Eighteen months ago I decided to look at the web site of the Des Moines Register and discovered someone I knew had been murdered. I blogged about that discovery here. The site contained a story about the murder trial beginning.
Tonight I again decided to look at the Register web site and found the outcome of that trial.
Polk County jurors deliberated for slightly less than one day before stopping at noon Thursday to pronounce Morris, a Lincoln, Neb., exotic dancer, guilty of stabbing Patrick McRae to death during a private dance in October 1999.
Morris, 30 years old and now destined to serve a life sentence with no chance of parole, sobbed quietly as she shuffled out of the courtroom Thursday.
[snip]
McRae’s relatives declined to comment after the verdict.
“I think it just gives them closure,” prosecutor Steve Foritano said. “It’s been seven years of waiting and wondering and believing that everybody just forgot about Pat McRae.”
This remains a tragic story. And reading about the trial leaves me with an odd feeling, wishing I could reconnect with former co-workers to discuss what happened.
But perhaps the weirdest thing is that I somehow felt compelled to check the Register web site on the days these stories were posted. I otherwise would not have known about the murder or verdict. Now why did I check the web site these two particular days? I don't visit the site with any frequency.
I'm befuddled. And I expect to hear Rod Serling's voice any minute. Those who know me will wonder if this is why "Tubular Bells" is the ringtone on my cell phone.
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