First Round
We have the total package.
Featuring Ermenegildo Zeg.na, Canali. Hugo Boss, Lacoste,
Point Zero, Ben Sherman, 4-You and many more.
Surprised?
ohn Mark Karr's relatives
to local television reports emanating
were probably pulling their
from John Ramsey's front lawn in
offer of film rights to the
Charlevoix at 5, 6 and 11 p.m., and it
family's story as news spread tsunami- made no difference that JonBenet's
like that the. creepy man who claimed
father wasn't home. That was the local
to have been with JonBenet Ramsey
hook, and the media were sticking to
when she died 10 years ago was just
the script.
lying.
Local newspapers deemed the
He got a nice, business-class plane
story front-page worthy, and most
trip out of it along with some free
columnists gave their take as well,
champagne and fried prawns, but
even though Karr's family members,
that's about it.
including his ex-wife, were tell-
It took less than two weeks to
ing everyone that he wasn't even in
quench the news-media firestorm
Colorado at the time of JonBenet's
around the 6-year-old beau-
death.
ty pageant queen's murder.
During my Sunday
Writing under the
morning breakfast at
assumed name "Daxis," Karr
the Whistle Stop in
had been in e-mail and
Birmingham after the
telephone contact with a
story broke, a friend
University of Colorado jour-
asked me if I was the only
nalism professor since 2002,
columnist in America
but didn't admit personal
who wasn't writing about
responsibility until April
Harry Kirsbaum it.
2006. Authorities, then,
I said I didn't want to
Colu mnist
began an earnest search,
write anything until the
finding him in Thailand.
creep's DNA was checked.
Since he also admitted to having
Well now it's been checked, and
sexual involvement with one of the
"Daxis" got sprung just hours before
schoolgirls he was teaching, Thai
appearing before a Colorado judge.
police pinched him once American
And so it's off to California, where
authorities learned his identity and
he was arrested in 2001 for possessing
whereabouts.
child pornography and fled before he
And that's when the big mistake
could be tried.
was made. If you filled every college
In the end, the media and Karr got
football stadium with prosecutors, I
what they wanted.
don't think you'd find more than one
The media got a 12-day story and
who wouldn't send an investigator
the cable news networks got to use the
to Thailand to take a cheek swab of
old JonBenet theme music from 10
the guy before announcing that they
years ago.
solved this "Cold Case." Obviously, this
Karr, who had traveled the globe
prosecutor should have been a fan of
"teaching" young female students and
CS/, because we all know that people
was about to spend some quality time
lie, but DNA doesn't.
in a Thai prison, played his obsession
But some prosecutors and law
with JonBenet to a media-hungry
enforcement officers like to make
prosecutor who had him escorted
names for themselves, and what better from a future of living in a cage on
way than to solve a big case in front of a dirt floor in Bangkok to the com-
a pathologically hungry media.
paratively luxurious confines of the
With the war in Lebanon coming
California penal system.
to conclusion and weeks remaining
The only other people who benefit
before the Katrina and 9-11 anniver-
from this story are the guys who
saries could be aired, media needed
dress up as this creep for Halloween
another fixation.
in a turquoise polo shirt and khakis
JonBenet's "killer" would do. So
pulled up to their armpits with no
in rushed the hoard, including cable
belt. II
news hosts Nancy Grace and Greta
Van Susteren, who both made them-
Harry Kirsbaum's e-mail address is
selves famous from the O.J. Simpson
hkirsbaum@thejewishnews.com .
case.
We, here in Detroit, were treated
j
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August 31 . 2006
9