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

[LambChop]

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.

Unfortunately we don't know that for sure. And we can all be assured that not all students think about locking a door behind them. Given the fact that LE appears to have no suspects and there is no sign of a forced entry it could be that a resident did not lock that door if this was, in fact, an intruder who managed to get in through an unlocked door. But that is just my opinion.

 

[bourne]

Unfortunately we don't know that for sure. And we can all be assured that not all students think about locking a door behind them. Given the fact that LE appears to have no suspects and there is no sign of a forced entry it could be that a resident did not lock that door if this was, in fact, an intruder who managed to get in through an unlocked door. But that is just my opinion.

Perhaps, but from my personal knowledge of frat houses, residents are very very careful, not only to safeguard themselves and their own valuables in the house, but also to safeguard their "brothers". Fraternities are very close-knit. It's like the three musketeers -- all for one and one for all. Nobody wants to take the risk of endangering their fellow brothers. So I very much doubt the front (or back) doors were kept unlocked.

I also think that if a frat brother noticed the front door was unlocked or that the door was left ajar, that they would have spoken up to LE already. Unless the murderer was a frat brother (which I doubt), the frat brother would be obligated to speak up, due to his affinity with his fellow brothers and the frat pledge, and simply out of moral obligation to prevent another murder from happening. But of course, this is again assuming the murderer is not a frat brother and that the frat brothers in this residence have high moral standards and are not cowards.

 

[LambChop]

Someone did get in whether they were let in or the door was unlocked because a homicide did occur without any suspects. jmo

 

[bourne]

Someone did get in whether they were let in or the door was unlocked because a homicide did occur without any suspects. jmo

If you read my prior posts, you'll see that I said the perp is likely someone either the victim or a fraternity brother had allowed into the frat house. In other words, they opened the door willingly to the culprit. I don't believe the culprit snuck into the house through an unlocked door.

I also do not believe the murderer was a complete stranger unknown to any of the frat brothers because there are NO signs that of burglary or suspicious activities the perp committed in the house other than killing Paul with the SINGLE GUNSHOT TO THE NECK.

In my educated opinion, the single murder of Paul was intentional, and I believe it is committed by someone close to him whom he knew and trusted. This was not a random kill by a perfect stranger.

 

[OldSteve]

If you read my prior posts, you'll see that I said the perp is likely someone either the victim or a fraternity brother had allowed into the frat house. In other words, they opened the door willingly to the culprit. I don't believe the culprit snuck into the house through an unlocked door.

I also do not believe the murderer was a complete stranger unknown to any of the frat brothers because there are NO signs that of burglary or suspicious activities the perp committed in the house other than killing Paul with the SINGLE GUNSHOT TO THE NECK.

In my educated opinion, the single murder of Paul was intentional, and I believe it is committed by someone close to him whom he knew and trusted. This was not a random kill by a perfect stranger.

I agree, but a single shot is so strange. Not the usual kind of shot a "pro" would do... Unless whomever did this wanted it to look unprofessional..
another thought is of whomever shot him, actually wanting to watch a slow death..

In either case - staying around instead of making a quick get-away would say something.

 

[black_squirrel]

Regarding the locking of the doors, here is a part of a statement of an ex-resident that I posted a while back:

"When I lived in Phi Rho, the front and back door security was not always super great. There is a parking lot at the back of the Tudor house and there is a back door that grants easy access to the first and basement levels. There are also ground level windows to most of the basement rooms. There is of course a front door as well and when I lived in the house in the late 90s the doors were unlocked during the day much. Most of the time someone ensured that the doors were shut and locked at night, but there were occasions, once in a blue moon, when a door was left open."

Of course, now a different group of residents are in the frat building, who may behave differently regarding locking of doors. I think the doors were probably locked, but there is also a reasonable chance that they were not.

 

[black_squirrel]

I agree, but a single shot is so strange. Not the usual kind of shot a "pro" would do... Unless whomever did this wanted it not look professional.. or perp purposely shot him in the neck and watched him bleed to death to get some kind of sick personal satisfaction.

Either way, if this were the case, then staying around to make sure he bleed to death outweighed making a quick get-away.

A pro probably would not shoot in the neck, because such a target does not kill instantaneously. Unless (s)he is a sicko as you said. DeWolf may have been asleep when he was shot. In that case, the murderer may have pull a blanket over his head before shooting, so that it may dampen the sound, and such the murderous act will not leave blood traces on the perpetrator. He may have aimed for the head or for the heart, but could not clearly see the target. Still, it was reported that DeWolf was found in a "pool of blood". That suggested that he wasn't in bed when he was found, but on the floor.
Perhaps he was still able to roll out of bed. Anyway, this is probably a far fetched speculaton.

