After months of physical and mental therapy, Christie Downs was able to take the stand and tell what happened to her that horrible night. Although Downs denied having ever owned a .22 caliber gun, two of her former lovers told police they recalled seeing her with one. Downs was initially incarcerated at the Oregon Women's Correctional Center in Salem. Most damaging, witnesses saw her car being driven very slowly toward the hospital, at an estimated speed of 57mph (811km/h)contradicting her claim that she drove to the hospital at a high speed after the shooting. pic.twitter.com/HWkkwT86pF. Prosecutors think that Diane had sparked up a relationship with a married man who didnt want kids and that this became the motive for murder. At the time Diane had told police that a stranger attempted to carjack her and shot the kids, and thats what her ex husband was told, too. Diane Downs now: Her most recent prison photo from 2018. "There were a number of things which didn't make sense, even that first night," Welch said. "She was white, she was not breathing. The girl was later renamed Becky Babcock. Her three small children, Christie, 8; Cheryl, 7; and Danny, 3, were inside her blood-soaked car, shot at close range. Her first three children with her husband Steve are Stephen "Danny" Daniel (born 1979), Cheryl Lynn (born 1976), and Christie Ann (born 1974). [29], Downs had parole hearings in 2010 and 2020, which were both denied. Diane Downs is an American murder convict who has been serving a life sentence since 1984. I mean, she is so close to death, its unbelievable.. While they were unable to find the weapon, they found unfired casings in her home with extractor markings from the murder weapon. Video related to diane downs children now: christie, danny & becky today, My Mothers Sins l 20/20 Diane Downs l Part 2, WATCH THE FULL EPISODE OF 20/20: bit.ly/2uqkFD4 Diane Downs laughs while reenacting shooting of 3 children Police found Downs' behavior suspicious. She replied, 'You've got to be kidding,' at which time he pushed her aside and reached in and shot the sleeping kids.". Look at her," Jaeger said. Distractify is a registered trademark. The tragedy that hit the Downs' kids changed their whole life. The girl was later renamed Rebecca Babcock. Late one May night in 1983, Diane Downs sped into an emergency room dropoff in Springfield, Ore., with a horrifying story to tell. Christie and Danny were adopted by Lane County Prosecutor Fred Hugi and his wife, Joanne, in 1984. Ten days after her sentencing, Downs gave birth to a daughter named Amy Elizabeth. After months of physical and mental therapy, Christie Downs was finally able to take the stand and tell what happened to her that horrible night. Downs said she then faked throwing her keys to divert the gunman's attention, pushed him out of the way, jumped back in her car and raced to the hospital with her badly wounded children. Email us atexclusive@the-sun.comor call212 416 4552. After leaving the public eye in 2010, she spoke to ABC News' "20/20" to share her life now. I sat and I thought about it for awhile, and I chose to open that letter. A break in the case finally came when investigators discovered Downs' secret diaries. This is the person who's supposed to be on my side. Within two weeks police had tracked her down to the home of another inmate's husband just blocks from the prison. But as . Downs was convicted of shooting her three children: Danny, Cheryl, and Christie in Springfield, Oregon 37 years ago. the incident happened on a dark road that led to Diane being accused of murder and attempted murder. Her blood pressure was non-existent or very low. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. She named the fourth baby Amy Elizabeth before the state handed her over to her adoptive parents. Her 7-year old daughter Cheryl died, but her 3-year old son Danny and her 8-year old daughter Christie survived. Danny, a computer whiz, is still partially paralyzed from the bullet in his back, but he is living a happy and normal life. Downs insisted that, Over the years, I have told you and the rest of the world that a man shot me and my children. Police scoured the crime scene for months searching for the weapon, a .22-caliber gun that wounded Diane and her 8-year-old daughter Christie, paralyzed her 3-year-old son Danny and killed her 7-year-old daughter Cheryl. And as she drove down the road, a man stepped out from the brush, the side of the road, and she stopped the car. Jaeger remembers worrying that Downs' pregnancy could affect the way jurors viewed her. Within a few weeks, the kids who had survived were placed in protective custody and were no longer in Steve's care. 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. 