My Theory

Compassionate Reader

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2010
Messages
2,357
Reaction score
112
This is my theory of what happened, developed after many years of research, reading extensively at callahan's and other sites and influenced by the research of "Paid" at the Blackboard ( www.wm3blackboard.com ) which is temporarily down, crashed I imagine from overload! I will tell it from the perspective of the Hobbs' household, as it is my contention that Terry Hobbs is the guilty party. I'm just going to give you the bare bones. I'll provide documentation when I can get back on the BB since a lot of it is there.

Pam picked Stevie up from school, and they went home. Shortly thereafter, Chris Byers came over to watch a cartoon with Amanda on whom he had a little crush. Michael Moore arrived and asked if Stevie could ride bikes. Pam told Stevie to be back by 4:30 as she had to be at work at 5. (Stevie had made plans to run away and had discussed those plans with Chris and Michael that day at school. He could no longer abide the abuse from his stepfather. His friends had agreed to help.)

Stevie and Michael leave on their bikes. Chris stayed behind waiting for the cartoon (I think it was Muppet Babies) to be over. When the show was over (I believe at 4 pm), Terry had arrived home. Chris left on his skateboard and went home to check in. Shortly after JMB left to take Ryan (his step son) to court to be a witness, Melissa became inattentive and Chris rode off on his skateboard to meet Stevie and Michael.

The three boys were huge fans of Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtles. In fact, they had a "secret" hideout - a large volcano style manhole. The plan was for Stevie to spend the night in the manhole and someone would call his grandparents (Pam's parents, Marie and Jackie Hicks) and tell them where he was. In order to get supplies, Stevie had to wait until Terry and Amanda had left to take Pam to work. Pam is worried about Stevie when she leaves, but not overly. It's early May; school is almost out; it's warm outside; she probably figures that he simply lost track of the time.

At about 4:45, Stevie, Chris and Michael go back to the Hobbs' home for Stevie to get supplies. They had two backpacks with them (which IIRC to this day have not been found). I'm assuming one was for clothes and the other for food. Terry and Amanda are gone to take Pam to work. From experience, Stevie knows that Terry will give him permission to play a little longer with his friends. At this time, Stevie also changes into red shorts from the jeans that he wore to school. (This will be important later.)

So, the boys wait for Terry and Amanda to return. (This is probably when Stevie eats some green beans, which explains the green vegetable-like matter found in his stomach at autopsy.) When Terry and Amanda return, Stevie begs to play with his friends a little longer. Terry says yes. By now it's about 5:15 or 5:30. The boys go off to play and Terry and Amanda go to the Jacoby's. This explains why Jacoby says that he saw the boys in the street when Terry came over to play guitars. (According to Jacoby's declaration in the Pasdar case, Terry was at his house from about 5:15 or 5:30 until 6:15 or 6:30 playing guitars. Terry has claimed that, during this time, he and Jacoby are looking for the boys.)

Apparently, Stevie has forgotten something. They make a risky (and as it turns out, fatal) move and try to return to the Hobbs' house at about 6:30. Terry is just getting back from the guitar playing, and he yells at the boys to come home. (This is the Ballard sighting, the latest reputable sighting of the boys.) They all run back to the manhole. Terry, who knows of the manhole (the parents knew that the boys were into TMNT, and Ryan Clark [Chris' half brother] even mentioned searching a manhole, according to Terry in the Pasdar deposition), follows them.

He's angry about Stevie disobeying him, and he intends to punish Stevie. He goes down into the manhole to confront him. At first, I believe that he just tried to humiliate Stevie in front of his friends. Stevie may have been defiant, and Terry just got angrier and angrier. Eventually, he smacks Stevie in the face, knocking him against the side of the manhole where the ladder is.

Stevie is knocked unconscious. I'm not sure if Terry thought he was dead at this point or not, but whether he thought he was dead or not, he knew the other two boys were witnesses to this scene. They try to run up the ladder, and he violently yanks them down, throwing Michael down so violently that he lands on his head on the floor of the manhole. Chris, too, is smacked down to the floor of the manhole. All three boys are on their backs.

Now Terry needs an alibi. He goes back to the Jacoby's (where he's left Amanda) and tells Jacoby that he can't find Stevie and would he help him look. Jacoby dutifully goes and they drive around for a while (maybe 15 minutes according to the Jacoby/Pasdar declaration). Then, Terry takes Jacoby home and says he wants to look one other place.

