by Rachel Doherty

Created on: February 08, 2008

After viewing the secretly taped footage of Joran van der Sloot telling his "buddy" (an undercover reporter) all about what happened the night of Natalee Hollaway's death, there is no doubt that the killer will be identified. Although he claims he did not mean to kill her, van der Sloot's actions during and since that night show that he bears a great deal of culpability in her death. We first must remember that anytime someone tells a story, they have a tendency to portray their actions in the best possible light. That being said, van der Sloot's own words paint him as an arrogant and selfish individual with little regard for anyone other than himself and no regard for human life.

First, he states that Natalee was clearly very intoxicated when he met her. However, he still thought it appropriate to buy her a shot of strong liquor to add to her inebriation. In describing Natalee, van der Sloot uses the term "whore" and says he only spent time with her because he wanted to have sex with her. In hindsight, he is painting her in that light in his own mind so that he can in some way lessen her humanity, to help him live with what he did. Although he may have had sex with her, I have my doubts as to whether she was conscious for it. If someone is so drunk that they are going into convulsions, they are not in any state to consent to sex. I believe that it was because of this date rape that occurred that he did not seek medical help for Natalee when she did start convulsing. In one of his earlier statements, when bragging about his case being dismissed, he tells his friend that the law cannot touch him now, even if they find her body with his sperm in it. Later, however, he does not seem so sure of himself. He thinks out loud that he will be in a lot of trouble if the body is ever found, but then smiles to himself as he says that will never happen.

The son of a judge, van der Sloot knew his life would be ruined by a rape conviction. So he made the conscious choice to get rid of the problem. I do not believe that Natalee was dead when he chose to call his friend instead of calling for an ambulance. In fact, it is unlikely that she was dead when the friend took her out on the boat and threw her into the ocean. She could have been passed out or in an alcohol-induced coma. Van der Sloot chose to believe she was dead without attempting CPR or even checking for a pulse because that was the easiest way out for him. Get rid of the body and get rid of the problem.

I doubt whether justice will ever truly be served for Natalee Hollaway. There is still no body, no physical evidence to build a case on. What these tapes provide, however, is some idea of what happened to this young lady. Van der Sloot's arrogance in threatening to sue the law enforcement of Aruba and get his "big compensation check" shows that he truly believed that no one would ever find out what really happened. At least now he will be convicted in the court of public opinion. At least now he cannot just forget what he did and go on with his life. For the rest of his life people will remind him of what he did. His actions will haunt him forever. May he never rest in peace. May Natalee rest in peace.

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