of expertise.  However, the reenactment of Max going over the railing was put out by SDSO. 

With Dina's reputation, I don't believe CPD could have done anything but agree to meet with Dina...and I'm sure she's armed with plenty - considerning she hired an engineer - and losts of posters have posted ad nausem that Max's accident couldn't possibly have happened the way SDSO's reenactment video suggests.

Now...what's CPD going to do?  Would you want to be Chief of a small police department and turn Dina down!?!

If CPD doesn't turn her down...it's a great big OPEN door to next go to SDSO.  This is already a big deal; we're just seeing the walkway to the steps to the front door....this will be WAR...as Dina won't let go - PLUS - Anne Bremner currently has her filing with the AG of CA, reqesting that the Rebecca Zahau be granted an independent investigation...which the AG is expected to decide on by the end of this summer.
If that was my son, I would be rabid about it too.  She has a right to know the answers -- but I am afraid the one who could shed the most light on the "accident" took the truth to her grave.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: AZSunny on July 19, 2012, 11:21:52 PM
What was Rebecca's real name and what was her criminal history?  Doe's anyone know?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 20, 2012, 05:04:39 AM
What was Rebecca's real name and what was her criminal history?  Doe's anyone know?


Rebecca Nelepa - was her married name.

Sometime after her divorce she had her name changed back to her maiden name: Rebecca Zahau.

Crime: shoplifting $1,000 jewelry - IDK what her punishment was, but do know that she did everything she was required to do.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on July 20, 2012, 08:04:01 AM
What was Rebecca's real name and what was her criminal history?  Doe's anyone know?


Rebecca Nelepa - was her married name.

Sometime after her divorce she had her name changed back to her maiden name: Rebecca Zahau.

Crime: shoplifting $1,000 jewelry - IDK what her punishment was, but do know that she did everything she was required to do.

Puzzler, I thought her married name was Rebecca Nalepa?  


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 06, 2012, 12:42:03 AM
What was Rebecca's real name and what was her criminal history?  Doe's anyone know?


Rebecca Nelepa - was her married name.

Sometime after her divorce she had her name changed back to her maiden name: Rebecca Zahau.

Crime: shoplifting $1,000 jewelry - IDK what her punishment was, but do know that she did everything she was required to do.

Puzzler, I thought her married name was Rebecca Nalepa?  

Muffy - TY   I mispelled the name


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on August 06, 2012, 10:31:18 PM
What was Rebecca's real name and what was her criminal history?  Doe's anyone know?


Rebecca Nelepa - was her married name.

Sometime after her divorce she had her name changed back to her maiden name: Rebecca Zahau.

Crime: shoplifting $1,000 jewelry - IDK what her punishment was, but do know that she did everything she was required to do.

Puzzler, I thought her married name was Rebecca Nalepa?  

Muffy - TY   I mispelled the name

Okay Puzzler.  ::MonkeyCool::  I try to make certain victims names are spelled correctly.  Sometimes there are errors made by media and etc. or names are changed and etc.   I just wanted to verify.  Thank you  ::bee::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 07, 2012, 05:08:07 AM
Dina Shacknai Wants Son's Death Re-Opened, Labeled Homicide

UPDATED: 6:51 pm PDT August 6, 2012

http://www.10news.com/news/31335409/detail.html?treets=sand&tml=sand_break&ts=T&tmi=sand_break_1_04450108062012

(snip)  Dina Shacknai and her attorneys met with Coronado police one week ago. She told the chief she wants her son's case reopened and investigated as a homicide.
 
(snip)  On Monday, the findings of a certified forensic pathologist and an expert in injury biomechanics were released.

The results indicate that Max's injuries show he was assaulted before going over a second floor railing.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 07, 2012, 05:33:01 AM
Dina Shacknai Asks to Reopen Mansion Death

Monday, Aug 6, 2012 

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/Dina-Jonah-Shacknai-Max-Shacknai-Rebecca-Zahau-165197206.html

(snip)  Forensic pathologist Dr. Judy Melinek contributed to the independent investigation, ultimately calling the manner of Max’s death "inaccurate."
 
It would be more accurate to certify that manner as a homicide, where homicide is defined as death at the hands of another,” Melinek said in the statement.

 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 07, 2012, 05:37:33 AM
Dina Shacknai asks to reopen son's death investigation
Updated: Aug 07, 2012 1:37 AM EDT


http://www.cbs8.com/story/19209102/dina-shacknai-asks-to-reopen-sons-death-investigation


(snip)  According to the independent experts, Max Shacknai's death should have been classified a homicide.
 
In her first sit-down interview after the report was released, Dina Shacknai said the findings of the investigation into her son's death "didn't make sense. It didn't add up."
 
Shacknai says, "I know they had done such a thorough job that when I read the findings I was devastated to learn that Maxie was the victim of a homicide - an assault and a homicide."






Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 07, 2012, 05:49:37 AM
Shacknai: Independent investigation refutes son's 'accidental' death
Updated: Aug 07, 2012 3:43 AM EDT

http://www.kpho.com/story/19209370/shacknai-independent-investigation-refutes-sons-accidental-death

(snip)  Dr. Bove concluded because of Max's center of gravity, impact with the staircase railing, even at high speeds, would not allow him to fall over the banister, even if he was 4 inches taller, standing on a skateboard.

The expert hired by the Coronado Police shows Max falling over the banister, grabbing the chandelier, bouncing off the opposite railing before hitting the ground.
 
Shacknai says the marks on Max's back tell a different story.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 07, 2012, 05:55:19 AM
New Information Provided by Independent Experts Refutes Accidental Death Findings of Six Year Old Max Shacknai
August 6, 2012

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/information-provided-independent-experts-refutes-223500537.html


(snip)  Dr. Bove reports, "Dr. Melinek has proposed a scenario in which Maxfield Shacknai was assaulted, which resulted in the facial and forehead injuries sustained by Maxfield Shacknai. In her scenario, as a result of this assault, Maxfield Shacknai's back contacted the railing along the second floor hallway or along the stairs leading from the second floor to the landing which caused the soft tissue injuries to his back. As a result of the assault, Maxfield Shacknai moved or was moved over the railing causing him to fall to the first floor level and as a result of his contact with the first floor he sustained his skull fracture, subgaleal contusion and cervical cord injury. The kinematics associated with this scenario provide biomechanically accurate mechanisms for all of Maxfield Shacknai's injuries and are consistent with the physical evidence and geometry of the incident scene."
 
"An assault scenario is the only scenario that Dr. Bove and Dr. Melinek, in collaborative consultation, could identify that accounts for the multiple planes of injuries on Max's body and the scene findings," added Hallier.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 07, 2012, 05:59:29 AM
Independent report: Max Shacknai, 6, likely killed
 
Aug. 6, 2012

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2012/08/06/20120806report-max-shacknai-likely-killed.html

(snip)  The San Diego County Sheriff's Department classified both deaths as terrible tragedies last year. On Monday, the Coronado Police Department confirmed that they met with Dina Shacknai but couldn't say whether the department would reopen the case without first reviewing the report.
 
"We did meet with her and her attorneys, and we're reviewing the information she provided," said Lea Corbin, a spokeswoman for the Coronado Police Department. "At this point, we need to see what kind of information is in the report."
 
The Coronado Police Department previously investigated Max's death and determined it was accidental. Coronado police Cmdr. Mike Lawton said Max apparently had been running down a hallway at the top of the stairs when he went over a railing.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 07, 2012, 06:06:44 AM
Shacknai's mom wants son's death re-examined
Aug. 6, 2012

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/aug/06/shacknais-mom-says-sons-death-possible-homicide/

(snip)  A packet of information was presented to authorities and is being reviewed, Corbin said Monday.

Shacknai’s attorney said police were given an independent investigation that Max’s mother commissioned that presents evidence that indicates her son’s death was not accidental and was likely the result of an assault.


(snip)  Bove said that Melinek proposed a scenario in which Max was assaulted, resulting in his facial and forehead injuries, with his back then contacting the stair railing.

Hallier said “an assault scenario is the only scenario that Dr. Bone and Dr. Melinek, in collaborative consultation, could identify that accounts for the multiple planes of injuries on Max’s body and the scene findings.”

However, Bove said he had "not taken a position" as to whether the incident that resulted in Max's injuries was intentional.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 07, 2012, 07:01:55 AM
Mother of Shacknai Child Wants Case Re-classified As a Homicide
August 6, 2012

http://coronado.patch.com/articles/mother-of-shacknai-child-wants-case-re-classified-as-a-homicide-zahau-spreckels-mansion

(snip)  Her contentions echo those of Rebecca Zahau's family, who have long argued that the woman who died two days after Max's fall was a homicide victim. They have asked that the state re-open both cases.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: KittyMom on August 07, 2012, 12:09:47 PM
I wonder if she had a stalker that was surprised that the boy was home?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 08, 2012, 12:07:51 AM
http://media.utsandiego.com/news/documents/2012/08/06/Dr.Bove_Report.pdf

August 6, 2012
.pdf of report submitted to Dina by Dr. Rove, Exponent, Failure Analysis Associates

Includes a rendition of Max's height vs the height of the stairway balcony rail


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 08, 2012, 12:12:53 AM
this is a link to a .pdf "Summary of Reports"

http://www.scribd.com/doc/102202462/Max-Shacknai-Summary-of-Reports



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 08, 2012, 03:00:04 AM
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1208/07/ijvm.01.html

Note: I'm only posting the portions of the show pertaining to the interviews with Dina and Anne Bremner and I hope it's okay to post all of this.

JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL

Mother Calls for Re-examination of Accidental Death Ruling

Aired August 7, 2012 - 19:00 ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST: And tonight new twists and turns in the mysterious deaths at a tycoon`s beachfront mansion. A 6-year-old boy and his multi-millionaire dad`s girlfriend dead within days of each other last summer.

Police said young Max Shacknai had an accidental fall down the stairs. And Rebecca Zahau committed suicide. Case closed. But, no, now tonight Max`s mom is saying her son`s death was a homicide, and she is insisting this case be reopened. She joins me live in a moment.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VELEZ-MITCHELL (voice-over): Tonight, a shocking new twist in the million-dollar-mansion death mystery. A little boy`s supposedly alleged death and the allegedly balcony suicide of his dad`s girlfriend, all within one week, devastated a pharmaceutical mogul`s family.

Now the little boy`s mother says she has proof her son`s death was actually a homicide. If so, who did it and why? I`ll talk to the mother live tonight.

And brand-new developments in the hunt for a man accused of faking his own death. Cops have now arrested his 22-year-old son, claiming an e-mail chain proves the son knew what his dad was planning and even helped him carry out the sinister plot. Tonight, why does the missing man`s wife now say she is in fear for her own life?

Also, more Miley Cyrus drama-rama. The 19-year-old starlet tweeted a photo showing her bare midriff, sparking people to ask is the former Disney star just too thin? I`ll show you the photo. And I`ll take your calls.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The case is suspicious. There`s no question about it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Max Shacknai fell down the stairs of this 27- room mansion near San Diego.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The home`s registered owner at 1043 Ocean Boulevard is Jonah Shacknai, an Arizona pharmaceutical tycoon.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The body was found at the bottom of these stairs.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Max was under the care of Rebecca Zahau at the time of his fall.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I got a girl hung herself.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, sir, is she still alive?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Her hands and feet tied together.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was naked, her wrists and ankles tied with rope. These eerie photos show two knives used to cut the rope on the floor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The condition of the victim and the circumstances surrounding the scene are suspicious in nature.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Suicide and homicide at times can look very, very similar.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The manner of death appears to be somewhat of a violent nature.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s still a mystery exactly what happened.

DINA SHACKNAI, MOTHER OF MAX: I hope that they will now make it right and reopen the case. And really find the truth about what happened to Max.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Good evening. Jane Velez-Mitchell coming to you live. Stunning new developments tonight in the San Diego mansion deaths that gripped the nation last summer.

Both the young son and the girlfriend of pharmaceutical tycoon Jonah Shacknai died within days of one other. Six-year-old Max`s death was ruled an accident. Girlfriend Rebecca Zahau`s death was ruled a suicide.

But tonight, Max`s mom says her child`s death was not an accident at all. And she`s got a brand-new report from experts that she says proves her son was assaulted and killed?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHACKNAI: The results are we`re looking at a homicide. Real science doesn`t lie.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Max`s mother is my very special guest tonight. Will police listen to her and reopen the case?

