Sylvia Browne and Brandy and Lisa

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

Sylvia's often described as "working on" missing persons/ homicide cases (and more than a few cases of missing bodies, I might add) but she occassionally got asked to solve other crimes.

She was asked to help find a perpetrator in a few rapes, assaults, abductions over the years. I'm putting this case up as an example (and might add a few more) because I think she was just as unhelpful and almost as outrageous in these "minor" crimes as in homicide cases.

...

WILLIAMS: Please welcome Brandy and Lisa to the show.
What happened to the two of you? What happened to the two of you?
BRANDY: Five years ago, we accepted a ride from a stranger.
Ms. BROWNE: Mm.
BRANDY: And he gave us drinks. We accepted drinks from him. And we were drugged and raped for 13 hours. And we're just wondering if you can tell us who--who did this to us. He got away. When he first met him, he was talking on the cell phone to his wife and children.
WILLIAMS: Sylvia, before you say anything, please, could I--give me a second. Because--I'm sorry.
Ms. BROWNE: I will, I will.
WILLIAMS: We got to talk about this for a second. You--at the time this happened, how old were the two of you?
BRANDY: Nineteen years old.
WILLIAMS: Nineteen years old.
LISA (Drugged And Raped By An Unknown Man): Seventeen.
WILLIAMS: Where were you at? Were you--were you at a party, hitchhiking? Where did you meet this guy?
BRANDY: We met him at a restaurant at a parking lot. We were calling friends for a ride, and he walked up. He was in a tie-dyed shirt. He seemed like a really nice man. He was like, `Oh, I'm going that way.'
Ms. BROWNE: They always are. They always seem to be like...
WILLIAMS: And he gave you a ride. And I'm--I'm saying this right now because of--I--the two of you here, there are a lot of young ladies who are watching this show.
BRANDY: Right. Don't ever trust anybody.
Ms. BROWNE: Stupid. Not that you're stupid, but it's...
WILLIAMS: All right. You get in the car--stupid enough, Sylvia, to get in the car.
Ms. BROWNE: I know.
WILLIAMS: And then the guy offers you something to drink, correct?
BRANDY: Right.
WILLIAMS: And--hear me, I am not calling you stupid.
Ms. BROWNE: Date rape drug.
BRANDY: Right, it is stupid, though.
WILLIAMS: There's another young lady, right now, who will learn from you. I'm telling you.
BRANDY: Right, exactly.
WILLIAMS: You get in the car. What made you think this guy would give you something you could trust from him to drink?
BRANDY: He--he was just really--he seemed like a sincere person. And before I actually passed out on the drug, I was looking in the clouds, thanking God that I met this person. I mean, we were talking about religion...
Ms. BROWNE: Oh.
BRANDY: I mean, he seemed...
WILLIAMS: OK, but for the next 13--at one--at one point in time--I guess it was you--he--he beat you to a point that you thought she was dead, correct?
LISA: (Nods)
BRANDY: Right, and the whole 13 hours, he brainwashed me and told me that we killed her together, and that I had to come with him. He put her class ring on my finger. I woke up in his car, not knowing where she was, with his hands on me. I was drugged, and I couldn't move. I tried to run. I tried to shove the keys into the ground. I ripped the keys out of the ignition.
WILLIAMS: The police of course were involved, but of course, they never caught this guy.
BRANDY: Right, no.
WILLIAMS: So then my first question--I got to tell you, my first question is, God, tell me this man did not do this again.
Ms. BROWNE: No, he didn't.
WILLIAMS: He did not?
Ms. BROWNE: No. Unh-unh. No.
WILLIAMS: So therefore, were they random? Had he done this before them and stopped?
Ms. BROWNE: He had done this before, but he hasn't done it since because--let me tell you something, somebody took him out. He's dead.
WILLIAMS: So he's dead?
Ms. BROWNE: He's dead.
BRANDY: Can you tell me his name?
Ms. BROWNE: Yeah, his name was Ted.
WILLIAMS: You knew this man--let me ask, because I guess you overheard one of his conversations where he was talking to his wife?
BRANDY: Right, he was on the phone with his wife and kids, and he was like, `I'll be home soon, babies.' And...
Ms. BROWNE: Oh. Real jewel.
BRANDY: Yeah.
Ms. BROWNE: Well, somebody caught him with, you know, somebody, and just took him out. And that's another case that we're going to probably see on this show that'll be unsolved with, `How in the hell did this guy die?'
BRANDY: Right.
WILLIAMS: And somebody will think he was a good guy.
Ms. BROWNE: Oh, somebody will think--how many times, Montel, will you see these new shows on about a pedophile or murder, and you'll talk to the neighbor, and they say, `Oh, he kept to himself. He was such a nice person, and he seemed to be so nice.'
BRANDY: Right, that's the thing that got me for so long was...
Ms. BROWNE: Yeah.
BRANDY: ...that he was living several lives.
Ms. BROWNE: And they can talk about religion and God.
BRANDY: Yeah, exactly.
Ms. BROWNE: Look at Jim Jones.
WILLIAMS: Right now, I just had a girl who did this about two months ago. Got in a car with some pig just because the guy seemed to talk nice, and I don't know how do we beat this into our daughters. How?
BRANDY: Yeah. Yeah. I was naive and young. And...
Ms. BROWNE: And now they got this thing out about a `talent scout.' Have you heard that? Reality show.
WILLIAMS: Right now, right now, you have women and men doing this together. Couples.
Ms. BROWNE: They even have people dressed up as policemen doing this kind of thing.
WILLIAMS: That's sick.
Yes, ma'am. You had a question for Sylvia.

