Tuesday, July 11, 2017

Ronald McMullen 911 Call on His Daughter's Shooting


After collecting evidence and noting some things "did not add up", police have arrested Ronald McMullen in the shooting death of his daughter. 

The 911 call gives us a great deal of information before an investigation even begins.  It often tells us most everything we need to know to focus our investigation.  

Statement Analysis is the scientific process by which truth from deception is discerned, content obtained, and a profile of the speaker (subject) emerges.  

An emergency call (911) is an "interview" where questions are posed with the expectation of answers given.  Once a person speaks, if the person speaks in order to be understood, analysis is applicable.  

In an interview, the interviewer (here, the 911 operator) will generally be given one of two impressions:

Either the subject is working with police to facilitate the flow of information, or the subject is not.  

A good example of this is in the New Year's Eve shooting by former police chief William McCollum of his wife.  The subject, a police chief at the time, did everything possible to conceal information about the shooting, including his personal relationship with the victim.  A contentious relationship, the caller attempted to conceal responsibility for the shooting.  

Lying

In spite of what some claim, a direct lie, that is, a fabrication of reality in an open statement is very rare.  Less than 10% of deception is via this means.  Those who are capable of fabricating reality in an open statement are accomplished liars who bring much damage to society.  

Even sociopaths feel internal stress over lying, while holding no empathy for others.  This is because we are conditioned to resist direct lying, which may result in a confrontational position where we are openly viewed as a liar.  

Here, the caller shot his own daughter in the face and struggles to lie. 

The internal stress of lying is lessened via several means including:

1.  Yes or No questions.  

These remove the burden of having to formulate a complete sentence that fabricates reality. 

2.  Parroting Questions

This, too, lessens the burden as the subject may use the language of the interviewer rather than create his own. 

3.  Lack of Commitmen

"I don't know" and "I don't remember (recall)" are very frequently used in deception.  "I don't recall" in any form, is said to be the number one form of deception in legal proceedings under oath.  

Even guilty parties who are deceptive may have 100% technically truthful sentences.  Listen carefully to the words of Ronald McCullen's 911 call. 

The entire call is found     Here




911:  Where's the location of the emergency?

Subject:  gives address

911:   Your name and phone number?

Subject:  gives name and phone number. 

He answered both questions without offering any additional information.  

This is a signal of obedience that we note.  

Ingratiating Factor

In Statement Analysis, we note that some guilty parties will seek to "ingratiate" themselves into law enforcement.  This is a powerful emotion within humans with our need of acceptance.  In statement analysis it can become a red flag in cases such as:

DeOrr Kunz jr.  

Here, the father gave a lengthy praise of police (authority) and search and rescue professionals. 

Q.  What is wrong with praising police and search and rescue professionals?

A.  They had not found his son. 



Often, urgency means impolite responses, as the caller, desperate to save the victim, will interrupt and go right to what has happened.  Here, he patiently answers the questions. 

911: "what's the problem there?"


"My daughter's shot.  Just come to this address.

Here we learn how difficult it is for a human to lie outright.  It is not only less than 10% of deception, it is by those most readily accomplished in deception. 

Here, the caller is able to tell the truth.  His daughter is shot; this is true.  

It is not expected that he would stop here with the information.  Yet, there is a single word that calls us to attention.  The word is "just."

The word "just" is, in statement analysis, classified as a "dependent word."  This means that it is when the subject is thinking of two or more other elements.  If I say to you, "this car is just $15,000" it signals that I am comparing it to a more expensive car.  In a sense, it is to say "only" or "solely."

Why would he not say "Come to this address", but add in "just"?

What else might he be thinking?

This word is a hint that the subject has something else on his mind that police might do besides coming to his address.  

That he did not offer information about his daughter is not lost on the 911 operator.  She now has the sense that the subject is not working with her for the flow of information.  


911:  Your daughter was shot?

This question is provoked because the 911 operator is confronted by the unexpected.  She expected more information and not silence after each answer.  She expected to hear where she is shot, her condition, and who shot her, all immediately offered. 

