What was everyone's take on this one?

Do you think he was the victim of a hate crime? Stored for weeks and his body dumped or in the creek the whole time?

I admit I struggled with this one on first viewing and I need to give it a rewatch. To parrot what I said in another thread, it felt like the show was a lot more cautious this time around of potential lawsuits and didn't really present a lot of theories or information unless they could be proven. Like, what was said at the party? Who said what? What was looked into with these people? All we got was a vague "they lawyered up and didn't have to take lie detector tests" so the whole episode becomes about a search for a body and not really about the mystery itself.

Yup! I was convinced again that it was accidental and then, AGAIN, at the end, some members of the party "lawyered up".

I really don't like that because it's held to the end....

Anyway, yes, racially motivated murder. Why the **** [sorry, but i have to] did the friends LEAVE HIM THERE????! You never leave your buddy in a dangerous environment! NEVER. Also, that poor family finds the body and not the police? Jesus, that must've been awkward. My heart went out to them. I don't think this one will ever be sorted out because of the condition of the body.

I felt bad that the family was jumping to conclusions about body placement, etc....but when you think about it, if they didn't go out and find the body themselves....

Who would've?

And when?

Very disturbing.

Indeed

Shocked I never heard of this case but I'm glad it was featured.

Here's my thoughts:

1) Why the hell did his friends leave him behind? The only Black dude in a spot in the middle of nowhere where there had already been a racially tense situation. No real friend would have left him there.

2) Anytime a body is found after an extensive search (part of me questions HOW extensive it actually was the first time) there's always the possibility that the body was placed there after being stored elsewhere.

3) Feels somewhat similar to Tara Calico in the sense that there could be a connection to law enforcement in the area. Chances are the sheriff and other authorities are aware who was at the party that night know exactly who might have attacked Alonzo. Often in cases involving Black victims, there's less of an incentive for the majority-white investigators to follow through.

4) There's clear evidence of foul play but there's some administrative interference. Reminds me of the Arkansas investigation of the boys on the tracks. I wonder who is really involved with the death of Alonzo.

CBW

Anyway, yes, racially motivated murder. Why the **** [sorry, but i have to] did the friends LEAVE HIM THERE????!

I can tell you exactly why they left him there.

Its the same reason any dude would be left by his buddies at a party. Having been witness to the situation many times, its as simple as it gets.

There was a girl and Alonzo was certain he had a shot, and the friends left him there to seal the deal.

That's what goes on at parties. Guys hit on girls. And I guarantee you they thought Alonzo was going to hook up with a lady and decided to leave him to his own devices. He might have even told them to go without him so he could possibly get a chance to go home with the lady.

They allude to it during the segment even though its never directly stated, but I guarantee you that's what happened. I've seen it happen too many times myself.

Shocked I never heard of this case but I'm glad it was featured.

Here's my thoughts:

1) Why the hell did his friends leave him behind? The only Black dude in a spot in the middle of nowhere where there had already been a racially tense situation. No real friend would have left him there.

2) Anytime a body is found after an extensive search (part of me questions HOW extensive it actually was the first time) there's always the possibility that the body was placed there after being stored elsewhere.

3) Feels somewhat similar to Tara Calico in the sense that there could be a connection to law enforcement in the area. Chances are the sheriff and other authorities are aware who was at the party that night know exactly who might have attacked Alonzo. Often in cases involving Black victims, there's less of an incentive for the majority-white investigators to follow through.

4) There's clear evidence of foul play but there's some administrative interference. Reminds me of the Arkansas investigation of the boys on the tracks. I wonder who is really involved with the death of Alonzo.

CBW


And this is where I need to watch it again. I had the impression they hadn't searched that area and it was those two white women who were like "you guys need to look by that white shed" and "we finally did" or something and then they found him.

What stuck out to me in this episode is they didn't even give the last name for the friend who actually left Alonzo behind. The first pair left, the guy he came with got lost and the third friend was supposed to make sure Alonzo got home.

I think it was definitely racially motivated and he was hidden in a freezer for a bit. They threw away some personal items to be found immediately to make it look like he was drunk and wandered off. Wait for the short investigation to be over and dump the body when the investigation appears over.

It's also an age where you're young, naive, and think bad things are things that happen to other people, not you.

And, his friends were white and sounded like they were used to Alonzo talking back to people who had racist words to say - so they thought he could handle himself. Rural racists are more comfortable/able to back up their words - and they all likely had little experience to know that. His older brother talking about "not feeling safe there" made total sense to me - and it makes sense to me that Alonzo might have thought it was sketchy, but not deadly - you drink, people talk friendly but they're not you're friend. And that's experience/wisdom that Alonzo and his friends might not have had yet.

It also seemed like the friends who were interviewed would have forced Alonzo to leave with them. Who knows about the one who purposefully left him behind.

I think it was an accident that he was left there. Taking multiple cars led to confusion. I don't know why the last ones at the party didn't get him after the guy who got lost called them, but I think it was a case of ineffective communication between people who were drinking. Everyone thought someone else had him. I'm sure they feel terrible for it.

I also think it was some kind of hate crime. I usually don't get into what I call "conspiracy theories" but there is definitely something off here. I hope his family and friends can get answers. I think people at the party know what happened, now it's just a matter if anyone will talk.

Am I the only one who thinks the family should have the body exhumed and examined by a different FP? The one who actually did the examination and was featured seemed a little suspect to me - I’m curious to see what Michael Baden, Cyril Wecht or Mary Case would have to say about this case.

Totally agree. That was maybe the most frustrating thing of all. Really, you can’t tell if the body had been outside for a full month or not? Or if it had been frozen? The episode was weirdly noncommittal on the state of decomposition. He had no neck tissue left, but his color looked completely normal? I felt like I was taking crazy pills.

Totally agree. That was maybe the most frustrating thing of all. Really, you can’t tell if the body had been outside for a full month or not? Or if it had been frozen? The episode was weirdly noncommittal on the state of decomposition. He had no neck tissue left, but his color looked completely normal? I felt like I was taking crazy pills.

Yeah, I was pretty shocked that the family would have just taken his findings and not looked into getting a second autopsy performed, given their insistence that he was murdered.

What stuck out to me in this episode is they didn't even give the last name for the friend who actually left Alonzo behind. The first pair left, the guy he came with got lost and the third friend was supposed to make sure Alonzo got home.

I think it was definitely racially motivated and he was hidden in a freezer for a bit. They threw away some personal items to be found immediately to make it look like he was drunk and wandered off. Wait for the short investigation to be over and dump the body when the investigation appears over.

It's also an age where you're young, naive, and think bad things are things that happen to other people, not you.

And, his friends were white and sounded like they were used to Alonzo talking back to people who had racist words to say - so they thought he could handle himself. Rural racists are more comfortable/able to back up their words - and they all likely had little experience to know that. His older brother talking about "not feeling safe there" made total sense to me - and it makes sense to me that Alonzo might have thought it was sketchy, but not deadly - you drink, people talk friendly but they're not you're friend. And that's experience/wisdom that Alonzo and his friends might not have had yet.

It also seemed like the friends who were interviewed would have forced Alonzo to leave with them. Who knows about the one who purposefully left him behind.

Yeah, I don't think the friends had anything to do with Alonzo's murder. I think they were all naive about the racism that exists.

If you check out Reddit, there's a link to a blog, and in the comments one family's name keeps coming up as the ones responsible.

Yeah, I was pretty shocked that the family would have just taken his findings and not looked into getting a second autopsy performed, given their insistence that he was murdered.

That costs a LOT of money - most of those second autopsies in OG UM were paid for by UM. They also saw the condition of the body themselves - they might agree that due to state of the remains, they're unlikely to gain any new info from a second autopsy.

That costs a LOT of money - most of those second autopsies in OG UM were paid for by UM. They also saw the condition of the body themselves - they might agree that due to state of the remains, they're unlikely to gain any new info from a second autopsy.

True, I wonder if they ever thought about it after the initial autopsy... but then again, overall cost very well could have been an issue. It just seems to be given the circumstances/findings it would have been a given to at least look into proceeding with one.

Obviously if his friends thought this was going to happen they wouldn’t have left him. It’s easy as adults for us to say “don’t leave your friends behind” but when you’re a young adult and you think you’re invincible and you don’t have a fully formed prefrontal cortex you don’t always think things through. I think they blame themselves enough for everyone.

Just based on where his boots were found, and then where his boots were relative to where his body was later found, tells you this was foul play.

I'm sure there are many people there who know most or all of what happened to Alonzo. Really, really sad.

Obviously if his friends thought this was going to happen they wouldn’t have left him. It’s easy as adults for us to say “don’t leave your friends behind” but when you’re a young adult and you think you’re invincible and you don’t have a fully formed prefrontal cortex you don’t always think things through. I think they blame themselves enough for everyone.


*CLAP CLAP CLAP*

Add in drinking with all that and you've got an absolute recipe for potential disaster.

I'll say it again. I really believe that his friends left him because Alonzo was hitting on a lady and thought he could seal the deal, and his friends left him too it. I've been a witness to it so many times, that I'm almost certain that is what happened.

I'm not judging either. Its a party and that's what happens.

However, SOMEBODY at that party had to see something.

I'll say it again. I really believe that his friends left him because Alonzo was hitting on a lady and thought he could seal the deal, and his friends left him too it. I've been a witness to it so many times, that I'm almost certain that is what happened.

I'm not judging either. Its a party and that's what happens.

However, SOMEBODY at that party had to see something.

When I was a young man, I had been in similar situations many, many, many times.

HOWEVER, all my friends (and I mean everyone who came together, the entire group) would double and triple check to make sure that I was okay with being left behind.

Further, we'd never leave anyone behind at a party where no one knew anyone else nor would we leave anyone at a party where there were racial slurs being thrown around with threats.

All things being equal, the idea of leaving a dude behind at a party where there was a serious chance of him getting laid isn't all that strange - but this was a situation where there was one Black man left behind at a party in the middle of the night in the middle of nowhere Kansas where there were clear racial tensions and threats.

In a climate where anti-Black hate crimes occur with more regularity than you'd assume, you cannot understate the severity of leaving a lone Black guy behind in that situation. That's a nightmare scenario for most African-Americans regardless of how "cool" your white buddies might be.

Lord knows I've left my buddies at parties, but not before making certain that everyone in our crew knew exactly who was throwing the party and all our connections to those people. It's not difficult to do that unless you're going to some random party with total strangers - in which case you don't ever leave your friends behind.

When I was a young man, I had been in similar situations many, many, many times.

HOWEVER, all my friends (and I mean everyone who came together, the entire group) would double and triple check to make sure that I was okay with being left behind.

Further, we'd never leave anyone behind at a party where no one knew anyone else nor would we leave anyone at a party where there were racial slurs being thrown around with threats.