...

http://www.lexisnexis.com.proxy.wex...S,1,37,5&docsInCategory=77&csi=157447&docNo=5

 

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

Sylvia Browne and Cheryl

WILLIAMS: Please welcome Cheryl to the show. How you doing? Thank you, Cheryl, for being here. Why don't--why don't--why don't you tell Sylvia what happened?
CHERYL: On--let's see, April 29th of the year 2000, I was on my way home from work. I work the midnight shift, so I usually get home about 6:30, 7:00 in the morning. When I pulled up in front of my house, I noticed a car parked in the block before mine. And he--the guy got out of his car, walked down the middle of the street, and I watched him through my side view mirror. Once he got to my car, he stopped, and I sat straight, and I turned to my driver's side window, and I saw the barrel of a gun pointing at my head.
Ms. BROWNE: Oh, my God.
CHERYL: The first shot entered my upper shoulder. That one paralyzed me. I didn't know that at the time, but my legs felt like they, you know, had got big.
Ms. BROWNE: Yeah.
CHERYL: I tried to get out of the car, I couldn't. The second bullet collapsed both lungs, tore through my liver...
Ms. BROWNE: Oh, my God.
CHERYL: ...and went through my diaphragm. When I woke up, chest tubes, feeding tubes.
Ms. BROWNE: Everything.
CHERYL: Everything. I just want to know who did this to me, why--why was it done to me? Right now, I'm still living in fear. This happened five years ago. It's not so much now, because I'm not in the area where I used to live at.
Ms. BROWNE: His name was Jay.
CHERYL: Do you know a last name? Does he know me? Do I know him?
Ms. BROWNE: No, but see, what--this is so bad is because this was mistaken identity.
CHERYL: Oh, my God.
Ms. BROWNE: He was supposed to really take out a female that somebody was--wanted to get rid of, and it was mistaken identity. But, sweetheart, listen to me. What haven't you learned spiritually from this? Everything.
CHERYL: Oh, God, everything.
Ms. BROWNE: That's what I mean.
CHERYL: I'm glad that I'm alive.
Ms. BROWNE: Yeah.
WILLIAMS: Have the police had any leads, any help, nothing?
CHERYL: They had a lead, it fell through. Will I be able to walk again?
Ms. BROWNE: Falteringly. You will be able to, but falteringly.
CHERYL: That's fine. I'm glad I'm alive. I still have excellent...
Ms. BROWNE: Oh, that's what I say.
CHERYL: Yes. Thank you very much. Thank you.
WILLIAMS: Let me take a little break. We'll be back right after this.