Investigators say Rebecca found little Max unconscious at the bottom of the staircase at his father`s mansion. Two days later, as Max lay hospitalized in a coma, Rebecca was found hanging off a balcony at the very same mansion.

The circumstances of her death were beyond bizarre. Police say Rebecca was naked, her hands and feet bound behind her with a rope and a T- shirt stuffed in her mouth. A cryptic message painted on the door saying, quote, "She saved him. Can you save her?"

Four days after Rebecca`s body was found, Max tragically died from his injuries.

Even though a lot of people found the double deaths very weird and suspicious, police insisted there was no foul play involved in either of these two deaths.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Were these deaths the result of criminal conduct? Was Max`s death a homicide? The answer is no. It was a tragic accident.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Joining me now, Max Shacknai`s mother, Dina Shacknai, and her attorney, Angie Hallier.

Dina, thank you so much for joining us. And first of all, my heart goes out to you over the loss of your precious son, Max. I know you are searching for the truth. And that`s why you hired your own team of forensic experts who have finished their report. So tell us about this report. Tell us what they concluded.

SHACKNAI: Well, thank you for having me on the show tonight. There were -- the independent experts that I retained have been working diligently for nine months. And the findings, after working in collaboration with one another, were that Max suffered from an assault first -- an assault scenario and then was the victim of a homicide.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, the people who were there, tell us exactly in your opinion who was at the mansion at the time that this incident with your son occurred.

SHACKNAI: From what I understand, the persons present, according to the coroner`s department, were Rebecca and her sister Dia (ph) Zahau.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So essentially, what do you say happened? Who did what to whom in your opinion?

SHACKNAI: I think that the experts that we have retained, Doctors Bove and Dr. Melinek, were so thorough in their -- in their investigatory process, and they have presented us with science. Dr. Bove really ruled out the scenario that Dr. Gomez presented. And the scenario that the Coronado Police Department presented really defied gravity. Max couldn`t have gone over that railing like he did.

And Dr. Melinek, a forensic pathologist and a chief -- a medical examiner substantiated this basically and said that there was an assault scenario. And the injuries that he had and the multiple plains of injury all over his body, including the top of his head, above his eye, on his back, abrasions on his back, bruises on his neck, that they were not consistent with an accident.

So I am really hoping and think that the Coronado Police Department will reopen this and that they are the experts who can determine what happened to Maxie.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, let me say this. You`re saying that Rebecca, the girlfriend of your ex-husband, 32 years old -- and my understanding her kid sister, who`s about 13, are the only two individuals who are in the mansion at the time that this incident occurred with your son?

There is a picture of Rebecca, who is also deceased at this point.

Dina, our affiliate, 10 News, is reporting that you had instructed that Max should not be left alone with Rebecca, who, again, was the girlfriend of your ex-husband. You saw a picture there of them together. Is that true? And if so, why did you feel Rebecca should not be with your son when your ex-husband was not present?

SHACKNAI: Jonah and I had an agreement based on a meeting that she and I had the September prior to this. And at the time that I met her, she gave me a name that she had never used, as far as I knew, in this country. So she had used the name -- she gave me the name Rebecca Zahau, but at the time, her name was Rebecca Nalecka (ph). I didn`t -- she didn`t share with me that she was married at the time. And she didn`t share with me that she did have a shoplifting incident. And so these things were concerning.

As a mother you want to know who`s -- who`s taking care of your child. So not to share your name seemed very unusual and gave me cause -- concern to talk with Jonah, have an agreement and then go forward and learn a little bit more about why she didn`t share, you know, al that information in our first meeting.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: OK. So you had concerns about your ex-husband`s girlfriend.

Listen to what cops believe happened to 6-year-old Max at his father`s mansion. And this is from affiliate KGTV.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Something caused him to trip. Whether it was a ball, whether it was the dog or something that he then tripped and fell over that railing, grabbing the chandelier, twisting him around to where his back impacted the railing on the other side, went down to his knees and then to his head.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Now our affiliate 10 News reports that your independent investigation showed it was not possible for somebody as short as little Max, who was 6 years old, to accidentally fall over the railing. And also that there were no injuries, according to your experts, on Max`s hands from grabbing the chandelier.

So Dina, I want to cut to the chase here. You`re saying that you don`t think this was an accident. So in your opinion what are you saying about who did what to your son?

SHACKNAI: What I`m saying is that I have received -- it`s been very hard to really remain silent about this. But what I`m saying is I`ve received reports from experts who have -- independent experts who have a great degree of knowledge in their fields -- their respective fields and they have presented me with compelling evidence that Max was assaulted and he was a victim of a homicide.

So I can`t say who did that. And I would hope that the -- given that we have presented the Coronado Police Department with real science -- and science doesn`t lie. And I hope that they take the science and then they open this investigation and they change the disposition of the case. And that`s what I`m asking for.

I know Rebecca`s family is grieving because she -- they have experienced the loss of a sister and a daughter. And I`m not in the position to say, because I`m not an investigator for the Coronado Police Department. I think it is their responsibility to more carefully look at this based on science that we have provided. And I hope they will do that.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: One question, Angie Hellier, you`re the attorney for Dina. You`re sitting right next to her. These experts came up with a very different conclusion from police. So if it`s so evident to your experts, how did the police miss this?

ANGIE HELLIER, ATTORNEY FOR DINA SHACKNAI: You know, we don`t know. Dina was debriefed on what they were going to announce at the press conference, the accidental finding, just shortly before the press conference. At that time all she saw was the diagram. She received a copy of the Coronado Police Department`s biomechanical engineer`s report three weeks later, and that`s when the questions arose.

I don`t know if they didn`t have enough time. Our experts had nine months. I can`t speak for their investigation, but I can say that our experts thoroughly, thoroughly looked at the evidence locker. We were given access to the police records. We were given access to the medical examiner`s office. Jonah Shacknai provided us access to the residence where this occurred.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I want to jump in for a second. Do you think that Rebecca Zahau was involved in Max`s death?

HELLIER: I don`t know. All I know is that we have the scientific evidence. We`ve presented it to the police department. We believe it`s their job. And we hope they will reopen the investigation. And as part of the reopening do further investigation to determine exactly what happened.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. I want to thank you, Dina and Angie. Dina, again, there are no words. I know you are suffering as a result of your son`s tragic death. And I know you want the truth. And that`s all we want too. So we ask those questions. Thank you so much.

SHACKNAI: Thank you.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: On the other side we`re going to talk to an attorney for Rebecca Zahau`s family. And feel free to stay. And we`re going to, again, search for the truth.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Rebecca Zahau was hanging from a second-floor bedroom balcony. Jonah`s brother, Adam Shacknai, was staying in the guest house across the courtyard. He told detectives he ran up after spotting her and cut her down. He called 911. Paramedics responded and performed CPR but couldn`t revive her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Was that a suicide? And a couple of days earlier, Max`s fall, was that an accident? Two very strange and suspicious incidents two days apart at the mansion. Cops basically saying both of them not foul play.

But you just heard the mother of this precious child, Max, who tragically died. She`s hired independent experts who say, "Unh-uh, we feel that this little boy did not accidentally die, that there was an assault, that this was a homicide."

I want to go now -- and by the way, we reached out to Jonah Shacknai, who is the pharmaceutical tycoon -- there he is -- whose mansion this was, the father of this child. And obviously, he has suffered tremendously, as well. We did not hear back. He`s invited on our show or his representatives any time.

But I want to go to Anne Bremner. You represent the Zahau family. What is your reaction to what you heard from the mother, the devastated mother of little Max saying it was no accident, it was an assault?

ANNE BREMNER, ATTORNEY FOR ZAHAU FAMILY: Well, first, Jane, great to be on with you. And there`s too much grief to go around in this case. And I have, like you`ve said, so much empathy for Dina and Jonah Shacknai; of course for the family of Rebecca Zahau, my clients. She has parents that are grieving her loss, too.

But this case, we`ve been around now for a year going to the San Diego sheriff, going to the attorney general, going to the D.A. with investigation, talking to witnesses showing that this was not a suicide of Rebecca Zahau. I can count the ways, too. I know we`ve talked about this case before.

My reaction to what I just heard is you can`t get over the loss of a child. You want to look for answers. But these are not independent experts. They used the words "our experts." Dr. Melinek is charging $600 an hour, and she does point to Rebecca Zahau in these reports.

But these are independents, basically saying, "I see injuries on this boy`s face." What we heard from the experts from Coronado was that he fell on his face.

It`s just speculation and conjecture and baseless to say that this was a homicide.

And Dr. Bove, the other expert, said he couldn`t conclude anything. So that`s really what we have today. It`s a horrible loss, I know, but it`s not a homicide.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Now you -- your family, the family you represent, doesn`t feel that Rebecca killed herself.

BREMNER: Right.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Let`s -- let`s show this. A woman is trying to do a re-enactment here, and she loops the ropes around her wrist. We`re going to show you this re-enactment video. It`s pretty extraordinary. And then you see this.

he police did this to prove that, oh, yes, Rebecca could have tied her hands and bound her feet and stuck a T-shirt in her mouth and still have jumped off the side of the mansion and found hanging naked from a balcony.

But what about this cryptic comment, "She saved him. Can you save her?" that was supposedly written on the door? And what about people who say women do not commit suicide naked, that it`s just not plausible?

BREMNER: Right. And this can take a Cirque du Soleil artist. And women don`t commit suicide this naked. In fact, there`s never been a case reported like this ever. And she had lividity in her back, which meant she died on her back, where her blood settles when you die. Not in her extremities where you go from hanging. And she had blunt force trauma to the top of her head. So this truly was not a suicide by any shape or form.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: So what are you saying? Who did what to whom? I`ll ask the same question I asked the boy`s mother.

BREMNER: You know, it`s funny, Jane. In listening to what has just been said and what we`ve been looking at in all this case, we`ve asked for Max`s case to be reopened too. We asked for both cases to be reopened because we think there`s more questions about Max`s death.

We don`t say it`s a homicide. And we`re not pointing fingers in either case. These are horrible deaths. Seven weeks they took to investigate. That`s it. We`ve been involved since before they said it was a suicide. I think...

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Are you saying that there`s some kind of cover-up? That police...

BREMNER: No. No. I think they just didn`t get anywhere. It`s not a cover-up. They just didn`t investigate the case fully. And I`d hate to say cover-up because I don`t think it was that sophisticated. They just didn`t finish.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Jon Lieberman, investigative journalist, your thoughts.

JON LIEBERMAN, HLN INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST: I think that Anne brings up a good point. And perhaps they should open both of these cases up. I read this entire report. A few things stuck out to me, Jane. One was that -- a line in here, "An unassisted accidental fall, as depicted in Dr. Gomez` scenario, does not explain the subsequent resting position of the Razor scooter on top of Max`s leg, where there`s no bruising, and the complete lack of glass shard dicing injury to Max`s body." That stuck out to me.

Also this report does take a shot at the police, as well, saying that they saw no thorough psychological assessment of Rebecca Zahau, her mental state or inquiries into previous aggressive acts.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, on the other side we`re going to talk to somebody who talked to Rebecca, possibly hours before she died, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I got a girl hung herself.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Sir, is she still alive?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you alive?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Now, Jon Lieberman, tell us about who made that 911 call. Because that was the person who discovered Rebecca`s body hanging from the balcony.

LIEBERMAN: Yes. And that is so tragic. You heard that. I want to go back to what we were just talking about in the break, which is that also medical examiners and coroners, they can`t say that it`s murder, for example. They can say it could be criminally negligent homicide. They could say manslaughter. There are so many scenarios as to what this report indicates could have happened to that little boy. So I did want to point that out.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, now, the person you heard on that 911 call was the brother of the mogul. And he, by the way, was a tugboat captain who had heard about Max, his nephew, having this injury. And he raced in only to find his brother`s girlfriend hanging naked from the balcony. How bizarre.

Now, right before she died, Rebecca, the girlfriend, called a local day care company for dogs to arrange so she could go to the hospital where Max was being treated. Here`s what the dog day care owner told me last year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very, very quiet. I would say very upset. But definitely not distraught or anything that would indicate she would have been suicidal. She did ask about the cost of us taking the dog to the veterinarian for the vaccination.

So that alone would indicate that, you know, if you`re going to commit suicide, why would you even care about the cost?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Good question, Anne Bremner.

