Real or Rumor? Tupac's Murderer Charged.

by Cathy Scott 

It always amazes me when I see a rumor picked up by a media outlet, regardless of how small that outlet is. So I was once again surprised a couple weeks ago when I got an e-mail from a TV producer asking about an arrest in the 13-year-old murder case of platinum-selling rapper Tupac Shakur.

I put on my sleuth cap and started digging. This is what was first reported, from Backseat Cuddler, a gossip site that got Tupac fans and the hip hop world hyped up:

BREAKING NEWS - Tupac Shakur Killer Has Been Arrested In Las Vegas

I just received a message from my source in Las Vegas that Tupac Shakur’s killer has been arrested in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Tupac died on September 13, 1996. On the night of September 7, 1996, Shakur was shot four times in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas. He died six days later of respiratory failure and cardiac arrest at the University Medical Center. Tupac Shakur was a rapper, actor, and social activist. Story developing…..

That prompted “Gossip Headlines” to print this reaction, which, in turn, prompted three pages of comments from readers:

Arrest Made?

OMG, OMG, O-M-G, if this is true, hip-hop is about to go into a tailspin!!! According to BackSeatCuddler, Tupac Shakur’s killer has been arrested in Las Vegas, Nevada!!! It was there in Sin City 13 years ago (September 13 marked the 13th anniversary) where the legendary rapper was shot 4 times while sitting in the passenger seat of Suge Knight’s BMW after leaving a Mike Tyson fight at the MGM Grand Hotel. Tupac died six days later from respiratory failure and cardiopulmonary arrest caused by multiple gunshot wounds. See Original Story For More.

Wow, I thought to myself, how could I have missed that one? Maybe it had to do with Notorious B.I.G.’s case, I thought. And that was odd too, because Las Vegas reporters would have been all over the story. A source wasn’t listed in the postings. So I checked TV and print sites and there were no mentions of an arrest. Then I reached out to my law enforcement contacts in Las Vegas and Nevada.

“No,” said a source in the Los Angeles area, “there haven't been any arrests in the Tupac and Biggie cases here.”

Then I called the homicide unit of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and talked with a spokesperson. “There haven’t been any arrests in that case,” she said.

I put out a few more feelers. I came up empty. The only news involving Tupac, who, besides being a rapper, was an actor and poet, is that the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation, which Tupac’s mother, Afeni Shakur, runs, is partnering with Woodruff Library to prepare Tupac’s writings and papers for scholarly research. The Tupac Shakur Collection is currently housed within the Woodruff Library's Archives and Special Collections Department. It features Tupac’s handwritten lyrics, personal notes and fan correspondence, among other items.

Meanwhile, the rumor about an arrest in Tupac's case coincided with the 13th anniversary of his murder. As a result of the anniversary and the rumor, record sales for Tupac’s music went through the roof. And sales for books about Tupac took off too. The warehouse manager at Huntington Press, my publisher for The Killing of Tupac Shakur, said sales had jumped and orders from Amazon.com were especially high.

Other than that, it's been fairly quiet on the Tupac front. So much for a “developing story.”

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Passion Pulls the Trigger

by Susan Murphy-Milano

On July 4, 1995, Pam Munson welcomed her second child into the world. Her 2 year-old son, Zak, was with Grandma Linda Fitze waiting for his mommy and daddy to bring his new baby sister home from the hospital. However, instead of celebrating the birth of the new baby, Pam was greeted by a horrifying crime scene 2 days later. Her mother's body lay lifeless in a pool of blood near the dining room table. She was shot once in the shoulder, and again in the head, at close range with a 38-caliber revolver. Pam's little boy, Zak, was hiding in the closet after discovering Grandma with half her head blown off.

Within a few months of the murder, Pam Munson contacted me by phone looking for support and answers to questions that haunted her from the day she found her mother's body. "Does it ever stop? You know the pictures in my head and the nightmares." We spoke for an hour, but I doubt I was much comfort other than we were members of the same "Private Murder Club."

As with so many of these cases we watch or read about, during the trial of the Linda Fitze murder, the defense called the crime one of passion. But, Pam remembers how her father threatened her mother throughout their marriage, and especially six months prior to her murder--while they were separated. "It was not a crime of passion, it was premeditated, cold-blooded, murder. He killed her because he did not want my mother to get any of his money," recalled Pam.

