Steve, I hear you about the difference between blogging and commenting. Spent a couple of years following the Entwistle murders on a reporter's blog. Bet I pointed out ten times that a comment is not a blog. Yet, 2 years later in comments.. read my blog above, that was a great blog etc..
Diane | 07.01.08 - 10:26 pm | #

It bugs me because it's hubris on the part of the commenter. THIS -- what we're doing here -- is NOT blogging.

The commenter didn't set the site up, think about getting it indexed, promote it to others, researched the entry, etc. The msm confused the two some time ago, so I can't totally blame the people who make that mistake -- which is everyone, nowadays -- but I'll never cease to be annoyed by it. The msm pretty much treats all online writing done under what it thinks of as casual circumstances as blogging -- so to them, MySpace comments are "blogs." Hell, even Arianna Huffington refers to individual blog posts as "blogs," which is also wrong as hell.

And anyway, making a blog is so easy now, people can go really do it and say whatever they want about what they're doing.
Steve Huff | 07.01.08 - 11:05 pm | #

Thanks for posting on the difference between serial killers and spree killers. It bugs me when all multiple-murderers get referred to as "serial killers," because, as you noted, the psychology between the different types of crimes can be significant.

One big problem is that not all police officers - not even all departments - are always up-to-date on training and can, at times, end up heading down the wrong road when trying to solve a crime. A good example is the "Satanic Panic" - even though FBI research found that there's never been any credible evidence of any organized Satanic groups committing blood rituals, abusing children or committing murder, you still hear today every now and again of cops thinking crimes may be the result of a Satanic cult. Unfortunately, because some cops will treat that as a real possibility, it slows them down that much more in looking for the real criminal, and gives him/her that much more time to cover his/her trail.

The confusion between mass murderers, spree killers and serial killers - especially if they don't have much (or any) physical evidence to work from - can lead police who thing the three are basically the same thing down a garden path, looking for the wrong type of person.
thorswitch | Homepage | 07.02.08 - 1:08 am | #

I believe this spree killer has been caught.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080...us/ bodies_found

This the only comment I will make on this blog about this killer.
Colleen S | 07.02.08 - 5:27 am | #

Colleen, the first line of this blog post reads, "Investigators in Missouri and Illinois believe Nicholas T. Sheley, age 28, was on a major killing spree prior to his capture Tuesday night."

I'm not picking on you or anything. I have just noticed too many times that too many people make comments on blog posts and the nature of the comment will lead me to feel as though they read no further than the subject line. Hell, I'm pretty sure I've done that myself, and recently.

You just don't want to end up making a comment that makes it clear you haven't really read what's above. For a blogger like me, that makes me feel like I might as well just go run a message board. I don't want to do that.

Thanks.
Steve Huff | 07.02.08 - 3:53 pm | #

Back in the day they used to call trash like this guy "mad dog killers".
Nancy Collins | 07.02.08 - 4:04 pm | #

Sheley just had his first hearing in Galesburg, IL today. He turned down a public defender and will obtain his own attorney. His preliminary hearing will be July 21 in Knox County. So far the DA isn't seeking the death penalty.
Kathy Fisher | 07.03.08 - 6:18 pm | #

Tom Estes worked for my husband as a foremand general for the union pacific railroad. My husband is the director for the Jenks Locomotive Facility in N. Little Rock. The Estes' were just in the right place at the WRONG time. It sucks! I hope they fry the guy!
Stacey Swanson | Homepage | 07.03.08 - 8:58 pm | #

Steve, I am so glad you are back from your hiatus! And thank you for pointing out that this loser isn't a serial killer but a spree killer. I was also trying to avoid any crime news for a few weeks. Apparently, it didn't work very well for me. Killers like this just need to be put down or put away for life with no chance of ever getting out of prison. Personally, I opt for putting them down, that way we as a society are insured that that particular killer will never kill another innocent person. And it may even serve as a reminder to other budding killers that if you kill, you'll be executed.
Tezi | Homepage | 07.06.08 - 7:15 pm | #

I find the case of Thomas and Jill Estes baffling at best. Apparently the couple were attacked in the parking lot of the Comfort Inn at which they were staying upon returning there. Their dogs were found loose and there was blood in and around the car. The bodies were found a mile away behind a gas station. This is very confusing.
Why did he kill them? Becvause they were in a corvette?
How did the bodies get a mile away?
If he bludgeoned them to death, how did he control two people in a parking lot while bludgeoning each in turn?

The spree killer was crazy but even so, this particular cxrime is osmewhat mysterious.
John (Kansas) | Homepage | 07.11.08 - 1:31 am | #

He moved the bodies in a truck he had stolen from a man in another state. Jill and Tom were very small people. If someone comes up from behind you and gives you a blow to the head w/an axe or other object (especially the man first) I can easily see how he got both of them. He was a cracked out meth addict. This man worked for my husband and these are some of the nicest people you could meet.
Anonymous | Homepage | 07.11.08 - 10:28 am | #

That wasn't supposed to be an anonymous post. Sorry about that.
Stacey | Homepage | 07.11.08 - 10:29 am | #

Well no one would expect to be attacked in a motel parking lot not in a bad area.

Maybe being a meth addict is motive enough, but I still wonder why he picked these particular people. He must have seen a lot of people that night.

Probably just wrong place at wrong time. The other morning I was driving my car to the shop and was afraid it was going to break down on the way. While thinking about that some guy walking by on the opposite side of the street started waviong at me. apparentrly he thought I was staring at him when, in fact I hadn't even noticed him. This was a normal person but if they were a nut or a methy, maybe he'd have followed me to garage and gone after me.
John (Kansas) | Homepage | 07.11.08 - 7:13 pm | #