BREMNER: Absolutely. And not only that. We have other people, of course, her sister, that talked with her. And she was fine.

And here`s no history of depression at all with Rebecca. And there`s no history of her having any kind of issues other than using her married name. I think we heard earlier she used her married name. A lot of people do from a prior marriage.

But there was absolutely nothing to indicate she would want to kill herself. She didn`t kill herself.

And then you also have other things we had in experiments where pulling on the bed with ropes, they were expert knots. She didn`t know how to tie those kind of knots. And pulling on the bed, it only went seven inches. May have been picked up and moved with those ropes. With an experiment done it went seven feet. You can go on and on about this case, but she wasn`t depressed. She didn`t kill herself. And it needs to be resolved.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Unbelievable mystery. We`ll stay on top of it.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 08, 2012, 06:57:10 AM
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1208/07/ddhln.01.html

DR. DREW

Mansion Death Accident or Murder?

Aired August 7, 2012 - 21:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


 (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
 
DR. DREW PINSKY, HOST (voice-over): Last summer, 6-year-old Max Shacknai fell over a staircase balcony at his father`s mansion and fell into a coma. Two days later, tragedy struck again. His father`s 32-year- old girlfriend, Rebecca, was found dead at the same home, hanging naked from a second story balcony, her hands and feet bound.

Three days later, tragically, Max died from his injuries, a double tragedy at the same estate in less than a week. Police ruled Max`s death accidental and Rebecca`s a suicide. But many were skeptical, voicing their doubts right here on this show.
 
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She didn`t speak like that she wasn`t -- I don`t know. It just doesn`t sound like something she would say.
 
PINSKY: A year later, there are serious questions as to whether Rebecca could have bound her own hands and feet and hung herself.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s a very curious thing to be able to tie yourself in knots.

PINSKY: And now, Max`s mother wants the investigation reopened to get justice for her little boy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)
 
PINSKY: And those of you that have been with us through following this mystery are familiar with some of those details. Those of you for whom this is new, we`ll try to recap and please hang with us.

At this point, we are going to welcome Dina Shacknai to the show.

Now, Dina, the police ruled your son`s death an accident. You would like them to reinvestigate. Tell me why.
 
DINA SHACKNAI, SON MAX SUFFERED FATAL FALL: Yes. Well, based on the findings that were presented to me by independent experts with impeccable credentials, one of whom, Doctors Bove and Melinek, one of Dr. Bove from Exponent, and Dr. Melinek from the San Francisco medical examiner`s office, presented information and -- to me that definitively stated that Max suffered an assault scenario and consequently, he died of a -- he was the victim of a homicide.
 
PINSKY: Now, we actually called the Coronado Police Department and we got this statement on the case from public information officer Leah Corbin (ph). Quote, "We did meet with Dina and her team on July 26th. We will review the information that they have provided."
 
Now, Dina, here`s the thing for me. This case came to light for me today because I saw some pictures of your son sick in the ICU bed. And I got to tell you, I was -- it was heartbreaking. It was just absolutely heartbreaking.

And I don`t know -- I don`t know how you get over something like that. And I -- is this -- is this what that`s about, part of the search for justice, helping you grieve?
 
SHACKNAI: I think as any parent would, I want to find the truth about what happened to my son and I agree with you that those pictures were shocking and horrific. Seeing him in person was even worse.
 
Having gone through all of the medical examiner photos myself, it was a horrible experience. I wouldn`t wish on anybody and certainly not a parent. The resolution for me in this -- in his death is to find the truth for him so that he has justice and then going forward, maybe other kids moms and dads and families can be helped and that is the resolution -- truth and help.

PINSKY: Dina, I`m looking -- yes, Dina, I`m looking at a picture of him.
 
A couple things -- first, I want you to tell me what kind of kid he was. And I`m going to ask your permission, can we show some pictures of maybe just his back and his hands so people get a sense of who we are talking about here?
 
SHACKNAI: Yes. Yes, you can. Yes.

PINSKY: And tell me about him. Max.

SHACKNAI: So, Maxi was -- Maxi was -- he and I were the best fit. I told him every day I was the luckiest mommy in all the universes to have him. And when I saw him in the morning, he had an enormous smile. He would look up at me and I really felt like I won the lottery every day.
 
I know you have seen pictures of him smiling. It`s not just that we caught him at a moment. He was like that every single day. He was the most loving, smart, funny, generous boy. I mean, I`m -- obviously, it`s subjective, I`m his mom. But I couldn`t imagine a better son.
 
So this loss of Max is devastating -- devastating for me.

PINSKY: I`m so sorry. Just, you know, again when you bring it to life like that, it`s just like getting kicked in the stomach. There you are together.

Let`s show some of the viewers where he ended up in the ICU. Let`s at least show the hands and the back. I guess what is at issue here is whether somebody assaulted him before he fell over the railing and whether -- there`s his back, I think some of the injuries that he suffered.
 
Let`s see his hands, if you could show us. Again, something about seeing human hands brings somebody to life. I will not show the pictures of his face. That is just too much.

But -- do we have the picture with the back, the railing, the matchup that Dina has sort of put together? There is his little hand. Gosh, it is just so -- this whole thing is devastating you.
 
So, let me take it to the -- why we are here again and why are we talking about this. You think wrongdoing -- you think somebody did something sinister with him. How could that happen?
 
I mean, I would think the only people -- here`s what was alleged to have happened, looking at the pictures, Dina, of the fall down the stairway. He fell onto the railing, the chandelier went with him.
 
Let me go to Angela, your attorney, and look back at what they -- what the police allege happened and what your investigators think, in fact happened.
 
Can you tell me about that, Angela?

ANGELA HALLIER, ATTORNEY FOR DINA SHACKNAI: Yes. The investigators for the Coronado Police Department in conjunction with the sheriff`s department, announced at a press conference a number of weeks after Maxi`s death that it was an accident. They provided a diagram that they allege depicted what had happened.

PINSKY: I`m going to show it again so understand what I`m talking about.

If you guys could throw that over there.
 
They say he fell over the railing the very top of this three-story staircase.
 
Come on, guys, show that for me.

And then he -- that is actually the staircase. There we go. Somehow fell over the railing here, tumbled, hit the rail on his back, we showed the injuries on his back they claim came from this particular rail and then down and hit his head and that was the terminal event.

But your investigators say something different. First of all, how does a kid fall over a rail like that? It just doesn`t happen. They have to jump over it. Maybe he`s trying to swing on a chandelier or something, I mean, if they want to allege, I don`t think he was that kind of kid. What -- how do they come up with that stuff?

HALLIER: Well, we weren`t part of the investigation from the Coronado Police Department what we did see was the diagram, which didn`t make sense to Dina to begin with. Three weeks after the press conference when the accidental scenario was announced, we got a copy of the -- Dr. Gomez`s report, who actually was hired by the Coronado Police Department to do this re-enactment.

Again, it didn`t make sense that is when Dina decided she really need to find out if that was true. And when we hired these individuals who didn`t know each other, we didn`t know them, we looked for people with great credentials and they told us, we are going to find the truth based on science. Whether you like it or not, we`re going to tell you what they find.

Not only did they -- oh, sorry.
 
PINSKY: No, I was going to say. Now you want the police to reopen this case.
 
I know your ex-husband`s girlfriend`s family has been asking for this as well because of the mysterious circumstance of her death. I`ve had rope experts in here who have said it`s just impossible for her to tied her own hands behind her back the way she was found. And again, there`s lots of sort of questionable aspects of her death.

So this whole thing is not tying together.
 
Now, again, Maxi`s death is one of the first at the same house in the same week.
 
We are going to talk more to Dina and we`re also going to talk to the attorney representing your ex-husband`s girlfriend.
 
And we are taking your calls, 1-855-DRDREW5. Please call in. We`ll be right back.
 
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
 
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
 
SHERIFF BILL GORE, SAN DIEGO COUNTY SHERIFF`S DEPARTMENT: Were these deaths the result of criminal conduct? Was Max`s death a homicide? The answer is no. It was a tragic accident.

(END VIDEO CLIP)
 
PINSKY: Well, it`s quite an accident if that`s the case. It sounds like a soap opera, a millionaire`s 6-year-old son dead after falling over a banister at a California, San Diego mansion. A few days later, his father`s girlfriend found hanging naked. Again, women don`t hang themselves naked, with her hands and feet bound. The police closed both cases quickly.
 
But tonight, after a year-long silence, this young boy, Max`s mom, claims she has proof, scientific proof, that there was foul play.
 
So, Dina, I want to cut right to the chase. I want to get to some -- by the way, I`ve got Dina Shacknai and her attorney, Angela Hallier.
 
I want to cut right to the chase before I go to calls. That is what do you think happened? I mean, we had -- basically Maxi under the care of your ex-husband`s girlfriend who is now herself deceased and there was a teenager in the house as I understand, too. What do you think happened?

And by the way, before you answer that before you answer, I want to say if there was really sort of overt wrongdoing -- I would expect the person doing the wrongdoing would have had a history. So I`m going to ask you, if you give me a little theory -- is there some history there that spores those ideas or we just don`t know?

SHACKNAI: I would say that the reason that I`ve come forward now is - - and it`s been very hard to be silent for all this time, is due to the expert findings that we have been given. So I think that the Coronado Police Department, they are the experts. Chief Lou Scanlon and Commander Lawton are the ones who can reopen this case and amend the disposition and do the investigative work to determine what happened to max and they are the ones, you know, it is their responsibility and their area of expertise to do that.

PINSKY: And, Dina, have you at least made an appeal, as a grieving mom, like would you guys, please, I need this to be OK? Have you made an emotional appeal to these guys or would you like to now?
 
SHACKNAI: Well, I think that I have been -- I have tried to do that. I`m doing that now for Max. And I think going forward, it`s important that he have justice, just like it would be important for you or for me or for anybody, and that means knowing the truth about what happened to him.
 
And through this, maybe going forward, other kids and moms and dads and families wouldn`t have to go through the things that we have gone through as a family.
 
And I know that having lost him was a soul-searing loss. It is the worst thing that has ever happened. And having to go through this every day since he has died and try to do my own investigation -- I`m a mom. I had no previous experience at any of this. So, having to do that has been an additional horrific, in and of itself --

PINSKY: Can I ask you something?

SHACKNAI: Horrific, period. Sure.

PINSKY: How do you hold it together? It is such a horrible story.

SHACKNAI: Well, I think that Max`s memory is always with me. I always have him in my thoughts. And he, I know, when he was alive, would tell me, even when he wasn`t with me, he would say to me, I always have you, mommy, I have you in my thinking thought, my mommy thoughts.

So I would say the same thing, that I have him in my thoughts. And so, I think that has given me strength and also obviously the very strong and supportive people around me who have helped try to find the truth, wherever that will lead, wherever that has led.

PINSKY: That`s, again, so important, getting through something like this, having people that genuinely care about you. Dina, you were robbed. I`m so sorry.

Let`s go to calls. Kathy in Ohio. Kathy, what do you got?

KATHY, CALLER FROM OHIO: Yes. Dr. Drew, my question is this -- I was wondering if there was any DNA found possibly that would connect the lady who had also died, Rebecca, with the son`s death?
 
PINSKY: Well, as you know, the San Diego investigators did not feel there was any wrongdoing. I know there was all kinds of consternation over the DNA on the rope that they found Rebecca tied to, but, Angela, maybe you can sort of clear that up real quick.
 
HALLIER: Yes. It`s our understanding from the records we have been given access to that DNA was taken from underneath Max`s fingernails but we have no indication that it was ever tested.

PINSKY: Interesting. Blair in Texas - Blair.
 
BLAIR, CALLER FROM TEXAS: Hi, Dr. Drew. Thank you so much for taking my call.
 
PINSKY: Pleasure.

BLAIR: Ms. Shacknai, where was your husband during this time of your son`s fall? And my condolences go to you. I`m so sorry for your loss.
 
SHACKNAI: Thank you. Thank you.
 
As reported by the police, the only two people home at the time that this happened were Rebecca and Xena, so, that`s what I`ve been told.
 
PINSKY: OK.
 
SHACKNAI: I wasn`t there, but that`s what was reported to me in police reports.

