I find this equally as frightening for all the genuine and decent motorcycle riders that do charitable things out of the goodness of their hearts and only want to ride and enjoy the freedom of the road showing off their magnificent bikes. It is a scary thought if one of these thugs started hanging around them and they would have no clue why but thought it was just because they enjoyed riding their bikes too.
But what I cant wrap my mind around in this case is even though Pete had brothers, nephews that were unsavory characters there is nothing supporting that Pete was the same. As far as I know he doesn't even have a criminal record at all.
And why would they target someone is his family when they could easily take out one of Joe Placker's children or grandchildren.
Skyla also has a brother that is soon going to be sentenced for 2nd Degree Murder (July 29 th, iirc).
To me the Plackers never seemed to be in hiding in Weleetka. Pete works as a mechanic, Vicky works at McD and Taylor was no longer home schooled but had gone to public school since they moved there several years ago and was very active in different programs. Iirc, they even have their phone number listed in the phone book and over 500 people showed up at the funerals so I think most likely both families were well known in their communities.
Now did this "gang" come to him trying to put pressure on him to sell drugs or make meth for them and he refused?:waitasec:
imoo
Maybe the fact that they were EASY to find made them a better target??
I have been around and around on the motive for this and WHO could have done it the way it was done and I just keep coming back to someone was watching the Plackers and Taylor and Skyla walked out of the house ALONE and UNSUPERVISED on a Sunday afternoon (when most people are off work) and became the target for someone (even a hired/payback killer) who had a score to settle with SOMEONE/ANYONE associated with the Placker family. (and I think it was the Plackers, not the Whitakers).
People (especially druggies) who are PO about the kids "seeing something" do not come prepared to pull off a bloody, brutal murder of KIDS in broad daylight on a busy road - much less get away clean and stay out of sight for a month. They also don't stand around in the road next to their truck (with two dead girls 10' away) for a while so everyone passing can get a real good look at them.
It's the coldness and the calmness of the POI combined with the facts we know that make me believe he did it and he went to do it. And say what you like about organized and unorganized killers, this guy obviously has no fear of anyone or anything - and was not acting like he'd just gunned down two girls while they looked at him - shot them in THE FACE no less. Some tweaked out meth head would have been FREAKING, as would a teenager, and what "thrill killer" sits on a county road 300 feet from a house in broad daylight on a Sunday afternoon with TWO GUNS and patiently waits (for hours) for someone to walk by??
I think this excuse for a human being sat (or drove up and down) on the road that intersects County Line Road (the one just past the Placker home) watching the Placker house (or watching from the woods in that area). I think he SAW Skyla and Taylor walk out of the house and head toward the bridge. I think he waited for cars to get by so no-one was on County Line Road and then drove his truck around - and he killed the girls where they happened to be (walking toward him) at the time he had an unobserved moment. I think this is why OSBI spent so much time doing ground and air mapping of the AREA - thinking this guy was waiting somewhere. The may have tried this before and never managed to get to one of the Plackers alone or without someone driving by at the wrong time, or too many people using the bridge area, etc. I think he was patient and he went to KILL.
I think the tire tracks were like he turned around because he had to move the truck around to HIDE the view of the bodies until he could leave the area ..because he saw/heard cars coming. I think the truck was stolen and the guns were untracable and there was no DNA or fingerprints on the shell casings and he was NOT from the area. I think he was prepared and calm and cool and careful. And I am glad no-one stopped and got out of their car to "help" (or walked by on foot) him because I think he would have killed them too. And I also think the sketch is so accurate because someone DID stop and talk to him either at the crime scene or where he was hanging out nearby before the murders - a "do ya need help" conversation thru their car window. And the POI never lost his cool, people saw him, they LOOKED at him, he may even have talked to one of them and yet he didn't draw any attention to himself, didn't run away, didn't panic. HE had to think SOMEONE might be calling LE - yet he didn't "run" or act nervous or guilty. He got away clean - just like I think he planned it. Within the hour this guy was in a different vehicle, wearing different clothes, and either looked totally different OR was driving a sedate 55 on the way to his safe place.
Transient or fixed location Serial Killers usually kill one victim at a time and there is some signature or a "personal statement" - and we have no other murders matching this one and they usually want PRIVACY to do their killing. SK's want access to victims - a selection sort of - some do target specific victims but don't usually hang out in random rural areas hoping someone comes walking along alone and strikes their fancy. They usually have a "type" they are stalking - little girls, little boys, women with long hair, hookers, teenage boys...etc Why on earth would a SK sit on County Line Road in full view and wait for a potential victim to walk by? And this doesn't appear to be sexual in the least - he didn't want sex, he didn't want to kidnap or "keep" them, he didn't want to "enjoy" them, hide them away, he didn't want to confront the family in their house..in PRIVATE. This sure seems to me like the killer had a "mission" - to make someone who would mean something to the targeted "enemy" DEAD - and the whole thing was carefully planned in advance to give the killer the best chance of getting away clean and easy....this is obviously not a run-of-the-mill stupid, hot-headed, stoned criminal.
I am open to other ideas, if people have a different idea I'd love to hear how you think it went down and why - but I have run endless variations and this one just keeps turning up as the most logical again and again.
My Opinion