Sword and Scale - Episode 214

Episode Date: June 27, 2022

The town of Groton, Mass had never witnessed such a tragedy. A tragedy that would test the love and loyalty of one family. The bond between family can never be broken but the love and loyalty between can sometimes be tried so hard that it’s severed. Orion Krause learned this lesson all too well in the summer of 2017.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sort and scale contains adult themes and violence and is not intended for all audiences listener discretion is advised I would describe it as getting all three severely in the head area The wounds I would describe mildly as terrific all three were not able to move. that reveals that the worst possible monsters are actually very very real. Also to the guy that hates the dubstep it's even worse for you buddy. It's gonna get so much worse right now So here's the thing. Sorry, I got cut up because I really like the dubstep. So I was just listening to that. Here's the thing.

We're on Spotify now. If you've been wondering and complaining, because the only thing you listen to the show in is Spotify and you can't get plus because plus isn't on Spotify. Well guess what? We have a version of Plus that's available only on Spotify. Now it's only available on, it's complicated. You can get it. 1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1-1.5-1.5-1.5-1- back to the car. I'm gonna go back to the car.

I'm gonna go back to the car. I'm gonna go back to the car. I'm gonna go back to the car. I'm gonna go back to the car. I'm gonna go back to the car. I'm gonna go back to the car. I'm gonna go back to the car. Loyalty is an admirable trait, but it is sometimes a hard one to process. It isn't always easy to be there when someone needs you, to always support them, even when

things are tough. But it is easy when you add love into the mix, and that bond is even stronger when that love and loyalty is for your own blood. After all, blood is thicker than water. It seems that the themes that connect murder tend to repeat themselves, and therefore, so do we. Must be because of that pesky little thing called human nature, the common thread that connects us all. But it goes without saying that the bond between family is the strongest of all. Love and loyalty don't necessarily come hand in hand, and even if you possess one, its strength over time can

fade, even though the bond, family, never does. It was getting late in the day just before sunset. Soon the temperature would dip in the low fifties, which is common for early September and Massachusetts. Much to the Wagner's bewilderment, a man in his early 20s emerged from the woods behind his home, as you heard, completely naked, covered in mud, and asking for help. When he first saw the young man, he shut the door quickly because undoubtedly it was weird. He didn't know this man or what he was capable of. In the Queen town of Groton, this kind of thing was completely out of the norm. It was a small town with a population of under 11,000 people.

It's nestled into the hills, northwest of Boston, and unacustom to crime of any sort. Groton to the units. You can head over to 42 common streets. You can stand the effect of the application. I've got a male party, no clothing on, you're head over to 42 common streets, you could send the assiduated application, I've got a milk party, milk rolling on, you're covered in mud. As you can hear, they took the situation pretty seriously. At the time, the town hadn't had a murder in 21 years, since 1996. The last robbery was four years previous in 2012.

Although property crime was more common, it was way below the levels of the surrounding areas of the state. Not only did a naked man wander out of the woods covered in mud, now he claimed that he had murdered four people. At the local authorities weren't on edge before, they certainly were now. When everything was transparent, we thought it was just a kid who was drunk or high or just had mental issues.

He just needed help. We didn't think that at all. It was just, to me, it was just words. But he said I've had common feelings. She truly can't to me, it was just words. But he said, I've had a calm. He was extremely calm. He never raised his voice here. And then he sat there for 15, 20 minutes, and the tops, he never moved, even in a statue. Even though the naked man claimed he committed murder, Wagner seemed more concerned that he was uncclothed than the temperature was dropping. Give me a power, honey, please, power.

He just wanted to give the naked man something to cover his body. I asked him, where are you clothes? And he says, I left it in the woods. And he repeated again, I'm over there for people. Okay, sure. I have them on the way. I'm just going to stand away. While they're on the way, okay? I'm going to give on the right side of you while they're on the way, okay? Okay, I'm gonna give the kid a power.

