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Subscribe to RSSRead the personal notes from Dateline producer, Shane Bishop, in making the two-hour report 'Bringing Brooke Home', which aired Friday, Feb. 4th, at 9pm/8c.
Hi, my name is: Shane Bishop
I've been a producer: at Dateline for 16 years.
When I first came across this story, I thought to myself: From my home in Oregon, I watched it unfold from the day Brooke was abducted in May 2004. It was as if the quality of the air changed in the entire state: each Oregonian holding his or her breath, hoping Brooke would be found. The only other time I've felt this was when little Kyron Hormon disappeared in June 2010.
My inspirations in telling this story: My own daughter. If anything ever happened to her I would want people to care as much about her as everyone in Oregon does about Brooke.
Something I won’t forget about Corvallis, Oregon: Wherever we went in the area, people asked us what we were doing. I won't forget the looks on their faces when we said the name "Brooke." To so many there, it still feels as if it happened yesterday. They'll never forget it.
The most memorable words I heard: To hear Cammy Wilberger step up to a microphone at a press conference in September 2009 and express gratitude to her daughter's killer for revealing the location of Brooke's body remains an indelible moment for me.
The most admirable person I met along the way: Brooke's entire family endured the unbearable with remarkable grace. They showed me that we all have a choice in how we respond to every situation we encounter. Even with fear and pain searing their souls, they made the choice to respond with faith, gratitude, and love. I hope I never forget their good example.
The most striking image I saw : For any parent, it's hard to reconcile in one's mind how the smiling blonde, blue-eyed boy we see in family photos grows to become the scowling man in the mugshots who told his own mother that he' d never be held accountable for Brooke's murder.
What still surprises me about this story: I was surprised in a wonderful way (perhaps heartened is the better word) by the outpouring of love and compassion for Brooke's family from the moment word of her disappearance spread. Thousands of church members, neighbors, and total strangers dropped everything to search for one missing child. To me, it evoked images of a painting I grew up with in Sunday School in Montana: the Shepherd who leaves the entire flock to search for one lost lamb.
Biggest challenge while doing this story: I had to establish trust with so many players in this drama: Brooke's mother and siblings; the killer's sister, Dina; the family of Sung Koo Kim. But the bigger challenge was attempting to find the right incentive for convicted killer Joel Courtney to talk to us. I was never able to convince him to talk.
In a word, this is really a Dateline story about: Grace.
Last but not least, in general, I wish: Girls didn't have to grow up worrying about men like Joel Courtney.
Thanks for watching Dateline NBC!
Leave a Comment:
when are you going to do a story on the black college student(phylicia barnes) that went missing in baltimore.i mean don lemon said the police speculate that the lack of national media response was because phylicia is african-american.she is a honor student went to visit her sister.
Dina McBride is not the spokesperson for my family. I spent much more time with Joel and know him much better than she could ever claim to, and I was dumbfounded when he was arrested in Albuquerque. I have also recieved correspondence from him since his incarceration. As the father of a 4 year old girl I feel the same way about any girl ever having to worry about people like him. Since my daughter told me her mothers boyfreind hits her and all of my requests for intervention have gone unheeded I have very little hope that any girl is safe from finding herself under the power of whatever opportunistic sadist who might find themselves in a position to treat other human beings as their personal toys.
The way that I understood from the 'Dateline' show is that Dina was a spokesperson for a murdered young woman. She was astute in her assumptions and although torn, did the right thing. It seems to me that you didn't know your friend at all. Sometimes, we have to trust our instincts. Maybe you were too close to see the real monster beneath. As 'Dateline' mentioned he was tested in school at genius IQ level so I'm sure he knew how to manipulate those around him. It sounds like you're using this as a personal vendetta against your X and her boyfriend. Please seek council to help your daughter and surround yourself with good, positive, educated people. Your main concern should be your daughter. Re-evaluate your priorities and please remember that parents should be advocates for their children, as well as, their voice. This show was about a family who has suffered an unthinkable loss and I for one will not let you take away from her beautiful memory by making it about you.
It was reported that Joel lived in Florida at one time. Could he be associated with the disappearance of Jennifer Kesse?