I would also like to add to that. This -- the idea of what happened to Max was such a shock, it wasn`t until Thursday afternoon that I was even informed by a doctor at Rady Children`s Hospital that they suspected something and CPS was called. Really, I feel during the week, it was such a traumatic shock, I was really, you know, not apprised of all the other information going on with I guess the Coronado Police Department`s investigation.

PINSKY: What did you think had happened at that point?
 
SHACKNAI: It was so shocking to walk in and see those photographs of Max. The first thing that I was told was that he had a heart attack. I didn`t understand how that had happened and that somehow the chandelier had came down. I didn`t understand that had happened.
 
I thought and as the week progress, I thought the most important thing to do was focus on Max and so I brought his favorite stuffed animals. I even brought my favorite -- his favorite perfume that he knew that I wore, thinking maybe it would stir some memory for him so I never thought Max was not going to walk out of that hospital. I thought that I would maybe need a tutor and he would be able to play on his Blackhawks team and maybe he would sit out a few games.

So then my focus that week was on being with him, speaking to him, reading to him, singing to him, hoping to, you know, elicit and stir some, to let him know that I was there.
 
PINSKY: And then you -- when he died, you didn`t have any expectation that was going to happen?
 
SHACKNAI: I didn`t. I -- it happened on Friday, the first. He suffered from brain death and on Friday morning, approximately 6:30 in the morning, the EEG went flat and I thought something was wrong with the machine.
 
And it was soon clear that the doctors came in and said, you know, that he was brain dead. So, it was a shock to me and, you know, going through the next 24 hours and sitting with him was just as hard.
 
And I have to say the thing that Maxi did, even in his death, was he saved three people. He donated his liver and two kidneys. So he saved an 11-month-old and two adults.

So, in death, he was as generous and beautiful and amazing as he was in life.
 
PINSKY: Oh, Dina, the story -- I`m going to ask my control room, can I keep my guests here through this next segment? Is that OK? OK.
 
We are going to keep you guys. Let me just read this. Two days after 6-year-old Max fell off a staircase, his father`s girlfriend was found hung. I think those of you that follow the story know. Her hands and feet were bound.
 
A rope expert questions whether or not it`s even possible to have done this. So, check it out. Don`t go away. I`m not going anywhere.
 
Stay with us.
 
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
 
PINSKY: All right. Dina Shacknai and her attorney, Angela Hallier.

Angela, I want to thank you for bringing Dina in here with us tonight, Angela.
 
And, Dina, I don`t understand -- first of all, thank you for being so courageous and sharing this story. I don`t understand how the appeal of a mom on the level you`re appealing can`t be met by some sort of satisfaction by the San Diego Police.
 
Don`t you think, Angela?

HALLIER: Oh, yes, and it is not just the appeal, it`s the science. I mean, that`s really what we relied on. I hope that`s what they rely on is the science we gave them.

PINSKY: And, Dina, you just let out a big sigh. Did you want to say something?

SHACKNAI: I absolutely agree. And I agree with your sentiment and I hope and I really think that they will do the right thing. I believe that they will and I believe that Max deserves justice.

PINSKY: OK. This block is rather short.

I want to get some calls.
 
Pete in Pennsylvania -- Pete.
 
PETE, CALLER FROM PENNSYLVANIA: Yes, Dr. Drew. I got two questions. Number one, did he find out what happened to Max, how he died?

PINSKY: He had a head injury and the head injury was massive and he eventually died of brain death.

PETE: Do they know how he fell from this --

PINSKY: Well, if you guys want to -- my control room wants to please show the cartoon again. This is the part that`s in sort of contention.
 
And, Dina, I will let you sort of address -- no, not the staircase, here it is, this thing. This is the police rendition of what happened. What do you think happened?

SHACKNAI: Well, according to doctors, Bove and Melinek, Max was assaulted, there was an assault scenario at the top of the --

PINSKY: So, somebody assaulted him. Somebody assaulted him and threw him over the rail? Is that what we are saying?

SHACKNAI: And given the planes of injury on his body, the face you can the back, the neck, the eye, the top of the head as well as the front over the front eye, so that along with the skull fracture and the cerebral contusion, which is eventually what led to his death.

So, yes, so somebody -- there was some force or movement that moved him over the railing on the top of his head.
 
PINSKY: OK. Well, ladies, thank you for joining us. We will keep appraised of your progress.
 
I have Ann Bremner up next to talk on behalf of the family of your ex- husband`s girlfriend who died as a part of this whole mystery.

But, Dina, I`m not going to soon forget this conversation. It`s just gut-wrenching, this entire experience. So many of our -- I guarantee you tonight, many people`s thoughts are with you.
 
SHACKNAI: Thank you for your care and attention to max and to listening to his story.
 
PINSKY: OK. Listen, we will be following this -- what we are calling this Coronado mansion mystery as it develops. More calls, Anne Bremner, after the break.
 
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
 
PINSKY: Now, the Coronado mansion mystery continues. 6-year-old max was laying in a coma in an ICU. His father`s girlfriend, a couple days later, found hanging naked, her feet and hands bound in a way that was inconceivable for her to have done -- two deaths in two days in the same house.

Joining me now is Rebecca Zahau`s, that is Dina`s ex-husband`s girlfriend, Rebecca Zahau`s attorney, and she`s also the house family attorney, Anne Bremner.
 
Anne, you and I talked about this over the last year. I`m very concerned something untoward happened to Rebecca. Now, Max`s demise was thrown into question.

Do you feel both these cases should be reopened and why?
 
ANNE BREMNER: Yes. And I wanted to thank you again, Dr. Drew, on behalf of the family for how much attention you have devoted to this case. And yes, I think they both need to be reopened.
 
You know what? We have asked for both to be reopened. We have been to the San Diego Sheriff`s Department. We have been to the D.A. And now, we are in front of the A.G. asking to have Max`s case reopened and Rebecca`s. And I think both, there`s serious question on both of these cases.

We`re not saying that Max`s case is a homicide. But we are saying that Rebecca`s a not a suicide. If you look at one, you look at both. And I think -- you know, all the things been through when we talked about before that women don`t kill themselves this way, the rope expert that you had.
 
Of course, she would have been like a Cirque de Soleil artist, you know, to kill herself in this manner. Dr. Cyril Wecht did an independent autopsy and found lividity, remember?
 
PINSKY: Yes.
 
BREMNER: It`s on your show actually.
 
PINSKY: And, Anne, I`m going to interrupt. Right, she had the signs of pooling of body fluids in the back even though she`d been hanging from her neck allegedly. And I don`t know if we have the footage of that rope expert I brought in, but he literally -- not only did he say it`d be impossible for her to have tied herself behind her back that she would have to have been a sailor in the 16th century -- this is the police -- this is the police version of it.
 
She literally would have had to have been a sailor in the 16th century on a schooner to know how to do that kind of rope work, as I understand, had never handled a rope, is that correct?
 
BREMNER: Exactly. Exactly. Such a wonderful job, Dr. Drew, on all of these things. Exactly. Just outrageous, you know, that all of these discrepancies were there and the case has yet to be reopened. It was closed after only seven weeks. And I know you paid a lot of attention to it and you still have with this case.
 
I do want to say one thing today to Dina and her family. There`s so much grief in this case to go around.
 
PINSKY: Yes.
 
BREMNER: But Becky`s family lost a daughter and a sister and it`s just heartbreaking. And I think when there`s questions like we have on both cases, let`s just see blue sky law, so to speak. Let`s look at these cases anew.
 
PINSKY: Well, yes. It just -- it would help this family complete their grieving. I know the Zahau family feel incomplete. They can`t close the chapter, at least, not to their own satisfaction.
 
Let me go to some calls. Let`s go to Cindy in California -- Cindy.
 
CINDY, CALIFORNIA: Yes, I`m here. Thank you, Dr. Drew.
 
PINSKY: Go ahead, Cindy.
 
CINDY: I just want to give my condolences to both Dina and also Rebecca`s family. My heart goes out to them. I had beloved sister who was my whole world, who was murdered when she was 34 years old. The shock, heartache, and loss never goes away for me. And it`s just very tragic. So, my heart goes out to everyone.
 
PINSKY: And Cindy, can you understand them from -- having been through an experience like that, of course, really hard for any of us to put ourselves in those shoes.
 
CINDY: It is.
 
PINSKY: But the need to have some sort of closure and questions answered. Can you appreciate that feeling?

CINDY: Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. For both Max and Rebecca, I wanted to say with Max, the diagram of that child trying to get over a wall and grab a chandelier and fall like that just seems like an impossibility. And I did want to ask was the chandelier fingerprinted or DNA taken off of it to prove the child had grabbed it?
 
PINSKY: I don`t know if -- Ann is shaking her head no and the -- Dina`s attorney said they had tested under the fingernails but did not test -- they did not have any DNA result. Thank you for that call. Cassidy in Alabama -- Cassidy.
 
CASSIDY, ALABAMA: I have a couple of questions. My first question is, I heard nothing about the father. Is he a suspect in either homicide, supposedly homicide?
 
PINSKY: Well, yes. To call these homicides at this point is jumping the gun a little bit. And Anne, I`ll rephrase the question for you. I know you`re having trouble hearing Cassidy, which was --

BREMNER: Yes.
 
PINSKY: Where does the dad fit into this -- the story? Was he a suspect at one time?
 
BREMNER: Apparently, he was not. His name is Jonah Shacknai. He was cooperative through all of this. He had an alibi, and it was on video. They didn`t call anybody suspects in this case, Dr. Drew. They simply closed it out as a suicide, at least, with Rebecca, and then with Max, an accident. So, they never got to the point of using that type of terminology with anybody.
 
PINSKY: Because it was an accident and a suicide. Judy in Washington -- Judy.
 
BREMNER: Exactly.
 
JUDY, WASHINGTON: Yes. I was wondering about the teenage sister of the girlfriend that was also in the house at the time of Max`s fall, if she`s ever said anything or she was questioned or about what happened.
 
PINSKY: Yes. Judy, it`s a great question, because Anne, I got to be honest, I didn`t -- I didn`t pay attention. I didn`t know the teenaged sister was in the house at the time. What do we know about her?
 
BREMNER: You know, it was a little known fact, Dr. Drew, but she was there. She was in a bathroom taking a shower at the time of the fall and came out and helped to collect the glass and helped with Max. She`s the one that called 911. And you can hear Rebecca hysterically, you know, screaming and trying to perform CPR on Max at that time.
 
And she did give a statement to the police, and they even went to see her back east and spent time with the child specialist to make sure they got it right in terms of the interview.
 
PINSKY: And one of the things I think people may, Anne, find curious, something I said at the opening of this segment was that women do not hang themselves naked. Do you want to clarify why that`s the case?

BREMNER: Right. Well, it`s not only that, yes, they don`t -- part of it is just modesty. Women don`t do it. There`s never been a case ever in reported history of a woman hanging herself naked this way, bound, and gagged over the side of the railing, leaving no DNA, of course, on the railing either.
 
And part of this was cultural, too, in terms of what the experts have said. But, they agreed with me in Coronado and San Diego, the authorities, that they`ve never heard of any such a case as suicide ever before.
 
PINSKY: Yes. We`ve had lots of questions. I don`t understand the resistance to reopening. And you said, it`s in front of the attorney general now. And are you getting any traction there?
 
BREMNER: Yes.
 
PINSKY: OK, well --

BREMNER: We are getting traction. And I`m happy to say. And it`s been since the beginning of July that they`ve had it. They`ve had questions, have inquiries. And, I believe we`ll have a meeting with them as early as next week.
 
