Wilbanks whinge
May. 1st, 2005 09:22 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
johncomicOkay, I admit that I'm as caught up in the story of the Jennifer Wilbanks debacle as many others are... but maybe for different reasons.
Basically what I understand of it is: she ran far away cuz she didn't wanna go through with her wedding, the police and everybody searched for her for a few days... and then Wilbanks decided to call her fiance and police with the story about the kidnapping when she found herself broke in Albuquerque, according to authorities. [I'm quoting from a news story.] Then she admitted the truth to the NM police before being taken home.
And now Many called for Wilbanks to face criminal charges, even though Duluth Police Chief Randy Belcher said none would be filed.
"A tremendous amount of law enforcement resources was used in what turned out to be a hoax," said District Attorney Danny Porter. "It is premature to talk about criminal charges, but I do have some questions."
Some residents were visibly angry Saturday. "There should be some responsibility for all this expense to the police. Certainly she owes an apology to all the people who came out and volunteered."
And one more lenient assessment: "Sure, we were all disappointed, maybe a little embarrassed, but you know what, if you remember all the interviews yesterday we were praying, 'At this point let her be a runaway bride,'" said the Rev. Alan Jones, who was to perform the wedding. "So God was faithful. Jennifer's alive and we're all thankful for that."
Here's what gets me: she runs off -- which people do every day -- and the police and townsfolk start searching for her. She did not call them with some kidnapping story to initiate this search. What if she had just showed up back home after a few days, and everyone goes "Where were you??!!"
"I just needed to get away by myself for a while."
"We were all worried sick! We've had the police out searching for you! Why the eff couldn't you tell somebody?!"
"I'm sorry, I was just really upset and needed to get out, I couldn't talk to anybody then. I didn't think there'd be all this fuss just cuz no one heard from me for a couple days." [Which is true, she didn't think there would be...]
"Land o' Goshen, girl, where's your head at?! Git inside!" yadda yadda...
Would there be any talk of criminal charges for wasting police resources? Or would it be more like "Well, she can be a scatterbrained airhead, but I guess there ain't no law against going away for a few days." [Which is true, there ain't.] The physical circumstances would all be exactly the same. The police and townsfolk would've wasted just as much time and effort. So why all this treating her like a criminal?
Because she made up the kidnapping story... to avoid telling the truth she was afraid to tell to her fiance and families, etc.... which fear was the whole reason she ran away in the first place. And this suddenly turns it into "Aha, it was a plot all along to trick us all into forming up search parties and worrying!" And this suddenly makes it headline news, plastering her name and face all over the world, which is the only way I know anything about it....
Dung like this happens all the time. I see it at work all the time. In my job, I help with assigning students to dorm rooms at the university. Time and time again, we'll have a situation like two girls asking to room together cuz they're friends. And then later one of them will say, "I don't wanna room with so&so anymore, but I don't wanna tell her about it. Could you please change my assignment and then maybe tell her something about a computer error or something?" (For the record, no we won't tell them that.) But the lengths people will go to, to do anything other than have to face someone and tell them something that will upset or anger them. People will do anything rather than confront someone. It happens all the time.
People also go away incommunicado for a few days, all the time. Nothing that this lady did was so unprecedented. So why the big news story? Dig this: Wilbanks returned later Saturday by plane to Atlanta, where she was picked up in a squad car on the tarmac -- with a towel covering her head to avoid the media. There were no family members at the airport to greet her, but her stepfather and an uncle had flown to Albuquerque to escort her home, authorities said. So the newshounds were out in full force even when her own family couldn't be bothered...
Her next few months are gonna be hell. She may need to leave town and start a new life elsewhere, if her friends and neighbours remain so unforgiving. But who's gonna hire The Made-Up Kidnapping Liar? Because the media have so graciously made this local story a global one... Wilbanks is being pilloried and made an example of. But an example of what? And to what purpose?
We can all take some solace in the fact that, by Christmas if not sooner, we will have all forgotten her name and face, and she'll be able to get that new job in a new town and start a new life. Her whole life has been disrupted by news coverage that we won't even remember in a little while... but oh well what the hell, right?
EDIT: May 26: I see they've now decided to press charges against her for making a false report to the police. And the municipal government is looking to make her pay for their search expenses. It's nice to know that, when you're really hurt and upset and in a panic, you can always rely on the kindness of strangers....
