GA GA - Shirley, 87, & Russell Dermond, 88, Putnam County, 2 May 2014 - # 1

[Backwoods]

Some thoughts.....


7. Someone posted a few pages back, a quote from a news article that stated Mrs Dermonds had done the Friday Crossword...but they hadn't picked up their Saturday mail. Here in Canada, there is no mail delivery on the weekends. Is there in the U.S. or were they maybe referring to Saturday newspaper delivery?

<respectfully snipped for focus>

We do still have Saturday mail delivery at the moment, but yes, the newspaper probably was a separate delivery, by a newspaper carrier.

 

[Foxfire]

Mrs. Dermond may have been the target. Not the money. Now, if I had to speculate why her husband was decapitated, the only thing I am left with, his murderer is a sadist, and I feel very sad for the Mrs. D. hope the FBI/ police has some searchers in the woods either looking for abandoned camp sites, tents, old boats, etc.

I agree that is possible, Jabarn, but since the decapitation was postmortem, imo this was too delay or prevent forensic evidence and identification, or for ritual purposes...jmo

 

[Backwoods]

It seems to me that two main questions keep popping up -- and we've all taken shots at answering them, usually considering them separately.

(1) Why the decapitation? to easily remove evidence (bullet); to send a message; psychopath's thrill-kill fantasy; organized crime/drug cartel signature ...??? (Others?)

(2) Why leave Mr. Dermond there but remove Mrs. Dermond (living or deceased)? to remove evidence (bullet lodged in chest, for example); for possible ransom/demands; to (try to) get information/access accounts; psychopath's thrill-kill/possibly sexual fantasy; some kind of emotional attachment/hesitation on the part of the killer/s; couple was seized elsewhere (even just outside, on the grounds) and Mrs. Dermond was never brought back to the residence; just took her as "insurance" (hostage) in case killer/s was interrupted while leaving the scene, etc. ...? (Others?)


Would it help if we consider these two questions specifically together?

 

[Backwoods]

I agree that is possible, Jabarn, but since the decapitation was postmortem, imo this was too delay or prevent forensic evidence and identification, or for ritual purposes...jmo

...though, if Mrs. D. were present, the sadism could have been aimed at her, forcing her to witness this.

 

[CHERIE.T]

more at: http://www.macon.com/2014/05/10/3091430/dermond-killer-wasnt-local-putnam.html?sp=/99/100/&ihp=1

Things are mighty quiet from official sources, today. I HOPE that means they are working some good leads.

Not unusual, IMO, for locals to think "this wasn't someone from around here" -- whether or not it is.

Thinking so much about this family here on Mother's Day eve. God bless them.

This family has been on my mind much of today. No one should have to go through a tragedy like this one....especially imoo near Mother's Day. They are not only grieving the grisly murder of their dad but the disappearance of their mother.
Whoever did this is a monster.

 

[Backwoods]

This whole situation reads like some scary crime novel. As it is somewhat local to me & is on all the news channels, I decided to come back to WS after a long hiatus to see what the opinions are here. Great minds at work for sure!

Thinking about all the possibilities, the one thing I cannot understand is why did they take the Mrs. She would make the "getaway" complicated. Only thing I can come up with is maybe they took her to force her to withdraw money from an account. This would mean it couldn't be a random stranger but someone who knows something about their finances. All just speculation, of course. But I sure do hope LE are looking through their computers, drawers, filing cabinets & checking for withdrawals made from accounts. So, so sad.

bbm: Welcome back, Destini! :seeya:

(You know -- you can check out any time you like; but...)

 

[CHERIE.T]

I agree that is possible, Jabarn, but since the decapitation was postmortem, imo this was too delay or prevent forensic evidence and identification, or for ritual purposes...jmo

I disagree about the decapitation possibly being to prevent identification. The body was found in the deceased's home with other body parts intact. Identification imoo was fairly easy.

 

[gngr~snap]

http://www.macon.com/2014/05/09/3089222/autopsy-sheds-little-light-on.html
"The killing and subsequent disappearance of 87-year-old Shirley Dermond has baffled investigators since concerned neighbors discovered Russell Dermond’s headless body lying in his garage near the couple’s cars Tuesday morning."

I hadn't heard he was "near the cars".
I mean he was found in the garage so it's no surprise he was near the cars, but knowing he had been moved makes me wonder was the scene staged?
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[Backwoods]

I disagree about the decapitation possibly being to prevent identification. The body was found in the deceased's home with other body parts intact. Identification imoo was fairly easy.

Same here. Unless killer planned to move his body somewhere else distant and was foiled at that -- because, if moved anywhere nearby (in the lake, for instance), I think ID still would have come pretty quickly, if the body surfaced. (Because two elderly people would have been missing.)

I can accept that it might have been to remove evidence, such as a lodged bullet -- though I'm not sold on that, either, yet.

 

[Jabarn]

Fool's minds, Jabarn...
I read your post a second after posting mine.. GMH, was no drifter, but only thought to be a drifter by the GBI when first arrested. His IQ was later found to be within the top 10% of the USA. GMH was an Emulator; a copycat of many serial killers prior with a twist of his own thrown in. GMH was very calculating, creative, manipulative, and deflective as are most psychopaths, and likely many of the traits will be found in the perp/s involved in this abduction/murder..

