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Show 4A Thi Salt Lake Tribum', Ii hruarv Sunday, 9, I'Wh Childhood Murder: Housing Chiefs Past Comes Back to Haunt Him By Suanne Vkellaulri Assueialvii Press Wnlei When Allied WAYLAND. Mass home wenl Thompson again alter IK years of lies ami tears on the run, lie prayed no one would remember Ins name For a while, it seemed as t liouh no one did Then one niglil last November Thompson showed up early lor rehearsal at the local playhouse whole he had a hit part in "Guys and Dolls He walked into the theater with a smile. Everything seemed lo he going well for him at last lie had a good job and a bi office at Town Hall and lie had found a woman to love Thompson's mood changed when he saw the play's director holding a brown envelope in her hand and look mg at him sadly "I have had news, ' Thompson pulled the musical s program from the envelope His name was circled and next to it was written "Get Hid Of This Scum " Sta pled to the note was a yellowed news paper article dated May 4, 1967 "Murder," read the headline "I immediately fell like on mg." recalled Thompson. 31 "I was so afraid I'd lose mv friends I was afraid for my family." The newspaper article repotted that police had arrested a boy and charged him with killing his neighbor during a game of in the woods of mumblety-peThe victim had been stabbed 26 times in the chest and head wiili a Huy Scout knife The letter writer had crossed out boy" and printed "Albert " Thompson "At that point, I realized what the issues were. Up until then. had really ignored them," said Thompson, a slender man with hazel eyes and a crooked, eager smile. "I assumed people would be forgiving, that juvenile records are sealed, that I had served my time in prison " Thompson expected anger from the cast, but he said he heard of friendship. He said he remembers thinking they had known all along he was the one who killed Mark Dupuis 18 years ago. and yet they forgave hun. That's when he decided to stop runWay-land- e I remembers her saving "Someone sent this lo the cast " lie g packs ol cigarettes and talked to m. about what I was doing there "I understood what I did. I II q, you something, no one made me understand. no one person or rchahihia. tion effort or facility. I'm proud of , lyself. because I'm the one who tuok. the effort always, to ponder it. to worry about it. to regret it and sort it all out." Thompson was released from pris. on al 17 lie renled a room in Flym-outl- i and started scooping ice cream at a Howard Johnson's restaurant. ln the mornings he went to high school, where tie studied photography Be- fore long, lie had a part-timjob taking pictures for the local newspaper For two years alter his first mar riage and the newspaper job. Thump, sun says he hummed around the country Thompson said Ins life changed direction wlii'ii he saw an advertisement for a government job training program. He signed up the next day. and later gut a job as a counselor in a health clinic for the elderly in the Boston sutnn b of Somerville Three years later, he was assistant director of the city's Council on Ag tin eats on the phone Some plead with him lo leave town They have not forgotten the murder of Mark Dupuis and the innocent lives it shattered "I don't deny that everyone deserves a second chance, he just shouldn't do it in Wayland." says John McKnroy, a longtime resident who was a selectman the year of the murder "It was a terrible thing to the mother of the child who was so cruelly treated Why did he have to come back to this town' It's hard for me to believe he is lehabilitaled Doming back shows a " complete lack of sensitivity On Dec 5. Mark Dupuis' mother. Nancy Dupuis Ferry, died of a heart attack McKnroy says she confided in him wo days before she was stricken. "Why did lie have to bring it all up agjin'" he quoted her as saying. "After his terrible ordeal that I've been put through, what good will come of it" She was buried near her son in the town cemetery "Her heart was broken,' said Ferry's cousin. Kathy Mooney Thompson, twice divorced and father of three young children, returned to Wayland in June to become executive director of the housing authority-ithis Boston suburb of 12.500 residents. Thompson oversees 202 apartments, a staff of seven and a $327,000 budget Wayland officials say they knew about Thompson's past when they lured him over 20 other applicants. In one intei view, he was questioned about the murder and he spoke at length d his regret and rehabilitae - tion Those who work with Albert Thompson say he has gone a long way lo clear up a mess handed down by Ins predecessor. He is organized and responsive, says one town official "1 am constantly amazed at his efficiency." says Hubert King, president oi the local tenants' organization. 