Found Deceased TX - Thomas Brown, 18, Hemphill County, 23 Nov 2016

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Kristikay52 said:
Hold up......
Host: “Well, there is, and there is tape recordings of the boy leaving the gas station, that within a matter of moments, uh, the sheriff’s car left the gas station, as did the deputy’s car leave the gas station. Or they were watching him, and they took different directions. I don’t, I don’t know what that means.”

Is that common knowledge? I feel like this is the first I've heard of that.
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I am not aware of any recording of Thomas leaving the gas station.

There are a couple of videos that appear to show two sheriff’s vehicles not even a half mile down the road from Fronk’s at 11:42 PM (descriptions of the videos are very helpful, IMO):


According to Penny, her debit card (Tom asked to borrow it earlier that evening) was swiped at the gas station at 11:28 PM. Around 11:30 to 11:35, Thomas’ ex-girlfriend sent him a text. He replied. She sent him another text around 11:40; he never replied.

Additionally, Penny says 10 days after Thomas’ disappearance, Lewis showed her a picture of Thomas getting gas. Penny confirmed it was indeed Thomas and his vehicle in the picture. While Lewis told her it came from Dollar General, she was certain it came from a dash cam, taken at the street level and close-up. Now Lewis says the picture doesn’t exist.

So maybe the host of the show was somewhat confused over all of these details.

Source: jellybean96’s amazing notes on Thomas’ episode of the “Unfound” podcast :)
Thomas Brown: Seeds Of Doubt | Free Podcasts | Podomatic"
 
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Kristikay52 said:
I remember Penny saying on Unfound that she saw the photo from Fronk's then suddenly she was told it didn't exist. I also remember from Unfound the different street cameras capturing SO vehicles driving through town several times that evening.

Maybe I'm reading it incorrectly but I read the transcript of the interview as saying that SO vehicles were seen on camera at the gas station when he was.
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That is how I took it. That coupled with Penny’s account of the video she viewed, really makes a person wonder- two S.O. Vehicles were seen on video surveillance 1/4 mile from Fronks around 11:45- right around the timeThomas would have been fueling up.
I am doubting dash cam footage was kept from that night, but it had to have existed early on for Penny to see it.
 
Just who are these radio hosts who have released all this info? Is the "dismemberment" of TB common knowledge? I have never heard this alledged.

Who in their right mind would dismember a young, popular student and think they'd get away with it? And why go to that extreme?

Somewhere there would have to be a bloody crime scene. One that would be difficult (impossible) to hide or clean?!

Forgive me, but right now I'm doubting this scenario. It would take animals to dismember a fellow student. And three were supposedly involved and have managed to stay quiet?! No leaks to other students? I just don't see it.
 
inmyhumbleopinion said:
I am not aware of any recording of Thomas leaving the gas station.

There are a couple of videos that appear to show two sheriff’s vehicles not even a half mile down the road from Fronk’s at 11:42 PM (descriptions of the videos are very helpful, IMO):


According to Penny, her debit card (Tom asked to borrow it earlier that evening) was swiped at the gas station at 11:28 PM. Around 11:30 to 11:35, Thomas’ ex-girlfriend sent him a text. He replied. She sent him another text around 11:40; he never replied.

Additionally, Penny says 10 days after Thomas’ disappearance, Lewis showed her a picture of Thomas getting gas. Penny confirmed it was indeed Thomas and his vehicle in the picture. While Lewis told her it came from Dollar General, she was certain it came from a dash cam, taken at the street level and close-up. Now Lewis says the picture doesn’t exist.

So maybe the host of the show was somewhat confused over all of these details.

Source: jellybean96’s amazing notes on Thomas’ episode of the “Unfound” podcast :)
Thomas Brown: Seeds Of Doubt | Free Podcasts | Podomatic"
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So if Thomas’s card was swiped at 11:28, and we know there are two S.O. Vehicles shown on the video at 11:43, and Saige’s text was not read around 11:40, it would seem appropriate to think that maybe a 3rd vehicle dash cam was shown to Penny? Why would a small town like Canadian have more that 1 0r 2 deputies on 3rd shift? Penny said she saw Thomas pumping gas, not driving away from Fronks........twelve minutes seems like ample time to fill up doesn’t it?
 
Razz said:
Just who are these radio hosts who have released all this info? Is the "dismemberment" of TB common knowledge? I have never heard this alledged.

Who in their right mind would dismember a young, popular student and think they'd get away with it? And why go to that extreme?

