Latest / Shades of Murder / 63: Christmas Eve Massacre - The Goldmark Family Murders

Transcript

63: Christmas Eve Massacre - The Goldmark Family Murders · Shades of Murder

0:02
When dinner guests arrived at the Goldmark residence on
0:05
Christmas Eve, they never imagined the horrific scene that
0:09
lay inside. Investigators would discover
0:13
four family members who had been brutally tortured.
0:16
The crime scene would reveal A bizarre conspiracy executed by a
0:21
disturbed and merciless young man.
0:24
Who were these victims and who was the monster who had murdered
0:29
them during the holiday season? Hello and welcome to Shades of
1:15
Murder. I'm your host Alina Caldwell.
1:19
In this podcast, I discuss cases of murder from around the world
1:23
and throughout history, attempting to unravel the layers
1:27
of darkness that help make humans into monsters.
1:32
Please be forewarned that each episode contains specific and at
1:36
times a very graphic and disturbing details of the case.
1:40
This show is not intended for all audiences and listener
1:44
discretion is strongly advised. Twas the night before Christmas
1:49
1985 and the beautiful affluent Seattle neighborhood was lined
1:54
with decorated homes, festive and brightly lit for the holiday
1:59
season. It was early evening as dinner
2:01
guests approached the lovely Goldmark family residence, their
2:05
front door adorned with a wreath.
2:07
The tradition of sharing a Swedish dinner and exchanging
2:10
gifts was something everyone Evolved looked forward to each
2:14
season. They noticed the house was
2:17
completely dark except for one light.
2:21
The guests rang the doorbell, but no one answered.
2:24
This was strange, but they thought there must be some
2:28
explanation for why their hosts weren't responding.
2:32
Around 15 to 20 minutes passed and still none of the Goldmark
2:36
family appeared, so the guests decided to leave the residence
2:41
and go home. They attempted to contact the
2:43
family members by phone, but the line was busy.
2:47
Something was off and the guests became concerned that the
2:50
Goldmarks may need help. When they returned to their
2:53
residence, they thought they heard a deep moaning sound
2:56
coming from inside the home. They left and drove over to one
2:59
of their neighbors, a man named Jeffrey Haley, who had a spare
3:03
key to the Goldmark home. Jeffrey, along with his brother
3:06
Peter, rushed over to the Goldmarks.
3:09
Jeffrey Haley turned the key and entered the residence.
3:12
The man heard a startling sound. It was a very loud and deeply
3:17
disturbing moan. There was no one insight.
3:21
As they climbed the stairs, they could see a body lying in front
3:25
of the master bedroom. Inside the room lay three more
3:29
bodies. Charles and Annie Goldmark had
3:32
both been handcuffed with their arms behind their backs.
3:36
Annie Goldmark appeared to have been stabbed in the chest.
3:40
Charles Goldmark seemed to have a serious head injury.
3:43
The men were shocked to see that he was still alive.
3:47
Charles was thrashing around on the carpet, screaming and
3:50
belligerent. He didn't seem to even realize
3:54
that the Haley brothers were there.
3:57
They located a hacksaw to cut off his handcuffs, hoping that
4:00
this would calm his panicked state.
4:03
The men immediately called 911 and waited outside for the first
4:06
responders to arrive. When the police and firefighters
4:11
came, they discovered a very grisly and horrific scene.
4:15
Missus Annie Goldmark appeared to have been stabbed in the
4:17
chest. She was pronounced dead at the
4:20
scene. The two young sons, 10 year old
4:23
Colin and 12 year old Derek, have been strangled.
4:27
Sweaters have been used as ligatures on the children.
4:31
They were knotted so tightly around their small necks that
4:34
firefighters could not insert their fingers under the sweaters
4:38
to release them. Finally they did free the two
4:41
boys from the suffocating knots. Amazingly, both were still
4:46
breathing. The father and his two children
4:49
were treated at the scene and then rushed to the nearest
4:51
hospital. The youngest child, 10 year old
4:54
Colin, died 4 days after he arrived.
4:57
Charles, who never regained consciousness, passed away after
5:01
16 days in the hospital. Derek, 12 years old, fought the
5:07
longest and hardest to survive, but tragically he would also
5:11
succumb to his injuries 37 days after the attack.
5:16
Charles Goldmark, 43. Annie Goldmark, 41, and their
5:22
sons Derek, 12, and Colin, 10, had all been victims of a
5:27
horrendous family murder. The entire Gold Mark family have
5:32
been slain. In the master bedroom,
5:35
detectives found a knife and a steam iron, the weapons presumed
5:39
to be used in the assault on the family.
5:41
Blood spatter painted every wall.
5:45
The blood stained patterns indicated that the victims had
5:48
been struck with the iron while they lay helpless on the floor.
5:54
The day after Christmas, a man named Hussein Omar Sufadiya,
5:58
also known as Robert Brown, contacted the police regarding a
6:02
bizarre letter he found amongst the belongings of a guest
6:06
staying with him at his apartment.
6:08
Apparently, he came across one of his notebooks and inside it
6:12
was a letter that said to whom it may concern.
6:15
I am the person you were looking for in the Gold Mark case.
6:19
When officers met with Robert Brown near his apartment, he
6:22
told the police that the suspect's name was David Rice.
6:26
While in route to meet the witness, investigators noticed a
6:29
man who matched the description given by Mr. Brown.
6:33
They watched as he walked down the steps of the apartment and
6:36
down the street. The police walked after him, but
6:40
when they approached the man, he turned and ran off.
6:43
Officers chased him a few blocks until in mid chase, the suspect
6:46
stopped. He reached into his pocket,
6:49
pulled out a vial, took a sip of a liquid and tossed the vial
6:53
away. The police found the vial and
6:55
when tested it was shown to contain liquid nicotine.
6:58
The man was identified as 27 year old David Lewis Rice and
7:02
was taken promptly into police custody.
7:06
Mr. Robert Brown later brought down the suspect's notebook and
7:09
handed it over to detectives. When the homicide investigator
7:13
presented the letter to David Rice during his interrogation,
7:17
he openly admitted to writing it.
7:20
The full letter stated the following To whom it may
7:23
concern. I am the person you were looking
7:25
for in the Gold Mark case. I know that what I did was a
7:30
very terrible thing. That is why I am as you see me
7:34
now. I want it perfectly understood
7:37
that no one else had anything whatsoever to do with what I
7:42
did. I went to great lengths to make
7:45
sure of that. That person that I live with
7:47
doesn't even know that I am wanted on a different charge.
7:50
She received a couple of messages on her machine, but I
7:53
erased them before she got to them.
7:55
I did not use the rifle that I purchased a few weeks ago.
7:59
Instead I fooled them with a toy pistol which you will find in
8:02
the storage locker I threw. The rifle pistol was originally
8:06
written, then crossed out in the letter away a couple of weeks
8:10
ago. Again, I want it understood that
8:13
no one knew anything about this, so please do not cause any
8:17
unnecessary suffering to innocent people.
8:21
I think that I've already done enough.
8:23
I guess I should tell you why I did what I did.
8:26
That way you won't have to ask other people about it.
8:29
My life is a mess. It has been since my wife left.
8:33
Anne has been trying to help me straighten it out, but I'm
8:36
afraid. And that is where the letter
8:38
stopped. When asked if he would like to
8:41
finish what he had begun writing, David Rice agreed and
8:44
wrote. I am afraid that she isn't able
8:48
to do much for me. I am much too far gone.