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.". Meanwhile, Christie Downs was slowly beginning to tell what she remembered of the shootings. In 1983, Diane Downs said stranger shot her 3 kids. Diane Downs is currently serving her sentence of life plus 50 years at Central California Women's Facility in Chowchilla, Calif., where she's been since August 1993. [29] After three hours of interviews and thirty minutes of deliberation, she was denied parole. If my story touches even one person, it was all worth it, she wrote, sharing a positive message she received from a woman whose daughter is adopted and who says Becky was brought into this life to make a difference.. Following the crimes, she made claims to police that a man had attempted to carjack her and had shot the children. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Elizabeth Diane Downs, the convicted childkiller who escaped July 11, 1987 from the women's prison in Salem, Ore., is escorted out of state police headquarters in Salem following her capture July 21, 1987. But suspicions of Downs herself quickly began to surface. When police arrived at the scene, Downs, 27 at the time, told them a bizarre story of being flagged down by a bushy-haired stranger on a dark and deserted country road. Downs was denied parole in December 2008, December 2010, and in 2020. Christie became the star witness in the case, bravely testifying against her monster mom. Christie became the star witness in the case, bravely testifying against her monster mom. [4] On May 8, 1982, Diane gave birth to a baby girl, whom she named Jennifer, while acting as a surrogate. She, too, is now a mother. Diane Downs was one of the most infamous murderers of the 1980s; the emotionally flat blonde was convicted of shooting her three children, killing one of them, along a roadway in Springfield,. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. Three months ago, Downs spoke to OregonLive in regards to the novel coronavirus sweeping through the prison where she is being held. After Diane was convicted, the two living children were adopted by the prosecutor in the case and his wife, and it was Christie who ultimately pointed to her mother being responsible for the shooting. Danny is said to be going about his daily routine, but specifics regarding his personal life, such as his spouse and children, have remained a mystery, according to Tuko. She graduated from the University of Oregon. Suspicions heightened when Downs, upon arrival at the hospital to visit her children, phoned Robert Knickerbocker, a married man and former coworker in Arizona with whom she had been having an affair. She was later adopted by another family. And she has been our national consciousness for 70 years, says Tony Parsons, Takeaway-lover celebrates birthday with cake in the shape of his favourite fast food, Brooklyn Beckham is cute - but he doesn't deserve his own cooking show just because his parents are famous - no-one does, Bob Proctor death: Self-help author behind You Were Born Rich passes away at 87. After high school, she enrolled at Pacific Coast Baptist Bible College in Orange, California, but was expelled after one year for promiscuous behavior and returned to her parents' home in Arizona. The child was adopted and was later named Rebecca. Reporter Ann Jaeger remembers worrying that Downs' pregnancy could affect the way jurors viewed her. She said she had not seen a male stranger that night. The first two children were Dianes kids with her ex husband Steve Downs. She had been shot in the left forearm, though her wound was not life-threatening. "Her initial statement was that she had taken the kids out to a friend's house," said Welch. Born June 27, 1984, Becky, 37, is famously known as the daughter of Diane Down, 66. While Danny and Christie survived, Cheryl, the. Her three small children, Christie, 8; Cheryl, 7; and Danny, 3 . In the frantic scene, hospital employees quickly determined that Cheryl was already dead and that Christie and Danny were clinging to life. She went to the University of Oregon and now lives with her husband and children in the town. May 13, 2010, 7:54 AM. The couple divorced in 1980 over. However, according to her interviews and Facebook page, Becky today appears to have forged a successful life. 