All things being equal, the idea of leaving a dude behind at a party where there was a serious chance of him getting laid isn't all that strange - but this was a situation where there was one Black man left behind at a party in the middle of the night in the middle of nowhere Kansas where there were clear racial tensions and threats.

In a climate where anti-Black hate crimes occur with more regularity than you'd assume, you cannot understate the severity of leaving a lone Black guy behind in that situation. That's a nightmare scenario for most African-Americans regardless of how "cool" your white buddies might be.

Lord knows I've left my buddies at parties, but not before making certain that everyone in our crew knew exactly who was throwing the party and all our connections to those people. It's not difficult to do that unless you're going to some random party with total strangers - in which case you don't ever leave your friends behind.

All of what you're saying is absolutely right, but when youth, alcohol, and sex are involved, common sense goes right out the window with some people.

Heck, I remember one time, a friend of mine got left alone at a part to hook up with this girl, they hooked up, and after all of his friends were gone, she kicked him out of the house because she felt "we're done here", and he had a bum a ride off of a stranger.

And one time, in my freshman year, I almost got ditched at a party at a different school because they straight up forgot me. The people I was with were friends of a friend and they didn't know me that well and they forgot I was with them. I had to sprint to the parking lot three buildings away to try and catch up to them (which thankfully I did). Again, people get stupid at parties it seems.

I don't understand why the guy he was about to fight at the party who was throwing around racist words wasn't investigated. His friend had said they settled down after the fight got broken up, but it's obvious that he/they would try something again when they realized that he was there alone.

He was mad earlier when his friends were there, so it's obvious Alonzo would be an easy target once they realized he was there alone with no one to break it up this time. I bet if they investigated him they'd find the answers they're looking for

I'll say it again. I really believe that his friends left him because Alonzo was hitting on a lady and thought he could seal the deal, and his friends left him too it. I've been a witness to it so many times, that I'm almost certain that is what happened.

That doesn't sound serious enough to the point that his friends would be too ashamed to admit that. Why not just say it? There's nothing scandalous about keeping that a secret.

I don't know. I hate to pile on his friends because I know they feel bad enough. But it was stupid to leave him behind. Especially since there had already been an ugly confrontation earlier.

Whoever the guy was that got in Alonzo's face and started yelling racial insults at him has got to be the most obvious suspect. I assume he was one of the party people who lawyered up.

And Alonzo's family and friends finding his remains just 30 minutes into their search when investigators could find nothing in their earlier search looks really, REALLY bad. Is it possible that they're clinging to the idea that the corpse was stored in a freezer to cover for a half-assed search on their part?

I don't understand why the guy he was about to fight at the party who was throwing around racist words wasn't investigated.

Probably because Alonzo was black and from out of town.

There have been a TON of online rumors/credible comments about this case and most of them include that local law enforcement knew exactly who was at the party that night. It was a house known for parties and police weren't oblivious to that fact. There is just no incentive for local racist police officers to do their job in his case.

This also happened back in 2004. Today, the case might have gotten SOME traction on twitter and there MIGHT have been some media outrage/pressure. 2004? At the time, Facebook had just been launched solely for college students. With no media pressure to cave to in a small, white town...no way this case was getting investigated.

I think his friends leaving made sense overall - the first two seemed to be doing their own thing, the one Alonzo went with couldn't get back to the party, but Adam? Maybe he didn't want to appear on camera because they all blame him or maybe he knows/saw something. Who knows. Sounded like the friend Alonzo went to the party with would have tried harder to get back to the party if he thought Adam wouldn't come through for Alonzo.

Also, some of the online rumors posted BEFORE his body was found included details about the freezer, if I recall correctly from the episode visuals.

Probably because Alonzo was black and from out of town.

I have no doubt that there were racists who were present at this house party who did not like Alonzo being there.

There have been a TON of online rumors/credible comments about this case and most of them include that local law enforcement knew exactly who was at the party that night. It was a house known for parties and police weren't oblivious to that fact. There is just no incentive for local racist police officers to do their job in his case.

Here's where the segment went off the rails for me. His family implied that the sheriff kind of brushed them off when they went to report him missing, and that they didn't investigate it thoroughly enough. But the KBI got involved three days after his disappearance, and then the FBI got involved and took over the investigation just days later. To say that this wasn't investigated properly is ludicrous. It was investigated as a potential hate crime at the time all the way up to after his body was found.

This also happened back in 2004. Today, the case might have gotten SOME traction on twitter and there MIGHT have been some media outrage/pressure. 2004? At the time, Facebook had just been launched solely for college students. With no media pressure to cave to in a small, white town...no way this case was getting investigated.

Again, the FBI took over the investigation into this case less than a week after Alonzo went missing. I'm not sure I see the connection on how this wasn't getting investigated.

Also, some of the online rumors posted BEFORE his body was found included details about the freezer, if I recall correctly from the episode visuals.

This was the most ridiculous part of the segment and I'm glad they included the interview with the medical examiner who pretty much debunked it.

Let's run through the foul play theory:

A bunch of people at a party, almost all of them peripherally known to everyone in attendance, didn't like the fact that a black man was flirting with a white woman and wanted to get even. These people murder Alonzo in such a way to not leave behind any broken or cracked bones, no damage to any part of his body indicating a struggle, no stab wounds, no gun shout wounds, and then decide to keep his body stored in a freezer for up to a month. Then when the search teams and FBI cannot find his body, these murdering racists decide to go ahead and take his body back to the location where they murdered him and dump it within close proximity to the house where the party was. And then they casually throw items of his clothing out in the opposite direction of where he was found.

Absolutely none of this makes sense. Either he was murdered by some racists at this house party and then his body was dumped in the creek but the rising water levels after his disappearance simply had the investigators and search team miss his body (and to this day no one from the party has come forward to credibly accuse anyone else who was present at that party), or he was drunk and stumbled away from the house and fell into the creek and drowned and his body was missed because of the same reason Mike Riemer's remains weren't found for decades...the searchers simply missed them.

or he was drunk and stumbled away from the house and fell into the creek and drowned and his body was missed because of the same reason Mike Riemer's remains weren't found for decades...the searchers simply missed them.

If he stumbled away from the house how did he come out of his boots and hat, and why were they found a distance from his body? He was murdered

If he stumbled away from the house how did he come out of his boots and hat, and why were they found a distance from his body? He was murdered

Why were Ruby Bruguier's shoes never found? She almost certainly wasn't murdered.

Why were Ruby Bruguier's shoes never found? She almost certainly wasn't murdered.

Her shoes could've been frozen in the lake, but Ruby also wasn't the only minority at a party where racial slurs were being thrown around, so a different situation all together. But who would take off BOOTS to walk in the woods? His boots and hat were found in a spot completely different from his body.

He was the only black man at a party with racial slurs being thrown around and he almost got in a fight earlier and all of his friends eventually left. He had no skin around his neck so he was more than likely strangled. He was murdered

Her shoes could've been frozen in the lake, but Ruby also wasn't the only minority at a party where racial slurs were being thrown around, so a different situation all together.

They are similar situations in that both bodies were missed in the initial searches, and when their bodies were found, instead of accepting human error as the most probable, people jumped through hoops to push conspiracy theory-esque nonsense.

But who would take off BOOTS to walk in the woods? His boots and hat were found in a spot completely different from his body.

His boots were found at the end of the driveway. Compare the distance from the driveway to the water. It's not that far at all. (https://www.google.com/maps/@38.3452169,-94.7346292,3a,75y,238.09h,76.47t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sv8RLyhBbjAldXlwvDgo0UQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en) Do you know what you take off before you go swimming? Shoes and a hat.

He was the only black man at a party with racial slurs being thrown around and he almost got in a fight earlier and all of his friends eventually left. He had no skin around his neck so he was more than likely strangled. He was murdered

This...isn't true at all according to the local news (https://fox4kc.com/news/mystery-of-middle-creek-authorities-on-a-mission-to-discover-what-happened-to-alonzo-brooks/).

On April 3, 2004, Brooks hopped in a car with a friend and went from the Gardner area to a rented farmhouse outside La Cygne for a typical late-night party with teens and twenty-somethings. As one of few African Americans, Brooks wouldn’t know many there that night.

Other black people were present at this party. Strangulation usually has some sort of damage to the thyroid cartilage or hyoid bone. His throat tissue was missing due to animal predation, and the medical examiner ruled every possibility of death out except for drowning and strangulation.

His boots were found at the end of the driveway. Compare the distance from the driveway to the water. It's not that far at all. (https://www.google.com/maps/@38.3452169,-94.7346292,3a,75y,238.09h,76.47t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sv8RLyhBbjAldXlwvDgo0UQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en) Do you know what you take off before you go swimming? Shoes and a hat.

Lmao. I know you're reaching hard when you try to say he went "swimming". So he took off his shoes and hat and went swimming in the rest of his clothes? So he took off his boots and hat and the end of the driveway, and walked a way to go swimming the in the woods in the rest of his clothes with his wallet and rest of his belongings in his pockets?

Other black people were present at this party. Strangulation usually has some sort of damage to the thyroid cartilage or hyoid bone. His throat tissue was missing due to animal predation, and the medical examiner ruled every possibility of death out except for drowning and strangulation.

In the UM segment his friends said he was the only black person there. Even then, he was targeted and someone even tried to fight him. I'm not saying that it means he was automatically killed because of that, but it gives motive since he did wound up deceased

Lmao. I know you're reaching hard when you try to say he went "swimming". So he took off his shoes and hat and went swimming in the rest of his clothes? So he took off his boots and hat and the end of the driveway, and walked a way to go swimming the in the woods in the rest of his clothes with his wallet and rest of his belongings in his pockets?

It's no more laughable than a bunch of backwoods racists storing his body in a freezer for a month before moving it back to the area where they murdered him. He could have fallen in. He could have taken his shoes off because of his hurt ankle. He could have had a planned clandestine meeting with the girl from the party at the creek. There are a myriad of possibilities as to why he wound up where he did, and there doesn't have to be foul play involved.


In the UM segment his friends said he was the only black person there. Even then, he was targeted and someone even tried to fight him. I'm not saying that it means he was automatically killed because of that, but it gives motive since he did wound up deceased

So you're saying that UM intentionally misinformed their viewers? They would never!

But seriously, this case did not get much publicity outside of local news until the UM reboot. But, when you filter through the pre-2020/2019 google results, you will see that the Brooks case was investigated extensively back in 2008 as a possible federal hate crime...and nothing came out of it. You would think that of the up to 100 party goers who were present at that party, something would have come out by now.