As I was watching, Tiffany Sessions came to my mind. Could there be an association with her? I hadn't heard about Jennifer Kesse's case, so I looked her name up. I'm surprised to see that both Jennifer and Tiffany have a missing person's act named after them by the the Fl legislature. In Tiffany's case, she was a UF student who was abducted while out jogging. Like Brooke's case, she dissappeared without a trace.
Am I mistaken, or do only young white women become missing, murdered, abducted in the United States??? Week after week, that's what's being spotlighted. Why??
I'm from Oregon and happened to be in Corvallis around the time Brooke was kidnapped, it was incredibly chilling, especially to be a college-age white girl. I was constantly looking over my shoulder when I was with my friends. As we walked around the Oregon State campus, flyers about Brooke's disappearance were everywhere. I moved to school out of state in 2007 and Brooke's case had slipped my mind since it hadn't been in the media for while. I haven't been home in so long that I didn't even realize that her remains had been found a year and a half ago.
I think one of the reasons this story was highlighted was the grace shown by brooke's family. this is about more than "another young white woman being missing or murdered," this is about a family who actually had the courage to thank their daughter's killer for telling them where her body was. If I was a mother, I'm not sure I'd have the strength to do that, even 5 years later.
I've seen several shows about the horror in Juarez, Mexico. There's no big conspiracy out to devalue Latino life.
oh, get over it
I am just sickened after watching this show. Thank you God that this tragedy has never happened to my family and I will spend more time praying for those families who have to go through this. I cannot even remotely imagine the horror this poor girl endured. May her soul rest in peace forever.
May she not "rest in peace forever" but her spirit take on a new physical incarnation and reclaim the victorious life that is possible on Planet Earth. There are more enlightened views than the depressing Christian doctrine of one life, fatal error, and it's all over.
I live in the same small town of Veneta,Oregon which is where the Willberger family lives. They are a close knit family and are dedicated to each other, the community and their church. This show gave everybody a chance to see and experience, the grace and dignity they exhibited, in one of the toughest situations a family could go through.
My heart sank and I was filled with emotion that was difficult to contain while watching this story. Brooke was deserving of a full, loving life and it was ripped from her in a horrific way. Her family was a pillar of strength and certainly grace. They have been an incredible inspiration of love for millions of people. They emulated kindness in the worse of circumstances and held strong to their goal of bringing Brooke home. I commend Dora and her daughters for their heroism in saving the abducted college student in New Mexico. Dora saved a life by acting with compassion and kindness. Her instincts were right on and she acted swiftly while protecting a young woman's life. When people do the right thing it's amazing what can come of it and in the end it did bring Brooke home. My prayers are with Brooke's family to remain strong and I will surely share this story with everyone I can because the love for Brooke has been contagious and her story will not be forgotten. Even in her death, her life will be celebrated. I am so very sorry for your family's loss and for all those who have lost lives in horrific ways. Hopefully, this story will urge people to get involved, stop being a standbyer and do the right thing. There are ways to remain safe and still save lives!! May all of you with missing children receive the help and support you need to bring your loved ones home. God bless each and every one of you. Thank you for this story because as sad and heart wrenching as it is these victims need to be remembered. I applaud this show for sharing this story with the public.
13 yrs ago this july my sister was murdered, in yet we have no anwsers nor suspects, would joel of ever been in pa for any reason , this has been a very sad life that me and my family have been living and just need some answers so ,sir if there is any why you could please look into thisfor me thank you
This story is very sad. Her family shows remarkable grace. I have 3 beautiful young adult girls of my own. It doesn't make much sense to have a beautiful, young 19 year old working alone in a large apartment complex. She could have been a target anywhere in that complex, in a hallway or laundry room. She should have been working in a pair. This would have never happened.
I was moved to tears by the beauty of Brooke and her family. I can't imagine what a wonderful mother and person Mrs. Wilberger is and must have been to raise such loving and caring family. I share the producer's feelings in I wished we lived in a world where girls did not have to worry about people like Joel Courtney. My prayers are with the Wilberger family- five heart-wrenching years of waiting for their loved one to return home, not knowing where she was or what happened to her. I am inspired to live life fuller, to live life for Brooke and the thousands like her who never got a chance to fulfill their dreams. I want to thank the Wilberger family for sharing their story with the world; however painful the process, I hoped it has helped the Wilberger family bring closure.