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. Like us on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/TheSunUSand follow us from our main Twitter account at@TheSunUS, News Group Newspapers Limited in England No. The judge made it clear that he did not intend for Downs to ever be free again. Convicted child killer Diane Downs is seen on a video as the Oregon parole board unanimously rules that she remains dangerous and must stay in prison during a hearing at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Ore., Dec. 10, 2010. She briefly escaped in 1987, but was quickly recaptured. And I said to her, We don't know that. "Danny, a computer whiz, is still partially paralyzed from the bullet in his back, but he is living a happy and normal life. Is Oregon relatively virus-free, or are my children in greater danger than the red circle size suggests? Diane graduated from Moon Valley High School in Phoenix, where she met Steve Downs. 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. ", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Diane_Downs&oldid=1139832541, Incarcerated; earliest possible release 2025, This page was last edited on 17 February 2023, at 03:51. 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 prevented her from telling police what she had seen. When I see what others have suffered, I think my boss probably saved my life.. She admitted to shooting her three children but claimed that she was the victim of a carjacking and that an unknown person shot her children. But surgeon Steve Wilhite managed to revive Christie after her blood pressure dipped dangerously low and she suffered a stroke. On July 11, 1987, she escaped from her cell by scaling an eighteen-foot razor wire fence. Downs told investigators that she and her. DIANE Downs is serving a life sentence for horrific crimes she committed against her own children. 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. "I got pregnant because I miss Christie and I miss Danny and I miss Cheryl so much," she said. She says things to me like, Boy, this has really spoiled my vacation, and she also says, That really ruined my new car. Within a month of the shootings, with her two surviving children still in the hospital, Downs began giving a series of bizarre interviews to the media. Amy, who was adopted and given the name BeckyBabcock, went public about her mother in 2010 and has also met her in a bid to find out about her roots. Wilhite said he then found a judge who issued an order making him and another doctor Christies guardians. Diane Downs laughs while reenacting shooting of 3 children: Part 2 Police found Downs' behavior suspicious. [15] Christie Downs, Diane Downs' first child who testified at her trial, suffers from a speech disability. On a fateful night in May 1983, she rushed to the emergency ward of a hospital . She was white She was not breathing. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. [32], Last edited on 17 February 2023, at 03:51, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, "Diane Downs: Her Children Got in the Way of Her Love", "The True Story of Diane Downs: How a Mother Shot Her 3 Kids for Her Lover", "Woman on finding peace after learning mother is child killer Diane Downs: 'Though that's biologically my makeup, it's not who I am inside', "Woman finds peace after learning mother is convicted child killer Diane Downs", Christie Downs: Three Years Old Murder Survival of the 80s, "Becky Babcock: My Mother Was a Murderer", "Becky Babcock: A Girl's Fight to Escape her Mother's Crimes", "Diane Downs: Her Children Got in the Way of Her Love', "Diane Downs maintains innocence as parole hearing looms", "Diane Downs Denied by Oregon Parole Board", "Diane Downs Latest Parole Hearing is Next Month", "Where Is Diane Downs Today? When I hear about three children being shot, I thought, How am I going take care of three people? Because I wasn't afraid of what I needed to do. [29] Lane County District Attorney Douglas Harcleroad wrote to the parole board: Downs continues to fail to demonstrate any honest insight into her criminal behavior even after her convictions, she continues to fabricate new versions of events under which the crimes occurred.[29] He also wrote that she alternately refers to her assailants as a bushy-haired stranger, two men wearing ski masks, or drug dealers and corrupt law enforcement officials.[29] Downs participated in the hearing from the Valley State Prison for Women. Convicted child killer Diane Downs is seen on a video as the Oregon parole board unanimously rules that she remains dangerous and must stay in prison during a hearing at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Ore., Dec. 10, 2010. Following the crimes, she made claims to police that a man had attempted to carjack her and had shot the children. My childhood was of dreams and we had every opportunity that we wanted. In 1984, Diane Downs was convicted of shooting her three children, 3-year-old Danny, 7-year-old Cheryl, and 8-year-old Christie. Her pupils were dilated. In May of that year, Downs shot her three children in her car at a remote roadside in Springfield, Oregon, before shooting herself in the forearm, cops said. But surgeon Steve Wilhite managed to revive Christie after her blood pressure dipped dangerously low and she suffered a stroke. Like us on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/TheSunUSand follow us from our main Twitter account at@TheSunUS, 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP, Diane Downs with her three children Stephen, Christie and Cheryl, Diane Downs is serving a life sentence for the attack on her children, Downs gave birth to a fourth child after her trial in 1984, Christie testified against her mother, pictured. 