GUILTY MI - Paul DeWolf, 25, fatally shot in Ann Arbor frat house, 23 July 2013

[Woe.be.gone]

I think what woe is referring to is that reservists serve 1 weekend a month and 2 weeks every summer. jmo

Yes, they reported PW was a Reservist.

 

[Woe.be.gone]

I give up trying to understand PW's Air Force status. Google and some articles have that he was a reservist while others say he was active-duty. I know he was a medical student regardless. Still, reporting stinks these days the way they report before they research.

My husband had a soldier in his battalion, a captain, who was an active duty Army officer. He applied for medical school and was accepted. We were happy for him and proud for him. He had a wife and two children. Of course, I knew his wife as opportunities exist to socialize and we (spouses) were encouraged to get to know one another. I'm pointing out that a medical student may already have had other experience in the military unrelated to medical school. Of course, in PW's case, he was only twenty-five and probably spent his years solely on his education with few breaks up until then.

o/t but the soldier we knew became a doctor but his family didn't survive intact. They ended up divorcing and the word about was that he outgrew his wife and thought he wore fancy pants as he advanced in his medical training.

Wish we knew if any of LE agencies involved have made headway uncovering a motive or lining up any suspects.

 

[SapphireSteel]

Did this guy have his window open?

Could it have been a ricochet? A terrible fluke accident?

 

[black_squirrel]

Did this guy have his window open?

Could it have been a ricochet? A terrible fluke accident?

I dont know if a window was open but there was no sign of a break-in. I think it is impossible that some stray
bullet went through the window. From the layout of the building I thin one could
only have fired through the basement window if one were standing right behind the house, which is private property.
Perhaps someone fired through an open window, but then it would be deliberate.
It could be an accident though. Perhaps a gun was accidentally fired within the room.

 

[LambChop]

Sleuthing relatives is against TOS unless they have been named a suspect.

 

[bourne]

Sleuthing relatives is against TOS unless they have been named a suspect.

Is it okay to ask if Paul's family, e.g., Paul and his brother, were having conflicts immediately prior to Paul's murder?

 

[black_squirrel]

Another interview with the parents. I do feel sorry for them. They seem like such good people.

http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/bestoftv/2013/09/13/michigan-medical-student-murdered-parents-interview-cuomo-newday.cnn

 

[LambChop]

Is it okay to ask if Paul's family, e.g., Paul and his brother, were having conflicts immediately prior to Paul's murder?

Unless a family member is mentioned in the news it's just rumor and we need to stay away from that. Too often we see fingers pointed at a family member only to find out someone else was involved in the crime. By then the damage is done to innocent people. Even LE leaking information has no credibility. Think about it. Why would someone leak information that could cost them their job??? So verifying is important and if the contact person is not okay with that, then their information should not be considered. JMO

 

[black_squirrel]

I wonder how the murderer got into the house. In the interview the father says "... about this incident of someone coming in and shooting our son."
So that suggests that he beliefs that the murderer was not already in the house, and the the murderer was not let into the house by Paul.

But then the question raises, how the murderer got into the house. According to police there were no signs of breaking and entering. Before, I believed that one of the doors may have been unlocked. According to an ex-resident, the doors were not always locked during the day when (s)he was living there. But the father tells us of the last time he saw his son. When they came back to the fraternity house, one of the new residents had locked himself out, and Paul helped to get him in. That suggests that the doors are locked during the day/evening.

From the other interview with the parents and sister, we know that Paul texted his sister some questions about the surgery he was going to assist. Also, according to his family, he went to bed after that. This suggests that the murder must have come in the evening, night or early morning. At those times, the outside doors were most likely locked.

A possibility is that Paul let the murder in. Was he expecting/having a visitor? Since he was studying for the surgery, and I think he probably had to get up early in the morning, I would think he was not expecting any visitors. And he also did not mention any visitor to his sister. (At least she did not tell us that.)

Of course, the murderer could have been already in the house, or have a key to the house. This could be a current or ex-resident. Or someone who had received/taken a key from a current or ex-resident.

I can think of the following possibilities (but perhaps there are more):
1. outside doors were unlocked (which seems less likely now)
2. murderer was a skilled burglar (but since nothing was missing, this does not seem like a burglary, and so this seems less likely)
3. murderer is a current or ex-resident, or has gotten the key from a current or ex-resident.
4. Paul (or some other resident) let the murderer in.

So far, I am leaning towards 3 and 4.

 

[jjenny]

Even if doors are usually locked during the night, somebody could have forgotten to lock the door on that particular day.
Also, we don't know if any windows were left unlocked.

 

[SapphireSteel]

Im going to ask the obvious - is there any change Paul and Julie Niswender knew each other?

Quite a good chance, perhaps - same county, both students, both hanging out with other students in that county...

Both murdered with no rhyme or reason, no struggle, no obvious motive (that we know of).

Weird.

:cow:

 

[jjenny]

Since Paul has not graduated yet, I don't believe he would be able to write any prescription for any meds for anyone.

 

[bourne]

Since Paul has not graduated yet, I don't believe he would be able to write any prescription for any meds for anyone.

I haven't followed the case closely but isn't he a resident? If he is, he already has his prescription pads.

Also, as a medical student, he has access to doctors offices. Perhaps the murderer wanted him to steal an Rx pad and write drugs. This is ALL CONJECTURE based on some info I received.