Instead, the subject is using silence. 

911 calls are said to be "excited utterance"; that is, words given in haste for a specific priority, not requiring pre thought or even pause.  

It is an emergency and the caller is the biological father of the victim.  

The 911 operator asks the subject to affirm his own statement.  This is to bring doubt into the communication.  


Subject:  Yes, yes, just come to this address please. 

It is a "yes or no" question and he answered it twice, and then repeated his prior statement, adding the polite "please."

Some may sense this to be scripted, especially as they listen to the audio but we view only the words used.  

He "only" wants them to come to this address.  This is now not only confirmation that something else is on his mind, but this something else is now sensitive to him; that is, the importance of something else is elevated via repetition.  

The lack of information is startling to the 911 Operator, especially given that this is the father of a shooting victim and she is now worried that he is going to hang up:  


911:  Sir, sir do not hang up.  did she do it to herself?



Subject:  "yes"

silence. 

We do our best to avoid, at least initially, "yes or no" questions in the Analytical Interview process.  

The 911 operator continues to be confronted by this seemingly lack of care for his daughter as he has not given any information about the wound, the shooter, if danger still exists, or even his daughter's first name.  

911;  Is there anyway she could still be alive?

Subject:  "I don't know"

The subject offers nothing else. 

911:  ok

Subject:   I don't know what to do  I'm trying

He stopped himself.  He began to tell the police what he was trying to do, but this self censoring often occurs when a subject wants to avoid the internal confrontation of a direct lie.  

He is trying to do something but the self censoring tells us:  he does not want the police to know what he is trying to do. 

Was he trying to limit his language?  

Guilty parties will often attempt to limit their words, like McCollum, as they know every word may be scrutinized, while others, especially long term habitual liars, will "attempt to persuade" by using an over abundance of language, such as Casey Anthony.  

In both attempts, we are able to obtain information.  

911,  ok just try to stay calm


subject:  just come here

He has used the word "just" again.  While he daughter is shot, he is thinking of something else and this something else is of extreme importance to him. 

It is not his daughter's condition which has not processed through his language.  

He is not facilitating information to help or save his daughter.  

911:  sir, they are their way.  You talking to me does not slow them down, ok?

Subject:  ok

911:  Ok, where is she shot at?

Subject:  In the face

We like to say "pronouns and articles do not lie" in statement analysis. 

This is his daughter. 

This is his daughter's face. 

For him, it is "the" face and not even "her" face.  

This is the psychological distancing we often see in a guilty subject's linguistic disposition towards a victim.  He depersonalizes her face; the most personal of locations. 

Shooting or attacking the face is to attack the center of communication.  

It is, with the article, "the" a strong indication that words were the final "trigger" that caused him to shoot her.  He "silenced" her by shooting her in the face.  He depersonalized her, both physically, and linguistically.  

We now know why he has not given her condition, nor has he expressed interest in saving her.  

911:  How old is she?

Subject:  22

Nothing else but "22" followed by silence.  

911:  Can you see her breathing at all?

subject:  no 

911:  Is she cold, or changing color, do you know?

Subject:  I don't know.  I just don't know.

He knows.  

The repetition and the need to isolate ("just") tells us that he knows her condition.  

The 911 operator projects herself here.  The only way he could not know is that he must not, in her perception of reality, be in the same room as her.  She makes this assumption:  

911:  Are you able to go to her to find out if she is breathing?

Subject:  Yes


911:  Ok, let me know when you are by her. 

Subject:  I'm by her

Yet, he does not report what he sees, specifically, avoiding answering her question about breathing.  He is "running out the clock" by forcing the interviewer to obtain information. 

This is extreme reluctance.  



911:  Ok, do you feel or see any breathing?

Subject:  She's not breathing. 

He parrots only and he avoids using his daughter's name.   This too is to "play it safe" by parroting, and to psychologically distance himself (signal of guilt) from his victim.  

911:  Ok, yes, did you hear a shot?

Since he has offered no detail, she is forced to ask what should have been an unnecessary question.  Will he now give details about the shooting?