It's no more laughable than a bunch of backwoods racists storing his body in a freezer for a month before moving it back to the area where they murdered him. He could have fallen in. He could have taken his shoes off because of his hurt ankle. He could have had a planned clandestine meeting with the girl from the party at the creek. There are a myriad of possibilities as to why he wound up where he did, and there doesn't have to be foul play involved.




So you're saying that UM intentionally misinformed their viewers? They would never!

But seriously, this case did not get much publicity outside of local news until the UM reboot. But, when you filter through the pre-2020/2019 google results, you will see that the Brooks case was investigated extensively back in 2008 as a possible federal hate crime...and nothing came out of it. You would think that of the up to 100 party goers who were present at that party, something would have come out by now.

I never believed that he was stored in a freezer, the police and FBI just did a piss poor job at searching. So people who were at the party were trying to misinform viewers about a party they were at? Were the people at Fox 4 news there? I TOTALLY believe a news story over the people who were there.

You're right, there could've been a myriad of reasons as to why he was there but why did some people lawyer up if he was back there on his own will? Why are you lawyering up if you had nothing to do with his death? And this isn't like the Rey Rivera death where business is involved.

I don't understand why someone would leave their boots and hat at the end of a driveway only to walk through thick grass and woods to go swimming or wait for someone. If they were found close to the body then sure, but it doesn't add up

I have no doubt that there were racists who were present at this house party who did not like Alonzo being there.



Here's where the segment went off the rails for me. His family implied that the sheriff kind of brushed them off when they went to report him missing, and that they didn't investigate it thoroughly enough. But the KBI got involved three days after his disappearance, and then the FBI got involved and took over the investigation just days later. To say that this wasn't investigated properly is ludicrous. It was investigated as a potential hate crime at the time all the way up to after his body was found.



Again, the FBI took over the investigation into this case less than a week after Alonzo went missing. I'm not sure I see the connection on how this wasn't getting investigated.



This was the most ridiculous part of the segment and I'm glad they included the interview with the medical examiner who pretty much debunked it.

Let's run through the foul play theory:

A bunch of people at a party, almost all of them peripherally known to everyone in attendance, didn't like the fact that a black man was flirting with a white woman and wanted to get even. These people murder Alonzo in such a way to not leave behind any broken or cracked bones, no damage to any part of his body indicating a struggle, no stab wounds, no gun shout wounds, and then decide to keep his body stored in a freezer for up to a month. Then when the search teams and FBI cannot find his body, these murdering racists decide to go ahead and take his body back to the location where they murdered him and dump it within close proximity to the house where the party was. And then they casually throw items of his clothing out in the opposite direction of where he was found.

Absolutely none of this makes sense. Either he was murdered by some racists at this house party and then his body was dumped in the creek but the rising water levels after his disappearance simply had the investigators and search team miss his body (and to this day no one from the party has come forward to credibly accuse anyone else who was present at that party), or he was drunk and stumbled away from the house and fell into the creek and drowned and his body was missed because of the same reason Mike Riemer's remains weren't found for decades...the searchers simply missed them.

One of Alonzo's boots was found across the street from the driveway between two poles well into the property across the street, his other boot was found down the street along a creek near the bridge. (I included a SH of the map they show in the episode.)

The ME didn't debunk it AT ALL. The ME (who, honestly came off a little patronizing and racist to me) said that there was no way to tell if the body had been frozen for awhile or not because the changes they look for to determine that are only apparent immediately upon removal/thawing. He specifically states there's no way to prove or disprove a body has been frozen. He also (curiously) says that the body is consistent with having been in the creek for 30 days but it could easily be SHORTER.

The ME also said he was trapped in the branches - his family that found him said he was on top of it and didn't look bloated/appear dead. The paper items that were on him at the time didn't even look like the ink had bled.

Where I think he comes across as patronizing and racist is when he talks about "we know when most people kill/dispose of a body" and that's a bit getting out of his lane and making inappropriate presumptions. There's truly no reason to go into a diatribe on the inconvenience of moving a body - clearly it happens. And in a case where it's pretty clear that multiple somebodies know what happened (paraphrasing the FBI agent in the news article) chances are pretty great that more than one person would be available to move a body, negating the ME's "inconvenient" argument.

Alonzo's neck was very decomposed and that was part of the reason the ME said they could not determine cause of death.

I think the reason the family feels brushed off is that it's clear SOMETHING happened and NO ONE is talking and they CLOSED the case stating no foul play without so much as "Jim said he saw Alonzo wander off into the creek that night and we have 3 other witnesses saying the same thing."

Three different agencies involved, the creek was "walked" that night by the local sheriffs office who then turned it over to the KBI who walked the creek/bed and had a helicopter. An underwater team was brought in. So if Alonzo was there either in the water or washed up as he was found - he would have been found at that time given that the family found him in the area that had been so thoroughly searched. That dive team was the team who told the sheriff they would come back out and were not invited back out to search. The dive team said the deepest part of the creek that day was 3 feet. Following all those searches, yet another search team came out and didn't find him.

Family gets permission to search and oh look, there's Alonzo right out for anyone to see. (Keeping in mind his personal items aren't water damaged, his boots and hat were found WAY far from the body, etc.)

Clearly that's a bit iffy. But, they close the case.

This isn't like Mike Riemer (who is still under suspicion officially) where he was found outside the search perimeter. Alonzo was found out in the light in an area that had been searched MULTIPLE times.

Of course no one has come forward from the party, if it was a hate crime they would helping a black family. The case was closed until recently so clearly staying quiet was working well for everyone. It still is.

One of Alonzo's boots was found across the street from the driveway between two poles well into the property across the street, his other boot was found down the street along a creek near the bridge. (I included a SH of the map they show in the episode.)

The ME didn't debunk it AT ALL. The ME (who, honestly came off a little patronizing and racist to me) said that there was no way to tell if the body had been frozen for awhile or not because the changes they look for to determine that are only apparent immediately upon removal/thawing. He specifically states there's no way to prove or disprove a body has been frozen. He also (curiously) says that the body is consistent with having been in the creek for 30 days but it could easily be SHORTER.

The ME also said he was trapped in the branches - his family that found him said he was on top of it and didn't look bloated/appear dead. The paper items that were on him at the time didn't even look like the ink had bled.

Where I think he comes across as patronizing and racist is when he talks about "we know when most people kill/dispose of a body" and that's a bit getting out of his lane and making inappropriate presumptions. There's truly no reason to go into a diatribe on the inconvenience of moving a body - clearly it happens. And in a case where it's pretty clear that multiple somebodies know what happened (paraphrasing the FBI agent in the news article) chances are pretty great that more than one person would be available to move a body, negating the ME's "inconvenient" argument.

Alonzo's neck was very decomposed and that was part of the reason the ME said they could not determine cause of death.

I think the reason the family feels brushed off is that it's clear SOMETHING happened and NO ONE is talking and they CLOSED the case stating no foul play without so much as "Jim said he saw Alonzo wander off into the creek that night and we have 3 other witnesses saying the same thing."

Three different agencies involved, the creek was "walked" that night by the local sheriffs office who then turned it over to the KBI who walked the creek/bed and had a helicopter. An underwater team was brought in. So if Alonzo was there either in the water or washed up as he was found - he would have been found at that time given that the family found him in the area that had been so thoroughly searched. That dive team was the team who told the sheriff they would come back out and were not invited back out to search. The dive team said the deepest part of the creek that day was 3 feet. Following all those searches, yet another search team came out and didn't find him.

Family gets permission to search and oh look, there's Alonzo right out for anyone to see. (Keeping in mind his personal items aren't water damaged, his boots and hat were found WAY far from the body, etc.)

Clearly that's a bit iffy. But, they close the case.

This isn't like Mike Riemer (who is still under suspicion officially) where he was found outside the search perimeter. Alonzo was found out in the light in an area that had been searched MULTIPLE times.

Of course no one has come forward from the party, if it was a hate crime they would helping a black family. The case was closed until recently so clearly staying quiet was working well for everyone. It still is.

Great post

You're right, there could've been a myriad of reasons as to why he was there but why did some people lawyer up if he was back there on his own will? Why are you lawyering up if you had nothing to do with his death? And this isn't like the Rey Rivera death where business is involved.

There has since been information from someone who worked for Porter Stansberry who said that there was no gag order given by his company and no one was told to not speak with law enforcement, only the media. The gag order claim was made up by Rivera's family and parroted on Netflix. Imagine if there was no foul play involved with Alonzo's death and you were one of the attendees to the party. I think it would be pretty smart to lawyer up if you attended a party that was being painted as some sort of civil rights murder

I don't understand why someone would leave their boots and hat at the end of a driveway only to walk through thick grass and woods to go swimming or wait for someone. If they were found close to the body then sure, but it doesn't add up

Because he was drunk. I can personally attest to the stupid things you do when you are drunk. Case in point: 6 years ago I was at an Orioles game and left in the bottom of the 9th to go start walking towards the car I came to the game in to beat the crowd rush and avoid traffic. The people I was at the game at stayed, and the Orioles wound up blowing the save and going into extra innings. I knew none of this, and was wasted. I found my way to the car and then I had to pee so I started wandering around Baltimore trying to find a spot to urinate. Long story short, I wandered around Baltimore for the next 30+ minutes until I luckily stumbled out on to a major roadway and called for the people I was with to come pick me up. That entire night is a haze, and I was wandering aimlessly throughout Baltimore instead of going to pee and then going directly back to the vehicle. I have no idea why I did those things other than excessive alcohol can make someone insanely stupid.

Because he was drunk. I can personally attest to the stupid things you do when you are drunk. Case in point: 6 years ago I was at an Orioles game and left in the bottom of the 9th to go start walking towards the car I came to the game in to beat the crowd rush and avoid traffic. The people I was at the game at stayed, and the Orioles wound up blowing the save and going into extra innings. I knew none of this, and was wasted. I found my way to the car and then I had to pee so I started wandering around Baltimore trying to find a spot to urinate. Long story short, I wandered around Baltimore for the next 30+ minutes until I luckily stumbled out on to a major roadway and called for the people I was with to come pick me up. That entire night is a haze, and I was wandering aimlessly throughout Baltimore instead of going to pee and then going directly back to the vehicle. I have no idea why I did those things other than excessive alcohol can make someone insanely stupid.

Off-topic, but I know that pain. I wandered around near the inner harbor looking for a place to pee for like 25 minutes after drinking at the horseshoe

But seriously, this case did not get much publicity outside of local news until the UM reboot. But, when you filter through the pre-2020/2019 google results, you will see that the Brooks case was investigated extensively back in 2008 as a possible federal hate crime...and nothing came out of it. You would think that of the up to 100 party goers who were present at that party, something would have come out by now.

Investigations of hate crime scenarios don't often reach conclusions as we're seeing now in real time - there have been a number of African-Americans found hung from trees all over the country and there's been a rush to classify them as "suicides."

