Death of Rebecca Zahau
Encyclopedia
Rebecca Mawii Zahau was a 32-year-old woman discovered dead on July 13, 2011, in a historic mansion in Coronado, California
. Initial reports described her as being hanged to death while unclothed, with her hands bound behind her back and feet bound together. The estate, known as the Spreckels Mansion, was owned by her live-in boyfriend, Medicis Pharmaceutical
CEO Jonah Shacknai.
Zahau's death occurred two days after Shacknai's 6-year-old son Max took an ultimately fatal fall from a staircase banister in the same mansion. San Diego Sheriff
Bill Gore announced on September 2, 2011 that Zahau's death was a suicide while the younger Shacknai's was an accident, and that neither was the result of foul play. Members of Zahau's family dispute the contention that her death was suicide.
origin. She was born in Falam
, Chin State
, a town in the Chin Hills
in northwestern Burma, to her father Khua Hnin Thang and mother Zung Tin Par (also known as Pari). She came from a family of Chin ethnicity and was raised as a Protestant. She moved to Nepal
and then Germany
. She moved to the United States about 10 years before her death. Her parents and most family members live in Saint Joseph, Missouri
. She had an older sister, Mary Zahau-Loehner, a younger sister, Snowem Horwath, who lives in Germany, and a teenage sister, Xena Zahau, among other siblings. She was married to Neil Nalepa of Scottsdale, Arizona
, but their marriage ended by divorce in February 2011, and in May 2011 she returned to using her maiden name Zahau. She began dating Shacknai in 2008, while still married to Nalepa. She worked as an ophthalmic technician
until December 2010. Her former boss stated that she had left her job voluntarily to spend more time with Shacknai and his children. She had a Weimaraner
dog who lived with her and Shacknai.
Jonah Shacknai, the 54-year old CEO of Medicis Pharmaceutical
, was born in Suffern, NY, lived in Arizona but often took vacations with his family to the Coronado mansion. His position made him Arizona's ninth-highest-paid CEO, earning $6.4 million in 2010. He had been married twice. His first marriage to Kimberly James resulted in a divorce and a three-year custody
battle between 1998 and 2001 involving the couple's two children from that marriage. He would go on to have a son, Maxfield Aaron Shacknai ("Max," named for his grandfather was born June 7, 2005), with second wife Dina Romano. The couple also had a German Shepherd Dog
. However, Shacknai and Romano's marriage ended in divorce in Maricopa County, Arizona
.
The historic Coronado residence owned by Shacknai, the Spreckels Mansion, was built in 1908. It has a 27-room main building as well as a separate guest house
and is estimated to be worth $12.7 million. The estate is located at 1043 Ocean Boulevard, down the street from the Hotel del Coronado
. Shacknai moved into it in 2007. Its name refers to the family who owned the Spreckels Sugar Company
. It is one of two mansions built in California by the Spreckels family. Novelist Danielle Steele lives in the second mansion, located in San Francisco. It is a mix of Renaissance
and Beaux-Arts architectural styles.
and facial bones, the former of which affected his heart rate
and breathing. Zahau was in the bathroom at the time; she found Max moments later, and her younger sister called 911. Max was not breathing and unresponsive, and was taken to Rady Children's Hospital
. After Max's fall, Zahau made arrangements to board her dog at a local kennel
. Max died on July 16 due to brain damage
caused by oxygen deprivation
resulting from his injuries. By July 26, investigators had ruled his death an accident. However, a trauma doctor who examined Max prior to his death and autopsy stated to police that he did not believe Max's visible injuries from his fall were consistent with the cardiac arrest and brain swelling experienced by him, and suggested that Max may have suffocated prior to his fall.
On July 12, the day before her death, Zahau went to the airport to drop off her 13-year old sister for her flight back to Missouri, and then picked up Shacknai's brother Adam Shacknai, who had just arrived on a flight from Memphis. Zahau and Adam Shacknai ate dinner with Jonah Shacknai and his friend Howard that evening, and then returned to the mansion. Adam Shacknai stayed at the mansion that night. There were reports of loud music coming from the mansion that evening. Jonah Shacknai himself was not present that night, as he was keeping a vigil at Max's bedside with Max's mother Dina Romano; he would leave the hospital to recuperate at a nearby Ronald McDonald House
. Adam Shacknai stated that he found Zahau nude, hanging from a balcony, with her wrists and ankles bound, at roughly 6:45 AM on the morning of July 13. He called 911 at 6:48 AM, and then sent a text message to his brother to inform him of the news. He cut the body down prior to police's arrival.
