Bob

Bob, also referred to as Dr. Manitow, is a physician in Judy Manitow’s family whose hostility toward Joanne Doss helps define the risks surrounding the disclosure of Joanne’s abuse of Becky. The evidence presents Bob through Judy’s account: he believes Joanne’s decision to stop tutoring Becky caused her to fail math and undermined her chances of getting into a good college. Judy says that telling Bob might have made Joanne die sooner, a fear that distinguishes his anger from a threat he is shown carrying out.

Identity and Family Context

Bob is identified in the family’s later circumstances as Dr. Manitow, who is seeking work after the move to La Jolla. The available account offers little direct description of his daily life or personality beyond his professional identity and Judy’s report of his intense resentment toward Joanne. That resentment is bound to his concern over Becky’s schooling: Bob believes Joanne refused to continue tutoring her, and connects that refusal to Becky’s failure in math and diminished college prospects.

Resentment and the Withheld Disclosure

Judy explains that Bob hates Joanne over what he believes happened to Becky’s tutoring. The grievance is specific and consequential in his eyes: it links Joanne’s alleged refusal to Becky’s math failure and the possibility that she will not get into a good college. The account establishes Bob’s belief, not whether Joanne actually caused Becky’s academic difficulties.

When asked whether she told Bob, Judy says that she did not report the abuse to the authorities and feared what telling Bob might have brought about. In her view, Joanne might have been dead sooner if Bob had known, and Judy’s family might have been destroyed. She separately says she told Richard Doss, describing Richard as a man of action. The distinction matters: Bob’s hatred is part of Judy’s explanation for her silence, but the account does not say that Bob killed Joanne or acted on his anger.

The Family’s Departure

Later, Bob and the Manitow family leave their home in Pacific Palisades and rent a place in La Jolla. Judy says the change happened abruptly from her vantage: she had seen Dr. Manitow drive to work, then saw the for-sale sign and moving vans. Bob is looking for work in the new area, while Judy is quitting her position as a judge. Becky moves with them and plans to attend a junior college, choosing to stay close to her parents. The move closes the available account of Bob’s role with a change in the family’s circumstances, though no explicit reason for the relocation is given.