I wouldn't go anywhere near him. Okay, you cannot go anywhere near him. Okay, that's fine. I'm looking into the window. Keep hitting in the back of it. Let him sit there. Just let me know if he goes anywhere. You're 42 Kalman Street, correct? Correct. at that point it was unclear if the mud covered nudist was telling the truth about murdering four people or if he was just seriously out of touch with reality. But the police weren't

taking any chances. Wagner was told to keep his distance, watch, report, and wait for officers to arrive. My officer should be out at your address, sir. Can you confirm that he's there? He's here. He's sitting in the back here. No, can you confirm that my police officer is there? Hold a second. No, yet. I'll hold the phone. You'll watch him. Perhaps Wagner didn't quite hear the dispatcher's question because he was so mesmerized by the stranger's unusual behavior. I mean, wouldn't you be if a dirty naked murderer appeared out of the woods? As Wagner walked outside onto the driveway in search of the officer, he left his wife

to watch the strange man. The area around common street was heavily wooded. If the officer didn't have every address in the 33.7 square mile town memorized, he was likely using GPS to locate the home. If he was, he would have stopped just shy of the actual driveway at a small dirt road wreathed in trees that led behind the property. But it wasn't much longer and the officer found the right driveway. The naked man didn't move a muscle as they approached. He just sat in a mesh patio chair staring into the distance.

Wagner related to the officers, what he knew. He says, I need help, I need help. And then he adds, I murder for people. Upon first seeing the man, officer's noticed he was not only covered in mud, but also dozens of thin cuts all over his body. When the officers spoke to him, he confirmed that he had murdered four people. They asked him his name. He responded that his name was Orion Kraus, but no one recognized him. He wasn't from Groton.

Then they asked him where he murdered these people, and he gestured in the general direction of the woods from which he emerged, uttering somewhere over there. With officers there, Wagner finally felt comfortable enough to offer Orion a thin white bed sheet to cover himself. After he wrapped himself in the sheet, he sat back down and began singing to himself before saying, I freed them. About a 300 yard hike through those woods was another home, 80 Common Street, where officers would discover a grisly scene, the likes of which this small town police department was an equipped to handle.

Police responded they found that individual, gathered to information, then traveled to another location on Common Street. At that location, they found four deceased individuals. As they approached the home, they could see light from the TV flickering inside. As they looked closer, they saw two people in recliners with obvious trauma. They kicked in the door to give aid. As they entered the home, they saw another victim slouched in a chair. Their body weight leaning against the kitchen island.

Worse yet, they realized there was nothing they could do. They were already dead. As they backed out of the home, they found a fourth victim face down in the flower bed. Three individuals inside the home, two females and one male, one deceased female outside of the home. Two middle aged females and an older male and female. The scene was bloody and brutal. The person outside obviously tried to flee but didn't get very far.

After the discovery of the crime scene, Orion was taken into custody without incident. Orion was easily taken into custody, but news of the severity of what happened on Common Street would both spread fast and shock all that heard it. For criminarily, it appears that all four individuals suffered blunt trauma injuries. An elderly couple lived at 80 Common Street. At least, that's what Wagner understood. Very nice, literally, couple. You know, they have a beautiful home with gorgeous gardens. We're sad, shocking, that innocent people have to go through such a horrendous death.

And the community of Groton would be devastated. We've said it before in small towns everybody knows everybody and When something tragic happens the effects are felt throughout the community During the DA's press conference she did not release the names of the victims because their next of kin had not yet been contacted however The community still banded together and held a vigil Today we face the reality that violence has come to our community in a particularly painful way. For people are dead, two of them elderly, we do not understand this. The district attorney has not yet publicly released their names, so we don't even have those.

We don't know what happened. Or why the young man named Orion Kraus did this. What we do know is that tragedy has come to the family who lived at 80 common street. And so we need to hold in our hearts the remaining members of that family and all of their loved ones. We also need to hold in our hearts the young man who committed these acts because he is 22 years old and something went terribly wrong in order for this to happen. Not sure why his age is relevant after he murdered four people? Or why this woman speaks in the slow deliberate cadence of a kindergarten teacher? But Orion Kraus was unknown to the town of Groton.

Authorities didn't yet realize what his connections were to the victims, why he was there, or even what prompted before brutal murders. But time, as they say, would tell. A newed man, smeared in mud, came out of the woods and casually asked a neighbor for help. Oh yeah, and that he murdered four people. The startled neighbor immediately called the police. When they arrived, the stoic man identified himself as Orion Kraus. Orion, like the constellation, except he had no belt or even clothes at all. Just mud and a multitude of tiny cuts all over his body,

from forging his way through the underbrush behind the house. Again, a calmly and plainly told the police that he had murdered four people. It's not the usual confession, but nonetheless, they had to check it out. That's when they discovered a crime so brutal that it would shake the foundation of the town. While the details were kept under wraps, of course, in a town this size everyone knew something big was going on. And when you don't know, you become afraid.