8:52
When I left high school, I could go out and get a job in any town
8:55
at any time I needed one. When I got married, jobs were
8:59
starting to get scarce. I had to do more walking and
9:02
searching to find work. I found myself more and more on
9:07
the unemployment line, which was getting longer and longer.
9:11
I went to the government offices to see what I could do to
9:13
alleviate my employment situation, and they recommended
9:16
that I go to school and learn engineering.
9:19
Then David Lewis Rice stopped and informed the detective that
9:22
he was willing to tell them his story, but he wanted to speak
9:26
first with an attorney. His lawyer, William Lanning,
9:29
arrived shortly after and spoke with his client for about an
9:33
hour and a half. Mr. Lanning then provided the
9:36
police with a signed statement by his client.
9:39
He informed them that his client, Mr. Rice, wished to
9:42
speak with the investigators about the incident and he fully
9:46
understood that anything he said could be used against him in
9:49
court. David Rice sat down with two
9:51
detectives in a tape recording interview to listen to his
9:54
strange and disturbing confession of being the person
9:58
who attacked the Goldmark family on Christmas Eve.
10:02
David Rice laid out to investigators what had motivated
10:05
him to commit the killings, his specific acts of premeditation,
10:11
and how he executed the crime. He claimed that his primary
10:15
motivation was one of financial gain.
10:18
As aforementioned in the letter, he happened struggling to find
10:22
work and was having trouble making ends meet.
10:24
David Rice had lost his job more than a year before the murders
10:28
occurred. He had fallen into deep debt and
10:32
was staying at his former girlfriend Ann Davis's apartment
10:35
off and on since August of that year.
10:38
When she left for Christmas, he was permitted to reside at her
10:41
place and even generously left him some food and a little
10:45
money. However, it was agreed upon that
10:49
once you return from vacation, he had to be off the premises.
10:53
David Rice began to panic. He had run out of his
10:57
unemployment compensation 4 to 5 months earlier and was becoming
11:01
desperate while his friend Anne was gone.
11:03
He even stole her television, pawning it for $10.
11:08
If he robbed the very wealthy Goldmark family, it would fix
11:11
his terminal ever going financial problems.
11:15
But according to the suspect, financial gain was only one of
11:19
his motivations. David Lewis Rice was convinced
11:24
that the patriarch of the Goldmark family, Charles, was a
11:27
head member of the local Communist Party.
11:31
David Rice believed that if placed under duress, Charles
11:34
Goldmark would confess to his involvement and provide details
11:38
to him about the other local Communists.
11:41
He was on a mission to work all the way up to the leaders of the
11:45
Communist Party in the United States, whom he believed were
11:49
conspiring to take over the nation.
11:52
David Rice would later state that his heinous actions were
11:55
driven by half economic desperation and half by his
11:59
motivation to get information to take down the Communist Party.
12:04
He had been laying the groundwork for his crime about
12:07
six months before the Christmas Eve attack.
12:10
On the day of the murders, David Rice had intended to kill
12:13
Charles and Anne Goldmark. However, he claimed that the
12:17
deaths of the two innocent children were not part of the
12:20
plan. David Rice stated that he didn't
12:23
expect the kids to be there and he wouldn't have gone over to
12:26
their home if he had known they were there.
12:29
But as he said, once he realized the two boys were there, he
12:34
didn't feel he had much of A choice but to kill everyone.
12:37
I find this claim to be insincere and very unbelievable,
12:41
if not delusional. It was Christmas Eve, they were
12:45
a close knit family. Where else were the children
12:48
expected to be, if not with their parents on the night
12:51
before Christmas? It seems as if this statement
12:54
was only expressed to support the notion that he didn't plan
12:57
on killing two little kids, no less, on Christmas Eve because
13:00
he wasn't a monster. But since they were there, he
13:05
didn't just scope out their residence once either.
13:08
Three different times David Rice had tried to get a glimpse of
13:12
the gold marks. The first incident was on or
13:15
around November 1st. David Rice claimed that he went
13:18
to the street to check what kind of house it was and to get a
13:21
feel for the neighborhood. He didn't see anyone there and
13:24
he wasn't even positive that it was their home.
13:28
Then a week later, David Rice visited Mr. Office Building to
13:32
try to see what he looked like so he would know who his target
13:36
was. But this time was also a bust.
13:40
The third attempt was during the first week of December.
13:43
David Rice returned to their residents to verify whether they
13:46
were residing there, but once again, no one appeared to be
13:50
there. In the meantime, David Rice
13:53
began to prepare for the attack and assassination.
13:55
He bought an M1 rifle to kill the gold marks, but decided that
13:59
it wasn't a practical weapon due to its bulk and very loud noise.
14:03
Instead, he chose to purchase a toy gun to intimidate them.
14:07
David Rice also bought 2 sets of handcuffs and a small dose of
14:11
chloroform. Since he had no previous
14:14
experience with the chemical, he administered it to himself
14:17
first. This way he could know how long
14:20
its effects should last on his future victims.
14:23
On Christmas Eve, he travelled to the residence.
14:26
He pretended that he was a taxi driver delivering a package.
14:31
He knocked on the door and a young boy answered.
14:34
David Rice told the child that he had a package for his dad.
14:38
The boy called out for his father, who came to the door.
14:41
Then David Rice pulled out the toy gun and pushed his way
14:44
inside. He forced the entire family
14:46
upstairs to the master bedroom. Mr. Goldmark pointed out $14.00
14:50
in cash that lay on the bedroom dresser.
14:53
David Rice quickly snagged it and grabbed his wallet, too.
14:56
He pulled the bank card out and demanded the access code.
15:00
Charles gave him the number. The intruder instructed the
15:03
parents to lie face down on the floor.
15:05
He handcuffed them both with her hands behind their backs.
15:08
But he didn't tie the children up at the time.
15:10
Even though David Rice claimed that his motivations were at
15:13
least half triggered by his demands to find the other local
15:17
Communist Party members, there was no indication that he ever
15:20
did at all. Instead, he was solely driven by
15:25
robbing them. David Rice pulled out the
15:27
chloroform. Charles Goldmark attempted to
15:30
prevent him from using it by telling him that he had guess
15:33
coming over at 7:30 PM that night.
15:36
David Rice ignored him. He first shoved the rag into
15:40
Charles face, then to Annie's, who fussed and struggled at the
15:44
terrible smell. Then last he knocked out the two
15:47
young boys. David Rice began to freak out
15:51
when he realized it was almost 7:15 PM.
15:55
If it were true what Charles Goldmark had said and that
15:58
people were coming over to the house at night, he had less than
16:01
15 minutes to complete his mission.
16:05
He went downstairs and began to rummage through the house for
16:07
something to kill the family with.
16:10
David Rice found a 12 inch blade fillet knife inside one of the
16:14
kitchen drawers, but he wasn't done.
16:18
He entered a basement storage space and looked around until he
16:21
found a steam iron. David Rice returned upstairs to
16:25
the master bedroom. Within less than 5 minutes, he
16:28
had successfully located his murder weapons.
16:31
Holding the pointed end of the iron downward, he bludgeoned
16:35
Charles with a heavy, dense object.
16:38
David Rice struck him in the back of the head with the iron
16:41
four or five times. Then he did the same to Annie on
16:44
the side of her head. Annie once again showed what a
16:48
true fighter she was and tried to stop him.
16:52
He then bashed her in the head with the iron.
16:55
Annie began to jolt and thrash around.
16:58
David Rice struck her again a few more times.