Subject:  Yes

silence. 

911:  ok did this just happen?

Subject:  Err, uh yes.

It is interesting to note that this question caused him to pause; making timing sensitive to him.  

The operator knows he does not care about his daughter.  She does not instruct him to begin CPR, instead opting for a most unusual question:  


911:  Do you want to try CPR?

She recognizes his reluctance and likely has the sense that the caller does not want the victim to live. 

A parent's natural denial as such will lead parents to attempt CPR on a corpse.  

His response is indicative of motive: 

Subject:  I guess, uh, yeah. 

Reluctance noted.  

He went from "I guess", which is a very weak assertion, to the change of language "yeah" which is agreement.  

This is a strong signal that our subject is now off his game, that is, is showing an increased self awareness of his role.  He has safely given very short answers and has used parroting.  

In this sense, he has "caught himself" as off script and sounding like someone who does not want to save his daughter. 

consider this carefully: 

He has been self aware throughout the call, but he tripped up, and now the awareness of how he is coming across to police is acutely increased

This signals a change for the subject.  We await the results of his new concern for self.  

911:  Ok, is she flat on the ground?

Subject:  Yes


911:  ok there is help on the way.  I want you to lay her flat on her back on the ground. 

Subject:  She's on her back on the ground. 

Safely in parroting mode.  

911:  ok

Subject:  I moved her from where she was to the living room 

This is a very important statement. He can now appear to be the upset dad who cares for his daughter.  He can now show that he has been more helpful than just "I guess."

 In context, it is the first bit of information that he offered on his own, making it greatly important to him. 

He wants police to know that he touched her.  He is acutely aware of how he has come across now.  

911:  (gives CPR directions) Can you see or feel any breathing?

Subject:  She's gone.  

This is against parental instinct.  Although mothers and fathers speak differently, a father may be the one who picked her up when she fell, put a band aid on her cuts and soothed her tears.  He is, by design, made to protect and provide, instinctively, and this falls under protect. 

We do not expect this answer, but natural denial and resistance from a father.  

He is now the "grieving father", which is a signal of acceptance of death via processing.  This is inconsistent with trauma.  It is similar to the artificial editing of emotions within a statement.  This affirms the change we anticipated when he went from:
"I guess" to the agreeable "yeah."  

911:  ok

Subject:  She's gone.  She's not; she's gone.

911:  Ok, so you don't think we should try CPR?

That which is worded in the negative is often elevated over that which is in the positive.  The operator knows he does not want to do this.  He only "guessed" he wanted to, but then recovered to affirm, "yeah", which indicated self-awareness.  

This self awareness is what led to the "open sentence" where he offered information about moving her, with his hands upon her. 

Subject:  I don't know.  I'm just telling you she's gone.  

ok

do you know how to do CPR?

I don't know what to do

I guess

I don't know what to do.  I think she's gone.


911:  do you know what kind of gun it is?

Subject:  it was a pistol.  

He changed the operator's language of "gun" to "pistol."  She intuitively caught on to this and knows that he knows more about it than he may wish to reveal:  

911:  Do you know what caliber?

Subject:  38 

Analysis Conclusion:

Even before arriving on the scene, we have a deception indicated status for Ronald McMullen regarding the shooting of his daughter. 

He worked against the police, while trying to portray himself as the helpful father. 

He grieved for his daughter when no such acceptance should have settled in. 

He concealed the responsibility for the shooting. 

He did not assert that his daughter shot herself.  He avoided directly lying to police. 

He indicated his intent to see that she did not survive. 

He distanced himself from his daughter.  

If he speaks with police, we are very likely to hear of some argument that took place just prior to the shooting, with the likelihood that he will, even subtly, blame his victim.  He targeted her face deliberately, which is often associated with the need to silence words.  

The police have arrested Ronald McMullen in the murder of his daughter. 

For training for you, your department or business, please visit Hyatt Analysis Services.  

Training includes 12 months of e support so that you can become an expert in detecting deception.  





29 comments:

Anonymous said...

Maybe he means "just come" and don't ask so many questions.