By this time, the little boys are unconscious on their backs at the bottom of the manhole. Terry goes to check on them, finds them unconscious, and goes back and asks Jacoby to help him search again. I believe that he is trying to confuse Jacoby with all the back-and-forth so Jacoby will agree that Hobbs was with him the entire time.

By now, the other parents are worried about their children. The police have been called, and missing persons' reports are taken on Chris and Michael, but not on Stevie. Terry keeps away from the police at this time. He claims that he searched for Stevie from the time he got back from taking Pam to work until the time that he went to pick her up.

Terry arrives at Catfish Island (where Pam works) around 9:15. He immediately goes in and calls in the missing persons' report on Stevie. When the police arrive, Pam gives her description of Stevie, stating that he was wearing jeans. Terry knows that Stevie had on red shorts. (One witness stated that he saw Stevie in red shorts around 6 pm.) Terry's mind is reeling. He has to do something.

By this time, parents and police are searching for the boys. Someone has told the police that they saw the three boys entering the RHH woods at about 6:30 or so. The search is concentrated there because of the sighting and because it is an area where parents know that boys like to play. It has trees, trails, everything an eight year old boys desires in a play area.

Terry joins the search, being sure that no one but him goes to the manhole hiding spot. He probably checks on the boys and by now knows that they're dead. Pam's parents arrive and join the search. Somehow Terry keeps everyone away from the manhole. Since, by this time, the boys are dead, they're not screaming or anything. There is nothing to alert anyone's attention to the fact that there are three dead or dying little boys in the bottom of a manhole.

Some time while the bodies are in the manhole, scavenger animals (raccoons, snapping turtles, etc.) find the bodies and begin to predate on them. There is a small amount of water in the bottom of the manhole, enough to cause drowning, maybe six inches, but not enough to deter the predating animals. These animals (this is backed up by the testimony of the certified forensic pathologists at the Rule 37 hearing) leave claw marks, bite marks, etc. on the bodies. One, probably an alligator snapping turtle, degloves Chris. Another bites at Stevie, leaving the injury on his forehead. Something (possibly Terry himself) eventually scares them away from the bodies.

Terry continues to bide his time. Sometime around 5 am, when Pam and the Hicks have fallen into an exhausted sleep, he returns to the manhole, intent on moving the bodies because he fears that there might be some evidence in the manhole to connect him with the crime. He has brought with him Stevie's jeans, meaning to change his clothes. However, he discovers that getting clothes off of a dead body is easier than putting clothes on a dead body. So, he takes the red shorts away with the backpacks.

He doesn't want to leave Stevie nude and the other boys clothed. He believes that would call attention to Stevie. So, he strips the other boys, too. (This accounts for Chris and Michael's pants being found inside out while Stevie's were right side out.) Next, he hog-ties the bodies with shoe laces. However, something goes wrong when he's tying Michael's body. Maybe the shoe string breaks. Now he's short a shoe string.

At the time, according to relatives, Terry wore LA Gear knockoffs with double laces, one black and one white. He takes one black lace from one shoe. He tries to bite it in two, but he fails. (This is when and how the incriminating hair gets on the lace.) Then, he remembers Stevie's pocket knife. He takes the knife from Stevie's pocket, cuts the string, and voila! Now he has two strings to use.

When he was younger, Terry worked in his father's slaughter house. He has seen how dead pigs are tied for transport. The two legs on the same side are tied together, with enough slack being left in the rope to make a handy handle. He puts this past learning to use. This explains the unusual manner in which the boys were tied and the reason for it.

First, he takes Stevie's and Chris' bodies to the discovery ditch, only about 200 yards away. He pushes them face down into the murky water and returns for the last body and the clothes. This explains why Michael's body is found a short distance from the other two. On his final trip, he places Michael's body face down in the ditch and secures the clothes with the sticks to keep them from floating to the top. On one of these trips, probably the first one, he leans against the tree and deposits the Jacoby hair (which he picked up on his clothing while playing guitars) on the tree stump.

Unfortunately for Terry, the clothes become dislodged and some rise to the top. The next day, eventually, these clothing items are seen by the searching police and the bodies are discovered. By this time, Terry is convinced that he has gotten away with murder. He even brags about it to his girl friend, Sharon Nelson, telling her that he found the bodies "buried underwater" before the police did. Isn't that a strange turn of phrase?

