OH OH - William 'Bill' Comeans, 14, Columbus, 7 Jan 1980 - #1

[GoingByMyGut]

Among those questioned, Rich said, was a teacher who told detectives Billie had been asking him questions “about how to make yourself pass out”.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9dpNu3jLO3tWmhDdHk5VXpwZkU/edit?pli=1

Autoerotic asphyxial behavior typically begins during adolescence. Most autoerotic deaths are male and occur in this age group because the practitioners lack experience and are unaware of the dangers of hypoxia. Adolescent victims are described as otherwise well adjusted, high achievers, apparently sexually normal and not perceived to be depressed or suicidal by friends and family.

<modnsip>

My thoughts and prayers are with Billie's grieving family.

Pensfan
verified psychiatric mental health nurse

Pensfan, do you not find it odd that there were no disruptions to BC's clothing when he was found? Or that he might do this a block from his home, outdoors, with snow on the ground? It sounds like you know something about this, so I am curious how frequently you would expect to find similar behavior.

 

[Methodical]

Methodical, the pictures you posted of where Bill went missing are really helpful. -Thank you!!

My first impression is there is not much between the house and the road. No fencing, or enclosed yards with landscaping on the street line. I can see how Bill could have been "rushed" to the street, down the street, to a car, swiftly, in the dark.

I wonder what everything looked like in 1979? The maps and street views on the internet today are more recent, (post 2000?), so the trees shown in the aerial are grown (20 plus years later). The landscaping might have been a little "wilder" in the '70s & '80s, too. -Before the "housing market".

Imo- He either fell into a trap (set up to lure him into car, or nearby house), or could have been ambushed, but from where?

I'm curious about all landscape changes also, Rose. It's obvious a large tree had been cut down on the Comeans front yard, most likely in years after Bill's death. It was described by Kat, tho vaguely, that basically the street and houses have remained the same.

Here is another view, looking SOUTH on Maple Dr. The RR tracks and Park St will be in the opposite direction (north). This shows Comeans house on the left, the birthday party house 2 doors down on the left (farther south), and AJT's house on the right.

.

 

[rosemadderlake]

I have to wonder... Would an adolescent really ask a teacher about "how to make yourself pass out" if he were engaging in such an (uncommon) practice? Any guarantee that teacher wouldn't talk to his parents, guidance dept., principal, and tip off the whole world?

 

[rosemadderlake]

I'm curious about all landscape changes also, Rose. It's obvious a large tree had been cut down on the Comeans front yard, most likely in years after Bill's death. It was described by Kat, tho vaguely, that basically the street and houses have remained the same.

Here is another view, looking SOUTH on Maple Dr. The RR tracks and Park St will be in the opposite direction (north). This shows Comeans house on the left, the birthday party house 2 doors down on the left (farther south), and AJT's house on the right.

- The picture is not showing up -but am curious to see it.

The other thing that occurs to me is this would be a winter landscape, so no foliage on deciduous trees and shrubs. (I am reminding myself when I look at the summer foliage in the pics.) So, things would be looking more sparse. And the streets would be lighter from street lights, and house lights.

ETA: Looks like AJT residence is a double lot, wonder if it always was.

 

[Methodical]

- The picture is not showing up -but am curious to see it.

The other thing that occurs to me is this would be a winter landscape, so no foliage on deciduous trees and shrubs. (I am reminding myself when I look at the summer foliage in the pics.) So, things would be looking more sparse. And the streets would be lighter from street lights, and house lights.

ETA: Looks like AJT residence is a double lot, wonder if it always was.

I noticed the pic didn't show immediately after I posted it.
I double checked the link and it shows up fine when I open it up on a another tab. I PM'd bessie to ask why it's not showing, and awaiting a response.

I believe it was always a double lot by AJT's house. The lot south of AJT was empty also on a 1971 on an aerial view.

 

[ZaZara]

bbm
People die from autoerotic asphyxiation. Many who practice this don't just tie a ligature around their neck, but also use additional devices to restrict their oxygen including those which were found on Bill (I'm not listing these devices because kids google this topic.)

I can't make head or tails of this. Do you mean the bottle and the knife were used by Bill? In that case, his fingerprints would likely have been on either. I have not read any mention of this. Nor were there signs that the knife was used upon him. And what with the bottle?

Please explain.

 

[Methodical]

Until I get this pic issue resolved, you should be able to see the pic at:
Comeans - Maple Dr - Viewing South | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

From that link, you can also access several other "Comeans Case" pics that I uploaded to that server (Flicker). The quality is much better than the pics posted under my previous pic server (Photobucket).

 

[rosemadderlake]

I noticed the pic didn't show immediately after I posted it.
I double checked the link and it shows up fine when I open it up on a another tab. I PM'd bessie to ask why it's not showing, and awaiting a response.