PINSKY: Great. We will keep in touch with you, Anne, to see how that goes. And next up -- and by the way, thank you for joining us -- the shooter in Sunday`s temple massacre is said to be a White supremacist. When we come back, I`m going to speak to a former skinhead who reveals his secret life inside that world of hate. Don`t go away.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 09, 2012, 06:30:57 AM
New Claims Rebecca Zahau Murdered Jonah Shacknai's Son Are 'Preposterous,' Says Zahau's Sister
Aug 08, 2012

http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2012/08/rebecca-zahau-sister-claims-murdered-max-shacknai-preposterous

(snip)  "Rebecca loved Max as if he was her own son. While our family shares the grief over Max's death, the thought that Rebecca would cause Max harm is preposterous. The California Attorney General is presently reviewing the file at our request. We urge the public and the media to wait for facts and to not be distracted by shiny press releases sent by public relations firms touting paid experts' speculation. We also urge those who caused Rebecca harm to turn themselves in to law enforcement. Only then can both families begin the healing process."  (snip)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 09, 2012, 06:33:26 AM
New Claims Rebecca Zahau Murdered Jonah Shacknai's Son Are 'Preposterous,' Says Zahau's Sister
Aug 08, 2012

http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2012/08/rebecca-zahau-sister-claims-murdered-max-shacknai-preposterous

(snip)  "Rebecca loved Max as if he was her own son. While our family shares the grief over Max's death, the thought that Rebecca would cause Max harm is preposterous. The California Attorney General is presently reviewing the file at our request. We urge the public and the media to wait for facts and to not be distracted by shiny press releases sent by public relations firms touting paid experts' speculation. We also urge those who caused Rebecca harm to turn themselves in to law enforcement. Only then can both families begin the healing process."  (snip)



another snip:

As previously reported, Jonah Shacknai was dating Rebecca Zahau, who was found nude and hanging from a balcony at the Medicis CEO's mansion in Coronado, a wealthy suburb of San Diego, just two days after young Max Shacknai was found unconscious at his father's house. Max later died from his injuries. The San Diego Medical Examiner determined that Max's death was accidental, and the San Diego Sheriff's Department concluded that Rebecca's death was a suicide, something her family vehemently disputes.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 13, 2012, 11:11:16 PM
8/13/2012

Atty on mansion death: 'Time to re-open this'

Here's a link to Dr. Meleniek's portion of tonight's interview on Dr. Drew with Dina Sacknai:

http://www.hlntv.com/video/2012/08/13/atty-mansion-death-time-reopen


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 14, 2012, 05:25:53 PM
Link to transcripts of Dr. Drew's show on 8.13.2012 - interview with Dina and expert Dr. Meleniek

Mansion Death Accident or Murder?

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1208/13/ddhln.01.html



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 16, 2012, 03:06:36 AM
 Re: Rebecca Zahau Found Dead at Historic Mansion 7/13/11 #2
 by Alessandra_Deux Today at 1:28 am

Dina Shacknai seeks answers in son's death



By Jennifer Thomas
GMAZ interview by Kaley O'Kelley
Posted on August 14, 2012 at 9:15 AM
Updated yesterday at 9:20 AM

PHOENIX -- Just more than a year ago, Dina Shacknai's son, Max, died after falling down the stairs in his father's California home.

Max Shacknai was just 6 years old.

The case was ruled an accident, but his mother thinks there's more to it.

Shacknai talks about her quest for answers.

http://www.azfamily.com/news/mobile/Dina-Shacknai-seeks-answers-in-sons-death-166125956.html.



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 24, 2012, 01:58:50 PM

http://www.phoenixmag.com/lifestyle/valley-news/201208/boy--interrupted-full-version/

Boy, Interrupted
Phoenix Magazine
Issue: August, 2012, page 124

A year after the much-publicized Coronado mansion deaths, Dina Shacknai – mother of 6-year-old Max Shacknai – talks for the first time about the tragedy and her efforts to create a legacy for her only child. (snip)




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on August 25, 2012, 12:03:27 PM
interesting...


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Sister on August 25, 2012, 03:20:59 PM
Yes, very interesting.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 02, 2012, 10:13:30 AM
*AB needs to clarify if it is actually Mon the 10th or Tues the 11th. New season for Dr. Phil begins Sept. 10th*

http://www.drphil.com/

FACEBOOK-

Anne Bremner
 

The Zahau family and I will be on the Dr Phil Show Monday, September 11. The AG is still considering our request for an independent investigation. Thank you all so much for your support.

https://www.facebook.com/AnneMBremner


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 04, 2012, 01:11:05 PM
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/2012/09/03/20120903b-deal-buy-scottsdale-based-medicis.html


Scottsdale-based Medicis being sold for $2.6 billion
Sept. 3, 2012

A Canadian pharmaceutical company on Monday said it has agreed to purchase Scottsdale-based Medicis Pharmaceutical Corp. in a $2.6 billion deal.

Montreal-based Valeant Pharmaceuticals International would purchase Medicis for $44 a share in an acquisition that represents a 39 percent premium over Medicis' closing price of $31.56 on Friday.

The boards of both companies have approved the deal. If shareholders approve the merger and other regulatory requirements are met, the deal could close by mid-2013.
(snip)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 11, 2012, 03:07:13 AM
http://10newsblogs.com/pdf/shacknai_response_release_091012.pdf


Despite New Expert Reports Brought Forth by Boy’s Mother, Coronado Police
Department Will Not Reopen Investigation into Max Shacknai’s Death
Dina Shacknai Vows to Find Justice for her Son


Scottsdale, Ariz. (September 10, 2012) – The Coronado Police Department (COPD) has
refused to reopen the investigation into the death of six-year-old Maxfield Shacknai who died
tragically on July 16, 2011 after allegedly falling over a second-story stairway railing inside his
father Jonah Shacknai’s Coronado mansion. The decision comes after the boy’s mother, Dina
Shacknai, presented the COPD with reports from independent experts refuting the department’s
accidental death ruling.

“In light of the evidence we provided, it is shocking that the Coronado Police Department has
refused to reopen the case,” said Dina Shacknai. “As a mother, I will leave no stone unturned
and I am prepared to do whatever it takes to pursue justice and find the truth behind my son’s
death, however long that may take. We presented scientific evidence and legitimate science
does not lie. It is more than disappointing that despite the depth and detail of the evidence we
presented, the system has failed us and it has failed Max. I just hope we can make a meaningful
difference in many other children’s lives through our experience and through the recent creation
of Maxie’s H.O.U.S.E.”  (snip)




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 11, 2012, 03:15:22 AM
http://www.heraldonline.com/2012/09/06/4241669/law-office-of-brodsky-smith-llc.html

Law Office of Brodsky & Smith, LLC Announces Investigation of Medicis Pharmaceutical Corporation
September 6, 2012

BALA CYNWYD, Pa. — Law office of Brodsky & Smith, LLC announces that it is investigating potential claims against the Board of Directors of Medicis Pharmaceutical Corporation (“Medicis” or the “Company”) (NYSE:MRX) relating to the proposed acquisition by Valeant Pharmaceutical. (“Valeant”).

Under the terms of the transaction, Medicis shareholders will receive only $44.00 in cash for each share of Medicis stock they own. The investigation concerns possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of state law by the Board of Directors of Medicis for not acting in the Company’s shareholders' best interests in connection with the sale process to Valeant. The transaction may undervalue the Company as an analyst has set a price target for Medicis stock at $45.00 per share.  (snip)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 11, 2012, 03:29:45 AM
http://coronado.patch.com/articles/dr-phil-re-visits-spreckels-case-zahau-shacknai#photo-10650785


Dr. Phil Re-Visits Spreckels Case
The talk-show host, who focused on the case last year, has taped a new episode featuring visits from the Zahau and Shacknai families.
September 10, 2012

The Spreckels case soon will have a second go-round on the Dr. Phil show, after Monday's taping, in which the host conducted interviews with Rebecca Zahau's family and the mother of Max Shacknai, the boy who suffered fatal injuries at the home.

Dr. Phil McGraw hosted Zahau's sister for a two-part show in November that included the results of a second autopsy on Zahau's remains.

This time Zahau's loved ones will be joined by Dina Shacknai, according to CBS8, which airs Dr. Phil's show.  (snip)

No air date has been set for the new Spreckels-focused show.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 11, 2012, 02:37:34 PM
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1209/10/ddhln.01.html

DR. DREW - Show transcript

Aired September 10, 2012

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


(Snip)
Now, you`ve seen Dina Shacknai on our show pleading for police to reinvestigate the death of her six-year-old son Max. He died at his father`s Coronado mansion. Dina is back with an exclusive update after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DR. DREW: Dina Shacknai`s son Max died tragically after a fall at his father`s Coronado mansion. Dina is back with us with her attorney with an exclusive update. Before you say so, I would say you seem emotionally spent today. So do the best you can. Whatever you`ve got to tell us, we`re here to support you.

DINA SHACKNAI, SON DIED AT CORONADO MANSION: Thank you. Well, we`ve heard from the Coronado police department. They have elected not to reopen Max`s investigation.

DR. DREW: Did they acknowledge all the investigation and the forensic work you guys had done? Did they look at it even? Angela`s shaking her head no.

ANGELA HALLIER, ATTORNEY FOR DINA SHACKNAI: What we learned was as you know we had a biomechanical engineer and a medical examiner --

DR. DREW: Last time they were here they reviewed for us all this tremendous forensic work that suggested that this was not an accident or there were lots of missing pieces. And I`d hoped they`d look at that.

HALLIER: They did not have their biomechanical expert they contracted with when they did their initial investigation even look at our biomechanical engineer`s report, which played a critical part in the analysis. So they had no biomechanical expert on their team review our biomechanical work.

DR. DREW: I watched this one`s body react to that statement. She was literally like --

HALLIER: Right.

DR. DREW: You`re pissed.

SHACKNAI: I was shocked.

DR. DREW: Shocked, yes.

SHACKNAI: I couldn`t imagine that -- when we were debriefed by Dr. Jonathan Lucas about Max`s death, he cited Dr. Gomez`s report as the linchpin for his report on death. So for them not to even -- so for me not to -- for them not to include their own expert in a re-evaluation didn`t make any sense. They said that Dr. Lucas and the medical examiners round tabled this but there`s no one who is an expert.

DR. DREW: I`m going to ask you to dig deep. Mom, what have they done to you?

SHACKNAI: Well, I think that they made a commitment to -- I feel a disingenuous act and they really encourage us to present our information, fly our experts in and they would listen. There was nothing. We got a three line letter without even an explanation. With me they dismissed the importance of a life and their own accountability to citizens.

DR. DREW: As Max`s mom did you expect a phone call or something? I mean, they`re not heartless, I`m not accusing them of anything. But it`s like they`re saying move along.

SHACKNAI: That`s what it is. Saying thank you very much but we`re sticking with what we think in the first place. After nine months and after Max`s death and going through this every day to find out what happened to him, it was a three-line letter and a phone call from the commander --

DR. DREW: You did get a phone call?

SHACKNAI: I called him. I called him.

DR. DREW: And how`d that go?

SHACKNAI: Well, it was a long phone call. Because I was pretty upset about it. I learned on the phone call Dr. Gomez was not included. I also learned that the diagram -- I think you`ve seen that -- of that figure, that tall figure was prepared by somebody at the San Diego district attorney`s office. Prepared the independent expert`s work. Why? and the inaccuracies of the diagram are striking. The person is eight inches taller than Max.

DR. DREW: What do you want people viewing out there to know about what you`re going through?

SHACKNAI: I want people to know to please -- I want them to please contact their -- the sheriff`s department. Think about it in terms of this can happen to anyone.

DR. DREW: So this is as a mom you`re appealing to other moms.

SHACKNAI: To other moms, other dads. I`m saying this can happen to anyone. And none of us are immune. And we cannot ignore it.

DR. DREW: And you`re squeezing my hand very firmly, which I`m encouraging but is that anger or is that holding back emotion? What is that?

SHACKNAI: It`s frustration. And it`s incredulous they would dismiss it.

DR. DREW: It`s anger.

SHACKNAI: I`m angry and I`m frustrated and demoralized. I believed in a system, a system that failed me and failed max.

DR. DREW: Okay. Listen, I have to take a quick break. We`re going to take calls on this and we`ll hear more on this story. And how -- the topic today has been about kids and divorces and this is part of that story. I mean, your story is that too. And how to move on when there`s been a tragedy and you`re sharing custody of a child that things go poorly for. We`ll talk more about that after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DR. DREW: We have been discussing all show divorces and children caught in the crossfire. Now we`ve got Dina Shacknai`s tragic story. Joining us, TV`s divorce court judge Lynn Toler and Ramani Durvasula.

I`m so story about your loss. It`s nothing we can get our heads around. You have to remourn these losses. Does this get in the process of moving forward? Getting lost in the forensic data and details, how do you move forward from this? How do you move on? How are you going to do that?

SHACKNAI: That`s a great question. I think that it`s so important because Max will never come back.

DR. DREW: Right.

SHACKNAI: But through this, other children can be saved. And so with Maxy`s House, we are creating safety programs for children not only in Arizona but throughout the United States. So parents can proactively consider a safety plan for their child that can go along with a joint custody agreement. So we are creating some web interactive programs that it will be applicable in each state so parents don`t have to wait until after the fact. So that`s one of the things. And I know that Max would want -- if he were here he`d say mommy make sure you do the best you can to make sure this doesn`t happen to other kids.