In fact, a similar situation was captured on video this past weekend (lone black guy with white friends encountering a group of racists in the woods):

1) https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/07/07/vauhxx-booker-indiana-investigation/

2) https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/skbaer/vauhxx-booker-lake-monroe-attack-indiana

3) https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/506073-indiana-police-investigate-allegation-attempted-lynching-video

You're giving the investigative units far too much credit here. I would be fully open to the idea that they "missed finding the body" if the medical examiner was on the level. Also, if he had been floating in the water for all that time, then why did the body show no signs of water-based decomposition?

There's a LONG history of African-Americans being murdered by racists and the investigation into that death being sloppy and mishandled to the point where nothing is followed up and clear perpetrators get away scott free.

We've seen that happen with white victims over the years!

Bottom line: Brooks was murdered at the party by a group of angry white guys who didn't like the fact he was flirting with a white woman. His body was hidden for a while and then dumped on the creek bank after the searches.

Way too many people in the area have shared rumors about the body's location and the assailants for this to be disregarded as a Black guy deciding to take a swim in the middle of the night (ALONE) after being threatened with racial slurs at a party in the middle of nowhere with no friends around.

Christ almighty, you're stretching for this one.

Christ almighty, you're stretching for this one.

This is how hard he's stretching

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/im6TjdPt9m6a65tvbPETD1rr95QELsFNRRPX05Rv3T1BFRVus_M5h9RCd7no_33miYEAbsM_Aa7MSIl4yINBIMImdtW555KfmYYrksNGd7GAqo7VH-0NpkVwGeGWivlW4HYbXGq5Ww

One of Alonzo's boots was found across the street from the driveway between two poles well into the property across the street, his other boot was found down the street along a creek near the bridge. (I included a SH of the map they show in the episode.)

None of this is indicative of foul play. Kurt Sova was missing a shoe. So was Eugene Kvet. There are countless examples of "mysterious" things happening to people who die under suspicious circumstances which are not indicative of anything really.

The ME didn't debunk it AT ALL. The ME (who, honestly came off a little patronizing and racist to me) said that there was no way to tell if the body had been frozen for awhile or not because the changes they look for to determine that are only apparent immediately upon removal/thawing. He specifically states there's no way to prove or disprove a body has been frozen. He also (curiously) says that the body is consistent with having been in the creek for 30 days but it could easily be SHORTER.

Medical Examiners come off as "cold" and unemotional because they often have to be. They are very clinical when describing things. That's their job. I have no idea how you came to the conclusion that he was racist other than he didn't conclude that Alonzo was the victim of a homicide.

Searches often fail to find the person you're looking for. You'll have helicopters and dogs and police and family and then all of a sudden they get found. He could have floated down the creek when the creek had higher water levels after a rainstorm. We've got a clog there of brushes and branches and he's simply trapped in that mess. There's nothing that allows you to know whether somebody's been frozen. If you find it immediately upon thawing, there are some microscopic changes that might suggest that that's what's happened. However, when you have significant decomposition that's superimposed upon that, these signs disappear. There's no way to prove or disprove that a body's been frozen. As far as how long that body's been in the creek, it's consistent with having been there 30 days. It could easily be shorter. I also don't know the circumstances in which he ended up in the creek, so I can't tell you whether he placed himself in that environment, or somebody else placed him in that environment. We know that most people when they kill somebody and dispose of a body, do so in convenient fashions. Moving a dead body is not convenient. To bring that body down there and dump it...very inconvenient. You've got to go through brush, you've got to go an extended period across a field, that's highly improbable. Now having said that, if somebody sets their mind to it, you can take a body, and you can move it, and you can dump it somewhere.

The ME was noncommittal for most of his interview, but said that hiking and moving the body (especially if it was kept in a freezer as the family claimed) would be "highly improbable". It makes no sense to store a body in a freezer and then dump it in the place that will lead the investigation right back to the party where he was last seen alive.

The ME also said he was trapped in the branches - his family that found him said he was on top of it and didn't look bloated/appear dead. The paper items that were on him at the time didn't even look like the ink had bled.

His family are biased, and are not trained medical examiners. I sympathize with them, especially Alonzo's mom and siblings, but I can't put much weight on their description of what his body looked like when they found it.

Where I think he comes across as patronizing and racist is when he talks about "we know when most people kill/dispose of a body" and that's a bit getting out of his lane and making inappropriate presumptions. There's truly no reason to go into a diatribe on the inconvenience of moving a body - clearly it happens. And in a case where it's pretty clear that multiple somebodies know what happened (paraphrasing the FBI agent in the news article) chances are pretty great that more than one person would be available to move a body, negating the ME's "inconvenient" argument.

Or...maybe he's just giving his professional opinion on things that he's seen throughout his career?

Alonzo's neck was very decomposed and that was part of the reason the ME said they could not determine cause of death.

They couldn't rule out drowning. They couldn't rule out strangulation due to animal predation.

I think the reason the family feels brushed off is that it's clear SOMETHING happened and NO ONE is talking and they CLOSED the case stating no foul play without so much as "Jim said he saw Alonzo wander off into the creek that night and we have 3 other witnesses saying the same thing."

It is not "clear" that something happened to him because there is an equal likelihood that he wasn't murdered, and that his death was an accidental drowning. We have no witnesses who saw him having a physical altercation with anyone. We have no evidence that he was beaten. We have no evidence that he was stabbed. We have no evidence that he was shot. His clothing was not ripped. His possessions were found on him, including hundreds of dollars.

Three different agencies involved, the creek was "walked" that night by the local sheriffs office who then turned it over to the KBI who walked the creek/bed and had a helicopter. An underwater team was brought in. So if Alonzo was there either in the water or washed up as he was found - he would have been found at that time given that the family found him in the area that had been so thoroughly searched. That dive team was the team who told the sheriff they would come back out and were not invited back out to search. The dive team said the deepest part of the creek that day was 3 feet. Following all those searches, yet another search team came out and didn't find him.

Why weren't Arnold Archambeau and Ruby Bruguier found until 3 months later in the same spot that had been searched extensively before? This isn't something new to UM, they've featured several cases where remains were found at an area that had previously been searched extensively.

Family gets permission to search and oh look, there's Alonzo right out for anyone to see. (Keeping in mind his personal items aren't water damaged, his boots and hat were found WAY far from the body, etc.)

The searchers said that the water level had risen from the time he disappeared to when they had searched for him. His body could have moved in the creek due to the rising water level and tide and they missed it.

This isn't like Mike Riemer (who is still under suspicion officially) where he was found outside the search perimeter. Alonzo was found out in the light in an area that had been searched MULTIPLE times.

Ok, so it's like Arnold Archambeau and Ruby Bruguier. Or Jack Davis Jr. Or Kurt Sova. All mysterious deaths involving alcohol where foul play is not likely.


Of course no one has come forward from the party, if it was a hate crime they would helping a black family. The case was closed until recently so clearly staying quiet was working well for everyone. It still is.

The other black people in attendance wouldn't want to come forward? The other white people in attendance were all racists who would keep quiet to cover up a murder? It reminds me of the Ellender double homicide where the local teenagers would gossip and talk about a party that was held on the night of the murders...and it was all B.S. I got a similar vibe from the random internet postings that the segment used as some sort of backdrop of "what really happened".

This is how hard he's stretching

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/im6TjdPt9m6a65tvbPETD1rr95QELsFNRRPX05Rv3T1BFRVus_M5h9RCd7no_33miYEAbsM_Aa7MSIl4yINBIMImdtW555KfmYYrksNGd7GAqo7VH-0NpkVwGeGWivlW4HYbXGq5Ww

:lol:

The sad truth is that there are many, many, many police officers who behave as dismissively as this guy.

When it comes to investigating suspicious murders of African-Americans, they will stretch credulity to make it appear that the victim: 1) deserved it by virtue of behavior, 2) somehow caused the situation themselves, 3) was caught up in a series of bizarre coincidences that seem like foul play but was actually suicide.

I've seen this occur far too often.

His body was found North of the house...so yeah. I'm not sure how he could have deposited his personal items himself where they were found.

It's one thing for an ME to say all that as an aside to a colleague. But when interviewed on his job? NO. It's a stretch and it's extremely patronizing reaction to Alonzo's family. All he needed to say was the facts that were known, not add unnecessary conjecture.

I can say he's racist as someone who has lived in small towns where a black person would stick out like a sore thumb and should NOT be around after dark. I highly doubt he would have held a similar position on the facts he actually had if it was a white kid. The ME is super focused on all these plausible ways he hadn't been murdered...but strangulation or a throat cut couldn't be ruled out either. Alonzo could have been strung up.

The ME's attitude and all the other subtleties to his inflections and word choice...just smacks of a "these uppity black folk just won't accept that their stupid drunk son who had no business in our town got drunk and wandered off and drowned" mindset. That attitude vs someone speaking as if they'd happily go over the details with the family until they understood what they were seeing? Sigh.

Also shown in the episode was the map of the underwater search team - where they mark the piles of sticks/branches as not containing Alonzo's body. So there's that, too.


The other black people in attendance wouldn't want to come forward? The other white people in attendance were all racists who would keep quiet to cover up a murder?


Why do you think the other TWO black people who were at the party would come forward? If they were even there still when events took place? A black man dies at a party full of white, rural people...NONE of whom have come forward AT ALL...but let's ask why the other two black people haven't come forward. What if they're still living in the area? What do you think they gain by coming out and speaking out against a house full of white people?

It's not like once someone talks LE magically does the right thing...especially if it's a small, white, racist rural town. Which, honestly, is what most small towns are in the U.S.

I also have no idea why you're bringing Ruby and Arnold into this. That was ONE small department and the circumstances were different (ditch was frozen over, etc.). How many agencies searched this creek and didn't find Alonzo?



The sad truth is that there are many, many, many police officers who behave as dismissively as this guy.

When it comes to investigating suspicious murders of African-Americans, they will stretch credulity to make it appear that the victim: 1) deserved it by virtue of behavior, 2) somehow caused the situation themselves, 3) was caught up in a series of bizarre coincidences that seem like foul play but was actually suicide.

I've seen this occur far too often.

YES. The only other applicable UM story that comes to mind is Keith Warren -
https://unsolved.com/gallery/keith-warren/

:lol:

The sad truth is that there are many, many, many police officers who behave as dismissively as this guy.

When it comes to investigating suspicious murders of African-Americans, they will stretch credulity to make it appear that the victim: 1) deserved it by virtue of behavior, 2) somehow caused the situation themselves, 3) was caught up in a series of bizarre coincidences that seem like foul play but was actually suicide.

I've seen this occur far too often.

Yep, I know it all too well. I find it hilarious when a black person is suspected of being killed by a white person the amount of logistics and excuses they try to make.

