The only incident Bernadette recounted was a remark Kirsten made about her skis. If they want it known they will come forth themselves and tell it or contact you. According to her attorney, Charles James, juveniles convicted of murder in California serve an average of four to six years. Im sure Kirsten had her moments, no right to be Savagely Murdered. She hugged people all the time was a ( social butterfly). Bernadette was just as nice as we were on swim team together growing up. I do believe she was real nice to those she did like and her friends. She is paying for it like they said in her chess pie recipe. If it hadnt of been Kirsten, itd been her childhood friend, or someone else, cause Bern has Jealousy Issues. And, they realized, the problem didnt lie only with Bernadette. Sorry but the parents are to blame. Not true, you said you knew Bernadette and Kirsten both! Tori spelling who actually played Kristen Costas was so incredibly unlikable on screen that she almost felt as though she deserved what she got. Remember teen girls will be teen girls, and they grow out of caddiness when they get older, but Kirsten never got that chance so so horrible. They are Cat Mean. How do you know she was mean? So Vanessa I answer your questions. Thats a different situation, no one liked those other kids as well. Same for Karen Severson and Laura Doyle theyre cold blooded killers to, Missy was Kirstens age, this happened not long after Kirsten was Murdered. According to People, Protti attended her funeral just like everyone else in her school. You need to get help for that, sweetie. GG was the mutual friend of Kirsten and Bernadette, GG doesnt want anything to do with Bernadette again ever. Those who say Kirsten was a Mean Girl clearly didnt know her, or she didnt like them with (good Reasons). There have been a couple people in my youth that I thought were extremely mean to me. Two scenes that totally sold me on how convincing the role of Angela was played was when Angela was being dropped off for the ski trip and, in front of the other kids, Angela's mother goes to clean Angela's face with a handkerchief. Sad because K had it all as I saw it. Thanks for visiting and for supporting a small business! They were always so nice to all of us (Kirstens friends) and I have fond memories of them, enjoyed thier home, nice home, and BTW Kirstens house wasnt any Mansion, it was beautiful Ranch home with a nice back yard, and Bernadettes house was just as nice as Kirstens if not nicer. The murder of her daughter, Berit says, was premeditated from the moment of the phone call. Im sorry.. Is it so hard to do without hurt someone? I agree Bernadette should of at least got 20 years like (Karen Severson and Laura Doyle) murder of Missy Availa, that happened a year after Kirstens like 5 hours South of us. (The misfits) we really didnt see them as Misfits. She once told Kirsten to shut up in biology and thats why everyone thought shed done it. Whoever wrote this article is not being honest. Ruelas' death stunned Miramonte students, teachers and parents. I hardly knew this girl. Bernadette is hated to all over so she has answered for it. Kirsten wasnt a Bully. That didnt happen that way. In northern italy they have blonde hair fair and blue eyes . People make their own reputation and choices in life whether they are bad or good. Its possible they forgave her and moved on. Cause Bern for weeks went on and on about Kirsten to where her friends kept getting tired of hearing it. Much more middle class. You are one OBSESSED weirdo. Although the attack was witnessed by Alex Arnold, he could not see the killers face, and chasing the killers Pinto did not yield results. I just didnt bother with them. Oh youre so pretty and popular and amazing I think thats what Kirsten meant by her friend getting weird Then she killed her rather than have Kirsten tell everyone she was a lesbian. Teens are teens. Bernadette was snotty to. Bernadette was described as homely. Kirsten Costas, a 15-year-old teen living in the small suburban California town of Orinda, was stabbed to death by her classmate Bernadette Protti, then also 15, on June 23, 1984. Oakland Tribune Wednesday, September 5, 1984, Oakland Tribune Saturday, October 6, 1984. Do I believe Kirsten was a Mean girl (bully) not at all, I believe she had those she didnt like and may of been Snooty towards that got on her nerves. When Kirsten approached the Pinto she looked inside and said blandly, Oh, its you.. Her parole would have gone ahead sooner apparently but in 1992 one of the parole board Victor Wisehart voted to keep her in jail as she showed an inability to control her anger and he felt that she was still a danger to the public, she had had a violent altercation with a boyfriend in the prison/school system, he said there was a hidden trigger that switched on when she didnt get her own way! If you did your research, you would know that Kirsten didnt bully Bernadette. Kirsten was Cute and funny from my Standpoint. Bernadette then drove Kirsten to an empty car-park and appears to have confessed feelings of admiration for her. Killing is still not an excuse but Id have to say the real losers out of this situation are Bernadettes parents. People who grew up in Orinda and say its snobs were mostly people who werent socially accepted growing up, and they made choices that others didnt make and cussed and talked dirty and skipped