True Crime Stories

This is one of those cases that when I was done researching all I could do was shake my head. I did not shake my head because I was disgusted in some way in the process in the justice system, or even at the heinousness of the crime. No, I was left shaking my head at the not just the stupidity of the perpetrator, but at the idea that he believed everyone around him was stupid and believed him. Now, that is not to say that sometimes a completely innocent person has a story that just seems too odd to be true and yet it is. That is not the case here, at least not in my opinion and I would gander to guess that you the reader will feel the same when you are finished here. Charles Abanese attempted to convince everyone around him, including the courts, that he was set up and that everyone who testified at his trial lied against him. The defense attorneys would argue, and I cannot disagree that this was a huge circumstantial case. But, most cases are. The only real time ther...

This case first garnered national attention because the bodies of the victims were found on a ranch owned by ABC journalist, Sam Donaldson. The victims lived on the ranch as they were caretakers. The next “shocking” thing about this crime came about when fourteen year old Cody Posey was arrested for the deaths of his father, stepmother and stepsister. Next came the stories of physical and emotional abuse that elicited much support for Cody. One would think that all of this would be enough and yet during my research found one last twist. An attorney by the name of Jack Thompson filed a wrongful death lawsuit against not just Cody but also the creators of the game, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City as well as Sony , the manufacturer of the Playstation 2. In researching Jack Thompson I realized I could probably have created a whole blog just on him, his filings and his strange behavior. But, we will get to Thompson. First lets talk about Cody Posey. Few people argue that Cod...

I was surprised with so many participants in this crime, as well as several different court proceedings that I found so little about this case in my research. This is allegedly one of the biggest cases in Memphis Tennessee's history and yet there seemed so few details. I will admit that the one appeal that I read was extremely long and I did little more than skim through it. On June 29, 1977 William Groseclose went to the police department to report his twenty-four year old wife, Deborah, missing. The couple had a one year old son together and it appears that both William, and his wife Deborah each had a daughter from previous relationships. Five days later, on July 4 th , Deborah's car was found abandoned in what has been described as a parking lot of a former library. Deborah's body would be found in the trunk of the vehicle. Now, I have read a lot of true crime books; I have seen the documentaries; I have even watched all the “forensic” shows like CSI ...

This case ended up being way more interesting than I first believed going in. When it was all said and done I have to say I am not sure what happened for sure in this case and while Tommy Arthur was executed after a conviction for murdering a man named Troy Wicker Jr., even if he were innocent of that crime (which I cannot say for sure), an innocent man was not put to death. I am unsure what surprised me the most in this case. There were three trials, with three convictions; there was a changing of stories; there were eight execution dates before it was followed through; and there was a system in place that let a known killer out on the streets freely. At the time of Troy Wicker's murder in February of 1982 Tommy Arthur had already been convicted of murder. Apparently, and admittedly, in 1977 Arthur killed is sister in law, Eloise West. By all accounts it appears that he was sentenced to life, which I cannot say what that entailed at that time in Alabama but sometim...

I am the mother of now two grown boys. My oldest never gave me much trouble growing up, which was just fine considering the younger one seemed sometimes to be a trouble magnet. Now, I am not one of those mothers who believed her child was always innocent, I knew better. But also learned that with the growing reputation every time something happened in the neighborhood it seemed as if the police were at my door. Most of it was petty things but it was still aggravating. This had come about because he done something more serious that had garnered him probation when he was fourteen, the same age Davontae Sanford was when he was charged with four counts of murder. With the incident with my son, first the officer lied as to why they asked my husband and I to bring our son to the police station. On the way there my son confession to breaking into the garage of a nearby summer home and taking some things. Once at the station the officer took my husband and I aside and admit...