Zahau was gagged with a blue, long sleeve T-shirt wrapped around her head with the sleeves double knotted and stuffed into her mouth. There was also what appeared to be tape residue on her legs. Medics attempted to revive her, but pronounced her dead at the scene. The police initiated forensic and toxicology testing on her body as part of an autopsy to determine the cause of death. She was buried at St. Joseph's Memorial Park in St. Joseph, Missouri on July 23. Speculations of foul play began early on in the case; however, investigators were unable to find any other DNA at the scene besides Zahau's. On September 2, the San Diego County Sheriff's Department formally announced their finding that Zahau committed suicide.
with search warrants to obtain cellphone billing records, and took Zahau's Samsung Focus
cellphone as evidence. According to Zahau's AT&T cellphone billing records, from roughly 8 p.m. until 10 p.m., Zahau talked and texted with her older sister Mary Zahau-Loehner. At 10:48 p.m., Zahau received a text from Nina Romano, the twin sister of Shacknai's ex-wife Dina Romano. Nina Romano, also a Coronado resident, stated that she wanted to stop by the mansion and speak with Zahau about Max's accident. Zahau did not reply to that message. Police said she checked her voicemail a few hours later, at 12:50 a.m. on July 13, and listened to a message. Billing records do not show who left that message. Police stated it was a message regarding the worsening of Max's condition, but declined to confirm who left the message. Mary Zahau-Loehner stated that police told her it was from Jonah Shacknai. The message was deleted, meaning that police and Zahau's family never heard the contents of the message.
Because of evidence management
concerns, San Diego County Sheriff's Department investigators initially did not attempt to power up the phone or operate it, fearing that they might overwrite evidence contained in its memory. Instead, they tried to determine whether forensic software was available which would allow them to examine that model of phone. On August 15, unable to identify any such technology, a detective turned on the phone and conducted a manual search of it, finding that the voicemail message was not stored on the phone. They did not request that AT&T try to retrieve the deleted message from its servers. Later, on September 21, a homicide investigator with the department announced that they would be searching it again, using what they described as "new technology" to copy the phone's data for further investigation. Because Zahau's cellphone was a newer model that investigators were not familiar with, they had previously been unsure what software they could use to accomplish this task. In early October, investigators completed their second examination of the cellphone. They stated that they did not uncover any additional information and would soon return the phone to Zahau's family.
who testified during the trial of Casey Anthony, said it was a possibility, stating, "When the body first dropped, she doesn't necessarily jump to her death, so she would drop directly downward and she could easily hit against the side of the structure from which she is hanging." However, he noted that the case was not "cut-and-dried" and that to draw stronger conclusions he would have preferred to see what the body looked like before the wrist bindings were removed. Forensic consultant and doctor of criminal psychology Maurice Godwin expressed doubt, stating, "The chances of bumping into the railing, going over the balcony and hitting your head four times is highly unlikely."
Family members expressed suspicions that Zahau's hands and feet were bound. In an interview about a week after the incident, San Diego county sheriff Roy Frank stated, "There are documentations of incidents throughout the country where people have secured their feet and hands as well to commit suicide," to prevent themselves from changing their minds. Police re-enacted the scenario in an effort to determine whether it would have been possible for Zahau to bind herself in that fashion, and showed a video demonstration in which a woman wrapped a rope around her hands several times in front of her, slipped one hand out of the binding, then placed her hands behind her back, rebound them, and tightened the bindings with the aid of a string similar to the one which police found in Zahau's hands.
A black message had been painted on the door of the room leading to the balcony below police found Zahau's body; according to Zahau's ex-husband Nalepa, it read "She saved him, can he save her." but officials declined to confirm this. In media comments, Sheriff Gore only stated that it was "not a clear suicide note"; however, investigators took it as further evidence of suicide. Zahau liked to paint as a hobby and had signed her paintings in the past; her siblings contended that the message did not match her handwriting. Nalepa also stated the note "did not appear to be something [Zahau] would have written."
writers, including true crime writer Cathy Scott
and lawyer Victoria Pynchon
, expressed doubts about the investigators' conclusions; Pynchon described the ruling as an "embarrassing public blunder". The Daily Beast
published a column by trial lawyer Roy Black
, in which he criticized "half-baked theories" about Zahau's death, in particular stating of the lack of DNA evidence: "How could anyone do all this without leaving behind a scintilla of microscopic evidence? They would have to have been wearing a full rubber suit or some type of space suit and levitated over the scene." He called on the media and public to "stop calling it murder." On September 19, it was reported that local Coronado author Kathleen McKenna would be writing a book on the case; McKenna expressed doubts that Zahau's death was a suicide.