Does anyone know why Brooke's father wasn't on the Dateline show tonight? I hope he's OK. My heart goes out to the family and I have the deepest sympathy for their loss.
My heart goes out to this family It has to be so hard to just sit and wait and keep up hope that they may come back home alive. I have one son and I think it would just kill me if something ever happened to him. I have been around some men that to tell you the truth is and was not safe to be with. Thank God I wised up and got away fom them. It sometimes is just better to be to your self. May god look out for us all!
Where was the Dad?
Where was the Dad?
True, very interesting the father was not visible at all. I could understand him for maybe not wanting to participate, but was even mentioned at all during the broadcast???
What I want to know is:
1) If Courtney tried to rape family members as a teenager, and then killed Brooke and assaulted the UNM student at about age 40, what happened to the 20 years in between? It seemed he would have had to have done something in between those years. But, there is no mention of it in the story.
2) How do his wife and children feel to have this sick person as their husband and father. And if he wanted to serve his time in New Mexico so they could visit him, why they hell would they? I hope they never go to visit him.
More questions need to be answered Dateline.
Your comment regarding his color and your projection of feelings--"it's hard to reconcile in one's mind how the smiling blonde, blue-eyed boy"--leaves me feeling uncomfortable. If he were a different color, say a black-haired, brown-eyed boy, would you have commented thusly? Would it be as hard to reconcile in your mind? Is it possible that's why some murders go unsolved, that is, that suspicion is cast away from the blue-eyed boys unless faced with incontrovertible evidence?
what about jennifer kesse case in Florida?so many simmularities,they said courtney was in Fl. for a time.you are right it brings up questions about what else he may have done!
Watching this brought back memories of this horendous crime. At the time I was working up in that area and driving back and forth daily. Flyers of Brooke were pasted all over the area, and wishing I could help, feeling guilt because I couldn't. This case touched my heart. A parents and family's worst nightmare, waitng and worrying. I thought the case was solved with the panty thief. It was just too bizare for it not to be him, but they let him go. I thought the police were making a big mistake. Then the news of a suspect in Mew Mexico sounded like the investigators were just stabbing in the dark. It's easy to form the wrong conclusions when we don't hear all the facts and sometimes we shouldn't know when the case is on going. Blood is thicker than water but in this case I commend Courtney's sister and mother for stepping forward. I will never understand how that much evil could live inside a man to rape and kill someone who you don't know and has never done one damn thing to you. He finally confessed to get out of Oregon. In this case send him back and let the inmates have him. Someone as evil as Courtney has no right using up perfectly good air anywhere on the planet. This case was one damn fine piece of police work. Her family atleast knows what happened, but that will never fix the pain. I just pray the can learn how to live with it.
I'm disappointed this broadcast wasn't uploaded on the Dateline site. It sounds as if it was well done and its viewers shouldn't be limited to just those able to see it at the scheduled time.
Earthellism, a philosophy based on astrobiology, can provide true closure to Brooke's family. Innocent, angelic Brooke encountered a green minivan on a pretty day and came face to face with a atheistic human devil. He kidnapped this child from us and tortured her for many hours and then killed her, burying her in a shallow grave. I cry for her suffering and tell her family she showed bravery and courage at the hands of a human devil who enjoyed torturing and murdering an innocent child. Brooke went straight to heaven and has been compensated by God for her innocent pain and suffering. True closure requires us to properly treat Brooke's murderer as the true human devil he is. He deserves death in jail with no funeral and a public cremation with his ashes dumped in a local landfill. His denial of hell and of God is his true fault and more innocent children will continue to be kidnapped, tortured and murdered until we literally send these human devils to hell by way of public execution, cremation and spreading their ashes in landfills. Astrobiology does provide these human devils with a chance for forgiveness and redemption by letting them know that their time in hell is only earth's eternity (7 billion years) and then they may get a second chance. The only thing I would tell Brooke's murderer is that 7 billion years goes fast for a atheistic human devil. Brooke's short life here was a journey through hell with her death a true hell on earth experience but she is in heaven and already has been compensated for her pain and suffering. I hope her family can use earthellism to get complete closure for Brooke who they will be reunited with one special day.