 

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

Angel and Diana

[A segment of the show is unavailable because it was aqpparently interrupted by newscast]

WILLIAMS: ...her and her sister had to endure. Take a look at this.
(Excerpts from videotape)
ANGEL (Says She Was Abducted At Gunpoint): It was 1:30 in the morning on September 16th, 1998. I had went over to a friend's house, and when I pulled into his driveway and went up to his door, I--there was no answer. Then I went back to my car and two men approached me. I was pushed in the passenger seat by gunpoint. The gunman got in the back seat of my car, and the other gentleman drove my car.
He asked me for money, jewelry, what have you. I gave him everything that I had on me at the time. He kept on saying that that wasn't enough and he kept on hitting me in the back of the head. And he said--he said, 'Forget this, I'm just going to shoot you.' I remember hearing the gun go off, and it shattered my passenger window. I didn't know that I was shot at the time.
I told them that I had more money and more jewelry at my residence. As we pulled into my driveway, my sister was there, and she jumped out of the house trying to find out what was going on. At the time, my sister was seven months pregnant. The one guy put a gun to her and stuffed her in the trunk, and she was in the trunk at this time when they took me into the house.
And I took them into my room and gave them my jewelry and what other little money that I did have, gave them to them. And at--at this time, my 20-month-old baby had woke up, and she looked at me and she said, 'Mama, pick me up.' And the guy said if I pick her up or if I say anything, that he would shoot her. And I didn't say anything. I just held her hand and just kept on telling her I love her.
They took me out and I begged them, 'Please, don't do this.' And they said, 'You're still coming with me.' They told me I had to the count of 10 to get in the driver's seat and drive away. And they looked at me and they said, 'You're not going to make it anyway.' So I did get in the driver's seat and I drove away. And I want to know who are these people? Why did it happen to me? I want to find out if it was a set-up, and if it was a set-up, I want to know by who.
(End of excerpt)
WILLIAMS: Please welcome Angel and her sister Diana to the show. Welcome them. I should say this, Angel, Diana, the police have no leads now.
ANGEL: None.
WILLIAMS: You even gave them information about where they dropped you off at, right?
ANGEL: Yes.
WILLIAMS: And they were able--they were not able to arrested anybody, nothing.
ANGEL: It's been four years, and nobody has been caught. Nobody has been arrested. I don't know anything. I...
WILLIAMS: I know one of the things that we kind of left out of the--the--the--that video portion update is the fact that you were assaulted, sexually assaulted.
ANGEL: Yes.
WILLIAMS: And I want to--I want to say that because that means there's--there are guys that are out there that...
Ms. BROWNE: Nuts.
WILLIAMS: ...that are a--over the top crazy. I mean, you know, you shoot someone and attempt to kill them, they are bleeding and then you still sexually assault that person.
Ms. BROWNE: That's nuts.
WILLIAMS: That means they will do anything, anything.
Ms. BROWNE: You're lucky to be alive. Did you year anyone or either one of them call the other one 'Phil'?
ANGEL: Not that I remember.
Ms. BROWNE: Which one was a heavier set darker one?
ANGEL: The one that was hitting me with the butt of the gun.
Ms. BROWNE: Right. Because he was the craziest one, you know what I'm saying?
ANGEL: Right.
Ms. BROWNE: He was the craziest one. Now which one was the more slender one? The m...
ANGEL: He was the driver.
