Fearing there could be a gun-wielding killer on the loose, police released information to the public to be on the lookout. It was an unthinkable, brutal killing in 1983 that terrified parents around the country. Within two weeks police had tracked her down to the home of another inmate's husband just blocks from the prison. She was later adopted by another family. 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. 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. They have grown up in a very happy home with the Hugis.. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. She said she had not seen a male stranger that night. Christie and Danny were adopted by Lane County Prosecutor Fred Hugi and his wife, Joanne, in 1984. And why are the kids fatally or near-fatally wounded, and she, being right-handed, is shot in the left arm? She's doing well. Danny and Christie survived the attack while middle child, Cheryl, died from her injuries at the time. Her blood pressure was non-existent or very low. 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. Cheryl Lynn followed in 1976, with Stephen Daniel being born in 1979. After Downs trial, Christie and Danny were adopted by Hugi and his wife. The woman who was on trial for shooting her own children was pregnant again -- and it was no accident. "The more she talked, the more things didn't make any sense.". The surgeon who helped to save Christie's life told ABC News: When I looked at Christie I thought she was dead. They had another sibling, born in the middle, in 1976, Cheryl Lynn, but she didnt survive the shooting. "Sightseeing when it's pitch black out? 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. Fred Hugi, adopted the children., Famed true-crime author Ann Rule wrote about the case. Her three small children, Christie, 8; Cheryl, 7; and Danny, 3, were inside her blood-soaked car, shot at close range. The baby was taken by the state and delivered to adoptive parents. That's insane to think that I would do such a thing and then bring the witnesses in against myself -- that's crazy.". "Why would I have taken my kids to the hospital?" If youre here because youre curious to know where the surviving children are now, youve come to the right place. "And so the quickest, simplest way was to eliminate the children.". Her mother was on trial for shooting her siblings, and some believed that Diane Downs got pregnant to gain sympathy. Jaeger says Downs told her she had picked someone on her postal route to seduce prior to her arrest. DIANE Downs is serving a life sentence for horrific crimes she committed against her own children. Though she shot all three children, only Cheryl died Christie and Danny survived . I sat and I thought about it for awhile, and I chose to open that letter. She will be eligible for parole in 2020 and continues to proclaim her innocence. And-- so with that, then we were free to treat her as need be. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. [22] She received an additional five-year sentence for the escape. They told of her obsession with a married man who didn't want her kids around. A break in the case finally came when investigators discovered Downs' secret diaries. Downs was found guilty in June 1984, and sentenced to life in prison plus 50 years. We believe the motive for the shooting was to get Nick up here to Oregon to be with her. Despite being convicted, Downs has always maintained her innocence. I showered, slept for 4 hours, woke up and drank water, then went back to sleep for 16 more hours, she wrote. [11] The forensic evidence did not match her story; there was no blood spatter on the driver's side of the car, nor was there any gunpowder residue on the driver's door or on the interior door panel. She went to the University of Oregon and now lives with her husband and children in the town. Downs' sentence meant she could not be considered for parole until 2009. From Arizona to Oregon, the family had moved just shortly before the incident for Dianes job in the U.S. postal service. She wed Steve Downs in 1973 when she was just 17 and the couple had two children together . [29], Downs had parole hearings in 2010 and 2020, which were both denied. And as long as he said that he wasn't going to be a father to anyone's children, they had to go.. It's not even known if he still resides in Arizona, where he used to live with Diane and their three kids. The girl was later renamed Becky Babcock. 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. "They have both graduated from college. Since his ex wife was sentenced to life in prison, he has not reappeared in public life nor has he given any television interviews about his family. The judge made it clear that he did not intend for Downs to ever be free again. Ten days after her sentencing, Downs gave birth to a daughter named Amy Elizabeth. It hasnt been easy, but it has been worth it. The woman who was on trial for shooting her own children was pregnant again -- and it was no accident. Is Oregon relatively virus-free, or are my children in greater danger than the red circle size suggests? Please review our privacy policy here: https://heavy.com/privacy-policy/, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. And got out and ask what he wanted. 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. California Department of Corrections However, according to her interviews and Facebook page, Becky today appears to have forged a successful life. 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,. 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. Today, 35-year-old Babcock works as a behavioral health coordinator for children in Salem, Oregon. When Wilhite went to go update Downs on her daughters condition, he said he was surprised by her reaction. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? That's insane to think that I would do such a thing and then bring the witnesses in against myself -- that's crazy.". I have never changed my story.[29] Her first parole hearing was on December 9, 2008. Downs claimed that on a drive home from a friends house, she decided to take the scenic route home. For other inquiries, Contact Us. COVID-19 Stimulus Check: Did the HEROES Act Pass. From their wounds, Christie suffered a stroke that left with a speech impairment, and Danny got paralyzed from the waist down. Christie is now in her forties, according to Tuko, and the accident left her with a speech handicap. District Attorney Fred Hugi asked Christie if she remembered who shot her. Diane graduated from Moon Valley High School in Phoenix, where she met Steve Downs. Danny and Christie survived the attack while middle child, Cheryl, died from her injuries at the time. She was white She was not breathing. Her first three children with her husband Steve are Stephen "Danny" Daniel (born 1979), Cheryl Lynn (born 1976), and Christie Ann (born 1974).. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. 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. Glamour reported that Danny was paralyzed from the chest down as a result of the shooting and Cheryl suffered a major stroke as a result of the attack that left her with a lifelong speech impediment. They have both graduated from college. A mother was driving one night down a rural road in Oregon when her three children, who were asleep in the car, were shot at point-blank range by a stranger in the dark. Danny, a computer whiz, is still partially paralyzed from the bullet in his back, but he is living a happy and normal life. Anne Jaeger was a local reporter for KEZI in Eugene, Ore., at the time. It was suspected I hit over 100 miles an hour coming down the freeway, he said. "I'm never going to see Cheryl on Earth again and I just, you can't replace children, but you can replace the effect they give you. "You cant replace children, but you can replace the effect they give you. Downs told investigators that she and her children had been shot in a carjacking, but police found a secret diary detailing her obsession with a married man who did not want kids. she said in an interview. [26] The book documented accounts by friends, acquaintances, neighbors, and her surviving daughter, Christie, who questioned the quality of her parenting. A year later, when Diane was arrested and put on trial, Christie, at just 9 years old, having just recovered her ability to speak, testified against her in court. Now, her children are all grown up and many want to know what they are up to now 2 Becky Babcock is the fourth and youngest child of Diane Downs Credit: ABC NEws Who is Diane Downs' daughter Becky Babcock? She said she pulled over and got out to talk to the man. Shortly before her death, Cheryl Lynn reportedly told a neighbor of her grandparents that she was afraid of her mother. There were all kinds of red flags that went up as we took her statement, but we wanted her to give us a complete statement, Welch said. She has been housed in California for the Oregon Department of Corrections since Aug. 30, 1993.. Downs was denied parole in December 2008, December 2010, and in 2020. By the time Wilhite arrived, Downs had driven her blood-soaked car to the emergency room. Not just a son, but a couple of other children as well, including a daughter, who she named after her dead sister, Cheryl. Wilhite said Christie's blood pressure had been so low that she suffered a stroke. For ten days, Downs managed to evade law enforcementdespite a fourteen-state manhuntbefore she was recaptured. While police increasingly suspected Downs, she adamantly denied any involvement when speaking to the media. When she was recaptured in her forties, according to her arrest be free again meant could! Home with the Hugis.. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events drive home from a friends house she! 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