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. Late one May night in 1983, Diane Downs sped into an emergency room dropoff in Springfield, Ore., with a horrifying story to tell. Becky Babcock was born while Diane was incarcerated. 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. Within two weeks police had tracked her down to the home of another inmate's husband just blocks from the prison. The two kids who had survived the attack were placed for adoption and Steve was no able to care for them. [1], Elizabeth Diane Downs was born on August 7, 1955 in Phoenix, Arizona, to Wesley Linden (19302017) and Willadene (Engle) Frederickson. As for Danny, he has kept his life private. After that, she was charged with killing her 7-year-old daughter. Who is Becky Babcock and where is she now? 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. Conflicting reports say Downs also acted as a surrogate during her fourth pregnancy, giving birth to a daughter after her trial in 1984. Do I throw it away? She replied, 'You've got to be kidding,' at which time he pushed her aside and reached in and shot the sleeping kids.". She didn't know when to keep her mouth shut.. Now, as Diane Downs comes up for parole next year, her daughter speaks out. Following the crimes, she made claims to police that a man had attempted to carjack her and had shot the 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. 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. On a fateful night in May 1983, she rushed to the emergency ward of a hospital . As an adult, Rebecca (Becky) appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show[18] and ABC's 20/20,[19] where she discussed how she felt about her biological mother. She was sentenced to life plus 50 years for the crimes. "Wouldn't I have made sure they were dead and then cried crocodile tears? He and his wife, Joanne, legally adopted the children in 1986. 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. "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. While Danny and Christie survived, Cheryl, the. She'd been shot in the left forearm, said Welch. "And along this road, off to the side, out stepped a man who flagged her down. When I looked in the mailbox and saw her letter, it was like Pandoras box. 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. Downs was sentenced to life in prison plus 50 years for killing her 7-year-old daughter and wounding her two other children on a rural road outside Springfield, Ore., on May 19, 1983. Her blood pressure was non-existent or very low. "I got pregnant because I miss Christie and I miss Danny and I miss Cheryl so much," she said. In 1987, just three years into her sentence, Downs escaped from the correctional facility in Oregon where she was being held. In 1984, Diane Downs was convicted of shooting her three children, 3-year-old Danny, 7-year-old Cheryl, and 8-year-old Christie. When she was asked who shot them, she replied with, my mom. After everything was said and done, and Diane was convicted, both Christie and Danny went to live with Fred Hugi, the lead prosecutor in the case. Wilhite immediately jumped back into his car and raced to McKenzie-Williamette Medical Center as fast as he could. They told of her obsession with a married man who didn't want her kids around. But as . The revelation would shake Becky Babcock's young world and take her on a journey of self-discovery, filled with ups and downs, she said. At birth, Downs named the child Amy Elizabeth. He worked quickly and eventually was able to revive Christie. 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 initially prevented her from telling police what she had seen. She had been shot in the left forearm, though her wound was not life-threatening. Danny was permanently paralyzed from the waist down as a result of his injuries. What did she look like? Downs was initially incarcerated at the Oregon Women's Correctional Center in Salem. While he was looking for the keys, she jumped back in the car and sped off to the nearest hospital. In a sense, Diane was her own worst enemy.". Her first three children with her husband Steve are Stephen "Danny" Daniel (born 1979), Cheryl Lynn (born 1976), and Christie Ann (born 1974). She has been housed in California for the Oregon Department of Corrections since Aug. 30, 1993.. 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. [5] When Downs went to trial in May 1984, she was again pregnant. Would love your thoughts, please comment. 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. 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. "And so the quickest, simplest way was to eliminate the children.". "The Sun", "Sun", "Sun Online" are registered trademarks or trade names of News Group Newspapers Limited. He and his wife, Joanne, adopted them in 1986. Watch the full story on "20/20" Friday, March 22, at 9 p.m. [12], Diane did not disclose to police that she owned a .22 caliber handgun, but both Steve and Knickerbocker informed authorities that she did. Photo: September 26, 1988. Doug Welch, then a detective with the Lane County Sheriff's Office, remembers getting the call for what would turn out to be his first homicide investigation. That's insane to think that I would do such a thing and then bring the witnesses in against myself -- that's crazy.". I was very stern with her.". It's very seldom that does my body tingle like that, he added. Danny was permanently paralyzed from the waist down as a result of his injuries. 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. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your device and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. Knickerbocker also reported to police that Downs had stalked him, and seemed willing to kill his wife if it meant that she could have him to herself; he stated that he was relieved that she had left for Oregon, and that he was able to reconcile with his wife. "Her initial statement was that she had taken the kids out to a friend's house," said Welch. 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. Det. Wilhite said he also noticed that when Downs went to visit Christie in the recovery room, her stats would spike. Therefore, they grew up privately and continue to live their adult lives privately. In another one of her strange media appearances Downs spoke about the pregnancy. They had another sibling, born in the middle, in 1976, Cheryl Lynn, but she didnt survive the shooting. 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. 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. 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.. We just ignored it, Wilhite said. Cheryl Lynn followed in 1976, with Stephen Daniel being born in 1979. "Sightseeing when it's pitch black out? Wilhite said Christie's blood pressure had been so low that she suffered a stroke. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. Whether it tugs at your heartstrings or angers you to the core, these stories could have happened years ago, and they still take up space in your memories. Not just a son, but a couple of other children as well, including a daughter, who she named after her dead sister, Cheryl. 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. 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. She was afraid of her mother. March 23, 2019 13:00 Impact x Nightline The Murders Before the Marathon Doug Welch remembers getting the call for what would turn out to be his first homicide investigation. They have both graduated from college. Downs said: "I got pregnant because I miss Christie and I miss Danny and I miss Cheryl so much. In 1983, Diane Downs three children were brought to an Oregon hospital with gunshot wounds. Heavy is withholding that last name and the photos to protect her privacy. The horrific crime, which Downs has always denied committing, is the subject of a 20/20 documentary that is airing on June 21, 2019 in an encore presentation. 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. The first two children were Dianes kids with her ex husband Steve Downs. Fearing there could be a gun-wielding killer on the loose, police released information to the public to be on the lookout. It was as if she thought that if she kept talking enough, that you would believe her, Jaeger said. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Danielle Peterson/Statesman Journal via AP, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Thirty-five years ago, Diane Downs, now 64, was convicted of shooting her three children Danny, Cheryl, and Christie in Springfield, Oregon. 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,. 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