Jaycee Dugard

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20018486-504083.html

Last week we were talking about how high profile cases, such as the Ramsey case and Elizabeth Smart’s kidnapping, frequently lose appeal to the public as time passes.  A more recent example is the Jaycee Lee Dugard kidnapping case, which has lost its prominence in the media. 

Held by Nancy and Philip Garrido, Dugard and the children that she later bore after Garrido raped her were not discovered by police for about twenty years.  Although parole officers visited Garrido, who had been convicted of a 1977 rape and kidnapping, the Garridos were able to keep Dugard hidden in their backyard. 

The media and public became fixated on the case after Dugard was found.  Her face dominated the Internet and the news, and the public always seemed to be hungry for updates.  However, fewer networks now cover the story.  It is difficult to find a prominent news source with current information.

After searching for a while, I discovered an article on CBS News that offered an update on the case.  The Garridos have been indicted on eighteen counts plus many special allegations, which will allow Dugard and her family to avoid testifying in open court for the time being.  Nancy Garrido has already pleaded not guilty, but the court awaits a mental competency evaluation for Philip Garrido before accepting his plea.  Additionally, Dugard is writing a memoir that will cover the events from her abduction to present day. 

It was interesting to see how the case has evolved.  The last time I remember hearing about Dugard, she had recently been found and the media had begun hyping that she had borne children with her kidnapper.  When the public grew tired of the repetitiveness and lack of twists in the case following Dugard’s initial recovery, the story faded out of the limelight.