:lol:

The sad truth is that there are many, many, many police officers who behave as dismissively as this guy.

When it comes to investigating suspicious murders of African-Americans, they will stretch credulity to make it appear that the victim: 1) deserved it by virtue of behavior, 2) somehow caused the situation themselves, 3) was caught up in a series of bizarre coincidences that seem like foul play but was actually suicide.

I've seen this occur far too often.

I had a long response typed up but a power surge cut my computer off, so sadly, it was lost to history.

I do like how you somehow imply, as you have done in the past because I gasp! believe that Keith Warren committed suicide, that I somehow believe that African American victims "deserved it", or "caused the situation themselves", when the reality is...I think judging on a case by case basis, when looking at the facts you form an opinion off of that. I believe Keith Warren committed suicide. I lean towards Alonzo Brooks dying in a tragic accident. I've seen the inverse "occur far too often" when those who don't accept the presented (by UM and social media, in this case) narrative that there is a negative response that dismissively paints that person as borderline (or outright) racist. Which sure isn't fun when discussing what you think happened to a stranger 16 years ago.

.

Don't forget Andre Jones.

You're right. I did forget about him. And unless he was murdered by other inmates, I believe he committed suicide.

"Unsolved Mysteries" Co-Creator on Alonzo Brooks Case
by Rosy Cordero
July 7, 2020


Terry Dunn Meurer is excited that fans have been streaming the new "Unsolved Mysteries" on Netflix since its July 1 debut — not only because it could lead to another season, but because she hopes to bring closure to those dealing with an unsolved mystery.

Meurer, who co-created the original series and the reboot, remains optimistic just a week after the show's premiere as tips relating to some of the 12 new cases have been pouring in.




Alonzo Brooks disappeared in 2004 after a night out of dancing in rural Kansas. The FBI announced a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible.

"Alonzo's story has been on our radar since 2017, before we even pitched Unsolved Mysteries to Netflix," Meurer says. "We had been tracking that story for a while. The people who reopened the investigation said they really started looking at it again a year ago, when we were filming the episode in Kansas. Seeing them offering that $100K reward was a very happy surprise to us. We had no idea they had reopened the investigation until a couple of weeks before the show premiered.

I think the fact we were producing this episode shined a light on the case and helped them want to take a look at this case again. These are important cases, and we really hope that the exposure brings renewed interest and encourages viewers to come forward."

https://ew.com/tv/unsolved-mysteries-terry-dunn-meurer-rey-rivera-update/

You're right. I did forget about him. And unless he was murdered by other inmates, I believe he committed suicide.

Christ. :eek3:

I suppose George Floyd committed suicide as well.

Christ. :eek3:

I suppose George Floyd committed suicide as well.

George Floyd was murdered, and I don't really see the relevance here. You are aware that black people can commit suicide, right? Sometimes they hang themselves. Like Dominique Alexander (https://www.pix11.com/news/local-news/manhattan/death-of-man-found-hanged-in-manhattan-park-ruled-suicide-medical-examiner-says), or Malcolm Harsch (https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/20/us/malcolm-harsch-death-victorville.html), or this (https://heavy.com/news/2020/06/black-teenager-hanged-school-texas/) teenager in Texas. You know, the ones that people (such as yourself) used to push the narrative that a string of "lynchings" were increasing across the country.

I can't believe that all of this started because I said it was equally possible that Alonzo Brooks's death was an accident (I lean this way), and that if he was murdered, the searchers simply missed his remains. If that makes me a "bigot" in your eyes, so be it.

UM released some edits in a google folder posted to the UM subreddit.

https://www.reddit.com/r/UnsolvedMysteries/comments/hn07tf/hey_guys_netflix_here_weve_created_a_public_drive/

There is a longer interview with the ME that has some additional pictures and the ME (and the text on the medical report) indicate that the cause of death is undetermined. Importantly, he says there are no specific anatomical signs of drowning.

The additional photos show his clothing - shirt and shoes and they're all curiously clean assuming he got to the creek without his shoes.

There is also a video from a news broadcast at the time and the sheriff is saying that Alonzo's body was definitely not where it was at the time they were searching. The dive team person who was interviewed also states that the creek was so low at the time they did their search, they could see the bottom - and that "if there was a body in that creek when we search it, he would have been found that night."

UM released some edits in a google folder posted to the UM subreddit.

https://www.reddit.com/r/UnsolvedMysteries/comments/hn07tf/hey_guys_netflix_here_weve_created_a_public_drive/

There is a longer interview with the ME that has some additional pictures and the ME (and the text on the medical report) indicate that the cause of death is undetermined. Importantly, he says there are no specific anatomical signs of drowning.

The additional photos show his clothing - shirt and shoes and they're all curiously clean assuming he got to the creek without his shoes.

There is also a video from a news broadcast at the time and the sheriff is saying that Alonzo's body was definitely not where it was at the time they were searching. The dive team person who was interviewed also states that the creek was so low at the time they did their search, they could see the bottom - and that "if there was a body in that creek when we search it, he would have been found that night."

Interesting... Thanks for the additional info.

I don't know if this was straight up murder, but there is no way his boots came off one at a time across the road and he ended up where he did all on his own. Maybe he was chased or maybe he was beat up and moved, but there is no way he just wondered off and ended up where he did.

According to Josh Pratt, the guy who runs alonzobrooks.com and who is developing a podcast about this case, Alonzo's family has a copy of the full autopsy and it will not "be published".

https://www.tmz.com/2020/07/08/unsolved-mysteries-netflix-new-tips-alonzo-brooks-case-fbi-open/

George Floyd was murdered, and I don't really see the relevance here. You are aware that black people can commit suicide, right? Sometimes they hang themselves. Like Dominique Alexander (https://www.pix11.com/news/local-news/manhattan/death-of-man-found-hanged-in-manhattan-park-ruled-suicide-medical-examiner-says), or Malcolm Harsch (https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/20/us/malcolm-harsch-death-victorville.html), or this (https://heavy.com/news/2020/06/black-teenager-hanged-school-texas/) teenager in Texas. You know, the ones that people (such as yourself) used to push the narrative that a string of "lynchings" were increasing across the country.

I can't believe that all of this started because I said it was equally possible that Alonzo Brooks's death was an accident (I lean this way), and that if he was murdered, the searchers simply missed his remains. If that makes me a "bigot" in your eyes, so be it.

I never once called you a bigot.

But it is glaringly clear you have a blind spot when it comes to understanding the history of law enforcement corrupted by white supremacists/racists and their involvement with the murder of African-Americans and/or their deliberate botching of investigations of ridiculously suspicious Black deaths and disappearances.

And the only reason you'll concede that George Floyd was murdered was because the man's death was captured on video for the entire world to see.

If Mr. Floyd was found dead hanging from a tree a couple of days after his public altercation with police officers, I'd bet my bottom dollar you'd claim "suicide."

That's what I'm attempting to convey to you - while not every suspicious death of an African-American is the result of racists, there's a lot that are the direct result of KKK, Neo Nazis and similar types.

I suppose you didn't see the links I posted about the attempted Indiana lynching?

I never once called you a bigot.

You most certainly did (https://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/showpost.php?p=5302898&postcount=8).

But it is glaringly clear you have a blind spot when it comes to understanding the history of law enforcement corrupted by white supremacists/racists and their involvement with the murder of African-Americans and/or their deliberate botching of investigations of ridiculously suspicious Black deaths and disappearances.

Yeah...no. I am well aware of the history of and continued practice of racism in this country, including law enforcement. However I'm no an automatic believer in grand conspiracies who sees a black person's death and automatically assumes that there was a grand conspiracy to not only murder Alonzo Brooks, but the local Sheriff's Department, as well as the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the FBI, and the Justice Department were all complicit in covering up and/or not investigating his death properly. That's on you.

And the only reason you'll concede that George Floyd was murdered was because the man's death was captured on video for the entire world to see.

You're right. That's the only reason. :rolleyes:

If Mr. Floyd was found dead hanging from a tree a couple of days after his public altercation with police officers, I'd bet my bottom dollar you'd claim "suicide."

I'm willing to go out on a limb and say that even if there was surveillance footage, a medical examiners report, etc. that showed the contrary, you'd still believe the same nonsense pushed by social media that this person was "lynched".

That's what I'm attempting to convey to you - while not every suspicious death of an African-American is the result of racists, there's a lot that are the direct result of KKK, Neo Nazis and similar types.

And I am conveying to you that...outside of anonymous comments on a blog post...there is no evidence that Alonzo Brooks was beaten and/or strangled to death by a bunch of racist party-goers.

I suppose you didn't see the links I posted about the attempted Indiana lynching?

I saw them...and I still think Alonzo Brooks more likely than not died in a tragic accident.

You most certainly did (https://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/showpost.php?p=5302898&postcount=8).



HAHAAHAHAHAHAHAH.

Sorry.

Dude, I have (had) NO IDEA who you were back in 2017 when I posted that. Why in heaven's name would you feel specifically indicted by that?

Wow.

HAHAAHAHAHAHAHAH.

Sorry.

Dude, I have (had) NO IDEA who you were back in 2017 when I posted that. Why in heaven's name would you feel specifically indicted by that?

Wow.

It's literally in that thread in the comment above. Don't try to do the whole, "lol I wasn't talking about you" classic backtrack. And I'm glad you are amused. I take this **** seriously, and I didn't forget 3 years ago, and I'm not going to forget this either.

It's literally in that thread in the comment above. Don't try to do the whole, "lol I wasn't talking about you" classic backtrack. And I'm glad you are amused. I take this **** seriously, and I didn't forget 3 years ago, and I'm not going to forget this either.

They're clearly not doing that.

They're saying they haven't kept tabs for three years that the person they didn't specifically label a bigot was also the person they're talking to today. The statement in question was: "there's a small (but active) element that contains bigots." There's no "xxxx is a bigot" to be seen in that link which is what I was expecting given your reaction.

They're clearly not doing that.

They're saying they haven't kept tabs for three years that the person they didn't specifically label a bigot was also the person they're talking to today. The statement in question was: "there's a small (but active) element that contains bigots." There's no "xxxx is a bigot" to be seen in that link which is what I was expecting given your reaction.

Lol, okay.

It's literally in that thread in the comment above. Don't try to do the whole, "lol I wasn't talking about you" classic backtrack. And I'm glad you are amused. I take this **** seriously, and I didn't forget 3 years ago, and I'm not going to forget this either.

Is that a threat of some kind?

I laughed because you're taking this far too seriously. We're here to discuss a case involving some dark elements of American society.

I believe Brooks was murdered. You believe he committed suicide.

Believe what you wish. I will continue to believe what I believe.

It is a very strange thing that you dug that comment up out of the ether and are using it to play the victim. No one called you a bigot (yet). You are going too far with your denials and disproportionate outrage.

