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| University of Toronto graduate, John Philip Chapman |
Finally, I've finished the first complete draft of The Rainy Day Murders, my true crime treatment of the Washtenaw County Murders. In the coming weeks, I need to revise and finish the supplemental material and take it to the marketplace.
Once I get an agent and a publisher, I'll have a better idea of a publication date. My grateful thanks to those many people who helped me tell the most complete account of these cases to date. You know who you are.
John Norman Collins' Canadian cousin, John Philip Chapman wanted to explain his involvement with this project in a guest post. Here it what he had to say.
***
My
name is John Philip Chapman, and I live in Mississauga, Ontario,
Canada. I am now 41 years old, an only child and the Canadian cousin of
John Norman Collins. Thirty-two years ago, I was introduced to my
cousin – John Norman Collins for the first time.
It was in early March
of 1982, just a week before my 10th birthday. At the time
and because of my age – my parents only told me that I had a cousin who
was in prison and that he wanted to correspond with me. Given my young
age and inability to comprehend the nature of his crimes, I was never
told what they were nor the details of his actions. Some would say that ignorance is bliss. At this point, nothing was further from the
truth.
From Day One, both my cousin and I had informally adopted the
“Don’t Ask..Don’t Tell” policy concerning the crime for which he was
accused and found guilty of. I was curious to know the truth, but,
yet afraid of what I might find out.
At the beginning, through our
letters and phone calls back and forth, I came to know this man as a
kind, considerate and thoughtful person who dispensed great advice and
was very understanding of the trials and tribulations that come with
being a teenager and with all the new discoveries that come with that right of passage.
A whole new world of opportunities was opening up
for me – first job, first girlfriend, first examinations, first drink,
first attempt at driving. However, with all these opportunities, I found myself being comforted in
talking about these things with someone who regarded me as his
proverbial “little brother” and who imparted on me words of wisdom and
many comical anecdotes. As a teenager, this was someone that I
respected and cared for – he was family.
In the years that followed,
however, things began to change and something seemed “off” where my
cousin was concerned, but I made the mistake of ignoring those warning
signs and I continued to communicate with him – if anything because I
felt a familial obligation to do so, and partially because I was an
introverted person with no siblings. My cousin “appeared” to be
understanding and compassionate. I would soon come to realize that my
suspicions were well founded
In
May of 2013, as I casually browsed through the internet, I was
overcome with the innate curiosity to look up my cousin’s name via
Google and see what I could discover. After all, what harm could that
do? Looking back on that day, I could not, at the time, have ever
imagined what I would find. I spent the next four hours reading
information and articles concerning my cousin – nicknamed “The Co-Ed
Killer”.
However, I had come across the name of a gentleman who was
writing a book called “The Rainy Day Murders” and who was looking for
information concerning my cousin. Because I was confused and perplexed
with what I had read about him, I decided to send this person an e-mail; then, we decided to meet in person.
In
meeting with Greg Fournier and his associate, Ryan Place, I was
convinced that their work was an honorable thing to do in paying not
only tribute to those women who lost their lives but to those who remained behind – those mothers and fathers,
brothers, sisters, and relatives and friends who were left to pick
up the pieces after their traumatic losses.
The book they are just finishing promises to be the most
accurate, detailed, and honest account concerning the circumstances surrounding the deaths of seven young women and the life of John Norman
Collins. Over the next several months, I continued to
write my cousin and correspond via e-mail with him in an attempt to
obtain his side of the Karen Sue Beineman issue and to gain perspective into the mind of
John Norman Collins – all for the benefit of this book. What I found was
truly disturbing on so many levels.
Over
the next several months, I learned a great deal about the crime that my
cousin was charged with and found guilty of. Never in my wildest
imagination could I have ever thought that such violent, horrendous, and
despicable actions could possibly be committed by someone I am
related to. Over these months, I came to understand the delusional reality that my cousin lives in and thrives on daily.
I saw, for the first time in thirty years,
that my cousin was and still is a master manipulator – a true
Machiavellian in every sense of the term. As long as the end
justifies the means for John – he does it. His attitude today towards
women and womanhood are absolutely misogynistic, despicable, and clearly
the words of someone who still has a great deal of anger towards
women in general.
John looks out for one person and that is himself,
and he routinely uses emotional blackmail to obtain his desired result. John
shows zero remorse towards the lives of these young women and for his
part in these crimes. He shows a callous disregard for his
participation in these events.
For my cousin John to admit any guilt
and/or accept any responsibility for his actions would be a sign of
weakness to him. My cousin has a typical alpha-male personality that clearly shows through his many letters and e-mails over the past year.
With
that in mind, I want to take this opportunity to thank both Greg Fournier and Ryan Place for helping me to realize
and come to terms with the monster that is my cousin, John Norman
Collins.
The disgust
and contempt that I felt for my cousin was not enough to
dissuade me from communicating with him because I knew in the end that any
information I would obtain, would only benefit "The Rainy Day Murders”.
Helping them turned out to be a
real pleasure for me and an experience that I feel very proud to have
been a part of. In the end, I lost a cousin but gained two friends
who have shown a great deal of integrity in dealing with the
sensitive nature of this book. It is to them and this book that I wish
all the best for.
For
the families of the seven young women, whose lives ended far too soon – I
can only express my sincere and heartfelt sympathy and apologies
for what happened to your daughters, sisters, and nieces.
These women had their whole lives ahead of them, and bright futures – sadly futures that would never come to be – all
because of the violent madman that is my cousin – John Norman Collins.
To those who were left behind, I wish that I could take away your pain
and suffering, but sadly I am not able to do that. However, my heart goes out to
you all for your courage and strength in dealing with the loss of your loved ones. It's impossible to get
over such a deep loss, especially under these circumstances. It is my hope that this book will offer you some measure of peace.
Neither
myself or any member of my family has ever condoned the actions of my
cousin and we do not support him in any way, shape, or form.
Speaking
for myself, my cousin is a disgusting, psychologically disturbed pervert that I am, in no way, afraid of.
To be afraid of him would be to allow him to have that kind of power
over me, and I simply refuse to allow that to happen.
John Norman
Collins is a monster - straight up! Because of this, I have taken every
legal avenue at my disposal to ensure that my cousin never ever will be
able to transfer to a Canadian prison and thus ensure an early
release.
As of January 10, 2014, I am proud and happy to say that
after three months of addressing and taking care of this important legal
matter (at some personal expense to myself) the case is now closed and John
Norman Collins WILL spend the rest of his natural life in Marquette
Branch Prison where he belongs. If anything, I hope this fact will
offer people out there some added measure of comfort and security.