And when people are afraid, bad things can start to happen. So the DA and the chief of police immediately held a press conference. Good evening. I just want to reiterate what the district attorney said and assure people in the area that Chief of Police immediately held a press conference. They weren't ready to release what connected Orion to the victims, just that they were connected somehow. They didn't know why he was in Groton, and they certainly didn't know why he was in grotten, and they certainly didn't know why he did what he did.

All they knew was that he brutally beat four people to death. Thank you, sir. No, it's all for a big two-separate bus. Where's Tom? Preliminarily, that's when it appears, yes. We're covered with baseball, bad. We have recovered at least what we believe to be very preliminary to be one weapon.

We're not releasing any of those details right now. Spoiler alert. It was a baseball bat. You can see the police still on the scene here. This is common street, the deadly quadruple murder scene. Cell phone images of the man accused of killing

four people in Groton moments before the man accused of killing four people in Groton. Moments before he's accused of knocking on neighbor's door naked, covered in mud, saying he had just committed murder. An older man and woman and two middle aged women were killed. A baseball bat may have been used

in these murders. Five investigates reporting they were being to death with a baseball bat. Three of the bodies were found inside the home of fourth outside. Stay police arrested 22 year old The airwaves were a buzz with news of the quadruple murder in Groton. The following day, the DA held another press conference and revealed new details. The kind that breaks your heart, the identity of the victims. Women who was providing health services at the home, Bertha May, M-A-E, last name Parker,

date of birth of 729-49. One victim was a 68-year-old live-in nurse whose only crime was being at the wrong place at the wrong time. Certainly not a target for murder. Individual named Frank Darby Lackie, the third. Mr. Lackie III. Mr. Lackie's date of birth was 42328. The only male victim was an 89 year old

retired investment advisor and former president of Spinnaker Capital in Boston. He was charitable and philanthropic. He was trustee at Chowonke Foundation, a non-profit camp and school that focused on the environmental education of youth. This guy was well off and influential. Perhaps he was a target just because of that, and the others were collateral damage. He believed to be his wife, Elizabeth Lackie. Mrs. Lackie's date of birth was June 18, 1932. Elizabeth Lackie was the 85-year-old wife of Frank. They had been married for 61 years.

She had a master's degree from an Episcopal Divinity School. Along with her husband, they started the Nadeuse Foundation in 1997, which donates funds to many charitable organizations. As the list went on, there was no discernible reason why someone would want these people dead. Then they named the fourth victim. Their daughter, Elizabeth Krause, Mrs. Krause's date of birth was June 7th, 1957. If you didn't catch that, one of the victims was Elizabeth Krause, Orion's 60-year-old mother who went by Buffy.

The husband and wife were his elderly grandparents, and Miss Parker was their live-in nurse because they were essentially homebound. Finally, the town understood the connection between Orion and the victims, but that knowledge didn't help make any sense of it. How could a family visit? Turned so violent. To make sense of what happened, we have to go back to the days and years leading up to this event Orion and his twin brother Cooper were born in 1995 Quickly Orion began to stand out as something of a musical wonder

I mean, the guy received a Maestro Award for a drum solo he performed in high school. He pursued his love of music through high school and onto the prestigious Oberlin Conservatory in Ohio. He aspired to be a jazz drummer. That was him playing the drum line at Oberlin, along with other renowned jazz musicians. Orion would graduate in May of 2017, but it was about a year prior that his mother began to notice changes in the young man. On July 16, 2016, Buffy called 911 in Rockport Maine. The transcripts released after the events that occurred in Groton were mostly redacted. Main has some very strict public information laws specifically for 911 calls, but it's clear she was calling because she was

concerned about Orion. Here are a few excerpts that weren't redacted. Tell them to be gentle with him. Please, don't send a policeman. I just as soon not have a policeman. My son needs some gentleness. He doesn't need any force. Also, I don't know what has happened completely. So I'm, he just doesn't need force.

He needs gentle. The police report reveals that when Orion came home, he wasn't acting himself. Instead, he was screaming religious rants. Buffy was worried that perhaps he joined a cult. He was taken to the hospital without incident. After that, Orion went back to school, graduated, and then moved home in the summer of 2017.

It would seem that everything was fine from an outside perspective. He even had an offer to tour with a jazz band that he was considering. Then in September, one day before the events in Groton, she called 911 again. Are they on Thursday evening? Mr. Krauss left his home in Rockport, Maine. Shortly after he left his mother, Mrs. Krauss had some concern about where he might be going. She reached out to the Rockport, Maine Police, indicating the vehicle that her son was driving. She explained that he was acting erratically lately and changing his mind a lot. She described him as, on edge, and suddenly having the urge to go to Chicago.