Anonymous said...

So sad. She is beautiful and looks so much like him.

"What is the problem?" may have caused him to wonder how it got that far.
"What is your emergency?" perhaps would not have provoked such silence.

Hard to believe a father would shoot his daughter in the face on purpose. There was a problem.

Anonymous said...

Any tidbits anyone wants to impart on Kim K denying the white powder cut into lines in her snap chat video was not cocaine? "I do not play with rumors like this so I'm gonna shut it down real quick. That's sugar from our candy mess from dylan's candy shop"

Anonymous said...

Additional info: It appears now that it was not actually powder at all, just a pattern in the marble, but she didn't appear to know that at the time.

CNN said...

kim kardashian never met publicity she did not like

Anonymous said...

made it all go away and not just part

Anonymous said...

again, Internet police like fla police: icing considered crack; drywall powder equals cocaine

ima.grandma said...

I was going to stay away from this one. It happened less than 15 miles away from me. Too close...

Sexual abuse allegations revealed in Norman slaying http://newsok.com/article/5555522

Snip:
Police say in the affidavit that McMullen and his daughter were alone in the house when the shooting occurred but that McMullen called his wife to tell her about the shooting before calling police.

McMullen had used a towel to wipe up blood in the kitchen, although the body was in the home's entryway, police said in the affidavit. McMullen told the 911 operator that he had moved the body from where it originally was.

While trying to photograph McMullen, police state in the affidavit, the man continually tried to rub blood off his body despite their commands not to do so. At times, he had to be physically restrained to stop him, according to the affidavit.

After photos were taken, police say in the affidavit, McMullen "lay down in the dirt, and began covering himself in dirt while rubbing the shoes he was wearing on the concrete entryway."

McMullen eventually dug a small hole while covering himself in dirt, according to the affidavit.

Police say in the affidavit that people who knew Kailee McMullen told officers that she had reported an argument in April in which her father had slapped her and her mother had pointed a gun at the man to get him to stop.

Two women, reported to be best friends of Kailee McMullen, told police that the woman had told them her father had molested her when she was younger, according to the affidavit. One friend told police that Kailee McMullen told them her father had touched her inappropriately within the last four months while she was staying at her parents' home.

The affidavit also states that a police check of school records and Department of Human Services records indicates that an investigation had been conducted into allegations that he had inappropriately touched his daughter, although no charges were filed.

Police affidavit:
http://s3.amazonaws.com/content.newsok.com/documents/getimage%20(9).tif

Anonymous said...

You ever even tried being a man 11:37 or is it too hard? So much easier to just sit around being a cowardly jerk through a screen. Get a life.

G.o.h. said...

He

He said...

H.0G

Ima.H0gmon said...

He.

Ima.H0gmon said...

He.

John Mc Gowan said...

OT Update:

Full interview with Jessica Mitchell, DeOrr's mother

Jessica Mitchell sat down for an interview on the two-year anniversary of the disappearance of her son, DeOrr Kunz Jr., who was just two years old when he went missing during a family camping trip.

Duration 7:56

http://www.ktvb.com/news/local/full-interview-with-jessica-mitchell-deorr-s-mother/456234929

Anonymous said...

Thank you, Peter, for your analysis. It was heartbreaking to read that the father had shot Kailee in the face. You opened my eyes to so many different things he said on the 911 call that I would not have caught. When the operator asked if she did it to herself, his answer made me think not that she shot herself, but that she brought all of the problems on herself. How do you think Kailee's mother will respond? Standing by her husband or wanting justice for Kailee?

John Mc Gowan said...

Re DeOrr:

A small snipped from the Vt:

Q: Do you have any theories as to what happened?

A: I don't... cross anything out, with no direction to go in. You don't know if he's out there somewhere, somebody has him, you don't know if hes still in the mountains, cos that area is so big!

Have they marked the spot in some way where DeOrr is?
Note the change from first person pronoun to the second person pronoun.
This is personal it's her son, yet she distances herself away from where he maybe, why.?

Does she know?

Anonymous said...

