Steven Powell diaries show years-long obsession with daughter-in-law

Prosecutors wanted to show the jury the depth of Steven Powell's voyeuristic habits and how obsessed he was with pornography.

Eventually, the judge ruled that any passage related to Susan Powell could not be admitted during the trial. The only passage that the judge allowed was one in which Steven Powell wrote about how he "likes taking video shots of pretty girls in shorts and skirts, beautiful women of every age."

After Josh Powell killed his two sons in February, sheriff's investigators went to interview Steven Powell in jail.

"Steven said he did not want to talk with us about Josh and told us that he blamed the sheriff's office, West Valley City police and CPS for what happened," according to police reports released Wednesday. Another report noted that Powell told detectives they were employed by a "'hostile agency' who was at fault for his son's and grandsons' deaths."

Susan Powell's family believes that because of the strong attraction Steven Powell had for her, he likely knows what happened to her.

Susan Powell is presumed dead. Her husband is suspected of her death but he was never arrested or charged.

Josh Powell murdered his sons four days after a court hearing in Washington in which a judge decided not to immediately return his sons to him. He was ordered to undergo a psychosexual evaluation after West Valley police made the court aware that images of cartoon pornography depicting incest had been found on one of Josh Powell's laptops.

In the newly released documents, Pierce County investigators noted that Steven Powell did not have phone contact with Josh Powell during those four days between that court hearing and the murders.

In the nearly 400 pages of police reports released Wednesday, investigators noted the bank transactions that Josh Powell made prior to the killings, how his friends and family did not notice any signs of anger or depression, and the donations he made to Goodwill Industries, including children's toys and books. Some of those books were LDS themed, such as "Inside the Strength of the Lord, the Life and Teachings of James E. Faust." That book was apparently given as a gift and the words "To Susan and Josh" were written on the inside sleeve.

The reports also document the day when Charlie and Braden were taken out of Steven and Josh Powell's Puyallup home and placed into state protective custody. In one report, police wrote that Josh Powell was "never upset" when the state took the boys and never hugged them or said goodbye.

Wednesday was the second day that police reports regarding either the Susan Powell or Steven Powell investigations were released.

Tuesday, the 3rd District Court in Salt Lake City released hundreds of redacted West Valley police reports and search warrants related to their investigation into Susan Powell disappearance. The documents show that investigators began treating her case as a possible abduction and murder within days after she was reported missing, and they focused on Josh Powell.

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