I am coming from a different perspective. I live in the Midwest and I know we have our share of weirdos. But, Everytime I see a TV program or an article in the newspaper, it seems these type of people inhabit the states of Oregon, Washington or Northern California. What is it up there, too much rain? I have two teenage children ready for college and I have told them repeatedly stay away from the North Pacific. Why hasn't there been a study on sexual predators in the Northern Pacific? May make an interesting social study for scientists. My heart goes out to the familes and friends and this story has touched me deeply within my soul. God Bless the Wilberger Family.
Greetings, Indeed you are right. I live in the East and every time something like this happens - I wonder, my friends and co-workers wonder..."What goes on in that part of the country to have these horrific things happen?" Certainly, bad things happend to good people all over the worlds, and yet there in the Midwest there seems to be some kind of awful "energy" the gets into people's minds, heart, spirit. I applaud you for recognizing it, and more than that for saying it out loud - so that as you say - some thing might be done to study the issue, circumstances, social conditions that effect this very painful and senseless outcomes to people's lives - and indeed the greater community at large. May there be peace for all.
Why hasn't Dateline posted the last two Friday episodes?
LDog-Ohio, Thank you for bringing that up. I lived in Oregon for a while and had to get out for a variety of reasons, but as a Dateline and Lifetime movie watcher, I noticed the same things. Many, many of the episodes on Lifetime took place in Washington. I don't understand it.
as a proud oregonian, the generalization with which you're painting my home state is really disheartening. please don't tell your children to "stay away from the Pacific Northwest" for college, it's a beautiful place to grow up and to go to school. i've never felt a sense of community like I feel when I'm in Oregon. We're really proud of our state, and it makes me sad that because of isolated situations like these you've told you kids not to come to school here. incidents like this happen everywhere, not just in the northwest. come get to know us before you judge what happens here. as horrible as this feels to say, I've seen plenty of horrific acts like what happen to brooke happening all over the country, sexual predators live in more states than OR, WA, and Northern CA.
I first came across the Wilberger family in a book where I was a contributing author. I was amazed at the love and forgiveness with which the Wilberger family handled everything. Cammy Wilberger wrote the article called Finding Brook in a new book called The Triumph Book. She talks about her beautiful daughter, the pain and loss of the incidents dealing with her kidnap, and the tremendous faith she had throughout all. Watching the Dateline piece did a phenomenal job of getting that across. Thank you for showing doing this story. It definitly is a must see for every parent. In addition, the Wilberger story is one of twenty where people went thru some of the most horrible things and came out the other side helping others. It is the very tone of each story told. To read Cammy's story and others who have turned their tragedy into a triumphant outcome, you can get it at www.thetriumphbook.com
God bless you Cammy, Greg and the rest of the family. The love and faith you showed in every thing you did during this time is heartfelt and certainly comes thru in the story. Sincerely, Laura Pasley
I first came across the Wilberger family in a book where I was a contributing author. I was amazed at the love and forgiveness with which the Wilberger family handled everything. Cammy Wilberger wrote the article called Finding Brook in a new book called The Triumph Book. She talks about her beautiful daughter, the pain and loss of the incidents dealing with her kidnap, and the tremendous faith she had throughout all. Watching the Dateline piece did a phenomenal job of getting that across. Thank you for showing doing this story. It definitly is a must see for every parent. In addition, the Wilberger story is one of twenty where people went thru some of the most horrible things and came out the other side helping others. It is the very tone of each story told. To read Cammy's story and others who have turned their tragedy into a triumphant outcome, you can get it at www.thetriumphbook.com
God bless you Cammy, Greg and the rest of the family. The love and faith you showed in every thing you did during this time is heartfelt and certainly comes thru in the story. Sincerely, Laura Pasley
Earthellism, a philosophy based on astrobiology, can help Brooke's mother deal with the murderer of her daughter. It is unreal that she had to beg her murderer to reveal where he had buried Brooke and in the most unfair and unbelievable part is her thanking him for revealing her location. This reflects the problem of using religion as a philosophy and not understanding that eternity in hell for Brooke's killer means earth's eternity. No one should show mercy for this athestic human devil but he will get a second chance in 7 billion years when our planet is cremated by our sun and his remains may see forgiveness. But not until 7 billion years from now should he receive any comfort from us.