. After the suicide ruling, Neil Nalepa was quoted as stating "I would not believe Rebecca would commit suicide. It’s out of character." However, Sheriff Bill Gore, who investigated the death, stated of the family's reluctance to accept the suicide ruling, "We laid out the case extensively to them in Missouri to answer their questions, and it’s unfortunate she can't accept the results." On September 7, the family launched a website JusticeForRebecca.org seeking donations to fund their own investigation into Zahau's death. The site states: "It was obvious that the Sheriff’s Department had worked too hard to paint this picture of suicide and they were not about to let the Zahaus ruin it." In late September, they continued to demand that the case be re-opened. In early November 2011 the web site no longer accepted donations and had changed focus to be solely a source of any new information about the case.
On September 20, Jonah Shacknai wrote a letter to California Attorney General Kamala Harris
requesting a state review of the investigation. Shacknai himself did not doubt the findings of investigations, but stated that he hoped a review would bring "confidence, comfort, and resolution" to others close to Zahau. However, chief assistant attorney general Dana Gillette replied the following day, stating that "we must decline your invitation to review this investigation at this time ... If at any time there is new substantive evidence bearing on this case, it should be presented, not in tabloid form to fuel rumor and innuendo, but rather to appropriate law enforcement authorities who may determine whether further investigation is warranted." On September 30, family members appeared on NBC Today and called not just for a review but a complete independent investigation by the state Attorney General's office. Doug Loehner, husband of Zahau's sister Mary-Zahau Loehner and himself a police officer, also expressed his desire to obtain a copy of the police reports relating to Zahau's death.
of Seattle to represent them. Bremner expressed derision at the medical examiner's conclusions, stating ""This would be the first case in the history of the world that a woman killed herself like this ... It's ridiculous on the face of it." Dan K. Webb of Winston & Strawn LLP, a lawyer for Shacknai, alleges that other statements of Bremner's imply that Shacknai used his wealth and profile to improperly influence the probe into Zahau's death. He sent a cease and desist
letter to Bremner warning her that certain statements of hers constituted defamation, as well as being "highly insensitive on a human level" and contributing to "the harsh and unkind glare of a national media frenzy." However, Jim Edwards of CBS BNET
suggested it was unlikely that Shacknai would actually sue, as it would simply bring more publicity to the case
; he expected that the situation effectively "leaves the Zahau family to continue their claims unchallenged."
Shacknai also hired public relations
firm Sitrick and Company
to represent him the week after Zahau's death. In response to media inquiries, a Sitrick and Company employee stated that Shacknai had hired the firm to handle his large volume of incoming calls in the days after the deaths, to give him time to grieve and make arrangements for the funerals. Sitrick and Company executives later held discussions with journalists whom they believe had made errors in their reporting on the case. Forbes
writer Victoria Pynchon
expressed consternation that Sitrick and Company employees had viewed her LinkedIn
profile.
Coronado, California
Coronado, also known as Coronado Island, is an affluent resort city located in San Diego County, California, 5.2 miles from downtown San Diego. Its population was 24,697 at the 2010 census, up from 24,100 at the 2000 census. U.S. News and World Report lists Coronado as one of the most expensive...
. Initial reports described her as being hanged to death while unclothed, with her hands bound behind her back and feet bound together. The estate, known as the Spreckels Mansion, was owned by her live-in boyfriend, Medicis Pharmaceutical
Medicis Pharmaceutical
Medicis Pharmaceutical is a medical cosmetics company headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. It was founded in 1988. Among their products are Solodyn and Ziana for treating acne, and Restylane and Dysport for treating facial wrinkles. As of September of 2011, the company has also sold it's rights to...
CEO Jonah Shacknai.
Zahau's death occurred two days after Shacknai's 6-year-old son Max took an ultimately fatal fall from a staircase banister in the same mansion. San Diego Sheriff
San Diego County Sheriff's Department
The San Diego County Sheriff's Department, commonly known as the SDSO, is the primary and largest law enforcement agency in San Diego County, California. It is composed of approximately 4,000 sworn deputies and civilian support personnel...
