She said she had not seen a male stranger that night. And the kids-- one is fatally shot and the other two are seriously injured., Welch said there were a lot of problems with her story and by the end of the interview, we knew that she had been lying'.. Via an email sent through her brother, James Frederickson, Downs told OregonLive, Every time the World News shows the big red circles on the national map, I look at Oregon because thats where Christie and Daniel are Compared to other States, it appears Oregons red circle is smaller than most places. (Featured Image Credit: ABC News / 20/20). I wanted to relate to her not as a mother, because I had a mother just as somebody who felt the pain and the emptiness that I felt in that time., She wrote back super quickly, Babcock says. Diane didn't show much grievance for her murdered daughter and her two children that were in critical conditions. She named one of her children after her dead sister Cheryl. Would love your thoughts, please comment. But suspicions of Downs herself quickly began to surface. In a statement to Heavy, Terry Thornton, Deputy Press Secretary of California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, stated, Elizabeth Diane Downs, 64, is currently housed at Central California Womens Facility. When Downs went on trial in May of that year, she was pregnant again. It was exciting. She was white She was not breathing. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. On Facebook, Becky wrote that she works at Pain management and went to Redmond High School. Danny and Christie survived the attack while middle child, Cheryl, died from her injuries at the time. Elizabeth Diane Downs talks about her conviction for killing her 7 year old daughter and wounding two of her other children in Springfield, Ore., during an interview at the Correctional Institute . The surgeon who helped to save Christie's life told ABC News: When I looked at Christie I thought she was dead. Downs claimed that on a drive home from a friends house, she decided to take the scenic route home. Her pupils were dilated. "Wouldn't I have made sure they were dead and then cried crocodile tears? Diane Downs became one of the most infamous murderers in the city after she was convicted of shooting her three children, killing one of them, along a roadway in Springfield, Oregon. They have both graduated from college. Downs, who still maintains her innocence, was convicted and sentenced to life in prison, plus 50 years. Not one tear. Today, 35-year-old Babcock works as a behavioral health coordinator for children in Salem, Oregon. She was later adopted by another family. Do I throw it away? [30][31][1] Downs maintained her innocence in all parole hearings. The revelation would shake Becky Babcock's young world and take her on a journey of self-discovery, filled with ups and downs, she said. ET) on ABC. He was instead a result of an affair Diane had with a married man. While police increasingly suspected Downs, she adamantly denied any involvement when speaking to the media. The child was adopted and was later named Rebecca. A jury subsequently convicted Downs on all counts, and she was sentenced to life in prison plus 50 years, according to Glamour. [24] In 2010, she was relocated to the Valley State Prison for Women in Chowchilla, California,[23] but was transferred out when the facility was converted to an all-male institution in 2013.[25]. Diane Downs became one of the most infamous murderers in the city after she was convicted of shooting her three children, killing one of them, along a roadway in Springfield, Oregon. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Elizabeth Diane Downs talks about her conviction for killing her 7 year old daughter and wounding two of her other children in Springfield, Ore., during an interview at the Correctional Institute for Woman in Clinton, N.J., March 12, 1989. But what happened to her kids, Christie Ann and Stephen "Danny" Daniel? In court, according to Glamour, prosecutors argued that Downs motive to get rid of her children stemmed from the fact that her boyfriend at the time did not want kids. Following the crimes, she made claims to police that a man had attempted to carjack her and had shot the children. Downs was a notorious killer in Oregon, convicted in the 1983 shooting of her three children that left one of them dead. Based on this and additional evidence, Downs was arrested on February 28, 1984, nine months after the shooting, and charged with one count of murder, and two counts each of attempted murder and criminal assault. 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Whats fascinating, though, is to see how differently her children including the fourth one, who she conceived after her original surviving ones were taken away from her responded to her doings. The couple divorced in 1980 over. March 23, 2019 13:00 Impact x Nightline The Murders Before the Marathon "And so the quickest, simplest way was to eliminate the children.". Steve Downs, their father, actually left Diane in 1980 because he thought that Danny was the result of an extramarital affair that she had. But surgeon Steve Wilhite managed to revive Christie after her blood pressure dipped dangerously low and she suffered a stroke. Why is she wounded in the arm? Distractify is a registered trademark. When I looked at Christie I thought she was dead, he said. In another one of her strange media appearances Downs spoke about the pregnancy. As an adult, Rebecca (Becky) appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show[18] and ABC's 20/20,[19] where she discussed how she felt about her biological mother. She was white She was not breathing. She then ran away from home and married husband, Steven Downs, in 1973, with whom she had three children - Christie Ann, Cheryl Lynn and Stephen "Danny" Daniel. I was searching for that blood tie., I never had questions about my biological dad, Babcock continues. The baby was taken by the state and delivered to adoptive parents. Diane Downs laughs while reenacting shooting of 3 children: Part 2 Police found Downs' behavior suspicious. We've got three children who have been shot, Wilhite told 20/20. And my whole body just tingled. Her older two children have remained out of the public eye. But as . I've never been so hyped in my life.. She said she pulled over and got out to talk to the man. Elizabeth Diane Downs (ne Frederickson; born August 7, 1955) is an American criminal who murdered her daughter and attempted to murder her other two children near Springfield, Oregon, in May 1983. