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Is There Justice For B.J.?Part 3: The Cover-up
Josey1
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"Turning Stones, and Turning Heads"Is There Justice For B.J.?Part 3: The Cover-upA Sierra Times Injustice Files ExclusiveReport by Wayne Hicks 09.16.01
When Billy Joe Smith found his nineteen year old son B.J. dead just a few days before Christmas in 1999, he did what most fathers would do... he fled his home in hysteria, and ran to the nearest neighbor for help.That neighbor would later become his chief suspect in his son's murder, but for some reason, no matter how much evidence he amasses to support his belief, no Law Enforcement authority has been willing to reopen the investigation.That day, Sheriff's Investigator Jason Oliver came to Billy Joe's house to make a report on the situation. As you'll recall from our last story, Dennis Janes had already called 911 from Billy Joe's house, and told the operator that B.J. had committed suicide. When Oliver appeared on the scene, this is what he thought he was dealing with. However, there were so many discrepancies in the evidence collected at the scene that his insistence in calling it a suicide on his report makes it improbable that he did so unwittingly.B.J. was found lying on his left side on his bed. His right hand lay open on his right thigh, and upon it was Billy Joe's .44 magnum pistol. He was dead from a single gunshot wound to the head. Deputy Oliver recorded the scene thus:"Subject Billy J Smith Jr. lay dead of a gunshot wound to the head a small entry wound is visible just under the right ear a small exit wound is visible just over the left ear. Bullet traveled through the victim's head and through the bedclothes the mattress and entered the carpet. Subject when found by father was holding a 357 caliber pistol, the bullet found under the carpet appears to be a 357"(note: the handgun was a .44; the officer was in error in reporting a .357)Note that both the entry and exit wound are listed as "small"... this is inconsistent with a wound from a large-bore handgun. This alone should have caused any investigator to wonder... but there is more.On the floor near B.J.'s bed, Oliver found a folded afghan which had a hole, marked by scorched edges, all the way through its several folds. The only conclusion that can be drawn from its existence is that a bullet was fired through it. We have no idea of the size of the hole, however; the afghan has disappeared after being taken into police custody.The pistol that had been laying on B.J.'s hand, and which Dennis Janes had taken away from Billy Joe when he tried to take his own life with it, was also taken into police custody by Oliver. It, too, has vanished."There are so many things that make it clear that B.J.'s murder is being covered up that it makes you sick," says Billy Joe. "I've been threatened for insisting on an investigation, I've been circled in by deputies who kept daring me to swing at them, but wouldn't let me walk away, my picture has been posted in the jail, where inmates are told that if something were to happen to me, it might not be a bad thing... Then there's the missing evidence, the fact that the Medical Examiner said they'd have never ruled B.J.'s death suicide if they'd known all the facts... it's just unbelievable."As reported by Sierra Times last week, B.J.'s death certificate is the first in history ever to be re-ruled as "Cause of Death: Homicide" without exhumation of the body. In many cover-ups, this is crucial, since an exhumation is hard to obtain and can be stopped by local authorities in most cases. If the cause of death can be overturned without exhumation, but based solely on the forensic evidence available, then there is more hope for exposure of such crimes.Billy Joe wouldn't give up, though... and now he's accomplished what most thought was impossible in the re-ruling of his son's death. The next step is for a homicide investigation to be initiated and the evidence regarding Dennis Janes, or any other legitimate suspect, to be examined.But there is no investigation. Sheriff Dick Busby refuses to initiate one.Billy Joe has been in contact with both state and federal authorities, to no avail. So he did what he had to do. Billy Joe hired a Private Investigator to compile the evidence needed to prove a) that B.J. was murdered, b) that Dennis Janes has involvement in that murder, and c)that local authorities have conspired to prevent that evidence from coming to light.This reporter has spoken to the investigator on several occasions, and is convinced that when his report is complete, there will be sufficient evidence to indict both Mr. Janes and the Law Enforcement Community in Crittenden County, Arkansas.So... Is there Justice for B.J.? Not yet... but Billy Joe and his investigator will not rest until there is, even if it brings down half the local government and part of the state government, which it may.And neither will Sierra Times. We'll continue to update you on this story
All "Injustice Files" are c 2001 SierraTimes.com. All rights reserved. Permission to reprint/republish without consent of Sierra Times.com and J.J. Johnson Enterprises is stricly prohibited.