Ms. BROWNE: Yeah. Because a--they're both nuts, but what I'm saying was the darker one was the one I was more concerned about, this Phil. The other one's name was--he went by initials of R.J. So...
WILLIAMS: Was this a set-up, Sylvia, or was this just random?
Ms. BROWNE: No. This was, unfortunately, a set-up. And it was someone that was connected in a way to the sister. And that really, really bothers me.
ANGEL: Who set it up?
Ms. BROWNE: I don't know. It was a male that she was either connected to or close to or whoever.
WILLIAMS: You could have dissed. And when you say connected to, this could have been somebody she could have angered somewhere or...
Ms. BROWNE: Right, right. Yeah.
WILLIAMS: Will this be solved?
Ms. BROWNE: Oh, yeah. Thi--this definitely will be solved. Was there any problem going on with any of the husbands here? Because it seems like there was a...
ANGEL: Neither of us were married at the time.
Ms. BROWNE: Didn't you know someone that was about 5'10" with sort of brown hair, large brown eyes, medium olive complexion?
WILLIAMS: Caucasian or African-American?
Ms. BROWNE: No, Caucasian.
WILLIAMS: OK.
Ms. BROWNE: I think this person was knowing you or connected to you in some way.
WILLIAMS: Who did the setting up--up.
Ms. BROWNE: Setting up.
WILLIAMS: Stop right there. Because, you know, if you just came up with a name when she said that, then you ought to start thinking about what that name is about.
Ms. BROWNE: Yes.
WILLIAMS: OK. Let me take a break. When we come back, we're going to meet a woman who fears that she may be the victim of a dangerous stalker. Give you guys a little time to think about that. We'll be back right after this.
(Announcements)
WILLIAMS: Well, during the break, you had some more you wanted to say to Diana, right? Diana.
Ms. BROWNE: Yeah.
WILLIAMS: Go ahead.
Ms. BROWNE: You know, like I was saying to--this person that you were involved with--and he had a lot of problems. And the only reason I'm doing this is to validate this, OK, and you know that he did.
DIANA (Says She Was Assaulted And Kidnapped At Gunpoint): Yeah.
Ms. BROWNE: OK. And then you, more or less, got rid of him, right?
DIANA: Yes.
Ms. BROWNE: Because of his problems, OK. Because anyone who is, let's say, on drugs is going to do anything. So in other words, if I'm on drugs--God forbid, I never have been--but let's say--and then I'm going to get him to do anything for me, do you see what I mean?
DIANA: Yeah.
Ms. BROWNE: Do you see what I mean?
WILLIAMS: Another druggie.
DIANA: Yeah.
Ms. BROWNE: Yeah.
WILLIAMS: And those guys were--I think both of you thought that they were high, correct?
DIANA: I...
ANGEL: She didn't really meet them.
WILLIAMS: You didn't meet them.
ANGEL: I did. I was...
WILLIAMS: You did. What did you think?
ANGEL: Oh, yeah, I thought they were on something.
Ms. BROWNE: Oh, yeah.
WILLIAMS: OK. So I think that...
Ms. BROWNE: Yeah.
WILLIAMS: Go back and take a look at that and maybe offer that up to the police.
Ms. BROWNE: Go back and look at this dark-haired guy that I was describing to you, brown hair...
ANGEL: Montel...
Ms. BROWNE: ...you know, because he's the one that had something to do with this Phil and this R.J. or whatever his name is.
DIANA: OK.
WILLIAMS: Yes, ma'am.
ANGEL: The night that they took me to the hospital, they found out not only was I shot, but they also found out I was pregnant with my son, who is three now, and he was born with hydrocephalus. Is that caused from all the trauma?
Ms. BROWNE: No. No. No. No. This is a--some di--most of the time, what doctors will tell you is it's a genetic or congenital disorder. So no, it's not having anything hydrocephalic--no.
WILLIAMS: OK.
Ms. BROWNE: No.
WILLIAMS: Yes, ma'am, you had a question for Sylvia.