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March 23, 2019 13:00 Impact x Nightline The Murders Before the Marathon In May of that year, the trial against Downs began with yet another inconceivable twist. [2], On November 13, 1973, Diane married Steve Downs after running away from home. When she got out to talk to this man, he immediately demanded that she give him her car keys, Downs claimed she refused and they got into a physical altercation that resulted in him shooting her in the left arm. Downs, who still maintains her innocence, was convicted and sentenced to life in prison, plus 50 years. She went to the University of Oregon and now lives with her husband and children in the town. Downs was found guilty in June, and sentenced to life in prison plus 50 years. While Danny and Christie survived, Cheryl, the middle child, was killed in the attack. [2] Despite her parents' disapproval of their relationship, Downs continued the relationship. Critics said she deliberately became pregnant in order to garner sympathy from the jury. When I looked in the mailbox and saw her letter, it was like Pandoras box. ', I didnt just tear it open and start reading, Babcock tells the show. From Arizona to Oregon, the family had moved just shortly before the incident for Dianes job in the U.S. postal service. She described him as a "bushy haired stranger". Diane Downs was convicted of shooting her 3 children, killing 1, in 1983. Would love your thoughts, please comment. Where are Diane Downs' children now? Her first three children with her husband Steve are Stephen "Danny" Daniel (born 1979), Cheryl Lynn (born 1976), and Christie Ann (born 1974). She took a detour off of Marcola Road onto Old Mohawk Road to do some sightseeing., By this time it was dark, and the kids were sleeping. The two kids who had survived the attack were placed for adoption and Steve was no able to care for them. Did I make a mistake? Conflicting reports say Downs also acted as a surrogate during her fourth pregnancy, giving birth to a daughter after her trial in 1984. However, investigators and hospital workers became suspicious, because they decided that Downs' manner was too calm for a person who had just experienced such a traumatic event. 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'.. And Christie's mother, Diane, could-- say whatever she wanted. She was white She was not breathing. Danny was permanently paralyzed from the waist down as a result of his injuries. After being recaptured, she was transferred to a more secure facility. READ NEXT: COVID-19 Stimulus Check: Did the HEROES Act Pass? [3] Much of the case against her rested on the testimony of her surviving daughter, Christie, who, once she recovered her ability to speak, described how her mother shot all three children while parked at the side of the road, and then shot herself in the arm. A 27-year-old divorced postal service worker, Downs claimed a bushy-haired stranger had shot them and maintains her innocence to this day. Fred Hugi, adopted the children., Famed true-crime author Ann Rule wrote about the case. 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And, by the time she took them to the hospital, Cheryl was dead. A judge had already placed Downs' two surviving children in protective custody. [5] When Downs went to trial in May 1984, she was again pregnant. According to ABC News, as of March 2019, Becky was 34-years-old and working in Salem Oregon as a behavioral health coordinator for children. In 2017, she posted on Facebook about a new job, writing that she works with the mentally ill helping to give them a better life.. She says it was during the struggle with the stranger that she was shot in the arm. And-- so with that, then we were free to treat her as need be. Boris Johnson is stuck in a chaotic spiral of scandal, walkouts, and leaving dos so where does he go from here? Officers began an inquiry into her peculiar behavior, which included calling her lover from the hospital, her children claiming they were afraid of her, and Christie Ann responding in a fearful manner when her mother visited her in the hospital. A jury subsequently convicted Downs on all counts, and she was sentenced to life in prison plus 50 years, according to Glamour. Rebecca wrote to Downs in her younger years, and has stated that she regrets the contact, regarding her mother as a monster.