True Crime Stories

This is a case that I could spend days going over information that is available just on the Internet alone.  So much of it in the beginning focused on the trial of Christopher Harris that I was forced to look more into things than I normally would have to, and yet still there were issues that after hours of research I could not adequately resolve.  As you have heard me say many, many times, when I start looking at a case that has been resolved I always go in with the idea that the jury got it right but yet I keep an open mind at the evidence.  I admit that this case had me think for just a second or two if the defense theory was possible but my gut tells me that it was not and I listen to my gut quite often.  Then again, some of the information that made me question the verdict in the first place was evidence that had not been allowed at trial so the jury did not hear the few things that I questioned.   On September 21, 2009 Raymond "Rick" Gee's stepfather wen...

In 1987 Michael and Florence Phillips moved from their Indiana home with their 8 year old son, Mike, to a new home in a small village in Maine named Machiasport.  It was said that part of the reason for their move was to go some place more quiet and with less crime. Little did they know that two years later the ultimate crime would happen to them just mere yards from their own front door. Some have described what occurred in this little town as a sort of a Hatfield's and McCoy fight.  That of course depends on who you talk to.  Police would later say that for nearly every incident report filed by the Phillips' or their neighbors, the Uffelman's there was a crowd of witnesses on either side defending the story of their friend or relative while the other side did the same and the stories never seemed to match.  Authorities were left to try and decide which side was telling the truth and the often could not make that decision. Even after Michael and Florence Phillips ...

Once again I find myself researching a case that has not ended completely but still a story in which needs to be told.  If you have already read my last entry on Charles Whitman you know I spent a lot of time talking about how we simply seem to dismiss killers as evil without ever looking further into their psyche and knowing what makes them tick.  And then I come to you with a case in which you will hear me say that Karl Karlsen is the epitome of evil and deserves to spend every waking moment he has left of his life in jail.  In the case of Whitman you have a man who by all account seemed not just normal but a well mannered man who was striving to be a successful human being.  Right up to the end Whitman seemed remorseful of his actions and yearned to know, or let others know, if there was something mentally or physically wrong with him.  In contrast Karl Karlsen seemed to never have remorse for his actions and unlike Whitman who committed his crimes in a singl...

I have done so many recent crimes as of late that I decided to take it back a few decades and tell an infamous story from the 1960's. I often tell myself that when I do some of these older crimes I open myself up for more inaccurate information that was published but then in the same breath I remind myself that I still tend to do this in our modern age.  This is also case that has been analyzed and analyzed more over the years and ideas have changed.  Some will argue that original assessments were correct, but I am unsure that I can agree with this.  I believe that as science and technology progresses in different areas it allows us to understand things more clearly.   For the most part Charles Whitman is vilified.  Looking at the surface of things it is hard not to point to Whitman and think of evil.  He murdered his mother and then his wife.  After calling into both of their bosses to say they were ill and would not be making it to work he rented...

This is an unusual post for me.  I generally try to stay away from cases that are still pending or officially unsolved.  We all know that not every charged in a case is guilty and that it is up to the state to prove "beyond a reasonable doubt" that someone is guilty.  We all also know, and should in fact live by, the saying "Innocent until Proven Guilty."  With that said, while I will admit that I will discuss the charges that have been filed and that a trial is pending (although at this point I have been unable to determine if a date for such trial has been set), but I will make every attempt to reserve complete judgment until all of the evidence is in.  So, if I have all of these reservations why would I even blog about a case that ultimately I will eventually have to come and update later? Well, that is because I have found this case very interesting from the beginning for one, and for two, to be honest, if the person who is now awaiting trial is acquitted fo...

When I began researching this case, just as I do all cases that I research, I went in believing the jury got it right.  This is a must for me to do in order to have faith in our legal system.  As I read articles that were written throughout the trial I have to admit that I teetered back and forth on that decision enough that I almost felt I wondered just what solid evidence they had on this mother to convict her. Then I read up on some other things that leaned me back towards the jury's decision.  This case was just decided in April of 2015 and I will be interested in seeing any appeals papers that are published on this case in the future. This is either a case that did in fact involve a mother who had Munchausen by proxy and all of the previous doctors and DFS workers missed it or this is a case of a young boy who likely had severe medical issues that were not treated properly (by doctors) and unfortunately died because of that. Garnett Spears was born Decemb...