I was in high school in Houston at the time, and knew David Owen Brooks socially.

If I hadn't spent summers with my godfather in Seattle, I might have ended up in that boat shed, under a dusting of quicklime.

That gives me chills rustle.  I remember this vaguely, not sure why.  But I do remember it and it's horrible that he may actually be set free.

I remember it well. David rolled over on his buddies, turning state's evidence. In his confession, he was always there, watching, but never participated. Also, his buddies raped him a few times, but he stuck around.

Up in Seattle, I heard about it on national news. Every night, another detail, another victim was revealed.

He was a cute guy, but easily led. It always surprised me they didn't kill him, too.

I was pretty young when it happened. Still in grade school but it was all over the news.

Worse yet- the teens involved were cute. I would have probably followed them like a puppy if they had even noticed me.

Scared the crap out of a lot of kids at the time. Stuff like that didn't happen in the South.

Well crap. There goes life shattering our fond illusions.

I was in high school in Houston at the time, and knew David Owen Brooks socially.

 

If I hadn't spent summers with my godfather in Seattle, I might have ended up in that boat shed, under a dusting of quicklime.

Wow, that's pretty crazy. Did you ever meet Dean Corrll or Elmer Wayne Henley? Did David Owen Brooks ever invite you to go "to a party"?

Wow, that's pretty crazy. Did you ever meet Dean Corrll or Elmer Wayne Henley? Did David Owen Brooks ever invite you to go "to a party"?

I never met the other two guys. I only remember being invited "to a party" by a stranger once. I was hitching to get back home late one night, and got picked up. It just kept getting stranger and stranger. I excused myself at a stop light.

It mighta happened more often, but I was pretty clueless as a kid.

That's pretty scary, Rustle. Glad you never had anything more than an encounter with David Brooks. It's just crazy to think that so many guys from the same neighborhood disappeared in a 3-year time span, and no one put it together.

Worse yet- the teens involved were cute. I would have probably followed them like a puppy if they had even noticed me.

 

     I'm pretty sure that's why Dean Corll picked them. Young good-looking guys tend to associate with other young good-looking guys, even though they're not attracted sexually. He wouldn't have picked guys that were fat or ugly because they wouldn't have attracted good-looking guys.

     There was a story that someone posted about how he saw James Dremayla (the last victim) at the swimming pool with the two, and said they were going to go to a party together. His instincts were screaming about the two, so he didn't go with them, thank god. Too bad James didn't- he looked like a very trusting, naïve 13-year old kid who probably just wanted some cool older guys to pay attention to him.

Those times were so different.  But think I prefer the risks of hitch hiking and doing who knows what. To the world of play dates and people afraid of shootings in school.  

I think you made a good point that in those times of freedom and lack of societal awareness the kids were not linked.  Kind of like in the "History Boys" when the teacher points out that soldiers were not listed on monuments before the Great War. In fact I suspect there were other similar events at least since the industrial revolution which due to racism or classism were never found out as no one was tracking the kids that Horatio Alger wrote about.  Corll and Gacy probably helped start this awareness.  Also the fear mongering that is now so endemic. Youth are probably safer now.  Although my guess is that the increasing level of homeless kids is or will become at similar risk. 

Scary stuff Rustle. Glad you followed your instincts. 

I haven't followed Brooks at all but if he has had a positive time in prison would look at current thought about adolescent brain development and see if he could learn to function outside.  He may not be able to function outside anyway.  Imagine it is mute point.