I believe it was always a double lot by AJT's house. The lot south of AJT was empty also on a 1971 on an aerial view.

Ok, I see it. So, there are no street lights. It would have been really dark out, that night, and maybe not too much light from houses with front curtains drawn. IIRC: Full moon that night didn't rise until later.

ETA (again!): So the double lot across the street would cut through to Pasadena if I have that right...

 

[ZaZara]

Until I get this pic issue resolved, you should be able to see the pic at:
Comeans - Maple Dr - Viewing South | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

From that link, you can also access several other "Comeans Case" pics that I uploaded to that server (Flicker). The quality is much better than the pics posted under my previous pic server (Photobucket).

They cut the trees and left the stumps and roots. At the time this picture was taken, the cutting was a recent event (+ / - 2 years) because branches still spring up from the foot, so the roots are still alive.
Trees would have been smaller in Bill's time, unless a big tree of 1980 was replaced and cut again 30 years later.

 

[ellemo]

I have to wonder... Would an adolescent really ask a teacher about "how to make yourself pass out" if he were engaging in such an (uncommon) practice? Any guarantee that teacher wouldn't talk to his parents, guidance dept., principal, and tip off the whole world?

Very good point. Without knowing the context of this statement or when it was said, it is not much of a clue. He could have been asking this after he had the polygraph test, in which case he was likely asking because he couldn't understand how anyone would think he did this to himself.

The timing of the fatal choking just doesn't fit with this being self inflicted. If he were into auto erotic asphyxiation, it is just odd that he would run off into the woods to do this when he knew he was expected to get his sister from the party in only a short while. I do not believe he was in the woods alone.

 

[rosemadderlake]

I noticed the pic didn't show immediately after I posted it.
I double checked the link and it shows up fine when I open it up on a another tab. I PM'd bessie to ask why it's not showing, and awaiting a response.

I believe it was always a double lot by AJT's house. The lot south of AJT was empty also on a 1971 on an aerial view.

So, if that lot, back yard cuts through to Passadena, I wonder if there was an easy back yard cut through to Buena Vista? Also, the snow, was it fresh? Or had the roads been plowed? Was there a sign of struggle in the vacinity near where he was last seen? If the snow was fresh, one may have seen that in the street as well, if he was ushered to a car nearby? I know it has been mentioned before, but in addition to the crime scene, I wonder if LE went back and took a look at the areas of Maple, Buena Vista, and Pasadena?

No signs of struggle in the snow in the yard or street would seem to indicate Bill went willingly, quietly (against his will) into a car either at knife point, or willingly under some pretense (lure).

 

[Tulessa]

Until I get this pic issue resolved, you should be able to see the pic at:
Comeans - Maple Dr - Viewing South | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

From that link, you can also access several other "Comeans Case" pics that I uploaded to that server (Flicker). The quality is much better than the pics posted under my previous pic server (Photobucket).

I drug you by the hair <modsnip> to another thread. Did you not notice? :loveyou:

 

[GoingByMyGut]

I have to wonder... Would an adolescent really ask a teacher about "how to make yourself pass out" if he were engaging in such an (uncommon) practice? Any guarantee that teacher wouldn't talk to his parents, guidance dept., principal, and tip off the whole world?

Well, you know I don't put a lot of stock in this "alleged" teacher statement, Rose, but having worked with middle and high schoolers for years, you'd be surprised what they'd say! Think of it -- they are in school for 40-plus hours a week. Even the most guarded among them at some point let down and just be themselves. What comes out of their mouths is sometimes downright embarrassing to me!

Did Bill say this or something like it? I think that's a million dollar question -- with just as many potential answers.

As to reporting to parents, unless a teacher senses that the student is going to use the information to put him or herself in danger, I think the teacher's first response would be to take the thought as intellectual curiosity. Going to parents with every little thing kids say isn't feasible, and it degrades trust between the teacher and student -- which runs counter to the teacher's goals.

Maybe the fact that the teacher did NOT report the statement until (presumably) after Bill's death is one indication that he didn't think Bill would put himself at risk? JMO

 

[GoingByMyGut]

So, if that lot, back yard cuts through to Passadena, I wonder if there was an easy back yard cut through to Buena Vista? Also, the snow, was it fresh? Or had the roads been plowed? Was there a sign of struggle in the vacinity near where he was last seen? If the snow was fresh, one may have seen that in the street as well, if he was ushered to a car nearby? I know it has been mentioned before, but in addition to the crime scene, I wonder if LE went back and took a look at the areas of Maple, Buena Vista, and Pasadena?

No signs of struggle in the snow in the yard or street would seem to indicate Bill went willingly, quietly (against his will) into a car either at knife point, or willingly under some pretense (lure).

BBM: I asked that Q too, Rose, but never got an answer. KatCo did at one point (Post 228) say generally "Most of the houses in the neighborhood had fences." But in my experience, kids know where they can cut through.

