Wednesday, June 20, 2012
T&T EXCLUSIVE: Stephanie Lazarus' Prison Booking Photo
Former LAPD Detective Stephanie Lazarus' prison booking photo on June 5th, 2012, three years to the day after her arrest for the first degree murder of Sherri Rae Rasmussen.
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45 comments:
OH MY GOODNESS!! THIS PICTURE SAYS IT ALL..THIS CRACK POT IS SMILING LIKE SHE JUST WON AN AWARD!! CREEPY AND SHOWS JUST HOW MUCH SHE IS REMOVED FROM THE SITUATION...OR DOESNT WANT TO GIVE ANYONE THE SATISFACTION .....
*singing* Smile though your heart is breaking....
All kidding aside, yes, this is a twisted photo.
I need to amend a statement I made on a prior thread. Because the sentence is "life without parole" (LWOP), there will be NO contact visits only. If an inmate is given a range as a sentence (for example, 17 years to life), contact visits are possible. So sad for her daughter, but that's how it goes.
Also, inmates in protective housing have an unspoken rule—don't discuss each other's crimes. One of my family members worked the special housing wing at Soledad before those inmates were shuttled off. On this unit were transvestites, transgenders, openly gay and "celebrity" inmates Juan Corona and Sirhan Sirhan. Even though everyone knew who Sirhan was, inmates just didn't ask about his crime. (Of course custody could care less...)
I need to make a small correction. Lazarus was arrested for Penal Code 187, felony murder. 187 Includes first and second degree murder. She was CONVICTED of first degree murder.
CaliGirl9, Lazarus sentence was 27-years-to-life. I've read differing reports as to when she is eligible for her first parole hearing. Some say in as little as 14 years; others have reported 15 to 16 years.
So, doesn't that mean since she's not a lifer, she can get contact visits? ???
Yep, she gets contact visits. My bad lol Of course they can be taken away for bad behavior but I honestly expect Ms. Lazarus will cause no problems, she may try to cozy up to corrections officers, thinking she is still "one of them," but most COs know this and won't buy into it.
(Actually for her daughter's sake I am glad. Poor little thing!)
Hi, CaliGirl! She is WHACKED! Pic says it all. What would be useful would be for the public to see updated yearly pics of these people, to see how well (or, likely not) they are faring in incarceration. I would love to see this gal's demeanor, say, in 5 years time....
Karen
thats exactly how i feel..
Why the heck is she smiling? creepy.
All aboard, next stop Twilight Zone.
What a piece-of-work she is. But I must say, Lazarus looks younger and more attractive than she did three years ago at the arraignment. Her old big fat face has been zapped away. Must have something to do with that tasty food served at the Grey Bar Hotel.
SHE COULDNT LOOK ATTRACTIVE IF SHE TRIED.. "UGLY INSIDE..UGLY OUTSIDE"!!!
Doesn't anyone know a psychiatrist who can comment on SL....her courtroom behavior & this new photo? She is clearly nuts, but I'd love an expert's thoughts. How was she able to carry on for all those years as if nothing had happened? She is dreadful and fascinating at the same time.
It is beyond me why her husband would want anything to do with this woman or have his daughter around her.
Well even if SL's husband DOES want something to do with her, he's not going to be able to do much. Thank you, Jurors!
The reality is her husband will move on with his life. He already knows that SL will never see her freedom again so why would he want to remain committed to her. Unless, he is either madly in love or he has some issue of his own....just my thought. Thank you ladies for keeping us informed. Great work.
Caligirl 9 from your extensive knowledge of CDC and how the system works I assuming that at one time or another you had direct or indirect with contact CDC. If you did in what capacity if you don't mind sharing with us readers.
Anon, I was an RN. My stepdad was a 20+ year medical-technical associate—Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN), but he went to the corrections' officers academy when he was hired. He had to know how to handle a weapon, and had to qualify at the range a couple of times a year. I didn't. I wore an alarm on my belt and if I ever felt threatened, I simply pushed the button and had about 20 corrections officers of various forms ready to assist me :) And yes, I did push it a time or two.
The prison we worked at had the only protective housing unit for gay, transgender, cross-dressers and celebrity inmates, like Sirhan Sirhan, Dan White and Juan Corona. They had their own wing, their own kitchen, and medical staff went to them. This is not the case anymore. Sirhan and Juan are cooling their jets with Charlie Manson at Corcoran.
I look at this photograph and think that perhaps Ms. Lazarus might initially have problems adjusting to where she is. She may well try to cozy up with some corrections officers, appealing to their sense of "family" as law enforcement officials. But that will soon pass if she's frequently written up and loses privileges... and I bet she does end up on antidepressants. Lots of 'em take antidepressants lol
WOW THANKS SPROCKET!!! Nice work!!! GROSS PIC! Lazarus creeps me the hell out!!! Is she nekked in the pic? How the heck can someone be so happy standing nekked in a cement room in a prison??? Mebbe she is so happy that she has finally had the weight of her secret lifted off of her & the stress of keeping her murderous act inside of her shows her greatly relieved & almost giddy with the stress release. Lazarus is a disgusting animal.
