TIME Magazine Article – July 6, 1981
The timing for the release of this article is perfect. A week after the Wonderland Murders. I do like the part about middle class Americans… for weren’t most of the Wonderland players, at some point as adults, middle class too? And although they were hopeless heroin addicts, they also dealt in cocaine. Basically, the message of this article is that … the times have now changed. Coke is here to stay.
There is little likelihood that the cocaine blizzard will soon abate. A drug habit born of a desire to escape the bad news in life is not likely to be discouraged by the bad news about the drug itself. And so middle class Americans continue to succumb to the powder’s crystalline dazzle. Few are yet aware or willing to concede that at the very least, taking cocaine is dangerous to their psychological health. It may be no easy task to re-convince them that good times are made, not sniffed.
The rest of the article is great. I love the part about real-estate agents accepting large cash payments for property. Those were the days…
Read more: http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,922619,00.html#ixzz2dr3PnGsj
July 6, 1981.
localarts, 
Brandy, and 2 others are discussing. 
Brandy 7:48 pm on September 3, 2013 Permalink |
I wonder if they all would have been “hopeless heroin addicts” if the murders had never occurred. I can’t see Ron Launius or Billy Deverell necessarily cleaning themselves up, especially because of the criminal aspect. But the women, did they have hope, would they have sobered up someday or just died of an OD. I only ask because I myself could have been considered a “hopeless heroin addict” 7 years ago. I was most definitely involved with some bad bad people & got myself in (and out, thank God) of some really sticky situations. Hard core stuff but I made it. I wonder…….
Bobby 4:30 am on September 8, 2013 Permalink |
Well done Brandy! Were you in a co-dependent relationship with someone who also used? I think in most cases that always makes it a lot harder. I believe if Barbara finally got away from Lind she might’ve been alright as she may have only been in the “dabbling” stage but unfortunately I saw very little hope for Billy and Joy. They would’ve needed to take the initiative to get far away from the drug scene and start afresh. I knew an elderly drug using couple who’d been junkies for over 20 years and did exactly that and are clean to this day.. but they moved away to a rural part of the country where they had zero access to drugs. Of course it’s do-able but it seems from all accounts Joy was in too deep and possibly enjoying the excesses of heroin oblivion and that all consuming power that comes with dealing too. Billy on the other hand said that he wanted to get away from drugs so who knows, maybe he could’ve initiated an exit strategy… but to quote Neil Young: “every junkie’s like a setting sun..”. So hard to say without really knowing these people.
Brandy 8:14 am on September 8, 2013 Permalink
Yes Bobby I was. The first one was the one who first introduced me to heroin. To me it was coke so I snorted it. OD’d on the spot. I blame no one, but that doesn’t mean I will ever forget who it was. The second guy I met in rehab. We were going to help each other stay clean. Yeah right , that lasted about 3 weeks. My husband of 7 years is just a normal person wig no addiction issues. Two together is never good.
localarts 10:14 am on September 5, 2013 Permalink |
Launius would have been incarcerated, so he would have been forced to kick the habit. Joy was potentially looking at some jail time for narcotics trafficking; she had a court date later that month, so she would have been forced to kick the habit as well. As for Billy, I guess he would have been left to his own device.
John 10:47 am on September 5, 2013 Permalink |
Right on.
When Ronnie was about halfway through his prison time in the mid-late 70s, the feds decided to mothball McNeil Island Federal Prison. Phase it out… but eventually the state of Washington took over the prison for the state to use. I wonder if this transition played a role in Ron being transferred to a place in southern California, and that’s where he met Lind and those L.A. connections? Now, I’m reminded of the classic rock song “LA Connection” by Rainbow! Classic is right.
criticextraordinaire 6:07 pm on September 5, 2013 Permalink |
Billy would have held down the fort until everybody got back out of jail. At this point Launius was so bad ass, he probably would have arranged a jailbreak in broad daylight and been out in no time.