 

[danzn16]

I haven't followed the case closely but isn't he a resident? If he is, he already has his prescription pads.

Also, as a medical student, he has access to doctors offices. Perhaps the murderer wanted him to steal an Rx pad and write drugs. This is ALL CONJECTURE based on some info I received.

A 4th year med student. Not graduated yet so no degree and no Rx abilities.


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[LambChop]

I wonder how the murderer got into the house. In the interview the father says "... about this incident of someone coming in and shooting our son."
So that suggests that he beliefs that the murderer was not already in the house, and the the murderer was not let into the house by Paul.

But then the question raises, how the murderer got into the house. According to police there were no signs of breaking and entering. Before, I believed that one of the doors may have been unlocked. According to an ex-resident, the doors were not always locked during the day when (s)he was living there. But the father tells us of the last time he saw his son. When they came back to the fraternity house, one of the new residents had locked himself out, and Paul helped to get him in. That suggests that the doors are locked during the day/evening.

From the other interview with the parents and sister, we know that Paul texted his sister some questions about the surgery he was going to assist. Also, according to his family, he went to bed after that. This suggests that the murder must have come in the evening, night or early morning. At those times, the outside doors were most likely locked.

A possibility is that Paul let the murder in. Was he expecting/having a visitor? Since he was studying for the surgery, and I think he probably had to get up early in the morning, I would think he was not expecting any visitors. And he also did not mention any visitor to his sister. (At least she did not tell us that.)

Of course, the murderer could have been already in the house, or have a key to the house. This could be a current or ex-resident. Or someone who had received/taken a key from a current or ex-resident.

I can think of the following possibilities (but perhaps there are more):
1. outside doors were unlocked (which seems less likely now)
2. murderer was a skilled burglar (but since nothing was missing, this does not seem like a burglary, and so this seems less likely)
3. murderer is a current or ex-resident, or has gotten the key from a current or ex-resident.
4. Paul (or some other resident) let the murderer in.

So far, I am leaning towards 3 and 4.

This was a frat house and not a private residence.

 

[black_squirrel]

This was a frat house and not a private residence.

Yes I know it is a frat house, but I am not sure what point you are trying to make.

 

[LambChop]

Yes I know it is a frat house, but I am not sure what point you are trying to make.

Paul would have no control over who enters or leaves the residence, who was inside the frat house at the time or whether or not someone left the door unlocked. And when that person was locked out was it his room or the house? It's not hard to believe the front door would be unlocked during the day because of students coming and going from the house during classes. And the point being is that anyone at anytime could have gotten into the frat house through that front door because there are no guarantees that the door was locked if it were an intruder and not an invited guest that entered the house. jmo

 

[black_squirrel]

I think it is clear from the parents story that the student was locked out of the building, not his room. So I think the
doors were likely to be locked during the evening/night but this is not a certainty. If the murder was premeditated and the murderer
came from outside, the murderer probably would have taken the back door. The front of the house is very open, so it is not easy to sneak in that way. The back of the house cannot be easily seen from the street, but there is a little stairs that goes from the sidewalk to the back of the house. Once you take the stairs, you are no longer visible.

 

[bourne]

Paul would have no control over who enters or leaves the residence, who was inside the frat house at the time or whether or not someone left the door unlocked. And when that person was locked out was it his room or the house? It's not hard to believe the front door would be unlocked during the day because of students coming and going from the house during classes. And the point being is that anyone at anytime could have gotten into the frat house through that front door because there are no guarantees that the door was locked if it were an intruder and not an invited guest that entered the house. jmo

Frat houses do not have open door policies during the day or night. Frat houses are like any residence, the doors are kept locked for safety and security reasons. Residents have expensive stuff in the frat houses, like computers and other electronics. No one wants to get burglarized. Residents coming home from classes use a key, like any other home.

Only during parties the front door to a frat house may be kept opened. But I've been to many frat parties in my time and generally even then the houses are kept locked and there are assigned frat brothers near the front door to answer the door for quicker access of partygoers. No reason to throw all caution to the wind and allow potential burglaries and other crimes just because for a few hours one night there is a party.

 

[bourne]

I think it is clear from the parents story that the student was locked out of the building, not his room. So I think the
doors were likely to be locked during the evening/night but this is not a certainty. If the murder was premeditated and the murderer
came from outside, the murderer probably would have taken the back door. The front of the house is very open, so it is not easy to sneak in that way. The back of the house cannot be easily seen from the street, but there is a little stairs that goes from the sidewalk to the back of the house. Once you take the stairs, you are no longer visible.

Could be that a frat brother or the victim himself opened the door to the murderer, whom I suspect is not a frat house resident but someone known to the fraternity.

I think given how there was no break-in and no burglary, the victim likely knew the murderer. The perp might have been someone close to the victim.

Also, the fact that the victim was shot directly in the neck, only once, means that the perp was a practiced shooter -- a skilled marksman. I believe the perp aimed at the victim's carotid, knowing full well that a single small shot would be hard to identify by LE, and that the carotid is the main artery leading to the aorta, the largest artery of the heart, and therefore, the kill would be almost instantaneous. The perp had knowledge of where and how to shoot, and his aim was precise. LE should look for someone close to the victim who is also a skilled marksman.