murder

It Happened to Me: I Write to Murderers

I have written kind words to men who have done awful things: a drug-addicted man who stabbed an elderly couple to death when caught committing a burglary; a man who shot his girlfriend in the face; a man who shot a friend during an argument over a woman.
Jessica Katharine Murray in
Issues, murder, death row, prison

Nov 20, 2012 at 3:00pm | 373 comments

murder

It Happened To Me: My Parents Adopted a Murderer

In 1984, in the quiet and modestly affluent suburb of Cape St. Clair, Maryland, a 17-year-old boy named Larry Swartz murdered both of his adoptive parents. In 1993, after serving nine years of his 12-year sentence, Larry was released from prison and came to live with us.
Amity Bitzel in
It Happened To Me, murder, family drama

Sep 6, 2012 at 1:00pm | 240 comments

murder

It Happened to Me: My Neighbor Murdered My Building’s Maintenance Man and I Overheard the Whole Thing

I was in my apartment when I heard screaming and gunshots coming from somewhere in my building.
Amanda Lauren in
It Happened To Me, murder, crime, pets

Jan 31, 2013 at 1:00pm | 115 comments

ihtm contest

It Happened To Me Contest Entry: I Met An Alleged Killer On Craigslist

Desperately in need of a sleeker form of transportation, I followed a Craigslist ad titled “BIKE GARAGE SALE” across the San Lorenzo River and into a sickening murder mystery.
IHTM CONTESTANT in
It Happened To Me, ihtm contest, murder, craigslist

Feb 20, 2013 at 1:00pm | 114 comments

death penalty

It Happened To Me: I Was A Death Penalty Juror

My case involved Jim Fayed, a wealthy gold trader who was accused of the particularly brutal murder-for-hire of his estranged wife Pam in a Los Angeles parking garage.
Jean Black in
It Happened To Me, death penalty, trial, murder, crime

Feb 28, 2013 at 6:00pm | 84 comments

ihtm raw

IHTM: I Helped Put The Man Who Sodomized Me In Jail For Murdering Another Woman

The next day, they arrested Paul. They didn’t really care about what happened to me, but they needed Paul’s fingerprints and they couldn’t get a court order for them. His fingerprint ended up matching a bloody fingerprint that was at the scene.
IHTM CONTESTANT in
It Happened To Me, ihtm raw, murder, rape, crime, IHTM, ihtm contest

Jan 29, 2013 at 11:00am | 75 comments

murder

It Happened To Me: I Live In A Murderer's House

In the newspaper clippings I would eventually dig up from the library, the reporter refers to his home address: my home address.
Leah Fitzgerald in
It Happened To Me, murder, crime, haunted houses

Jan 2, 2013 at 1:00pm | 61 comments

murder

It Happened To Me: My Grandmother Was Murdered

No one ever made a movie about my grandmother's story. No new laws were signed into effect in South Texas in the 1970s when my grandmother was raped, tortured and murdered.
Cathy Delacruz in
It Happened To Me, murder, true crime

Sep 28, 2012 at 3:00pm | 57 comments

ihtm contest

It Happened To Me Contest Entry: My Dad Committed Suicide And Then Was Accused Of Being A Pedophile And A Murderer

Local gossip mongers flooded message boards to debate my father’s character. He was a weirdo and a creep, they claimed, always driving around in his van checking out children.
IHTM CONTESTANT in
It Happened To Me, ihtm contest, death, grieving, suicide, murder

Feb 15, 2013 at 10:00am | 53 comments

murder

My Sister Was Murdered With An Assault Weapon, and Better Gun Laws Might Have Stopped It From Happening

For me, the Senate's actions yesterday are personal because the weaknesses of our laws made it possible for three criminals to acquire the assault weapon that killed my sister.
Lisa Benjamin Goodgame in
It Happened To Me, murder, guns

Apr 18, 2013 at 11:00am | 51 comments

domestic violence

When in Doubt, Blame the Victim: The Troubling Media Narrative Around Kasandra Perkins

Collectively, mainstream media reporting has at once discounted Jovan Belcher's actions on account of his mental state and blamed Perkins for staying out too late -- as though Perkins could have brought her murder on herself.
Claire Glass in
Issues, domestic violence, race, murder

Dec 7, 2012 at 1:00pm | 49 comments

juries

It Happened To Me: I Was on the Jury of a Murder Trial

I got to serve jury duty, and all I got was this lingering sense of doubt that sometimes keeps me up at night.
Meghan O in
It Happened To Me, juries, justice, law & order svu, murder, the justice system, trials

Apr 13, 2012 at 11:00am | 42 comments

daddy issues

It Happened to Me: My Father Tried to Kill My Whole Family

We went out and had a nice, big, happy family outing (My mom likes to speculate in retrospect that my dad was just gathering witnesses). Coming home exhausted, we all went to bed except my dad, who stayed up and got high.
Angela Hershberger in
It Happened To Me, daddy issues, drugs, family drama, murder

Feb 22, 2012 at 3:00pm | 38 comments

ihtm contest

It Happened To Me Contest Entry: My Roommate And Her Boyfriend Were Victims In An Unsolved Murder

Sometimes I look for new articles or new developments in the case. I scroll through the comments to where people speculate that they were out in the woods, “doing what teenagers do.” As if they got what they deserved. My blood boils.
IHTM CONTESTANT in
It Happened To Me, ihtm contest, ihtm raw, murder, victims, unsolved, roommates, trama

Feb 22, 2013 at 10:00am | 29 comments

murder

It Happened To Me: My Disturbed Ex Allegedly Murdered A Senior Citizen

The man the French police found wandering the streets of Paris, covered in blood, couldn’t possibly be the same guy I danced with on my 25th birthday, or kissed on New Year’s Eve.
Sandra Miska in
It Happened To Me, murder, true crime

Oct 2, 2012 at 3:00pm | 15 comments