 

[bourne]

I agree, but a single shot is so strange. Not the usual kind of shot a "pro" would do... Unless whomever did this wanted it to look unprofessional..
another thought is of whomever shot him, actually wanting to watch a slow death..

In either case - staying around instead of making a quick get-away would say something.

I've been doing some reading about carotid artery compression and stenting.1, 2 It's not the same as shooting the carotid artery and making blood leak out of the artery, but if Paul was shot at the bifurcation of the internal and external carotid artery which supplies the brain, and the face, respectively, then there could be a sudden loss of consciousness when Paul was shot, and perhaps the shooter had wanted to cause a "stroke" (brain attack; no bloodflow to the brain) and Paul, had he survived -- if there were people present to help stymie the outflow of blood from his neck -- he would nonetheless have suffered brain damage.

I think the perp had either wanted Paul dead or the perp wanted to cause permanent brain damage to Paul. In any case, I still believe the perp was jealous of Paul and quite possibly jealous of Paul's intellect. Hence the need to shoot him in the carotid. Note: I am assuming Paul was shot in the carotid artery. But as we have not received Paul's autopsy report, this may not be the case. My opinions are subject to change based on receipt of actual data and evidence, including Paul's AR.

I had earlier posted that Paul's death was "near instantaneous". I still believe that is the case, because if the perp is as skilled as I believe he is, he likely aimed at the bifurcated common carotid, wherein he'd do the most damage with a single gunshot. And many people suffer carotid sinus hypersensitivity which is a overreaction of baroreceptor stimulation in the carotid sinus and cause sudden bradycardia and drop in blood pressure leading to a sudden loss of consciousness which can then accelerate braindeath with continual hemorrhaging of blood from the carotid. I think the perp is a cruel, sadistic person who targeted Paul specifically. I believe it was a personal vendetta against Paul by the perp likely driven by long-standing rivalry in which the perp felt intellectually inferior but was unable to accept that fact.

Does anyone know if the cops recovered the bullet that struck Paul?

1. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health//dci/Diseases/catd/catd_all.html
2. http://www.vascularweb.org/vascularhealth/pages/carotid-stenting.aspx

 

[bourne]

I just want to add this about how difficult it is to stop a carotid artery from bleeding.

"There is particularly high danger if constricting the carotid artery in the neck, as the brain is sensitive to hypoxia and brain damage can result within minutes of application of pressure. Pressure on the carotid artery can also cause vagal tone induced bradycardia, which can eventually stop the heart. Other dangers in use of a constricting method include rhabdomyolysis, which is a build up of toxins below the pressure point, which if released back into the main bloodstream may cause renal failure."

Emergency bleeding control - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[SapphireSteel]

It all depends on what Paul was doing when shot I guess.

If he was taken by surprise, a neck shot seems off target.

If he was rushing at his attacker, one shot could easily hit his neck, even with an expert.

The fact that there was no "follow up" shot tells me at the very least, the shooter had basic medical knowledge (ie not a street kid or numbnut thief). He knew he had hit a fatal spot.

:cow:

It's almost execution like, depending on if Paul saw it coming or not.

 

[Woe.be.gone]

My guess is that Paul was murdered by someone he knew and was taken by surprise when he was shot at close range. :twocents:

 

[Katana]

If this was a break in, then both the front door and Paul's door would have been unlocked because there was no sign of forced entry. I doubt a robber knocked on Paul's door, only to be surprised by Paul and then shoot him. Furthermore, there would have been signs if someone crawled through an open window because you still have to break the screen. Nothing so far points to an attempted robbery. Like I said, the only way a stranger scenario works is if both doors were unlocked and the intruder was surprised by Paul and instantly shoots and runs. In that case, an intruder expecting no one would turn around and bolt. Why shoot when they haven't even taken anything yet? And why not take something after you already shot the person? If you are capable if murder then you probably aren't afraid to finish your crime. I personally think the intruder theory is the one thing that can be ruled out.

 

[black_squirrel]

Another interview with the parents:

http://www.cw7michigan.com/shared/news/features/top-stories/stories/wmmt_two-months-after-murder-family-still-looks-answers-13792.shtml

 

[colette]

Another interview with the parents:

http://www.cw7michigan.com/shared/news/features/top-stories/stories/wmmt_two-months-after-murder-family-still-looks-answers-13792.shtml

Thanks, good interview and greats pictures of Paul. Touching how Paul would tell his mother "you can do this". Sad to see his lab coat and ID....