Bill Gore announced on September 2, 2011 that Zahau's death was a suicide while the younger Shacknai's was an accident, and that neither was the result of foul play. Members of Zahau's family dispute the contention that her death was suicide.
Background
Rebecca Zahau (born March 15, 1979), also known as Rebecca Nalepa, was of Burmese immigrantBurmese American
Burmese Americans are Americans of Burmese descent. The term encompasses people of all ethnic backgrounds with ancestry in the present-day Myanmar . Burmese Americans are a subgroup of Asian Americans...
origin. She was born in Falam
Falam Township
Falam Township is a township of Falam District in the Chin State of Burma . Its administrative seat is the town of Falam.Falam Township is mountainous, running east-west from the foothills above the Neyinzaya and Myittha rivers to the high peaks of the Chin Hills in the Arakan Mountain Range and...
, Chin State
Chin State
Chin State is a state located in western Burma . The Chin State is bordered by Rakhine State in the south, Bangladesh in south-west, Sagaing Division and Magway Division in the east, Indian state of Manipur in the north and Indian state of Mizoram in the west. The Chin ethnic group make up the...
, a town in the Chin Hills
Chin Hills
The Chin Hills are a range of mountains in Chin State, northwestern Burma , that extends northward into India's Manipur state. They are part of the Arakan Mountain Range . The highest peak in the Chin Hills is Nat Ma Taung, or Khonumthung , in southern Chin State, which reaches 3,053 meters...
in northwestern Burma, to her father Khua Hnin Thang and mother Zung Tin Par (also known as Pari). She came from a family of Chin ethnicity and was raised as a Protestant. She moved to Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
and then Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. She moved to the United States about 10 years before her death. Her parents and most family members live in Saint Joseph, Missouri
Saint Joseph, Missouri
Saint Joseph is the second largest city in northwest Missouri, only second to Kansas City in size, serving as the county seat for Buchanan County. As of the 2010 census, Saint Joseph had a total population of 76,780, making it the eighth largest city in the state. The St...
. She had an older sister, Mary Zahau-Loehner, a younger sister, Snowem Horwath, who lives in Germany, and a teenage sister, Xena Zahau, among other siblings. She was married to Neil Nalepa of Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale is a city in the eastern part of Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, adjacent to Phoenix. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2010 the population of the city was 217,385...
, but their marriage ended by divorce in February 2011, and in May 2011 she returned to using her maiden name Zahau. She began dating Shacknai in 2008, while still married to Nalepa. She worked as an ophthalmic technician
Eye care professional
An eye care professional is an individual who provides a service related to the eyes or vision. It is a general term that can refer to any healthcare worker involved in eye care, from one with a small amount of post-secondary training to practitioners with a doctoral level of education.-Current...
until December 2010. Her former boss stated that she had left her job voluntarily to spend more time with Shacknai and his children. She had a Weimaraner
Weimaraner
The Weimaraner is a dog that was originally bred for hunting in the early 19th century. Early Weimaraners were used by royalty for hunting large game such as boar, bear, and deer. As the popularity of large game hunting began to decline, Weimaraners were used for hunting smaller animals like...
dog who lived with her and Shacknai.
Jonah Shacknai, the 54-year old CEO of Medicis Pharmaceutical
Medicis Pharmaceutical
Medicis Pharmaceutical is a medical cosmetics company headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. It was founded in 1988. Among their products are Solodyn and Ziana for treating acne, and Restylane and Dysport for treating facial wrinkles. As of September of 2011, the company has also sold it's rights to...
, was born in Suffern, NY, lived in Arizona but often took vacations with his family to the Coronado mansion. His position made him Arizona's ninth-highest-paid CEO, earning $6.4 million in 2010. He had been married twice. His first marriage to Kimberly James resulted in a divorce and a three-year custody
Child custody
Child custody and guardianship are legal terms which are used to describe the legal and practical relationship between a parent and his or her child, such as the right of the parent to make decisions for the child, and the parent's duty to care for the child.Following ratification of the United...
battle between 1998 and 2001 involving the couple's two children from that marriage. He would go on to have a son, Maxfield Aaron Shacknai ("Max," named for his grandfather was born June 7, 2005), with second wife Dina Romano. The couple also had a German Shepherd Dog
German Shepherd Dog
The German Shepherd Dog , also known as an Alsatian or just the German Shepherd, is a breed of large-sized dog that originated in Germany. The German Shepherd is a relatively new breed of dog, with its origin dating to 1899. As part of the Herding Group, the German Shepherd is a working dog...
