Laramie County Sheriff’s Office

Case 8208840

Related Case 8208829

Transcription of interview with Deborah Ann Jahnke, 11-17-82, 0848 hours.

Present at the interview: Detectives Greene and Fresquez.

Det. Greene: Will you talk to us now and give me a chronology of the events from the time that you arrived home?

D.A. Jahnke: My mother, she just started nagging about something that really doesn't upset me because it happens every day and it's routine. And then a bit later, my brother came home, and then she just started picking at him. And it just got worse and worse and worse. My mother at this point, she was hysterical and she was screaming her bead off that she’s not appreciated enough, that we're takers and, and we're not givers.

Det. Fresquezt: “She threw some things at him,” are we talking physically threw something at him?

D.A. Jahnke: Yeah. Physically threw some things at him, she threw, uh, a candle and she threw some dog food at

him, you know. I was just in my room again. That's where I live. And, I just heard all this commotion, and then

beard my father screaming and yelling. And things being thrown around, and, you know, like punches being

thrown and you know, stuff like “Ouch.” Um, and that really upset me and I just opened up the door, and I saw them. He was, he was threatening to get rid of my brother..

Det. Greene: Is that your father?

D.A. Jabnke: My father. My brother did not strike back. He was just beating up on my little brother, and mv

brother was having a, you know, he really wasn't defending himself. And he said well, I don't know

how we're going to do it, but I will get rid of you, we don't want you here, you're, you're a fucking

ass hole, we don't know how we’ll do it but in some way ~we'll be rid of you. And I said very simply

to him you get rid of him, wherever he's going, I'm going as well, I don't want to stay here without

my brother. And, he said, well you're such a slut. And then so all of a sudden, he goes, stomp,

stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp to my brother's room, you know, and bangs on the door, like,

bang, bang, bang, you know, like the wrath of, I don't know, Hades or something like that, you know.

And, you know, it just starts, it just starts up again But I think it was even worse than the first time.

I wasn't there, I did not see it. I was pretty scared.

Det. Fresquez: Did you see anything that you would recognize as bruises or marking from this beating?

D.A. Jahnke: No. No. Because, like, my father, uh, I don't know, we've never gotten any broken bones, or you

know, we don't have any lacerations, etc. We just, he hits and he punches and he slaps. You know,

I‘ve had bruises, I’ve had, uh, black eyes, I’ve had, you know, a couple scars for about, and you know, it just

happens. I still think I have some bruises on my arms.

Det. Fresquez: You mentioned earlier in the interview that your father had certain areas that he like to, more or less direct his blows to.

D.A. Jahnke: Okay, that was the face, uh, the head, you know, up here, and in back and also between the shoulder

blades, and also on the lower back as well. That’s where he likes to. Uh, my brother, he, with him, he hits

him every place. Particularly, you know, around here, and his stomach and in the ribs. And he actually punches him, he uses his fists.

Det. Fresquez: Your mother prepared dinner and they left. How long were they gone?

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D.A. Jahnke: Uh. I think about an hour, maybe a little longer than that.

Det. Fresquez: Okay, during this time, that they were gone, okay, would you again relate as to what occurred at the home?

D.A. Jahnke: Mom, was right there, she saw my brother getting the stuffing beat out of him, and she didn't say anything, she just made matters worse, by inventing more shit. I thought that was really, really ugly, and very vindictive of her to do.

Det. Greene: That apparently made you angry.

D.A. Jahnke: Yes, to me he doesn't seem to be like a real person, because, you know, real people are human. I've never seen him draw anything or write or anything, or be kind to other people or to give anybody a hug or anything to show any emotion. I've never seen him really laugh, you know, or really cry or anything, and to me those are all of the things that make an individual human. well anyway my brother he was, when he gets really angry, he's pretty quiet. Me, I'm angry and I cry. And he just said, you know, basically I can't stand this any more, this is ridiculous, and you know nothing’s ever going to change. Uh, I have to do this tonight. I just can’t take this anymore. And, at that point, he went into my, you know, where my father kept his guns in a big old cabinet, he pulled out boxes of ammunition and he just placed weapons in certain areas. And then, so he said to me, all right Deborah, uh, I’m going to get you out of here. Do you want to go, and I said okay, because I was frightened, I didn’t know what was going to go on. I felt guilty about that. And he said, well are you going to help me? I said yeah, I’m going to help you, I’m not going to leave you alone.

Det. ~Fresquez: At that point, were you fully aware of what his intentions were?

D.A. Jahnke: I had no idea that be would do it. I don't think be did. Because after it happened, he came in and that's what he said. He goes, my God, I can't believe I did it, but I did. I asked about Mom, and she said, be said that she was okay.

I'm not a violent person, the only time I would ever strike anybody is in either self defense, or to defend somebody else. My father, in the past, extensively, carried a firearm with him, almost wherever he went. Or like he would have something in the glove compartment of his car and that was my concern, my father has ver short temper, he’s very irrational, he’s very irate. And he would just get hysterical and beat up on people, you know, you know, beat up on all three of us, my mother, and my brother and me, just over the teeniest things because he just had a bad day at work. I thought, oh my God, what if he’s armed. What if he pulls it out on my brother, what if he shoots him. What if he goes after me? At that point, definitely yes, I would have shot him. But only as a very last resort. If he just came at me and he didn’t have any firearms or something like that, I would have just put the weapon down and just took off you know.

Det. Greene: In regards to your brother, after your parents left to go eat I believe you said that Richard stated

something to the effect that I have to do this.

D.A. Jahnke: I didn't think that he would just blow my father away. all these really bad memories and things that

I’d blocked out, or just chose not to remember and my brother always felt really, really bad and guilty

because my father used to beat up on me. And he used to get sexual with me too. And I couldn’t defend myself and he was younger than me, be couldn't defend me, you know. And, it just got to the point that he just couldn't take it any more.

Det. Fresquez: What was his response?

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D.A. Jahnke: His response was nothing’s going to change. That basically, you know, that Dad eventually is going to throw us out and that's true. He's made several moves, like that incident in April. Where he just beat my brother so badly that he went over to an adult friend's house. They took him to the, one of the hospitals here, he had kidney damages. My brother, he's 5'8', he's really strong athletically, and that was a hell of a beating.

Det. Fresquez: Now, then there came a point that you heard blasts from a shotgun, where were you at that time?

D.A. Jahnke: I was just, uh, in the family room, just right in front of the fireplace and the couch just looking at the clock. And

then all of a sudden I heard bang, bang, bang, bang, In quick succession. And I thought, oh my God, the weapon

wasn’t in my hand. I think I leaned it against the fireplace. I thought, oh my god, should I pick it up or, or what

am I going to do. And my brother just came, he said I don’t believe that I did it. And something to the effect

let’s get out of here.

Det. Fresquez: How did you leave the house?

D.A. Jahnke: my brother went into the master bedroom, he opened up the window and removed the screen and I just turned off

the stereo and I grabbed my coat, just put it on really fast and just went through. You know, we just heard my

mother shriek about four times and we didn’t know where she was, uh, but we must have been really scared, uh, I

didn’t want to comfort her. And we just, you know he just pops through the screen and I just followed suit. And

we just ran.