1 Thompson thinks about people like Bob King when he answers the phone and hears. Child killer, you're going to die," or when he gets unsigned letters calling him crazy-lispends a lot of time in his bedroom listening to rock 'n' roll music and thinking. His favorite song be' I gins. flow can convince you what " is real see you did I "I will never forget what will never stop being sorry for it." he said in a recent interview. "There isn't an April that goes by that I don't go to the hoy's grave and don't apologize to him. and cry and pray. "But I feel like I've paid my dues only-word- ning "High! now. today. I'm so glad it's out and there to be seen and talked about openly," he said. "For the first time in my life. I feel like a whole 1 human being " But there are others who bitterly resent Thompson's return, who his motives and his sanity. Some send him hate mail or make death 1 Reagan Vows to Continue Push To Eliminate Federal Deficit Fresi-den- l WASHINGTON AF) Heagan told Americans on Saturday to "get ready for a banner year" and ignore warnings that his proposed budget cuts would "wreak havoc throughout the na turn " In his weekly radio address, delivered from the White House. Heagan also pledged to push lor elimination of the federal delicit within five years despite a setback the Democrats' radio address responding to Heagan. Sen. I.avv-loChiles of Florida, said Congress would go along with severe cuts in domestic programs coupled with increased spending. "We in the Congress want U' to have a strong defense but we want to cut out the waste and make sure we have weapons systems we can attord without trying to buy everything on the block." said Chiles. ' Heagan said America is poised for an historic reversal against rising deficits The collapse we're witnessing m oil prices will give America's economy a tremendous boost stretching your pay lurther. i educing cost to industry. and making it easier for all to invest lor our future So, loss out conventional wisdom and gel " ready for a banner year He also said the government is going to sell our tram set. bcttoi known as Conrad" and stop suhsi intruk dizmg In n e the courts A special three-judgpanel ruled Friday that a key enforcement provision of a new law is unconstitutional The decision is being appealed to the Supreme Court Whatever the outcome, we intend to go forward w ith our plan to bring the federal budget into balance by I'.i'.U without undercutting the progress we have made in defense. without cutting Social Seen rity or essential support programs and without raising your taxes." Heagan s.mi in deficit-reductio- take-hom- Albert Thompson prayed no one would remember him when he returned home to for it. I've contributed so much good in my life. I've helped a lot of individuals. "I guess it comes down to me believing I am a good person, despite what I did. and trying lo live my life like that." Thompson lives with his mother in the same small yellow house where he grew up, at the end of a rural deadend road that slopes toward a swamp Ho had been a gawky kid with a severe stutter who tried hard to make friends. When Thompson was the town condemned the family's dilapidated house and burned it to the ground. He helped his stepfather build a new one on the same spot. Thompson says his stepfather, who died in 1983. was a day laborer who drank heavily and beat him almost every night with a leather strap or wire hanger. "His famous words were. 'Stop crying or I'll give you something to cry about. He was just a cruel man." Thompson said. "By the time I was 12 years old. I was not a normal kid." Flay ing by himself in the woods, tie would imagine sticking his Boy Scout knife in his stepfather's chest or slitting his own wrists. When he was 11. lie stole a bottle of Thorazine from I lie medicine cabinet at a neighbor's house. He swallowed the pills, ran County Shenil s Department She said people living in "the gvn-ial li'imty" ol the community were odd to as a precaution The trm k dnu-r- William Shrader. i4 ol .New Mai tinsville. was listed in guarded condition at Ohio Valley Medical Ci liter in Wheeling, said mu sing open isor Suzanne Kolas No M t . i lid lie IK wheel truck was iking a quid butane everywhere." said (owns dispatcher lor the Marshall U- I 1 -- other injuries were reported Ai Thompson April Ins new neighbor if he wanted On 1967. 