That's it. That's how I think it happened. I've tried to refer to some of the guideposts that helped me come to that decision. The biggest thing that helped me was "Paid's" Manhole Theory from the BB. Hopefully, the site will soon be fixed so you can see what I mean. Questions?
 
I think your pretty much on the money, but i wonder about when the clothes came off? I'm wondering if he went to spank him, and pulled down his pants to humilate him in front of his friends, and then hit him elsewhere etc...i'm just wondering if the animals would have done that kind of biting through the jeans and also the jeans would have been pretty messed up...

I do have a question: Is TH the only parent who has refused to give DNA when asked? actually is he the only person period who has refused?
 
Thank you for posting this theory, C.R.

I completely agree that Terry H. is most likely the one that committed these three murders.

~My questions:

* What about David Jacoby? The hair that was found at the base of a tree stump were the boys were discovered was consistent with the hair of David Jacoby.

In my 'mind's eye', I have always pictured Hobbs and Jacoby committing these murders together, even if it means that Jacoby just stood there at the beginning, holding a boy by the arm on each side of him, while Terry in a fit of alcohol fueled rage, killed the third boy (most likely Stevie).

* Why take the risk of moving three dead bodies? Especially knowing that an active search was already underway. It seems extremely risky to move the three bodies, when it would be easier to leave them in the manhole.
 
I think your pretty much on the money, but i wonder about when the clothes came off? I'm wondering if he went to spank him, and pulled down his pants to humilate him in front of his friends, and then hit him elsewhere etc...i'm just wondering if the animals would have done that kind of biting through the jeans and also the jeans would have been pretty messed up...

I do have a question: Is TH the only parent who has refused to give DNA when asked? actually is he the only person period who has refused?

To my knowledge, yes.

Thank you for posting this theory, C.R.

I completely agree that Terry H. is most likely the one that committed these three murders.

~My questions:

* What about David Jacoby? The hair that was found at the base of a tree stump were the boys were discovered was consistent with the hair of David Jacoby.

In my 'mind's eye', I have always pictured Hobbs and Jacoby committing these murders together, even if it means that Jacoby just stood there at the beginning, holding a boy by the arm on each side of him, while Terry in a fit of alcohol fueled rage, killed the third boy (most likely Stevie).

* Why take the risk of moving three dead bodies? Especially knowing that an active search was already underway. It seems extremely risky to move the three bodies, when it would be easier to leave them in the manhole.

Like I said above , I think the Jacoby hair got there via Hobbs - secondary transfer. I don't think Jacoby is involved for two reasons:

1) He voluntarily gave his samples to the police.

2) He invalidated Hobbs' alibi at a critical time. If he were involved, he would support Hobbs' alibi.
 
Interesting theory, and certainly more convincing than all that bollocks about satanism.

Where does Mr Bojangles fit into your theory, if at all?
 
Why wouldn't Hobbs leave the bodies in the manhole, if indeed, that is where they were killed? I could understand wanting to remove the bodies from the actual killing site to lead away from evidence, but the bodies themselves were the biggest pieces of evidence to begin with.

Why take the extreme risk of someone who was already out actively searching for the boys, witness him moving the bodies? Three separate bodies, three separate chances. Why not leave the bodies in the manhole, and distance himself from the manhole, as soon as possible?
 
Interesting theory, and certainly more convincing than all that bollocks about satanism.

Where does Mr Bojangles fit into your theory, if at all?
'Mr Bojangles' has always bothered me, too.

A man covered in blood and mud, stumbles into the 'Bojangles' restaurant, heading directly for the restroom. The restaurant is just a mile from the crime scene. He leaves the 'Ladies Room' walls smeared in blood. The employees call the police, who arrive, but don't even bother to leave the squad car to look at the restroom, later siting that she/ they was distracted by the search of three missing 8-year-old boys.
So very strange.

I've thought about this over the years, and wondered if Mr. Bojangles may have been a transient who stumbled upon the bodies of the boys, right after the murders had been committed.

Maybe his first instinct was to help the boys, but upon realizing they were already dead and beyond hope, and realizing he was now himself covered in blood from his attempt to help them, panicked. He correctly may have assumed that he would become the number one suspect in the murders, and wanted to get away from the crime scene, and clean himself up, as quickly as possible.
 
