Poking a Dung Pile

The evidence suggests that Mary and/or Greg had a prior relationship with their killer. So in this post I'm going to try to answer the question:  "Just who knew whom in Rainbow Village that night?" At different points in the "Dead and Gone" podcast, Payne Lindsey addressed the questions: Did Mary know Bo prior to the murders and if so, what was the nature of their acquaintance?  In Thomas v. Chappell one reads that, " On the night of the murders, a tall, thin blond man generally known as 'Bo,' whose real name was James Bowen, was staying in Rainbow Village. Bo was a Deadhead and, like the victims, was staying on the Dead On bus. " ( Thomas v. Chappell , p. 7)  A little further down, the document states that  Bo had a sexual relationship with Mary.  A day or two before the murders, one witness [Dan Adams] testified that Bo had argued with Mary and sounded controlling toward her. Mary seemed upset and afraid. ( Thomas v. Chappell , p. 7) ...

In this post I'm going to try to address the problem of motive by answering two other questions:  What does the empirical evidence tell us about the behaviors of the person who killed Mary and Greg?  And what do those behaviors say about the person as they committed the crime?  I'll look at what the offender did prior to the shooting, at the shooting, and after the shooting.  Just prior to the shooting, both Mary and Greg were brutally beaten.  Multiple bruises and contusions showed that Mary suffered blunt trauma to her body .   Some of the bruising may have been caused by the muzzle and/or butt of a rifle. Cuts and bruises were found on Greg's face, neck, an arm (which arm is not specified in People v. Thomas ), and over each knee.  There was evidence he'd been struck by a gun barrel.  A bruise found on Greg's throat suggested he'd been put in a choke hold, so someone may have struggled with him.  His back showed scratches that may have bee...

“Chaffee asked who the seven people were who were at the party.    Prew responded: himself, Chris Campbelll, Paul Harter, Mary, Greg, Dan, Robbie, and International.”    ( Berkeley Marina Murders ,  p. 112 ) “[Officer Fred Eihl] spoke to Robin Van Heest and learned more about Mary and Greg from him.   He looked for the others who were at the party and eventually interviewed Paul Harter, Chris Campbell, Jim Prew, and Cho (who stayed on the ‘Dead On’ bus.)   ( Berkeley Marina Murders , p. 137 ) Up to this point, I've given readers the following: Court Documents Newspaper Clippings Timeline from June to August 1985 Timeline for the night of August 15/16 Summary of prosecution's case at trial Summary of Justice Mosk's dissent in People v. Thomas In this post I will add a list of individuals known to have been in or near Rainbow Village on the night of August 15/16.  First I will list those who gathered around Jim Prew's van, and then I'll list others ...