Hanged Census worker had 'fed' on chest

[Tom Sawyer]

Apparently some folks in Kentucky don't like the census workers poking around.

Hanged Census worker had 'fed' on chest

A U.S. Census worker found hanged from a tree near a Kentucky cemetery had the word "fed" scrawled on his chest, a law enforcement official said Wednesday, and the FBI is investigating whether he was a victim of anti-government sentiment.
The law enforcement official, who was not authorized to discuss the case and requested anonymity, did not say what type of instrument was used to write the word on the chest of Bill Sparkman, a 51-year-old part-time Census field worker and teacher. He was found Sept. 12 in a remote patch of the Daniel Boone National Forest in rural southeast Kentucky.

[AntonLee]

really sucks that the guy got strung up.  I feel for his family. 

/compassion for a fellow human being

this should make government people think about quitting.  Please don't be the next one hanging.

[dalebert]

I'm SO glad that didn't happen in NH. My heart goes out to his family as well. This isn't the way to freedom. I'm afraid it's likely there will be more of this though. It just feels like things are coming to a head and it's just time for a change. People are angry. It's up to us to show people peaceful alternatives to this kind of thing.

[Pat K]

There was no need for violence, they just
should have used Kentucky math on him.

[AntonLee]

instead of intimidating, maybe just ostracize people who are working for the government.

[Moebius Tripp]

instead of intimidating, maybe just ostracize people who are working for the government.

I've got to get out of Cali.

In this county, there are about 18k people, about a third of which are children or retired.  There are currently 5,750 county jobs, plus the federal jobs in Yosemite NP.  If I were to ostracize anyone that was a tax eater, I'd have to live on acorn bread and quail.

[Lloyd Danforth]

Seems like overkill

[slim]

I have a feeling the media is going to play this out to be crazy rednecks killing government people, from the facts I read I think the reason the man was killed was probably a result of the War on Drugs. The man probably saw something he should not have and this was the result.

[Tom Sawyer]

That area is labeled as a "High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area". Heavy DEA presence, aggressive enforcement.

I had some friends in the military from that area, real hardcore folks. Moonshine, marijuana, now meth etc. Going back into those hills at harvest time is not something I would do. They don't like outsiders.

[mackler]

Wow, that is really terrible news.  I mean that the guy had turned to being a fed.  Those types always have an excuse they tell themselves, usually they say they just do it because need to support their family or some similar BS (as if you can't support your family without hurting other people).  I feel terrible that someone got hurt.  At least we can at least hope that others will learn from this poor soul's mistake, and keep their own lives on the straight-and-narrow instead of turning to a lifestyle of violence.  If only there were a law making it illegal to be a fed, then people like that could be protected from the negative consequences of their own bad judgment.

[Russell Kanning]

i agree .... maybe public school teaching should be outlawed too .... it is the gateway job that leads to working for the feds .... which can only lead to destruction

[Ogre]

Sadly, Russell is right on. The temptation to work for the feds is very large.

[Dave Ridley]

Talk about an overreaction....

[littlehawk]

Is this fact or fiction? I do not know what or who to believe anymore. Either way, this is just another reason to crank up the police state regime.

Littlehawk

[Pat McCotter]

We can't have people afraid of doing census work.

AP sources: Suicide eyed in Kentucky census worker hanging; no anti-gov't motive seen
11-05-2009 03:55 PM EST |By DEVLIN BARRETT and JEFFREY McMURRAY, Associated Press Writers
WASHINGTON (Associated Press) --

Investigators probing the death of a Kentucky census worker found hanging from a tree with the word "fed" scrawled on his chest increasingly doubt he was killed because of his government job and are pursuing the possibility he committed suicide, law enforcement officials told The Associated Press.

Two officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case, said no final conclusions have been made in the case. In recent weeks, however, investigators have grown more skeptical that 51-year-old Bill Sparkman died at the hands of someone angry at the federal government.

The officials said investigators continue to look closely at suicide as a possible cause of Sparkman's death for a number of reasons. There were no defensive wounds on Sparkman's body, and while his hands were bound with duct-tape, they were still somewhat mobile, suggesting he could have manipulated the rope, the officials said.

Sparkman's naked body was found Sept. 12 hanging from a tree yet in contact with the ground in a remote patch of the Daniel Boone National Forest near Manchester, Ky.

The strange case attracted national attention when it first came to light, prompting worries that it may be a sign of increased anger toward the federal government in the first year of Barack Obama's presidency.

Authorities say Sparkman died of asphyxiation where his body was found.

A spokesman for the FBI's Louisville field office declined to discuss any aspects of the case.

Capt. Lisa M. Rudzinski, commander of the state police post in London, declined to confirm that there was any new focus in the probe.

"The Kentucky State Police are continuing to investigate the death of William Sparkman and have yet to determine whether it is homicide, suicide or accidental," Rudzinski said. "The investigation is continuing."

If officials do determine Sparkman did not die because of his government work, that would likely mean a less prominent role for the FBI in the investigation, assisting the Kentucky authorities but not preparing to bring a case to federal court.

Sparkman's adopted son has been adamant the case is murder, and he is not alone in that opinion.

Jerry Weaver, one of the people who found the body during a gathering at a family cemetery, remained certain the death was a homicide. Weaver told The Associated Press this week that he recalled Sparkman's hands being close together.

Weaver also said the rope, which he described as thin like a clothes line, was wrapped around the high branches of two different trees as if for leverage. Sparkman's truck was found nearby, and Weaver said he saw Sparkman's clothes in the bed of the truck and a census worker placard sitting on the dashboard.

Weaver had previously told the AP that the body was naked, bound at the feet and hands, and gagged. He didn't see the word "fed" on the chest but did notice there was an identification tag taped to the side of his neck.

"He was put on display," Weaver said.

A friend of the dead man said he seemed as chipper as ever in the days before his death.

Gilbert Acciardo, a retired Kentucky state trooper who directs an after-school program at the elementary school where Sparkman was a frequent substitute teacher, said he spoke with Sparkman two or three days before he died and saw no signs that he was upset about anything.

"He was the same Bill Sparkman I always had contact with," Acciardo said. "I didn't notice any change in mood or behavior. He came bouncing in like he always did, with a smile on his face, cutting up with me."

Sparkman's body has been released for cremation, but Rudzinski, the state police commander, said authorities are still waiting to analyze some forensic evidence in the case.