What troubled her the most was that while she went to work for a few hours, he took her van and left, leaving his belongings and a cell phone behind. A lot of the transcript of the call was also redacted, so it's unclear if she was concerned about a suicide attempt or a religious cult, but she seemed to be generally fearful for her child's well-being. She once again asked the dispatcher to tell officers to be gentle with her son. But if you were to actually see the car, I don't want to scare him. I don't want to anger him. She was reassured by being contacted by her son early on Friday morning,

indicated he was fine. He had traveled to the great Abbas in the area. That is a little bit misleading. A Ryan called his mom to tell her he was okay, and it was early Friday morning. But in the police report, the officer was told of this call at 12.59am. If the late hour call isn't enough of a reason for concern, Orion told his mother that he drove the van to Moody's diner in Waldorboro, some 15 miles away, and left it there before proceeding to Hitchhike another 60 miles to Portland. And somehow ended up at the Avalon Motel on the outskirts of Boston another 97-mile trip. Later on Friday morning, Orion crowds contacted his mother again and asked for a ride back home to Maine.

She agreed to come to the Greater Boston area and pick him up, which she did. The original plan was for them to return back to the family home. At some point, a decision was made to go and visit Ryan's grandparents in gotten. Rather than make the three-hour drive back home, Buffy decided to drive to her parents' house instead. After all, gotten was only about an hour away, and maybe she thought seeing her parents might help her or Orion with whatever he seemed to be going through. Our investigation has revealed some point late on Friday afternoon. Mr. Krauss made a phone call to an individual who was known to him,

made statements that were concerning, concerning enough that that individual began to reach out to family members. That phone call was to one of his college professors, Mr. Haddad. I guess Orion trusted him for some reason, because the call was somewhat of a confession. Orion said that he had done something bad, and that he stole money and a car from his mom. Then he told the professor, I think I have to kill my mom. Mr. Hadad wasn't sure what he had just heard

and asked him to repeat it. Again, Orion said, I think I have to kill my mom. He even mentioned that he thought his grandfather had some golf clubs that he could use. The statement sent Mr. Hadad into a frenzy trying to contact Orion's family. When no one answered at their home, he called the local police in Rockport to relay the conversation. By then, Wagner was already on the line with dispatchers and Grotten.

Reaching through by the several calls I think had missed better. Multiple calls came into Grotten 911 at the same time. I know I got another one on the other one the same time. And at approximately the same time, the police were responding to the call from the neighbor on Common Street. They were also receiving calls here at the police station

from other family members in the individual who Mr. Krause had reached out to. One of the other calls was the officer from Rockport, the very same one that had made contact with Buffy the night before. After he spoke with Mr. Haddad, he spent a lot of time trying to contact Buffy and even spoke with Orion's brother Cooper before learning they were at their grandparents and gotten police or grunt police how you

it's a good for you uh... this is a gemore rock or police department in rock or main what i've got is a um... mental health is this a ryan cross holy cow yes it is you like to fit call. We've got an answer. We've got an officer on the scene and we're getting a mess on the way.

Mr. Hadad, the officer from Rockport and likely Cooper and his dad called 911 almost within minutes of each other from different states. But of course, it was already too late, and at this point, none of the collars were aware of what Wagner knew. Orion had confessed to four murders. Our preliminary information is that all died as a result of one forced trauma. We did recover on the property of the home of baseball bats, which our preliminary investigation indicates may have been used in the assault. A Ryan was quickly brought in front of a judge. Of course, the media was there to try to get a sound bite as he was escorted by the two

officers, but he wasn't talking. Instead, this lanky and disheveled young man kept his head down as he passed the reporter. In his initial court appearance, Orion had a confused look on his face, almost as if he wasn't quite sure why he was there. His face was expressionless, but not coldly or callously. It was more like he didn't have a care in the world, like he was waiting in line for fast food. We are by agreement requesting that he be held without fail.

His only surviving immediate family, his father, and brother were there to support him. Orion's father and brother had to practically fight their way past the media, waiting outside the courthouse. They had just witnessed their loved one being held without bail, not in jail, but in a state-run mental institution. Krause is being held without bail. He is ordered to undergo a psychiatric evaluation at Bridgewater State.

