[26] The book documented accounts by friends, acquaintances, neighbors, and her surviving daughter, Christie, who questioned the quality of her parenting. Downs was denied parole in December 2008, December 2010, and in 2020. The couple divorced in 1980 because Steve thought Stephen Daniel, known as Danny, was the result of an extramarital affair by Diane. Danny and Christie survived the attack while middle child, Cheryl, died from her injuries at the time. 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. The outlet also reported Downs as saying that prisoners at the facility started suffering from COVID-19 symptoms in February. Her blood pressure was non-existent or very low. I was afraid of how am I going to handle all this? he added. Christie Downs, now 44, and her brother, 39, were adopted by the prosecutor in the case. And got out and ask what he wanted. [23] The Salem prison was located 66 miles from Hugi's home in Springfield; during her ten days of freedom, Hugi had feared that Downs would attempt to travel there in hopes of contacting her children, Christie and Danny. Downs had also been shot, in the left forearm, though her wound was not life threatening. She remembers Downs' demeanor in her interviews as peculiar. Critics said she deliberately became pregnant in order to garner sympathy from the jury. Christie became the star witness in the case, bravely testifying against her monster mom. It was an unthinkable, brutal killing in 1983 that terrified parents around the country. We believe the motive for the shooting was to get Nick up here to Oregon to be with her. They have maintained private lives since and have never spoken publically about their birth mother. Too much for her own good, Welch said. But as . It was honestly picture perfect., Diane Downs Children Now: Christie, Danny & Becky Today, Please review our privacy policy here: https://heavy.com/privacy-policy/, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. They also found a diary in which she expressed a desire to be with a married man, and the focus of the investigation shifted to Downs herself. Late one May night in 1983, Diane Downs sped into an emergency room dropoff in Springfield, Ore., with a horrifying story to tell. Cops decided she was lying. I mean, she is so close to death, its unbelievable.. On July 11, 1987, she escaped from her cell by scaling an eighteen-foot razor wire fence. After Downs trial, Christie and Danny were adopted by Hugi and his wife. Therefore, they grew up privately and continue to live their adult lives privately. 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,. Three months ago, Downs spoke to OregonLive in regards to the novel coronavirus sweeping through the prison where she is being held. "She saw the kids as a burden, they were in the way and he wasn't going to join her as long as she had the kids," Welch said. Diane Downs gave birth to four children. READ MORE: abcn.ws/2W9dzyC In 1983, Diane Downs. "The Sun", "Sun", "Sun Online" are registered trademarks or trade names of News Group Newspapers Limited. She was denied parole in 2008 and continues to proclaim her innocence. We just ignored it, Wilhite said. Downs was found guilty in June, and sentenced to life in prison plus 50 years. I mean, she is so close to death, its unbelievable.. I have used the term verbal vomit when talking' about Diane because she talked a lot. They told of her obsession with a married man who didn't want her kids around. Look at her," Jaeger said. Wilhite said he also noticed that when Downs went to visit Christie in the recovery room, her stats would spike. Diane Downs became one of the most infamous murderers in the city after she was convicted of shooting her three children, killing one of them, along a roadway in Springfield, Oregon. Within a few weeks, the kids who had survived were placed in protective custody and were no longer in Steve's care. Downs had picked someone on her postal route to seduce prior to the start of her trial. [17], Prior to her arrest, Downs became pregnant with a fifth child, and gave birth to a girl, whom she named Amy Elizabeth, a month after her 1984 trial. Beeper goes off, said, Get in here. I think that's one of the things that-- ended up hurting her case. She wed Steve Downs in 1973 when she was just 17 and the couple had two children together . The baby was taken by the state and delivered to adoptive parents. They also found a diary in which she expressed a desire to be with a married man, and the focus of the investigation shifted to Downs herself. She was afraid of her mother. Downs was initially incarcerated at the Oregon Women's Correctional Center in Salem. Prosecutors laid out the evidence against Downs, all leading up to their star witness. 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. 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. Photo: September 26, 1988. She named one of her children after her dead sister Cheryl. And I said to her, We don't know that. Christie is married and had a baby boy in 2005. 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. I had a great family, a great life. Her 7-year old daughter Cheryl died but her 3-year old son Danny and her 8-year old daughter Christie survived. [15], Psychiatrists diagnosed her with narcissistic, histrionic, and antisocial personality disorders, labeling her as a deviant sociopath.[16], Downs' two surviving children eventually went to live with the lead prosecutor on the case, Fred Hugi. [8][9] Upon arrival, Cheryl (aged 7) was already dead, Danny (aged 3) was paralyzed from the waist down, and Christie (aged 8) had suffered a disabling stroke. In 1984, Diane Downs was convicted of shooting her three children, 3-year-old Danny, 7-year-old Cheryl, and 8-year-old Christie. After her recapture, Downs was transferred to the New Jersey Department of Corrections Clinton Correctional Facility for Women after heavy lobbying from Hugi. Her blood pressure was non-existent or very low. Missing baby is feared dead as police arrest aristocrat Constance Marten and boyfriend on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter: 200 officers search allotments and compost bins near where . You know, she just asked, How is she doing? Not one emotional reaction, he said. 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. Prior to her sentencing, Downs gave birth to a baby girl whom she named Amy Elizabeth. She's the biggest threat to him, not three sleeping children.". "She talked all the time. 