Jeffrey MacDonald and "The Green Beret Murders"

Jeffrey MacDonald and "The Green Beret Murders"

Devil in the Details: Evidence

• At the crime scene, there were numerous pieces of evidence gathered, however the majority of trace evidence was contaminated due to "incompetence" and "poor evidence collection technique"
• The blood spatter proved to be the most crucial piece of evidence in this murder case, because it created a virtual blueprint of where each of the victims were when they were stabbed

Blood spatter found on the hallway sink

Master bedroom facing the utility room

The word "PIG" written in Colette's blood on the headboard

Wooden club found outside with the pick

The icepick found outside the utility room door outside

Geneva Forge knife found beside the dresser

In Cold Blood

The Fatal Vision

• The evidence that cast suspicion on MacDonald was the blood spatter throughout the house
• It was inconsistent with the story he told to police
• Different blood types
• Type (B) His blood was found in the kitchen and hall sinks, wicker material, and a step ladder
• Type (A) Colette's blood was found inside the closet, ceiling, direct stains on Kristen's bed, above Kristen's headboard, the word "PIG", Jeffrey's footprint exiting Kristen's room, bath mat, smudges on dining room floor, next to the sink, cast off in Kimberly's room
• Type (AB) Kimberly's blood was found inside the entrance to the master bedroom, trail leading from the bedroom to her bedroom, stain on Jeffrey's lower pajama pant leg, ceiling to her room, streaks on the bath mat, smudges under dining room floor
• Type (O) Kristen's blood was found on the outer lens of Jeffrey's glasses, in her room, bed sheets
• Some unidentifiable staining, due to contamination and stain paucity (lack of

• These are the events that transpired, according to MacDonald
• He was sleeping on the couch when three intruders came in. He was attacked by two white males, with a ice pick and baseball bat, and used his pajama top to shield himself from the blows.
• He also recalled a blond woman in a floppy hat who kept repeating the phrase "Kill the pigs; acid is groovy."
• MacDonald's wounds were so trivial compared to his wife and daughters

The Trial

• MacDonald initially underwent an Article 32 hearing, that would help to determine his guilt; went on from July 1970- September
• His defense consisted of Bernard Sigal's argument of a poor C. I. D investigation, and the existence of Helena Stoeckley (the woman in the floppy hat)
• He claimed that they had contaminated blood evidence, lost crucial evidence, such as skin under Colette's fingernails.
• Colonel Rock, who oversaw the hearing recommended that charges we dropped because they were "untrue" and that civilian authorities investigate Helena
• Freddie Kassab began to believe Jeffrey had murdered his daughter and grandchildren
• On June 1, 1972, C.I.D submitted a 3000 page report naming MacDonald as the chief suspect in the murder
• The grand jury of North Carolina indicted Macdonald, who was later released on a $100,000 bail
• At the trial, he was convicted of first-degree murder of Kristen and second degree murder for Collete and Kimberly
• He is serving three consecutive life sentences

The Crime-Scene

• The deceased victims, Colette MacDonald, Kimberly MacDonald, and Kristen MacDonald, where found brutally murdered in their bedrooms
• Kimberly => Stabbed numerous times in her bed and had blunt force trauma to her face and cranial area
• Kristen => Stabbed numerous mes in her bed
• Colette => Stabbed numerous times and was beaten severely by a beam of wood
• Jeffrey was found with a stab wound to the torso, which punctured his lung; he had contusions and laceration on his chest and face

Sources Cited

Crime-Scene Reenactment

Colette MacDonald

Kristen MacDonald

Kimberly MacDonald

Jeffrey MacDonald

www.en.wikipedia.org

www.themacdonaldcase.org

www.thejeffreymacdonaldcase.com

www.macdonaldcasefacts.com

www.documentingreality.com

www.domin.dom.edu.com

www.theguardian.com

www.fayobserver.com

www.theatlantic.com

Background

• People thought that the MacDonalds were a very happy family and that Jeffrey had everything going for him. He had two lovely girls, and a nice wife, who had written to one of her friends professing how happy she was with Jeffrey and the girls.
• 2 weeks later, she and her two daughters were brutally murdered
• MacDonald claimed that he had woken in the early hours of the morning, to the screams of his wife and daughter. He was then attacked by intruders, and then everything went black.

Family

• Colette MacDonald: Born in 1944
• Jeffrey MacDonald: Born in 1943
• Kimberly MacDonald: Born in 1965
• Kristen MacDonald: Born in 1968