Who Killed Bonnie Blakley??
Desi
August 2, 2001
Who Killed
Bonny Bakley?
Even Without Media Glare, Slaying of Blake's Wife Remains a
Mystery
Aug. 2 — Before a Washington intern's disappearance became a
daily media feeding frenzy, the nation was asking this
question: Who killed Bonny Bakley?
Three months have passed since the wife of actor Robert
Blake was gunned down near a Studio City Italian restaurant,
and Los Angeles police still have not been able to make an
arrest. The mystery surrounding Bakley's slaying has faded
from the media spotlight.
Reporters who were once staking out Blake's home near Studio
City, are now stationed approximately 300 miles away in
Modesto, Calif., outside the home of Robert and Susan Levy,
the parents of missing federal Bureau of Prisons intern
Chandra Levy. Bakley was killed May 4. Levy was last seen
April 30 and her parents received a final e-mail from her
May 1 — but her case did not attract national attention
until two weeks later.
The Levy case has not been the only story to steal the
national spotlight away from the Bakley slaying: Timothy
McVeigh's execution and a Texas mother's alleged slaying of
her five children were among the stories that pushed the
case off the front pages.
No Potential Suspects Ruled Out
Los Angeles police investigators who feared the media
spotlight would hinder their investigation are as stumped
now as they were three months ago. No witnesses have come
forward and a lack of evidence have stymied the case, but
police insist the investigation is not dead.
"I can certainly say that we have not ruled out —
legitimately ruled out — anyone as a suspect," said Lt.
Horace Frank, spokesman for the Los Angeles Police
Department. "Certainly we would like it to go a lot quicker,
but again, our main focus here is to make sure that we do a
thorough investigation, and when we do come up with the
evidence to take someone into custody, that that's done in
an appropriate manner."
Bakley was killed as she sat in Blake's car after they ate
dinner at Vitello's. Blake told police they walked to the
car together but he had to return to the restaurant to
retrieve a gun he had left behind. When he returned, Bakley
was dead.
Blake has denied involvement in Bakley's slaying, but Los
Angeles police say they have not ruled out the former
Baretta star or anyone as a suspect. Bakley's family —
particularly her mother, sister, and grown daughter — citing
alleged abuse and threats made by Blake, believe he was
involved in the slaying.
Frank said he understood Bakley's family's frustration but
stressed that investigators were not going to let media
scrutiny pressure them into making a hasty arrest.
"We're gonna allow the evidence to dictate how this
investigation goes," Frank said.
A Reluctant New Tourist Attraction
Though Bakley's slaying has not commanded strong attention
recently, its impact is still felt at Vitello's. The Studio
City Italian restaurant is now known as the last place
Bakley and Blake dined before she was fatally shot, and has
been added to the California-based Crime Scene Tours, a
company that conducts tours of infamous Hollywood crime
scenes. And business has picked up.
"There are new faces," said a restaurant manager who wished
not to be identified. The manager, who refused to verify
whether his business had gone up a reported 20 percent since
the slaying, admitted that he did not like being interviewed
and seemed uncomfortable with the attention his restaurant
has received.
But while Vitello's has served several new patrons over the
past two months, it seems to have lost one — Robert Blake.
The former Baretta star was once a frequent customer, dining
there sometimes twice a week. Since the killing, he's hasn't
been seen there.
"I haven't seen him," said the Vitello's manager. "But then
again, he may have been here and I may have been off. But to
my knowledge, he hasn't been here."
Relying on Technology, Reviewing Documents
When the investigation into Bakley's slaying began, 14
officers were assigned to the case. As two months have
passed and reporters have moved on to other stories, several
officers have been taken off the case. (Frank refused to say
how many officers are on the case, but Bakley's relatives
have said in several news reports that four detectives are
now conducting the investigation.)
Bakley's autopsy report has been sealed because detectives
believe the investigation would be compromised. Frank would
not comment extensively on the investigation, but said
police have been actively pursuing the case, conducting
interviews and reviewing documents they hope will provide
clues into the slaying. Since there were no witnesses, Frank
said investigators must rely on technology to help build a
case — particularly any ballistics and forensic evidence
from bullets and shell casings recovered from the crime
scene.
Ten days after the killing, police recovered what they
believed was the weapon used when they found a gun in a
trash bin a block-and -half away from the crime scene. The
gun, a Walther pistol described as a collector's item, still
had one bullet, which matched the two bullets used to kill
Bakley. A source close to the investigation told ABCNEWS at
the time that police found a box of ammunition of the same
brand in Blake's house. Three bullets were missing from the
box, the source said.
But, Blake's defenders point out, he is avid gun collector,
and the brand of ammunition, Remington Peters, is a popular
brand.
The Victim's Alleged Past: Investigation Roadblock?
