Making Moves: Another Look At Victims And Choices In Ann Rule's True Crime Stories (3) Marcia’s that kind, to me, who is extremely reserved and, hence, who rarely lets anyone know what they are really, truly feeling. It borders on the mysterious. It’s their right to be that way, of course, but who can be comfortable around those people? I believe in talking, screaming, counselling, etc. when things aren’t smooth. We can all use help. Maybe Marcia just committed suicide. Maybe it was the drugs' effects or a feelling of dread to face or acknowledge another failed marriage since it does seem that the latter was on the way. Certainly it wasn’t Dr Boccaci since he’d nothing to gain financially. We are more than willing to scratch his name from a meagre suspects list. But where does that leave us? One thing is for sure: If Marcia did herself in, she certainly hid her body well. However, by being a psychic, maybe that wasn’t such a difficult feat. Profile of a Spree Killer We can't be too hard on Wilder's victims, who were all female. Even the likes of Gandhi, Kennedy, and Julius Caesar fell victims to enraged killers. What was it that made Wilder finally snap on a large scale? Who will ever know? Even though years have passed, readers would like to know how Wilder emigrated/immigrated with nothing of his previous police run-in detected by INS(not that they are so brilliant). And this from the great nation of Australia. Was some one paid to "lose" his rap sheet or whatever it's called? What kind of RESPONSIBLE parents would post a bail of 376 thousand dollars? We suppose they certainly loved Chris, but, even saying they were wealthy, they were also uncaring as regards what future damage he might do, given the nature of the crime for which they'd posted bail. Maybe they'd had no daughter to make them conscientious. The reader is only very happy for Jill Lennox and Carrie McDonald and Toni Lee Simms. Lastly, a little prayer for loving parents: Thank you, God, for the innumerable times my dear daughter has come home safely at night—nights in which I never thanked you. The Lost Lady Marcia's that kind, to me, who is extremely reserved and, hence, who rarely lets anyone know what they are really, truly feeling. It borders on the mysterious. It's their right to be that way, of course, but who can be comfortable around those people? I believe in talking, screaming, counselling, etc. when things aren't smooth. We can all use help. Maybe Marcia just committed suicide. Maybe it was the drugs' effects or a feeling of dread to face or acknowledge another failed marriage since it does seem that the latter was on the way. Certainly it wasn't Dr Boccaci since he'd nothing to gain financially. We are more than willing to scratch his name from a meagre suspects list. But where does that leave us? One thing is for sure: If Marcia did herself in, she certainly hid her body well. However, by being a psychic, maybe that wasn't such a difficult feat. To an Athlete Dying Young What does society do about "former" sexual offenders? We know that certain information is being shared nowadays by the various policing agencies, and that a community can now know about the past sexual offender who chooses to reside in its territory, but is this enough? Whether a past sexual offender is going to commit another criminal act cannot be predicted with any degree of accuracy, it seems quite certain. Maybe we can say the same of a "former" murderer whose crime wasn't sexual. The whole story is a convincing argument against ever paroling not only murderers but sex offenders as well. Jane, as we see, was determined to experience many of her outdoor adventures alone. That was just the way Jane was and no one could change her. Even sadder was the fact that no one could change Dale Harrison. Ruby, Don't Take Your Love to Town Eric Shaw's another asshole à la Buddy Longnecker in a previous story. Amy Shaw was living in dreamland or some such. She should have said to hell with familiar environs, certain relatives(who couldn't or didn't help her), "still" loving Eric, college, "entire support system," etc. and taken her 2 kids with her far away from Washington state. The KIDS were support system enough. After all, who did the kids need the most—an asshole dad or a caring and loving mom? So hard to choose, isn't it! Of course, maybe he would have followed them and still killed Amy, his hatred being what it was, but at least she'd have gotten credit for trying. As it is, she gets O credit. It was a heartbreaking, premature departure Amy had. “That Was No Lady” What happened to Brad Bass can happen to any number of us. Who goes through a whole lifetime with not a single one-night stand? This was what Brad had in mind when he left the restaurant with Jackie. These contacts are never risk-free, however, and we have all learned this one way or another, even moreso since AIDS appeared(Brad’s death was pre-AIDS.). Of course, as Rule reveals, it was Jackie’s burning rage inside that actually ended Brad’s life at the promising age of 23. Sometimes the risk of physical harm is small; at others, it’s the opposite. Brad, as Rule states, paid for this risk “with his life.” Another needless tragedy. “The Killer Who Talked too Much” Marcia Perkins unfortunately paid with her life, also, when she finally gave in to a drunken killer-to-be’s pleas and charms to open the door to her apartment. However, the man was not always a monster. Only under the influence of heavy drinking, it seems. Big brute of a guy. Although this guy had never lived in the apartment, he had lived for some months with Marcia and her sister in another apartment. He’d been involved romantically with only the sister, we are told. As mentioned earlier, these people Rule brings into our lives are not your average Sunday-school crowd. Some critics would say, “How does that play any role in a murder?” but EVERYTHING plays a role eventually whether we admit it or not. Then the killer goes and slays again. Brutal slayings, both. Jeanie Easley, the second victim, didn’t really open the door á la Marcia, so to speak, since she herself had dated the guy on different occasions in the past. At the time of the tragedy, however, she was dating someone else. How was she to know he was going to kill her on that particularly fateful day? Can drink be blamed? Partially or wholly? Is Melvin out now? Why didn’t we get a pix of the convicted killer? Empty Promises Book no. 7 “Empty Promises” This case is about brainwashing, about principles(non-adherence), about spousal fear, and about confusion and low self-esteem(again). Instead of the lovely Jami washing