Basically what I understand of it is: she ran far away cuz she didn't wanna go through with her wedding, the police and everybody searched for her for a few days... and then Wilbanks decided to call her fiance and police with the story about the kidnapping when she found herself broke in Albuquerque, according to authorities. [I'm quoting from a news story.] Then she admitted the truth to the NM police before being taken home.
And now Many called for Wilbanks to face criminal charges, even though Duluth Police Chief Randy Belcher said none would be filed.
"A tremendous amount of law enforcement resources was used in what turned out to be a hoax," said District Attorney Danny Porter. "It is premature to talk about criminal charges, but I do have some questions."
Some residents were visibly angry Saturday. "There should be some responsibility for all this expense to the police. Certainly she owes an apology to all the people who came out and volunteered."
And one more lenient assessment: "Sure, we were all disappointed, maybe a little embarrassed, but you know what, if you remember all the interviews yesterday we were praying, 'At this point let her be a runaway bride,'" said the Rev. Alan Jones, who was to perform the wedding. "So God was faithful. Jennifer's alive and we're all thankful for that."
Here's what gets me: she runs off -- which people do every day -- and the police and townsfolk start searching for her. She did not call them with some kidnapping story to initiate this search. What if she had just showed up back home after a few days, and everyone goes "Where were you??!!"
"I just needed to get away by myself for a while."
"We were all worried sick! We've had the police out searching for you! Why the eff couldn't you tell somebody?!"
"I'm sorry, I was just really upset and needed to get out, I couldn't talk to anybody then. I didn't think there'd be all this fuss just cuz no one heard from me for a couple days." [Which is true, she didn't think there would be...]
"Land o' Goshen, girl, where's your head at?! Git inside!" yadda yadda...
Would there be any talk of criminal charges for wasting police resources? Or would it be more like "Well, she can be a scatterbrained airhead, but I guess there ain't no law against going away for a few days." [Which is true, there ain't.] The physical circumstances would all be exactly the same. The police and townsfolk would've wasted just as much time and effort. So why all this treating her like a criminal?
Because she made up the kidnapping story... to avoid telling the truth she was afraid to tell to her fiance and families, etc.... which fear was the whole reason she ran away in the first place. And this suddenly turns it into "Aha, it was a plot all along to trick us all into forming up search parties and worrying!" And this suddenly makes it headline news, plastering her name and face all over the world, which is the only way I know anything about it....
Dung like this happens all the time. I see it at work all the time. In my job, I help with assigning students to dorm rooms at the university. Time and time again, we'll have a situation like two girls asking to room together cuz they're friends. And then later one of them will say, "I don't wanna room with so&so anymore, but I don't wanna tell her about it. Could you please change my assignment and then maybe tell her something about a computer error or something?" (For the record, no we won't tell them that.) But the lengths people will go to, to do anything other than have to face someone and tell them something that will upset or anger them. People will do anything rather than confront someone. It happens all the time.
People also go away incommunicado for a few days, all the time. Nothing that this lady did was so unprecedented. So why the big news story? Dig this: Wilbanks returned later Saturday by plane to Atlanta, where she was picked up in a squad car on the tarmac -- with a towel covering her head to avoid the media. There were no family members at the airport to greet her, but her stepfather and an uncle had flown to Albuquerque to escort her home, authorities said. So the newshounds were out in full force even when her own family couldn't be bothered...
Her next few months are gonna be hell. She may need to leave town and start a new life elsewhere, if her friends and neighbours remain so unforgiving. But who's gonna hire The Made-Up Kidnapping Liar? Because the media have so graciously made this local story a global one... Wilbanks is being pilloried and made an example of. But an example of what? And to what purpose?
We can all take some solace in the fact that, by Christmas if not sooner, we will have all forgotten her name and face, and she'll be able to get that new job in a new town and start a new life. Her whole life has been disrupted by news coverage that we won't even remember in a little while... but oh well what the hell, right?
EDIT: May 26: I see they've now decided to press charges against her for making a false report to the police. And the municipal government is looking to make her pay for their search expenses. It's nice to know that, when you're really hurt and upset and in a panic, you can always rely on the kindness of strangers....
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no subject
Date: 2005-05-01 04:09 pm (UTC)I'm sure she didn't think it would become such a huge story, or of the costs associated with the search, things that could have prevented with a simple phone call to say she was taking off to be with herself. I'll cut her some slack there.