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. Famed true-crime author, Ann Rule, provided an update on them by writing on her now defunct website: Christie and Dannywho somehow survived their gunshot woundshave no contact with Diane. Christies Facebook page shows she has children, has a different married last name, and is living in Oregon. "Wouldn't I have made sure they were dead and then cried crocodile tears? Downs was found guilty in June 1984, and sentenced to life in prison plus 50 years. During the time they were together, Diane gave birth to three children, Stephen "Danny" Daniel (born 1979), Cheryl Lynn (born 1976), and Christie Ann (born 1974). 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. It hasnt been easy, but it has been worth it. She said she pulled over and got out to talk to the man. While police increasingly suspected Downs, she adamantly denied any involvement when speaking to the media. Not just a son, but a couple of other children as well, including a daughter, who she named after her dead sister, Cheryl. The Sun website is regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), Our journalists strive for accuracy but on occasion we make mistakes. 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. 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. Diane Downs children: Where are Christie and Stephen now? Ten days before Downs' sentencing, Amy was seized by the State of Oregon, and adopted by Chris and Jackie Babcock, who subsequently renamed her Rebecca. Downs told investigators that she and her. A break in the case finally came when investigators discovered Downs' secret diaries. "Danny, a computer whiz, is still partially paralyzed from the bullet in his back, but he is living a happy and normal life. Wilhite said he and the hospital staff who worked on the Downs kids on that horrific May night were not surprised by the outcome of the case. He and his wife, Joanne, adopted them in 1986. Hospital employees determined that then-7-year-old Cheryl was already dead and that then-8-year-old Christie and then-3-year-old Danny were clinging to life. "Why would I have taken my kids to the hospital?" Email us atexclusive@the-sun.comor call212 416 4552. Her 7-year old daughter Cheryl died, but her 3-year old son Danny and her 8-year old daughter Christie survived. She described him as a "bushy haired stranger". 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. There was just a little part of me that felt like I was searching for something else. In 1983, horror stuck in Oregon as a mother took it upon herself to end the life of her own children. March 23, 2019 13:00 Impact x Nightline The Murders Before the Marathon Conflicting reports say Downs also acted as a surrogate during her fourth pregnancy, giving birth to a daughter after her trial in 1984. Watch the full story on "20/20" THIS FRIDAY, March 22 at 9 p.m. The tragedy that hit the Downs' kids changed their whole life. READ NEXT: COVID-19 Stimulus Check: Did the HEROES Act Pass? In the frantic scene, hospital employees quickly determined that Cheryl was already dead and that Christie and Danny were clinging to life. 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. [28], In her first application for parole in 2008, Downs reaffirmed her innocence. Atty. [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. ET on ABC. A break in the case finally came when investigators discovered Downs' secret diaries. 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. May 14, 2010 -- On June 17, 1984, Diane Downs was found guilty of shooting her three children, killing one. She says it was during the struggle with the stranger that she was shot in the arm. The circumstances of Becky Babcocks birth were troubled to say the least. The Queen has almost never put a foot wrong as she marks 70th year on the throne. It was mainly about my biological mom. A few years later, Babcock watched a miniseries based on her mother, and it broke her heard and her life went on a downward spiral, ABC reported. The two kids who had survived the attack were placed for adoption and Steve was no able to care for them. [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? Full names: Elizabeth Diane Downs Birth name: Elizabeth Diane Frederickson Date of birth: August 7, 1955 Age: 67 years old as of 2022 Place of birth: Phoenix, Arizona Gender: Female Nationality: American Ethnicity: White Zodiac sign: Leo Children: Christie Ann, Cheryl Lynn, Stephen Daniel, and Becky Babcock [She said] she had been out visiting a friend who had a horse up in the Marcola area -- she and the kids -- and when it grew dark they headed home. 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.. Like us on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/TheSunUSand follow us from our main Twitter account at@TheSunUS, News Group Newspapers Limited in England No. 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. I mean, she is so close to death, its unbelievable. Dianes emotionless, cold demeanor about the children convinced people immediately that she was the shooter. She was later adopted by another family. I knew my entire life that I was adopted, Babcock tells the show in an exclusive clip obtained by PEOPLE. In 1984, Diane was convicted of the death and injuries of her children, and she was sentenced to life in prison. Shockingly, it was Downs daughter, Christie, who identified her mother in court as the shooter. "They have grown up in a very happy home with the Hugis.. They told of her obsession with a married man who didn't want her kids around. Her older two children have remained out of the public eye. Her three children -- 8-year-old Christie, 7-year-old Cheryl and 3 . The baby was taken by the state and delivered to adoptive parents. If youre here because youre curious to know where the surviving children are now, youve come to the right place. All the kids were asleep as it was past 9 o'clock pm and her children were fairly young. [27] A made-for-TV movie, also titled Small Sacrifices, starred Farrah Fawcett as Downs, and was aired on ABC in 1989. "And so the quickest, simplest way was to eliminate the children.". I chose to, in a sense, allow her into my life.. she said in an interview. Downs then said she pretended to throw her car keys in a bush and the man went to go look for them. 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