Somewhere there would have to be a bloody crime scene. One that would be difficult (impossible) to hide or clean?!

Forgive me, but right now I'm doubting this scenario. It would take animals to dismember a fellow student. And three were supposedly involved and have managed to stay quiet?! No leaks to other students? I just don't see it.
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It was a radio host and Retired LE individual. I completely agree with the fact that it hard to see. This was exactly the moment that I knew we were dealing with a different type of scenario- The interview was aired on the momsfortom page, of which Penny is a member. MOO
 
n_6CC said:
So if Thomas’s card was swiped at 11:28, and we know there are two S.O. Vehicles shown on the video at 11:43, and Saige’s text was not read around 11:40, it would seem appropriate to think that maybe a 3rd vehicle dash cam was shown to Penny? Why would a small town like Canadian have more that 1 0r 2 deputies on 3rd shift? Penny said she saw Thomas pumping gas, not driving away from Fronks........twelve minutes seems like ample time to fill up doesn’t it?
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Possible scenario:
11:28 ~ 11:38 PM:
Card swiped;

Thomas pumps gas;

NL & PG or DD watch;

Their dash cams capture Thomas getting gas [In the “Unfound” interview, Penny says she could see the side of Thomas’ face, but he wasn’t looking at the camera];

Saige texts Thomas;

He texts her back [Maybe he does a few other things on his phone as well].

11:39 ~ 11:41 PM:
Thomas leaves Fronk’s;

Saige sends Thomas another text, but he doesn’t text her back [Perhaps because Thomas was already driving at that point, and then a few minutes later, his phone was taken away from him, IMO].

NL & PG or DD follow him.

11:42 PM:
NL & PG or DD are captured on Abraham Trading‘s camera at the intersection of 2nd ST and Main ST.

Later (after Thomas is harmed), NL calls PG or DD for help.

PG is put in charge of making sure that no one comes across NL or the Durango overnight. Traffic control, more or less.

DD helps NL with other things, e.g., picking him up from where he dumped the Durango.

*DD is Dan DeHerrera, who was a deputy with HCSO at the time but is no longer with the department.

In the “Unfound” podcast, Penny says she believes he is the person who gets out of a sheriff’s vehicle and talks to the driver of another sheriff’s vehicle. The exchange took place in the Abraham Trading parking lot at 6:23 AM Thanksgiving Day, 2016:

 
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n_6CC said:
So if Thomas’s card was swiped at 11:28, and we know there are two S.O. Vehicles shown on the video at 11:43, and Saige’s text was not read around 11:40, it would seem appropriate to think that maybe a 3rd vehicle dash cam was shown to Penny? Why would a small town like Canadian have more that 1 0r 2 deputies on 3rd shift? Penny said she saw Thomas pumping gas, not driving away from Fronks........twelve minutes seems like ample time to fill up doesn’t it?
Click to expand...
Penny just posted in the Unfound FB group that Pyne Gregory told Tucker he was the only one on duty that night, but according to the video she has seen, there were 2-3 deputys on shift that night.
 
inmyhumbleopinion said:
Possible scenario:
11:28 ~ 11:38 PM:
Card swiped;

Thomas pumps gas;

NL & PG or DD watch;

Their dash cams capture Thomas getting gas [In the “Unfound” interview, Penny says she could see the side of Thomas’ face, but he wasn’t looking at the camera];

Saige texts Thomas;

He texts her back [Maybe he does a few other things on his phone as well].

11:39 ~ 11:41 PM:
Thomas leaves Fronk’s;

Saige sends Thomas another text, but he doesn’t text her back [Perhaps because Thomas was already driving at that point, and then a few minutes later, his phone was taken away from him, IMO].

NL & PG or DD follow him.

11:42 PM:
NL & PG or DD are captured on Abraham Trading‘s camera at the intersection of 2nd ST and Main ST.

Later (after Thomas is harmed), NL calls PG or DD for help.

PG is put in charge of making sure that no one comes across NL or the Durango overnight. Traffic control, more or less.

DD helps NL with other things, e.g., picking him up from where he dumped the Durango.

*DD is Dan DeHerrera, who was a deputy with HCSO at the time but is no longer with the department.