school and always in trouble, and hung out with outcasts, and they became outcasts by association. Youre either Bernadette or her Sister, or a Close friend like Berns BFF. The bullying, the lies, the jealousy and competition is so toxic and they will murder your soul. Maybe you need (a Life of your own). She knew what the students there would do to her. Whats worse is how the media played into all of this and have portrayed Kirsten as a girl who deserved this kind of horrific attack, nobody deserves to be tricked, stalked and stabbed in cold blood at 15 out any age. You got back at her more than enough, its best to leave her alone on other sites. It's a remake of 1994's A Friend To Die For, which became a popular rerun for Lifetime under the Retronym Death of a Cheerleader, so they used that title for the remake. I watched the movie again (both versions) and I have to agree with Miss Kiwi. Sweet Melancholy my tail. Her BFF said the same exact thing abour Kirsten I never seen her bully. I feel if it was true bullying she would be afraid to be near Kirsten and these people who call Kirsten a snot and said she was a Bully and deserved it, Karens right youre the Bullies cause you know Zilch about any of this. Judging from your malicious, reprehensible comments and utter ignorance and delusion, your moral fiber is rotten to the core, and I pity any child subjected to your skewed guidance as their moral fiber will no doubt succumb to decay. No one really cares why. Whats been done has been done. The motive: she feared that the murdered girl would tell other schoolmates she was weird. Its all coming back to haunt her for what she did. She clearly wasnt happy with them and their old, unfashionable selves either, adding that they didnt give her, their 6th child, the attention she so desperately wanted. So she could never uplift Bernadette at all. Killing her just because you were jealous? I cant picture Kirsten being Mean or Rude, so hard to picture that one. Everyone was shocked when a sixteen-year-old girl was convicted of second-degree murder in the stabbing of a classmate. We had lonely girls who were bullied and goth girls and loose girls. You the one telling about the Bullied girls who were accused of the Crime. Yes, Death of a Cheerleader is based on a true story. Why are you so focused on what they looked like? Maybe it wasnt a big national story at the time, and was more of a California Bay area story (Im from Illinois). Its sad, thats the biggest problem in this world? She refused to. Death of a Cheerleader is one of the most famous movies of real-life murder cases involving cheerleaders. Unfortunately, no one was home as nobody answered the call. The Petaluma Argus-Courier Tuesday, June 26, 1984, San Francisco Examiner Thursday, June 28, 1984, San Francisco Examiner Friday, June 29, 1984. Asking a butt of yourself getting it. She didnt Bully Bernadette, Just was irritated cause she lied to her, and her mom about the Party, and all. Alex offered to drop Kirsten home, as the Pinto followed. Yes its ok to talk, but run it into the ground, it gets old after awhile. Snotty people blamed her publicly and without mercy.. shame on them, you know who you are. At the end of the struggle, Kirsten was stabbed twice in the stomach and twice in the back. If we all got along with everyone then it would be boring. However, we should leave our readers with the thought that if Bernadette had committed the crime today, she would not have gotten off as easily as she did back in 1985. People who need to put others down to feel validated are the ones with the mental problems and theres no excuse for that type of behavior the ppl saying that this girl or any girl is ugly they need to get checked maybe they are the real lesbians lol. You have no one to blame but yourselves for being unnattractive, fat, disliked, broke loserswhatever your issues are. She was friendly, but kind of Arrogant as well. Kirsten understandably didnt appreciate the fact that she was lured out of her house under false pretences, so she left Bernadettes car. So those who say she was a real mean girl, dont know, cause I heard differently. Cant see her making fun of anyone. So she was a Bully, she is not here to defend herself any longer, so youre the Bully now. I could call you out but I wont. Would you say the same if Bernadette did suicide? While not saying that her daughter had never tried marijuana, Berit insisted that Kirsten did not have her own supply. All of the pictures featured here are photos taken from newspapers, not the authors private collection. No there were several girls bullied, but Bernadette wasnt one. The movie starred Tori Spelling and Kellie Martin and was released in 1994. What? She was convicted in 1985 and sentenced to nine years, on a charge of second-degree murder. , Your email address will not be published. Another lesson is parents should not have kids too late in life. Most teen girls are smart alecky and mean. If anyone was pushed to the brink, it was Kirsten, but instead of reacting violently, she fled from Bernadettes car. To them maybe. Its time to move on and stop rehashing alll this. Kirstens mother was trying not to get sick. One day after Kirstens family had left, she was picked up by someone in a Pinto. Friends said she was a glowing part of the student body with a warm and welcoming personality. Guys can be, girls are Worse. This is the true story