Bobby 4:04 am on September 8, 2013 Permalink |
Do you know roughly how much time Ron or Joy were facing if convicted? Even if a stint in prison did get them clean it probably would’ve been short lived, non to mention the prevalence of drugs inside wouldn’t have helped matters either. Sure enough Joy would’ve returned to useless ol’ Billy, who would still have been using, and relapsed within minutes. As for Ron it’s anyone’s guess, but sadly I’d have put money on him relapsing too. By this stage in his life he was a career criminal with a massive habit so it’s hard to imagine him just going clean and settling down into a routine 9-5 lifestyle… But who knows, maybe Susan would’ve kicked his ass and made sure he stayed on the wagon… got him “clean… well, clean-er!” 😉
localarts 8:06 am on September 9, 2013 Permalink
Ronnie would have been charged with accessory to murder after the fact. With a prior conviction for drug smuggling, probably 25 to life. There is no minimum sentence for accessory after the fact but there sure is a maximum….Life. Joy probably would have spent a year or two in jail or maybe none at all if she were still battling breast cancer.
I’m only speculating.
John 10:27 am on September 9, 2013 Permalink
Even if Ronnie had not died that night, a year or so later he would have faced charges over the death of Gary Moore and Carroll’s confession in 1982, after he was attacked and wounded at Folsom. Carroll wanted special treatment if he came clean about Moore’s death. Carroll Evan Sherrill would have squealed to save his own ass and hope for a transfer from Folsom Prison. Ron would have been accessory to murder like localarts says. But, who knows because Sherrill died within a year of his confession. Ron might have gone teflon again on that case, considering that the case probably would not have gone to trial with just Carroll’s written testimony after he was dead.
localarts 11:22 am on September 5, 2013 Permalink |
“I wonder if this transition played a role in Ron being transferred to a place in southern California” I’m sure that had something to do with it. I remember his brother Rick said Ronnie was transferred somewhere in the Los Angeles area to finish the remainder of his sentence. I’m not aware of any federal prison facility in the LA area but were talking the 1970’s so who knows.
I’m sure thats where he meet Horace McKinna, Howard Cook and a few other Big League players. It’s anyone’s guess where he meet David Lind. In the movie Lind says he meet Launius in Chino, Ca in 1973.
That could have been taken from court transcripts.
John 12:14 pm on September 5, 2013 Permalink |
Man I gotta find those other court transcripts!! Rodger Jacobs could not get the actual transcript for Holmes real trial. They said the documents were lost. Yeah…
localarts 12:20 pm on September 5, 2013 Permalink |
The first Nash trial would be a great source too. I would have loved to have seen the look on Nash’s face when Lind called him a ” Mother Fu**er” from the witness stand.
John 12:36 pm on September 5, 2013 Permalink |
That’s gonna be great when I get my hands on that case to read it.
localarts 10:58 am on September 9, 2013 Permalink |
Good point John. I forgot Sherrill died so soon after his confession. With that said, John is probably right Ronnie would have walked with Carroll’s testimony to back it up in a court of law.
John 12:36 pm on September 9, 2013 Permalink |
I’m gonna break it down this week, and email Rickey Launius. Couldn’t hurt. I’ll craft a short email right now.
localarts 2:03 pm on September 9, 2013 Permalink |
Good luck, I hope he responds. After re reading Julia’s comments about her & Chuck’s association with Joy and the gang I find myself asking more questions about how Holmes was able to get himself and the others into the home that night to commit the murders. Chuck had been scoring drugs long before Holmes was in the picture and yet they said it was like jumping thru hoops to get into 8763. They had to call ahead of time, set an appointment, show up at said time wait to be buzzed in… Bottom line, there was protocol and nobody showed up un announced, even if you’re as well know as Check Negron much less John holmes whom Deverell didn’t trust to begin with.
John 2:04 pm on September 9, 2013 Permalink |
Something about Holmes having a key… hmmm…. he never gave it back, or said he lost it, so he could rob the gang at some point. Everyone was robbing each other.
localarts 2:50 pm on September 9, 2013 Permalink |
I remember Mike Sager (The Devil & John Holmes) said Launius took his key back and then beat Holmes with his own walking cane because Holmes ” smoked up the delivery” or something like that.
I would not have put it past Holmes to have a duplicate made earlier.
John 8:45 am on September 10, 2013 Permalink |
Yep. Get a key made, and then wait for them to not be home.