 

[rosemadderlake]

Well, you know I don't put a lot of stock in this "alleged" teacher statement, Rose, but having worked with middle and high schoolers for years, you'd be surprised what they'd say! Think of it -- they are in school for 40-plus hours a week. Even the most guarded among them at some point let down and just be themselves. What comes out of their mouths is sometimes downright embarrassing to me!

Did Bill say this or something like it? I think that's a million dollar question -- with just as many potential answers.

As to reporting to parents, unless a teacher senses that the student is going to use the information to put him or herself in danger, I think the teacher's first response would be to take the thought as intellectual curiosity. Going to parents with every little thing kids say isn't feasible, and it degrades trust between the teacher and student -- which runs counter to the teacher's goals.

Maybe the fact that the teacher did NOT report the statement until (presumably) after Bill's death is one indication that he didn't think Bill would put himself at risk? JMO

Bbm - Really good points, GBMG. Maybe that convo happened after the 2nd attack? I wonder how many teachers knew about the notes in the lockers? I wonder how many knew the police were involved and maybe that is why they held back? But I really have to wonder when a kid has strangulation marks, and asks a question like that, I am really surprised this teacher held back on that convo. -Seems like such a red flag and missed opportunity to either intervene on behalf of Bill, or to enlighten (someone) in hindsight...

I mean what were they thinking at school? With a question like that and physical marks, I would have thought attempted suicide before an obscure sexual practice.

It makes me think this piece was really spun in the press...

 

[GoingByMyGut]

Bbm - Really good points, GBMG. Maybe that convo happened after the 2nd attack? I wonder how many teachers knew about the notes in the lockers? I wonder how many knew the police were involved and maybe that is why they held back? But I really have to wonder when a kid has strangulation marks, and asks a question like that, I am really surprised this teacher held back on that convo. -Seems like such a red flag and missed opportunity to either intervene on behalf of Bill, or to enlighten (someone) in hindsight...

BBM1: If it happened at all. JMO, but I see lots of possible reasons, including attention-seeking, for making the statement up. Even if Bill did ask the Q, it could have come out of genuine surprise (mb in health or science class), as in, "Wha-a-at?! How could you choke yourself?!" I also wonder if people were saying that about him ... to which he might try to defend himself with, "But how could I do that to myself?!"

In any case, if he was not savvy about the reasons why kids do do that, I doubt the teacher would put the idea in his head. JMO. Of course, that doesn't mean other kids didn't tell him. But remember, no Internet, so that information would be hard to come by. Also, JMO.

BBM2: IMO, schools are little hotbeds of gossip. My no-holds-barred guess would be that if Bill told even one person, "everybody knew everything."

But you raise a really good Q with your BBM3. How much did he tell? (And how much showed the next day?) If he was in denial due to victim-shame, would he have shared the choking stories? Might he have just said "mugged?" If it was auto-erotic, FOR SURE he wouldn't tell, right? I think the notes would have been a less threatening share, but JMO. (ETA: Also, the fact that notes also went to two of Bill's friends suggests to me that the notes were well known around school.")

If teachers knew that Bill had been attacked and gone to police, they may not report the question because it was already in LE's hands. Also, more so in those days, teachers don't like to think of their students in danger ... they could have their own denial. Or, if the person who hurt Bill was a school employee of some standing, could they have started the rumor about it being auto-erotic to discredit him? That, of course, is the more sinister possibility ...

 

[ZaZara]

Bbm - Really good points, GBMG. Maybe that convo happened after the 2nd attack? I wonder how many teachers knew about the notes in the lockers? I wonder how many knew the police were involved and maybe that is why they held back? But I really have to wonder when a kid has strangulation marks, and asks a question like that, I am really surprised this teacher held back on that convo. -Seems like such a red flag and missed opportunity to either intervene on behalf of Bill, or to enlighten (someone) in hindsight...

I mean what were they thinking at school? With a question like that and physical marks, I would have thought attempted suicide before an obscure sexual practice.

It makes me think this piece was really spun in the press...

A very good point! Unless I missed it, we know very little about the school and their reaction to the letters and the attacks. Were they involved in protecting Bill after the second attack for instance? Were students questioned? Has there been a memorial? Yearbooks?

I would like to hear from some classmates of Bill. What was it like when he was attacked? and when he did not return? Were you afraid it would happen to you too?

If you are reading this, please join WS.

 

[rosemadderlake]

A very good point! Unless I missed it, we know very little about the school and their reaction to the letters and the attacks. Were they involved in protecting Bill after the second attack for instance? Were students questioned? Has there been a memorial? Yearbooks?

I would like to hear from some classmates of Bill. What was it like when he was attacked? and when he did not return? Were you afraid it would happen to you too?

If you are reading this, please join WS.