bully Steve’s battered and tattered brain, he washed hers, unfortunately. Indeed, Jami’s mother, Judy Hagel, said she “sat and watched it before my very eyes.” We think nothing bad is gonna happen to us. That’s only for other people. This is one of the arguments in Rule’s true tale. Jami was terribly confused, despite what her family says(Jerry Hagel sure is a quiet one in the story.). For one thing, she runs around with a spoiled imp-brat who says fuck all the time as well as snorts all kinds of illegal drugs. Good father image, right? Where are well-grounded principles? Why do women have a child by these kinds of ogres? Jami may have had it all together in her working life(Microsoft) but she certainly didn’t on the personal-life front. And this imbibing brute of hers was a person people from school remembered as “a mean, enraged child and teenager.” Of course, Steve was different when he wasn’t drinking, but when was that? We read the words “addictive personality” in this tale of woe. Another thing, didn’t they meet in a bar? We can be sure some unions that began in a bar turn out quite well, but are we going to kid ourselves into thinking the number at all high? Has anyone ever heard of meeting a partner at a concert, an art gallery or at a church? We read, “Cocaine and alcohol mattered more than ever to him,” a man “whose own needs always came first.” Thank God he DIDN’T spend much time with the little Chris! Why don’t rotten souls like Steve and Randy Roth(earlier story) get together on this earth and bully each other? That’s too easy, right? Of course, Steve like his women petite—so he could bully them mercilessly. Again, we see a young woman(and we’ve seen it umpteen times now) who goes into a marriage “despite the pleas of her parents and friends.” Can’t singles out there get the message? There was a solid reason for those pleas. Don’t parents and friends almost always want what is best for one? At the point of this ill-fated marriage, we learn that Steve “owned Jami now.” That he “orchestrated her life.” Hi girls, looking for somebody to own you? I’m not exactly Mr Clean, but... C’mon. Jami(brainwashed, we’ll concede) wrote to Steve, “Because there is no comparison to that life I had before as to that life you have given me and hopefully still want to give me.” Why did she say hopefully? A little lack of conviction somewhere? One last thing. “Jami visited her family as often as Steve would let her...” Please spouse, can I go visit my family? Can I eat a caramel apple? Where are we—in the sixteenth century? I conclude that not only did Mr Asshole dig Jami’s sad grave, but that she, too, in her confusion and perhaps a bit of greed(thoughts of future material prosperity), had a hand in it herself. Tragically. Our moves in life must ultimately engender consequences. Still, as we all know, Jami did not deserve what she got. Nor did Chris. Not by a long shot. “Bitter Lake” Everybody needs love and nurturing, even Patrick Lehn. The way to find it, however, is far from bullying someone or trying to control some one’s life completely. Remember catching more flies with honey than with vinegar? Well, we guess Pat hadn’t been taught that. In this sad story we have another controller—Pat. We really learn very little about him or about his two victims. It’s a basic story of the murder facts. Not much else. The victims were a mother and child. Truly heartbreaking situation. Pat couldn’t keep his cool sometimes. Reminds me of my dad. He always told us kids when we were growing up(as I mention earlier) that we’d learn to control ourselves or that society would do it for us. In other words, prison. Sometimes we don’t like to hear this basic truth. But there you are. Just ask Pat and some other long-term inmates. Pat had had some trouble keeping his cool with other girlfriends before the time of the murder. A long article on Pat’s early years would be rather interesting in a psychological sense, I think. “Young Love” Very sad tale. Almost a Romeo and Juliet occurrence, though not quite. Leigh, actually, did nothing wrong. She was completely right to insist on planning her life the way she wanted it. It is John in the wrong and whom we feel so sad for. We are disturbed at his total fixation on Leigh. Granted, she may have been a fantastic girl in every sense of the word, but, that’s just it—she was a girl, not a goddess! John was wrong because it’s not only erroneous, but self-defeating behavior to think we can own another person, possess that person totally as one would a sofa or to control that person. We are mortals, not gods ourselves, although we too often want to play gods/God. We remember Agatha Christie’s words to the effect that a life of any length lived is a complete life. So true, but little comfort to grieving families as John’s must have been at that time, of course. “Love and Insurance” Here it’s poor Larry. He wanted the good life—fame, fortune, love, you name it—so badly that he let down his guard completely. It is nothing less than idiotic to go out with your partner and buy bullets and a gun with her/him after said partner has taken out an insurance policy of half a million dollars on YOUR life! Love is not only blind but deaf and dumb, at times. How we see and hear only what we want to see and hear over and over and over again! (Remember the song?) “The Gentler Sex” Evil Carole and Teri and Sandra and lucky Burt. Hell hath no fury like a woman’s greed and impatience! David wasn’t so lucky and even if we’re sure he was no Sherlock Holmes by a long shot, what happened to him was the result of the vilest thoughts imaginable. God in heaven should be the true and only Giver and Taker of life, dears. While in prison, these killers and the would-be-killer could possibly benefit from about ten years’ worth of Bible classes. Don’t worry—they’re quite painless. To be continued is what I wrote some time ago. First, I have continued to read Ann Rule's latest works. In fact, at present I am reading Volume 10 of the stories. However, I think there is no need to continue my "analyses" that the reader has read to this point. Why is that? One reason is that while engaged in these analyses, I learned more thoroughly or clearly that we are going to err, to make mistakes--some careless and some not--in our lives. There is practically no avoiding some of them. Second, I don't need to analyse any more volumes since my point was made quite early in the "analyzes". Thanks to those of you who read some of my comments. I hope you'll read some more of my stuff. Feedback is always encouraged--positive or negative.
Copyright © 2002 Randall Barfield |