It was immediately understood that something more was going on with Orion. Something serious enough to have prompted such a hostile act, let alone the fact that the act was committed to his mother, elderly grandparents, and a complete stranger seemingly out of the blue. So he went to Bridgewater Estate to have an evaluation of his mental health, to see if he was having an acute episode at the time of the murders, and if he was even fit to stand trial. There he stayed until April 2018 when he was deemed fit and finally arraigned. Massachusetts on their oath present that a rioting crossed on the eighth day of September,

in the year of our Lord 2017 at Grun in the county of Middlesex of 4S, did assault and beat Frank D. Lacky III with intent to murder him and by such assault and beating did kill and murder. Frank D. Lacky III, Mr. Krabs, how do you plead to this in date? No guiltyating did kill and murder. The Elizabeth C. Lackey. Mr. Krabs, how do you plead to this Sunday? No guilty. Beating did kill and murder. Elizabeth A. Krabs. Mr. Krabs, how do you plead to this Sunday? No guilty. Beating did kill and murder. Bertha M. Parker. Mr. Krabs, how do you plead to this Sunday? I don't know if you noticed, but during his first plea, you can hear his lawyer whispering

in the background, reminding him to plead not guilty. I think this is even more proof of how out of it Orion was. During the rest of the arrangement, the horrific details would be shared with the court and eventually the public, answering the question of what really happened in that home. About 5.50 pm on September 8th of 2017, Orion Kraus, the defendant walked up to a house at 42 Common Street in Groton, said he had just murdered four people. Ron Police responded and saw Kraus covered in mud and then cuts, and he said, I murdered four people.

Who are they, the police asked? My grandparents, my mother, and my grandparents, aid. The officers asked where, and he pointed to the woods somewhere over there. They asked how. He said I did it with a baseball bat. This is all the information we already know, but I think it's important to point out that when the prosecutor described the events, he left out the fact that Orion was nude and kind of out of it and singing to himself.

He made him sound clear of mind. Now, when the police officers responded to the house, the house is somewhat set back from the road. We're going to estimate about 300 feet with a driveway that winds up from the right side of the house. The officers responded there and went to a bay window where they could see a light and a TV on. Facing them as the officers looked in, they could see a light and a TV on. Facing them as the officers looked

in they could see two elderly people seated with severe trauma and blood all over themselves. The officers then were able to force them to entry and able to get inside. As they got inside from where that bay window is, it's a long kitchen. As they walked into that kitchen they noticed that there was brain tissue, skull fragments, chunks of flesh, and blood all over the floor, walls, and ceiling throughout the length of this approximately 25-foot room. When I said brutal and bloody earlier, well, now you know, the entire room was covered in literal human pulp. The little bits of bone clung to morsels of flesh,

scattered amongst spongy pieces of brain. Seemingly every surface of the kitchen was sprayed with this noxious mixture. As the officers approached, they noticed that facing these two people was a person seated at an island counter, which was located in the middle of the kitchen. A large quarter section of our head had been knocked out so that the interior of her skull was showing. That was Orion's loving mother. The one missing so much of her head that you could actually see inside.

How could he have done this to his own mother? The woman who birthed and raised him. As they went out that second door located near the garage, they observed a fourth person laying face down in a flower bed with severe trauma and a cavity in the back of their head. Several feet of blood drag marks from the driveway were in the driveway to the flower bed across from the eight feet wall. That was Miss Parker, the living nurse

who tried to get away but was chased down and clubbed a death and then dragged back to the house and dumped in the flower bed. So it seems that immediately after talking to Mr. Hedad, Orion put his plan into action. He left the family meal, they were all sharing and headed for the garage. The defendant left the kitchen area where his grandparents and his mother were having dinner, and went toward the garage where he believed those golf clubs were.

The grandparents, due to each having several health issues, were pretty much relegated to two lazy boy chairs in that kitchen den area that was at the top of that tea area shaped room. They had a 24 hour home health aid. Working that evening was Bertha Parker. Lackies gave her some break time as they enjoyed this family meal. Defendant, walk to the garage, and look around for the bout clubs.

When Orion went to the garage, he either couldn't find the golf clubs or decided against them, choosing a more capable baseball bat. The defendant walked to the garage and picked up an old baseball bat of his grandfather's. I suggested it was bad from the 1960s. He walked outside and practiced swinging by hitting apples.

What? He practiced beforehand? He sounds like a kid getting ready for a little league game. I guess he wouldn't want to get a cramp because he didn't warm up before beating people to death. Jesus. He then went inside and immediately started hitting his mother and head and face severely and repeatedly with this baseball bat.

