Last week the investigation into little Lisa Irwin’s disapperance looked like a battleground. The two attorneys for the family disagreed over re-interviews of Lisa’s half-brothers. The interviews were set for Friday, along with DNA collection to compare with unknown DNA at the Irwin house. The local attorney representing the family, Cyndy Short, had voiced disapproval of the re-interviews. She told the Kansas City Star on Thursday that she believed the interviews should never happen. “I’ve done research and see more potential for harm than for good with the interview. It won’t happen tomorrow, maybe never,” said Short.
Friday morning the police announced that the interviews had been cancelled by Joe Tacopina, the New York-based attorney for the family. There was no reason given but with Ms. Short making an announcement that all Thursday and Friday appointments in Kansas City were cancelled, that would be the logical reason. Ms. Short in a statement said “The last few weeks have been exhausting to everyone working on behalf of the Irwin family. It has exhausted Lisa’s parents and her friends and family. Therefore the consensus is we all need a rest until next week.”
Friday, before noon, Ms. Short’s law firm released a statement saying “Cyndy Short, Esq. has confirmed she is no longer working with the family of Lisa Irwin as their local counsel,” When Ms. Short was told that reports said she had been fired by Joe Tacopina, she responded, “He is in no position to fire anyone, I work for the client, not him”, furthering the rumors of a falling-out. She sent out an email on Sunday saying she isn’t working for Lisa’s parents anymore, but she and her team “would continue to look for Baby Lisa, as concerned citizens.” She will be holding a press conference today to explain why she parted company with the case.
The Beginning
Little Lisa Irwin, then 10 months old, was reported missing, in the early morning hours of October 4. Her father Jeremy Irwin told police he came home from work and when he went to check on Lisa, she was not in her crib. His fiance, Deborah Bradley told police she put Lisa to bed at 10:30 the night before. Jeremy Irwin reported that the front door was unlocked, a window had been tampered with and many lights were on in the house.
Nine days after Lisa vanished, Deborah Bradley admitted she was drunk the night of the incident. She also admitted, when asked, that she could have had a blackout. When asked if she could have hurt her daughter while in a black out, Ms. Bradley responded “Oh no, no, no, I don’t believe alcohol can make a person do something like that”. She also revealed she had lied to the police about what time she put Lisa to bed. Instead of 10:30, she said she had put Lisa in her crib at 6:30. She also said she expected to be arrested, but said if they arrested her, people would stop looking for Lisa.
A Mystery Man Appears
At 12:30 a.m. the night Lisa went missing, a couple three houses from the Irwins, said that they had seen a man walking down the street. The couple, a husband and wife, said the man was dressed in a T-shirt and was carrying a baby. The baby appeared to be wearing nothing but a diaper. This disturbed them because the temperature was 45 degrees. They called the police later in the day. A week later, another witness came forward to say he was on his motorcycle at 4 a.m., three miles from the Irwin home. He said he saw a man carrying a baby, with nothing but a diaper and the man was wearing a white T-shirt. A surveillance video from a service station 2 miles from the Irwin home showed a man in white coming out of the woods. This occurred at 2:30. There was also a dumpster fire was reported at 2:27 a.m. on October 4. The dumpster was located at apartments that are less than a half a mile away from the Irwins’. Nothing was found, but police searched the landfill where the dumpster would have been dumped.
The witness on the motorcycle, identified as Mike Thompson, said the police showed him six photo in a photo line-up and that he had picked out the man he saw. Police have questioned the man several times, but when the other two witnesses were shown the photo, they said that was not the man they saw.
Will A Cell Phone Call Solve The Case?
A young woman has come forward to reveal that the night Baby Lisa went missing, her cell phone received a call from one of the cells phones that belong to the Irwin home. The Irwins reported that three cell phones were taken the night Lisa disappeared. Megan Wright told ABC’s Good Morning America, ” I received a phone call the night Baby Lisa went missing. Apparently it was a 50 second call. I don’t know who answered it or what was said or who was on the other end of the phone”. She has been interviewed by the police several times. She said she does not know the Irwins. Interestingly, she says she has been through the neighborhood with an ex-boyfriend.
Only Time Will Tell
Will any of the clues in this case be the one to bring Baby Lisa home? There has been a $100,000 reward posted by an unknown benefactor for information leading to the person or persons responsible for the abduction of Baby Lisa.