In Search of the Truth: The Story of Darlie Lynn Routier Pt. 1

by Anne Good

Part 1: INTRODUCTION

The Mystery Unravels

On June 6, 1996, in the quiet suburbs of North Dallas, little Damon, 5,and Devon, 6, lay sleeping on the floor in front of the television. Their mother, Darlie Routier, 26, slept on the couch. What happened next remains a mystery. Suffering from partial amnesia, Ms. Routier recalls being "awakened" by her son and "feeling groggy." She saw a man in a baseball cap standing near the couch. Both of her sons died that night of multiple and brutal stab wounds to the upper torso inflicted by a knife from the Routier kitchen, and a second knife which has never been found. Ms. Routier's throat was slashed to within 2 mm. of her carotid artery and she also suffered multiple injuries and stab wounds. Although Routier claims an intruder had attached them, within twenty minutes the Rowlett Police Department decided she was their suspect and her wounds were self-inflicted. Twelve days later, she was arrested. Seven months later, she was convicted and sentenced to die.

With no substantial evidence, no confession, no motive, and no eyewitness, her conviction is as much of a mystery as the actual events surrounding the murders. One explanation may lie in the tremendous impact of the"Silly String" tape. This fifteen-second tape, shot by a local news station, shows a smiling Darlie spraying the "silly string" on the boys' freshly dug graves just eight days after the murders. The jury viewed it nine times during deliberations. Rita Way, a juror and spokesperson for the jury, referring to the tape, said, "I don't think the defense proved that she was innocent and no mother that had their children murdered can act that way after eight days. I mean eight days! I just can't see it." What Ms. Ways and the other jurors did not see was the surveillance tape, made by the Rowlett Police Department on the same day, which clearly shows a solemn graveside service and a mother in pain. The irony is that a Judge ruled this tape could not be admitted into evidence as there was no warrant and the taping was illegal. Had the jury been allowed to see the entire graveside service, would they have reached a different conclusion? For many in Texas and throughout the country, this question demands an answer.

Another explanation may be connected to the media-created image of Darlie Routier. It primarily consisted of endless titillating chatter about her "freshly-dyed blonde hair," "breast implants," and "sex toys" found in her bedroom. Drug use and child abuse were also implied, although a blood test and hair analysis revealed Ms. Routier was not a user of illegal drugs and no evidence has ever been presented to substantiate any claims of child abuse. In tabloid fashion, they characterized her as "the mother from hell," and "the next Susan Smith," despite the fact that those who knew her well said just the opposite. Family and friends portrayed her as a loving mother and wife, a woman concerned with the well-being of others. The state opted to present the media-produced image of Darlie to the jury.

Serious Doubts

There is also serious doubt about the integrity of the investigation and trial of Ms. Routier. Claims of incompetence, bias, witness tampering, tainted evidence, prosecutorial misconduct, and perjury have gained a rapid momentum as many Texans begin to reexamine the case that has held their attention for three long years. Ms. Routier, now awaiting a lethal injection, continues steadfast in her claim of innocence. Newly discovered evidence and recently released crime scene photos seem to support her. At the time of trial, the defense was only allowed 400 of the 1000 photos taken. When viewed in context, the additional 600 photos reveal the full depth of police incompetence and a severely compromised crime scene. Evidence is moved, blood is trampled on, blankets are folded and unfolded (disturbing the blood-spatter pattern), key DNA evidence is placed in paper bags from a local grocery store, and several bloody boot prints not belonging to any police officer are clearly revealed as well as two bloody finger prints, one on the alleged point of exit by the intruder. The "new" photos also contradict and impeach key testimony given by various investigators on behalf of the state. Additionally, a neighbor has now come forward saying that on the night of the murders she saw two men near the Routier home. This supports testimony by Angela Rickles who came forward after Ms. Routier's arrest and told police that two men tried to break into her home on the night of the murders. L.D. Middleton also states that on March 22, 1996 an intruder slashed a few of his window screens before finding an unlocked window over the kitchen sink. The intruder rifled through the kitchen drawers and police told Mr.Middleton, "He was probably getting a large knife in case you woke up." The Middletons live five minutes from the Routier home. They now state, "Obviously, we didn't wake up or we would both be either dead or worse, one of us might be on Death Row."

Aside from new evidence, the old evidence remains problematic. The prosecution presented a time frame that is simply not feasible and the murders could not have occurred as they theorized. There is also the blood-stained sock found 75 yards from the Routier home. The sock contains both of the boys' blood and Darlie's DNA, most likely from saliva. How it got there is something the prosecution could not answer. They didn't need to answer. They had pure emotion on their side and a nation still feeling the sting of betrayal from Susan Smith, the South Carolina woman who claimed on national television that her two young boys were abducted by a black man. Ten days later, she confessed to killing them.

United By Truth

There is an old saying in the world of law, "If the facts don't fit, cite the law. If the law doesn't fit, cite the facts. If neither fits....pound your fist on the podium and play to the juror's emotions." Lead prosecutor Greg Davis chose the latter. The law didn't fit, the facts didn't fit -- but the "silly string" did. In a profession that dictates truth and justice above all else, Mr. Davis implemented what some observers have called, "a surprisingly gutless, win-at-any-cost style of prosecution." Even those who think Ms. Routier is guilty are beginning to ask for more from our system of justice than macho "fist pounding." Many want Darlie to go to the death chamber with evidence so solid, so damning, so iron-clad, that even her family can no longer maintain her innocence. Without that, the death penalty is in serious jeopardy. It is precisely cases like Ms. Routier's that give justice advocates a pole on which to fly their flag and weakens the popular belief in state-sanctioned executions. The very survival of this law hinges upon a societal belief that all avenues of truth are fully explored, that the prosecution has proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt, and the defendant was presumed innocent at the onset and for the duration of the trial. Ms. Routier's investigation and trial, although labeled by some, "an anomaly," contained not one of these basic elements. Death penalty proponents and opponents alike may be united, if only for a moment, by this seemingly flagrant disregard for our system of justice. In another ironic twist, Texans are beginning to see it is only in obtaining justice for Ms. Routier that this unjust law can remain intact.

The demand for a new trial for Darlie Routier seems to be gaining support from many Texans regardless of their point of view. If the prosecution's case is fair and solid, she will be found guilty again. If there is any validity to the claims of incompetence, prosecutorial misconduct, witness and jury tampering, and perjury, that too will be revealed and Ms. Routier will be exonerated.

The debate on the death penalty put aside, reasonable people can agree that a young woman who claims to be innocent should not be executed in "the name of justice" over nothing more than character assassination and a meaningless can of "silly string."

With the firm belief that Darlie Routier was in part, convicted by media-hype, it seemed critical in my search for the truth to meet her face-to-face. In May, 1999, I had the opportunity to do just that.. The following is a condensed account of our afternoon together.