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Program note: Watch Dan Simon's report on Philip Garrido's black box on AC360° at 10pm ET tonight.
Dan Simon
CNN
The black box sat inside a cabinet. Philip Garrido had given it to a friend for safekeeping, and that's where the friend kept it.
"He feels he can speak to you and me and everyone else using this box," said Garrido's friend and former business client, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
"He was a whack job, but he was a whack job who sounded like he had a really good heart," the friend added.
Garrido and his wife, Nancy, were arrested last month and charged on more than two dozen counts, including kidnapping and rape.
Authorities say the Garridos held Jaycee Dugard, 29, captive for nearly two decades in their backyard. Both have pleaded not guilty. Authorities have said Garrido, a registered sex offender, fathered Dugard's two children.
A few days before his arrest, Garrido delivered some documents touting the device to the FBI.
The black box is simple, with a handle, a metal switch and jacks for plugging in headphones. But it provides some insight into the mind of 58-year-old Garrido.
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Filed under: 360° Radar • Crime & Punishment • Dan Simon |
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Not only is this guy a rapist, he's also a "con man" and there is nothing crazy or wierd about him. There is no excuse in the world for what he has done to children and I pray when he goes to trial a jury won't accept anything less than the truth and put him away for good.
I sincerely hope this won't bolster a bogus insanity defense. This could possibly be simply a setup. In any case, the girls are home and Garrido will never be allowed to hurt anyone else.
This man is really sick. What this young girl has been threw with we will never know. I Pray she will make it,
I have to agree with Arline: what is in the box? Don't send out some mysterious tease to the conspiracy theorists that will jump on this story and completely forget he is a total child molester. Have a solid K-9 sniff it for explosives and crack it open. My guess is it is a cassette recorder and twelve bucks worth of Radio Shack parts to make it appear impressive. This guy is a whacko.
Why do we sometimes see these crazies and assume they're harmless? People who act like Garrido need to be investigated from top to bottom. We don't run into these nut jobs every day, and when we do, we just laugh and ignore them thinking they're just fine out there with our children and the rest of society. This should be a very important lesson to everyone in this country. Sexual predators need to be away from society. They need to never be free, once they have been discovered. We have to do a better job of protecting our women and children. Actions tell so much about people, and weird acting people need to be checked out. I can't believe all of those people thought this man was just an innocent whack job. There is no such thing.
Black box, toaster, microwave...Whatever, this guy needs to fry...18 years in captivity. Just makes everyone wonder what's in their neighbors yard now...
Am I the only one to notice?
All this reporting, delving into his mind, yet no one bother's to look inside the box? Thats the first question that pops into my mind! I'm sure you'll find some audio playback device or something that generates sound, it's that simple.
I'm sure he's a kook, but he's probably more of a fraud. Why didn't the report include what was inside the box, OR why they could not open the box at the time? A simple twist of a screwdriver could have opened that thing. There's no "Mystery" to the box once it's opened.
This "black box" idea sounds like Garrido's attempt to pass himself off as insane so that when he is proven guilty (is there any doubt?) of his crimes, not just against Jaycee Dugard and her 2 kids but against her family as well for the emotional and mental torture he put them all through, he will get an easier sentence due to insanity. Repeat sex offenders like him should lose their rights and should be kept in prison for the rest of their lives where they can't victimize and manipulate innocent and defenseless people.
Talking suitcases? What crazy things will be next, talking burning bushes? what a whacko
When my husband and I listened to the "black box" story, my husband instantly said, "that's a theremin he is trying to use!" In a nutshell, the coils inside the box respond to proximity of the operator's hand.m making an eerie "whale like" sound. Weird dude...
Garrido is obviously lacking the ability to separate fantasy from reality.
I have much compassion for the children involved and I sincerely hope that someone will be able to help them to cope with their situation.
The authorities have failed to protect these poor individuals to date.
Hopefully they will make amends and assist them accordingly.
I know for a fact that Garrido is a liar or insane. God called me this morning on my galoshes and told me so.
Well what the blazes is in the box??? Tell us something or nothing??????/////
Since he turned the box over to someone for safe keeping like he knew something bad was going to happen, I wonder if it means that he was going to let Jaycee go and knew that when he did his whole life would change by finally returning her freedom to her. Just a thought.....
This Garrido guy is more than a whack job! Hearing voices coming from a black box telling you what to do is insane! And doing what he did to Jaycee there is no way that he has a really good heart as his neighbor tends to think.
Cindy..Ga.