Michael McDermott
aka Mucko
It's that rush you hear coming from that spot on the back of your head. The one that makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. You need it. [...] Listen to that ringing in your ears. It’s the sound of opportunity. And the time to act is now.
If you can't enjoy yourself, work tends to be a real drag. We hate that. So you'll always be encouraged to express yourself, bring in your favorite office toys and generally keep it loose. [...] There's nothing more revered around here than a good sense of humor. An attribute that makes any kind of business that much better.
Quality assurance engineer. Killed 7 of his coworkers at Edgewater Technology in Wakefield MA, on 26 Dec 2000. After the incident, one of the survivors described McDermott this way: "He is a little quirky but a pretty friendly guy." One of his neighbors agreed: "He's well-tempered and very quirky."
And by "quirky" they probably meant "geeky." After all, here was an X-Files fan who read Harry Potter books and apparently enjoyed Dungeons & Dragons well into adulthood. In a 1997 post to rec.games.frp.dnd, McDermott put it this way:
Why do you play *D&D? To rack up experience points? To kill more
monsters than your associates? Or to have fun role-playing?
If you wish to play a character obsessed with honorable battle, do so!
Recognize, however, the advantages and disadvantages of your choice.
Disadvantages: You will not accumulate experience points as fast as the
other members of your party. You will alienate some with your character's actions.
Advantages: You might actually have some fun. Your character will have
to come up with creative ways to deal with the grumbling.
If you decide that the advantages are not worth the disadvantages,
you'll have to find another way to play your character. Don't expect the
others to hold back because you've chosen to fight your second while they are on their twentieth. If you decide they are, go for it!
He was a bone marrow donor and gave blood platelets twice a month. He also enjoyed reading about how to fake mental illness. He bought a copy of Clinical Assessment of Malingering and Deception.
Posted on Usenet as Mucko, 23 times to alt.engr.explosives, 5 times to alt.tasteless.jokes, and 3 times to alt.humor. While his interest in explosives may sound exciting, he says nothing interesting. On the humor groups, generally Mucko repeats funny that he found elsewhere. Example joke:
Q. Name three English clubs with swearwords in their names.
A. Scunthorpe, Arsenal, and Manchester Fucking United.
Awesome Unix beard, though.
Timeline
|
Michael McDermod Martinez born. |
| 1982 |
Legally changes name to Michael Morgan McDermott. |
| 1978 |
Joins the Navy, stationed aboard the nuclear attack submarine USS Narwhal for six years. |
|
Gets a job as an auxiliary power plant operator at a nuclear plant in Maine. |
| Jul 1985 |
With the help of a Veterans Assistance loan, McDermott buys the former Longfellow Elementary School in Bristol Mills, Maine for approximately $60,000. He later sells the two-room schoolhouse for $82,500. |
| 1987 |
Attempts suicide. After Maine Yankee fires him, McDermott files for workers' compensation, claiming it was a "stress-induced suicide attempt." The case is settled for $85,000. |
| 1990 |
Gets a job testing batteries for Duracell. |
| 26 Sep 1992 |
Marries Monica Sheehan. |
| 1997 |
Divorced. |
| 1997 |
Posts the following to a website for USS Narwhal alumni:
I ran into John Henry McArdle about ten years ago. I was working at Maine Yankee and I think he was with Yankee Atomic (?) ... I do research and development for Duracell Batteries now... Well, I came back to the land of my youth and married a childhood friend. Lasted three and a half years before she split.
|
| Mar 2000 |
Gets a job working as a software QA tester at Edgewater Technology. $55,000 per year plus benefits. |
| 14 Dec 2000 |
Accountant Rose Manfredi and Cheryl Troy inform Michael McDermott that they have been directed by the IRS to garnish $5,600 from his pay to cover his back taxes. McDermott responds by telling the pair that they are "no better than Nazis." |
| 26 Dec 2000 |
Shoots up the place, killing seven coworkers including Troy and Manfredi. Waits patiently in the lobby for arrest. |
| 11 Apr 2002 |
On the stand, McDermott claims to have believed he was living inside something akin to Castle Wolfenstein: "The last Nazi was there. I shot and killed him. And Hitler was there. I shot and killed him. My mission was complete. I knew at this point I had a soul." |
| 24 Apr 2002 |
A jury finds Michael McDermott guilty of seven counts of first-degree murder. |
|