America Mesmerized By Nancy Guthrie Case
In case you haven’t noticed, America is divided into two distinct camps.
Those who are sick of the Nancy Guthrie kidnapping coverage and want it to stop.
And an army of armchair detectives, involved in a national whodunit parlor game. These folks are increasingly determined to step in to help the bumbling local law enforcement working this case.
I’m not proud of this, but I’m in the latter camp. I actually wake up during the night and check my phone for news of Nancy. It’s a sickness. An unsolved mystery playing out in real time.
We pray for the safe return of the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show’s Savannah Guthrie while devouring every tidbit of information about the crime. We study the aerial photos, we parse the words of the mid-wit sheriff of Tucson, we watch and rewatch the videos recorded by the Guthrie siblings, searching for hidden clues.
As a result, we have our own theories of the case. Many have been pointing the finger at Nancy’s son-in-law or a member of his band. Others are convinced it’s the evil work of Mexican drug cartels. Others posit that it could be a Savannah Guthrie stalker or an attempt to get insurance money?
The disappearance of this octogenarian is unsettling. Her health is frail and her mobility is limited. Nancy Guthrie reportedly was widowed 40 years ago and reared her three children on her own. She deserved to live out her days in comfort, basking in the love of her kids and grandkids.
Instead, from newly released Nest doorbell videos it appears that an animal in a balaclava burst into her home late at night, roughed her up and took her. She is without the meds she needs to stay alive.
If Nancy is still alive she may not have much time left. That sense of urgency spurs the amateur sleuths to come up with their own theories. Why shouldn’t we? The local police are inept. They’ve taped off the crime scene twice - briefly - but media and onlookers have been free to trample the property.
Henry Entin, a YouTuber, was the first to show the world blood spatters on Nancy Guthrie’s front porch. Why would law enforcement allow the public to roam at will around a crime scene? I’ve never seen anything like it.
Yesterday , as a joke or to prove a point, a member of the media ordered a pizza to Nancy Guthrie’s address. The delivery guy went right up to the door.
The FBI may know what it’s doing, but the local sheriff clearly doesn’t. His men were seen poking around what appeared to be a septic tank on the Guthrie property on Monday. Nine days after Nancy Guthrie was taken.
A break in the case came yesterday afternoon when the FBI released grainy Nest doorbell camera footage of an intruder at Nancy Guthrie’s front door on the night she went missing, Although, heavily disguised, there are several distinguishing features about the man.
Armchair experts are studying his gait, facial hair and the shape of his eyes. There are signs that a car might have been waiting some distance away and perhaps an accomplice was there.
I can’t explain why the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie has captured the imaginations of so many of us. Then again, why did the disappearance of Elizabeth Smart in 2002 captivate the nation? Why did the media obsess over Baby Jessica McClure who was trapped in a Texas well in 1987? How about the 33 Chilean miners who were trapped underground for 69 days in 2010 and the international news media covered every minute of the drama?
A man was detained by law enforcement last night but The New York Times is reporting this morning that he’s been released.
And the mystery continues.