Like smart blonde I do believe Jacoby was involved.Especially after reading Amanda's journal.
I have the same questions about the manhole theory as well.Why risk moving the bodies?
IMO the Jacoby residence may have been the original crime scene.
IMO Mr.Bojangles is not related to the crime.There was a lot of drug activity,shootings etc in the area as well.I think Mr,Bojangles may have been involved in any of those incidents more likely than the death of the children....IMO
 
Thank you for posting this theory, C.R.

I completely agree that Terry H. is most likely the one that committed these three murders.

~My questions:

* What about David Jacoby? The hair that was found at the base of a tree stump were the boys were discovered was consistent with the hair of David Jacoby.

In my 'mind's eye', I have always pictured Hobbs and Jacoby committing these murders together, even if it means that Jacoby just stood there at the beginning, holding a boy by the arm on each side of him, while Terry in a fit of alcohol fueled rage, killed the third boy (most likely Stevie).

* Why take the risk of moving three dead bodies? Especially knowing that an active search was already underway. It seems extremely risky to move the three bodies, when it would be easier to leave them in the manhole.

I've always thought that there were two people involved. I have no idea if Jacoby was one of them, but I have always believed that it was two people after reading about the knots. If I understand correctly, one boy was tied with one kind of knot and another boy was tied with a different type of knot and the third boy was tied with a combination of the two knots. The boy being tied with a combination of the two knots leads me to believe that one person was tying each of the boys and they tied the last at the same time together, for speed.
 
It's a good theory that Paid has put out there, and it's much better then what the 3 were convicted with... But I have some serious reservations. I read the theory quite awhile ago over on blackboard and have followed this case at times very extensively over the years. When I first read Paid's manhole theory I was thinking by gosh he got it, but then a major issue dawned on me. First moving the bodies, Hobbs appears a slight man and carrying 3 boys bodies up a ladder by shoestrings is almost so far fetched to be outlandish. How much would each boy weigh? 60 pounds or more? That would be very difficult and I think not only would the bodies have incurred a lot more damage from being swung around hitting the walls, but more importantly Hobbs would just be exhausted doing it. 60 pounds may not sound like a lot, but 60 pounds of dead weight holding with just one hand while climbing a ladder with the other and then carrying them how much further to the ditch? I would find that a daunting task and I'm weigh about 220 and am a avid weightlifter, Hobbs would be to the point of exhaustion after 2 boys much more so 3.
I do believe Hobbs is the logical top suspect with his hair being found at the scene as well as Jacobys, but I do believe that supporters may be falling into the same trappings as the WMPD by focusing squarely on one man. I mean really blackboard has become more focused over time on Hobbs than on the 3 wrongly convicted. I personally am inclined to believe that Hobbs may be the guy, but I feel the manhole theory is flawed and if the bodies were moved they were done so from a more plausible location such as a vehicle, where they had to be moved. I also believe there are other suspects almost as suspicious, including the blackboards own founder and media hound JMB or the likes of James Martin, Tim Cotten, Chris Morgan, Brian Holland or Mr. Bojangles.
I also believe this case will never be solved and a killer(s) will live out the rest of his/their days free and 3 little boys will sadly never truly rest in peace.
 
Thank You, CR for this theory. Unfortunately, it leaves me with more questions than answers. Obviously, I haven't studied NEAR the information on this case that I need to. The only place I've really researched is the Callahan's site. I've never been on the "blackboard" as I'm trying to stay away from sites biased one way or the other (no offense meant, I just am trying to keep an open mind and looking at evidence only).

Is the blackboard the only place I can find the Pascar hearing info, the other witnesses that have recently come forward and this journal of Amanda's that was referenced?
 
@IMustBreakYou

If Hobbs had an accomplice that would answer your reservations about lifting the boys. However, I agree we shouldn't just get tunnel vision about one man or one theory.

Sadly, very sadly, I also think your sign off line may well come true.
 
I, too, question getting the boys out of the manhole, even if he strapped them across his chest/back. How large was the opening? How far down/up was the ladder? How could it be done with no one witnessing? Even if there were 2 involved for getting up the ladder and lifting out, someone would have seen something as this would have taken a few minutes just to get them up, much less carry them to the woods, or drive them to the woods.

I don't know if they were murdered in someone's home; auto; or woods but elsewhere in the woods. I don't know if it was just rage at the boys or if the boys witnessed something that no one wanted the community to know about. But I think there could have been 2 perps, and I think they were adults not teens.
 
