The Definition Of Depravity

This episode of Small Town Murder is set in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, in the Panhandle close to the Wyoming border. The hosts describe a town of around fifteen thousand people, founded in 1899 across the North Platte River from the bluff named after the fur trader Hiram Scott, who died there aged 23. It has a young median age of 35.7, a Hispanic population of over 29 per cent, a median household income of about $37,800 and cheap housing, with a median home cost of $110,000. Property crime is almost double the national average but violent crime is about 40 per cent lower, and James says there has been about one murder since 2011.

The story begins in 1993, when Patricia Gomez started a relationship with Robert Billy, known as Bobby Billy, and the couple moved in together in Scottsbluff. Their son Adam was born in 1996 and, as they never married, took his mother's surname. Billy moved out in September 1998. There was no custody arrangement; Adam stayed with Patricia and Billy visited occasionally.

this part of the story is covered for now details of the account remain covered until revealed Patricia later said he resented Adam and thought the boy was always in the way. the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it That night Billy came to the house and he and Patricia had sex. this part of the story is covered for now In late February she found she was pregnant. details of the account remain covered until revealed the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it this part of the story is covered for now

details of the account remain covered until revealed She refused, so he came to hers. He sent Adam to bed and the two watched television, and Patricia fell asleep on the love seat. the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it this part of the story is covered for now Patricia went back to sleep. details of the account remain covered until revealed the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it this part of the story is covered for now They left at 11 p.m., found nobody and got home at 4:30 on Monday morning, when Monica found her sewer line clogged.

details of the account remain covered until revealed the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it The Scottsbluff police were tired and focused on finding a body. FBI special agent Ron Rewalt, who had been called in and was telephoned while in North Platte, asked whether the rubbish had been searched. It had not, and it was garbage day. In a dumpster behind the house police found a sealed bag holding Adam's sleeping bag and clothes, a towel and a boning knife Monica did not remember throwing away. this part of the story is covered for now

details of the account remain covered until revealed the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it He was told he was free to leave and was never given Miranda warnings. this part of the story is covered for now At the end police asked for his boots, which he handed over, and they carried Adam's blood. In the basement ceiling tiles, wrapped in plastic and duct tape, was a crushed skull, fractured by blunt force and severed from the body by a sharp object. details of the account remain covered until revealed Remains were found on a toilet plunger in the clogged sewer line, and cooked and uncooked flesh in the dog's bowl and food bag. Police had Monica's dog removed and X-rayed; a bone was seen in its digestive tract and the dog was euthanised to retrieve it. DNA identified all the remains as Adam's. No blood was found on his clothing or bedding at Patricia's house. Rewalt called it one of the worst crimes of his career. The pathologist Richard Rodriguez concluded a blow to the head killed Adam.

the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it The prosecutor, Doug Warner, who was personally opposed to the death penalty, made an exception. this part of the story is covered for now details of the account remain covered until revealed the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it this part of the story is covered for now details of the account remain covered until revealed the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it His mother, Yanez Cruz, testified about a childhood of beatings by his drunken father and twelve moves, and asked that he not get the electric chair. this part of the story is covered for now Patricia said she would blame herself for letting him into the house.

details of the account remain covered until revealed the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it this part of the story is covered for now details of the account remain covered until revealed The panel cited abduction, killing, gratuitous violence, mutilation and a plan to hurt Patricia, and resentenced him to death. the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it

this part of the story is covered for now Governor Dave Heineman called it judicial activism. details of the account remain covered until revealed In May 2015 the legislature voted 32 to 15 to abolish the death penalty and overrode the governor's veto by 30 to 19. A campaign funded partly by the Ricketts family forced a vote, and in November 2016 voters rejected the repeal by 61 per cent to 39. the rest of this account is covered until you choose to reveal it this part of the story is covered for now