I work with witness testimony all the time. There are ways you can tell when people are not being honest. Stacy and her daughter come off basically truthful. Christy comes off like a woman who is not 100% tracking with reality, and who is so obsessed with her agenda that she does not care who she's hurting.
Stacy's story is consistent. She says she was upset when she found the porn. Later in the episode, she made clear again that if her husband was hung up on porn, that would be a huge problem for her. Consistent. Her daughter, who is a well-spoken young woman, and whose only emotional moments were when she spoke of the pain her AUNT was causing her family, supports Stacy's story. Again, consistent. The police report and CPS reports also verify that investigation by PROFESSIONALS yielded nothing to substantiate Christy's claims. Consistent. Stacy's demeanor, although she is clearly upset with her sister for deliberately and systematically destroying her family's reputation and hurting her children, is clear and calm and focused. Consistent. In fact, her emotions seemed to be focused almost entirely on the pain this was causing her children. If she was covering up her husband's abuse of the children, that would be inconsistent, because she would not care about their pain - she'd be all about defending her own image and her husband's goodness. Consistent.
Christy's story is, conversely, very INconsistent. She claims to have emails proving all the things she alleges. Well, she knew her sister had paperwork from CPS and the cops, so why didn't she BRING whatever evidence she had? Inconsistent. She claims to be all about protecting the children, yet when told that she was hurting the kids, she didn't even blink. If she cared for the children, she would be reassuring them that everything would be all right, that they would be safe, and that their parents would be getting help. Instead, she admits that she emailed the kids with comments about how their parents would be going to prison. Inconsistent. Her vicious threats against the police department and the DA and even the DA's children reveal a person who is out of control, instead of calmly citing all the evidence to support her assertions, she wrote a lengthy diatribe full of threats and demands, trying to manipulate them into doing her will. INCONSISTENT. What her behavior her IS consistent with is Stacy's story. When Christy thought she could control her sister and get her to do things her way, everything was fine, but as soon as Stacy backed off and refused to go along, Christy went out of her way to destroy her, just as Christy threatened to destroy the police and the DA. Finally, Christy's demeanor was anything but consistent with a concerned relative who is confident of her assertions. She was wildly emotional, constantly interrupting, and not listening or caring what anyone else had to say. She showed absolutely no concern about the pain that her neice or sister spoke of feeling. So much for being all about protecting her family.
As for the porn on the computer, as others have pointed out, sometimes these creepy sites just plant junk on your computer when you click the wrong link. Also, if the computer was not brand new, it could have come from a previous owner. If it was repaired in the shop, could be an employee used the computer to visit porn sites while "testing" it. Or could even be that an employee at the manufacturer abused the machine in that way. That's assuming there was actually kiddie porn on the computer at all.
As for whether this woman was abused as she claimed, I don't know. I do know that horsewhipping story seems a little off. If she meant that her mother used a riding crop on her, that would be possible. But riding crops are built to make noise, not cut flesh. Basically, these are switches tipped with a flat, folded piece of leather that pops when it strikes something. It might sting like a fly swatter, but it would take some real effort to break skin with it. If she means that the mom used either a BULL whip (Indiana Jones) or BUGGY whip, these would not be effective in a closed and confined area like a bathroom. The fact that other siblings apparently support her story may give her some credibility. Certainly they wouldn't back her unless there was SOMETHING wrong between them and their parents. But the fact that they hope to sell a book sort of makes one wonder how much of this is embroidered.
For those who asked about the polygraph test, it didn't happen today. Both women said they were willing. Dr. Phil said he would take them up on that, but he clearly didn't mean that they were going right offstage to have the test done. It probably hadn't even been set up yet. He said the two women would have their polygraph tests, and he would report the results at some future time. I'd be curious about the results, but I'd almost be willing to bet money that Christy will later refuse to take the test.
Meanwhile, the children in this family are being abused by the rumor-mongering. They have probably lost friends and been humiliated at school. They probably can't invite friends over to their home anymore, and they probably have some friends who can't invite them over either. Their mom's ability to make money to support the family is being compromised, and their "dear, caring" aunt doesn't even blink when she hears what they're facing. Obviously, she's not acting out of concern for these kids.
I hope this woman gets some help. I hope Stacy and her family can start over and be OK. In a small town, these kinds of rumors can sometimes take a life of their own, and never go away. They might need to move.
(Original Air Date: 10/26/06) Backstabbing takes many forms –- lying, spreading gossip and fueling nasty rumors. Dr. Phil’s guests say the ultimate betrayal didn’t come from a stranger, but from their own flesh and blood! Stacy accuses her younger sister, Christy, of being a traitor. She says Christy reported her and her husband to Child Protective Services for allegedly having child porn on the family computer! Christy sticks to her story, and vows to help put her sister and brother-in-law in jail. How far will she go? Stacy’s 16-year-old daughter claims her Aunt Christy is a liar, and says she’s ruining their family. Can these two sisters overcome the conflict between them, or is their relationship at the point of no return? Share your thoughts, join the discussion.