DR. DREW: The other question is you`re doing so much for Max`s memory and you`re doing with so many difficult institutions. My concern is you taking care of you and being able to move forward. Again, you`re having to mourn multiple losses especially with how this investigation is ending now. That`s my concern for you. I know you are very wise and you know all of this better than just about anyone. But I want you to move forward from this. It`s been so many losses. You need to take care of you at this point.

SHACKNAI: I agree. I agree and I want to say that I think everybody has to look at themselves in the mirror every night and live are themselves. You have to make a choice about what you can live with. And you can either say I can go forward and I can help other kids. Or you say and for me, i`ve thought about it every -- so many moments. For me I couldn`t just step back and say I`m not going to think about this anymore. That I wouldn`t be able to live with.

DR. DREW: Judge Toler, I wanted to know your thoughts as well. I`m running out of time for this block, but your thoughts?

TOLER: I think that Ramani is right about the system. It`s a good one but it`s return by fallible people. It doesn`t make it right, but to have positive efforts towards helping people so they don`t have to get into it or having the positive plans is a good way to focus your energy when you can`t fix what you`re in.

DR: DREW: I have time to slip a call in here from Tammy from Tennessee. Tammy?

TAMMY, CALLER: Yes, Dr. Drew.

DR. DREW: Yes ma`am.

TAMMY: I was wondering is the investigation where she said that it was the bio --

DR. DREW: Biomechanical expert.

TAMMY: Right. Why can`t they do that?

DR. DREW: Right.

TAMMY: Actually do it?

DR. DREW: That`s the question we all sort of shake our heads and wonder. I mean, why not do something really careful with this? And Angela, you`re the attorney in this. Are you going to push on this?

HALLIER: Push with him or other ways? There`s other ways to go.

DR. DREW: Fair enough. I have a break here. Your calls up after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DR. DREW: Want to thank my excellent panel. It`s been a show where we`ve been discussing divorces, its consequences, getting tangled with exes, and the Shacknai story is an example of that. I`m anxious to hear what comes next. I know my viewers will watch carefully. We`re going to take a couple more calls. Jeannie in Michigan.

JEANNIE, CALLER: How are you?

DR. DREW: I`m great.

JEANNIE: I really want to tell Miss Shacknai how sorry I am. I`ve followed this case from the beginning. My heart goes out to her. I wonder how can they expect someone from this tragedy to move on so quickly? my husband passed away and he was not my child, but it took me a whole year just to realize he wasn`t coming home. And I have a son who happens to be a neurosurgeon patient. When I was reading about accidents I could picture being there. It is a horrible thing to go through. There are many times children have died. How can she move on quickly? can she go to the supreme court with this or higher court?

DR. DREW: I knew that`s how my viewers were thinking. Go further. Where do you go?

HALLIER: There`s other agencies that we can ask to review this. Because this wasn`t a court decision, there`s not an appellate process available, but there`s also a public interest, public pressure, political pressure and changing the laws in the future. So things like this doesn`t happen.

DR. DREW: Thank you for that call. Up next, who do I have up there? I don`t see a name yet. Kathryn, what do you got for me? Kathryn, are you there?

KATHRYN, CALLER: Yes.

DR. DREW: What you got?

KATHRYN: I`m wondering if Rebecca Zahau`s minor sister who was also in the house with Max and playing with him supposedly has been investigated for the death of Max.

DR. DREW: Would you like to address that?

HALLIER: From what we can tell, the police department never looked at this as a possible homicide. All their investigation was focused on was it being an accident and how the accident happened. She was interviewed. We`ve seen the transcript, but it does not appear she was interviewed with an eye towards someone did something to max.

DR. DREW: Lynn, you`re the one sort of off the set for us today. Do you have any final thoughts for us?

RALPH: I just want to point out something that her attorney said. You know, the great shadow power in the world is prosecutorial discretion. Whether or not we`re going to prove something. And I think people should be aware of through this case that that is very important. And public pressure and stuff does change that. And prosecutors and charging agencies have a lot of power. People should be knowledgeable about that.

DR. DREW: Very interesting. Guys, thank you. Thank you to Judge Toler. Thank you Ramani for joining me. Thank you ladies for keeping us updated. You see the interest people have for this. A note about tomorrow now. I am bringing back the special guest we had before. Her name is Liz Cy Velazquez. Internet bullies called her the ugliest woman in the world. She wants people to tweet what`s the horrible thing done with you. This woman brushes that all off. We`re going to talk about body image, how people get through this kind of bullying. Call us tomorrow. Thanks for watching. Nancy Grace is next.

END


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 12, 2012, 03:33:31 AM
http://www.facebook.com/maxshacknai


http://twitter.com/#!/search/%23MaxShacknai?q=%23MaxShacknai



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 12, 2012, 03:46:52 AM
Dina has posted a petition to Louis Scanlon, Police Chief of Coronado Police Department to re-open Max's case and is soliciting signatures to the petition.

http://www.change.org/petitions/tell-the-coronado-police-dept-re-open-the-investigation-into-max-shacknai-s-death

Sign our Petition


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 13, 2012, 01:27:51 AM
http://www.coronado.ca.us/egov/documents/1347397373_57083.pdf


NEWS RELEASE

San Diego County Medical Examiner, Coronado Police: Boy’s Death Remains Accidental

Coronado, CA (September 11, 2012)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 18, 2012, 01:20:50 AM
Mom to ask Coronado council to reopen mansion death case

5:15 p.m., Sept. 17, 2012

CORONADO — The mother of Max Shacknai, the 6-year-old who died in July 2011 at his father’s Coronado mansion, will address the Coronado City Council Tuesday in an effort to get the Police Department to reopen its investigation into her son’s death.

Dina Shacknai insists that her privately funded investigation shows that Max’s death was not accidental, as authorities ruled, but the result of an assault.

Police investigators and the county’s Medical Examiner’s Office have reviewed the conclusions reached by experts Shacknai hired and have refused to change their opinion that the boy’s death was a tragic accident. (snip)


http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/sep/17/mom-ask-coronado-council-reopen-death-investigatio/


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 20, 2012, 05:13:21 PM

Video Interview: Dina Shacknai at City Council - Coronado Spreckels Mansion Deaths

by Surf's Up Studios, Coronado


Surf's Up Studios interviewed Dina Shacknai before and after her appearance at City Council on Tuesday, September 18th, 2012.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 26, 2012, 01:33:22 AM
Max Shacknai's EMS run report is available on the maxshacknai.com site.

http://www.maxshacknai.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/CFD_Report.pdf


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on September 26, 2012, 01:48:29 AM
I've not read anywhere, in all this time, about the safety of riding a scooter and wearing a "helmet"; did Max EVER do any of this?

Quote from General Warning: According to the manufacture of the "razor" scooter it clearly states. "USING A SCOOTER CAN BE A DANGEROUS ACTIVITY AND MAY RESULT IN INJURY OR DEATH EVEN WHEN USED WITH PROPER SAFETY PRECAUTIONS."

"Always wear safety equipment such as helmet, knee pads and elbow pads. Always wear a helmet when riding your scooter and keep the chinstrap securely buckled."

Pro Model scooters are for children ages six (6) and above. Children under age eight (8) should ride with adult supervision at all times.

http://www.razor.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/KickScooters_Manual_Version1_01-10_US.pdf



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: flutter1 on September 26, 2012, 04:08:36 PM
Mom to ask Coronado council to reopen mansion death case

5:15 p.m., Sept. 17, 2012

CORONADO — The mother of Max Shacknai, the 6-year-old who died in July 2011 at his father’s Coronado mansion, will address the Coronado City Council Tuesday in an effort to get the Police Department to reopen its investigation into her son’s death.

Dina Shacknai insists that her privately funded investigation shows that Max’s death was not accidental, as authorities ruled, but the result of an assault.

Police investigators and the county’s Medical Examiner’s Office have reviewed the conclusions reached by experts Shacknai hired and have refused to change their opinion that the boy’s death was a tragic accident. (snip)


http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/sep/17/mom-ask-coronado-council-reopen-death-investigatio/


I wish her luck.  As Kathleen Savio's family found out, sometimes it is hard to fight the system.  I think that Max's death and Rebecca Zahau's death are both being put a little too neatly away.   ::CowboySmiley::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Sister on October 04, 2012, 10:32:20 AM
Mom to ask Coronado council to reopen mansion death case

5:15 p.m., Sept. 17, 2012

CORONADO — The mother of Max Shacknai, the 6-year-old who died in July 2011 at his father’s Coronado mansion, will address the Coronado City Council Tuesday in an effort to get the Police Department to reopen its investigation into her son’s death.

Dina Shacknai insists that her privately funded investigation shows that Max’s death was not accidental, as authorities ruled, but the result of an assault.

Police investigators and the county’s Medical Examiner’s Office have reviewed the conclusions reached by experts Shacknai hired and have refused to change their opinion that the boy’s death was a tragic accident. (snip)


http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/sep/17/mom-ask-coronado-council-reopen-death-investigatio/


I wish her luck.  As Kathleen Savio's family found out, sometimes it is hard to fight the system.  I think that Max's death and Rebecca Zahau's death are both being put a little too neatly away.   ::CowboySmiley::
I agree flutter.
(http://i380.photobucket.com/albums/oo242/Brandi-Monkey/WEATHER/Animation1b.gif)


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on March 30, 2013, 05:09:23 AM
http://www.10news.com/news/spreckels-mansion-to-be-listed-for-sale-asking-price-for-coronado-mansion-is-169m

Spreckels Mansion to be listed for sale: Asking price for Coronado mansion is $16.9M

03/19/2013

SAN DIEGO - The mansion near San Diego where millionaire Jonah Shacknai's son and girlfriend died in 2011 will soon be listed for sale at an asking price of $16.9 million.

U-T San Diego reported Monday that the real estate broker for the Coronado home says it will be listed in the next 4-6 weeks.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on May 05, 2013, 07:41:56 AM
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/apr/27/medical-examiner-jonathan-lucas-san-diego/?page=1#article-copy
Seeking clues from the dead
April 27, 2013

SAN DIEGO — Dr. Jonathan Lucas, San Diego County’s chief deputy medical examiner, is used to the polarized reactions he gets when he tells people he works with the dead for a living.

“Either they think it’s the most interesting thing in the world, or they find the soonest opportunity to either talk about something else or leave.”

Lucas trained as a forensic pathologist on the streets of New York, his time there capped off by the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. He spent three weeks processing victim remains before flying to San Diego.

In his 12 years here, he has never been in the spotlight more than in 2011, when the mysterious deaths of Max Shacknai, 6, and Rebecca Zahau, 32, at Coronado’s Spreckels mansion captured global attention.

He conducted autopsies on both, concluding with help from sheriff’s investigators that Max’s death was an accident and Zahau’s was suicide by hanging.


Now, he is second-in-charge of the county Medical Examiner’s Office, which investigates about 3,000 deaths each year.
 ::snipping3::
Q: You performed the autopsies in the Coronado mansion case, which gained global attention and remains controversial. Tell me about that experience, and how it feels to be second-guessed.

A: It was an interesting phenomena. You really end up relying on your colleagues and focus on the facts, because you know everything’s going to be second-guessed. ... While we were in the middle of the investigation, we weren’t rushing anything. But there was a lot of pressure — What are the answers? How come you guys are taking so long? What’s going on? — but we still took everything to its conclusion. ... And then once we put the facts out and put our conclusions in, then people were, ‘Oh my gosh, you guys rushed to judgment.’ ...

I tell people I thought the first day that it was homicide, that was where I was in my head for Rebecca, but the investigation followed. ... It was the perfect example that you can’t do the investigation on public pressure, or pressure from families. You just have to do what you believe is the right thing.

 ::snipping3::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on May 09, 2013, 03:37:10 AM
Zahau family to sue Sheriff Gore seeking evidence in Coronado death

Updated: May 08, 2013 9:51 PM EDT


http://www.cbs8.com/story/22189885/family-of-rebecca-zahau-to-sue-sheriff-bill-gore-seeking-evidence-in-her-death



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on May 09, 2013, 03:38:50 AM
Video

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/justice4rebecca?c=home



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on May 12, 2013, 01:27:16 AM

Coronado Mansion Rebecca Zahau death investigation - Adam Shacknai lie detector raw footage

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppRDQ7yfymg&feature=youtube_gdata_player


Something's wrong with this guy - he didn't know if Becky's hands were tied???




Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on May 18, 2013, 06:12:24 AM
Video at the link of the renovated Spreckels Mansion - it looks beautiful on the inside now - totally different.

Spreckels Mansion hits the market

May 17, 2013

http://fox5sandiego.com/2013/05/16/spreckels-mansion-hits-the-market/#axzz2TYlaoGrR



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on May 18, 2013, 06:22:18 AM
This has a different video (even better) - interior of the house is beautiful - tours the last Friday of this month.  Anyone close by should go see it.


Spreckels Mansion in Coronado remodeled, up for sale

May 17, 2013

http://www.10news.com/news/spreckels-mansion-in-coronado-remodeled-up-for-sale-051613


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Buckeye on May 18, 2013, 07:04:50 AM

Coronado Mansion Rebecca Zahau death investigation - Adam Shacknai lie detector raw footage

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppRDQ7yfymg&feature=youtube_gdata_player


Something's wrong with this guy - he didn't know if Becky's hands were tied???




and do you really put a gag in your mouth to commit suicide?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on May 18, 2013, 09:13:36 AM
The house is on the market and may gain new owners, but there will always be a cloud over it because of the deaths of Max and Rebecca.  People die in homes all the time, but these two deaths are so questionable imo.  No make over can change this.  JMHO ::MonkeyNoNo::

Rest in peace Max and Rebecca.   ::MonkeyAngel:: ::MonkeyAngel::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on May 18, 2013, 09:45:02 AM
Good points Ms.    ::bee::  :bigup:


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 14, 2013, 02:41:27 AM

Zahau Family Files $10M Wrongful Death Suit Against Shacknai's Brother
July 13, 2013

Jonah Shacknai, Zahau's boyfriend when she died, is not named, but his brother, ex-wife and her sister are accused of taking part in the…

http://coronado.patch.com/groups/breaking-news/p/zahau-family-files-wrongful-death-suit-against-shacknai-family-members


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 14, 2013, 02:42:24 AM

Zahau family files federal wrongful death lawsuit

Posted: Jul 13, 2013 6:24 PM PST Updated: Jul 13, 2013 6:36 PM PST

Snipped:
-----
The family of Rebecca Zahau is seeking $10 million in damages and accuses relatives of Zahau's boyfriend of participating in her murder.

...

Zahau's family says in the suit that the three individuals "intentionally, willfully, wantonly, and maliciously" participated in a scheme to cause harm to her.
-----

Read more:  http://www.cbs8.com/story/22834192/zahau-family-files-federal-wrongful-death-lawsuit


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 14, 2013, 02:43:27 AM

Family of Rebecca Zahau files wrongful death suit
Posted: 07/14/2013  Last Updated: 3 hours ago

Snipped:
-----
SAN DIEGO - The family of Rebecca Zahau has filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit claiming she was murdered.
-----
(BBM)

And:
-----
The lawsuit names Jonah Shacknai's brother, ex-wife and her twin sister. It alleges that Adam Shacknai, Dina Shacknai and Nina Romano "participated in some manner in the planning, implementation, execution and subsequent concealment of the scheme to murder" Zahau.
-----

Read more at source:  http://www.10news.com/news/family-of-rebecca-zahau-files-wrongful-death-suit-07132013


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on July 25, 2013, 03:30:00 AM
GOOD!!!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on July 27, 2014, 09:38:31 AM
The Zahau Family filed a civil suit last year against Adam, Dina and Nina.
On July 8, 2014, the lawyer for the Zahau Family filed and Amended Complaint with San Diego Court.
I can get the pdf to load but am putting in the gist of the filing.
It's fairly detailed, too. Item 21. indicated that Rebecca's clothes she had been wearing were never found. 
That in itself should have been enough for law enforcement to realize that this death wasn't a suicide, IMO.
Below is a link to San Diego Court records and the case number to use.


Case number - 37-2013-00075418
https://roa.sdcourt.ca.gov/roa/faces/CaseSearch.xhtml


GENERAL ALLEGATIONS/ STATEMENT OF FACTS

10. On or around the morning of July 13, 2011, Defendants ADAM, DINA and NINA, and each of them, conspired to plan, and did in fact, enter into a common scheme of conduct with the intent to murder REBECCA in Coronado,California, and did in fact, murder REBECCA by each of them personally committing one or more of the following acts in furtherance of the common scheme and conspiracy:

(a) striking REBECCA on the head multiple times with a blunt instrument;
(b) physically restraining her;
(c) further restraining her by binding her legs with tape;
(d) gagging her;
(e) binding her hands behind her back with rope;
(f) binding her ankles together with rope;
(g) removing the previously placed tape from her legs;
(h) strangling her to the point of unconsciousness or death;
(i) making and placing a rope noose around her neck;
(j) tying the other end of the rope leading to the noose to a bed;
(k) carrying her to the adjacent balcony and pushing her over the railing ofthe balcony causing her to fall and, if she was still alive at that time, to then die by asphyxiation.
(l) during the course of the conspiracy to murder REBECCA, each of the 2 Defendants also kept watch to avoid detection and removed evidence of the acts which they committed, including wiping down objects they had touched in order to remove DNA and finger prints; and (m) as a further ploy to cover up their wrongdoing, and in furtherance of their common scheme, Defendants painted the following words on the inside of door near the balcony where she was left hanging:

SHE SAVED HIM CAN YOU SAVE HER

11. On the morning of July 13, 2011, REBECCA was found dead, naked,bound and gagged, with a rope noose around her neck. Her cause of death was asphyxiation, which was caused by either manual strangulation before she was hanged, or from being hanged with a rope noose around her neck from the second story deck of the Coronado vacation home at which she was staying. The Coroner for the County of San Diego determined that she died on that date.

12. Each of the Defendants named herein were present at the location where the murder of REBECCA occurred and all of them actively participated in the-planning, implementation, execution and subsequent concealment of the scheme to murder REBECCA. Because the only individuals who know the true facts an sequence of events with absolute certainty are the decedent REBECCA and the Defendants themselves, the allegations made herein are made on information and belief based on the evidence that has been uncovered to date. Plaintiffs intend to
seek leave to amend the Complaint as additional facts are developed and uncovered during the course of discovery.

ALLEGATIONS OF SPECIFIC ACTS ATTRIBUTED TO EACH DEFENDANT

13. Due to DINA’s prior incidents of confronting and threatening DECEDENT, DINA’s prior history of being unable to control her anger, her Due to DINA’s prior incidents of confronting and threatening her ridiculing and publicly demeaning the DECEDENT for allegedly causing harm and the eventual death of DINA’s six-year-old son, Maxfield, as well as her extreme jealousy over the DECEDENT’s relationship with her ex-husband, Jonah Shacknai,Plaintiffs allege, based in further part on an eye witness report placing DINA at the 1040 Ocean Boulevard residence the evening of the murder, that on the evening of July 12, 2011, DINA aggressively confronted the DECEDENT at the Ocean Boulevard residence, along with her sister, NINA. This confrontation arose from an accident the prior day when DINA’s son Maxfield fell over a second floor railing at the Ocean Boulevard residence, causing him brain damage and eventually his death on July 16, 2011. DECEDENT was babysitting Maxfield at the time of the fall.

14. Plaintiffs allege, based in part on the mud found on DECEDENT’s feet and four subgaleal hemorrhages on the back right side of her head, that in response to the aggressive confrontation from Defendants DINA and NINA, DECEDENT, fearing for her safety, attempted to flee the residence. However, before DECEDENT could evade her attackers, she was struck four times on the back of the head with a blunt object by DINA, rendering her unconscious. Plaintiffs believe that at this time, ADAM, who had taken an Ambien earlier in the evening and was sleeping in the guest house at the residence, was awakened by the commotion and came to the scene.

15. Once confronted with the reality that DECEDENT would eventually regain consciousness, and thereafter probably disclose information about this incident and possibly other information of a personal nature that could cause public humiliation and embarrassment to Defendants and Jonah Shacknai (i.e., the ex-husband of DINA, father of Maxfield, brother of ADAM and the boyfriend of the DECEDENT), the Defendants entered in to a conspiracy and common scheme to murder the DECEDENT and hide their involvement.

16. Due to the lack of markings on her body evidencing her being dragged back into the house, Plaintiffs allege that ADAM carried the DECEDENT back into the house. Based on the facts that DECEDENT was found naked and the clothing she was wearing on that date was not found at the scene of the murder, Plaintiffs allege that once inside the residence, the Defendants stripped off her clothing. Based on the tape residue found on DECEDENT’s legs, and the fact that no tape with similar adhesive was found at the scene, Plaintiffs allege that the Defendants first restrained DECEDENT with tape, and gagged her, while they were devising and planning the rest of the scheme, and later removed the tape from the scene.

17. Thereafter, the Defendants contrived an elaborate scheme to murder REBECCA and conceal their involvement. DINA previously resided in the residence, and thus was familiar with where to find items necessary to further the scheme, including, inter alia, the ski rope used to bind and hang the DECEDENT.

18. The final scheme agreed to that evening by the Defendants involved binding DECEDENT’s hands (behind her back) and ankles with rope they found at the residence. Plaintiffs allege that based on the knots having nautical qualities and ADAM being a tug boat captain with experience tying nautical knots, that ADAM bound the DECEDENT. Plaintiffs further base this allegation on the fact that the ropes had the same black paint residue found on DECEDENT’s nipples, thus implicating the person who tied the knots as the person who also pinched the Decedent’s nipples, and that ADAM had admitted to masturbating to pornography on his cell phone that evening, the further inference being that the two instances of sexual behavior are consistent with ADAM’s state of mind that evening. The Defendants also placed a blue t-shirt around her neck and stuffed it in her mouth, using it as a gag to both muffle her screams and cover up any marks that would suggest murder. Based on the type of injury to DECEDENT’s throat, which commonly occurs with strangulation and is unlikely to occur with a hanging, and the amount of strength needed to create such injury, Plaintiffs allege that in the early hours of July 13, 2011, ADAM choked REBECCA to death.

19. Once they murdered REBECCA, DINA instructed ADAM to leave a cryptic message on the door outside the room where the murder was committed. The message was painted using black paint at a height that is consistent with an individual who is approximately the height of ADAM. The message read: “SHE SAVED HIM. CAN YOU SAVE HER.”

20. ADAM, based on black paint residue found on the noose, then tightened the noose around the neck of the DECEDENT and attached the rope to the base of the bed. ADAM then picked up REBECCA, then threw her over the edge of the adjacent balcony. Either DINA or NINA was sitting on the bed to which the rope was secured, to ensure that the bed remained anchored to the floor as evidenced by the bed having moved less than a foot. While the scheme was being perpetrated, Defendants DINA and NINA also acted as look outs to avoid detection and encouraged ADAM to commit the acts alleged herein. Although each of the Defendants was in part responsible for putting the DECEDENT in harms way, none of them made any effort to help her or to save her from the injuries that eventually resulted in her death.

21. The Defendants were careful to remove any evidence of their involvement, including the disposal of the tape and REBECCA’s clothes. Once the staging was complete, the Defendants fled the scene, instructing ADAM to call the police in the early morning with claims of suicide.

FIRST CAUSE OF ACTION FOR WRONGFUL DEATH

22. Plaintiffs re-allege and incorporate by reference herein paragraphs 1 though 21 of this Complaint and further allege against all Defendants as follows.

23. On or about July 13, 2011, Defendants, and each of them, entered into a common scheme and plan to murder REBECCA, and in furtherance thereof intentionally, willfully, wantonly and maliciously caused physical harm to REBECCA by stalking, attacking, choking, gaging, binding, and hanging her at the premises. Each of the defendants had his/her own motives for committing these wrongful acts, including anger and revenge against REBECCA arising from the fatal injuries suffered by six-year-old Maxwell Shacknai, nephew to ADAM, niece to NINA and daughter to DINA, while REBECCA was taking care of him two days before she was murdered. In addition, Defendant DINA SHACKNAI was extremely jealous of REBECCA’s relationship with her ex-husband, JONAH SHACKNAI and her now deceased son, Maxwell. The Defendants were further motivated to silence REBECCA in order to keep her from disclosing matters that could prove extremely embarrassing to the Defendants and their families.