Will Lazarus have access to a computer in prison?
Anon @ 1:26 AM:
No. Prisons do not allow inmates Internet access. However, cell phones secreted into California prisons for inmates are still a problem for the CDC&R.
Yes this picture is really BIZARRE..there is no way in hell she can be happy..so WHY SMILE? ewwww. I am happy for Sherri's paretns. breaks my heart so poor people had to wait 23 years for justice but maybe now they have some form of inner peach knowing this psycho will suffer!
Believe me, all, I am NOT a Stephanie Lazarus fan -- far from it. I'm so glad the jury convicted her of the charges they did, and that she's where she belongs.
My thought on her picture (after the initial horror wore off) was that perhaps it was for her daughter? "Look, honey, Mommy's okay...." But probably not. I'd be very interested to hear what a psychiatrist or other mental health professional thinks about her.
I can't wait for Matthew's book to come out -- it's going to be a fascinating read, for sure. Everyone involved in this case did such an amazing job -- just listening to the recording of the detectives interviewing her never gets old. It took me a few times listening to hear her say that (speaking of John) "We went to Hawaii at one point... another friend went to Hawaii with us." Later she says that "I went to Hawaii with my friend Greg ... I'm thinking that John met us there."
Oh, and best of all, she can't remember (allegedly) whatever, but when asked where John's apartment was, she says, immediately, "Roscoe." Everything else was that insipid "a million years ago," but she had that answer right off the bat. Curious. Then again, maybe addresses aren't that difficult to recall.
That is one pig ugly gob & a grossly distended throat to match.She's only smiling to portray an image to the world that she ain't bothered,but deep down inside she sure as hell will be.
@EvictObama
That is waht wrote earlier. I truly believe she doesnt want to show the world how miserable she is. Afterall, she was cocky enough to walk around for 23 years after BRUTALLY MURDERING someone...went on and had a full life..how much could she of though of it?? so she is trying to keep up the facade for wahtever sick reason is in her head. and yes THERE IS NOTHING remotely attractive about her..dont knwo what he saw in his woman to begin with..ewww
@Tina
Absolutely,& i'm not just saying that because she's a convicted murderess either.I'd feel the same about her features if she was an ordinary innocent woman in the street!
What IS that big thing in her throat? Is that what happens when the truth tries to come out thru your esophagus but you stifle it? That huge nodule or whatever it is is totally freaky looking!!! I think I read she had some thyroid problem or something....I don't know what that large nodule is... but I think it has something to do with being a bad person.
That thing in her neck looks like a grenade!
in regards to the neck..she had thyroid cancer..that is why her neck is like that..probably had some type of suregery..just an FYI since i knew of it.
Anonymous said...
That thing in her neck looks like a grenade!
Haha...love it!
I have a quick question.
Let's say her parole is denied at the 14 - 16 year point(which it will be), and she serves a total of 27 years. Does she continue serving after the 27 years are up since she received a sentence of 27 years to life, and has to remain in prison until another parole hearing? I'm curious to know. Thanks in advance for any help you can offer with answering my question!!! : )
I am a betting woman and my money is on Scott (SL's husband) quietly divorcing her and moving on with his life & adopted daughter. Remember, it was disclosed that she has not seen her daughter since being arrested three years ago. Scott did the honorable thing by attending the trial, knowing full well of her guilt, and hanging in there until all was said & done. The daughter probably does not remember SL. As for the creepy picture, I cannot believe they asked her to "smile." This has to be part of her deranged personality surfacing again. I am still shaking my head in amazement that John Ruetten hooked up with her in Hawaii in 1989 after the murder. That has to be torture for him to think about.
debbiescalisi, I don't believe Lazarus was asked to smile either. Maybe she wanted to show everyone that she is a tough cookie who can smile despite the circumstances. But she overdid it, and ended up looking like a loony. It does seem weird that Ruetten met Lazarus in Hawaii, but perhaps he was reaching for anything to bring calm and normalcy to his life. Since Lazarus was a friend from his fun college days, she fit the bill. Still, I wonder what Lazarus said to him about Sherri.. maybe: "Oh John, I feel so bad about what happened to your wife. Well, lets just have fun in Hawaii and forget about that."
No doubt about it, Stephanie Irene Lazarus is one bizarre person.
