Pardon for the Lizard King

By Sheryl McCollum

I have been to the grave of Jim Morrison.  I have seen first hand the devoted fans and homage still paid to the Lizard King.  I wonder if the Florida Governor has ever really heard this man’s music.  I wonder if he ever truly tried to understand it, feel it, or live it.

“I'm interested in anything about revolt, disorder, chaos, especially activity that appears to have no meaning. It seems to me to be the road toward freedom”. Jim Morrison

On September 20, 1970 the jury found Jim Morrison guilty on the misdemeanor charges of indecent exposure and profanity.

He would hate this action taken on his “behalf” by the outgoing Governor.  His wife was against the pardon.  She stated; “Jim did nothing wrong to be pardoned for”.  Why then pardon this man?   Why spend the last days of the most power you will ever have and pardon this man?

"It seemed to me that it would be a tragedy to have this be the lasting legacy of his life. I just wanted to give an opportunity for forgiveness." Gov. Crist

I am certain there is no one else in the state of Florida who deserves a pardon more.  There can not be one man or women alive that could actually benefit from a pardon.  Not one living person who could get their productive life back through a pardon.  Only Jim Morrison.

Jim Morrison has been dead nearly 40 years!  “In this case the guilt or innocence is in God’s hands, not ours,” Crist said.  That’s an understatement Governor. 

Well Thank God Justice has been served finally in Florida.  We can all rest easy knowing the Lizard King is no longer has this tarnish.  He has a clean slate. Maybe Tipper Gore won’t have to put a warning sticker on his albums anymore.

Being drunk is a good disguise.  I drink so I can talk to assholes

Jim Morrison

One of his band mates stated that Jim’s legacy is one of "Dionysian madness and frenzy and of a chaotic American poet. I don’t think that the Miami episode has altered his image one iota”. Manzarek

The pardon isn’t enough for Patricia Kennealy Morrison, wife of Morrison who called the pardon “a complete cheap, cynical, political ploy."

Jim had been made a scapegoat of the counterculture movement. Now he is a publicity stunt.

While Morrison denied exposing himself, he defended the use of nudity in theater even after his arrest. And he never toned down his lifestyle.  He had a pattern of disorderly behavior.  He was arrested several times for disorderly conduct. When he realized that numerous policemen had been sent to cover a Doors concert in New Haven, Connecticut, Morrison began baiting them from the stage. He was arrested on charges of obscenity, but was later acquitted. The group was banned from auditoriums in Phoenix and Long Island after Morrison allegedly incited his audience to riot.  Do you see a pattern Governor?

The fact that Morrison didn’t change his life is exactly why he shouldn’t have been pardoned, said retired Miami police sergeant Angel Lago, who came to Tallahassee to speak against the pardon. While he wasn’t on the police force at the time of the concert, he said a friend testified at the trial that Morrison exposed himself. He firmly said his friend wouldn’t have lied under oath.

“The man is not worthy of this. I don’t care if he was a poet, I don’t care if he walked on water,” Largo told reporters during a break in the meeting.

"I'm getting lots of requests in the past few weeks of a similar nature," he says. "But none with the sort of noteworthiness of Jim Morrison.  Gov. Crist

All the other requested were turned down – only Morrison will be pardoned.  Only Morrison has the “noteworthiness”.

Yeah, along came Mr. Goodtrips
Looking for a new a ship
Come on, people better climb on board
Come on, baby, now we're going home
Ship of fools, ship of fools

Jim Morrison

Bottom-line: Morrison would not want this, his wife does not want this, the police do not want this ….. Sounds like a waste of political and judicial power to me.  Someone’s life could have been changed for the better and justice could have been served.  Instead we got “things known and things unknown and in between are the doors”. 

 
 

Sheryl McCollum, MS
Director
Cold Case Investigative Research Institute
 

"Dead Wives Club"

By Susan Murphy-Milano

Earlier in the week the case of missing Utah mother Susan Powell, who has not been seen since December 7, 2009, made national headlines. The family was contacted by authorizes when remains were discovered in a Wyoming field that might be those of the missing Utah mother, the family as they have been since the day she vanished braced themselves hopes of finally being able to bring her home. But, it was not Susan Powell.In the world of intimate partner violence, the person responsible or those labeled as “person’s of interest” or “prime suspects” hope the person with whom they were in a relationship or married too, are never found. This speaks volumes as to the mindset of these killers. They look at the women, the mothers of their children as their property, similar to the assets acquired during the marriage.

The abuser is often enraged by the loss of power and control, not interested in what I term "sharing the dolls and dishes" accumulated during the marriage. So they formulate a plan and change the marriage certificate into a pending death certificate to be filled out and completed like a deadly bill of sale for discarded property. Before my mother was made a member of the "dead wives club" the rights to her own life, no different than those listed, were always owned and operated by my father.