His grandmother yelled, what are you doing? His grandfather yelled, don't do that. After several blows to his mother, he turned into the same to each of them. Think about that. His grandparents basically couldn't move under their own power. They had to sit there and watch their daughter die brutally

at the hands of her own son, all the while waiting for it to be their turn. This didn't take mere seconds judging by the state of his mother's skull. It likely took minutes, and in the shock and horror, those minutes probably stretched out into infinity. One by one, Orion bludgeoned them to death until there was only Miss Parker left. Miss Parker was enjoying her break by resting in the upstairs bedroom, reading the Bible. Sharing this sound and fury from the first floor,

Miss Parker went downstairs and tried to wrestle the bad away from the defendant. Unsuccessful, Miss Parker began to run down the hall and outside. The defendant caught up to her and struck her severely in the back of the head. Again, with the same bat. The defendant then dragged her lifeless body several feet to the flower bed, putting it underneath where the flowers were.

And with that final act, Orion ran into the woods, tossing the bat and his clothes. Not to flee, but rather to go to a neighbor's house and turn himself in. Along with every disturbing detail of this case, the other details can only be described as bizarre and unexplainable. Either way, a town of Groton and all the lives connected to his grandparents would be changed forever. And it was probably, I would say, the American dream of a bucolic setting of two elderly people. You probably couldn't have a better spot.

They there, on that day, September 8th, their daughter and grandson were visiting them. Going inside the house here on earth, there were pictures of the family everywhere. Nice granddaughters in those pictures, grandson, daughters, sons, picked those pictures wherever we were. And to see that, in a matter of moments moments that perfect setting was ended, that love that was shared in that house was taken away so quickly. Is a sad ending? Orion was charged with four counts of first-degree murder

and the prosecution made it clear that they had enough of a case to convict. The defendant made a statement before the incident about what his intention was to do. He made that to a college professor where he was going to do it and how he was going to do it and what weapon or weapons he was going to use. After committing the acts, he made statements describing several statements describing what he did. They were coherent statements admitting his crime. These details, the prosecution laid out made it sound like Orion was a cold and calculated

killer carrying out a premeditated plan, but that remained to be seen. The case wouldn't go to trial for some time, almost four years would pass by. During that time, the defense would declare they were going to attempt a not guilty because of the insanity defense. But by the time the trial was scheduled to start, Orion and the defense had a shocking announcement. Only after Orion had a lengthy stay at a state-run mental health facility, did anyone other than the authorities have any insight into what actually happened at Common Street. But with every horrifically brutal detail, there was also a detail that didn't make any sense. There was a mystery to this murder and outright confession that might have been explained if Orion was genuinely insane.

But before the trial even started, they had a change of thinking. Sprint, what is the plea agreement that the commons is prepared to enter into in this case? The plea agreement is the defendant offering a plea to so much of the indictment that a religious murderer in the second degree. The prosecution offered a plea deal after taking into account all of the evidence, and Orion was going to take it. This deal to reduce the charges from first degree to second degree murder garnered Orion a possibility at parole but not a lighter sentence. Assuming the court accepts the guilty plea that the defendant be sentenced by this

court to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 25 years, pursuant to chapter 279, section 24. And the Commonwealth's view, if I were to accept a change of plea by Mr. Krauss, why would that be a reasonable disposition of the case? We're out of work taking into account the considerations of the defendant's youth, his mental health condition, when these incidents were committed. We are also looking at the fact that we would be taking it out of the secondary trauma of having many people at the common relive the incident about what occurred. They were being lenient after taking into account Orion's lack of trouble in the past.

That he was really rather young, and that his mental health evaluation turned up some evidence of a pervasive and ongoing illness. But because of this mental illness, the judge needed to make sure Orion was well enough to understand what he was doing, and what he was giving up by changing his plea. Mr. Kraus, I think we've met before. I'm Ken Sounder, as you know, I'm a superior court judge. Before I can accept your guilty plea to these four charges of second-degree murder, I need

to ask you some questions. I need to determine whether your decision to plead guilty is something you're doing voluntarily and I need to make sure you understand the consequences of being guilty to these very serious crimes. Do you understand all of that? Mm-hmm. Mm. It seems like a question like that deserves more of a yes-your-honor, or at least a yes, I understand.

I'm not entirely convinced he truly understands the gravity of the situation. Regardless, this is the first time we hear Orion speak to anything that happened that day. Mr. Krauss, is your mind clear today? It is very clear. You're able to understand what you're doing in pleading guilty and understand the proceedings today. Yes. Mr. Krauss, have you consumed any alcohol today? No.