Due to the many State/National Forests in the area, I agree camping sites; specifically primitive sites deep in the forest should be scrutinized.
Imo the Lake is a red herring and the perp/s calculated that the search of the lake for SD would buy them time.. The GBI/FBI likely has much more crime scene evidence/info than they are sharing, that paints a very dark and bleak picture of the evil that occurred there, imo...



Although the Sheriff has been very forthcoming with info up to this point. Due to the FBI/GBI's silence strategy, I don't foresee much transparency in the future, imo..

Hey ff- when I was a late teenager, an elderly women- in her eighties! - was murdered across the street from my grandparents. She was raped and stabbed to death with knives and forks from her own kitchen. In researching, there were similar crimes in the East Tennessee area, none of them solved. It just seems to me those that target elderly women, of those that have been caught, they are a bit on the odd side. By that I mean, they may be sociopaths, but also a bit deranged. Not sure there exists a DSM for it though.

I do think they do very well camping and don't mind not showering.

 

[Backwoods]

http://www.macon.com/2014/05/09/3089222/autopsy-sheds-little-light-on.html
"The killing and subsequent disappearance of 87-year-old Shirley Dermond has baffled investigators since concerned neighbors discovered Russell Dermond’s headless body lying in his garage near the couple’s cars Tuesday morning."

I hadn't heard he was "near the cars".
I mean he was found in the garage so it's no surprise he was near the cars, but knowing he had been moved makes me wonder was the scene staged?
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I guess that answers -- well, kind of -- a question I've had: Whether the couple's cars were IN the garage. This sounds as if they were although I GUESS they could have been just outside it and still be "near".

Also have wondered: Was garage door (assuming it had one) open or closed?

Were garage door openers located?

Was there a sink or other water source in or very close to the garage?

 

[Bootsctr]

http://www.macon.com/2014/05/09/3089222/autopsy-sheds-little-light-on.html
"The killing and subsequent disappearance of 87-year-old Shirley Dermond has baffled investigators since concerned neighbors discovered Russell Dermond’s headless body lying in his garage near the couple’s cars Tuesday morning."

I hadn't heard he was "near the cars".
I man he was found in the garage so it's no surprise he was near the cars, but knowing he had been moved makes me wonder was the scene staged?
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The pictures look recent. Can anyone tell if they are driver license pictures or passport pictures? Did they have any pets? Had they recently traveled abroad or taken a cruise?

 

[Backwoods]

http://www.macon.com/2014/05/09/3089222/autopsy-sheds-little-light-on.html
"The killing and subsequent disappearance of 87-year-old Shirley Dermond has baffled investigators since concerned neighbors discovered Russell Dermond’s headless body lying in his garage near the couple’s cars Tuesday morning."

I hadn't heard he was "near the cars".
I mean he was found in the garage so it's no surprise he was near the cars, but knowing he had been moved makes me wonder was the scene staged?
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What do you think the purpose of staging in the garage would be?

 

[Foxfire]

I disagree about the decapitation possibly being to prevent identification. The body was found in the deceased's home with other body parts intact. Identification imoo was fairly easy.

Cherrie.T, to prevent identification of the perp/s due to touch dna...and to delay identification of the victim..visual, dental, etc..

 

[Backwoods]

The pictures look recent. Can anyone tell if they are driver license pictures or passport pictures? Did they have any pets? Had they recently traveled abroad or taken a cruise?

bbm: Kind of looks to me that they might be driver's license pics, but JMO. I have wondered why they have used only those two pics...

 

[gngr~snap]

I am going to agree to a point that it was no one in the community.
I feel like anyone that lived there would have known that there are lots of parties in the area for the Kentucky Derby.
I don't think anyone in the area would have taken a chance at getting caught. What if them not showing up had alarmed people that night?
I think whoever killed Mr. Dermond had no knowledge of what was customary for them.

HOWEVER.... they could have also used the fact that people would be entertained as a means to commit the crime as well.

Ugh.

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[Hickory Born]

The pictures look recent. Can anyone tell if they are driver license pictures or passport pictures? Did they have any pets? Had they recently traveled abroad or taken a cruise?

A recent newspaper article said they were driver's license photos.

 

[CHERIE.T]

Cherrie.T, to prevent identification of the perp/s due to touch dna...and to delay identification of the victim..visual, dental, etc..

Ahh I see what you mean.

 

[gngr~snap]

A recent newspaper article said they were driver's license photos.

They look alike. I read an article about being married a long time makes people start to look similar.
Not sure how true that is.
CAN YOU IMAGINE? 68 years?
I can't.
My in-laws have been married 59.
Heck my 25th is coming up in October. Another 43 years seems like forever!


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[gngr~snap]

I guess that answers -- well, kind of -- a question I've had: Whether the couple's cars were IN the garage. This sounds as if they were although I GUESS they could have been just outside it and still be "near".

Also have wondered: Was garage door (assuming it had one) open or closed?

Were garage door openers located?

Was there a sink or other water source in or very close to the garage?

"Stills said the concerned neighbors found the Dermonds’ front door unlocked Tuesday morning. Nothing seemed amiss until one of them entered the garage, where Russell Dermond’s decapitated body was discovered. It’s assumed Dermond was killed there, but Sills said he believes Dermond was dead before his head was severed. It’s the only part of the house stained by blood."

It sounds like they entered front door and made their way to garage.
JMO

http://m.redding.com/news/2014/may/10/decapitation-disappearance-baffle-georgia-communit/

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