@IMustBreakYou

If Hobbs had an accomplice that would answer your reservations about lifting the boys. However, I agree we shouldn't just get tunnel vision about one man or one theory.

Sadly, very sadly, I also think your sign off line may well come true.

It surely would, but the manhole theory as stated has become pretty much gospel over on blackboard and I've seen many people point out a tidbit here or there they don't agree with and are quickly called an idiot or laughed at for it. I would really like to see an open conversation on it. Oh and I did forget to mention that I'm am very happy the three did get out, not ideal... but free.
 
The extent of my knowledge on this case comes from the documentaries, what's been written here, some follow up on links here, and very little independent googling. I am glad the 3 are free, as they did not IMO get a fair trial. I also found Jason Baldwin, in particular, to be extremely believable. I was not sure about the other two.
Having said that, there are several places where CR's theory makes my brain go "tilt". As everyone has said, the killing in the manhole and subsequent moving of the bodies doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Also, leaving 3 boys unconscious (that's hinky) without knowing if/when they will wake also makes no sense to me. The changing of clothes makes no sense. What is this about the red shorts? Were they ever found, or were they just mentioned by one witness? Why has "Mr. Bojangles" been ruled out? He seems the most likely of ANYONE to be the killer. Also, if one of the DNA samples is believed to exist by "transfer" then why not both?

Definitely not "picking on you" CR. I have great respect for your knowledge of and commitment to this case. I'm just coming at it with semi-fresh eyes. I have no theories. I plan to look at it a lot more closely now that the Casey Anthony stuff is overwith. All of the above is MOO:peace:
 
I don't know about all your questions, but wrt the red shorts - Stevie was wearing jeans when his mother last saw him, that's what she described him as wearing in the missing person's report. Another witness who saw him around 6pm says he was wearing red shorts. If that witness is right it means Stevie came home and changed after Pam left for work. So the theory goes that Hobbs would have needed to substitute the shorts for jeans in order to hide the fact that he had seen his stepson while his wife was at work.

As for "were they ever found?", well...I assume he would have simply taken them home, folded them up and put them back in the drawer or wardrobe.
 
I don't know about all your questions, but wrt the red shorts - Stevie was wearing jeans when his mother last saw him, that's what she described him as wearing in the missing person's report. Another witness who saw him around 6pm says he was wearing red shorts. If that witness is right it means Stevie came home and changed after Pam left for work. So the theory goes that Hobbs would have needed to substitute the shorts for jeans in order to hide the fact that he had seen his stepson while his wife was at work.

As for "were they ever found?", well...I assume he would have simply taken them home, folded them up and put them back in the drawer or wardrobe.

Thank you -- that's what I was asking (about the shorts). They stood out to me because it didn't make sense to me (in CR's scenario) that if that boy was planning on spending the night outside, why would he change into shorts? That doesn't make sense to me. The witness could have been wrong about what he was wearing.
 
Definitely the witness could have been wrong, or the surmise that Stevie was planning to spend the night outside could be wrong. He could have just been breaking curfew for the usual childish reason that curfews are broken - ie, he was too busy playing with his friends to notice the time.

However, I can't help but notice that the witness who saw him in red shorts is not the only evidence that Stevie was at home after Pam left for work. The Ballard affidavits, and the green vegetable like matter in his stomach after Pam left dinner which included green beans, point in the same direction.
 
I was looking at the pictures on the Callahan site and the pictures labelled "possible site of Satanic rituals" absolutely look like a homeless person's squat to me. That could have been the guy in the bathroom, maybe.
 
Thank You, CR for this theory. Unfortunately, it leaves me with more questions than answers. Obviously, I haven't studied NEAR the information on this case that I need to. The only place I've really researched is the Callahan's site. I've never been on the "blackboard" as I'm trying to stay away from sites biased one way or the other (no offense meant, I just am trying to keep an open mind and looking at evidence only).

Is the blackboard the only place I can find the Pascar hearing info, the other witnesses that have recently come forward and this journal of Amanda's that was referenced?

I wanted to edit this post, but I couldn't. I found the Pascar hearing info on Callahan's so I'm reading it now. I don't know how I missed it all this time. Sorry! But I would like to read/see Amanda's journal if anyone knows where that can be found. Thanks!
 

Members online

Online statistics

Members online
170
Guests online
1,776
Total visitors
1,946

Forum statistics

Threads
589,948
Messages
17,928,063
Members
228,011
Latest member
legalpyro74
Back
Top