VA VA - Ralph Leon Jackson, Blue Ridge Parkway Shooter, 4 May 2010

[cherrymeg]

Cheers this really is one last post at the moment and I come back and look at what is left of the thread. It is an easy to think that about him but EAR/ONS was a drunk as was the Blue Parkway Rapist in 1984

Are there pictures of him 35 years ago?

 

[Nadal]

Cheers this really is one last post at the moment and I come back and look at what is left of the thread. It is an easy to think that about him but EAR/ONS was a drunk as was the Blue Parkway Rapist in 1984

Jacksons drink and drug use escalated in the weeks leading up to the murder though, that seems a much more likely reason that he did it. I don't consider EAR/ONS to be a master criminal, he got incredibly lucky several times and largely benifitted from the era he committed his crimes. Had he started them today he'd be caught very quickly. He himself had the foresight to stop most likely because he knew he wouldn't be able to get away with it with advances in technology.

 

[Nadal]

Jacksons drink and drug use escalated in the weeks leading up to the murder though, that seems a much more likely reason that he did it.

Forgot to add that he stopped going to work during this time too despite having a "stable employment and social history" beforehand the prosecution didn't dispute any of this. That's probably why they offered him a plea deal.

 

[cherrymeg]

Cheers this really is one last post at the moment and I come back and look at what is left of the thread. It is an easy to think that about him but EAR/ONS was a drunk as was the Blue Parkway Rapist in 1984

Is there evidence he raped anyone? I haven't been able to find much on his background.

 

[Nadal]

Is there evidence he raped anyone? I haven't been able to find much on his background.

If you mean Jackson then no, "He apparently has no prior history of violent or aggressive behaviors", that's a quote from a defence witness so i think the "apparently" is supposed to indicate that he was surprised he obviously saw his records and the prosecution would've pointed out his violent history if he had one. I said above he had no criminal record but that was a mistake, just assumed that from that quote he could've had shoplifting charges or whatever.

United States v. Ralph Jackson – CourtListener.com

 

[Nadal]

Was Ralph originally from Kansas? Because i found a Ralph Jackson Sr. obituary from Kansas who would fit as his father agewise plus he had a son called Ralph Leon Jackson, only problem was he was born in 1949 which is 4-5 years earlier than "our" Jackson would be but i've read obituaries that had wrong details like that before.

 

[cherrymeg]

If you mean Jackson then no, "He apparently has no prior history of violent or aggressive behaviors", that's a quote from a defence witness so i think the "apparently" is supposed to indicate that he was surprised he obviously saw his records and the prosecution would've pointed out his violent history if he had one. I said above he had no criminal record but that was a mistake, just assumed that from that quote he could've had shoplifting charges or whatever.

United States v. Ralph Jackson – CourtListener.com

Has Jackson died. I thought I read he had cancer.

 

[Nadal]

Was Ralph originally from Kansas? Because i found a Ralph Jackson Sr. obituary from Kansas who would fit as his father agewise plus he had a son called Ralph Leon Jackson, only problem was he was born in 1949 which is 4-5 years earlier than "our" Jackson would be but i've read obituaries that had wrong details like that before.

Actually it says he was born in Missouri.

 

[Nadal]

Has Jackson died. I thought I read he had cancer.

Yeah two months ago.

 

[cherrymeg]

Yeah two months ago.

Thanks. May he rot...

 

[Nadal]

Has Jackson died. I thought I read he had cancer.

Jackson had advanced prostate cancer and had recently had aggressive treatment for it at the time of the attack, sounds like good reason for him to mentally decline and hit the bottle and drugs hard, this is becoming more and more textbook the more i look at it:

Lambert says that Jackson has been "a good worker" but that his schedule had become erratic due to serious health problems including advanced prostate cancer, for which he had recently received aggressive treatment including chemotherapy.

Also: "some research suggests that chemotherapy can cause brain damage and even dementia."

He also had a heart attack a few years before it, sounds like he was literally falling apart it's not that surprising that he had a chaotic break. Not defending him in the slightest of course, just pointing out that this doesn't sound like a dormant serial killer at all.

