Memorium to David Andrew BAGLEY (1973SEP25 - 2001NOV05)

On Nov 5, 2001 David Andrew BAGLEY was murdered in Latrobe PA. All available evidence pointed pretty convincingly to his former girlfriend, Shirley TURNER - with whom he had just ended their relationship.  Before she was taken into custody and properly investigated for her role in the crime, she fled to her native Newfoundland.  But that was not the end of her crimes.  Extradition proceeding were started but it became known she was pregnant with BAGLEY's baby.  This delayed extradition proceedings  until this baby - to be named Zachary - was born on Aug 18, 2002.

As time drew on many odd behaviours by TURNER became known to those professionals and personal acquaintances around her.   Yet not one seemed inclined to "connect the dots" about her poor mental state.  In particular, as TURNER was a MD and had friends who were also health professionals it seems remarkable than no-one flagged her troubled behaviour as a potential risk for her new baby.  In an exhaustive review of the case by Justice MARKESTEYN issued in 2006, he described TURNER as "in denial about her own state" and that "her own lawyer seemed unaware about her emotional fragility".

After Zachary was born the extradition process was put in motion again and due to the lengthy process, discussions and appeals - the final decision was received around August 15, 2003 as Zachary was almost 13mths.  With the extradition looming, TURNER late on the evening of Aug 17, 2003 drove with her young son near the home of a recent paramour who had also rejected her, gave her infant son Ativan and jumped into the ocean drowning them both.

I would probably not be marking these deaths - despite the terrible tragedy it represented - except to highlight the strange tunnel-vision of authorities who failed to hold this women to the same standards as we know would apply to men.  I suggest such inattention can not be rationally explained as anything but gender discrimination and happens all too often, usually the lethal detriment of men.

In general the whole sorry case is outlined here, GLNL Turner Review and Investigation - Sept 2006. 

• the preferential treatment of women after divorce allowed TURNER to gain financially from child support payments despite not actually looking after or maintaining full custody of her children.
• she married and divorced twice with 3 children.
• she was unfaithful during her marriages with a number of men - often 9-12 yrs younger - which likely contributed to the failure of her marriages.
  
• a poor and neglectful mother who was the subject of child abuse reports - with no consequences
  
• according to her residency supervisor (who himself was a doctor) she exhibited "manipulative, guiltless and psychopathic" behaviour on many occasions. 
• exhibited many classical DV "controlling" behaviour in many of her personal relationships - stalking, persistent phone-calls, unconscionable jealousy, female "territoriality" (highly exclusionary of current and former female relationships), dramatic suicidal threats and gestures etc.

With hindsight, Shirley TURNER was "unbalanced" but as MARKESTEYN stated in his report, she was so skilled at deceptions it would have taken diligent study to determine her "delinquent parenting history or her - in my reserved opinion - seriously dysfunctional psyche".  A sad case at the hands of an truly psychotic women.

[On March 11, 2009 a longtime friend of Andrew BAGLEY screened a documentary film about this whole saga - it was titled  "Dear Zachary" and I am posting on my "Movie's To Watch" sidebar.]

[References: here and here or http://www.dearzachary.com/]