# Beaten Iraqi woman in San Diego dies **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 25, 2012, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791 "2012-03-25T21:34:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/21 "2012-03-26T22:05:16Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > Anyone else’s bullshit detector going off on this one? Yup. Way off. It’s glaringly apparent that the killer went out of his way to divert everyone’s attention away from the obvious suspects. And, yes, ex-husband, I’m looking at you. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/22 "2012-03-27T02:21:29Z")
> [@PunditLisa](#): > > Yup. Way off. It’s glaringly apparent that the killer went out of his way to divert everyone’s attention away from the obvious suspects. And, yes, ex-husband, I’m looking at you. Is there an ex-husband? The first linked article doesn’t mention it. They apparently lived there for only a few months, which seems like kind of a short period to attract a personal vendetta that results in pre-mediated murder, but of course you never know. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/23 "2012-03-27T11:16:34Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > Is there an ex-husband? The first linked article doesn’t mention it. > > They apparently lived there for only a few months, which seems like kind of a short period to attract a personal vendetta that results in pre-mediated murder, but of course you never know. I don’t know. But it was easier to type than “husband/boyfriend/significant other.” IOW, my gut tells me that she was murdered by someone she knew and not by some stranger who hates Muslims. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/24 "2012-03-27T12:51:20Z")
This is only my gut suspicion, and I could very well be wrong, but when I saw the initial news clip I got an odd vibe from the daughter’s demeanor as she was being interviewed. I’ve re-watched a longer version of it and continued to feel the same: she’s laying it on thick, and it has a rehearsed feel to it. Now whether it appears that way for some nefarious reason, or because she’s trying to live up to expectations of how she thinks she’s supposed to talk and act in this sort of situation, or because now pretty much everyone her age has been raised in a world of ubiquitous cameras and people playing up to them on “reality” TV, I have no idea. But [something sure seems off](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrnMYg62boM). ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/25 "2012-03-27T15:26:04Z")
I had the same sense about the story: it wasn’t a racially-motivated murder, despite what the family says. My experience of San Diego is that yes, racism goes up remarkably once you go east of College Avenue, and that the military folks tend not to be racist per se, but they do have their own prejudices. It wouldn’t shock me to find either traditional racists or Iraqi war veterans targeting Iraqis in San Diego, but this sounds more like a cover story concocted by the family. Either way, I hope the perpetrator(s) is (are) brought to justice. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/26 "2012-03-27T16:23:22Z")
_puts on my Law and Order crime hat_ Beaten to death suggests extreme rage. Its a lot more personal than shooting or stabbing someone. This woman wasn’t killed by a stranger but by someone she knew, possibly very personally. The killer wanted her to suffer and to feel her suffering, otherwise he’d have killed her quick and easy with a weapon. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/27 "2012-03-27T16:47:24Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > _puts on my Law and Order crime hat_ > > Beaten to death suggests extreme rage. Its a lot more personal than shooting or stabbing someone. This woman wasn’t killed by a stranger but by someone she knew, possibly very personally. The killer wanted her to suffer and to feel her suffering, otherwise he’d have killed her quick and easy with a weapon. Like Matt Shepard? I have no idea who murdered the woman or why, but its not like bigots never beat people to death, so I’m not sure the manner of her death really rules anything out. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/28 "2012-03-27T16:48:20Z")
Both notes found inside the house, the first one reported after the fact, because the mother supposedly thought that finding such a note _inside the house_ was just a childish prank. No vandalism to speak of. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/29 "2012-03-27T16:52:53Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Both notes found inside the house, the first one reported after the fact, because the mother supposedly thought that finding such a note _inside the house_ was just a childish prank. No vandalism to speak of. The first article specifically says the first note was found outside the home. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/30 "2012-03-27T16:55:09Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > The first article specifically says the first note was found outside the home. Thank you for the correction. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/31 "2012-03-28T11:57:45Z")
I agree it all stinks of a family member throwing red herrings around. Is her father still around? They’re from a part of the world where killing your daughter for staining the family’s honor is not an uncommon attitude. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/32 "2012-03-28T17:22:27Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > Like Matt Shepard? > > I have no idea who murdered the woman or why, but its not like bigots never beat people to death, so I’m not sure the manner of her death really rules anything out. Its been a while since I thought about that case but didn’t the guys who killed him claim he was hitting on them? If so, they had prior contact. The Iraqi woman’s violent death just doesn’t seem like it would typically come from a stranger who she doesn’t know. There has to be some prior contact between the two ---
**Author:** ![Bouncer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9d8465/32.png) [@Bouncer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bouncer)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/33 "2012-08-08T03:34:53Z")
Latest update… murdered wife was apparently planning to get a divorce…father and daughter fled to Iraq, and have not returned since… Believe me when I say that no one leaves the US to go to Iraq (specifically the Najaf area) unless they are truly, truly desperate to avoid something. Regards, -Bouncer- ---