26, asked to play after school Mark Dupuis said he would. The boys wandered through the nearby woods and settled in a thicket near a small pond. Thompson started He flipped a game of mumblety-peg- . the knife into the damp earth near a Mark, who was sitting few feet away "I remember reassuring him that I wouldn't hit him. that I wouldn't hurt him. He was excited and impressed and the whole bit." Thompson says. "It's like I got with the knife. I just flicked it one time like I had the previous time and it hit him in the chest. It kind of lingered there for a second, and then the weight of it pulled it out and it fell. "1 was really scared. I could tell it hadn't gone in very deeply. My first feeling was to get him home, hut lie was screaming as if wasn't there. He wasn't dying. It would have called for a few stitches, that's all. I'm sure it was awful painful. I kept trying In d cross-legge- over-confide- 1 group was babies. There were 106 million children under 5 years of age About one in every eight Americans was a little kid. There are now 18 million little kids, but they make up only 7 6 percent of the population, or one Halley's comet was last seen in its previous visit, quite a few things have changed in the I'nit-eStates, including how many people are here to see it Since 1910. the United States has more than doubled in size, growing from 92 million to 240 million people. Anyone who was here for the last flyby. of course, is 75 years old or older. Of the original 92 million, only 10.8 7 million women million are left and 3.7 million men. As I am sure any of them can tell you. things were a lot different in 1910. There were no videos, no stereos. no FM radio stations, no computers. no jet planes and no baby boomers There were 2.7 million mure men than women then. Now, there are 6.5 miUii'n more women titan men. The median age then was 24 1. seven years younger than today. Since a baby bust followed the baby boom of the 1950s and early 1960s. the largest r age group in the nation now is made up uf people 25 to 29 vears 1910. Since d people. With all those kids in households were a lot bigger. When Halley's last flashed by, there were 4.5 people in every household to go outside to look at it. Now there are only 2.7 people in each dwelling unit. One reason for such a in household size is that older people seldom live with their grown children or grandchildren anymore. Another reason is changing lifestyles. Back then. 85 percent of all famhouseholds were husband-wif- e ilies. and divorce was a rare event. in 13 1910. drastic-shrinkag- five-yea- old But back in 1910. the biggest age SAVE 20-5- 1 1 very-scare- was found in the woods, a few feet from Al Thompson's knife. The police arrested Al that night. "It was a joke," lie said A V. i, k)ut n Haynes and another reporter confronted Thompson in Ins oflice He denied everything and an article wax not printed "I had no intention ot admitting il " he said. "1 had lawyers. I was ready to fight it to the Supreme Court il I had to. My records were sealed " American Deniourapnics V86 (C) Inc , Bui several weeks later. Thompson agreed to talk to a reporter from Bos ton magazine. He said lie was tired of dodging rumors and angry stares The story confirmed the gossip in Wayland. Mark Dupuis' murderer was tiack. and he worked in Town Hall The hate mail and death threats followed. The Town Crier received letters calling fur Ids resignation, and others calling for compassion In early October, a girl named Sarah Frvor vanished from her Wayland home. Thompson went home from work early and waited tor the police lo arrive. "That was my one dreaded lear, that a child would disappear," hr said "I freaked out. I was sure they were going to quest ion me. had my calendar ready to show where was " 1 all dav The police never came "He was never a suspect. Stephen Williams says. . N.Y , Should Consider an IRA IVhy You often we get to do something good for ourselves and save money at the same time. With an Individual Retiremenl Account (IRA), that is exactly what Congress intended us to do can now contribute up to S2.000 a year toward your retirement and deduct that amount from your taxable income on your tax return with the blessing of the IRS! The tax savings can be substantial and so can the nestegg you'll be able to accumulate for your retirement You f i in, ii i: li ji pH 'iiiplelt 'let, ills un ii r oic i nil tin MiJliki1 ot Orn.ili.i IRA fur mure inform.itinn unities! , In In. v M l i .ip,u ity tio'txix ADA NORTON Ixililsup i !ps rmisiOGs wlf "ipletolv 0 a t 111, . Ill ue Li oiK'imr.i! 6 t li size Standard Ival shield pemiiK redui ed cie.u.'iiu o insta'lutieo i,HjN : ,v m, trr 'i twin-tatilnwef system uiuilatmq heal Option. h glass di Kir pane's Oplien,il Phone ms OFFERING THRU ADVANCED H I'NOTISM COURSES if Co, 6 Stove- X Coal loseit t t llepl.H Built in I pel I . l ia , f m p'a. I I. is t I t i Wood Wood f' I S0o l l B.utx-- ues i s iCi-.