Case settled today. Incident occurred last fall within a city. No word on what other issues Mr Y had to endure.

"The County Prosecuting Attorney issued the following statement: "This was an unfortunate and tragic event that resulted in the loss of a life, and I extend my sympathies to the family of Mr. X as they grieve. However, under Idaho law, individuals have an unequivocal right to defend themselves, their families, and their homes from violent attacks. Idaho’s self-defense and ‘Stand Your Ground’ laws are clear: when an individual is faced with an immediate and unlawful threat of serious bodily harm, they are legally justified in using force to protect themselves."

"The evidence in this case—including witness statements, forensic analysis, physical evidence, DNA evidence, and video footage—demonstrates that Mr. Y acted lawfully. He was violently attacked at his own home and responded with justified force. Idaho law presumes that a homeowner acting in defense of their habitation does so with reasonable fear of imminent peril, and my office will not second-guess the fundamental right of self-defense."

it is my inclination,
when there is no stipulation,
to run amok
until I'm stuck
in full-blown consternation.

my half-wit trail blazing
can leave me more than crazing.
I huff and wheeze
and groan and squeeze,
stuck in mental constipating.

I'm planning propositions
based on learned intuitions.
one good deal
would grease the wheel,
and keep me out of institutions.

if someone did the laundry
that would lessen much the quandary,
to leave more time
to make more rhyme
and go back to being bawdry.

First published on Sunday, April 12, 2009

He lifted her skirt.

"Oh my pretty girl." he whispered.
"You wore the garter belt I like so much."

He almost regretted killing her quite yet.

~

Married five years. They both wanted children.
Or, so he thought.

Her first mistake was leaving the birth control pills in her lingerie drawer. With a bracelet he'd never seen before.
People get careless when their deceit goes on too long.

That was six months ago and he'd been collecting evidence and plotting ever since. His original plan did not include killing.
He wanted to catch her in the act, beat the shit out of whichever prick was there and, spend some months making her life miserable.

In the end, though, the idea of long, drawn out drama was not appealing. Better to end it quickly and move on.

When his job necessitated traveling, he called her every morning and she called him every evening.
Turned out that schedule left her evenings free for other things.

When he saw this week's schedule had him working two separate projects, he decided it would be the best scenario for covering his tracks. He wasn't due to come home for two more days. That would explain why the vase of roses was still on the dresser with a card that said, "Can't wait to see you tomorrow. Love, Joe."
The dead, naked guy beside her on the bed was Sam.

Sam's neck was twisted in a most unnatural angle. As was hers.
No blood. No mess.
He reached up to close her eyes and pull her skirt down a bit.
He couldn't help but leave her, his wife, with a tiny bit of dignity.

Living in a heavily treed area with distant neighbors made it easy to hide his car and walk unnoticed to the house. With several hours of moonless dark still in the evening, he'd have no trouble going back the way he came. He'd be back at the hotel in plenty of time to make his morning call to her. And leave a loving message.

Perhaps Joe, the bouquet-guy, would be the one to find this scene. If not, he'd make another call tomorrow night, leave another message and then call her sister to ask if she'd seen his wife.
Either way, he would be the broken-hearted, grieving husband however he got the tragic news.

He walked to the bedroom doorway and looked back to say,
"It was fun while it lasted, wasn't it?"

for Anne

I guess I should add this to "rules" ... but I've implied it:
-- I reserve the right to take comments which might get lost and turn them into posts.

I can still hear her words now— forty years later. They come in over my shoulder like a small wisp of fog. They caused a twist of fear to go through my gut back then, and they still do. 

She was so young then twelve or thirteen when she asked me: 
“Do you think it is ok for a woman researcher to steal a man’s research and claim it as her own work– my mom says it’s ok because women have been held back for so long.” 

When I look at all the cultural destruction and the waste and fraud that has been left behind for today’s president to clean up, and I remember how easily it was for the past two generations of female leadership to demand silent obedience. I hear those words again. It seems they became the guiding principle for every female seeking a position of authority ever since. 

It’s not so much that the ideals of fair play and equity they espoused were wrong—it is the lack of ethics with which they tried to enforce their brave new world.