I remember when this case first aired on Unsolved Mysteries. It disturbed me very much and I have found myself thinking about since then.
It doesn't seem like there is a whole lot of information out there regarding this case, despite how brutal and brazen it was.
From what I have read though:
1. It is hard for me to buy into the theory that this was just some random psychopath who happened upon the school and decided to go and kill a young Jewish boy because of his hatred for Jews. Surely, there are less brazen ways to inflict harm on a person if it was a hate crime that would be a heck of a lot less risky. I mean, why would some random person wander to the third floor--and why that particular room--one of only two that housed just a single student? It seems this person knew exactly where he was going...
Why is it hard to believe? Children are easier to kill than adults. A sleeping child is even easier. The only risk is in being seen and being heard. Is luring a kid outside to a private place really much easier? What if the killer lacked confidence in his social skills?
From what I understand, the fire escape led directly to the third floor, which would explain why the killer went there. And who's to say he did not wander the other floors first? Why does everyone make the assumption the killer made a b-line to Chaim's room? In fact, one child vaguely remembers his door opening in the middle of the night.
Maybe Chaim's room was the 3rd or 4th he opened? If his motive is to simply kill a Jewish child in order to take his pain out on the world, he is going to kill the first child he sees that has his own room.
2. The window being open is rather odd, particularly if it couldn't serve as an escape or entry route (third floor and I read in a previous post that the fire escape was attached to a different room). But what is more puzzling is if this truly was a random person, I truly cannot see this person risk coming back to the scene almost an hour later to move the body for whatever reason. This would be INCREDIBLY risky unless the person stayed in the room with the dead body for that long?
Maybe Chaim just left the window open? It happens. Plus we don't know if the window was wide open, or open just a crack.
According to wunderground.com the weather that night in 1986 was 48/49 degrees. I've known people who don't mind the cold as much. He could've been one of those people.
3. The viciousness and brutality of the crime, which was obviously understated in the US episode is troubling. The first blow killed Chaim, who why 11 or 12 more stabs? Someone stated that the room was a bloodbath, with skull and brain pieces everywhere--hard to believe nobody heard anything. But more to the point: this was a rage filled killing and speaks to someone knowing the victim and being extremely angry with him for some reason.
It's a basic tenet in criminal profiling that when there is violent, repetitive, wounds to the head or neck that is a personal crime. So yes, we can consider that the killer knew Chaim very closely.
But if he was a very angry man (can a woman really kill someone with the force Chaim was reportedly killed?) who put all of his insecurities and worthlessness out on Jews, then we could consider he would do a similar amount of damage. There are many cases of men who hated and resented women in general (from a lifetime of rejection), committing horrific murders on random women.
It is still possible "a random psycho" did this. Labeling them a "random psycho" is not how murders are solved. You need to get inside their head to find a motive. If the killer had a pathetic life, blamed his problems on Jews, then had a major stressor, he could of definitely taken it out on Chaim with the force he did.
From that point of view, he saw killing a Jewish child easier than killing an adult, and even easier to do it while they were sleeping.
4. I know several people were polygraphed and passed, but please remember these tests are in know way accurate; I wish people would not put so much stake in them.
That is true. But interrogators are still professionals. If someone is lying they can sense it. Even if one of those kids is a sociopath, at 14/15 years old it would be exceptionally difficult to cover up a crime of this magnitude. Plus from reading posts of children who went to school with Chaim (now adults), they had considered the prospect of everyone around and if they could have been the killers. They said that they did not think any of the kids or rabbis did it.
5. Maybe someone can clarify: I know there was a candle that was lit that was put in Chaim's room. The Unsolved Mystery episode stated that ONE was placed in by a rabbi after the murder, but a SECOND one mysteriously appeared and that is the one that nobody could identify how it got there. Is that true? Why wouldn't someone admit putting it there? Maybe the candle, the window being open and the body being on the floor (lowest point) are all coincidental, but is seems like a wild coincidence if they are.
Overall, my impression is this murder was committed by someone (a) who knew Chaim and (b) was familiar enough with the dorm to know exactly where he was going and how easily he could go undetected. It still baffles me that nobody heard or saw a thing. I just pray that one day the monster who did this is caught. Definitely a disturbing crime.
Someone who went to school there said that a forgetful older rabbi lit it and forgot. Happens.
I personally don't believe the ritual aspect of it at all. You'll notice that most of the people (if not all) that are proposing this are not Jewish and not intimately familiar with the Jewish religion. We tend to not be weird ritualistic types. People tend to be intimidated by Orthodox Jews (or just plain think they are weird) so they assume that they must do weird stuff like this.
Orthodox Jews are still very pragmatic, intelligent people. There are things that some extreme sects are weird about (how women dress, etc.) but murdering and placing bodies in certain positions is nothing like that.
To answer your summary, how do you rule out someone hating Jews (and living in the area so he knew about the dorm) breaking in and killing Chaim? Consider all my responses to your suggestions above.
And if everyone was sleeping, why does it surprise you nobody heard or saw anything? This was a pretty quiet residential area.