After these pieces of cowardly human garbage wives and the mothers of their children is reported missing, the vanishing victims lives are weaved into brief by-lines in a community paper then the case stays alive because it is continued over to interactive forums and Internet sites like Websleuths, Scared Monkeys or Help Find The Missing. Human lives, that once move out from the 20 second headline blurb are kept warm with new developments posted until an arrest is made or it has been solved.

The wives and mothers, whose bodies have yet to be recovered, all vanished -- not under mysterious circumstances. The women simply wanted out of the abusive and often violent marriage. It's rare that most of these so-called missing persons cases includes any records of the abuse during the marriage. And in my opinion, once a report is made, each time enough information is gathered by authorities the crime reporting category under how it is checked off on the form box needs to be moved from "a missing persons" case to "intimate partner homicide investigation" case. For a victim of abuse, calling the police during a violent incident can and does set off the abuser and escalate the violence. If the victim has children, her motherly protection mode kicks in, and she backs down for the safety of the kids.

A victim of intimate partner violence makes an initial request, as they attempt to calmy reason with their potentially violent, controlling husbands to amicably end the marriage and move on is what happens to women such as:

Susan Powell -vanished December 7, 2009;
Stacy Peterson- Vanished October 28, 2007,

Kellisue Ackernecht- vanished September 30, 2008;

Sandra Travis-vanished July 31, 2005;

Tara Grinstead-Vanished October 22, 2005;
Rosa Lisowski-vanished September 5, 2008;
Bethanie Dougherty-vanished May 4, 2007;
Venus Stewart- vanished April 26, 2010;
Liza Murphy- vanished August 19, 2007;
Rachel Anderson- vanished April 16, 2010;
Lisa Stebic- vanished April 20, 2007 ;
Renee Pernice, vanished January 1, 2009;

Or those found dead, like Kathleen Savio in a dry bathtub; Monica Beresford-Redmond, beaten to death and left in a drainage sewer in Mexico; and Linda Yancey, whose police officer husband claimed she was a victim of a home invasion. They are only a handful of women who were forced into membership in the ever growing “Dead Wives Club.”

Natalee and Stephanie Mo v Signature

By Sheryl McCollum

I tell my students that crime scenes tell a story. If you take it all in, almost as though you were watching a movie, the facts will appear, the story will be revealed.

The crime scene must be analyzed. Experts must know the who, what, how, and why and of the events of the crime. Once these answers are clear; cases can be linked together. This is where a solid understanding of MO and Signature are vital. For example, is the Natalee Holloway case linked to the Stephanie Flores case?

It’s important to remember, MO’s can change. For example, a car thief breaks out the driver’s side window to enter car, but, later down the road he acquires a slim Jim. His “MO” will change because the method of entering the car has changed. Criminals learn to work better, faster and without detection. Criminals, like any other professional, can develop better skills and techniques for their craft. The way a victim responds can also change the MO of a crime. For example, a rapist that has never harmed a victim in the past suddenly stabs a victim repeatedly. Maybe the victim was the first to resist or maybe the victim said something cruel to the offender. This scene may show rage where other scenes did not. However, it’s the same perpetrator.

The Signature of an offender differs from the MO in one very important way - the Signature is a constant with the offender. Unlike the MO, the Signature never changes. Often the offender goes beyond what is necessary to commit the crime. In a nutshell, the offender has characteristics and unusual behaviors based on what occurred at the scene. For example, excessive force is an aspect of signature. The signature can evolve. For example, an offender can mutilate a victim and down the road cause major post mortem injuries. He is evolving and gaining more confidence.

Stephanie Flores had her neck broken. You certainly do not have to go to that extent to steal money from a victim. What does this fact alone say to you about the killer? Is this a Signature or an MO? Let’s look at more details from both crimes to see if these crimes can be linked:

                          Natalee                                                  Stephanie

1. Date of crime: May 30                                          Date of crime: May 30
2. Met suspect at casino                                            met suspect at casino
3. Sus. got V away from friends                                Sus. got V away from friends
4. Sus. Last person seen with V                                Sus. Last person seen with V
5. There is a video of Sus and V                               There is a video of Sus and V
6. Drinking w/ V prior to crime                                 Drinking w/ V prior to crime
7. He said V did “coke”                                           Drugs found in her system
8. Uses a car that is not his                                       Uses a car that is not his
9. Said someone else did it                                       Said someone else did it
10. Sus claims he sold V then denies it                      Sus says he killed her – then denies it
11. Extorts money from Holloways                           Steals cash from victim
12. States he had sex with V                                    V’s pants were removed
13. Says he will tell where v is                                  Says he will tell what went on
14. He writes a book                                               Says he is getting married
15. Speaks V’s language (English)                           Speaks V’s lanuage (Spanish)
16. Appears to co-op w/ police                              Appears to co-op w/ police
17. Blames police                                                   Blames Police
18. Calls V a bitch                                                 Claims V hit him; invaded privacy

Do you see a pattern? Is there an MO or Signature in these two crimes? Do you believe law enforcement should be looking into other missing or unsolved murders in other countries?



Sheryl McCollum, MS
Director
Cold Case Investigative Research Institute