24. Each of the acts alleged herein were done with a wanton, reckless disregard for the rights of the DECEDENT and with the full knowledge that she would die as a result of said acts.

25. As a result of Defendants’ intentional, reckless, wanton and unlawful conduct, REBECCA sustained severe and serious injury to her person, which was the sole cause of her death.

26. By the performing the acts and/or omissions set forth above, Defendants, and each of them, wrongfully and approximately caused the death of REBECCA.

27. As a proximate result of said Defendants’ wrongful conduct, and the death of REBECCA, Plaintiffs PARI and ROBERT ZAHAU have been injured and suffered damages resulting from the loss of comfort, society, attention, services and support of her daughter, REBECCA, in an amount according to proof. These Plaintiffs were also financially dependent on REBECCA and thus were also damaged by the loss of financial support they were receiving from REBECCA at the time of her death and reasonably expected to receive in the future.

28. As a further actual and proximate result of said Defendants’ negligence, Plaintiffs incurred funeral and burial expenses in and amount according to proof at trial.

29. Pursuant to C.C.P. Sections 377.60 and 377.61, Plaintiffs have brought this action, and claim damages from said Defendants for the wrongful death of REBECCA, and the resulting injuries.

PRAYER FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, Plaintiffs pray for judgment against Defendants, and each for them, as follows:

1. For compensatory damages according to proof;
2. For special damages according to proof;
3. For reimbursement of funeral expenses and costs of burial;
5. For pecuniary damages according to proof;
4. For interest on all sums awarded, according to proof;
6. For costs of suit incurred herein; and
7. All other relief to which Plaintiffs may be entitled under law.

Dated: July 8, 2014
GREER & ASSOCIATES, A.P.C.
 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on July 27, 2014, 09:48:49 AM
Thanks for the updates Puzzler!   ::MonkeyCool::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on July 27, 2014, 01:58:02 PM
Thank you Puzzler.  Very interesting!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Sister on July 29, 2014, 08:54:46 AM
thanks puzzler!

wow!


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 04, 2014, 03:55:24 PM
$10M suit: Zahau was beaten, gagged and strangled

http://www.10news.com/news/hearing-friday-in-zahau-10m-wrongful-death-suit

A hearing was held Friday in a $10 million civil lawsuit filed in connection with the 2011 death of Rebecca Zahau.
Attorneys for both sides will be back in court next January to set a trial date.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 04, 2014, 04:00:06 PM
Amended Lawsuit: Rebecca Zahau Beaten, Strangled, Pushed Off Balcony

Friday, Aug 1, 2014 


Source: http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/Amended-Lawsuit-Rebecca-Zahau-Death-Suicide-Murder-Shacknai-269595631.html#ixzz39EC9dPY7

A $10 million civil lawsuit claiming Rebecca Zahau’s death was a murder, not a suicide, has been amended to allege new details of how three people conspired to kill her, beating, gagging and strangling Zahau before pushing her off a balcony.
 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 04, 2014, 04:01:18 PM
I finally have a link to the Amended Complaint (from which I listed the gist of the complaint in a previous post)

http://media.nbcbayarea.com/documents/Zahau-Amended-Complaint.pdf


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 04, 2014, 04:04:46 PM
Dina has filed a response to the Amended Complaint - she wants it to be dismissed.

http://media.nbcbayarea.com/documents/Shacknai-Response.pdf



Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 04, 2014, 04:24:43 PM

hmmmm...Dina's response is all about blaming Adam for killing Rebecca....where's any response to deny that she was even there that night? 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Puzzler on August 04, 2014, 04:48:53 PM

Video at link: http://www.10news.com/news/hearing-friday-in-zahau-10m-wrongful-death-suit

at 1:30 - says the knot around Rebecca's neck was a tug boat hitch (Adam was a tug boat captain)

to my knowledge, we've never heard it expressed before that the know at the "neck" was a tug boat hitch

at one time I found a picture of a tug boat know (I probably posted it here) and it looks like the knots around the legs/wrists

about the "neck" is "new"


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on August 04, 2014, 07:24:17 PM
Thank you for posting the links Puzzler.  I just can't accept that Rebecca's death was a suicide.  The civil lawsuit may be the only justice there will be for her.  JMHO


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Sister on August 09, 2014, 07:23:02 PM
Thank you for posting the links Puzzler.  I just can't accept that Rebecca's death was a suicide.  The civil lawsuit may be the only justice there will be for her.  JMHO

 ::rhino::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on August 10, 2014, 04:02:23 AM
Nor do I Muffy...no way she killed herself. TY Puz


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on August 10, 2014, 04:47:04 AM
Thank you for posting the links Puzzler.  I just can't accept that Rebecca's death was a suicide.  The civil lawsuit may be the only justice there will be for her.  JMHO

 ::rhino::

 ::rhino::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on February 27, 2018, 09:51:39 PM
http://www.crimeonline.com/2018/02/27/family-of-rebecca-zahau-sue-wealthy-boyfriends-brother-over-mysterious-hanging-death/

Family of Rebecca Zahau sue wealthy boyfriend’s brother over mysterious hanging death
by Associated Press
February 27, 2018
 
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Sheriff’s investigators concluded that the 2011 hanging of a woman at a Southern California mansion was a suicide, but a civil wrongful-death lawsuit going to trial this week blames her wealthy boyfriend’s brother.

The lawsuit was filed by the mother and sister of 32-year-old Rebecca Zahau, who was the girlfriend of pharmaceuticals executive Jonah Shacknai, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported Monday.

Zahau was the only adult known to have been present two days earlier in the mansion in the beach resort city of Coronado on San Diego Bay when Shacknai’s 6-year-old son, Max, suffered brain injuries in a fall from a staircase. His death five days later was classified as an accident.

The defendant is Shacknai’s brother, Adam, who called 911 on July 13, 2011, to report finding Zahau hanging from a balcony and saying he cut the rope to lay her on the ground before emergency workers arrived.

Zahau had rope around her wrists and ankles, but after a lengthy investigation sheriff’s officials concluded her death was a suicide.

Authorities told reporters evidence showed her body was discovered six hours after she retrieved a voice mail that said the condition of the boy had worsened and he was unlikely to survive.

They also showed reporters a video reenactment of how investigators believe Zahau loosely bound her wrists, took one arm out and put both arms behind her back before tightening the noose. Footprints on the dusty balcony and DNA on a knife, rope and bedposts also helped investigators reach the conclusion.

 ::snipping3::

Zahau’s family did not believe her death was a suicide. They initially sued Adam Shacknai, Jonah Shacknai’s ex-wife and her sister, but the women were dropped from the lawsuit when evidence showed they were not present at times important to the case.

The initial suit filed in federal court sought $10 million in damages but that court declined to take jurisdiction for the case and a new lawsuit was filed in state court.

Adam Shacknai’s defense team includes Chicago attorney Daniel Webb, who called the lawsuit “shameful” and said there is no credible evidence that Shacknai played any role in Zahau’s death other than finding her.

“We are confident that the trial in this case will conclusively vindicate Adam and finally bring closure to these outrageous allegations,” the statement said.

The Zahau family’s attorney, Keith Greer, told San Diego TV station KSWB in November that his clients are not seeking money and that a monetary settlement would be rejected if one is offered.

“It’s a matter of honor at this point. They want to clear their sister’s name and expose the person who did this,” he said.


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on February 27, 2018, 10:03:06 PM
https://www.facebook.com/ABC10News/photos/a.312760942099728.67384.100450643330760/529582843750869

(https://scontent-dft4-2.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/253537_529582843750869_171849255_n.jpg?oh=448d026a5ec22cc2f7970e31961943e3&oe=5B02CB06)

Truth and Justice for Rebecca!

 ::justice2nj2::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Blonde on April 04, 2018, 03:03:45 PM
Jury finds Adam Shacknai responsible for Rebecca Zahau’s death
 UPDATED AT 12:47PM, APRIL 4, 2018

SAN DIEGO -- A San Diego jury Wednesday awarded more than $5 million in damages to the family of a woman who authorities said committed suicide by hanging herself at a Coronado mansion in 2011, determining that the brother of the woman's boyfriend was liable for her death.

Rebecca Zahau, 32, was found dead the day after her boyfriend Jonah Shacknai's 6-year-old son, Max Schacknai, fell from a second-story landing at the mansion. The boy died five days later.

Full Coverage of Rebecca Zahau wrongful death case

Zahau's mother and older sister filed the wrongful death lawsuit against Adam Shacknai, the brother of Jonah Shacknai, alleging the defendant confronted Zahau the day after Max fell. ::snipping3::

Adam Shacknai's attorney, Dan Webb, countered that there was no evidence that his client -- who has lived and worked in Memphis for 30 years -- had anything to do with Zahau's death. Adam Shacknai said Zahau encouraged him to come to San Diego to support his brother at his time of need.

Jonah Shacknai testified during the monthlong trial that it is "inconceivable" that his younger brother had anything to do with Zahau's death.

Jonah Shacknai testified that he was at Rady Children's Hospital visiting Max the morning of July 13, 2011, when he got a text from Adam asking him to call back.

"He asked me if I was sitting down and he told me Rebecca had taken her life," Jonah Shacknai testified. "I was speechless."

http://fox5sandiego.com/2018/04/04/jury-reaches-verdict-in-rebecca-zahau-wrong-death-case/


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: texasmom on April 08, 2018, 10:17:04 AM
Jury finds Adam Shacknai responsible for Rebecca Zahau’s death
 UPDATED AT 12:47PM, APRIL 4, 2018

SAN DIEGO -- A San Diego jury Wednesday awarded more than $5 million in damages to the family of a woman who authorities said committed suicide by hanging herself at a Coronado mansion in 2011, determining that the brother of the woman's boyfriend was liable for her death.

Rebecca Zahau, 32, was found dead the day after her boyfriend Jonah Shacknai's 6-year-old son, Max Schacknai, fell from a second-story landing at the mansion. The boy died five days later.

Full Coverage of Rebecca Zahau wrongful death case

Zahau's mother and older sister filed the wrongful death lawsuit against Adam Shacknai, the brother of Jonah Shacknai, alleging the defendant confronted Zahau the day after Max fell. ::snipping3::

Adam Shacknai's attorney, Dan Webb, countered that there was no evidence that his client -- who has lived and worked in Memphis for 30 years -- had anything to do with Zahau's death. Adam Shacknai said Zahau encouraged him to come to San Diego to support his brother at his time of need.

Jonah Shacknai testified during the monthlong trial that it is "inconceivable" that his younger brother had anything to do with Zahau's death.

Jonah Shacknai testified that he was at Rady Children's Hospital visiting Max the morning of July 13, 2011, when he got a text from Adam asking him to call back.

"He asked me if I was sitting down and he told me Rebecca had taken her life," Jonah Shacknai testified. "I was speechless."

http://fox5sandiego.com/2018/04/04/jury-reaches-verdict-in-rebecca-zahau-wrong-death-case/


 ::MonkeyGavel:: ::justice2nj2:: 


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on April 13, 2018, 09:10:36 AM
Should this be moved to solved even though it was Civil Case?


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: MuffyBee on April 13, 2018, 05:45:27 PM
Should this be moved to solved even though it was Civil Case?

Just my opinion, but I don't consider the case "solved".  If you go to the link below, there is more information regarding the differences between a criminal case and a civil case.  I snipped a bit out of the article, but I find reading the whole thing provides more understanding.  Sadly, sometimes winning a civil suit is the only justice there may be for victims and/or their families.  Thinking of the OJ Simpson Case, and the families of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman.

https://criminal.findlaw.com/criminal-law-basics/the-differences-between-a-criminal-case-and-a-civil-case.html
The Differences between a Criminal Case and a Civil Case

 ::snipping3::
The standard of proof is also very different in a criminal case versus a civil case. Crimes must generally be proved "beyond a reasonable doubt", whereas civil cases are proved by lower standards of proof such as "the preponderance of the evidence" (which essentially means that it was more likely than not that something occurred in a certain way). The difference in standards exists because civil liability is considered less blameworthy and because the punishments are less severe.  ::snipping3::


Title: Re: Rebecca Nalepa Zahau Found Hanging, Bound Mansion of Jonah Shacknai (Suicide)
Post by: Nut44x4 on April 20, 2018, 07:33:28 AM
True.