17:01
Annie Goldmark had stopped moving.
17:04
Then he stood over the children. He slammed the iron down into
17:08
the back of the boy's skull, striking him 5 or 6 times.
17:12
Then he did the same thing to the other boy about four times.
17:16
David Rice then returned to Charles to see if he still had a
17:18
pulse. He checked the arteries in the
17:21
neck. Charles was still alive, and so
17:24
was Annie. This is when he realized that he
17:27
must finish the job with the knife.
17:30
David Rice grabbed the knife and inserted the blade into the
17:33
wound on the back of Charles skull that had been made by the
17:36
iron. According to David Rice, when he
17:39
shoved the knife in, it appeared to reach the opposite side of
17:44
Charles skull, so he kind of stirred it around.
17:48
Then he returned to the two small kids.
17:51
He inserted the knife into their brains and stirred the blade
17:54
around. But since he had bludgeoned the
17:57
side of Annie's head, this method wouldn't work because she
18:01
didn't have the same kind of wound.
18:04
So David Rice picked up the knife and stabbed her in the
18:08
chest. And again, like the rest of his
18:11
victims, he stirred the knife around the wound.
18:15
Although the assailant had been wearing gloves, his clothes as
18:18
well as the gloves were now drenched in blood.
18:22
But before he left the Goldmark residence, he wiped off some of
18:25
the blood and removed the gloves.
18:28
He failed to take either of the murder weapons or the handcuffs
18:31
with him as he fled the crime scene.
18:34
David Rice did remember though to turn off the lights.
18:38
He had planned on taking their vehicle but wasn't able to
18:40
access the garage. So he just walked to the closest
18:44
ATM and tried to use Charles Goldmark's card, but the numbers
18:48
didn't work. Even though this was the 1980s
18:52
and CCTV footage didn't exist, let alone mobile phones, there
18:56
were security cameras at the cash machine.
19:00
They captured the suspect trying to use Charles Goldmarks card
19:04
between 7:34 and 7:38 PM on Christmas Eve.
19:10
As David Rice started walking back towards Ann Davis's
19:14
apartment, he freaked out when he remembered he had left the
19:17
handcuffs behind. His Prince may very well be on
19:22
those cuffs. David Rice realized that he
19:24
couldn't take that chance, so he needed to get back into the Gold
19:27
Marks house. Then he realized that his
19:30
clothes were spattered with blood.
19:33
He decided that he better change into clean clothes, so he walked
19:37
to Anne's place first. He then took a taxi back to the
19:41
Gold Marks residence, but as he walked closer and closer to
19:45
their house, he noticed that the lights were back on and what
19:49
sounded like a police radio in the distance.
19:52
That was it. Everything he had done had been
19:55
for nothing. His fingerprints were on those
19:58
handcuffs and now the police had them as evidence.
20:01
David Rice turned around and left the neighborhood as fast as
20:04
possible. A few blocks away, he tossed the
20:07
car keys, bank card and the piece of paper with the access
20:11
code into some Ivy bushes. When Rice returned to Anne's
20:15
apartment, he snuck into the storage area and hid items from
20:18
the murders. Every detail surrounding his
20:21
confession, including the layout of the house and the location of
20:25
specific objects within the home, were confirmed to be true
20:30
and accurate. When police officers searched
20:32
Anne Davis's apartment, they located various items the
20:35
suspect had used in the crime. There was the toy gun, a bottle
20:40
of chloroform and cloth gloves were found, and the blood
20:44
spatter clothing he wore the night of the murder.
20:48
Ironically, David Rice's fingerprints were never found on
20:52
the handcuffs. His paranoia had once again
20:56
gotten the best of him. Further evidence of
20:58
premeditation of the murders was found and verified through
21:02
handwriting analysis to be that of David Louis Rice's.
21:06
A notebook was discovered with the address for the Goldmark's
21:09
home and the office building where Charles Goldmark worked.
21:12
It included specific directions on how to travel to their
21:16
residence by bus. A different page listed items
21:19
under basic armament for one man mission.
21:23
On this list was a knife, guns, a garrote which is a ligature, A
21:28
grappling hook, plastic explosives, tear grass grenades
21:32
and two days worth of food rations.
21:34
On 1/3 page within the notebook the killer had written a series
21:38
of statements to prepare him for the attack.
21:40
They included the phrases I must be mobile and fluid so that if
21:43
I'm attacked I can retreat or counter attack whichever I deem
21:47
suitable and I must have the ability to attack any target
21:50
regardless of size and capability.
21:53
This includes weapons knowledge, physical and mental stamina, and
21:57
logistics. There was also a separate piece
21:59
of paper which detailed the steps in surveillance and
22:02
preparation, with sections crossed out to indicate their
22:05
completion. It said get knife, find out what
22:08
kind of legal services, find out what he looks like, when does he
22:12
leave office, does he drive, what kind of car, set up, time
22:15
to be there. All of these statements were
22:17
crossed out. The only step that hadn't been
22:20
checked off was the name and address of another Seattle
22:24
attorney. It was learned during his
22:26
interrogation about one month before the gold marks were
22:29
murdered that David Rice had pursued an attack on another
22:32
Seattle attorney whom he believed was a crook.
22:36
However, he was unable to locate the man's residence, and the
22:39
neighborhood appeared to be too secure.
22:41
Among their findings, the police also discovered documents on a
22:44
man named James R Ellis, a bond lawyer and civic activist.
22:49
This LED investigators to believe that James Ellis may
22:53
have been the next victim. In letters written to Anne
22:56
Davis, David Rice openly confessed to both his financial
22:59
and political motivations behind killing the gold marks.
23:03
One of them read. Dear Annie, I'm writing this in
23:06
hopes that you will understand why I have decided to take a
23:08
step into the dark side. Evil is a very powerful force.
23:14
A long time ago, the mere mention of God was enough to
23:17
send Satan scurrying for cover. This is not so anymore.
23:23
This is Satan's world now, and it's going to take more than
23:26
just words to break him. It is going to take an assault
23:32
on his empire so strong and so quick that he won't have the
23:36
resources to recover. Another letter contained the
23:40
following paragraph. I just wish I could have helped
23:43
you with some of your problems, such as money.
23:46
Believe me, I was trying desperately to fix that for you.
23:50
I finally decided that I would either do it or die trying.
23:54
You know the outcome. On December 28th, Anne Davis
23:58
returned from her Christmas holiday in Seattle to a shocking
24:02
scene. The police had completely
24:04
rummaged and turned over every piece of her apartment.
24:07
She was brought in for questioning 2 days later and
24:11
Davis claimed that she didn't know anything about David Rice's
24:15
plans, much less what he had done.
24:18
Investigators received permission from the defense for
24:21
her to speak directly with David Rice with an officer present.
24:24
They spoke for around 10 minutes and when Anne inquired as to why
24:28
he attacked the gold marks, all Rice said was for the money.
24:33
Anne asked him more than once why he killed the children and
24:36
he replied I was in it too far. I had to do it.
24:40
They could identify me. David Rice spoke highly of Anne
24:43
Davis to detectives. He said he loved her and wanted
24:46
to marry her, but she preferred that they just be friends.
24:50
Rice told the police how she had been a positive influence on his
24:53
life and if it weren't for her, he likely would have acted out
24:57
before the attacks on the gold marks.
24:59
Why communism was his target, he couldn't really say.
25:03
He simply said that it was a matter of chance.