Bbm: Excellent questions. I wonder how they (the school) handled the death of Bill with the students?

There was someone who died of a drug overdose in my HS in the early '70's. I was a freshmen and she was a Junior - I did not know her, but to this day, many, many years later, I'll never forget it or how devastated and rattled people were. -But a murder? I believe it would have had a major impact on his class, and beyond, ...imo...

 

[bflocket]

Not sure if Herb Baumeister has been mentioned yet.

A.K.A.: "Herb" - "The I-70 Strangler"

Method of murder: Strangulation
Classification: Serial killer
Characteristics: Lust killer - Torture
Number of victims: 8 - 16
Date of murders: 1980 - 1996
Date of birth: April 7, 1947 (which makes him 33 at time of BC)
Victims Undetermined (11 confirmed, 9 others suspected)
Span of killings
1980s–1996

I don't like Herb Baumeister. In spite of it being quick and easy, I'm not ashamed to admit that I am very glad he's dead. He never answered to what he did but he is GONE.

But I don't think he could have did this one. He'd already been "attacked" by others, so I don't think Baumeister was involved. Plus, it wouldn't seem like Herb would have time to do what he did for long enough given the circumstances of Comeans' death.

 

[GoingByMyGut]

I'm really glad you brought that up, bflocket. I have to agree with you, I don't think HB is a fit. But Larry Eyler (link) still bothers me.

I know it's a stretch to make any of the known serial killers fit because -- once their "styles" were established, they were nomadic killers. But the time of BC's murder would have been early in Eyler's career -- before his prolific spree that began in 1982 -- and I can't find anything specific about where he was living in the second half of 1979. Because of the three attacks, I could only see this working if, by strange coincidence, Eyler lived near the Cs during this short period of time.

Here are a few reasons I bring him up again:

• Early in his career, Eyler's MO was all over the map. At least superficially (IOW, from the few details given about how some of these victims were found), a few of these early cases bear similarities to the way Bill was found (see below).

• By the time of his spree, Elyer had developed an MO that involved stabbing AND strangulation, ligature and knife (both were present at BC's murder scene). However, while he most often used both methods in a single murder, even later on he did sometimes only use one or the other.

• Eyler was born in 1952, which would have made him 27-28 at the time Bill was killed, but he had a young "look," and at least later on, he claimed to have worked with a partner.

• He possesses the sexual deviant/psychopathic qualities we all sense at the fringes of the BC case.

• Eyler lived in Indiana between 1974-78, where he took classes at the U of I, without ever graduating. This, I presume, is where he met his sugar daddy prof., who Eyler later claimed was a kill partner. Between 1978 and 1982, Eyler appears to have lived between multiple residences for brief periods at a time. As I said above, it is unclear where he lived in the last half of 1979. One thing I was curious about was whether the sugar daddy prof. might have taught a semester at OSU in Columbus, or whether Eyler may have had friends or relatives in the area that he was staying with at that time.

• The range of Eyler's known murders included western Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky.

• This is something we can sleuth, but I haven't been successful finding anything but a repeat of the articles in the link I provide above. I'm curious to hear what the rest of you think about him.

Here are the early cases that interest me:

1978 -- Mark Henry (Link to source)

"Eyler had given Henry a ride on August 3, then drew a butcher knife when Henry rejected his sexual overtures, swerving onto a dark side street where he forced Henry into the bed of his pickup truck, stripped and handcuffed his victim, then bound Henrys ankles and began stroking his body with the knife. Terrified, Henry broke free and hobbled from the truck, Eyler pursuing him and stabbing Henry once, with force enough to puncture a lung. Henry played dead, whereupon Eyler sped from the scene. Left alone, Henry had staggered to a nearby trailer court and roused a tenant there who drove him to the hospital."

(Even though Eyler was arrested for this, Henry appears to have been paid off to prevent him from testifying.)​

1981 -- Name unknown, age 14

A strangulation that doesn't result in death:

"Three years after that incident, in 1981, he was arrested for drugging a 14-year-old boy and dumping him unconscious in the woods near Greencastle, Indiana. That victim had also survived, his parents dropping charges when he left the hospital with no lasting damage."

1982 -- Deloyd Baker, age 14

My original Post 178 - link - TBM:

DELVOYD LEE BAKER 10/02/1982
Unsolved Cold Case Homicide &#8232;Case Number 51-1609
Age: 14
Sex: Male
Race: African-American
Case Date: 10/02/1982
County: Hamilton
Location of Offense: Lantern Rd. near Fishers, IN
Circumstances: On October 3, 1982, the body of Delvoyd Baker was found on Lantern Road near Fishers, Indiana in Hamilton county. He had been dumped in a ditch along the side of the road. The cause of death was ligature strangulation. He had been missing from Indianapolis the night before. He was last seen getting into a van near the downtown library.