In the “Unfound” podcast, Penny says she believes he is the person who gets out of a sheriff’s vehicle and talks to the driver of another sheriff’s vehicle. The exchange took place in the Abraham Trading parking lot at 6:23 AM Thanksgiving Day, 2016:

Click to expand...
This scenario is what makes the most sense. I’m curious why a town that small has three officers on duty over third shift- they usually have take home vehicles if they live in the county- I believe all but 1 that evening had a take home vehicle and PG was on duty. I’m curious if the S.O. Moniters their own GPS data and DC video storage and maintenance. I’m guessing Klein said that he believes someone knows from the high school knows because of the vehicle that was said to have driven by Thomas as he was pumping gas. If there is only supposed to be one officer on duty for instance, then that might suggest that this was a planned event with Thomas. We know that there are at least two on duty that evening with a third DC video. How did the officers know that it was urine found by the vehicle? Was it still wet? And if they knew enough to smell it, why wouldn’t they take it for evidence? I’m having a hard time believing they were that incompetent. All MOO
 
jellybean96 said:
I really wish Penny would become a member here....just say'n.
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I know- me too. It’s so helpful to have a verified insider on a thread. I will say that the Unfound Podcast is still by far the best source of information because it’s three hours of interview with Penny. I wish we could do more! Arghhh. I will continue to keep their family in my prayers- I hate that it has gone on this long. MOO
 
n_6CC said:
I know- me too. It’s so helpful to have a verified insider on a thread. I will say that the Unfound Podcast is still by far the best source of information because it’s three hours of interview with Penny. I wish we could do more! Arghhh. I will continue to keep their family in my prayers- I hate that it has gone on this long. MOO
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I agree about Unfound...and the FB page is loads of info as well. Penny posts there fairly regularly. I admire her so much. Everyday, she reads the questions, etc and she always comes back and answers the questions - even the hard ones.
 
Canadian Record article coming out in the Thursday edition later today:

County Attorney Kyle Miller released copies of two separate letters sent to area defense attorneys on April 3--one, notifying them that Sheriff Nathan Lewis had been the subject of an investigation by the Texas Rangers, and the other, that he would no longer accept cases submitted by Deputy Pyne Gregory for prosecution.

Miller sent the letters to members of the defense bar practicing in Hemphill County, noting that they had received the disclosure because they had been assigned to or hired as counsel, or previously served as counsel, on a criminal case in which either Sheriff Lewis or Deputy Gregory had been material witnesses or investigating officers.

Those attorneys also received a separate letter, reporting the Rangers' investigation of Sheriff Lewis, from 31st District Attorney Franklin McDounough. Amarillo's KVII 7 News acquired copies of the letters and broke the story on the evening news on Sunday April 7, accompanied by photos of the letters.

After efforts to communicate with both the county attorney and district attorney failed last week, The Canadian Record filed requests for public information with both offices, seeking copies of the letters, Miller responded this week with copies of the three letters he had written, McDonough has thus far not responded.

In his letters, Miller cited his obligation as a prosecutor under the Texas Rules of Professional Conduct, and under The Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Article 39.14, as well as current case law, as having compelled his action.

Miller stated his belief that Sheriff Lewis' investigation by the Rangers might be used as material evidence for possible impeachment and/or character evidence at trial. Since Miller's letter was written, that investigation has been completed and the final report turned over to District Attorney Franklin McDonough. No details have been made available.

The Record did determine Tuesday that no charges had been filed in Hemphill County, nor has a grand jury been empaneled here to hear any charges that might be related to the report.

Having been made aware of the Ranger investigation of Sheriff Lewis, and having identified problems with cases brought to him by Deputy Gregory, Miller cited his ethical and legal responsibilities to disclose factual issues which could compromise the prosecution of cases involving either officer.

In a separate letter regarding Deputy Gregory, Miller referred to "factual issues" which cast doubt on the officer's credibility. "Ethical and legal responsibilities require me to...bring those issues to light to the defense bar," he wrote, "so the best interests of justice are served."

Miller also wrote that he had already refused multiple cases submitted by Deputy Gregory "for lack of sufficient probable cause, and/or misapplication of the law."

"Please be informed," he wrote, "this office will no longer accept cases from Deputy Pyne Gregory submitted for prosecution."

A third letter, sent to Hemphill County Sheriff's office, contained the same information regarding Deputy Gregory, referring, as well, to "the totality of the circumstances regarding this officer, including his career history and current employment history," saying they warranted action. No specifics were offered.

A landmark 1963 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, in Brady v. Maryland, requires prosecutors to give defendants information that is material to either guilt or punishment. But legislation signed by then-Governor Rick Perry in 2013, known as the Michael Morton Act, establishes even more exacting disclosure requirements. The Morton Act requires disclosure of evidence "material to any matter" related to the action.