- t Kept e I .it I C Ope U'ppM., Iiepi.il I I vt lr I 'll. ,hes lie in l! Hi is Ie is Bill 'I r, s I li nil Hu I'. N NEXT COURSE STARTING MAR. 1 SATURDAYS A 'fi o' it II i.i1 I ' ii 'i M ill he ',r in biVL'M tnxurjm imi'il nl I tcti ji Iniiiliii Be'k-- Veol oe, M. iter i, ig, vi- 'Tuple iun cun cuiiiil mi Hr ml T 2 '(jiiiiihuxL ON EVERYTHING IN STOCK Gas X 268-988- Mmii.ilTN fur I SAVE UP TO Ot fieer It's not wood stove from Nordic AGv1 sovO A!'1 til lio i v'ne itifxj .H.tiinth.F ;J loqs 11,1 ALSO ON SALE 7 saw a "1 occurring to only eight of l.llOtl married women. Now, the divorce rate is nearly triple that, and married couples occupy only 58 percent of all households. There were only 3411.255 divorced people in 1910: now there are 12 million. Maybe people didn't get divorced because they lived such a short lime. The median age at first marriage was about the same as it is today, 22 years for women and 24 or 25 for men. But in 1910, life expectancy was 50. No wonder they didn't have Social Security; they hardly needed it. Only about 4 million people lived to be 65 years old or over, and they were a mere 4.3 percent of the population. Now there are nearly 30 million such elderly folks, and they make up 12 percent of the population. When Halley's comet last appeared, a major concern was the care of the one in eight Americans who were under 5. Today a major concern is the care of the one in eight Americans who are over 65. Tn6 nCW Erik SW 12 Additional NORDIC STOVE & INSERT MODELS CALL NOW! "Some weie from the curious was lie the same person'. Why was he hack'." F.ditor Andrea Haynes later recall i'll in an editorial Some were from angry people. How could the housing authority subject tenants In this Some were from people who told us that tenants were fearful " "Environmentalist" PS'-- requed 1967. counselor daily who gave me mail I saw a counselor weekly who gave me HEY, AMERICA $A7Q LOOK ;! Hecpet n after a series ot court appearances and psychiatric exams, Thompson was found delinquent by reason of manslaughter and sent to a maximum security juvenile prison in Bridgewater For the first three years. Thompson cleaned toilets, read comic honks and smoked cigarettes. fn August 90 DAYS FREE INTEREST ON STOVES & INSERTS WfTH APPROVED CREDIT RIJY NOW AND PAY WITH YOUR INCOME TAX REFUND CHECK (,&. U)AvT most mti'fViivr SOU'b Mypnot'M1 OS u CUM e at a minimum security prison in New Hampshire. Because his juvenile re cords were sealed, a thorough background check did not disclose Ins manslaughter conviction, lie says "I was fascinated by working with felons and treatment and the whole idea of transition for someone in that environment into free society." he says One Sunday afternoon, lie spotted the ad for the Wayland housing authority director in a Boston newspaper. His first weeks at Town Hall went smoothly. Then, in late June, the Wayland-WestoTown Crier newsroom started getting plume calls times. "I've spent agonizing hours and days going over it in my mind, and all can think is that every time I cried, my lather would beat me up to shut me up. Anil I think I must have been mimicking vvliat was done lo me when I cried. I don't think consciousthat. I was just ly thought I had so much anger and violence. it had lo come out somewhere." It wasn't long after Mark's mother reported him missing that his body prices! We are overstocked and we have made drastic price cuts for fast sale. Hurry for best selection. VM0K1P612 &P6AP H( In 1983. when Thompson was 29. he look a job as a counselor I HERE! BEGINNING where I started learning about human services and managing." Thompson said "I was very successful al it." Thompson married again in 1979 and had three children before another divorce five years later. pull him up. but he wouldn't budge. He just kept screaming and cry ing. I don't remember the thoughts that passed through me. I remember picking up the knife and stabbing him. and throwing lie knife away- and running away. They say I stabbed him 26 INVENTORY CLEARANCE SALE 0 MODE i SSV IiHjG-'j- I IV'to Sloe, Doc ? me Roo-jv SG9 0C (m& p iHWAn?e 12 Comet Will Visit Changed World Train Mil" Semi lilled Willi Liquid Butane 'Ht "I i Mi W a Ali tram aiiimcd into a semi carrying liquid u a nv at a railroad crossing, lotting ie evacuation Saturday ot about I'm eople from the area .Hound this tun ih Hivei commumtv, anthei ihrs 8, playmate back to his house, curled up under his bed and waited. He awoke in the hospital emergency room, where doctors were pumping his stomach. He was back at school two days later. The suicide attempt was never discussed at home, he said mg. "That's he had stabbed a to death in the woods. Wayland, Mass. At age il ini 1. iti. , All!.' ,, p !j m Il i iii ,, i ,i dy M .'V1 I rue Min-- . t , in,. 4 |