Yes, honestly Anonymous on 6/22/2012 at 4:01am, I think John partying with SL in Hawaii has got to be one of the worst aspects of this whole mess. I was hoping they would have elaborated more about it during the trial, i.e. any conversations John & SL might have had regarding Sherri's murder but maybe the prosecution just couldn't torture him any more than he already has been. Certainly would have been interesting to hear what SL had to say. I find it hard to believe it was not discussed, if even for one minute.
Why would you smile maybe out of habit or because you want to be a bad a**. She is a strange cookie. Maybe she is happy that the whole trial is over and she can somehow focus on her appeal...what else does she have to do. I often find myself thinking of what she is doing at any given time..Caligirl can you tell us what is the normal prison routine..wakeup time, breakfast, shower and lights out... lots of time for her to think about what she did...
It'll be interesting to hear what her job will be.
I will let the verdict speak for itself, but from a pure corrections standpoint I am not surprised Lazarus is smiling.
First, you have to remember that she has been incarcerated in the LA County jail for three years -- only getting out of the facility for court appearances. On the day this picture was taken, she left the jail for the first time and, while going to prison, was out on the road and got a glimpse of the outside world. The fact that she was out in the world and going to state prison pumps up the adrenaline. Many prisoners going through the prison intake process are giddy and nervous laughter is common.
If you recall, Scott Peterson told death row officials he was "too jazzed to sleep" when he arrived at San Quentin for the first time.
Further, correction officials are trained to make the intake process as painless as possible to avoid unnecessary trouble. Many things happen during the intake process. It is quite conceivable the person taking the picture said a kind word or snapped the picture quickly. Many people get the idea that intake is like the scene out of the Shawshank Redemption where they throw lice powder on the inmates and scream at them that they are state property.
It does not seem odd to me that she is smiling. If you read the interrogation transcript, after the interview they were engaging in discussions with Lazarus about old basketball injuries and the importance of breakfast and how they were going to make the transfer to the prison as discreet as possible. Intake at correctional facilities are very much like that.
That's my theory. Or I could be wrong and she smiled because she is a psycho.
It is beyond me that Ms. Lazarus elevated up to rank to a high profile detective with her demeanor and personality.. I am sure somewhere within all this, someone must have noticed some strange behaviors on her part; or might have simply over looked it as part of daily police work. Could someone tell me what intake transcript the writer above is talking about and where can this info be found. Caligirl9 you are most familar with this kind of process, you insight to us readers would be helpful? Thanks.
Does any one knows how SL husband is doing and has she gotten any visit yet from her husband /family? I am curious to know.
I may have been unclear in my original post. I am referring to the June 2009 interrogation transcript (not a prison intake transcript)
At the end of that written transcript, after the arrest and her refusal to speak, there is a facinating glimpse of how the detectives maintained small talk with Lazarus. They discuss her basketball injury, how some people are "breakfast people," how the computer in a cell phone checker game always beats the human player, inquiries on if she always wears the same necklace etc.
This is small talk in part is designed to put the arestee at ease. (and maybe talk)
There is also a facinating moment where they discuss her medication she must take every morning. One of the dectectives asks her if she will need a script and she says something to the effect of "unless I am released before morning."
She has no idea at this point at the incredible trouble she is in.
Anyway, my point is that the prison intake staff would engage in this type of small talk as well. It is designed to put the prisoner at ease in an emotional moment which could turn dangerous.
With that in mind, a quick smile from Lazarus during the picture snap is reasonable.
To Anonymous @ 2:42 PM:
A full transcript of Lazarus' interview is on the T&T blog under "Documents". The surprisingly light and casual conversations she had with officers (just after her arrest) is in Part 3, pages 94 to 117. It's almost surreal. Lazarus had the worst surprise of her life that morning, but you would never know it by reading the final pages of this transcript. Real life is odd.
Direct Link to Official Transcript of Stephanie's Interview.
On Page 92, line 21 of the transcript, you can read the dialogue that happens when Stephanie leaves the interview room and is arrested. She is then brought back in.
Am/was I dreaming, or did I see that part taped (after the arrest) where they were talking about removing her jewelry and questioning her about whether or not the handcuffs were hitting her watch? She said something about not being able to get her wedding ring off, and someone utters that classic line, "Saliva works wonders." I would almost swear to this on the witness stand. When I went to look for it again, however, it had either been removed or... I never saw it to begin with. I'm almost positive I did! It seemed it had been part of Matthew's online Atlantic piece.... Can anyone confirm? Thanks!
YOU ARE CORRECT..THAT IS EXACTLY WAHT IS SAID..OH THE IRONY!!!!
Or was that recorded/taped part on this blog? (I mean the "live action" video.) I'm *sure* I viewed it!! If not, my dreams are way too vivid. :-)
This information through a friend who spoke to a Van Nuys division officer that knew details of the case: When Lazarus' home was searched, a passport with her photo but a different name was found. Was this brought up in the trial?
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