I'll respectfully bow out of arguing with you. Let's get back to discussing the case - is that cool?

Don’t make me turn this internet around, you two.


Some of those that work forces are the ones that burn crosses.

Oh and black lives matter.

Don’t make me turn this internet around, you two.

:lol:

Is that a threat of some kind?

No.

I laughed because you're taking this far too seriously. We're here to discuss a case involving some dark elements of American society.

I believe Brooks was murdered. You believe he committed suicide.

Believe what you wish. I will continue to believe what I believe.

That's fair.

It is a very strange thing that you dug that comment up out of the ether and are using it to play the victim. No one called you a bigot (yet). You are going too far with your denials and disproportionate outrage.

I'll respectfully bow out of arguing with you. Let's get back to discussing the case - is that cool?

If that comment wasn't directed at me, I apologize. At the time, Keith Warren's sister was saying she had information about who I was, so I was a little freaked out by that and was probably overly-sensitive to that.

He was killed

Not sure if this was brought up yet, but Alonzo's friend that drove him said he left to buy cigarettes. This was in a remote area of a small town they hadn't been to before. The same town another friend said had one bar and one gas station. So just where the hell was he going to buy cigarettes? He wasn't just going down the street. And then he got lost and just went home. Uh-huh.

That friend seems overly guilty to me. I don't think he had anything to do with Alonzo's death, but his story is bunk. I think he wanted to leave and Alonzo didn't or he was tired of Alonzo's act and wanted to be away from him. He stuck to that story and then Alonzo went missing, and he was too scared and/or ashamed to come clean.

I can still (but not excuse) leaving a friend at a party in your own town, but this is crap and it doesn't seem logical.

My current theory is that Alonzo's friends all left him there for whatever reason, and then someone at the party got in a fight with him. They either beat him to death or more likely, beat him up and threw him outside. Later they found he was dead and panicked. I'm still not sure if the body was moved nor can I explain why his boots were found where they were (unless they came off while he was being chased).

Yeah it appears that Alonzo was the only one having fun. Others left within 45 minutes after driving longer than that to get there. I think there was confusion and maybe a lack of care among his friends on how everyone would get home. The friend feels guilty because he did abandon Alonzo whether the cigarette story is true or not.

Not sure if this was brought up yet, but Alonzo's friend that drove him said he left to buy cigarettes. This was in a remote area of a small town they hadn't been to before. The same town another friend said had one bar and one gas station. So just where the hell was he going to buy cigarettes? He wasn't just going down the street. And then he got lost and just went home. Uh-huh.



This stuck out to me.

One thing I know about dudes is that they always go into parties prepared. If I thought I was going to some podunk spot in the middle of the night, I'd make sure I had my supplies before heading out.

Maybe I'm the only one like this, but when I used to go to parties in a caravan, we'd stop at 7-11 and load up on beer, smokes and whatever else just in case. You never want to show up to a party empty-handed.

Of course, Alonzo's friends might not think like me and my buddies, but it's just weird to me that they would leave Alonzo behind after a racially-charged situation.

I can't get over that one part. I can sort of understand leaving the guy (sorta) if they thought he was getting some lady action, but not in that type of scenario. It just doesn't compute.

CBW

Actually the part where I identified the most was the friend getting lost and going home because I've been in that situation a couple of times. Getting lost and then after a while, it turning from "I got to find the place" to "As soon as I find the road I came to, I'm going back home. F---this". I think it's all clear except from the friend who was last in the party and who curiously is the only one that didn't participate. I don't know the situation though and something might have happened, I just find it strange that he didn't appear but maybe he couldn't.




I can't get over that one part. I can sort of understand leaving the guy (sorta) if they thought he was getting some lady action, but not in that type of scenario. It just doesn't compute.

CBW

Naive white people? I mean that friend that said "Lonzo wasn't somebody who would let that ruin his good time" it all paints that typical picture of "there is no problem since he wouldn't let him bother him" which is terribly naive and common with white people in the US. Hell we just had the George Floyd case that even with all the pressure from everyboyd and with video and press and they still had to get a 2nd autopsy to get it right and people are still "The FBI investigated this case, thus it's clear what happened" so.....

Actually the part where I identified the most was the friend getting lost and going home because I've been in that situation a couple of times. Getting lost and then after a while, it turning from "I got to find the place" to "As soon as I find the road I came to, I'm going back home. F---this". I think it's all clear except from the friend who was last in the party and who curiously is the only one that didn't participate. I don't know the situation though and something might have happened, I just find it strange that he didn't appear but maybe he couldn't.

I agree - from the way he talked, it sounded like he wasn't just lost, but a little bit stuck and was possibly closer to home than the party. He did due diligence calling the person who was still at the party and making sure he'd give Alonzo a ride home. He also sounded like he was reassure that he heard Alonzo in the background of the call and thought he'd be getting home safe since the two were together.

Curious that guy didn't participate in the episode - haven't seen any interviews with him either. Though if he was just stupid, his friend being dead is a lot to answer for deciding to leave without him for whatever reason. Even if Alonzo asked/said he'd be okay/etc.

Curious that guy didn't participate in the episode - haven't seen any interviews with him either. Though if he was just stupid, his friend being dead is a lot to answer for deciding to leave without him for whatever reason. Even if Alonzo asked/said he'd be okay/etc.

I thought that was odd, too. I think "Adam" is what they called him. What was his deal? It definitely could have been just a simple mistake, but why not just say that?

Then again, I'd hate to be the person who accidentally left a friend (or an acquaintance) at a party where something horrific later happened, so I can kinda see "Adam" staying silent.

One thing I thought odd about this episode was that Alonzo's friends never really indicated that they knew *anyone* at the party.

Clearly, they had to have heard about the party from someone, no? Who was that someone?

No one just magically knows about parties happening in small town rural areas.

Maybe they couldn't say the person's name for legal reasons, but I thought it was odd that his friends just acted like this party materialized out of thin air.

This seems like a case where a private investigator would have been very helpful. I'm not sure if the cops are members of the KKK or if they were just small-town lazy government employees who didn't want to work hard and held a grudge for outsiders. (I get the feeling they would not have done a super stealth investigation if Alonzo had been white, either.)

I do think this may have been a racially-motivated killing, though the lack of cause of death leaves some slight room for doubt.

Maybe it was both -- maybe the guys at the party did beat up Alonzo but not fatally, or maybe they threatened him so much that he drunkenly fled and died in an accident.

Regardless, I do think the people at the party absolutely know what happened, and that a private investigator would be more helpful than small-town police in obtaining information on the party attendees.

The guy with the backwards hat said he knew about "6 or 8" people who were there.

Sounds like someone they associated with had friends or family in La Cygne who knew about the party.

I think it's all clear except from the friend who was last in the party and who curiously is the only one that didn't participate. I don't know the situation though and something might have happened, I just find it strange that he didn't appear but maybe he couldn't.

I wonder if he was there when Alonzo died and he's afraid to put his face on camera. Leaving Alonzo because "he was about to score" doesn't make sense because Alonzo had no other way back home, unless the girl agreed to drop him off.

If she didnt then I'd assume that the reason he left Alonzo because he saw him get killed or atleast he was present and he's afraid of the people who killed him and doesn't want to seem like hes ratting them out so he stayed out of it

Whenever I think about folks leaving a party early, then it seems to me that Alonzo's associates may have felt uncomfortable. Clearly, it's been known to happen. I'm thinking that the guy going for cigarettes was just an excuse to leave. It still doesn't justify the group abandoning him.

I think it's going to be solved someday, but it's going to take a key witness to step forward with what he/she saw. Something went awry, probably downright sinister.

Whenever I think about folks leaving a party early, then it seems to me that Alonzo's associates may have felt uncomfortable. Clearly, it's been known to happen. I'm thinking that the guy going for cigarettes was just an excuse to leave. It still doesn't justify the group abandoning him.

I'm not trying to speak ill of the dead nor am I saying him being left was justified, but I do wonder if Alonzo had off-putting behavior when drinking/partying? It seems like his friends purposely left him or didn't want to be around him much longer

I'm not trying to speak ill of the dead nor am I saying him being left was justified, but I do wonder if Alonzo had off-putting behavior when drinking/partying? It seems like his friends purposely left him or didn't want to be around him much longer

The thought has crossed my mind that his friends deliberately left him there to mess with him, and then when they found out that he had died, exaggerated their stories about the other party goers and the party in general.

The thought has crossed my mind that his friends deliberately left him there to mess with him, and then when they found out that he had died, exaggerated their stories about the other party goers and the party in general.

I got the impression that he was probably annoying and over-bearing when drinking and they didn't want to be around him. The friend who said he went to get cigarettes and got lost and called his other friend to take Alonzo home was lying. I just think he wanted to leave and didn't want to be around Alonzo and made up the "getting lost" story. When he called his friend to tell him he got lost he said that Alonzo was being loud in the background "talking ****", so they probably just didn't want to deal with him

Again not saying he deserved getting left. Just an observation

I got the impression that he was probably annoying and over-bearing when drinking and they didn't want to be around him. The friend who said he went to get cigarettes and got lost and called his other friend to take Alonzo home was lying. I just think he wanted to leave and didn't want to be around Alonzo and made up the "getting lost" story. When he called his friend to tell him he got lost he said that Alonzo was being loud in the background "talking ****", so they probably just didn't want to deal with him

Again not saying he deserved getting left. Just an observation

I can totally believe that. They were in the middle of nowhere and didn't know that many people there. It's entirely possible some wanted to go and Alonzo didn't, and/or they were embarrassed by how he was acting. The friend punches out with an excuse to get cigarettes but never intended on going back. I think this may very well be what happened.

I also think that had nothing directly to do with his death, but the friends went with that story and now are soaked with guilt over it. They all seemed weird about their stories and I agree they are lying or at least bending the truth quite a bit.

I got the impression that he was probably annoying and over-bearing when drinking and they didn't want to be around him. The friend who said he went to get cigarettes and got lost and called his other friend to take Alonzo home was lying. I just think he wanted to leave and didn't want to be around Alonzo and made up the "getting lost" story. When he called his friend to tell him he got lost he said that Alonzo was being loud in the background "talking ****", so they probably just didn't want to deal with him

Again not saying he deserved getting left. Just an observation

There are hundreds of comments left all over the place by his friends/family and no one has said ANYTHING remotely like "he could be a handful when drinking". Everyone talks about how kind, funny, easy-going he was - things along those lines.

I don't think it's uncommon to tease a friend about getting lost - nor does one have to be drunk to do it.

Usually once someone has been deceased for sometime, the "truth" starts coming out - "He was so kind, but could be a little much sometimes", things of that nature. I haven't seen any of that with regard to Alonzo.