 

[cherrymeg]

Actually it says he was born in Missouri.

Does that mean his dad was buried in Kansas? I have relatives that were born back and forth over state lines.

 

[cherrymeg]

Jackson had advanced prostate cancer and had recently had aggressive treatment for it at the time of the attack, sounds like good reason for him to mentally decline and hit the bottle and drugs hard, this is becoming more and more textbook the more i look at it:

Lambert says that Jackson has been "a good worker" but that his schedule had become erratic due to serious health problems including advanced prostate cancer, for which he had recently received aggressive treatment including chemotherapy.

Also: "some research suggests that chemotherapy can cause brain damage and even dementia."

He also had a heart attack a few years before it, sounds like he was literally falling apart it's not that surprising that he had a chaotic break. Not defending him in the slightest of course, just pointing out that this doesn't sound like a dormant serial killer at all.

And the Cancer hadn't gone to his brain? Please tell me his hair isn't weird because of a hair piece? I know I made fun of his hair.

 

[Nadal]

Does that mean his dad was buried in Kansas? I have relatives that were born back and forth over state lines.

If it was his dad, i'm not positive if it was due to the date of birth discrepancy. Just thought it was odd that he had a son called Ralph Leon Jackson who was around the same age with the middle name and all, sometimes obituaries get details slightly off i know this from looking up mafia obituaries and birth records.

The only places i know he lived for sure are Virginia and West Virginia, there's also a Ralph Leon Jackson who was in the military in 1963 but i couldn't find details on how long he was in, he'd have been 19-20 at the time. I think the Vietnam draft started in 1963 so that'd make sense.

 

[cherrymeg]

As nice as it would be to have one killer responsible for all sorts of murders I don't think that is the case. Jackson could have shot other people and gotten away with it but raping, breaking into homes, assaulting people while they sleep, those are hands on crimes that seem very different.

 

[Nadal]

And the Cancer hadn't gone to his brain? Please tell me his hair isn't weird because of a hair piece? I know I made fun of his hair.

It probably was a wig but they often model it on your own hair (they did with my mum at least) or you at least have the option. I don't know if it spread or not, he had an absurd amount of health problems and all of them came at him within five years of his murder.

 

[cherrymeg]

If it was his dad, i'm not positive if it was due to the date of birth discrepancy. Just thought it was odd that he had a son called Ralph Leon Jackson who was around the same age with the middle name and all, sometimes obituaries get details slightly off i know this from looking up mafia obituaries and birth records.

The only places i know he lived for sure are Virginia and West Virginia, there's also a Ralph Leon Jackson who was in the military in 1963 but i couldn't find details on how long he was in, he'd have been 19-20 at the time. I think the Vietnam draft started in 1963 so that'd make sense.

I noticed that when looking through family records, bad handwriting or a smudge can change the spelling of a name or date of birth.

 

[cherrymeg]

It probably was a wig but they often model it on your own hair (they did with my mum at least) or you at least have the option. I don't know if it spread or not, he had an absurd amount of health problems and all of them came at him within five years of his murder.

Is your mom okay?

 

[Nadal]

As nice as it would be to have one killer responsible for all sorts of murders I don't think that is the case. Jackson could have shot other people and gotten away with it but raping, breaking into homes, assaulting people while they sleep, those are hands on crimes that seem very different.

Yeah it's not, this is someone whose body and probably brain was eating him alive and he made it worse by self medicating with drugs and alcohol. I sort of believe his story, i know it sounds ridiculous but his health in the leadup and that he apparently didn't drink or take drugs that often beforehand is a pretty compelling reason to believe that his brain was melting. I think that's why they offered him a plea deal to ensure he got life, a good defence lawyer could've made a compelling case that he should've got a lesser sentence.

 

[Nadal]

Is your mom okay?

Up and down, we got prematurely told she was in the clear then two days later got told it spread. She still seems fine although it's only the early days of her medication, the doctor advised her not to take chemo in the end so she didn't need the wig but she had to have her teeth removed. Thanks for asking!