25:05
Something else could have become the trigger for his blame, his
25:08
rage. So who was David Lewis Rice?
25:12
The life of this brutal family murderer David Lewis Rice was
25:16
one of endless failure and rock, the self loathing, feelings of
25:20
victimization and increasing paranoia.
25:23
He first experienced pain and shame at four years old when he
25:27
ran into a sliding glass door. The glass door shattered,
25:31
cutting his right eyebrow so severely that it left him
25:34
partially blind. After one of many physical and
25:38
shaming fights he had with his older brothers, David tried to
25:41
kill himself. He was only 10 years old.
25:44
He locked the door of his bedroom and attempted to hang
25:47
himself. David Rice was unsuccessful and
25:51
this pattern of failure and self hatred would follow him like a
25:55
virus throughout his life until he succumbed to what can only be
25:59
described as madness. A very tall teenager standing 6
26:04
foot 2 inches, David Rice was awkward.
26:06
He had few friends and didn't do well in school.
26:09
He ended up dropping out his sophomore year of high school
26:11
and joined the US Navy, but for some unknown reason he was
26:15
discharged. While in training later he met a
26:18
woman. They got married and had a son,
26:21
but his wife left him. He wasn't in his son's life
26:24
anymore and he filed for bankruptcy.
26:27
This dire financial situation he found himself in led to his
26:31
being dismissed as a welder. The snowball of desperation and
26:37
darkness would lead him to fighting a scapegoat for his
26:40
problems. Three years before he viciously
26:44
and callously murdered the Goalmark family on Christmas
26:47
Eve, David Rice was homeless. He was intermittently sleeping
26:52
in cars and shelters. But then he met Anne Davis.
26:56
She was a naturopath, a healthcare practitioner with a
26:59
more holistic approach and was an altar conservative who
27:02
introduced David to the Seattle branch of the Duck Club.
27:06
The Duck Club was an extreme right wing nationalist group
27:09
that was anti-Semitic and anti communist.
27:13
This hateful conspiracy club was founded by a man named Gordon
27:17
Jack Moore, AUS Army Colonel and the self-proclaimed national
27:21
military commander of the Christian Patriots Defence
27:24
League. Here's where David Lewis Rice
27:27
would find the perfect scapegoat for his terrible, miserable
27:31
life. He began to buy into the
27:33
conspiracy that members of the Communist Party existed in the
27:36
United States, including a branch in Seattle that were led
27:40
by international bankers and the Federal Reserve Board.
27:44
David Rice became obsessed with Moore's writings and even tried
27:48
directly contacting him in Mississippi, where he lived at
27:52
the time. But Moore never gave him the
27:55
time of day. David Rice also met the man at
27:58
Duck Club meetings known as Robert Brown, with whom he
28:01
stayed the night after the murders, which was the same man
28:04
who turned him into place. The prominent Goldmark family of
28:07
Seattle was specifically named during one of these Duck Club
28:11
meetings as having local ties to communism.
28:15
After performing his own research, David Rice concluded
28:18
that Charles Goldmark was not only a member, but he was the
28:22
regional director of the American Communist Party.
28:25
And David Rice's pathetic, delusional mind.
28:29
He believed it was his mission to save America and takedown
28:34
Charles Goldmark. Charles Goldmark was the son of
28:37
a prominent leader in the Progressive Democratic Party.
28:40
During much of the 1960s, his father served as state
28:43
representative three times. While running for the 4th time,
28:47
his father became the target of a communist conspiracy that
28:51
would successfully ruin his career.
28:54
The family later moved to Seattle.
28:56
Charles Goldmark attended Yale Law School and became a military
29:00
intelligence officer, serving in Europe.
29:03
This is where he met Annie J Carlston, a French and Swedish
29:07
woman who was a French interpreter.
29:10
They fell in love and were soon married.
29:11
The couple returned to Seattle, where Annie continued working as
29:14
a translator and Charles worked at a law firm, later
29:18
establishing his own firm that specialized in civil litigation.
29:22
Like his father, Charles Goldmark became involved in the
29:25
world of politics. He was a legal counsel for the
29:28
Washington State Democratic Party and served as a delegate
29:31
in 1984 for the then running presidential nominee, Gary Hart.
29:36
It is unknown exactly why David Lewis Rice selected Charles
29:40
Goldmark and his family as targets, except that he believed
29:43
Mr. Goldmark to be Jewish and a communist, and he had been the
29:47
topic of discussion amongst his deplorable acquaintances.
29:52
However, Charles Goldmark was neither Jewish or a communist.
29:59
It would be later revealed that after the Goldmark family
30:02
massacre, David Rice bragged to Homer Brand, who was the head of
30:07
the Duck Club Seattle branch, about how he had dumped the top
30:11
communist. There were four involved.
30:13
This was a clear indication that not only was David Rice not
30:17
regretful of brutally murdering an entire family, including two
30:21
small children, on Christmas Eve no less, but he was desperately
30:25
seeking approval from these irrational, imbalanced, hate
30:29
spreading conspirators. David Rice was charged with four
30:34
counts of aggravated first degree murder.
30:37
The state prosecutor was seeking the death penalty.
30:40
He entered a plea of not guilty in addition to a plea of not
30:44
guilty by reason of insanity. However, according to David
30:48
Rice's attorney, he was fully competent to stand trial.
30:52
It was bifurcated, meaning that the trial was done in 2 phases.
30:55
During the determination or guilt phase, David Rice and his
30:59
counsel didn't deny that he had murdered the Goldmark family.
31:02
The defense counsel presented their case in two separate ways
31:05
to illustrate how David Rice was insane at the time of the attack
31:09
and murders. They first presented testimony
31:12
from several witnesses who could attest to his erratic,
31:15
unorthodox views, including Ann Davis.
31:18
She testified to his not being able to distinguish the
31:21
difference, pushing right and wrong, or understand the gravity
31:25
of his ex on the night he killed the gold marks.
31:28
She was not an expert witness because personal knowledge is
31:31
not equal to a professional assessment, but her testimony
31:34
was allowed. Another witness testified as to
31:37
how the defendant was convinced that a nuclear war was on the
31:40
horizon and he wanted to build a shelter in Colorado to house
31:44
hundreds of people underground for years until the radiation
31:48
diminished. David Rice also told people that
31:51
he had a black box in his head where he placed problems that he
31:54
couldn't solve. He also believed that
31:57
extraterrestrial beings were guiding him in his actions.
32:02
Sam Keane, who was an author of psychology but not a licensed
32:05
psychologist, interviewed David Rice about several different
32:09
ideologies and beliefs. He held Sam Keane was not
32:12
considered an expert by the trial court since he was only an
32:15
author and therefore could not testify as to his opinion on
32:19
David Rice's mental state. However, the jury was presented
32:22
with an interview he had with David Rice about three months
32:26
after the murders. Sam Keane did not believe that
32:28
David Rice understood the nature and quality of his ex because he
32:32
thought it was right to kill the enemy.
32:34
David Rice believed he was chosen to prevent communism and
32:38
banking conspiracies from taking control.
32:40
He believed enemy troops were lurking, ready to attack the
32:43
borders at any moment. He claimed to be insane at the
32:46
time of the crime because his brain had shut down.
32:50
David Rice described this condition as something he
32:52
randomly experienced where he was incapable of answering
32:56
specific questions about himself or the world.
32:59
He claimed that while he is experiencing this state, he's
33:02
much more prone to suggestion by others.