[20] [21]. Her blood pressure was non-existent or very low. In the frantic scene, hospital employees quickly determined that Cheryl was already dead and that Christie and Danny were clinging to life. "Danny, a computer whiz, is still partially paralyzed from the bullet in his back, but he is living a happy and normal life. "You cant replace children, but you can replace the effect they give you. Although Downs denied having ever owned a .22 caliber gun, ex-husband Steve Downs told police she took one with her when she moved to Oregon. Why is she wounded in the arm? "Why would I have taken my kids to the hospital?" It was suspected I hit over 100 miles an hour coming down the freeway, he said. Anne Jaeger was a local reporter for KEZI in Eugene, Ore., at the time. Our MPs are worse than the Italians - it's so bad I want John Major back, Inside life of Bitcoin trader suspected of faking own death as widow says she tried to kill herself after dream imploded, The Queen knows us. Heres what you need to know about where Diane Downs children are now: Shes been called evil and the devil. A mother of three, in love with a married man, who did the unthinkable. Unlike her siblings, Becky Babcock has been very public about her mother, granting interviews over the years. When Downs went on trial in May of that year, she was pregnant again. Under Oregon law at the time, as a dangerous offender, Downs would have been eligible for a parole hearing every two years until she is released or dies in prison. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? He and his wife, Joanne, adopted them in 1986. Email us atexclusive@the-sun.comor call212 416 4552. Is She Still In Jail? After that, she was charged with killing her 7-year-old daughter. The case of Diane Downs and her three children is one of those a horrible tragic case that people still think about 37 years later. She tells ABC, The impact of Diane Downs being my mom has altered the course of my life so many times. It hasnt been easy, but it has been worth it. Within a month of the shootings, with her two surviving children still in the hospital, Downs began giving a series of bizarre interviews to the media. Danielle Peterson/Statesman Journal via AP, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Today, Downs is incarcerated at the Central California Womens Facility in Chowchilla, California. Diane Downs remains in prison in California. 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF. Downs said: "I got pregnant because I miss Christie and I miss Danny and I miss Cheryl so much. Within two weeks police had tracked her down to the home of another inmate's husband just blocks from the prison. [2][3] Their first child, Christie Ann, was born in 1974. In 2005, she gave birth to her first child, a boy, and later gave birth to a daughter who she named Cheryl after her sister. Wilhite said he was immediately directed to start working to save Christie while another surgeon took Danny. They have both graduated from college. View our online Press Pack. In another one of her strange media appearances Downs spoke about the pregnancy. Stephen danny downs was the son of Diane Downs is a murderer who was convicted in the United States and is currently serving a life term for the crime she committed in 1984. It was an interesting interview. In May of that year, the trial against Downs began with yet another inconceivable twist. Diane's 2 children who survived the shooting . The Diane Downs' Case Was no Small Sacrifice On May 19, 1983, Elizabeth Diane Downs and her three small children were shot on a country road near Springfield, Oregon. I was afraid of how am I going to handle all this? he added. I mean, think about it. DNA Test Kits Are Helping Solve Cold Cases Decades Later, After Nearly a Year, There Could Finally be an Investigation Into the Death of Elijah McClain. But Im on track and Im really happy with the way life is.. She's doing well. In 1984, Diane was convicted of the death and injuries of her children, and she was sentenced to life in prison. Despite being convicted, Downs has always maintained her innocence. She wed Steve Downs in 1973 when she was just 17 and the couple had two children together . But what happened to Diane Downs' husband? He was instead a result of an affair Diane had with a married man. For other inquiries, Contact Us. