Yesterday, I thought a 30-year serial killer mystery had been solved. Truly, I did. The goings-on of Wichita police officers made the national news. That nearly NEVER happens. Cops raided a house in south Wichita, and dragged a man off to jail in handcuffs. Speculation started, rumors ran rampant, TV media personalities broadcast this man's name all over the place and talked to neighbors, and before he knew what hit him—this poor man had been branded BTK. It's him!, cried the masses. Lynch him! Burn him at the stake! Caught, tried, and convicted on the city streets, in a matter of hours.
A travesty. That's what Police Chief Norman Williams called it. I must admit, I jumped to the "it's him" conclusion almost immediately. I SO wanted it to be him, so that the people of southcentral Kansas could rest easier. So that every man between the ages of 45 and 70 in the metro area could walk free without suspicious eyes following him. So that men in town who are train buffs or who live near railroad tracks or who ever knew some girl named Petra wouldn't fear a surprise visit from the SWAT, er, SWAB team.
Instead, everyone's still suspicious of everyone else, and this poor man's name will be dripping goo for months since his unfortunate drag through the mud. BTK is still on the loose, or at least whoever is playing this attention-grabbing BTK-ish cat-and-mouse game.
I thought they caught him on my birthday, Dec. 1. What a present...although the real gift would be to the families of the victims. I felt sadness and disappointment yesterday, and I'm hundreds of miles away and in no way directly connected to the crimes. Can you imagine how those closest to the investigation felt? We all have to go on—police, checking out all the new leads; media, digging for answers and continuing to tell the story; citizens, locking their doors and watching for suspicious behavior; victims' loved ones, getting through another day and hoping justice will someday be done.
Meanwhile, I'll keep obsessing. I'll read the BTK online bulletin boards (for example, The BTK Strangler case at Kansas.com and stories from the paper and TV web sites. And I'll hope. Putting this lunatic behind bars would be a great way for everyone to ring in the new year.
A travesty. That's what Police Chief Norman Williams called it. I must admit, I jumped to the "it's him" conclusion almost immediately. I SO wanted it to be him, so that the people of southcentral Kansas could rest easier. So that every man between the ages of 45 and 70 in the metro area could walk free without suspicious eyes following him. So that men in town who are train buffs or who live near railroad tracks or who ever knew some girl named Petra wouldn't fear a surprise visit from the SWAT, er, SWAB team.
Instead, everyone's still suspicious of everyone else, and this poor man's name will be dripping goo for months since his unfortunate drag through the mud. BTK is still on the loose, or at least whoever is playing this attention-grabbing BTK-ish cat-and-mouse game.
I thought they caught him on my birthday, Dec. 1. What a present...although the real gift would be to the families of the victims. I felt sadness and disappointment yesterday, and I'm hundreds of miles away and in no way directly connected to the crimes. Can you imagine how those closest to the investigation felt? We all have to go on—police, checking out all the new leads; media, digging for answers and continuing to tell the story; citizens, locking their doors and watching for suspicious behavior; victims' loved ones, getting through another day and hoping justice will someday be done.
Meanwhile, I'll keep obsessing. I'll read the BTK online bulletin boards (for example, The BTK Strangler case at Kansas.com and stories from the paper and TV web sites. And I'll hope. Putting this lunatic behind bars would be a great way for everyone to ring in the new year.
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