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. Becky is the fourth and youngest child of Diane who is currently serving a life sentence for shooting three of . [2], On November 13, 1973, Diane married Steve Downs after running away from home. [2] She has testified that her father sexually abused her when she was 12 years old. She claimed that she was carjacked on a rural road near Springfield by a strange man who shot her and the children. The girl was later renamed Becky Babcock. [8][9] Upon arrival, Cheryl (aged 7) was already dead, Danny (aged 3) was paralyzed from the waist down, and Christie (aged 8) had suffered a disabling stroke. Her pupils were dilated. According to witnesses, she then drove at a pace of between 5-7 mph to the local hospital, where she then claimed to hospital staff she had been car-jacked by a stranger who shot herself and her children. According toHeavy, crime author Ann Rule said: "Crime author Ann Rule wrote on her website: "Christie and Danny who somehow survived their gunshot wounds have no contact with Diane. She knew that, if she got pregnant, that people would look at her and say, How could a woman who loves children this much and got pregnant have killed her children? Email us atexclusive@the-sun.comor call212 416 4552. https://t.co/cPfs75obUg pic.twitter.com/uSnlFF2IRw. In a two-hour 20/20 documentary, Babcock opens up about learning the truth regarding her infamous mom. The circumstances of Becky Babcocks birth were troubled to say the least. The baby was taken by the state and delivered to adoptive parents. I showered, slept for 4 hours, woke up and drank water, then went back to sleep for 16 more hours, she wrote. I got blood all over the back of it, I knew within 30 minutes of talking with that woman that she was guilty., And then, Wilhite said, even more shocking to him was when Downs told him that she knew Christie was brain dead and told him, I want you to pull the plug., In other words, let her die, Wilhite said. View our online Press Pack. When then-prosecutor Fred Hugi asked Christie if she remembered who shot her, Christie Downs replied, "My mom.". What is the latest information pertaining to the convicted child killer? She's doing well. And they give me love, they give me satisfaction, they give me stability, they give me a reason to live and a reason to be happy, and that's gone, they took it from me, but children are so easy to conceive.". According to Oprah.com, Christie and Dannyhave chosen to live private lives. In 1989, the Associated Press reported that then 14-year-old Christie Ann was left with speech impairment, and 9-year-old Danny is paralyzed from the waist down. Author Ann Rule wrote the book Small Sacrifices (1987), which detailed Downs' life and murder trial. What did she do?. She was afraid of her mother. I mean, think about it. Boris Johnson is stuck in a chaotic spiral of scandal, walkouts, and leaving dos so where does he go from here? EUGENE -- It was 27 years ago tomorrow that single mother Elizabeth Diane Downs shot her three children -- killing one and seriously injuring the other two -- on a dark, rural Lane County. She, too, is now a mother. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? "She was white, she was not breathing. And Christie Downs, the only witness to the crime (her younger brother Danny was believed to have been asleep at the time), had suffered a stroke that impaired her speech and initially prevented her from telling police what she had seen. Atty. I think that's one of the things that-- ended up hurting her case. And, by the time she took them to the hospital, Cheryl was dead. Downs insisted that, Over the years, I have told you and the rest of the world that a man shot me and my children. In May of that year, the trial against Downs began with yet another inconceivable twist. the incident happened on a dark road that led to Diane being accused of murder and attempted murder. It was suspected I hit over 100 miles an hour coming down the freeway, he said. Downs is serving a life sentence for shooting her children, killing one They married in 1973, before divorcing in 1980. Danny, a computer whiz, is still partially paralyzed from the bullet in his back, but he is living a happy and normal life. Cops decided she was lying. May 12, 2010 -- Late one May night in 1983, Diane Downs sped into an emergency room dropoff in Springfield, Ore., with a horrifying story to tell. While Danny and Christie survived, Cheryl, the. Star Witness at Downs' Trial: Her Daughter. Prior to being sentenced, Downs gave birth to a girl she named Amy Elizabeth. Christie Downs, now 44, and her brother, 39, were adopted by the prosecutor in the case. Between the verdict and sentencing, the court recessed so that Downs could give birth to a girl she named Amy Elizabeth. Would love your thoughts, please comment. He worked quickly and eventually was able to revive Christie. It was an interesting interview. Diane Downs always wanted to be a mom, she told Inside Edition in its first-ever episode in 1989. Christie and Danny were adopted by Lane County Prosecutor Fred Hugi and his wife, Joanne, in 1984. After that, she was charged with killing her 7-year-old daughter. Copyright 2023 Distractify. . The tragedy that hit the Downs' kids changed their whole life. After being recaptured, she was transferred to a more secure facility. [She said] she had been out visiting a friend who had a horse up in the Marcola area -- she and the kids -- and when it grew dark they headed home. 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