Have you taken any kind of drugs, either prescription medication or illegal drugs today? Yes. Mr. Kraus, have you consumed any alcohol today? No. Have you taken any kind of drugs, either prescription medication or illegal drugs today? No. Sir, are you under the influence of alcohol or any other drugs right now? No. Do you have any mental illness or condition that you know of at present? Yes. Tell me about that. schizophrenia is what is my general diagnosis and so when I was at Bridgewater State Hospital they diagnosed me with bipolar with psychotic features but with talking to the doctors who interviewed me their general consensus is schizophrenia. Finally, a little insight into why Orion committed such an atrocity on his own family without provocation. The day leading up to the events in Groton, his schizophrenia was emerging, and on that day became an acute event. It is evident in the call he made to Mr. Haddad when he stated,

I think I have to kill my mom. He wasn't sure. He was having thoughts he couldn't control. A detachment from reality is also suggested by his practice swings in the yard, immediately prior to killing four people. His craft as your schizophrenia or the other conditions you described in your diagnosis

has affected your ability to understand what's going on in this case or make important decisions like whether to plead guilty to these charges? Well, I'll say this, when I was presented with the deal about three or four weeks ago, I did go through a period of intense stress and I didn't know exactly what to do stress and I didn't know exactly what to do. And I was symptomatic of psychosis, but you know I was able to jolt out of it and I talked to the doctor who interviewed me and she basically said that the fact that I was able to recognize what was going on was a sign of progress with the mental illness. And she thought when she spoke to me that I was in a very clear state of mind as well. And to that, and I do

understand, I fully understand what's going on right now. Satisfied that Orion was clear of mind enough to understand how serious a decision he was making, he moved on, explaining exactly what he was giving up. By while you were presumed innocent of all the charges against you, if you went to trial, you and your lawyer would not have to do anything to show that you were innocent, instead the government would have to prove that you are guilty of each element of each of these charges beyond a reasonable doubt.

Do you understand? I understand. Do you want to give up that right? Yes. He didn't sound so sure on that last one. I'm guessing he had his reason for not fighting, for not guilty, because of insanity. Perhaps it was his on-looking family

or the guilty felt after snapping out of his acute state. Or maybe, just maybe, there's a little bit more personal responsibility that goes into an act like this, even during an acute state, than many psychologists would like to admit. After all, you can't get into the head of a crazy person. You don't really know what it's like unless you've experienced it yourself. You're giving up those rights and acknowledging you've committed those crimes. Do you understand? Yes.

Is that what you want to do? Yes, sir. Mr. Krause on the day Mr. Grant was describing did you kill your mother, Elizabeth Krause? Yes, sir. And on that day did you kill your grandmother, Elizabeth Lackie? Yes, sir. Did you also kill your grandfather, Frank Lackie? Yes, sir. And on that day did you kill your grandmother Elizabeth Lackie? Yes, Your Honor. Did you also kill your grandfather Frank Lackie? Yes, Your Honor.

Did you kill your grandparents' healthy birthaparker? Yes, Your Honor. Did you kill those four people in the way that the prosecutor just described? Yes, Your Honor. And I understand you have hit at least your mother and your grandparents in the head with a baseball bat multiple times each is that correct? Miss Cross, when you hit each of these people in the head with a baseball bat did you do so on purpose? Yes, I was in a

Parasively psychotic state which impaired my ability does. Do anything, but yes. In that state as you were hitting each of these people and the head with a baseball bat, did you intend to kill them? court, Orion was moved to tears. He seemed to be genuinely remorseful. He pleaded guilty, yet he still felt the need to explain that while he was responsible, he was in the midst of a psychotic episode. Nonetheless, he claimed the responsibility for his actions. That's a confusing guilty plea, don't you think?

I was not in my right mind at the time, but yes, I did do it. In the legal system, being insane usually makes you not responsible. Being guilty by reason of insanity is a confusing idea brought forth by the conflicting emotions Orion's family felt when they found out. Good morning, Your Honor. My name is Carolyn Lackey. I am the sister of Elizabeth Krause and the second daughter of Frank Lackey and Elizabeth Lackey. Orion's aunt Carolyn tried to articulate what they were all feeling, a myriad of conflicting emotions. brutality, the human indecency, the cruelty of these acts is beyond comprehension. These are acts that the veracity, the veracity, the complete cruelty that our loved ones met that day is a darkness that is beyond any theology or any philosophy

and maybe even any psychology of understanding. It doesn't need to be said that when you lose a loved one, especially a immediate family, one of the emotions you feel is anger. I was taken aback by my physical difficulty, shortness of breath, trembling, just complete murky ability to access my thoughts. I couldn't help but observe that sort of extreme emotional wobbliness that is in me, continues in me. This sort of gelatinous mass of confusion of not knowing so much about what happened for our nephew

that day and for our loved ones, Aunt Carolyn's anger was mixed with confusion and denial, with all these swirling emotions from such a traumatic event, she and her family were not able to grieve. The focus was on what was going to happen to him, what, how could this possibly happen? Like all of our attention, our family's attention was sucked in that direction, which muted our attention for the loss of our loved ones, our pain, our sorrow. It was nobody's fault that we did that.

