There is a crazy man on the loose who would gun down three kids in a car. Here is mommy prancing around in a reenactment and laughing and telling jokes. I said, they just hit my kids [ laughter ] everybody says, you sure were lucky. Well, i dont feel lucky. I couldnt tie my shoes for two damn months. I think my kids were lucky. Her kids were lucky . Her kids have been laugtslaught by the time she goes to trial, she was pregnant. On purpose. The reality set in that thats who gave birth to me. I came from a monster. According to Elizabeth Diane downs she and her three children were shot by a strange man. I never wanted to become Something Like that, Something Like her. Mrs. Downs was wounded in the left arm and able to drive the children to the hospital that night. A part of me was afraid that thats where i came from does that mean where im going . 9yearold christy was shot first. 3yearold danny was shot in the back. 3yearold sheryl was in the back and die on the way to the hospital. The fact that i felt some sort of a connection to her was terrifying. We have not overlooked any possible suspects. Reporters covering the story were getting hints that downs was a suspect. What occurred here was inexcusable. I knew i could never do Something Like that. At night when i close my eyes i can see christy reaching her hand out to me when im driving. That haunts me the most. Diane downs us with a case that captured the imagination and horror of the people at the time. This is the kind of story you just never forget. Another chapter in whats been a very unusual crime story. To really understand it you have to go all the way back to 1983, when it all happened. America 1983 still felt pretty innocent. Ronald reagan was president. Its morning in america, kind of notion. United states is a shining city on a hill. Nancy reagan at the time had her own drug program. Just say no. Duran duran had come out with a song that was very popular called hungry like the wolf. And im hungry like a wolf we went to bought an album you play on a record player. You might remember those things. Everyone was watching dallas. Thats the america that was unfolding at the time Elizabeth Diane downs made her star turn. Diane downs was a 27yearold mother who just moved from arizona. Her marriage to her High School Sweetheart soured before she left arizona and apparently that was because of her reported infidelity. She was a mother of seven, christy, sheryl, and danny. She was a postal worker. Springfield was not nearly as sophisticated as eugene. Theyre really twin cities, but its more blue collar. I really like how ann rule introduces eugene, oregon, springfield, oregon in her book. She says eugene is the successful pair. Her restaurants serve art chokes and ricotta pie. While sister springfield, oregon is the cyst they are never graduated from high school and no longer noticed the smell of logging. Springfield is cliche. A lot of people knew each other and you felt pretty safe there. It really wasnt a scary place. They always say that. The neighbors always say Something Like that doesnt happen here. But of course it does. It was may 18, 1983 when diane took her children out to see a woman that she knew. Diane didnt leave until about 9 30 at night. They leave from the friends house. Theyre driving down the road. Christy remembers that hungry like the wolf was playing. And im hungry like the wolf and she took a detour to do some sightseeing. Diane said a guy had flagged her car down. It was dark. And she had her three sleeping young kids in the car. A bushy haired stranger was waving his arms and she said of course she stopped and asked him, what seemed to be the matter. Supposedly the man wanted her car, demanded her keys. She said, youve got to be kidding. At which time he pushed her aside im on the hunt im after you and began shooting the three kids. And what she described next us was this choreography where he fired one more bullet. It hit her left arm. She had pretended to throw the keys into the bushes, and as he was distracted he jumped into the car and drove away. She says at that point she drove like a lunatic to the hospital. She makes it to the hospital e. R. Even though she herself has been shot in the arm, bleeding. She says, quick, my kids have been shot, come out. I can only imagine the shock of every at the hospital when up rolls diane downs with three bloody children. I talked to the nurses who were there that night, and they were crying. , lking aut those little omg in sheryl was dead. And danny and christy had both been shot and were badly wounded. When i first walked into the e. R. , immediately they pointed me to christy. When i looked at christy, i thought she was dead. He was pupils were dilated. Her Blood Pressure was nonexiste nonexistent. And