When Billy Joe Smith found his nineteen year old son B.J. dead just a few days before Christmas in 1999, he did what most fathers would do... he fled his home in hysteria, and ran to the nearest neighbor for help.That neighbor would later become his chief suspect in his son's murder, but for some reason, no matter how much evidence he amasses to support his belief, no Law Enforcement authority has been willing to reopen the investigation.That day, Sheriff's Investigator Jason Oliver came to Billy Joe's house to make a report on the situation. As you'll recall from our last story, Dennis Janes had already called 911 from Billy Joe's house, and told the operator that B.J. had committed suicide. When Oliver appeared on the scene, this is what he thought he was dealing with. However, there were so many discrepancies in the evidence collected at the scene that his insistence in calling it a suicide on his report makes it improbable that he did so unwittingly.B.J. was found lying on his left side on his bed. His right hand lay open on his right thigh, and upon it was Billy Joe's .44 magnum pistol. He was dead from a single gunshot wound to the head. Deputy Oliver recorded the scene thus:"Subject Billy J Smith Jr. lay dead of a gunshot wound to the head a small entry wound is visible just under the right ear a small exit wound is visible just over the left ear. Bullet traveled through the victim's head and through the bedclothes the mattress and entered the carpet. Subject when found by father was holding a 357 caliber pistol, the bullet found under the carpet appears to be a 357"(note: the handgun was a .44; the officer was in error in reporting a .357)Note that both the entry and exit wound are listed as "small"... this is inconsistent with a wound from a large-bore handgun. This alone should have caused any investigator to wonder... but there is more.On the floor near B.J.'s bed, Oliver found a folded afghan which had a hole, marked by scorched edges, all the way through its several folds. The only conclusion that can be drawn from its existence is that a bullet was fired through it. We have no idea of the size of the hole, however; the afghan has disappeared after being taken into police custody.The pistol that had been laying on B.J.'s hand, and which Dennis Janes had taken away from Billy Joe when he tried to take his own life with it, was also taken into police custody by Oliver. It, too, has vanished."There are so many things that make it clear that B.J.'s murder is being covered up that it makes you sick," says Billy Joe. "I've been threatened for insisting on an investigation, I've been circled in by deputies who kept daring me to swing at them, but wouldn't let me walk away, my picture has been posted in the jail, where inmates are told that if something were to happen to me, it might not be a bad thing... Then there's the missing evidence, the fact that the Medical Examiner said they'd have never ruled B.J.'s death suicide if they'd known all the facts... it's just unbelievable."As reported by Sierra Times last week, B.J.'s death certificate is the first in history ever to be re-ruled as "Cause of Death: Homicide" without exhumation of the body. In many cover-ups, this is crucial, since an exhumation is hard to obtain and can be stopped by local authorities in most cases. If the cause of death can be overturned without exhumation, but based solely on the forensic evidence available, then there is more hope for exposure of such crimes.Billy Joe wouldn't give up, though... and now he's accomplished what most thought was impossible in the re-ruling of his son's death. The next step is for a homicide investigation to be initiated and the evidence regarding Dennis Janes, or any other legitimate suspect, to be examined.But there is no investigation. Sheriff Dick Busby refuses to initiate one.Billy Joe has been in contact with both state and federal authorities, to no avail. So he did what he had to do. Billy Joe hired a Private Investigator to compile the evidence needed to prove a) that B.J. was murdered, b) that Dennis Janes has involvement in that murder, and c)that local authorities have conspired to prevent that evidence from coming to light.This reporter has spoken to the investigator on several occasions, and is convinced that when his report is complete, there will be sufficient evidence to indict both Mr. Janes and the Law Enforcement Community in Crittenden County, Arkansas.So... Is there Justice for B.J.? Not yet... but Billy Joe and his investigator will not rest until there is, even if it brings down half the local government and part of the state government, which it may.And neither will Sierra Times. We'll continue to update you on this story
All "Injustice Files" are c 2001 SierraTimes.com. All rights reserved. Permission to reprint/republish without consent of Sierra Times.com and J.J. Johnson Enterprises is stricly prohibited.
Comments
Submarine Sailor,Truck Driver,and very bad typist.GO RUSTY #2