. However, Shacknai and Romano's marriage ended in divorce in Maricopa County, Arizona
Maricopa County, Arizona
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*73.0% White*5.0% Black*2.1% Native American*3.5% Asian*0.2% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.5% Two or more races*12.7% Other races*29.6% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
.
The historic Coronado residence owned by Shacknai, the Spreckels Mansion, was built in 1908. It has a 27-room main building as well as a separate guest house
Guest house
A guest house is a kind of lodging. In some parts of the world a guest house is similar to a hostel, bed and breakfast, or inn whereas in other parts of the world , guest houses are a type of inexpensive hotel-like lodging...
and is estimated to be worth $12.7 million. The estate is located at 1043 Ocean Boulevard, down the street from the Hotel del Coronado
Hotel del Coronado
Hotel del Coronado is a beachfront luxury hotel in the city of Coronado, just across the San Diego Bay from San Diego, California. It is one of the few surviving examples of an American architectural genre: the wooden Victorian beach resort...
. Shacknai moved into it in 2007. Its name refers to the family who owned the Spreckels Sugar Company
Spreckels Sugar Company
The Spreckels Sugar Company is an American sugar beet refiner that for many years controlled much of the U.S. West Coast refined sugar market. Spreckels Sugar was founded by entrepreneur, industrialist, newspaper publisher, and railroad executive Claus Spreckels in 1881...
. It is one of two mansions built in California by the Spreckels family. Novelist Danielle Steele lives in the second mansion, located in San Francisco. It is a mix of Renaissance
Renaissance architecture
Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought and material culture. Stylistically, Renaissance...
and Beaux-Arts architectural styles.
Overview
On July 11, Zahau and Max Shacknai were at the Spreckels Mansion along with Zahau's teenage sister Xena when Max fell over a second-floor banister down onto the carpet below. Max was often known to play around on the stairs and banisters. Investigators speculate he may have tripped over a ball or the dog. He fell face-first, suffering injuries to his spinal cordSpinal cord injury
A spinal cord injury refers to any injury to the spinal cord that is caused by trauma instead of disease. Depending on where the spinal cord and nerve roots are damaged, the symptoms can vary widely, from pain to paralysis to incontinence...
and facial bones, the former of which affected his heart rate
Heart rate
Heart rate is the number of heartbeats per unit of time, typically expressed as beats per minute . Heart rate can vary as the body's need to absorb oxygen and excrete carbon dioxide changes, such as during exercise or sleep....
and breathing. Zahau was in the bathroom at the time; she found Max moments later, and her younger sister called 911. Max was not breathing and unresponsive, and was taken to Rady Children's Hospital
Rady Children's Hospital
Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego, the largest children's hospital in California, is a 442-bed pediatric care facility providing the largest source of comprehensive pediatric medical services in San Diego, southern Riverside and Imperial counties...
. After Max's fall, Zahau made arrangements to board her dog at a local kennel
Kennel
A kennel is the name given to any structure or shelter for dogs. A kennel is a doghouse, run, or other small structure in which a dog is kept...
. Max died on July 16 due to brain damage
Brain damage
"Brain damage" or "brain injury" is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells. Brain injuries occur due to a wide range of internal and external factors...
caused by oxygen deprivation
Cerebral hypoxia
Cerebral hypoxia refers to a reduced supply of oxygen to the brain. Cerebral anoxia refers to a complete lack of oxygen to the brain. There are four separate categories of cerebral hypoxia; in order of severity they are; diffuse cerebral hypoxia , focal cerebral ischemia, cerebral infarction, and...
resulting from his injuries. By July 26, investigators had ruled his death an accident. However, a trauma doctor who examined Max prior to his death and autopsy stated to police that he did not believe Max's visible injuries from his fall were consistent with the cardiac arrest and brain swelling experienced by him, and suggested that Max may have suffocated prior to his fall.
On July 12, the day before her death, Zahau went to the airport to drop off her 13-year old sister for her flight back to Missouri, and then picked up Shacknai's brother Adam Shacknai, who had just arrived on a flight from Memphis. Zahau and Adam Shacknai ate dinner with Jonah Shacknai and his friend Howard that evening, and then returned to the mansion. Adam Shacknai stayed at the mansion that night. There were reports of loud music coming from the mansion that evening. Jonah Shacknai himself was not present that night, as he was keeping a vigil at Max's bedside with Max's mother Dina Romano; he would leave the hospital to recuperate at a nearby Ronald McDonald House
Ronald McDonald House Charities
Ronald McDonald House Charities is an independent 501c3 organization whose mission is to create, find and support programs that directly improve the health and well being of children across the world...