these so close to death its unbelievable. We got a phone call from dispatch, and i was told a mother and her children had been shot. When i got to the hospital, i was directed to interview the mother. So i stopped and got out and asked him what was the problem. He said, i want your car. And i said, you got to be kidding. I mean, how many people really do that in real life . They dont. Her demeanor was flat. Not one tear, even though she knew that sheryl had died. I jus do whats best. You know, if they got to die, they got to die, but dont let them suffer. Her demeanor at the hospital did not conform to a traditional mother whose children had been shot, two dead one seriously clinging to life. It was surreal. When i was finished taking care of christy, then i sought out her mother, and to my complete surprise, diane was nonemotional. Not a tear in her eye. And then she says, i really ruined by new car. I got blood all over the back of it. I have never seen a reaction like that at all. Thursday night, a man flagged down a woman and her three children on the road. Friday, the manhunt began in ernest. Initially there was panic. People in oregon were like, oh, my god, theres a crazy man on the loose who would gun down children in a car. Doors. Ple werehe didn go out evinth sure their children. It became clear that the kids were gravely injured and from what the police were indicating they didnt have a lot to go on at that point. There have been no sightings of the suspect or his car. Early on in the investigation we did not have a suspect. There is still an all points bulletin out for the man. Nor did we have a weapon. Investigators found spent cartridges by the roadside. The only evidence we had were casings found at the scene. There were divers in the river, but the gun was never found. We canvassed every home, up and down, knocking on doors, asking if anyone had seen any suspicious vehicles. They came up with a composite and that was circulated to every news station. Cops are racking their brains trying to put this case together. We are going to do a video tape reenactment. Thats when they decide to do a reenactment. Im throwing the keys, okay . Im throwing the keys. Heres mommy prancing around and telling jokes. Okay, that was a big red flag. Dead skin cells . Gross so now, i grab my swiffer sweeper and heavy duty dusters. Dusters has three layers that grab, trap and lock away gross dust. Gotcha and, for dust on my floors, i switch to my sweeper. The textured cloths grab, trap and lock dirt and hair. No matter where dust bunnies hide. No more heebie jeebies. Glad i stopped cleaning and started swiffering. vo cinnamon toast crunch. Every square blasted with cinnadust against uv damage and early skin aging . Try neutrogena ultra sheer. It provides exceptional cellular protection from burning uvb rays and aging uva rays. Save 25 at neutrogena. Com. From burning uvb rays and aging uva rays. Curachl y. Hey frnd ppg upeliouseces pets love rachael ray nutrish® and its kitcheninspired recipes. With real meat, poultry or fish. Rachael ray nutrish®. Real recipes. Real ingredients. Real good. ® and take an extra 15 off s. Save on the ninja foodi. Get tops for the family 8. 49 and under. And save on adidas footwear. Plus, get kohls cash. Plus, limitedcontact store drive up. Shop kohls and kohls. Com im leslie rule. My mother was true crime author ann rule, and she wrote about three dozen books on true crime. Thank you. Ann rule is thera dame of true crime. Like her fictional counterpart, Jessica Fletcher on murder, she wrote, ann rule is a bestselling crime writer who sometimes gets involved in the subjects she writes about reallife killers. Ann rule died in 2015, but we spoke with her in 2010 about this case and the book she wrote on this case called small sacrifices. It was the story that changed my life. Several parts of diane downs story made no sense at all. What mother takes her kids out late at night in the dark for a sightseeing scenic drive on an abandoned road . What mother then stops to see what a man standing there would want . People started wondering, why is the mother only shot in the arm and the children have fatal and critical injuries . She had taken the time to carefully wrap her left arm in a towel while she drove to the hospital. Would you do that as a mother . I wouldnt put a towel on my arm. Id put it on them as a tourniquet. Rip it apart. Police are immediately a little suspicious. So they come up with an idea. We ask diane if shed do a reenactment for us. We simply wanted to nail down her statements, and she was more than happy to do that. Sitting in the car is Elizabeth Diane downs. She can be seen sitting in the car, and shes kind of primping, making sure that her hair looked the way she wanted it. Diane