of 15-year old Kirsten Costas who was stabbed to death by a classmate, Bernadette Protti, on June 23, 1984. A popular 15-year-old high school cheerleader described as an "All American girl" was stabbed to death on a neighbor's doorstep, apparently by another teenage girl. "Her smile; you couldn't miss her smile. The prosecution failed to prove that Bernadette had premeditated Kirsten's homicide. Those girls had a clique. Bernadette was to in a (round about way) She wasnt as popular as Kirsten, she desired to have the things Kirsten had. She was mean and Stuck up also. To much detailed stuff if you ask me. She claimed she followed in the Pinto only to make sure Kirsten got home safely. Also, Kirsten was upper middle class and lived in a less expensive area than Bernadette. Anonymous, Kirsten had a bigger heart than people knew about. [Bernadette] had plenty of time to change her mind. The Costases charged that Bernadettes confession was riddled with lies that no one would use an eighteen-inch knife to cut a tomato and that Bernadette, casually dressed, never planned on taking Kirsten to a party. I know a gal who knew someone who knew Kirsten. One got drunk at a Party you told about on here, and the others who were not Noticed and the 2 blamed. The juvenile code dictates a sentence of confinement to the age of 25. She wasnt a fan of ( stupidity) by any means at all. Everybody who knew her just loved her well most everybody. Bernadette is Sick. so dont mock, offer to help thus build bridges. Bernadette made a horrible decision by ending a girls life, if she left her alone, B wouldnt be in the mess she got herself in, she kept pushing for her friendship. Kirsten was beautiful. That movie was terrible and blamed the victim for her own murder. I believe Kirsten was going to out her for being weird and tell her weird conversation to her friends and put her at risk to be the butt of jokes. If there was people in need, in the Bobbies we helped those people.. if someone didnt have nice clothes we were theyre Secret Santa at Christmas time If someone wasnt as smart, (we didnt knock them down), we helped them Kirsten did to,(so did Bernadette) In fact, Bernadette wanted to help the poor. that HS was a tough place especially for girls. I wasnt in the Popular, but those girls still talked to me and was friendly with me. Thats my belief. I hear Kirsten was a Sweet Adorable girl, and I heard she was a Bully. I think she had a crush on Kirsten and was terrified of Kirsten telling everyone she was a lesbian. I hope shes not sick esp. You call the pic of her double chin better looking? Meanwhile, Kirsten had died of her wounds. Both girls attended Miramonte High School in Orinda, California. Her sister at the bank dont discuss Bernadette, or discloses her whereabouts, she just says Bernadette dont wish to be located by former classmates, friends or co workers, she has a very private life now and wants to be left alone. It has her sister cutting vegetables with a ridiculously long knife too, and Kirstens parents were right who cuts up vegetables with a knife that long that they keep in the car? Donnah Winger murder case: What happened to convict Mark Winger? Considering the evidence presented here, I must conclude that the prosecution has failed to prove its contention of premeditation. I didnt know Kirsten but a friend of mine knew her well, she was a (Bubbly) girl and yes she was (self absorbed) what teen girl isnt. Kirstens friendship meant so much to her, she would go on and on about it. Her mom and brother had traveled to Los Angeles to escape the smoke from the Camp Fire. She is what people who know psychology well, especially Criminal Psychology, a Sociopath! She looked like a nice person that had a good life ahead of her. Like you said, she is paying for it and has been for years. Why are you victim shaming ? Randall admitted that he felt no sympathy for Kirsten and that is clearly evident in the movie as he deliberately portrayed Kirstens character as an insufferable, unlikable bully bitch in order for Bernadettes character to come across as sympathetic as possible because he identified with her. I dont believe Kirsten was a Bully. Did you know the 2 Accussed? Kirstens house was Smaller than Bernadettes, how was Kirsten all around was she friendly? Cynthia Morgan biography: boyfriend, sickness, net worth, what happened, latest pictures. Bernadette was not a nice girl, if she was then shed never of killed Kirsten, shed left her alone and went on. I so disagree with some of the posters. Until something happens. I heard also Kirsten was just Self Absorbed to, but not a Bully. I just believe Bernadette pushed to hard on Kirsten and it weirded out. As I wrote to you in a previous comment, if anyone was pushed to the brink, it was Kirsten, but instead of reacting violently like Bernadette did, she ran from Bernadettes car. What if what you and I perceive as not nice clothes were as nice as she opened bc her family wasnt wealthy? Can you give examples of Kirsten bullying Bernadette? But when Berit Costas walked away from the witness stand, slowing her gait as she passed by Bernadette, the defendant turned away and never looked straight ahead again. Due to Bernadettes name change, she has seemingly disappeared from the public eye. Setting up a fake meeting and lying about a Party is Strange and Weird. So Bernadette helped her out to gain acceptance. Even