. Adam Shacknai stated that he found Zahau nude, hanging from a balcony, with her wrists and ankles bound, at roughly 6:45 AM on the morning of July 13. He called 911 at 6:48 AM, and then sent a text message to his brother to inform him of the news. He cut the body down prior to police's arrival.
Zahau was gagged with a blue, long sleeve T-shirt wrapped around her head with the sleeves double knotted and stuffed into her mouth. There was also what appeared to be tape residue on her legs. Medics attempted to revive her, but pronounced her dead at the scene. The police initiated forensic and toxicology testing on her body as part of an autopsy to determine the cause of death. She was buried at St. Joseph's Memorial Park in St. Joseph, Missouri on July 23. Speculations of foul play began early on in the case; however, investigators were unable to find any other DNA at the scene besides Zahau's. On September 2, the San Diego County Sheriff's Department formally announced their finding that Zahau committed suicide.
Cellphone
As part of their investigation, police served Verizon and AT&TAT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
with search warrants to obtain cellphone billing records, and took Zahau's Samsung Focus
Samsung Focus
The Samsung Focus is a slate smartphone which runs Microsoft's Windows Phone operating system. It features a 1 GHz Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ processor, a 4.0-inch Super AMOLED screen, and 8GB of internal storage...
cellphone as evidence. According to Zahau's AT&T cellphone billing records, from roughly 8 p.m. until 10 p.m., Zahau talked and texted with her older sister Mary Zahau-Loehner. At 10:48 p.m., Zahau received a text from Nina Romano, the twin sister of Shacknai's ex-wife Dina Romano. Nina Romano, also a Coronado resident, stated that she wanted to stop by the mansion and speak with Zahau about Max's accident. Zahau did not reply to that message. Police said she checked her voicemail a few hours later, at 12:50 a.m. on July 13, and listened to a message. Billing records do not show who left that message. Police stated it was a message regarding the worsening of Max's condition, but declined to confirm who left the message. Mary Zahau-Loehner stated that police told her it was from Jonah Shacknai. The message was deleted, meaning that police and Zahau's family never heard the contents of the message.
Because of evidence management
Evidence management
Evidence management is the administration and control of evidence related to an event so that it can be used to prove the circumstances of the event, and so that this proof can be tested by independent parties with confidence that the evidence provided is the evidence collected related to the...
concerns, San Diego County Sheriff's Department investigators initially did not attempt to power up the phone or operate it, fearing that they might overwrite evidence contained in its memory. Instead, they tried to determine whether forensic software was available which would allow them to examine that model of phone. On August 15, unable to identify any such technology, a detective turned on the phone and conducted a manual search of it, finding that the voicemail message was not stored on the phone. They did not request that AT&T try to retrieve the deleted message from its servers. Later, on September 21, a homicide investigator with the department announced that they would be searching it again, using what they described as "new technology" to copy the phone's data for further investigation. Because Zahau's cellphone was a newer model that investigators were not familiar with, they had previously been unsure what software they could use to accomplish this task. In early October, investigators completed their second examination of the cellphone. They stated that they did not uncover any additional information and would soon return the phone to Zahau's family.
Other evidence considered
Zahau's autopsy results would reveal four instances of head trauma. Investigators and outside commentators expressed various theories regarding the head injuries. San Diego Medical Examiner Jonathan Lucas stated that "because there was evidence that she went over the balcony in a non-vertical position, she may have struck her head on the balcony on the way down." Werner Spitz, an expert witnessExpert witness
An expert witness, professional witness or judicial expert is a witness, who by virtue of education, training, skill, or experience, is believed to have expertise and specialised knowledge in a particular subject beyond that of the average person, sufficient that others may officially and legally...
who testified during the trial of Casey Anthony, said it was a possibility, stating, "When the body first dropped, she doesn't necessarily jump to her death, so she would drop directly downward and she could easily hit against the side of the structure from which she is hanging." However, he noted that the case was not "cut-and-dried" and that to draw stronger conclusions he would have preferred to see what the body looked like before the wrist bindings were removed. Forensic consultant and doctor of criminal psychology Maurice Godwin expressed doubt, stating, "The chances of bumping into the railing, going over the balcony and hitting your head four times is highly unlikely."