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. she said in an interview. They have both graduated from college. She's been called "evil" and "the . A 27-year-old divorced postal service worker, Downs claimed a bushy-haired stranger had shot them and maintains her innocence to this day. Therefore, they grew up privately and continue to live their adult lives privately. After being recaptured, she was transferred to a more secure facility. Do I open it? https://t.co/cPfs75obUg pic.twitter.com/uSnlFF2IRw. But there were a number of things which didn't make any sense., Why would a mother sightsee when it's dark out? There isnt a whole lot known about where Steve Downs is these days. We've got three children who have been shot, Wilhite told 20/20. And my whole body just tingled. "Sightseeing when it's pitch black out? Then, 10 days after Diane was sentenced to life in prison plus 50 years, she gave birth to a daughter she named Amy Elizabeth. Her mother was on trial for shooting her siblings, and some believed that Diane Downs got pregnant to gain sympathy. [30][31][1] Downs maintained her innocence in all parole hearings. Diane Downs attempts to murder her three young children, eight-year-old Christie, seven-year-old Cheryl, and three-year-old Danny, by faking a carjacking. Diane Downs was one of the most infamous murderers of the 1980s; the emotionally flat blonde was convicted of shooting her three children, killing one of them, along a roadway in Springfield, Oregon. In 1983, Diane Downs three children were brought to an Oregon hospital with gunshot wounds. The stroke Christie Downs suffered impaired her speech and initially prevented her from telling police what she had seen. Diane Downs Today: Where Is the Convicted Child Killer Now? "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 thats gone, they took it from me, but children are so easy to conceive.". That girl was later renamed Rebecca "Becky" Babcock.[6]. 1983: Diane Downs Attempts to Murder Her Three Children. Cops decided she was lying. Diane Downs also gave birth to a fourth child with yet another man; she became pregnant with that daughter, now known as Becky Babcock during the investigation. And, Cheryl Lynn, had reportedly told a neighbor of her grandparents that she was afraid of her mother. 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. On Feb. 28, 1984, nine months after the shootings, Downs was arrested and charged with one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder. Downs had picked someone on her postal route to seduce prior to the start of her trial. Although police had found spent .22 caliber bullet casings at the crime scene, an exhaustive search of the area did not turn up the murder weapon. , Diane Downs three children child, Christie, seven-year-old Cheryl, and 8-year-old Christie child was adopted and later... Kids to the University of Oregon and now lives with her husband children... Maintains her innocence adoption and Steve was no able to care for.! Disapproval of their relationship, Downs had parole hearings spoke to OregonLive in to... A local reporter for KEZI in Eugene, Ore., at the Oregon Women Correctional... This website opportunity that we wanted in 2020 anne Jaeger was a local reporter for in!, bravely testifying against her own children hear about three children being,! Was no able to care for them told a neighbor of her grandparents that she had seen child was and! Happy with the way life is.. she 's doing well case finally came when investigators discovered '. My childhood was of dreams and we had every opportunity that we wanted handed her over her! Would I have taken my kids to the emergency ward of a hospital are my children the.: her most recent prison photo from 2018 survived were placed for adoption and Steve was no able to for. And we had every opportunity that we wanted 3 children: Part 2 police Downs. She escaped from her cell by scaling an eighteen-foot razor wire fence that. Downs children are now: her most recent prison photo from 2018 after... The fourth baby Amy Elizabeth before the incident happened on a dark road that led to Diane accused. The star witness in the attack were placed for adoption and Steve was no able to care them. Why would a mother sightsee when it 's dark out dangerously low and she not... 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Cheryl was already dead and that Christie and I thought, How am I to... Leading up to their star witness Check: did the HEROES Act Pass: 1 London Bridge Street,,. # x27 ; behavior suspicious had tracked her down to the University of Oregon now... Faking a carjacking was quickly recaptured replace the effect they give you found unfired casings her. Weeks police had tracked her down to the home of another inmate 's just! Children., Famed true-crime author Ann Rule wrote about the case, testifying! 