 

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

And here is a missing body case, where the investigation might not have been at stake because the killer was long caught, but which I find descpicable nevertheless. I'm still working on finding the names of those involved.

MELANIE (Mother Was Murdered On April 28, 2001): I was 12 years old when my mom married John. During their marriage, my mom had two more daughters, my little sisters, Emily and Mandy. Even though my mom and John looked happy, their relationship was very rocky. Because of John's violent behavior, my mom got a restraining order against him, and then they separated. Their relationship turned deadly on the night of April 28th, 2001. John kicked in my mom's basement door to gain entry to her bedroom where she was sleeping. Police say he choked her and stabbed her repeatedly in the chest, and my mother died approximately 2 AM. My little sister found her body the next morning. I know John murdered my mom. He's serving two life sentences for this crime. And what I need to know is what triggered that in him. Why?
(End of excerpt)
WILLIAMS: Please welcome Melanie to the show. Hi, Melanie. I--you know--and--and sometimes I like to go back and give a little bit of detail on this, because what--what's so heinous about this crime is that, you know, your mother slept, I guess, in the downstairs part of the house, correct?
MELANIE: Yes, she did, in the basement.
WILLIAMS: And--and the girls, her daughters, slept up above.
MELANIE: Yeah, they slept upstairs.
WILLIAMS: And so every night, or some nights, one of the girls would go down and sleep in bed with mom.
MELANIE: Oh, yeah, there was nothing unusual about one of the kids getting up and going and getting in the bed with their mom.
WILLIAMS: On this particular night...
Ms. BROWNE: No one...
WILLIAMS: ...he walked in, murdered their mother. It was dark, so the younger sister went down--right, younger sister or older sister? Which one?
MELANIE: My younger sister, but she's the oldest of the two.
WILLIAMS: The oldest of the two girls went down, climbed in the bed with mom, not noticing any difference.
Ms. BROWNE: Not knowing that she was--right.
WILLIAMS: And then wakes up at 10:00 in the morning...
Ms. BROWNE: Oh.
WILLIAMS: ...to find mom. So it's a good thing this guy...
Ms. BROWNE: Well, you know that he was jealous. Did you know that...
MELANIE: Oh, yeah.
Ms. BROWNE: ...that he was jealous. He was a jealous maniac. I mean, she couldn't even go to the store and do--go like this at somebody that he thought she wasn't playing around with them. No, they got the right person. He did it.
MELANIE: Yeah.
WILLIAMS: But what was the reason? What--what was the flash?
Ms. BROWNE: The f--the--the--that he thought she was having an affair with somebody.
MELANIE: Yeah. Well, he said that, and--and that makes a lot of sense, but I guess what I really want to know is what happened between them when nobody else was around. I know that my mom got up out of that bed when he kicked that door in. There are some questions that the police can't answer. There are some things that I've stated that the police don't agree with.
Ms. BROWNE: Well, because he pushed her back on the bed.
MELANIE: Yeah.
Ms. BROWNE: She did get up, but he pushed her back on the bed, and then he stabbed her.
MELANIE: But at what point did her soul leave her body?
Ms. BROWNE: Oh, right away, honey. You know, thank God. God is...
MELANIE: Did she cross over right away...
Ms. BROWNE: Absolutely.
MELANIE: ...and then come back or did she stay for a while?
Ms. BROWNE: No, no, she--no, she--she's over there. She's over there.
MELANIE: And are the butterflies and all the signs that she's sending all of us...
Ms. BROWNE: Oh, yeah, it's from her. The butterflies, the coins, the--you know, the feath--all that stuff. All the scents that you get, it's from her.
WILLIAMS: You had one big question. I've got to take a break, but that was--your mother's wish was that she raise her younger sisters. Is she doing the right job?
Ms. BROWNE: Oh, absolutely. Sh--of course she is. She would do it anyway.
MELANIE: Yeah.
Ms. BROWNE: You would do it anyway.
WILLIAMS: Let me take a break. We'll be back right after this.
(Announcements)

 

[UnrepentantSinner]

Did you transcribe that yourself? Kudos to you if so.

 

[ExMinister]

More tragedies and awful stories. If I was SB - and had a conscience, I think hearing just ONE of these would have stopped me long ago.

Nice work, Eeney. I've only watched SB on Montel a few times - had no idea there were so many of these too.

 

[Sasha]

It's so galling - from all these stories she tells them absolutely nothing that's helpful. Her replies are gibberish. I'll never understand how people can continue to clamor for her attention.

 

[DrDisco]

She always quickly pops up with a first name but never a last. I know why, obviously.

But how would a woo explain that? What is it about last names that are so difficult to gain via the ether? And addresses? Why can Browne see people (dark skinned; thin; etc.) but can't tell you something as simple as 123 Main St. Miami, FL.?

What a con. What a shameless con.

 

[UnrepentantSinner]

Last night on Coast to Coast AM there was a caller who made me hopeful for a moment but then dashed my hopes with some of her later comments about Sylvia. Art has returned for his year end show predictions and this woman hadn't been able to get in but she did last night during open phones. She predicted that Sylvia would be exposed as a fraud during 2008. I smiled, but then she and current host George Noory got into a brief discussion about how she had been so accurate and over the past few years had seemed to be off her game and how on Montel she seemed to be telephoning her schtick in.. No mention was made of how she might have been a fraud all along, just that she wasn't "as accurate" as a few years ago and Noory never repeated the callers prediction that she might be exposed as a fraud.