According to guidance the Morton Act offered by the Texas Police Chief's Association, the district or county attorney must weigh the given circumstances to determine how badly an officer's involvement in any future legal proceeding could jeopardize the prosecution's efforts. "There are levels of misconduct, just as there are levels of punishment," TPCA advises. "However, all good prosecutors will err on the side of disclosing all misconduct, as it is not the prosecutor's purview to evaluate the level of exculpatory valve of any possible Brady material."​
 
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Sunny Texas said:
Interesting that the newspaper stated no charges has yet been filed or grand jury empaneled IN HEMPHILL COUNTY; this causes me to wonder if it is possible for charges to have been filed or grand jury empaneled in a different county or in district court.
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While I do see where you are going with that question, I think its entirely plausible that nothing has been filed, anywhere, YET. I don't think the DA will be quick to file charges or convene a grand jury. Not saying he won't but I think he will cross every t and dot every i before doing so.
 
IMHO - thanks for the info above. I think we're nearly all on the same page. Here's my list of curious things that keep sticking in my mind...
1. The sheriff has come up with three different scenarios on Tom's disappearance - suicide, runaway alone, runaway with older man he met online. Agreed, per Razz, this was unprofessional at the least and hurtful to the family - all of this within the first few weeks of Tom's disappearance. Has the sheriff put forth a theory on Tom's death??
2. Per Tom's brother on the Unfound Podcast, PG spent all night texting but there was no radio traffic. Odd, yes?
3. Per PG, the sheriff was not on duty and apparently no one thought it important enough to rouse him and call him in in this situation and he conveniently does not appear until 7 am about the time the Durango is found. He then immedately determines, based on what i don't know, and tells Tom's father, it's suicide.
4. Having only just heard about dismemberment - my thoughts are that it is a messy, time-consuming business. Please forgive me, but it would have had to have taken place somewhere that could be cleaned up and wouldn't be found when everyone was crawling all over town searching. The parties would have had to have somewhere to clean themselves up. Unless it did not take place that night, but later?
5. I do not believe young adults in a small community would have been able to keep something like that a secret all this time - I could be wrong. But I believe adults could have kept quiet.
By no means do I want anyone to think I'm bashing LE and in fact, I'm a huge supporter. But the investigation has been screwed from the very beginning and the local LE has done nearly everything possible to make themselves look suspicious.
 
tlorik said:
IMHO - thanks for the info above. I think we're nearly all on the same page. Here's my list of curious things that keep sticking in my mind...
1. The sheriff has come up with three different scenarios on Tom's disappearance - suicide, runaway alone, runaway with older man he met online. Agreed, per Razz, this was unprofessional at the least and hurtful to the family - all of this within the first few weeks of Tom's disappearance. Has the sheriff put forth a theory on Tom's death??
2. Per Tom's brother on the Unfound Podcast, PG spent all night texting but there was no radio traffic. Odd, yes?
3. Per PG, the sheriff was not on duty and apparently no one thought it important enough to rouse him and call him in in this situation and he conveniently does not appear until 7 am about the time the Durango is found. He then immedately determines, based on what i don't know, and tells Tom's father, it's suicide.
4. Having only just heard about dismemberment - my thoughts are that it is a messy, time-consuming business. Please forgive me, but it would have had to have taken place somewhere that could be cleaned up and wouldn't be found when everyone was crawling all over town searching. The parties would have had to have somewhere to clean themselves up. Unless it did not take place that night, but later?
5. I do not believe young adults in a small community would have been able to keep something like that a secret all this time - I could be wrong. But I believe adults could have kept quiet.
By no means do I want anyone to think I'm bashing LE and in fact, I'm a huge supporter. But the investigation has been screwed from the very beginning and the local LE has done nearly everything possible to make themselves look suspicious.
Click to expand...

I agree with most, except for #4. I think its entirely possible Tom was not dismembered immediately. I think he was stored somewhere, out of the way (freezer maybe?) until a more convenient time. We know Tom was 'all in one piece' at around 11:30 or so. Then he isn't found for what. two years? Thats plenty of time to dismember him, bit by bit, and not cause a scene. (and God, I HATE typing that out).
 
I so hate typing this out also jellybean...but I have heard that Thomas's skull was found. I don't know about any other body parts. I am just wondering if animals could have dismembered the body and scattered the remains? Hoping someone on this forum might have some expert input about this being a possibility? It is bone chilling to think about but I am afraid whoever did this to Thomas is a psychopath.
 
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