Family members expressed suspicions that Zahau's hands and feet were bound. In an interview about a week after the incident, San Diego county sheriff Roy Frank stated, "There are documentations of incidents throughout the country where people have secured their feet and hands as well to commit suicide," to prevent themselves from changing their minds. Police re-enacted the scenario in an effort to determine whether it would have been possible for Zahau to bind herself in that fashion, and showed a video demonstration in which a woman wrapped a rope around her hands several times in front of her, slipped one hand out of the binding, then placed her hands behind her back, rebound them, and tightened the bindings with the aid of a string similar to the one which police found in Zahau's hands.
A black message had been painted on the door of the room leading to the balcony below police found Zahau's body; according to Zahau's ex-husband Nalepa, it read "She saved him, can he save her." but officials declined to confirm this. In media comments, Sheriff Gore only stated that it was "not a clear suicide note"; however, investigators took it as further evidence of suicide. Zahau liked to paint as a hobby and had signed her paintings in the past; her siblings contended that the message did not match her handwriting. Nalepa also stated the note "did not appear to be something [Zahau] would have written."
Public and media
The deaths drew intense public and media scrutiny. On July 14, Medicis had its sharpest one-day decline in stock price since February. News of the death and investigation received international coverage in various countries including Brazil, New Zealand, Finland, Spain, and the United Kingdom throughout July and August. In early September, various ForbesForbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
writers, including true crime writer Cathy Scott
Cathy Scott
Cathy Scott is an American true crime writer and investigative journalist, born and raised in San Diego, United States growing up in nearby La Mesa, California...
and lawyer Victoria Pynchon
Victoria Pynchon
Victoria "Vickie" Pynchon is an American lawyer, attorney mediator, author and writer based in Los Angeles.-Early years:Victoria Pynchon grew up in La Mesa in San Diego County, graduating from La Mesa Junior High School, where she was valedictorian, then graduating in 1970 from Helix High...
, expressed doubts about the investigators' conclusions; Pynchon described the ruling as an "embarrassing public blunder". The Daily Beast
The Daily Beast
The Daily Beast is an American news reporting and opinion website founded and published by Tina Brown, former editor of Vanity Fair and The New Yorker as well as the short-lived Talk Magazine. The Daily Beast was launched on October 6, 2008, and is owned by IAC...
published a column by trial lawyer Roy Black
Roy Black (attorney)
Roy Black is a civil and criminal defense trial attorney. He is best known for his gaining an acquittal, in 1991, of William Kennedy Smith on charges of rape and for his representation of conservative radio commentator Rush Limbaugh on charges related to Limbaugh's alleged misuse of the...
, in which he criticized "half-baked theories" about Zahau's death, in particular stating of the lack of DNA evidence: "How could anyone do all this without leaving behind a scintilla of microscopic evidence? They would have to have been wearing a full rubber suit or some type of space suit and levitated over the scene." He called on the media and public to "stop calling it murder." On September 19, it was reported that local Coronado author Kathleen McKenna would be writing a book on the case; McKenna expressed doubts that Zahau's death was a suicide.
Family
People close to Zahau expressed doubt that she would have committed suicide. Zahau's elder sister said in an interview that "I still believe my sister didn't take her life", and in a written statement on behalf of the family wrote that "Rebecca valued her life and lived her life to its fullest. Rebecca loved God, her family and life." Her younger sister commented more strongly by e-mail, "Becky did not commit suicide. My sister was murdered." Her former trainer also stated that "She was always happy [and] always smiling when she came in. I didn't see a problem or anything like that." Family members disputed police characterizations of Zahau as depressed, describing her instead that as a happy person. Furthermore, they state that Zahau believed as a Christian that suicide was wrongChristian views on suicide
-Bible:There are seven suicides in the Bible, most notably in Matthew 27:3, the suicide of Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus, and that of Saul . In Acts of the Apostles 16:28 Paul prevents the attempted suicide of a jailor...
. After the suicide ruling, Neil Nalepa was quoted as stating "I would not believe Rebecca would commit suicide. It’s out of character." However, Sheriff Bill Gore, who investigated the death, stated of the family's reluctance to accept the suicide ruling, "We laid out the case extensively to them in Missouri to answer their questions, and it’s unfortunate she can't accept the results." On September 7, the family launched a website JusticeForRebecca.org seeking donations to fund their own investigation into Zahau's death. The site states: "It was obvious that the Sheriff’s Department had worked too hard to paint this picture of suicide and they were not about to let the Zahaus ruin it." In late September, they continued to demand that the case be re-opened. In early November 2011 the web site no longer accepted donations and had changed focus to be solely a source of any new information about the case.