It's just, I think, was inherent in this case of a family member killing family. It's hard to fathom the rollercoaster of emotions they were experiencing. They likely hated him for what he did, yet they were still worried about his fate. They despised him yet they loved him. They missed their deceased family, but still they missed Orion too. The conflict is immense and no more evident than in a closing statement. Surely Orion did this. He is guilty of this act. No one else did this in our society where we're faced with a heavy burden of citizens struggling

with mental health in almost an epidemic proportion today. The separation of mental health, mental wellness, or mental illness from personal responsibility seems to invite social chaos potentially. And it seems appropriate that legislation needs to be updated to support the extremes of both guilt and insanity that could go in tandem with the reality of that and move towards a more responsible system addressing the needs of insane criminals. That is what I have to share, Your Honor. Thank you.

She wants her enough you to pay the price for what he did, and at the same time, she asked for reform in the way the mentally ill are punished in the justice system. And what way? she has no idea. I don't think anyone really does. It's for someone else to figure out. But the word reform has a nice ring to it, even though most of the time, we don't really know what it means. While the conflict and emotion was evident in the family of Orion. Miss Parker's family felt only one emotion.

Loss. My name is Naja Alford. My mother's birth of Parker. I just wanted to talk about who she was a little bit. My mom was the type of person that loved adventures and spending time with loved ones. My mom was a faithful Christian. She attended church on Sundays and read her Bible every day and she liked to live her life and service to others.

She...sorry. Thank you, dad. Thank you. That was a type of person that she was. She was always trying to help in any way that she could. We celebrated her birthday recently before she was murdered. I cannot begin to articulate how this unimaginable horrific crime has forever changed my life. My family and all of our futures, our death was unnecessary. That's all I have to say. After the victims were allowed to speak to the court, Orion was allowed to respond. You're on your own. I didn't know I would get a chance to speak about this.

I just want to extend hope that some kind of, I acknowledge that there's confusion and the family hasn't been able, our family, my family hasn't been able to process this and it is an insane thing. And I just, I pray that we will be able to process it in the future, hopefully together. Naja, Alfred, I am so truly sorry and I've turned to Christ myself in my journey and I'm happy that your mom is with her Lord right now. I'm sure of it. So I extend all my love for what?

With what I can muster. Thank you. With this being one of the most difficult situations for the victims, emotions, the town of Grotten's close community, and even the District Attorney's decision to offer a plea deal with lesser charges, they felt that despite his mental illness, he was responsible for the crimes, and this responsible for the crimes. And this was the recommended sentence. He's notified of the court to be punished by a confinement at the Massachusetts Correctional

Institution and Senior Junction for a term of life with the possibility of parole after 25 years. And also a note on the Minimists will accompany you in saying, indicating that the court recommends treatment for schizophrenia and mental health treatment. We're told that to say he's responsible as a kin to saying a sleep walker is responsible for the mess they made while they were walking about with their eyes closed. Then again, when Orion came to a senses and the acute psychotic events subsided, the crushing

weight of what he did came bearing down. He knew his family loved him, and he loved them too, and perhaps the reason he decided to plead guilty was to spare them, spare them any more suffering that could be brought on by a trial. To spare them the time spent, the emotions exerted, the sheer effort required to stand by the person who murdered your family because he too is your family. Orion took responsibility because I think he thought it was the right thing to do. And doing so was the only way. He knew he could truly say he was sorry.

Well, that's going to do it for this one. Thank you so much for supporting us, for listening, for telling your friends, and for supporting our sponsors. You don't know how much it means to us. It keeps us here, keeps us producing shows for you. So thank you. Thank you so much. Until next time, stay safe. 1.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2.5-2-3-4-3-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4- Hi Mike, this is Cindy. I just was written to episode 110 on Flats. Because yes, I am a

plus member and don't worry honey, I'm not going anywhere. I'm not leaving you ever. I'm a sasshole for life. Woohoo! I ain't leaving ya. Bye. 1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5-1.5- You you