Saying that Alonzo wanted to stay at the party/made other arrangements would have been an easy out at the time when he didn't come home. I imagine that NOW that his friend is dead, not going back to the party over being lost seems like a stupid decision when it probably was a reasonable choice at the time with the information he had available to him. Alonzo was the oldest in the group, the rest were 18-ish.

I just don't see any evidence to back up the idea that somehow Alonzo brought this on himself because he was difficult when drinking/partying.

There are hundreds of comments left all over the place by his friends/family and no one has said ANYTHING remotely like "he could be a handful when drinking". Everyone talks about how kind, funny, easy-going he was - things along those lines.

I don't think it's uncommon to tease a friend about getting lost - nor does one have to be drunk to do it.

Usually once someone has been deceased for sometime, the "truth" starts coming out - "He was so kind, but could be a little much sometimes", things of that nature. I haven't seen any of that with regard to Alonzo.

Saying that Alonzo wanted to stay at the party/made other arrangements would have been an easy out at the time when he didn't come home. I imagine that NOW that his friend is dead, not going back to the party over being lost seems like a stupid decision when it probably was a reasonable choice at the time with the information he had available to him. Alonzo was the oldest in the group, the rest were 18-ish.

I just don't see any evidence to back up the idea that somehow Alonzo brought this on himself because he was difficult when drinking/partying.

I don't think most people are going to comment on the deceased they knew online by saying "Alonzo was cool, but boy he could be a handful when drinking!" especially since he was missing/murdered. I made that comment because all of his friends left him, so I don't think it's a stretch by saying he could've been annoying when drunk or annoying that night when drinking.

I'm not saying he deserved to die because of it, but like Todd Mueller said they all seem weird about their stories like they're afraid to tell the truth about why they left him

I don't think most people are going to comment on the deceased they knew online by saying "Alonzo was cool, but boy he could be a handful when drinking!" especially since he was missing/murdered. I made that comment because all of his friends left him, so I don't think it's a stretch by saying he could've been annoying when drunk or annoying that night when drinking.

I'm not saying he deserved to die because of it, but like Todd Mueller said they all seem weird about their stories like they're afraid to tell the truth about why they left him

Or they could be right as they know Lonzo and he wasn't bad after drinking.

Or they could be right as they know Lonzo and he wasn't bad after drinking.

If Alonzo was called racial slurs and almost got into a fight that night then maybe he was irritated. I find it weird that all of his friends left him and pretty much passed him to another friend to drive him home. There had to have been a reason.

I doubt if his friend really got lost looking for cigarettes.

If Alonzo was called racial slurs and almost got into a fight that night then maybe he was irritated. I find it weird that all of his friends left him and pretty much passed him to another friend to drive him home. There had to have been a reason.

I doubt if his friend really got lost looking for cigarettes.

His friend/s could very well be lying.

Doesn't also mean Alonzo was an angry/irritable drunk either. Plenty of nice people have bad friends/acquaintances.

And plenty of 18/19 year olds make poor decisions, too.

The friends could be lying and it can/could be independent of anything Alonzo did.

His friend/s could very well be lying.

Doesn't also mean Alonzo was an angry/irritable drunk either. Plenty of nice people have bad friends/acquaintances.

And plenty of 18/19 year olds make poor decisions, too.

The friends could be lying and it can/could be independent of anything Alonzo did.

It couldve been a bunch of things but were theorizing. I dont know why yall are so defensive because I said he couldve annoyed his friends that night. You dont have proof that he wasnt

If Alonzo was called racial slurs and almost got into a fight that night then maybe he was irritated. I find it weird that all of his friends left him and pretty much passed him to another friend to drive him home. There had to have been a reason.

I doubt if his friend really got lost looking for cigarettes.

"There had to have been a reason" No there doesn't have to. It might be just that it happened like they said it did. I can't say it's true but neither can you say it isn't. You are convinced the guy looking for cigarettes is lying and he might be yet you can act as if getting lost and going home is something that anormal, I've been in that situation a couple of times and done the same. They went and showed up to the cast except for the last guy, which maybe he couldn't appear but that is kind of strange and maybe that guy has more to say.

That being said, I don't know why people are looking that much into the other guys and not the people who don't appear (especially the locals in the party). It kind of reminds me that when case go cold, people always turn to the persons in the case when just maybe they don't have the answers and people are projecting things that aren't. It reminds me of the case of the Casie Nicole and how after not having any news people started questioning Nathan and even a family member came here to complain about it.

"There had to have been a reason" No there doesn't have to. It might be just that it happened like they said it did. I can't say it's true but neither can you say it isn't. You are convinced the guy looking for cigarettes is lying and he might be yet you can act as if getting lost and going home is something that anormal, I've been in that situation a couple of times and done the same. They went and showed up to the cast except for the last guy, which maybe he couldn't appear but that is kind of strange and maybe that guy has more to say.

That being said, I don't know why people are looking that much into the other guys and not the people who don't appear (especially the locals in the party). It kind of reminds me that when case go cold, people always turn to the persons in the case when just maybe they don't have the answers and people are projecting things that aren't. It reminds me of the case of the Casie Nicole and how after not having any news people started questioning Nathan and even a family member came here to complain about it.

There has to be a reason if everyone at the party leaves someone who is miles away from home with no ride back. Maybe Alonzo wasn't annoying, but if he wasnt then why wasnt he given a ride back? If this was a local party and Alonzo was closer to home and couldve walked or had an easier time getting home then it'd make more sense.

Ive questioned the people that didnt appear especially the friend who didnt show on camera because I think he knows what really happened. The reason I didnt question the other party goes because its obvious some had to do with his death or were present and theyre keeping quiet, some even lawyerd up so there's not much to speculate there

But yes questioning the "friends" that left someone miles away stranded at a party with no way back is puzzling and is going to bring up questions

There's a reddit thread (https://www.reddit.com/r/UnsolvedMysteries/comments/hm2p45/ive_been_following_the_alonzo_brooks_case_for/) where someone local who has been following the case for years pretty much names every suspect. It paints a reasonably plausible picture of what happened and why...

Another good point is that Alonzo was the only one of age to buy alcohol etc, which may be why his "friends" brought him but seemed okay leaving without him.

There's a reddit thread (https://www.reddit.com/r/UnsolvedMysteries/comments/hm2p45/ive_been_following_the_alonzo_brooks_case_for/) where someone local who has been following the case for years pretty much names every suspect. It paints a reasonably plausible picture of what happened and why...

Another good point is that Alonzo was the only one of age to buy alcohol etc, which may be why his "friends" brought him but seemed okay leaving without him.

reddit is also the place notorious for outing an innocent person (https://www.businessinsider.com/reddit-falsely-accuses-sunil-tripathi-of-boston-bombing-2013-7) and falsely accusing them of being a Boston Marathon bombing suspect. I take any claims like this with a grain of salt.

It couldve been a bunch of things but were theorizing. I dont know why yall are so defensive because I said he couldve annoyed his friends that night. You dont have proof that he wasnt

I find this plausible. It was the way his friend said “he’s usually quiet, but he was having a really good time that night.” Reading between the lines there, I’ve known many quiet people who get overly loud when they drink.

They implied there were some racist hillbillies at the party, but I don’t think they said if they confronted Alonzo or vice versa? Did they get up in each other’s faces? Maybe I dozed off when they covered that.

I find this plausible. It was the way his friend said “he’s usually quiet, but he was having a really good time that night.” Reading between the lines there, I’ve known many quiet people who get overly loud when they drink.

They implied there were some racist hillbillies at the party, but I don’t think they said if they confronted Alonzo or vice versa? Did they get up in each other’s faces? Maybe I dozed off when they covered that.

Exactly. Also given the tension between Alonzo and the racist there, it might've made his friends uncomfortable after Alonzo was flirting with the girl after almost getting in a fight because of racial slurs. Maybe they noticed the increasing tension after Alonzo was seen with the girl and they dipped out on him

I have no idea. I remember it saying that racial slurs were being thrown around and Alonzo and one of the dudes were about to fight. So I'm assuming Alonzo got in his face if he was calling him racial slurs.

I can’t imagine leaving a drunk friend at a party, when they were fully aware that there were racist hillbillies drinking and being *******s. They left him in a really dangerous situation.

I can’t imagine leaving a drunk friend at a party, when they were fully aware that there were racist hillbillies drinking and being *******s. They left him in a really dangerous situation.

Probably weren't real "friends". I can't get it out of my head that he was lying about going to get cigarettes. They said the town was basically empty so more than likely you'd just drive out the same way you came in. That coupled with the last guy who was supposed to take him home...I wonder if they all were present when he died but they don't want to rat out the people who did it out of fear?

Being that they weren't from the area and hardly knew anyone at the party, I don't think they would have anything to fear unless they were involved.

I don't get the whole running for cigarettes either. I am not a smoker but every smoker I know would never leave home without at least a pack or stopping on the way for a supply of them. Especially when going to 1) a party and 2) an unfamiliar area. How would you know you could find a place open later when you ran out? If memory serves he wasn't at the party long (an hour?). Either he didn't bring many cigarettes with him ( which for a smoker out at a party I have a hard time believing) or it was an excuse to leave after the altercation between Alonzo and the other guy. I lean toward Freakbook's thinking. All his "friends" scattered pretty soon after the altercation. I think they were uncomfortable( maybe afraid since they were in an unfamiliar area with strangers).

These 3 so called friends of his are definitely involved, all of their actions are baffling, First off you guys drive over an hour to a party, for WHO ??? Who did they know at the party because in the UM segment they stated they only knew each other. They also don't remember how they even learned of the party it wasn't planned, they weren't invited.Then once they all link up at the party then one by one all three of them leaves within 45 mins of being there after driving over a hour to get there?? After their friend (Alonzo) had already had an altercation with some of the party goers and racial slurs being said WHY WOULD YALL LEAAVE HIM?? especially his driver Justin who claims he left to go get cigarettes at 11:00pm at night.. if this town is as small as they described it in the segment and only having one gas station which i am sure was closed that time of night. Justin's story doesn't make any sense I believe Alonzo may have already been drinking and probably a little drunk prior to getting to the party, once things popped off in that first altercation i believe Alonzo was murdered then and his friends witnessed it and hauled ass to establish alibis real quick...I think he was hung in a tree or strangled with a belt or a cord due to the part the medical examiner mentioned about decomposition on the neck only and no other visible trauma on his body tells me that was the area of trauma on how he was murdered. It is curious why the medical examiner didn't have anything to say about that being the probable cause of death. I then think his body was stored in a deep freezer and deposed of after the authorities searched for him and announced no findings then he was dumped. But the part i can't understand or figure out is why they would take his boots off , what reason would they have had to remove his shoes and no other clothing besides his hat probably falling off during a scuffle, i believe the area his boots were found is the area the altercation took place, i don't think he even made it inside that house as his friends described in the UM segment.