On September 20, Jonah Shacknai wrote a letter to California Attorney General Kamala Harris
Kamala Harris
Kamala Devi Harris is an American attorney. She is the 32nd and current Attorney General of California following the 2010 California state elections. Harris has worked as an author and a politician and has served as District Attorney of San Francisco since 2004...
requesting a state review of the investigation. Shacknai himself did not doubt the findings of investigations, but stated that he hoped a review would bring "confidence, comfort, and resolution" to others close to Zahau. However, chief assistant attorney general Dana Gillette replied the following day, stating that "we must decline your invitation to review this investigation at this time ... If at any time there is new substantive evidence bearing on this case, it should be presented, not in tabloid form to fuel rumor and innuendo, but rather to appropriate law enforcement authorities who may determine whether further investigation is warranted." On September 30, family members appeared on NBC Today and called not just for a review but a complete independent investigation by the state Attorney General's office. Doug Loehner, husband of Zahau's sister Mary-Zahau Loehner and himself a police officer, also expressed his desire to obtain a copy of the police reports relating to Zahau's death.
Lawyers and public relations personnel
Zahau's family hired attorney Anne BremnerAnne Bremner
Anne Melani Bremner is a Seattle, Washington-based trial attorney. She has performed legal work on a number of high-profile cases, including in the murder of Meredith Kercher in Italy as legal counsel and a spokesperson for the Friends of Amanda Knox, and as the lawyer for the family of Rebecca...
of Seattle to represent them. Bremner expressed derision at the medical examiner's conclusions, stating ""This would be the first case in the history of the world that a woman killed herself like this ... It's ridiculous on the face of it." Dan K. Webb of Winston & Strawn LLP, a lawyer for Shacknai, alleges that other statements of Bremner's imply that Shacknai used his wealth and profile to improperly influence the probe into Zahau's death. He sent a cease and desist
Cease and desist
A cease and desist is an order or request to halt an activity and not to take it up again later or else face legal action. The recipient of the cease-and-desist may be an individual or an organization....
letter to Bremner warning her that certain statements of hers constituted defamation, as well as being "highly insensitive on a human level" and contributing to "the harsh and unkind glare of a national media frenzy." However, Jim Edwards of CBS BNET
BNET
BNET was an online magazine dedicated to issues of business management.It was owned by CBS Interactive and was a part of its business portfolio alongside ZDNet, TechRepublic, SmartPlanet before it was folded into CBS MoneyWatch, a sister personal finance site that was launched on April 6, 2009.BNET...
suggested it was unlikely that Shacknai would actually sue, as it would simply bring more publicity to the case
Streisand effect
The Streisand effect is a primarily online phenomenon in which an attempt to hide or remove a piece of information has the unintended consequence of publicizing the information more widely...
; he expected that the situation effectively "leaves the Zahau family to continue their claims unchallenged."
Shacknai also hired public relations
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
firm Sitrick and Company
Sitrick and Company
Sitrick and Company is a Los Angeles-based public relations firm started by Mike Sitrick in 1989. It would go on to establish offices in New York, Miami, San Francisco, and Silicon Valley...
to represent him the week after Zahau's death. In response to media inquiries, a Sitrick and Company employee stated that Shacknai had hired the firm to handle his large volume of incoming calls in the days after the deaths, to give him time to grieve and make arrangements for the funerals. Sitrick and Company executives later held discussions with journalists whom they believe had made errors in their reporting on the case. Forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
writer Victoria Pynchon
Victoria Pynchon
Victoria "Vickie" Pynchon is an American lawyer, attorney mediator, author and writer based in Los Angeles.-Early years:Victoria Pynchon grew up in La Mesa in San Diego County, graduating from La Mesa Junior High School, where she was valedictorian, then graduating in 1970 from Helix High...
expressed consternation that Sitrick and Company employees had viewed her LinkedIn
LinkedIn
LinkedIn is a business-related social networking site. Founded in December 2002 and launched in May 2003, it is mainly used for professional networking. , LinkedIn reports more than 120 million registered users in more than 200 countries and territories. The site is available in English, French,...
profile.