**Author:** ![Lochdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/edb3f5/32.png) [@Lochdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lochdale)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/34 "2012-08-08T03:43:51Z")
Wow. Degenerates if true. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/35 "2012-08-08T04:22:53Z")
I missed this thread the first time around. I gotta say, you guys are good. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/36 "2012-08-08T04:46:08Z")
> [@Bouncer](#): > > Latest update.. murdered wife was apparently planning to get a divorce…father and daughter fled to Iraq, and have not returned since… > > Believe me when I say that no one leaves the US to go to Iraq (specifically the Najaf area) unless they are truly, truly desperate to avoid something. > > Regards, > -Bouncer- Where do you get this? The last article I see is a Time article from April 10 that does talk about the divorce and problems in the family, but says he was in Iraq for her funeral and was expected to be back soon. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/37 "2012-08-08T04:51:32Z")
> [@Bouncer](#): > > Latest update.. murdered wife was apparently planning to get a divorce…father and daughter fled to Iraq, and have not returned since… > > Believe me when I say that no one leaves the US to go to Iraq (specifically the Najaf area) unless they are truly, truly desperate to avoid something. > > Regards, > -Bouncer- Pretty damn clever if you ask me. Commit murder and completely throw off the trail. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/38 "2012-09-27T01:09:08Z")
> [@PunditLisa](#): > > I don’t know. But it was easier to type than “husband/boyfriend/significant other.” IOW, my gut tells me that she was murdered by someone she knew and not by some stranger who hates Muslims. That was my thought, too. I’ll be following this. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/39 "2012-09-27T02:51:48Z")
> [@Bouncer](#): > > Latest update.. murdered wife was apparently planning to get a divorce…father and daughter fled to Iraq, and have not returned since… > > Believe me when I say that no one leaves the US to go to Iraq (specifically the Najaf area) unless they are truly, truly desperate to avoid something. > > Regards, > -Bouncer- My bullshit meter went off at the first read. It also appears that the daughter is not too keen on an arranged marriage. If she’s in Iraq then the cultural noose around her neck just got tighter. ---
**Author:** ![Grestarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grestarian/32/3227_2.png) [@Grestarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grestarian)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791/40 "2012-09-27T23:04:44Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > Lake Murray is in San Diego and La Mesa, and while there are communities (especially the hills surrounding) of El Cajon that are “typical middle class,” its location to the east makes it the closest city to rural San Diego County. As such, it has never really taken on an urban character, which makes the Iraqi presence there somewhat unusual (even though they’re Christian Iraqis). Most refugees and immigrants in the county end up closer to downtown San Diego in places like City Heights. That said, I don’t think their presence in El Cajon has been a source of much prejudice, and this thing could very well have been about something else. Well, El Cajon is actually quite vast, sitting on north and east of La Mesa, East of San Carlos (a San Diego suburb), South of Santee (“Klan-Tee”), and west of Lakeside, Crest, and Jamul. The affluent Fletcher Hills community looks out over the valley and the main shopping mall while the Rancho San Diego region has some good farm and ranch properties, as well as a lot of barren heated wasteland like Rancho D’Oro. The inimitable Martin Guitar luthiary is out there somewhere, and Buck Knives had a facility but fled out of state. San Diego had its share of episodes during he 1950’s and 1960’s; now the Martin Luther King Jr. freeway runs by many of those hot spots. During the 1970’s, anti-Asian sentiment was in fashion, with Clairemont/Kearny Mesa/Serra Mesa (sp?) filling up with rescued emigrants from Viet Nam and Cambodia. Racism was (unfortunately) somewhat rampant in Santee during the 1980’s, when AMC Theaters opened another multiplex theater on their main throughfare. Not a weekend would go buy without the Sheriff’s office being called in to escort some ethnic patrons to their car after a movie. At the same time, a Vietnamese-oriented church [I can’t remember if it was a Christian or Buddhist church] was opened and nobody seemed to blink. > [@guizot](#): > > Personally, I find all of San Diego County intractably provincial in mentality, (despite the size of the city of San Diego, at about one million). I grew up there, and fled the day I turned 18. I grew up in San Carlos, left, and came back – twice. Japan was better, Cincinnati was worse. The problem, I realized, was that the populace is quite aware and fond of its reputation as a military base and tourist destination (and later as a tech & biotech center) but invariably suffers from what my wife called an alcoholic’s mindset: I’m not doing as bad as [point to someone who’s doing worse] so I’m okay to close my eyes (mind) and continue what I’m doing. And, in the San Diego politicians’ cases, they point to Los Angeles. “Our smog isn’t that bad, so there’s no need to curb it here.” “Our water’s not that bad, so we don’t need filtration plants.” “Our highways aren’t that tangled, crowded, and broken-down, so we don’t need to spend money on them.” I finally got so sick of it that moving to Ventura County seemed appealing. Whoops!:smack: Most of the Persians I knew (whether or not they were ‘refugees’) were quite affluent, living in Del Cerro, Del Mar & Fairbanks Ranch, and La Jolla & Mount Soledad. –G! Perfect Day! Perfect Spring {You can} See forever but you can’t see anything Now I wonder why they call it Paradise . --Tommy Shaw (Damn Yankees) . Runaway . Damn Yankees [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaten-iraqi-woman-in-san-diego-dies/616791.md?page=3)