if Kirsten was stuck up and a Bully! Normal teenagers they like I said, were crazy so to speak, and meant no harm towards Nancy and them, just harmless teasing, they were crazy like that. We dont care how mean she was,:sure you werent so much a Saint yourself at Miramonte. They laughed, I think Kirsten was only teasing Nancy and Joanna they didnt mean any harm with it. Thats a much more obvious motive. Blaming Kirstens parents for her death is the epitome of classlessness and disrespect. Never wished Kirstens unfortunate death, she may of been misunderstood, but she never talked to me, neither did Bernadette. Im sure at Reunions they are. this is one reason that I really have a hard time with lifetime movies. I never saw her actually bully and some said they cant picture Kirsten ever being unkind Kirsten was loved by many very many. We get it now, we already got it. She was friends with my sister, came around our house a few times. It seemed like Bernadette needed intense psychotherapy for her issues. Obviously we didnt know B was the killer. You sympathize with a murderer and deliberately perpetuate lies about her victim under different aliases, yet you are telling someone else to get help? The things that got me mad was it hurt and I couldnt change like looks or money or popularity or things," Protti added later on. Bernadette protti longed to be popular and she decided to kill an innocent person just because she couldnt have things get way.thats sad. Oh please bet you were t any better. She fit in and was as popular as Kirstens 2 close friends (Diane and Stacy), Bernadette wanted more. As I said, its possible Bernadette snapped and found the knife by chance; but if she hadnt of been so aggressive towards Kirsten to be her friend, she wouldnt of needed that knife. Who are you to tell the judge what to say or do at that time? After her release, she moved to another state and changed her name. I was happy enough at school without popularity. She is evil and a Monster (with a very dark Soul). We are all different. I cant assimilate anyone on the appearance to defend a so-called bullying. That would disturb most people. It was a fictional depiction loosely based on Kirsten and Bernadette. The tragedy is some of you morons cannot get through your head that you cannot make the world like you!!! Nicolle Devenish Wallace, former White House Communications Director and spokesperson for John McCain for President. We arent all made to be popular. If Bernadette was so Sweet, why did she watch 2 girls take the blame? Did you know the other 2 girls that were accused? I didnt kill them. If you liked this article, please share it! Even if she was, no right to murder her. It took me 2 decades to deal with it, couldnt before. No one deserves to be murdered. Kirsten wasnt a Bully, she was Conceited and stuck up. I was even accused of being (Stuck up) We were all just Misunderstood. I just read on You tube on her recipe Video where she is sick now. Even if Kirsten was a Snot, she would of grown out of it long before now. The paint was peeling off, and it put a lot of pressure on her sensitive self-esteem as she never imagined living in such a place. All other photos are from the Miramonte High School yearbook, 1985. She would of never Confessed but FBI got involved, and were closing in on her. The people implying that Kristen had it coming, or whoever else blamed her parents, are, in life, the jealous Bernadette types. Skylar Neese: The tragic story of the teen murdered by her friends. I forgive her to a degree, but wont accept what she did to Kirsten, she will live with that the rest of her life. I just think Bernadette had underlying issues and pressure on her to get to the top, but that was no right for murder. I must further observe that we have a kind of "Alice in Wonderland" situation here. My kid knows better than to bully others. Move on. Lifetimes Death of a Cheerleader has all the ingredients to make it a perfect addition to the networks roster. Bernadette is a Pig. I got cut off before I had a chance to say anything else. They dont even bother to investigate her alibi to see if she was telling the truth? I didnt know her, but had a friend whos Facebook friend did. She is in her 50s currently, and it seems like she has gotten a fresh start at life. The Californian, Salinas, California Monday, June 25, 1984. I been bullied to. Kirsten had an Engaging type Personality, that Movie was off, and (Pro Bernadette). Who cant see that part? Powered by WordPress.com VIP. Even if Kirsten was mean, it still doesnt justify killing her. Its patent that Bernadette had built-up animosity towards Kristen. Both were members of the swim team, but Costas was reportedly much more popular than Protti, according to the Associated Press in 1984. San Francisco Examiner newspaper headline from June 25, 1984. You cant force somebody to be friends with you. I was raised to treat others with respect. Bernadette took a lie detector test as they questioned students, whose results were inconclusive, proving neither guilt nor innocence. If Kirsten was going to out Bernadette she would of told Alex Arnold all about her. Like I said, Ms.Stuff, D and Beauty and the Beast, today could be the Life of the Party if they wanted to be. She was snooty to or maybe just misunderstood. I dealt with it so I know. Was Kirsten and her friends a lot of fun to hang with, and did they party?