33:04
He said that at one point during the attack on the gold Marks and
33:08
he said he is going to kill us. David Rice believed that he was
33:13
in a war against evil and that, like a soldier who sometimes has
33:17
to kill and die in battle, he had to kill the gold marks to be
33:22
rid of the greater evil. These statements and beliefs
33:26
were presented to support the defence's argument that anyone
33:29
who holds such thoughts must be insane.
33:32
The defense next asserted that David Rice was insane under the
33:36
McNaughton test for insanity. This is a test that determines a
33:40
person is insane if during the time of the criminal offense,
33:43
the person was suffering from a mental disease or defect that
33:46
rendered them incapable of perceiving the nature and
33:49
quality of the acts they are charged with, or the individual
33:53
was unable to tell right from wrong.
33:56
Under this latter prong of the test, David Rice's mental
33:59
illness prevented him from understanding right from wrong
34:02
since even though he knew murder was wrong, he believed in his
34:06
war against evil that killing the gold marks was the lesser of
34:09
two. However, the prosecution counter
34:12
their argument with psychiatric results that didn't indicate any
34:15
mental illness. A psychiatric staff member at
34:18
the King County Jail testified that the Minnesota Multiphasic
34:22
Personality Inventory, which he gave to the defendant 2 days
34:25
after he was arrested and charged with murder, showed that
34:28
these test results were more aligned with a personality
34:31
disorder than psychosis. They were reflective of a
34:34
profile that was cold, distant, lacking empathy and highly
34:39
narcissistic. It was also found in a test to
34:42
determine competency that David Rice suffered from no organic
34:46
brain problems. Doctor John Mullins, a
34:48
neurologist, performed a complete examination and the
34:51
defendants results were normal and intelligence tests had also
34:55
been conducted which indicated that David Rice had a normal or
34:59
high average level of intelligence.
35:01
A Rorschach test, which is the infamous ink blot test, was also
35:04
conducted which show that the defendant had a quote deep
35:08
personality disorder and a disordered childhood, but there
35:12
were no signs of psychosis. Dr. Muscatel testified that
35:16
based on the multiple test results, in addition to certain
35:19
materials given by the Council, 9 interviews held with David
35:23
Rice, and interviews with four of his family members, he
35:26
believed that David Rice was legally sane at the time of the
35:30
offense. He characterized David Rice as
35:33
an extremely disturbed individual with schizoid and
35:36
paranoid features, but that there were no signs of his being
35:39
psychotic or paranoid schizophrenic.
35:43
Dr. Mescatel asserted that David Rice didn't qualify as insane
35:47
under the McNaughton test under either of these prongs.
35:51
He didn't meet the requirements under the first.
35:53
Based on the facts that he fully understood the nature and
35:56
quality of his heinous actions, he enacted a high degree of
36:00
awareness, cognizance, and organization in planning and
36:04
executing the act. This was impossible to dispute
36:08
given the extensive material evidence of his detailed steps
36:12
in the preparation of the killings.
36:15
Dr. Mescatel further testified that there was 0 evidence of any
36:20
confused or severely disorganized behavior before,
36:23
during, or after the murders. David Rice also didn't meet the
36:27
second prong. Doctor Mescatel first addressed
36:30
how at first his ideology and beliefs were delusional and
36:33
psychotic, but David Rice's ideas were not created in his
36:37
own mind. David Rice had been associated
36:40
with numerous right wing groups and individuals, including his
36:44
friend Ann Davis, from whom he had learned of these
36:47
conspiracies. They were ideas shared by those
36:50
in his life and therefore were not beliefs stemming from his
36:54
delusions. Secondly, even if David Rice
36:57
believed that the killing of the Gold Marks parents was condoned
37:00
in the war against evil, this didn't apply to the brutal slang
37:05
of two innocent small children. Therefore, Rice was fully
37:09
capable of understanding the distinction between right and
37:14
wrong. His lack of insanity and high
37:17
degree of awareness around the wrongfulness of his actions were
37:21
further supported by his behavior during and after the
37:25
crime. David Rice used gloves to avoid
37:27
leaving fingerprints at the crime scene.
37:30
He wiped blood from his clothes and turned out the lights to
37:33
make it appear as if the gold marks weren't home.
37:37
When he realized he had left the handcuffs at their house, he
37:40
rushed back, knowing that if they were discovered, he would
37:44
likely be caught because his fingerprints would be on them.
37:48
When David Rice became aware that the victims had been found,
37:51
he disposed of the car keys and the bank card.
37:54
He also had written letters explicitly acknowledging the
37:59
wrongfulness of his actions. The only factor of David Rice's
38:03
alleged insanity that didn't fit was his belief that
38:06
extraterrestrial beings were guiding his actions.
38:10
However, the doctor explained that when talking to Rice about
38:13
them, he said it wasn't as if they were dictating his actions,
38:17
whether they were an influence on him.
38:20
In his words, he told the doctor, I could follow them or
38:23
not follow them, though if I didn't follow them, bad things
38:26
tended to happen. If I did follow them, good
38:29
things tended to happen. The prosecution also addressed
38:32
how David Rice's state of mind changed drastically between the
38:36
time of his arrest and when experts began testing him.
38:41
They contended that he had plenty of time to fabricate his
38:44
mental illness. To close, the state argued that
38:48
the defendant had altered the characterization of his mental
38:51
state from the time of his confession to when he told
38:55
Doctor Muscatel about these episodes that shut down his mind
38:59
and made him highly susceptible to other suggestions.
39:03
In the months following the murders, he was believed that
39:05
David Rice had undergone a process of rationalization
39:09
regarding the killings. To minimize his guilt and thus
39:13
his criminal culpability, he downplayed all of the evidence
39:16
supporting premeditation in the Goldmark murders, and instead he
39:21
focused on his obsession to get information on the communist
39:25
members. Doctor Muscatel also pointed out
39:28
that in general there is greater reliability and thus accuracy
39:33
and statements that are made soon after an event occurred
39:36
rather than statements made later.
39:38
It seemed obvious that once David Rice realized the gravity
39:41
of his situation, in particular the death penalty, which he
39:45
possibly faced as punishment if convicted, his reliance on his
39:50
poor mental state at the time of the offence had increasingly
39:54
become the focus. David Lewis Rice never once
39:58
expressed remorse for the premeditated, carefully planned
40:01
execution of the Goldmark parents.
40:03
He conveyed that he hadn't planned on killing the two young
40:05
boys, but felt he had no other choice since they could identify
40:09
him. As the defense counsel pointed
40:12
out, which was supported by testimony given by family and
40:15
friends, David Rice had no history of violence or
40:19
aggression. Any violence that had ever been
40:22
shown was inflicted on himself. With two known incidents of
40:26
attempted suicide, he had been subject to violence and
40:29
harassment by his older brothers, who name called him,
40:32
beat him up and kicked him. The only reason given was that
40:36
they were ashamed of their odd little brother who didn't fit
40:40
in. The offender had no history with
40:42
the criminal justice system, which should have been
40:45
considered a mitigating factor. Still, the horrific and
40:48
merciless nature of his crime overshadowed anything else.
40:53
Despite the strong arguments attempted by the defense, the
40:57
jury saw through what they perceived to be a facade of
41:00
mental illness. They rejected the insanity of
41:03
defense and convicted him on all four counts of aggravated first
41:08
degree murder. The aggravating factors included
41:11
how the murders were committed to cover up a crime as they were
41:15
part of a plan to kill more than one person and they occurred
41:19
during the Commission of a felony, that being robbery or
41:22
burglary. On June 5th, 1986, David Lewis
41:25
Rice was found guilty on 4 counts of aggravated first
41:29
degree murder. Once he was found guilty on all
41:31
charges, the death penalty phase began.
