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How Long Can A Rage Last?

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How long can a rage last? In  People v. Thomas  Justice Mosk argued that, to him, the evidence suggested that the murders had resulted from "an explosion of violence" and "a brutal attack." In another post , I argued that Greg and Mary had been viciously attacked because a weapon was at hand before and during the attack and this indicated that the attack had been deliberate. I now think that Thomas more than likely committed the murders and that he had to return to Rainbow Village to get his rifle before he carried out a rage-fueled attack. I think that Vivian Cercy heard Greg say to Thomas, "Leave her alone; she's got two kids" before Thomas approached her vehicle, and that this sparked Thomas's anger and gradually sent him into a rage. Did Thomas attempt to scare Cercy before or after Vincent Johnson saw him with Greg and Mary near the dump gate? Johnson testified that Thomas looked angry when he saw them around 0230. What bugged me about this de...
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New Timeline

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Given the conflict between a key part of Vivian Cercy’s testimony and the testimonies given by others, I’ve removed it from my timeline.  Specifically, I’ve removed her claim that she saw Mary and Greg with a blond man around 0130 the morning of the 16th.  I take it as a fact that Mary was not in or near Rainbow Village at the time, because she and Thomas had accompanied Jim Prew on a beer and burrito run from which they didn’t return until approximately 0200. **** Sometime before sunset, David Bergman ("Mousey") took Ralph International Thomas to the liquor store.   ( Berkeley Marina Murders , p. 134).  Thomas told Inspector Dan Wolke that Melody Medlin accompanied them. 1900-2000: Bergman claimed he heard a rifle shot at 1900  ( Berkeley Marina Murders , p. 134.)   Thomas Medlin claimed he heard a rifle shot sometime around sunset  ( People v. Thomas , p. 3) .    Sunset on August 15 was 2002. Thomas told Wolke that after returning...
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Did the Blond Man See and/or Hear Something That Night?

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Von Wendel’s Sea Space Station Moored in North Inlet Let’s assume “the blond man” didn’t commit the murders, and let’s also assume that he slept on Claus Von Wendel’s boat that night.   This raises the question:  “Did he see or hear something?"   Vivian Cercy’s  account of what she witnessed seems to overlap with  Von Wendel’s account of his encounter with Bo .  Cercy saw a blond man with a backpack and Von Wendel found what probably was a backpack on the veranda of his boat and a blond man fetched it later in the day. "Vivian returned to her original parking spot, down the hill, and prepared herself and her children for sleep. About 15 minutes later, she heard three noises that sounded like fire-crackers. About 90 minutes after hearing the noises, Vivian saw a blond man walk up from the waterfront, wiping his hands in the vegetation and the dirt. He had a backpack, and he either took something o...
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Threatening a Woman with Kids Is Like Threatening a Woman with a Dog.

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"A defense investigator spoke with Von Wendel on June 11,1986, after petitioner had been convicted in the guilt phase of the trial.  At that time, the investigator learned of the incident with Bo.  In the same interview, Von Wendel told the investigator of an incident in which petitioner had threatened a woman with a dog.  When Von Wendel intervened, petitioner left and returned with a machete."  ( Thomas v. Wong , p. 14) Now consider this hypothetical scenario:  Thomas threatens Vivian Cercy as he, Mary, and Greg are walking past her car.  Greg tells Thomas, " Leave her alone; she's got two kids"   and, just as in the case with Von Wendel, this angers Thomas.  The three continue walking and reach the landfill office where Vince Johnson sees them. Thomas looks angry.  This anger builds until he heads back to the Village where he fetches his rifle from the car and goes to find Greg and Mary.  A while after she's been threatened, Cercy hea...
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Greg's Voice?

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I n the previous post  I  tried to show that Mary and Greg probably walked past Cercy's vehicle as they left Rainbow Village. Thomas testified that he did. Let's consider the possibility that Greg's voice was the " voice that sounded  white" that Vivian Cercy said she heard that night.  I've discussed how Cercy heard a voice that "sounded white" in another post. ( The 'White' Voice )  Here's the relevant section again: "[...]  Cercy heard two male voices, one of which sounded white, talking behind her car. The person with the white voice said, ‘Leave her alone; she's got two kids.’ A few seconds later there was a knock on the window of the driver's door and Cercy saw a man wearing a pea coat. He asked her name and where she was staying. [Cercy told the man she was staying with Harry Shorman.] When he asked what color bus Harry owned, Cercy asked the man why he was questioning her. The man said he was going to kill her.  Cercy...
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Probable Location of Vivian Cercy's Dodge at 0230

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'73 Dodge Dart Swinger Where was Vivian Cercy's '73 Dodge Dart parked around the time that Vincent Johnson saw Thomas, Greg, and Mary? Of course we can't know its location for sure, but we might be able to reach a conclusion as to where it probably sat around 0230, August 16. Mary's family planted a tree and had a plaque placed near where they believed Mary and Greg had been murdered.  It's located near a picnic area at Cesar Chavez Park, close to the North Basin.  At the time of the murders, the landfill office seems to have been nearby.  A rough estimate of the distance between this spot and Rainbow Village would be a quarter of a mile. Vince Johnson  testified that, on his way back to his bus, he saw Thomas, Greg, and Mary standing "next to the first set of cement pilings near the landfill office." ( Berkeley Marina Murders , p. 136)  Thomas appeared angry. The accounts Thomas gave to the police seem to agree with Johnson's testimony.  Fo...
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Rumors

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In the last post, I speculated that Weston Sudduth had heard rumors about Bowen being the murderer and this explains why he confronted Bowen in Herbert and Cauffield's apartment.  What had Sudduth heard? I can't say for sure, but during the evidentiary hearing, Herbert testified that in the confrontation he witnessed in September '85, Sudduth angrily asked Bowen, "How can you sleep at night?  How can you live with yourself?  Why were you washing your hands in the early morning in the bathroom?" ( Thomas v. Wong , p. 19)  The last question can be interpreted in two ways.  First, Weston saw Bo washing his hands that morning.  Second, Weston had heard that someone saw Bo washing his hands.  Clearly, the second interpretation fits my speculation. There's a connection between Sudduth's question and Vivian Cercy.  She testified during the preliminary hearing in October '85 that she saw a blond haired man washing his hands and hair at the sink near the e...
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