# Missing Kansas City baby - odd that no one heard the kidnapper? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 7, 2011, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934 "2011-10-07T20:17:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/41 "2011-10-11T03:34:33Z")
> [@PandaBear77](#): > > My money’s on the mom. > > I hope I’m wrong and this little girl is returned home safe and sound. This is internally inconsistent. You think the mom may have done away with her baby and yet you want that baby to be returned to her? :dubious: Anyone else remember that case–a young girl named Polly something? A man broke in and took her (she was not a baby) while she was having a slumber party(!). The media et al blamed the parents, but they turned out innocent. [PollyKlaas](http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20107057,00.html) This article is very positive toward the parents, but at the time, IMS, nasty rumors about the dad were circulated. I am not drawing comparisons between the 2 stories–a Polly Klaas type of thing is altogether rare, but weird things do happen. I don’t see the cell phone thing as odd at all–mine is only on when I’m commuting and it charges over night in the kitchen. There may well be hinky stuff about this case, but it’s early days yet. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/42 "2011-10-11T03:44:47Z")
Re: first night shift and unlocked door. It’s possible that these are related - could have left the door unlocked so husband could enter quietly. It’s a stretch, but not a huge one. Could also be a lost keys thing, but that probably would have been mentioned if it were true. And I’m thinking the parents are somehow involved, also. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/43 "2011-10-11T04:02:07Z")
> [@eleanorigby](#): > > This is internally inconsistent. You think the mom may have done away with her baby and yet you want that baby to be returned to her? > :dubious: That’s not internally inconsistent. He believes X might have happened, but hopes that X didn’t happen. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/44 "2011-10-11T04:43:06Z")
Okay, I can see a kidnapper/robber taking the phones (can’t see a robber taking the baby though), but did they ever find those phones? Phones can be tracked, sort of–actually I think the cops can track them pretty well. Speaking of tracking, have they had the bloodhounds on this one? I haven’t read anything about that. It’s a very strange story, and I hope it doesn’t have the predictable outcome. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/45 "2011-10-11T13:25:48Z")
> [@Grumman](#): > > That’s not internally inconsistent. He believes X might have happened, but hopes that X didn’t happen. To each his own. \ ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/46 "2011-10-11T13:37:54Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > Okay, I can see a kidnapper/robber taking the phones (can’t see a robber taking the baby though), but did they ever find those phones? Phones can be tracked, sort of–actually I think the cops can track them pretty well. On _Burn Notice_, they drive over the cell phone while making their get away. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Truman\_Burbank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@Truman\_Burbank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Truman_Burbank)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/47 "2011-10-11T14:25:58Z")
The part that pinged my radar, which I _think_ I read was the whole “and the lights were left blazing on” (I don’t follow this stuff closely). If I’m sneaking in to steal _anything_ in the middle of the night, I don’t think I’m turning on lights as I go… ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/48 "2011-10-11T15:38:34Z")
I’m still patiently waiting to get some detailed facts about this case instead of popular media reports. When those facts come in, or if they take too long, I’ll pick up my pitchfork and torch and join the mob. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/49 "2011-10-11T17:08:01Z")
Mom may have thrown the cell phones away when she disposed of the body because she believed that they could track her movements with the phones. Is it true that she did fail a lie detector test administered by the PD? ---
**Author:** ![Bambro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/df705f/32.png) [@Bambro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bambro)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/50 "2011-10-17T13:18:20Z")
Now the mom is saying that she was drunk when the baby went missing and that the last time she saw her was actually 4 hours earlier than she had previously reported. This is sounding very very fishy. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Zulema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/db5fbb/32.png) [@Zulema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zulema)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/51 "2011-10-17T16:19:25Z")
It’s starting to sound like an accident happened while she was drunk and this is all a cover up. She passed out and the baby drowned in the bathtub or something. Not sure what she thought getting rid of the cell phones would do. The police could get the call record from the cell companies. It’s funny we haven’t heard anything about the records being checked. Maybe the police have eveidence from those calls that they’re keeping from the public right now. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/52 "2011-10-17T17:25:02Z")
I am so very, very tired of these people doing in their kids and then going tearfully on TV and saying “Please! I just want my baby back! Please, if you know anything about her, get her back into my arms.” That is just…what can I say? Shit happens, okay. You killed your kid, it was an accident (maybe), but whatever, you KNOW IT, you KNOW what you did, and you still go tearfully on TV and say this? This kind of behavior makes me veer uncomfortably close to “I don’t believe in the death penalty but…” territory. (FTR I don’t believe in the death penalty.) Those tearful TV appearances make me want to tear the mother limb from limb. Not only are you a shit who caused the death of your little kid, you PREYED on the emotions of the greater society. And for what? Anybody who’s been paying attention knows that people who do what you did are always caught out. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/53 "2011-10-17T17:38:39Z")
Oh well. I guess the fact that she was drunk proves beyond a reasonable doubt that she killed her child. Clearly a psychopath because she continues to protest her innocense despite this level of proof. Let’s hang her! No, that would be wrong, let’s give her a fair trial. Then hang her! ---
**Author:** ![Zulema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/db5fbb/32.png) [@Zulema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zulema)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/54 "2011-10-17T17:39:49Z")
I don’t know what I would do if I accidently killed my kid. I know that most parents have had close calls with their own children and would be somewhat understanding if someone else wasn’t as lucky. Would I panic and try to cover it up? I don’t know, I don’t think so. ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/55 "2011-10-17T17:44:03Z")
> [@Zulema](#): > > It’s starting to sound like an accident happened while she was drunk and this is all a cover up. She passed out and the baby drowned in the bathtub or something. I haven’t been following this story super closely, but this explanation seems the likeliest to me. Some sort of accident happened due to the mom’s negligence or stupidity, she made up some story because she couldn’t bring herself to tell her husband what had happened, and it spiraled out of control into a missing person report to the police. I may be totally off-base because I don’t know all the details, but this is my guess. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/56 "2011-10-17T22:01:10Z")
Mom and dad have lawyered up!!! [http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2011-10-17/missing-baby-mom-drunk/50801324/1](http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2011-10-17/missing-baby-mom-drunk/50801324/1) Their attorney represented Joran Van der Sloot!!!:eek::eek: I’m wondering how they are affording this guy. I’d be willing to bet he’s donating his services in exchange for the publicity. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/57 "2011-10-17T22:24:10Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > Those tearful TV appearances make me want to tear the mother limb from limb. Not only are you a shit who caused the death of your little kid, you PREYED on the emotions of the greater society. And for what? Anybody who’s been paying attention knows that people who do what you did are always caught out. It is sad when this happens, but it’s just one bad decision in a string of bad decisions. Bad decision making is something they’re good at. So, what do you expect? ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/58 "2011-10-17T22:35:49Z")
I find her so darn believable, but damn, it doesn’t look good. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/59 "2011-10-17T22:40:45Z")
She also failed a lie detector test, specifically questions regarding if she knew where the child was and what happened. It’s not looking good for this woman. I assume Nancy Grace is on it. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934/60 "2011-10-17T22:58:55Z")
I wonder if she just fessed up to being drunk all on her own, or did the police drag it out of her? If she’s innocent, I feel bad for her. Not just because she’s lost her baby, but because she’s dealing with all the accusations and the prying into her life. But if she’s guilty? Even if it was an accident, I will have hard time feeling anything for her. These types of lies are dangerous because they make it harder and harder for parents who actually do lose their children to kidnappers. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-kansas-city-baby-odd-that-no-one-heard-the-kidnapper/598934.md?page=4)