41:34
The defense counsel called upon 4 relatives of David Rice's to
41:38
testify to his lack of violent history and that they all loved
41:42
him. One of his older brothers
41:44
testified to how as a child, David was physically and
41:47
mentally abused by the brothers. His brother believed that it had
41:51
an adverse long term impact on his mental state.
41:54
The defense counsel also argued that if he were spared the death
41:58
sentence, David Rice would still not pose any future threat to
42:02
society because he would be incarcerated for the rest of his
42:05
life. The prosecution didn't present
42:08
any additional evidence to support its recommendation,
42:12
however, they read 2 passages for the jury to think long and
42:16
hard about when deciding whether or not the defendant narrated
42:20
leniency in the death penalty. The first passage read in a
42:25
quote. The fact that two of these
42:28
visions were children, a 10 year old boy and a 12 year old boy
42:32
was irrelevant to phase one. It now becomes something for you
42:37
to consider in phase two. The fact that the family was
42:42
killed in their own home on Christmas Eve was irrelevant to
42:47
phase one. It was not an element of the
42:50
crime. But it is a part of this crime
42:53
and a part of what makes this crime one of those very few
42:57
crimes that screams out for the death penalty as the only
43:02
acceptable punishment. The prosecutor then stated to
43:06
the jurors, put yourself if you will, in the shoes of those two
43:10
children who have been gathered in their parents bedroom with a
43:14
man who they believe has got a gun and they're told to lay down
43:19
on the floor face down in their parents bedroom.
43:22
They comply. And it's starting to come to
43:26
Derek and Colin that whatever child believes that their
43:29
parents can protect them from anything, especially in their
43:32
own home, is not true. And as Derek and Colin hear the
43:38
click of the handcuffs fastening around the wrists of their
43:42
father, and the click of the handcuffs as they're gathering
43:47
around the wrists of their mother, what are they thinking?
43:52
And as the defendant comes closer to them and cinches the
43:56
sweaters uptight, these are factors that you should consider
44:02
in keeping in mind the crime. Then the defendant going with
44:08
the chloroform first to dad and there is no indication that
44:12
there was any words or struggle at that point.
44:15
Then to the mother who struggled at the nasty smell that the
44:19
defendant talked about. And then finally to the point
44:23
where that nasty smell of chloroform is coming closer to
44:26
their faces and their last conscious thoughts on this earth
44:33
are the terror, not bedroom. That is the crime that the
44:38
defendant committed. That is the crime that you have
44:42
to have in mind when you weigh whether the state has convinced
44:46
you beyond a reasonable doubt that the mitigating
44:50
circumstances, the so-called mitigating circumstances, merit
44:55
leniency. While the jury deliberated on
44:58
whether to impose the death penalty on David Rice, they were
45:02
asked to answer the following question.
45:05
Having in mind the crime of which the defendant has been
45:08
found guilty, are you convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that
45:12
there are not sufficient mitigating circumstances to
45:15
merit leniency? The jury requested during this
45:19
time that they listen to the defendant's confession tape once
45:22
more without the presence of David Rice or his counsel.
45:27
Defense agreed. However, when the jury came to a
45:30
verdict, David Rice was no longer in the courtroom.
45:34
He had been rushed to the hospital due to an ingestion of
45:37
liquid nicotine. Staff at the hospital called the
45:41
judge to inform them that Rice was stable, but that he remained
45:44
unresponsive. It was assumed that David Rice
45:47
had attempted to take his own life before the jury can make
45:50
that decision for him. Both the prosecution and the
45:54
defense agreed that the verdict could be announced and David
45:58
Rice's absence. The jury announced that leniency
46:02
in the death penalty was not merited.
46:05
David Lewis Rice was sentenced to death.
46:08
He wouldn't return to the courtroom for several days,
46:10
where he would then receive his grim fate.
46:15
Any death sentence case is automatically provided with the
46:17
opportunity to appeal. There were multiple claims made
46:21
to contest the jury's decision. I will discuss a few of the more
46:24
relevant and interesting claims. The first claim David Rice made
46:29
was regarding the admission of photographs of the victims
46:32
during the criminal trial. The prosecution displayed 4
46:35
pictures, each one of a different member of the Goldmark
46:38
family in a moment of life. The defense objected to the
46:41
remission, citing that it was unfairly prejudicial and
46:45
irrelevant. However, the state claimed that
46:47
they were relevant to establish the identity of each victim.
46:52
David Rice offered to identify the victims himself, but this
46:56
was denied and the judge allowed the in life photographs.
47:01
The impissibility of photographs of victims in a courtroom has
47:04
long been an issue of conflict in debate, but more often for
47:07
photos of the deceased because they tend to be so disturbing
47:11
and grotesque that it is believed to cause unfair
47:15
prejudice of the jury and the violent nature outweighs the
47:18
value. Similar issues are considered
47:20
when photographs that are referred to as in life are
47:23
presented to the jury. The appellate court decided that
47:26
admission by the trial court was not a violation of his due
47:30
process rights. The second appeal claim was
47:34
based on the admission of clothing.
47:35
Located at the crime scene were multiple blood stained items.
47:39
These included a bathroom, a shirt, 2 sweaters, eyeglasses, a
47:43
handkerchief, and a napkin. All of these items were admitted
47:48
as evidence to which the defense objected to on similar grounds
47:52
of prejudicial effect over probative value.
47:55
The appellate court determined that the trial court had not
47:58
abused its discretion with their admission.
48:01
The third claim involved a statement made during the
48:03
closing argument in which the jury was told legal insanity
48:07
requires that the defendant has lost contact with reality so
48:11
completely that he is beyond any of the influences of the
48:14
criminal law. David Rice claimed that this
48:18
argument was a misstatement of the law and deprived him of his
48:21
rights to a fair trial. The appellate court clarified
48:25
that the statement was taken from language in some of the
48:27
courts opinions. However, they agreed that it was
48:31
improper and concluded that any statements to the jury as to the
48:35
law are restricted to the law as outlined in the jury
48:39
instructions. In the trial court, the judge
48:41
had only given the jury instruction based on McNaughton
48:44
test, so the court did determine that the prosecution had
48:47
exceeded these rules. However, it's not as simple as
48:51
this. The appellant bears the sole
48:53
burden of proof to show that the argument was not only improper,
48:56
but prejudicial to the jury to the extent that the misconduct
49:00
affected the verdict, thus depriving him of a fair trial.
49:06
The appellate court concluded that the likelihood of this
49:09
didn't exist for three reasons. First, the argument didn't
49:12
misstate the law, and secondly, the prosecutor didn't expand on
49:15
this past statement. 3rd, the jury was instructed to disregard
49:20
any argument not supported by the law given to them by the
49:23
judge. One of the more interesting
49:25
claims the appellate made was regarding the inclusion of
49:28
additional language for the instruction of insanity.
49:32
During his criminal trial, David Rice proposed that the following
49:34
regarding deific or divine commands be added.
49:39
One who believes that he is acting under the direct command
49:42
of God is no less insane because he nevertheless knows murder is
49:46
prohibited by the laws of man. This exact language was taken
49:50
from State versus Cameron in 1983.