2 police found Downs & # x27 ; s been called evil and the.... ' disapproval of their relationship, Downs spoke about the case to OregonLive in regards to the hospital,,! Night, '' said Welch out the evidence against Downs began with yet another inconceivable twist her down the! Downs now: her most recent prison photo from 2018 s been called & quot ; evil & ;... Younger years, and Christie survived, Cheryl Lynn, had reportedly told a neighbor of trial! Were both denied inmate 's husband just blocks from the murder weapon daughter Christie survived, Cheryl, she! Lane County Prosecutor Fred Hugi, adopted the children., Famed true-crime author Rule! On trial in May 1983, Diane Downs attempts to murder her three small children, 3-year-old Danny 3! Down to the hospital, Cheryl, the trial against Downs began with yet inconceivable... Friend 's house, '' said Welch whole life trial for shooting three! Ever owned a.22 caliber gun, two of her trial young children, and sentenced life! Babcock. [ 6 ] Peterson/Statesman Journal via AP, do not Sell or Share my Personal Information siblings... On track and Im really happy with the way jurors viewed her in. My kids to the University of Oregon and now lives with her husband and in!, do not Sell or Share my Personal Information after running away from home, then we free! And had shot the children child was adopted and was later named Rebecca quickly determined Cheryl! Pregnant because I miss Danny and Christie survived, Cheryl Lynn, had told. She decided to -- to do some sightseeing, 1987, she being. Downs children are now: Shes been called & quot ; and Danny, 7-year-old,. Convicted Downs on all counts, and I thought about it for awhile, and in 2020,... Counts, and sentenced to life in prison plus 50 years no longer in Steve 's care always maintained innocence! And she suffered a stroke he then found a judge who issued an order making and! 30 ] [ 3 ] their first child who testified at her trial, suffers from a speech disability her... Her fourth pregnancy, giving birth to a more secure what happened to diane downs children never put a wrong! Hit over 100 miles an hour coming down the freeway, he said to products and on... Say Downs also acted as a `` bushy haired stranger '' doing well 27-year-old. Quickly began to surface she wed Steve Downs in 1973 when she not... Springfield, Oregon 37 years ago the first two children were Dianes kids with her husband and children the..., two of her strange media appearances Downs spoke to OregonLive in regards the! Downs to ever be free again we do n't know that prevented her from telling what. Ore., at the time she took them to the hospital? Downs serving. Murder her three children were Dianes kids with her ex husband Steve Downs claims to police a. Contact, regarding her mother, granting interviews over the years suffers from a speech disability made to... The middle child, Christie Ann, was born in 1974 a monster was of dreams and had! Being recaptured, she made claims to police that a man had attempted carjack! Year on the throne clear that he did not intend for Downs to be! Murder convict who has been very public about her mother make sense, even that first night ''. Dangerously low and she was transferred to a daughter named Amy Elizabeth before the state handed over. `` Becky '' Babcock. [ 6 ] 29 ], on November 13 1973... Coronavirus sweeping through the prison dark and upon their return home she decided to -- do! Downs, Diane Downs being my mom has altered the course of my life so times! Childhood was of dreams and we had every opportunity that we wanted 's Standard Terms and in. That letter blocks from the jury and attempted murder Diane being accused of murder and attempted murder Steve is... Police they recalled seeing her with one much, '' Welch said I going handle. Another inconceivable twist not intend for Downs to ever be free again neighbor of trial... I miss Cheryl so much, '' she said she had been shot, Wilhite told.. In England no have forged a successful life London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF affect the jurors. Surviving children in the mailbox and saw her letter, it was Pandoras! On track and Im really happy with the way jurors viewed her the two. 8 ; Cheryl, and sentenced to life in prison plus 50.... When she was again pregnant, plus 50 years, according to Glamour running away home! Been worth what happened to diane downs children found a judge who issued an order making him and another Christies... Ten days after her blood pressure dipped dangerously low and she suffered a stroke innocence to this day death. Order making him and another doctor Christies guardians July 11, 1987, she was again pregnant where. Interviews over the years continued the relationship pregnant to gain sympathy effect they give you so to... Very public about her mother was on trial in May 1983, was...
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