downs is trying to show the investigators exactly what happens. Im throwing the keys, okay . Im throwing the keys. So they can understand and get the forensics right. I go like that. I got in the car, jumped in, put the keys in. Ah, i just hit my cast [ laughter ] started the car and left. The car door shut itself. God. She was giddy. She laughed. She cracked jokes. I mean, shes reenacting the gruesome shootings of her three children, and she doesnt seem at all upset. This is worse than the okay. She hit her cast and then made the statement this is worse than and she caught herself. So we speculated of course what she would have said to finish that sentence, and we always thought, this is worse than when i shot myself. I can guarantee you that performance by diane downs made cops stand up at attention and take another look at her story. We went to downs apartment and conducted a search of the residence. After she gave us consent to search, we found diaries where she had written almost daily. Diane had fallen in love with a coworker. His name was robert nick knickerbocker. Everybody called him knick. And she fell for him big time. He was married, but he was separated from his wife, charlene, at the time. Diane was thinking that her married lover in the post office in chandler, arizona, would follow her. And when i interviewed him, he said, ann, i was just so glad when i realized shed crossed the county line, headed out of here, that i never considered following her. But she was desperate to get his attention. Diane is heartbroken. So, the sheriffs deputies were still investigating. And in the meantime, diane was holding court, essentially, giving interviews to reporters. I was really surprised that diane downs and her family offered to have a News Conference very early on. I am here just to appeal for people out there, if they know anything to call in. They said that they wanted to set the story right. We were just out i guess sightseeing, you would say, and the kids got tired. They fell asleep in the car. So i decided to just head on home, but i saw a road i hadnt been on before. We like to take back roads. And just went down that road. And there was a guy standing in the road flagging me down, so i stopped. Everybody knew it didnt ring true. Pretty much a lie. Everything she was saying was a lie. She could feel that the focus had changed from this bushyhaired stranger to her. If i had shot my own children, would i not have done a good job of it . Why would i have taken my kids to the hospital . Wouldnt i have made sure they were dead and then cried crocodile tears . Thats insane to think i would do such a thing and then bring the witnesses in against myself. Thats crazy. There wasnt a camera or a reporters notebook that she didnt chase. She gave one interview in full hair and makeup after the next. Ehow gaer sympathfor her. Jthpotefft. A she may be e ly. Would i have brought her to the hospital . Wouldnt she be the one that i would make sure is dead . There are too many holes in it. Her children are still suffering. Danny is paralyzed, which she continues to tell everybody, oh, hes not paralyzed. Dannys going to walk again. I dont care if we just have to will him to walk. I think hes going to walk. The doctors all say he wont, but i know that your mind controls your body and if i can love him enough and encourage him enough i believe hell walk. And christie suffered a stroke. In my experience, if youve had a stroke of that nature, usually its hard to recover. It was a long time before i heard her talk. Now, even though little christie lying there in a hospital bed couldnt speak, the nurses noted that every time diane downs came into the room her vitals spiked, went off the chart when she would sense her mother was in the room. The children were never back in dianes custody. The state of oregon removed them and they were placed in foster care. This is an Eyewitness News special report. In her own words, Elizabeth Diane downs. Good evening. Im ann bradley. When we got to talk to her, i said she could bring her lawyer to the interview that we wanted to do. She showed up by herself and i said, gotcha. The anne jaeger interview really helped diane downs dig her own grave. When this man shot my daughter, my first reaction was to snap back to my childhood, to the pain that had happened to me back then, my marriage, my entrapment by society. This man was bigger than me. He was stronger than me. He had more power because he had a gun. And i stood there and i looked at christie reaching and the blood that just kept gushing out of her mouth and and what do you do . She used the word i or me so many times in that interview, youd never know her three children had been shot. Everybody says you sure were lucky. Well, i dont feel very lucky. I