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Homeboy in the 'hood
In the Democratic bastion of Harlem, George W. Bush further outlines his education plan while taking a swipe at the GOP.
By Jake Tapper
[10/05/99]

Feinstein gets a challenger
Political gadfly Ron Unz jumps into the ring for the U.S. Senate race in California.
By Anthony York
[10/05/99]

Throw the bums out
Al Gore's corporate team has struck out, so it's time for the vice president to bring some true believers on board.
By Joe Conason
[10/05/99]

Trump bombs in first Reform appearance
The Donald needs to do some homework before opening his mouth.
By Micah L. Sifry
[10/04/99]

Steve Forbes finds religion
His Christian Coalition appearance marks him as the leading conservative rival to George W. Bush.
By Jake Tapper
[10/04/99]

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"Um, I don't, I don't think you did what they say you did," she told 31-year-old Benjamin Matthew Williams.

"What do they say I did?" her son asked through the telephone handset.

"They say you took out two homos," she said in her soft whisper.

"Huh!" he shot back in a strong and certain voice, as if to boast. Then he asked: "Why wouldn't you think I'd do that?"

Why wouldn't anyone? Since Williams' arrest in early July along with his younger brother, James Tyler Williams, 29, the two young Northern California men became poster boys for the summer of hate this country just endured. Both men have been charged in the July 1 double slaying of Gary Matson, 50, and Winfield Mowder, 40, a prominent gay couple who lived near Redding in the rural community of Happy Valley, about 180 miles north of Sacramento.

The men also are the prime suspects in the wave of arsons that hit three Sacramento-area synagogues two weeks before the killings, and caused more than $1 million in damage. And they also are being looked at as potential suspects in an arson at a Sacramento-area abortion clinic two weeks after the synagogue fires.

The pair, both of whom are known by their middle names, have pleaded not guilty to the murders, the only formal charges they currently face. The FBI says it is still investigating the brothers' ties to the arsons, but there seems to be no hurry to file charges -- perhaps understandably, since the brothers could face the death penalty in the murder trial.

Matson and Mowder, the murder victims, were widely admired in this conservative area for their civic good deeds and the many hours they spent sharing their knowledge of gardening with anyone interested. Their deaths were grisly: First, one was apparently forced to record a new message for their answering machine, claiming they were sick and had gone to San Francisco to see a doctor. The voice on the machine feigned illness, investigators say, but sounded distressed. In the background, another voice could be heard saying, "Just calm down."

They were then forced into their platform bed, which rose seven feet above the floor of their bedroom. From the way the bodies were found and the bloody mess left behind, investigators said the killer or killers stood on chairs at the end of the bed and blasted away at the men. Their nude bodies were discovered by Gary Matson's brother, Roger, who had been dispatched to their home by their father after he heard the odd-sounding telephone message and became worried.

When the Williams brothers were arrested a week later, one was wearing a bullet-proof vest and both were heavily armed. They also happened to be picking up a crate of ammunition re-loading equipment that had been shipped to a mail drop, and paid for by Matson's credit card, within hours of the shootings. Searches of their homes and storage sheds turned up a notebook in which one had practiced signing Matson's name, according to documents filed by prosecutors in the case, as well as a treasure trove of white-supremacist, anti-gay and anti-Semitic literature.

Investigators also found a "hit list" of 32 prominent Jewish and civic leaders in the Sacramento area, apparently compiled after the synagogue fires. Then, after a Jewish businessman offered a $10,000 reward in the arsons, one had written a note that read: "Yidbizman, $10,000 on us."

Unlike in Littleton, Colo., where investigators say they may never know why two high-achieving teenagers killed 12 classmates and a teacher and hoped to blow up their entire high school, Matthew Williams is still alive and seems eager to explain his beliefs.

"My brother and I were captured by occupation storm troopers while we were on a supply mission," he wrote in a letter from jail that was part of a credit card application. "We are now incarcerated for our work in cleansing a sick society."

Next page | "You would like to have your daughter go out with this guy"