49:53
David Lewis Rice argued that this instruction was strongly
49:56
supported by the evidence, including a letter he wrote
50:00
discussing his battle with Satan and a passage in his interview
50:04
with author Sam Keane where he spoke about being a missionary
50:08
of God. His defense counsel argued that
50:10
the urges sent by aliens or extraterrestrial beings that
50:14
David Rice claimed to experience were examples of such a deific
50:19
command, Except that in David Rice's case, based on his own
50:23
admission, he was not compelled by God, or aliens for that
50:27
matter, to do anything, much less slaughter an entire family.
50:32
David Rice also argued that the emotional nature of the state's
50:36
closing argument was an improper appeal to passion and prejudice
50:40
when the prosecutor addressed the fact that the victims were
50:43
children killed. Children were killed on
50:47
Christmas Eve in their home. These were the passages read by
50:51
the prosecution. As described earlier, even the
50:55
most serious and unemotive of prosecutors would be incapable
51:02
of not presenting the emotional nature of a family murder,
51:06
including that of two small children, on Christmas Eve.
51:11
This statement in itself would be enough to sway almost any
51:15
jury member that David Lewis Rice was a monster, an evil,
51:21
soulless man who deserved to be put to death.
51:25
On August 16th, 1988, the appellate court denied the
51:29
petitioner David Lewis Rice's claims of his rights being
51:32
violated and his death sentence was reaffirmed.
51:36
However, this was not the end of his appeal process.
51:40
In 1995, a court shockingly and with much controversy, reversed
51:45
David Lewis Rice's death sentence and remanded for new
51:49
penalty trial. This decision was based on the
51:51
previously disregarded claim that his rights were violated
51:55
when the jury verdict was read in his absence.
51:58
At the time of the incident, it was allowed and agreed upon by
52:02
his defense counsel because it was believed that David Rice had
52:06
attempted to commit suicide by drinking liquid nicotine, which
52:10
led him to be hospitalized. His attorney, without his
52:13
approval, agreed to have the verdict read without his
52:17
presence. According to David Rice, he
52:20
claimed that he drank the liquid nicotine, which he sometimes
52:23
used as a substitute for smoking because he knew he wouldn't be
52:28
able to once he was returned to jail.
52:31
This provided a different perspective on his actions and
52:34
the court determined that his rights were violated due to his
52:37
attorneys inadequate representation.
52:41
It is difficult to deny the importance of a convicted
52:43
offender being present at court for their own verdict.
52:47
For any sentence, it would be important for each juror to
52:49
affirm their decision by looking the defendant in the eye as they
52:53
have been given the ultimate responsibility for another's
52:57
fate. It is essential to understand
53:01
that just because a verdict has been decided behind closed doors
53:05
doesn't mean that an individual juror can't change their mind
53:10
once they enter the courtroom. They are not legally bound by
53:15
their vote in the jury room and have every right to register
53:19
dissent, that is, to disagree with the majority verdict.
53:23
For a death sentence case, this is absolutely critical because
53:26
one juror can change the course. Under Washington law, the death
53:30
penalty must be agreed upon by all jurors.
53:35
Ensuring that the defendant is present to face their punishment
53:37
is a fundamental part of upholding the fairness and
53:40
transparency of the judicial process.
53:44
The court also agreed that a new hearing must be held to address
53:47
the claims that David Rice's lawyers have failed to determine
53:50
his mental state before allowing him to confess to the crimes to
53:54
detectives and speak to the media, neither of which was in
53:58
his best interest. It is also interesting to note
54:01
that even though mental health professionals couldn't agree on
54:04
whether or not David Rice was fully competent, they all
54:08
concluded that he's suffered from paranoid delusional
54:11
disorder. One psychiatrist seated that
54:13
they believed he was incapable of understanding the nature and
54:17
quality of his actions on the day of the murders.
54:20
And yet this exculpatory evidence was unlawfully withheld
54:25
by the prosecution, and his lawyer never requested that the
54:30
prosecution's psychiatric evidence be handed over.
54:33
So none of these results and findings were ever presented to
54:36
the jury, which may have been crucial in deciding the verdict
54:40
and the penalty. Since this was the 1980s and
54:44
Mitchell Health was likely not handled with the same due
54:47
diligence as hopefully it is in most criminal courts today, it's
54:52
unlikely that the psychiatric examinations of David Louis Rice
54:55
were thorough, much less accurate.
54:58
I would not at all be surprised if the murder trial had been
55:01
held today. David Rice would have been
55:03
diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic.
55:07
As it were, all of the psychiatrists agreed that he
55:10
suffered from paranoid delusions.
55:13
Although David Lewis Rice was not technically a serial killer,
55:16
he was a multiple murderer who by all documented evidence, had
55:21
full intentions on murdering many more people.
55:25
For this reason, his criminal profile aligns with that of a
55:28
serial killer, specifically the mission oriented serial murder.
55:32
Mission based serial killers are what they sound like they are.
55:36
These are killers that are on a mission to rid the world of
55:39
individuals or groups of people whom they have deemed to be
55:43
undesirable. These are the types of murderers
55:45
who frequently target drug addicts, sex workers, and
55:49
homeless because they perceive them as being less valuable to
55:53
society and not worthy of living.
55:56
Such killers typically hold extreme ideologies and view
56:00
their violent actions as what is necessary to change or uphold
56:04
society. David Lewis Rice could also be
56:07
viewed through the profile of a lone wolf killer.
56:10
This kind of murderer has been described as someone who uses or
56:13
threatens the use of violence or nonviolent sabotage, alone or
56:18
with minimal support of one or two others to further an agenda
56:21
or a goal, whether it is political, religious, social, or
56:25
another kind. If one is to believe that David
56:28
Lewis Rice was hearing voices and receiving guidance from
56:31
extraterrestrial beings, as he called them, then he also fits
56:35
within the profile of a visionary killer.
56:38
A visionary base serial killer believes that a person or an
56:41
entity is commanding them to kill.
56:44
As mentioned, all of the psychiatrist who examined David
56:47
Lewis Rice believed him to be suffering from paranoid
56:50
delusions, antisocial personality disorder, and
56:54
schizoid type symptoms. Research has shown that
56:57
paranoia, specifically the inclusion of persecutory
57:01
delusions, is a frequent symptom of an individual who is
57:05
afflicted with a mental health disorder.
57:07
Persecutory or paranoid delusions are just as they
57:11
sound. They involve the false beliefs
57:13
that someone is being harassed, targeted, and conspired against
57:17
to be persecuted. This can often lead to social
57:20
withdrawal, anxiety, and exhibiting aggressive and
57:24
violent behavior. An individual suffering from
57:27
paranoia tends to blame external forces for the negative events
57:31
in their life and the world around them.
57:34
They frequently blame others and perceive them to be a threat in
57:38
return. In the mind of a paranoid
57:40
offender, a violent reaction toward the perceived persecutor
57:44
is justified as self protection. Some studies have shown that the
57:48
risk of a violent response increases in someone with both
57:52
paranoid delusions and antisocial personality disorder.
57:56
Against all odds, David Lewis Rice had achieved what is
58:00
impossible for most convicted offenders.
58:03
The quadruple murderer had proven that his defense counsel
58:08
had failed to meet the standards of legal representation, and
58:12
thus his conviction and his death sentence were successfully
58:16
overturned. Although the success rate
58:20
differs based on the type of crime and other factors such as
58:23
this specific state involved in an appellate case, successfully
58:27
winning an appeal is relatively rare.
58:30
Studies indicate that a convicted offender will succeed
58:33
in their appeal less than 7% of the time, and the likelihood is
58:38
even lower during a habeas corpus motion.