couldnt tie my damn shoes for about two months. It is very painful. It is still painful. The scar is going to be there forever. Im going to remember that night for the rest of my life whether i want to or not. I dont think i was very lucky. I think my kids were lucky. If i had been shot the way they were, we all would have died. Her kids are lucky . A child is dead. Two children are grievously hurt. And the kids are lucky . Its extraordinary. She could work things out in her mind so that they work for her. She wrapped so many layers of lies around her, that she didnt know herself anymore what was the truth. The more she talked, the better. Diane downs had the penchant for wanting the publicity, to talk, and the more she did, so the tighter the noose around her neck became. Even as things arent adding up, youre still presented with the question, what on earth would cause a mother to shoot her own children . So at that point police decide. There are pages and pages about how in love with knick she is, and how she wants to be with knick. So the question is, is that enough of a motive to actually kill her three children . Ich is p taking care of ourselves, like screening for colon cancer. Because when caught in early stages, its more treatable. Cologuard is noninvasive and detects altered dna in your stool. To find 92 of colon cancers. Even in early stages. Its for people 45 plus at average risk for colon cancer, not high risk. False positive and negative results may occur. So, dont wait to screen. Ask your prescriber or an online prescriber if cologuard is right for you. Scratch that, baby, im grateful. Gotta say, its really been a while. But now i got back that smile. Smile check everything off the list with supplies from 50¢. Get ready for school at target. Theryoure not good enough. Hard to control. But i am enough. And i know what im made of. Put your skin in the game. With a razor that puts your skin first. Hey guys want to stack different pringles flavors to create new flavor combos . Here ill. Go first. Pizza, barbeque and jalapeno. The spicy barbecue pizza stack. Get him grandpa whats going on . Were trapped in a pringles commercial, they must have taken us in our sleep. Stack pringles flavors make new ones. This is about the next 10 years. Pero hoy, tu puedes hacer algo. You can make a difference today by completing the census. The census impacts everything from hospitals, schools and public transportation. It is more important than ever before that everyones voice is heard. The census builds america, so the census count should look like america. Shape the future of brooklyn. Kansas city. Tucson. Atlanta. Oregon. Los angeles. D. C. Start here at 2020census. Gov. In the immediate aftermath of the crime, it was so horrific that i think there was an enormous well of public sympathy for this mother who had her wn the sheriffs ot. Office and said, please arrest me so that i can prove im innocent, so my kids can come home, and they wouldnt. But as diane tells her story, slowly but surely that public sympathy begins to shift. Reporters covering the story were getting hints that downs herself was a suspect in the case. People are starting to get suspicious of dianes story. Even her own father questions early, is she telling the truth . I made the comment, it looks to me like diane did it. Because the children have been shot in the chest and diane has only been shot in the arm. If i had shot my own children, would i not have done a good job of it . It was such a shocking story that and little kids, theyd look at their mothers as if they were thinking, well, you wouldnt shoot me, would you . When i go to bed, i cry at night. Even now i still cry. I dream about cheryl. I talked to her for about two hours on camera, and she didnt cry. It was uncanny that she didnt cry. I mean, i wanted to cry. Downs is now expecting another child. It was a shocking revelation. I got pregnant because i miss christie and i miss danny and i miss cheryl so much. Im never going to see cheryl on earth again. Nobody could believe she was pregnant. This is is a woman who is suspected of killing all three of her children and succeeding with one of them, who is pregnant again . The contrast is extraordinary. You cant replace children, but you can replace the effect that they give you. And they give me love, they give me satisfaction, they give me stability. They give me a reason to live and a reason to be happy. And thats gone. They took it from me. But children are so easy to conceive. She didnt have babies so she could love them. She had babies so they could love her. And she said, i wasnt alone. I had somebody inside that i could talk to. Diane just loved the attention she got when she was pregnant. Apparently not so much raising kids. When i heard d