But the part i can't understand or figure out is why they would take his boots off , what reason would they have had to remove his shoes and no other clothing besides his hat probably falling off during a scuffle, i believe the area his boots were found is the area the altercation took place, i don't think he even made it inside that house as his friends described in the UM segment.

Good question. I wonder if his clothes were scattered around as a red herring? One boot was found on the side of the street that the house was on, and his other boot and hat were across the street from the house

If they hid his body, then I wonder if they took his boots and hat and placed them as they did to confuse and throw off investigators? He wasn't found with or near any of his clothing and I can't figure out why both of his boots were on opposite sides of the street unless someone placed them there purposely

The FBI has re-opened the case of Alonzo Brooks and today they exhumed his body.

You can read about it here (https://www.ksnt.com/news/crews-digging-up-topeka-grave-of-cold-case-murder-victim/amp/?fbclid=IwAR3dNO1N3hEScKLbMh_9L8PWsZL86Mg-eDTttA41QarBXNulVD8xNkDt0Mg&__twitter_impression=true).

The FBI has re-opened the case of Alonzo Brooks and today they exhumed his body.

You can read about it here (https://www.ksnt.com/news/crews-digging-up-topeka-grave-of-cold-case-murder-victim/amp/?fbclid=IwAR3dNO1N3hEScKLbMh_9L8PWsZL86Mg-eDTttA41QarBXNulVD8xNkDt0Mg&__twitter_impression=true).

The thing is, they probably would never have done it if it hadn't been for UM. That's awesome news.

The thing is, they probably would never have done it if it hadn't been for UM. That's awesome news.

The FBI investigated this case back in 2004 when his remains were found. The Justice Department looked into it again from 2008-2009.

The thing is, they probably would never have done it if it hadn't been for UM. That's awesome news.

The case was re-opened and labelled as a potential hate crime by the FBI previous to UM debuting/announcing his episode. Apparently the UM folks going around the areas filming and interviewing people stirred things up around the same time the FBI was taking another look (UM's involvement is according to an interview with Cosgrove and Meurer I can't find now). They also announced the $100k reward for information at the same time.

https://www.justice.gov/usao-ks/pr/us-attorney-fbi-announce-100000-reward-cold-case

The exhumation has allegedly come about as a result of tips received since the airing of the show. They're not saying (yet) if the tip came from the show itself or just how much the UM folk have been promoting his story, but there's no denying that it's been very highly covered since his episode debuted. No doubt word has gotten around about the reward because of UM's involvement. His case is the one Terry Meurer said they've received the most tips for - https://thetab.com/uk/2020/07/22/alonzo-brooks-body-exhumed-unsolved-mysteries-netflix-167536

Interestingly, it sounds like the narrative has remained the same throughout, but new names are being attached to the alleged events.

The FBI has now declared Alonzo Brooks’s death was murder.

You can read the article here (https://www.ksnt.com/news/local-news/alonzo-brooks-death-confirmed-as-murder-fbi-says/).

These 3 so called friends of his are definitely involved, all of their actions are baffling, First off you guys drive over an hour to a party, for WHO ??? Who did they know at the party because in the UM segment they stated they only knew each other. They also don't remember how they even learned of the party it wasn't planned, they weren't invited.Then once they all link up at the party then one by one all three of them leaves within 45 mins of being there after driving over a hour to get there?? After their friend (Alonzo) had already had an altercation with some of the party goers and racial slurs being said WHY WOULD YALL LEAAVE HIM?? especially his driver Justin who claims he left to go get cigarettes at 11:00pm at night.. if this town is as small as they described it in the segment and only having one gas station which i am sure was closed that time of night. Justin's story doesn't make any sense I believe Alonzo may have already been drinking and probably a little drunk prior to getting to the party, once things popped off in that first altercation i believe Alonzo was murdered then and his friends witnessed it and hauled ass to establish alibis real quick...I think he was hung in a tree or strangled with a belt or a cord due to the part the medical examiner mentioned about decomposition on the neck only and no other visible trauma on his body tells me that was the area of trauma on how he was murdered. It is curious why the medical examiner didn't have anything to say about that being the probable cause of death. I then think his body was stored in a deep freezer and deposed of after the authorities searched for him and announced no findings then he was dumped. But the part i can't understand or figure out is why they would take his boots off , what reason would they have had to remove his shoes and no other clothing besides his hat probably falling off during a scuffle, i believe the area his boots were found is the area the altercation took place, i don't think he even made it inside that house as his friends described in the UM segment.

When you're young and you're looking for a party to go to, someone else can say "Party over there at that other place. Wanna go?" And everyone in the group screams "YEAH!" That's what people do when they're 21, or 23, or usually under 27 because they're immature party goers.

As for leaving Alonzo there; bad judgement. It wasn't like Alonzo was a 15 year old kid. Wasn't he like 23 or something?

When you're young and dumb, you do dumb, stupid things. Sometimes that involves leaving your friend behind to go somewhere else with a guy, a girl, to buy booze, smokes, drugs... go do drugs, or a girl, or a guy. You come back and, "Where did they go?" If you come back at all. It happens A LOT.

Saw a case on Forensic Files of a woman in New Mexico who was left behind at a bar by her two female friends when they decided to go with a couple of men to some other place. The woman begged them not to leave her because she didn't have a ride home. She later turned up dead.

Given that Alonzo was a 23 year old male out with other 20 something year old males (how many males 18 - 27 uses their brain?) they probably though he'd be fine. Hell, a 23 year old guy has more of a fighting chance than a grown woman of any age. But anyway, chalk it up to youthful stupidity, not so much some murderous cover up.

What I can't figure out is why now? What did they discover that finally made them say this was a homicide? Based on the UM case and the weirdness of it all, I think it was a homicide, but the authorities had looked at this multiple times and only now they say it was a homicide?

I really hope we get more information on this case.

What I can't figure out is why now? What did they discover that finally made them say this was a homicide? Based on the UM case and the weirdness of it all, I think it was a homicide, but the authorities had looked at this multiple times and only now they say it was a homicide?

I really hope we get more information on this case.

Because the police didn't care before and knew it was a homicide but swept it under the rug. Now that people are lighting a fire under their ass and putting pressure on them, they finally have to do their job correctly now

Because the police didn't care before and knew it was a homicide but swept it under the rug. Now that people are lighting a fire under their ass and putting pressure on them, they finally have to do their job correctly now

The Justice Department looked into this case back in 2008-2009 and did not classify the case as a homicide. New evidence had to have come to light (someone confessing perhaps) that has led to this new ruling.

The Justice Department looked into this case back in 2008-2009 and did not classify the case as a homicide. New evidence had to have come to light (someone confessing perhaps) that has led to this new ruling.

https://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/new-autopsy-report-reveals-2004-death-alonzo-brooks-was-homicide-n1263108

"According to the release, the new autopsy focuses on injuries to parts of Alonzo’s body that the examiner concluded are inconsistent with normal patterns of decomposition. Details of the examination are being withheld for investigative purposes."

While they're not releasing a lot of details, that little snippet really stood out to me. He was exhumed after new tips and it looks like what his family was saying from the start was finally supported in the new autopsy. It was probably much more obvious with all the time that has passed as well.

DOJ most likely dealt mostly with the original investigators and their files. Even if they felt something hinky was going on, without new information they couldn't really do anything, much less say "something weird is going on here, but we have no proof". No new autopsy, no new access to the body, etc.

And, honestly, the internet was very different in 2008/9. There were many more places for people to congregate (that they WOULD congregate/chat in) vs now where a lot of it is FB/Twitter/Instagram and it's much easier to see patterns, etc. And Social Media/internet chatter is taken way more seriously than it was then. Rumors that have remained consistent for 16/17 years hold much more weight than rumors that were around for 4 years as well.

The Justice Department looked into this case back in 2008-2009 and did not classify the case as a homicide. New evidence had to have come to light (someone confessing perhaps) that has led to this new ruling.

Yeah. I'm wondering how hard they actually "looked".

Justin's story doesn't make any sense I believe Alonzo may have already been drinking and probably a little drunk prior to getting to the party, once things popped off in that first altercation i believe Alonzo was murdered then and his friends witnessed it and hauled ass to establish alibis real quick...

You lost me theorizing that his friends actually witnessed him being murdered.

In that scenario, yes, they would haul ass out of there immediately if able. But what would be the point of establishing alibis? They're not the ones who killed him. They would be under no obligation to keep this info from Alonzo's family or the police, even 16 years later. And from the sound of things, the people who hosted this party don't sound like "powerful people" who can hire a bunch of thugs to kill you if you talk too much. This party took place in a tiny house way out in the middle of endless farmland. The friends would have nothing to lose if they drove straight to the police.

Yes, the friends all leaving him is a complete d*ck move. You'll get no argument from me on that. But like Zero said, I think that can be blamed on being young and stupid, not sinister and secretive. It is maddening that they all left because I do believe Alonzo was murdered by people at the party.

Yeah. I'm wondering how hard they actually "looked".

Technically, you could likely say that there's a chance that with the spotlight shining on them, they've 'reclassified' this to move the heat off them.

Doesn't necessarily mean there's anything that they can or will try to find.

Now, that's one view.. I do tend to believe that there's more going on and that the Feds on it now only care about solving the case properly. If he was murdered, bringing those responsible to justice.. And if he wasn't.. Then stating that he wasn't.

I do think that it's highly unlikely he WASN'T murdered.. but, I do hope the current investigators keep that open mind. Justice being blind and all.

What I don't get.. and I think I'm forgetting something, where someone involved in this died (Other than Alonzo).. Keeping people quiet.. Look.. One person can keep a secret. Past that.. Gets awful hard.

Shocked I never heard of this case but I'm glad it was featured.

Here's my thoughts:

1) Why the hell did his friends leave him behind? The only Black dude in a spot in the middle of nowhere where there had already been a racially tense situation. No real friend would have left him there.

2) Anytime a body is found after an extensive search (part of me questions HOW extensive it actually was the first time) there's always the possibility that the body was placed there after being stored elsewhere.

3) Feels somewhat similar to Tara Calico in the sense that there could be a connection to law enforcement in the area. Chances are the sheriff and other authorities are aware who was at the party that night know exactly who might have attacked Alonzo. Often in cases involving Black victims, there's less of an incentive for the majority-white investigators to follow through.

4) There's clear evidence of foul play but there's some administrative interference. Reminds me of the Arkansas investigation of the boys on the tracks. I wonder who is really involved with the death of Alonzo.

CBW

I don't blame the one friend who went to get cigarettes because he arranged for Alonzo to get home when he got lost. However, the one who was supposed to get him home...WTF?