Please stay on topic. This analysis is about the murder of Kailee MCMullen.

Thank you.

John Mc Gowan said...

Anonymous said...
Please stay on topic. This analysis is about the murder of Kailee MCMullen.

Thank you.


Hi

I don't know if you new here. It is acceptable to post OT's and updates from past and present case's.
There is a high % of cases/topics Peter analyses come from OT's, here.
Please choose a name. As it does at times, become difficult to track and keep up with posts when it's under anonymous.

thank You

Anonymous said...

That's the beauty of this blog. I can choose who I want to be and I choose anonymous. And no, I am not new to this site. I am a regular follower who just chooses not to always make comments. And why did you assume I was responding to your post? Maybe I meant the Kim K post. Of course if I want to know about Kim's life, I can visit the Daily Mail comments section. For now, I want to know the injustice that was done to Kailee McMullen.





Hey Jude said...

Horrendous.

Was he even really doing CPR? When the mother arrives, he says his wife is here, she's a nurse, and she is doing CPR - yet it sounds as though she is in the next room, and not able to do CPR, as she is so distraught. It sounds as if she has found her daughter's body, and it is at a distance from the phone.

Anonymous said...

"I'm lost. We have no answers, no leads, no direction to go in, still two years later," she said. "I'm gonna fight until my last day if that's what it takes. I'm gonna leave this world knowing what happened to him, or bring him home."

this was DeOrr's mom Jessica from another article.... I clipped it yesterday.
She knows where he is I think.

habundia said...

So he doesnt know if shes breathing or not (he does but he says he doesnt)
but then he does know that a pistol was used and also can tell the dispatcher what caliber.....who would know such details if you werent the one shooting? Only an expert would maybe know what gun was used and its caliber.....i thought that was remarkable

habundia said...

I read somewhere it was said they would go every "anniversary"(i find this a horrible word when it comes to deceased people) back untill they found him.....if it was my baby then i wouldnt even have left the place.....i would have stayed there untill.....why would you go once a year back to search? (I dont know how far it is from where they live....but i found it odd when i read that some time ago.
Mountains......that is were i would go search.
she says she doesnt know were to go....but she does tell uss "the mountains".....so she knows were to go....because she knows where DeOrr is��

Anonymous said...

I learn so much from your blog. I wish I could take your course. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

Anonymous said...

@John,
I viewed the video and heard the Cross word (and crossing). IMO, it was used in context of a mental checklist and she hasn't ruled out anything-making her susceptible to any con-artist still angling for more money from the tragedy.

She states she is "lost" "Directionless" and mentions her struggles to get out of bed in the morning. She was either medicated or suffering from chronic depression (I think the later).

She did what the boy's father wanted before and now does what her mother wants.

You'd think of all the terrible people that seek to profit from this missing child at least one would do counseling pro bono to help her.

Returning year after year with the media asking the same entrapping questions? She's smarter now and has her guard up. It is clear she is thankful for those who participated but somewhat leery of their intentions (at least some of them)-as anyone would be.

I don't think she or anyone buried him out there. The loons swooped in for the feist.Trying to turn her into Casey Anthony for their benefit,a victim of human trafficking for their causes, and turned them against each other because that is what white people do when burning down a town with businesses seem ridiculous.

Most are probably towns folk who are merely helpful. If someone in the area had him they'd know from odd purchases.

If they had any evidence they would have presented it. It is highly unlikely four people can keep a secret such as they are suggesting.It is possible and animal carried him beyond the search perimeter.

She needs help. She could not take the father's mourning of their son as she was in too much need herself.

Anonymous said...

cross=crossroads

cross=cross a stream
cross railroad tracks

Where does one often feel directionless? At a crossroads.

trustmeigetit said...

More failures.

Not just CPS

But her own mother.

Another child is dead because no one chooose to do the right thing.

trustmeigetit said...

I wonder if there is a cross where his body is... in the mountains..

Anonymous said...

Just like I figured: all the "I don't recall" and "I'm not sure" that Trump Jr and Kushner are doing is a clear indication of deception.