In the summer of 2000 five people were murdered by the Helzer Brothers (Glenn and Justin) and Justin’s girlfriend, Dawn Godman. The three members named their cult The Children of Thunder and committed these murders because they believed the murders would usher in the return of Christ. The victims were 22 year old Selina Bishop, who was the daughter of the blues guitarist Elvin Bishop, Jennifer Villarin and her companion James Gamble, and a couple who have been married for 55 years, Ivan and Annette Stineman. Their bodies were cut in pieces, put in black duffle bags and thrown into Mokelumne River.
The leader of the cult was the older brother Glenn also known as Taylor. The Helzer brothers grew up in the Mormon religion and lived the life they were suppose to live by there beliefs. Then one day Taylor, Glenn, make a decision that changed his life and would eventually change his brothers and friend life forever. Taylor wanted to change his way of life, so he stopped following the Mormon ways, got divorced, started drinking, smoking and wear black clothes. Due to the way Taylor started acting he was eventually excommunicated from the Mormon Church. This was the start of Taylor forming his own beliefs system.
Taylor believed, “There was right and wrong, and good and evil.” Taylor started to believe that he was a prophet of God and could receive messages from him. He also believed these killings that he had planned were part of God’s master plan to defeat Satan. He convinced his brother, Justin, and Dawn to trust and follow his plans because God told him what to do. Justin and Dawn believed and did everything that Taylor told them because they were warned if people are not loyal to Taylor, then he would kill them.
The Helzer br...
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...d him too. God does not tell people to murder others, we suppose to love one other like we are family.
Works Cited
Demian, B. (n.d). MARTINEZ / Guilty verdict in murders of 5 / Last of 3 members of cult like group to be convicted. San Francisco Chronicle (CA).
Scheeres, J. (n.d.). Children of Thunder: The Helzer Brothers. Murderous Glenn Helzer and Justin Helzer called their cult The Children of Thunder. Retrieved November 5, 2013, from http://www.icyte.com/system/snapshots/fs1/6/2/5/c/625c8b189427717d7b803311a7d14d5fbd9c07e5/index.html
Tv. (n.d.). Children of Thunder: The Helzer Brothers. Murderous Glenn Helzer and Justin Helzer called their cult The Children of Thunder — Bags of Bodies — Crime Library on truTV.com. Retrieved November 5, 2013, from http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/classics/helzer_brothers/index.html
Victor, Jeffrey S. Satanic Panic: The Creation of a Contemporary Legend. Chicago: Open Court, 1993.
Parker, Gary, and Charles Poe. "World's Most Dangerous Gang." World's Most Dangerous Gang. Nat Geo, 12 Feb. 2006. Television.
The book Murder in the Bayou: Who Killed the Women Known as the Jeff Davis 8?, written by independent journalist and private investigator Ethan Brown, tells the horrific true story of the bayou town of Jennings, Louisiana located in the heart of the Jefferson Davis parish. During the four year duration between 2005 and 2009, the town of Jennings was on edge after the discovery of the bodies of eight murdered women were found in the filthy canals and swamps. The victims became known as the “Jeff Davis 8.” For years, local law enforcement suspected a serial killer, and solely investigated the murders based on that theory alone. The victims were murdered in varying manors, but when alive they all shared many commonalities and were connected to
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Perhaps the biggest factor in why these brothers murder can be attributed to the theory of Subculture of Violence. Subculture of violence states that those who are poor or less fortunate are more likely to engage in violent acts, such as murder and rape. This is attributed to their social standing, and their inability to get out of the lower social classes. The actual cause of violence in these situations is poverty and social inequality. While the brothers are not lashing out at those who are significantly richer than them, they are lashing out at those who are more powerful than them. They are also lashing out at those who make others poor and impoverished.
South, David. The History of Organized Crime: Secrets of The World’s Most Notorious Gangs. New York: Metro Books, 2013. Print.
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