True Crime Stories

I am a bit torn on this case. I am not so much torn on the guilt or innocence of Lowell Amos in the crime in which he was convicted, but more so on the legalities that were allowed in the courtroom that procured his conviction. I do not have an issue with a jury knowing that a defendant is a bad person and had committed crimes previously. I do believe in the instances in which a defendant has been convicted of other crimes, similar or not that the jury has the right to know, but in most jurisdictions that is only allowed into the courtroom after the person has been convicted for the current crime they are facing and a sentence is being considered. That however was not the case in Michigan when Lowell Amos was convicted in 1996 in the murder of his third wife. The prosecutors were allowed to tell the jury about the “suspicious” deaths of both his two previous wives as well as the death of his mother. The issue I have with this is that it was not until he was suspected of mur...

Unless you already consider yourself an expert on this case I would gander to guess as someone who likes stories on true crimes you know at least a few things about this case, or at least you think you do. One of the main things that people will say they know about this case is actually a misconception. It has been said the 1960's television show and the 1993 movie, The Fugitive is based on this story. In fact, the producers of both have said differently even though they can hardly argue the similarities. Both stories are about a doctor accused of murdering his wife but who proclaims his innocence. In the movie, the main character says a “one armed man” murdered his wife when in reality Sam Sheppard only described the alleged intruder as “busy haired.” That being said you also probably know that while he was convicted for the crime, his conviction was overturned and at a subsequent trial he was acquitted with the help of a young F. Lee Bailey. It is also a good guess t...

Some of the cases that often irritate me the most are the ones in which the victims are lost in mix. This happens for a variety of reasons. Sometimes the case is just so horrible or so outrageous that it becomes infamous on it's own. Sometimes the perpetrator brings so much attention to themselves no one seems to remember the victims names. Really, how many of us can remember the names of any of Bundy's or Gacy's victims? No, we just remember the killers name and the way they committed their crimes. Then there are the cases in which a innocent people have been convicted, sometimes with the help of overzealous and arrogant police officers. In those cases the victims again get lost because the focus is turned to something else. This case had many of the above attributes. Almost immediately the Harris family murders was compared to the Clutter Family murders that took place in Kansas in 1959. Now, if you're reading this as a true crime reader then you ...

As I began researching this case I was left thinking about the old television show “World's Dumbest Criminals” and had to wonder if these idiots would not have made the list. I jokingly tell my husband that I watch true crime docudramas so I know what NOT to do in a murder or a crime. It is not like this crime was committed long before DNA was available or before crime scenes were preserved as they are now. No, this crime was committed in 2013 by a group of men who seemingly acted as if they had their own mob group. They had a “boss” and everything. Let us just say however that if this was like the mob families and groups they would have either a) been taken out by a rival family a very long time ago or b) there would surely have been a smarter boss in charge who would have done the taxpayers a service and taken these guys out on his own for their own stupidity. On December 15, 2013, around 7 pm, Doug Carlile and his wife, Elberta were returning to their Spokane Was...