Harland Braun, Blake's attorney, has painted an
unsympathetic picture of Bakley since the beginning of the
investigation, portraying her as a lifelong grifter who was
obsessed with being a celebrity's wife. Bakley's shady past,
he said, ultimately led to her death. He released tapes of
Bakley's phone conversations made before her marriage to
Blake, where she seemed torn between pursuing Blake or
Marlon Brando's son Christian. He has also submitted boxes
of tapes, letters, photos and other documents to police to
suggest that Bakley defrauded several people, giving them a
motive for killing her.
That, Braun believes, is one reason police have not made an
arrest. Bakley's past has made the list of potential
suspects too long.
"Once you're past Robert and his bodyguard, you can have
almost anyone [killing Bakley]," Braun said.
However, Cary Goldstein, who represents Bakley's family, has
faith that police are only being thorough and will
eventually make an arrest.
"They're just being really careful," Goldstein has said. "In
my conversations with them, they've assured me that they're
working very hard on the case."
Blake has remained somewhat reclusive since the media
attention toward his wife's slaying has subsided. He is
raising Rose, the baby daughter he had with Bakley,
occasionally leaving his home in Studio City and according
to his attorney, receiving letters of support.
Bakley's family is waiting for an arrest. Goldstein said the
family plans to file a wrongful death suit as soon as a
suspect is arrested.
ABCNEWS' Steffan Tubbs in Los Angeles and Bryan Robinson
contributed to this report.
http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/us/DailyNews/blake010802.
html
Knochej
keep your eye on the sparrow
mothra...@my-deja.com
>
> << Who Killed Bonny Bakley? >>
>
> keep your eye on the sparrow
With his little bow and arrow? I thought it was a gunshot killed Bonny
Bakley.
Martha
debby
attention it would cause. He's going to stay as far away as possible.
IMO he's doing the wisest thing. Debby S.<sarg...@infi.net>
Desi wrote:
>
pacoyogi
> Who Killed
> Bonny Bakley?
> Even Without Media Glare, Slaying of Blake's Wife Remains a
> Mystery
<Major snip>
> However, Cary Goldstein, who represents Bakley's family, has
> faith that police are only being thorough and will
> eventually make an arrest.
> Bakley's family is waiting for an arrest. Goldstein said the
> family plans to file a wrongful death suit as soon as a
> suspect is arrested.
> ABCNEWS' Steffan Tubbs in Los Angeles and Bryan Robinson
> contributed to this report.
***This is the most fascinating part of the article to me. The cash
cow is gone, so as soon as an arrest is made, they are going to file a
wrongful death suit? Ha Ha Ha HA! I can't wait to see the evidence
of what Bonny would have made in her lifetime-- "Now, let's see,
assuming that Ms. Blakeley swindled 20 men a year at a rate of $100.00
a month, and adding in for odd gifts from her more permanent
relationships, that would make her income potential....."
yr obedient servant, pacoyogi
asbest...@deja.com
and 3 marriages per year with an average gross profit from each
marriage of $100,000.00. Less the expenses of her business...
clothing, hair dye, postage, printing.
da (cynical) boss
goldenmike4393
> Could you see Blake going back to that resturant, and the media
> attention it would cause. He's going to stay as far away as possible.
> IMO he's doing the wisest thing. Debby S.<sarg...@infi.net>
My first suspect was Blake in the disappearance of Chandra because
he reaped such a benefit
Blake went from front burner to forgotten! Blake should be
sending Condit flowers.
GM
Bob
"goldenmike4393" <goldenm...@excite.com> wrote in message
news:5bbc2485.01080...@posting.google.com...
Considering Condit's involvment with so many women, has anyone bothered to
see where he was the night Bakley was murdered? Hmmmm.
Balecox
Kris Baker
debby
knoced Condit off the news for awhile. Should he thank George Bush??? The
interesting thing that if this had happened when Clinton was President the media
would have said that he used the "Wag the Dog" senario to take the pressure off of
Condit.:) Debby S.<sarg...@infi.net>
debby
GLC1173
>Anybody know where OJ was????:)
Yeah - every black American then over age six. The O.J. trial and verdict
forced both blacks and nonblacks out of denial about blacks' thinking regarding
the courts and police.
Don't kid yourself about Condit, though. Nobody will remember what stem
cells were a week from now - but Condit will explode back onto the front page
with the next time the police question him, the next time Levy's parents make
some statement, the next time Levy ends up on "America's Most Wanted," etc.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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debby
about Condit. There was a big story about police evidence being destroyed in a
warehouse because of "overcrowding". Evidence and property in open cases. The
network news broke this one. The woman in charge of this is now in Europe since she
left the office she was in charge of that stores police evidence. Her husband got a
job overseas. No word of Condit. Debby S.<sarg...@infi.net>