Talks about the $10,000 reward, hope someone comes forward with info

 

[Woe.be.gone]

Another interview with the parents:

http://www.cw7michigan.com/shared/news/features/top-stories/stories/wmmt_two-months-after-murder-family-still-looks-answers-13792.shtml

Interesting, the last comment of the report is, now, the family believes they are not being targeted. After Paul was murdered, the family questioned if they might be targets as well.
The wording TD (dad) uses versus the way the media phrases it, is a bit different. I can't help but wonder why Paul's mom and dad thought that the rest of the family could become targets too and what information they have now that eases their fears.

 

[black_squirrel]

Interesting, the last comment of the report is, now, the family believes they are not being targeted. After Paul was murdered, the family questioned if they might be targets as well.
The wording TD (dad) uses versus the way the media phrases it, is a bit different. I can't help but wonder why Paul's mom and dad thought that the rest of the family could become targets too and what information they have now that eases their fears.

Iam not sure why the family thought they could be targets as well. But after such a traumatic loss I can imagine that
one has an irrational fear of losing another family member.

 

[psyquestor]

Iam not sure why the family thought they could be targets as well. But after such a traumatic loss I can imagine that
one has an irrational fear of losing another family member.

Agreed. One of the symptoms of PTSD is hypervigilance. Being overly concerned about other loved ones fits in with that line of thought.

NOT saying that the man's family has PTSD, but that it would not be out of the question for them to be having some symptoms of it, having suffered a traumatic loss.

JMHO

 

[Woe.be.gone]

Iam not sure why the family thought they could be targets as well. But after such a traumatic loss I can imagine that
one has an irrational fear of losing another family member.

Honestly, I'm not sure my mind would go there considering that my child was twenty-five years old and his advanced involvement/status/aims were of his own making.
That's why the remark caught my attention. It seems as if Paul was operating indepedent of his parents as the AF program was paving his way toward meeting his goals.

 

[Woe.be.gone]

http://www.annarbor.com/news/crime/...h-continues-as-u-m-students-return-to-campus/

This article describes Paul as a reservist second lieutenant in the United States Air Force. We discussed earlier where some articles describe him as an active duty second lieutenant. Since my husband is nearby, I questioned him about this (retired for almost ten years - ugh!). He explained that Paul could have been either description depending on how he approached the AF as the military is short on and needs doctors. Paul may have been ROTC while in regular college and upon graduating would become a second lieutenant automatically. Or, he may have signed a contract with the AF to go active duty upon graduation from medical school and would serve as a doctor for six to twelve years thereafter (known as payback), therefore being 'on reserve' for future service. In exchange for his promise, the AF foots the bills for the medical education.

If Paul was reserve, that's a different category from the reserve I was thinking about (when someone is a once a month weekender/month long every summer service member). My husband informed me there's a category known as 'inactive reserve'. In other words, they can't be called up while the focus is on completing the intended education (keeping in mind that the whole point of the armed forces is to be available to protect, or take care of those who do, our country if need be).

The point is, it doesn't really matter what he was other than the fact that he planned to and was obligated to enter the Air Force upon his graduation from medical school.

 

[bourne]

Honestly, I'm not sure my mind would go there considering that my child was twenty-five years old and his advanced involvement/status/aims were of his own making.
That's why the remark caught my attention. It seems as if Paul was operating indepedent of his parents as the AF program was paving his way toward meeting his goals.

I can understand the parents needing to grieve the horrific loss of a near-perfect son and may be experiencing some type of PTSD by proxy and thus suffer some type of irrational fear that the entire family may be targets of a murderer. But I can see what you're saying too.

From what I read, the parents weren't physically present at the crime scene nor did they witness the incident happen so it seems odd that they would be concerned about the family being "targets" of a murderer when they don't live on campus with their victim son, and their lives appear quite removed from their son's life at medical school and the air force.

Also, by and by, I also thought it strange that the dad recently stated in MSM article that the family needs to "move on" when it's only been a month or so when their precious son Paul was murdered, and according to their one other son, Paul was ironically killed "at the prime of his life".

If it were my son who was murdered so viciously when he was just beginning to reach his full potentials and live the life he worked so diligently for, I'd be majorly p.o.-ed. No doubt about it. I'd move heaven and earth to find his killer. I would NOT stop until I find his killer and bring him/her to justice.

But then maybe his dad was only saying that euphemistically because Paul would want the family to move on because he was the loving, compassionate, thoughtful son who didn't want his family to suffer. And that in reality, the family, deep inside, is still suffering immeasurable pain.

Pure speculation: The father's words are what make me think that perhaps someone close to the family was on campus during the time of Paul's murder?