In 1997, Russell Marvin Munson stood trial for his wife's murder. The defense played the "crime of passion" card. A key part of the prosecuting attorney's case for life without parole was the detailed journal the Texas mother kept that chronicled the abuse during her marriage to Munson; but it was not admissable in court. The judge allowed the graphic crime scene photos-- a victory for the prosecution in which to build their case.

The eight day trial led to the jury's decision to find the 59-year old guilty of murder. Munson was sentenced to 20 years in prison. At the time, the trial brought some closure, but the scope of any murder is difficult for anyone to comprehend. Especially when "your own father pulls the trigger and shows no remorse."

In 1999, Munson filed with the appellate court asking for a new trial citing four issues to consider that were either not allowed, or improperly carried out, by the trial judge. The most revolting issue cited in the filing--and common among abusers, is to shift the blame. In this document Munson accused the decendent of "prior sexual abuse."

A few weeks ago, on my facebook page, Pam re-connected with me. "You probably don't remember me, but I contacted you in 1995, a few months after my mom was killed. The following week we spoke on the phone. "It doesn't go away, even after all these years, the depression, anger, and the feeling that we are incomplete as if we are the owners of our fathers actions. It is felt every day of my life."

The topic of children forced to continue with a "normal" productive life after living with years of abuse, resulting in murder, is not a subject covered by the media. We often forget about the kids left behind. On June 10, 2009 at 3:00PM Central time, on The Susan Murphy Milano show, Pam Munson and I will discuss the topic of children whose fathers have killed their mothers. It is an important subject: as the lives of the children witnessing violence and terror in their homes, if they survive, live the remainder of their days on earth often in darkness and without hope.

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Albuquerque Isn't the First, Nor Will It Be the Last

by Stacy Dittrich

The FBI estimates there are upwards of 80 serial killers roaming the United States at any given time. To "bubble people" (my own term for those who don’t pay attention to crime or believe it could happen to them), this number sounds outlandish. But to others in law enforcement, or those who stay glued to their televisions—transfixed on the most current high-profile crimes—80 seems a bit on the mild side of estimated serial murderers. Perhaps this is why many of us weren’t reeling in shock at the recent discovery of the remains of 10 bodies outside of Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Law enforcement officials believe many or most victims to be drug addicts or prostitutes; no great loss to society right? Wrong! These victims were someone’s daughter, sister, and one of the victims, Victoria Chavez (pictured left), was found with the remains of her unborn fetus. Now, if one of the victims had been Britney Spears we couldn’t possibly escape the media coverage, but there has been very little in the Albuquerque case. It makes one wonder if America is becoming numb to violent crime. That should tell us something about the current state of our country. You can read the FBI crime stats that say crime isn’t on the rise until you’re blue in the face, but I can attest to the fact that police administrators do a damn good job of fudging numbers when compiling crime stats before they are turned over to the FBI.

Canada certainly isn’t numb to crime. If you can recall the case of the serial killing pig farmer, Robert Pickton (pictured right), the nation was in shock over his mass murders. Pickton confessed to the murders of 49 women, many of whom were ground up with pork and given to family and friends, while others were simply fed to the pigs. Out of 60 missing women in the Vancouver area, Pickton was responsible for the majority. If America becomes focused on a crime where the body count is high, it’s mainly for the purpose of an upcoming true-crime book or movie of the week. For some Americans, it’s entertainment.

In the Albuquerque case, housing projects sat to the south and east of where the remains were located and were frequently subjected to flooding, something the residents complained about incessantly to the property owner. To alleviate the problem, the landowner dug culverts around the property, which brought forth the first set of bones that were discovered by hikers. As law enforcement descended upon the area, they discovered the grim mass burial site. Unfortunately, two of the suspects police are eyeing closely—Fred Reynolds, a local pimp, and Lorenzo Montoya—are dead. Tying the murders down between 2001 and 2006, police are confident they are dealing with one killer.

America’s geographical region is quite large, with many remote areas consisting of deserts and mountains. The notion of other mass graves that we may never know or discover truly overwhelms the mind. I once stood by while a homicide victim was dug up from a backyard where the remains had been for over three years. Had a relative not confessed to get out of other crimes, the body most likely would have never been found. This was on a heavily populated street less than a mile outside of a city. Imagine what else is out there across the country?

I’ll try not to. In fact, I think I’d like to start living in a bubble.

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