Jeffrey MacDonald Sociology
Background of Jeffrey MacDonald Born in Jamaica, Queens, New York City, NY Attended Patchogue High School and was voted most popular and most likely to succeed Won a scholarship to Princeton University, attended for three years Dated childhood friend Colette Stevenson throughout high school and into college Married Colette just two years into his college education
Moved to Chicago in 1964 and Colette gave birth to their first child, Kimberly Was accepted to Northwestern University Medical School, graduated in 1968, and had another child, Kristen Jean in 1967 Completed an internship at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City Joined the Army shortly after the internship and moved the family to Fort Bragg, NC. Appointed to the Special Forces (Green Berets) as a Group Surgeon, but did not have to go to Viet Nam
First Criminal Act of Jeffrey MacDonald On February 17, 1970 an emergency call was made by Jeffrey MacDonald from his home pleading for help When the military police received the call, they arrived on scene to find Colette and the two girls, Kristen and Kim, dead and Jeffrey alive and wounded The girls had been stabbed and beaten Jeffrey was unconscious and the police officer revived him with CPR Jeffrey said that he and his family were attacked by three men and a hippy looking woman with a floppy hat
After MacDonald recovered in the hospital, he underwent intense interrogation from the Military police The Army formally charged MacDonald with the murder of the family in April of 1970 The charges were dropped five months later, but many other trials were yet to come It has been mentioned that MacDonald went away for a few different trips and might have had some sort of relationship with women other than is wife
Sentencing of Jeffrey Macdonald In August of 1979, MacDonald was charged with one count of first-degree murder for Colette and two counts of seconddegree murder for Kristen and Kimberly He was immediately sentenced to life in prison and went to the prison in Cumberland, MD In 1991 he became eligible for parole but refused to admit he was guilty so he did not apply
Evidence incriminating Jeffrey MacDonald An ambulance driver had moved things around in the crime scene things causing investigators to believe MacDonald had staged the alleged attack by intruders Fingerprints were wiped off of the telephone, a baby bottle, and other items once MacDonald was already in they hospital An army doctor moved Colette s body before tests had been done, altering the fiber evidence and making it challenging for the investigators
Quotes "And I went to sleep on the couch. And then the next thing I know I heard some screaming, at least my wife, but I thought I heard Kimmie, my oldest daughter, screaming also and I sat up. The kitchen light was on and I saw some people at the foot of the bed. So, I don't know if I really said anything or I was getting ready to say something. This happened real fast. You know, when you talk about it, it sounds like it took forever, but it didn't take forever. Jeffrey MacDonald This statement lacks some passion and certainty in what MacDonald is talking about. He calls the murderers people and his story isn t really definite. There are many statements of uncertainty and lack confidence.
Anomie Theory The theory that pertains most to Jeffrey MacDonald s case is the Anomie theory. The anomie theory is the tug of war between what culture says your goals should be and the legitimate ways of reaching them. The ways that these societal goals can be achieved is through deviant and non-deviant ways. The various ways a person can achieve these goals is by conformity, innovation, ritualism, retreatism, and rebellion. Conformity, ritualism, and retreatism are all non-deviant ways of achieving goals. Innovation and rebelling are the deviant ways of achieving a goal. No one knows truly the motive of Jeffrey MacDonald. But through the Anomie theory, one can assume that it might have had something to do with ridding himself of his family. It was said that MacDonald could have potentially had an affair or some sort of relationship with another woman. Whether this is true or not, through rebellion, Jeffrey could achieve his goal of being with another woman. His rebellion was killing his wife and children with the hopes of getting away with it and starting a new life. MacDonald did not accomplish his goal because he is imprisoned. This was a form of social rebellion that was not fully carried out.