Clues for Clunkers
A retired criminal justice professor has salvaged the 1972 clunker that once belonged to Wayne Williams, who was convicted in the infamous Atlanta Child Murder crimes that occurred between 1979-1981.
Edward Blackwelder intends to hang on to the white Chevy station wagon in hopes that it can one day help to exonerate Williams. Williams, an Atlanta native, was the prime suspect in the kidnappings and murders at least two dozen African-American boys and young men .
Williams’ car (in the form of carpet fibers) was central to his conviction. Police had staked out an area bridge since bodies were dumped near water. After hearing a splash, an officer spotted Williams driving away in the station wagon. Three days later, the body of Nathaniel Cater was found in the river. Eventually Williams was charged for the murder of Carter and Jimmy Payne. Carpet fibers from the car along with dog hair similar to that of Williams’ canine companion proved to be the prosecution’s best evidence.
Williams maintains his innocence, and Blackwelder believes him – as do others. Several years ago, Dekalb County reopened the investigation into several of the murders attributed to Williams. At the time, Dekalb Police Chief Louis Graham, one of the original investigators in the case, stated that he didn’t believe Williams was guilty of any of the crimes.
It is troubling that after Wayne’s conviction in 1982, a series of child murders continued over the next 12 years. They were similar to the earlier murders allegedly committed by Williams, and remain unsolved. In addition, a former white supremacist and rumored Ku Klux Klan member was also investigated in the Atlanta child killings, but was never arrested. He later purportedly praised the murders without admitting responsibility for the grisly crimes.
By 2006, DeKalb County police dropped their reinvestigation of the Atlanta child murders. Blackwelder is convinced that Williams was just a scapegoat for crimes that demanded a quick and easy resolution.
The reason behind Blackwelder’s desire to keep the car is understandable. The crux of the case against Williams rested with the fact that he was associated with car and home carpet fibers and dog hair found on different victim. Using some questionable math, the prosecution argued that the odds of someone random person other than Williams committing the crimes were 1 in 29, 827,776.
Whether Williams committed some, none, or all of the murders, the statistical leaps of faith taken by the prosecution cast a long shadow over Williams’ conviction and the two life sentences he is currently serving. It makes one question why the State did not attempt to convict Williams of more (or all) of the murders since they wrote those off as solved once he was caught.
It is doubtful that investigators will open the case for a third time. As with Pandora’s box, each crack of the lid allows a few more doubts escape into the ether.
Facts of Wayne Williams case were based on carpet fiber that was in most apartments and houses in and around the Atlanta area during that time. Also key people that could have been good character witnesses were not allowed to speak on waynes behave. The Atlanta task force picked a band that wayne williams managed and took them down to the station for questioning. No parents were notified of this situation. The task force didn’t want to hear anything that was a favorable remark concerning wayne. Recently the students at Bauder College were working on the cold case of wayne williams. No-one conducted a followed up on their findings. Lastly; I have taken several courses with members of a federal organization that was involved with wayne williams already had their mind were made up from their first interview that he was the suspect.
Look, Wayne did have super human strength to lift a dead body out of the car and dump it over the bridge, especially the bridge in question. Next if the officer’s heard a splash why didn’t they do two things. Onet stop the vehicle that was on the bridge instantly. Next why did it take three days later to find the body?
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