CONVOLUTED: The 1972 Durham Family Triple Homicide takes readers through the fifty-year-long investigation of the murders of Bryce, Virginia, and Bobby, exploring the multiple leads, theories, motives, and suspects that have been put forth in the case. What inspired you to write this book and tell their story?

These murders took place in my hometown when I was not quite seven years old and only two miles from my family’s home, so I grew up with knowledge about the case. It held my attention throughout the decades because of how heinous it was and because it continued to be unsolved. I had periodically considered writing about the case, and I ultimately decided to do so when, fifty years after the murders, authorities announced that the killers had been identified. This surprising development and the questions it generated were the catalysts for me finally deciding to move ahead with a book about the murders.

One thing that stands out in your book is the depth of your research. What was the process like to collect all of this information, and how long did it take to put it together?

I worked on the book for a solid two years. Initally, I was not convinced I had enough material to warrant a book, but after I delved into a plethora of news articles, ordered court documents, gained access to investigative files and audio recordings, and conducted my own interviews, I ended up with more than enough. In fact, it was so much material that I had to decide what to leave out without compromising the story as well as take the remainder and figure out how to present it in such a way that would both engage and make sense to the reader. Some of the materials – particularly the taped interviews with one of the alleged perpetrators and the son of another – were especially difficult to acquire, and it took many months of begging for them before I was ultimately granted access.

Did you find anything in your research of this book that surprised you?

Throughout the history of this case, most people have agreed in their suspicion of the son-in-law’s involvement, but there was never enough concrete evidence to link him to the murders. When it was announced that four members of Georgia’s Dixie Mafia had killed the Durhams, the remaining and unanswered questions were who instigated the murders, and if these four Georgia men really were the killers, who arranged to bring them to North Carolina? With suspicion of the son-in-law in mind, I hoped to find links between him and the Dixie Mafia. I did find it curious that he eventually moved to Georgia and became an attorney, establishing his law practice only about thirty minutes from the alleged killers’ home base. It was also very odd that his second wife was the step-daughter of an attorney, who not only defended one of the alleged killers in another murder case that would eventually be compared to the Durham case but also married into a family that this same alleged killer’s wife was also connected to. While these things may have been purely coincidental, I find them odd and was quite surprised by them.

What is the next book that you are writing, and when will it be published?

Prior to this book, I was already working on another book detailing the history of crime in my home county in North Carolina, in which the Durham case was going to be discussed among many others. When the 2022 developments occurred in the Durham Case, I decided to put that book on hold and write a stand alone book on this case. Although I am not sure when it will be ready for publication, my plan is to return to working on the original book as well as write some short stories or something along the line of blog posts on my author’s website. I also have other book ideas in mind, mostly dealing with local history and family stories, and hopefully those will be realized in the years ahead.

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