True Crime
Murder County, U.S.A.
Introduction: The Disappearance of Jane Milota
I live in a very murder-y little county. Maybe there’s something in the water. Maybe I’m trapped in a Stephen King novel.
Nothing would surprise me anymore.
And for whatever weird reason, I’m tangentially connected to many of the people involved in a number of these murders: the victims, the suspects, and the supporting cast of players.
I’ve wanted to write true crime stories here for a long time, but something always gets in the way. Like contests, or an urgent need to nap, or — the bane of writers everywhere — life.
But it’s too hot outside to do anything else, so let’s talk about murder.
Last August, a man named Robert Dick shot his wife and mother-in-law point blank in a house that I pass every day on the way to work. Somehow I think it should stand out more, but it looks like all the other houses. He plead guilty and received a life sentence.
No “not guilty by reason of insanity,” no messing around, no excuses. He killed them, his 17-year-old son witnessed it, he went to prison. The end.