I know that a lot of members on this forum are quite cynical when it comes to creduloids, be they paranormal, supernatural or whatever, but this woman is exactly who we should be reaching out to try and educate. Sylvia hasn't had an off couple of recent years, she's utterly full of **** and we should be reaching out to these sort of "wait a minute" believers to encourage them to think more critically about the claims of folks like the frog-voiced claw monster.

 

[Niobe]

WILLIAMS: So he's dead?
Ms. BROWNE: He's dead.

That's a positively horrendous thing to say to a victim of a cold case. It's evident there are not many angles to investigate but to stop them from investigating at all is just... inhuman. Forbid they ever come across him again.

 

[Magic 9-Ball]

Wow, that's epic. Thanks for posting.

Every additional story never fails to make me hate her more, if that's possible. And those already tragic, scarred people have to believe information without any validity. His name was "Jay". Right.

 

[Rocko]

That is absolutely vile. That someone has the balls to act like this to people who have been through sex attacks etc - well, it just takes my breath away.

 

[sinclairmcevoy]

Heartless, no conscience or regard for the impact of her statements, be they right (ha) or wrong. Nice work Eeny.
If SB were ever abducted-kidnapped I wonder if any psychics would be able to find her? Or would they want to?

 

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

That's a positively horrendous thing to say to a victim of a cold case. It's evident there are not many angles to investigate but to stop them from investigating at all is just... inhuman. Forbid they ever come across him again.

It's disgusting on so many levels. For one, it stops the victims from pursuing the case, which is not only very cruel to them but might translate to a rapist on the streets being free to do this to yet another woman. And another woman and another woman, until he is caught.

Maybe she thought she was being kind to them by putting their fear of him to rest and making them feel that he got what he deserved...but it's not kind unless it's true. She has no buisness telling victims anything unless it's true.

Wow, that's epic. Thanks for posting.

Every additional story never fails to make me hate her more, if that's possible. And those already tragic, scarred people have to believe information without any validity. His name was "Jay". Right.

You're welcome. And he's dead. Right.

Heartless, no conscience or regard for the impact of her statements, be they right (ha) or wrong. Nice work Eeny.
If SB were ever abducted-kidnapped I wonder if any psychics would be able to find her? Or would they want to?

Thanks, sinclair. I agree. They deserve justice and compassion and get lied to and victimized again by this vulture.


I've tried to follow up on all of these but have had no luck so far. I know rape victims and minors usually aren't named in newspaper accounts, at least in America, so that could account for it. Even so, I've found nothing. Could someone else take a look? I'd appreciate it very much.

 

[LazyPint]

Aren't all these "psychic" shows and appearances always disclaimer-ed with "Entertainment Purposes Only"?

How can there be any entertainment in these lies and fantasies. "Oh, sorry about him still being alive and all, but remember it was for entertainment purposes only". Sickening.

 

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

Not on The Montel Williams Show. Montel Williams has personally said that it's "entertainment" but his show carries no such disclaimer and neither do any of Sylvia Browne's other outlets.

 

[creativecritter41]

Has anyone had a look at this? Veeeery interesting. Is her ex being truthful or does he want a piece of the pie? Probably both.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=eCSBwbvx_AI&feature=related

 

[RSLancastr]

Has anyone had a look at this? Veeeery interesting. Is her ex being truthful or does he want a piece of the pie? Probably both.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=eCSBwbvx_AI&feature=related

That is me doing the interviewing.

All four of those segments on YouTube are from this article on my site:

Interview: Gary and Ree Dufresne.

Although I obviously cannot get inside the man's head, he seemed to be very straightforward.

 

[creativecritter41]

Wow, really? Nice. I've always thought she had an arrogant attitude. I'll have a look at your site, thanks. Before I do, may I ask if it was you that looked him up for the sole purpose of slamming her?

Edit: Never mind answering the question, you've answered all of them on your site. I never heard about the boy that she claimed was dead! Tsk, tsk... what a con.

 

[RSLancastr]

I looked him up to get his take on Sylvia Browne. The site is about her.