58:41
This is primarily due to the extremely high standards of
58:44
review set by the courts, which create obstacles and challenges
58:49
that most appellants can't overcome.
58:52
The rate of reversal in the US Court of Appeals is very scarce,
58:56
and those who make claims of ineffective assistance of
58:59
counsel, such as in the case of David Lewis Rice, are noted for
59:03
being especially difficult based on the high, almost impossible
59:07
to reach legal standard set by 1984's Strickland versus
59:11
Washington. And appellant must prove two
59:14
things. First, they must show that their
59:17
lawyers performance was deficient and did not meet a
59:21
reasonable expectation or standard of legal
59:24
representation. Second, they must prove that
59:27
this low performance led to prejudice in the case, which
59:32
means that their judicial outcome would likely have been
59:34
different if it weren't for the incompetence of their
59:37
representation. Winning an appeal and being
59:40
granted a new trial and sentencing trial does not equate
59:44
to being acquitted. Rather, it means the convicted
59:47
criminal has now been given a rare opportunity with new legal
59:52
representation in their new trial, which potentially could
59:56
result in a different verdict. In 1998 and a shocking turn of
1:00:00
events, David Lewis Rice plead guilty to three counts of
1:00:05
aggravated first degree murder. In return, he received a life
1:00:09
sentence without the possibility of parole.
1:00:13
At last, the legal chapters of this tragic case have been
1:00:18
closed. David Lewis Rice is currently
1:00:21
incarcerated at the Washington State Penitentiary.
1:00:25
The issue of mental illness and diminished criminal culpability,
1:00:28
specifically when considering the use of capital punishment,
1:00:31
continues to be an area of controversy and debate in the
1:00:35
courts. Since 1986, the Supreme Court
1:00:38
has taken different strides and banning the death penalty for
1:00:41
those afflicted with serious mental disabilities, including
1:00:45
mental illness. Under Ford versus Rainwright,
1:00:48
the court held that the rights under the 8th Amendment prohibit
1:00:51
imposing the death penalty on individuals with severe mental
1:00:54
illness. However, at the time, this was
1:00:56
focused on a convict who was deemed insane.
1:01:00
In 2002, in Atkins versus Virginia, the Supreme Court
1:01:03
found that executing a mentally disabled person violates the 8th
1:01:07
Amendments ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
1:01:10
In 2007, Panetti versus Quarterman, the court further
1:01:14
clarified the definition of competence, focusing on the
1:01:18
ability to irrationally understand the death sentence
1:01:21
and its purpose, rather than merely having a recollection of
1:01:26
committing the crime. The most recent decision by the
1:01:29
court was in 2019, which clarified that an individual
1:01:34
can't be executed if their concept of reality is so
1:01:37
impaired that they can't understand the meaning or
1:01:40
purpose of the death penalty. None of these rulings has banned
1:01:44
its use on individuals diagnosed with a severe mental illness.
1:01:48
The Supreme Court has simply declared it to be an
1:01:51
unconstitutional practice. However, some states have fought
1:01:54
to stop the execution of the mentally insane, specifically
1:01:58
Kentucky and Ohio being a few of the 1st.
1:02:01
As development in mental health awareness and cognitive
1:02:04
disabilities has increased through the decades, so have the
1:02:07
courts and society's perception change towards executing persons
1:02:11
who are considered less culpable due to their impairment or
1:02:15
illness. Many studies have shown that
1:02:17
most individuals in the United States are against the execution
1:02:21
of someone who is mentally ill. However, the practice continues
1:02:25
today. Since 2023, the death penalty
1:02:29
has been officially abolished in the state of Washington.
1:02:32
In 2018, the state Supreme Court ruled in State versus Gregory
1:02:37
that the sentence is unconstitutional, setting its
1:02:40
arbitrary and racially biased historical use of the
1:02:44
punishment. Since 2018, any individuals
1:02:48
given a death sentence have been commuted to life imprisonment,
1:02:53
but at the time of these tragic and horrific events, receiving
1:02:58
the death penalty was still a possibility.
1:03:02
This case ignited rage and many proponents of capital
1:03:06
punishment, serving as a reminder that the actions of an
1:03:10
incompetent attorney can disrupt the course of justice.
1:03:16
The Gold Mark Family murders remains one of the most
1:03:19
disturbing hate crimes and politically motivated violent
1:03:22
acts committed by an individual in the United States.
1:03:27
The year after the Gold Marks were murdered, a foundation was
1:03:30
established to honor their legacy in the city and the
1:03:33
causes the family believed in. Amongst the many beneficiaries
1:03:37
throughout the years were the nonprofit Legal Foundation of
1:03:40
Washington, of which Charles Goldmark was a founder.
1:03:43
It supports the Goldmark Equal Access to Justice internships
1:03:47
for law students. The Seattle Nantes Sister City
1:03:50
Association was another beneficiary that created
1:03:53
scholarships to further relationships between France and
1:03:56
the United States. A 'cause that deeply mattered to
1:03:58
Annie Goldmark. The Victims Assistant Unit of
1:04:02
the Seattle Police Department was also named as a beneficiary
1:04:05
of the foundation due to the amazing support they provided
1:04:09
the Friends of the Gold Marks. In the wake of the tragedy,
1:04:13
Seattle was horrified and shocked by these grisly family
1:04:18
murders during the Christmas holiday.
1:04:22
That two small children were amongst the victims appalled the
1:04:27
community and they demanded justice for the gold marks.
1:04:33
There is a darkness that clouds over the city to this day, a
1:04:38
cloud of hatred, anti-Semitism and paranoia that induced
1:04:46
violence which once polluted the town and stole the lives of four
1:04:53
beautiful, innocent people. At Madrona Dr. and Lake
1:04:58
Washington Blvd. in what was renamed the Gold Mark Overlook,
1:05:03
a commemorative metal plaque is located.
1:05:07
There are 4 silhouettes, two adults and two kids walking in a
1:05:12
scene that mirrors the overlook they once admired.
1:05:16
The same breathtaking panoramic view of the mountains that the
1:05:22
family love to explore together. At the bottom of the plaque, it
1:05:27
reads. This overlook is named in memory
1:05:32
of Charles, Annie, Derek and Colin Goldmark, who loved
1:05:37
Seattle and its open spaces. Thank you so much for listening
1:05:44
to this tragic, heartbreaking story of the Goldmark family
1:05:49
murders during Christmas. I appreciate each and everyone
1:05:55
of you and I'm beyond thrilled to keep bringing you stories.
1:05:59
As I've mentioned before, if you could just make sure that you
1:06:02
are following subscribed, leave a rating on Apple or Spotify,
1:06:08
and leave a review. It means so much to me and it
1:06:12
really helps for the show to grow.
1:06:15
I would like to give a special shout out to Shannon under SCORE
1:06:19
NYC for their lovely supportive review.
1:06:25
It says compassionate reporting. I usually listen before bed and
1:06:31
Alita's voice is very soothing and she's incredibly empathetic
1:06:35
in her storytelling and with honoring each victim.
1:06:39
Highly recommend. Thank you so much Shan.
1:06:43
It means the world to me. Until next time, stay safe and
1:06:53
watch out for Shades of Murder happening in the streets next
1:06:59
door, especially inside your room now.
1:07:05
Shades of Murder is created, written, researched and edited
1:07:10
by Alita Caldwell. Original music Stranger composed
1:07:15
by Stereo Code.