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| Last known photo of Linda. Dated 5-11-2013. |
Proceed with caution. Some of this information is... difficult.
Update #1:
"We met with the prosecutor on my sister Linda's murder case yesterday. He said that because of the law, Thurber won't get life without parole but will most likely spend the rest of his life in prison. The normal charge is 5 years to life but because of his violent history, outstanding warrants, past prison time and the violence of Linda's murder it was set at 25 years to life. This increases the *...minimum* mandatory time before he would be up for parole from 2.5 years to 12.5 years because in Texas, you must serve half your sentence before you are even eligible for parole. The prosecutor said that they will not be accepting plea bargains because their case is so strong. Thurber's public defender is a good one but the prosecutor said they want a good attorney for him so there is far less chance he will be able to demand an appeal or mistrial based on an incompetent attorney. Thurber also has no defense if he claims he was under the influence of meth at the time of the murder. Involuntary intoxication of any kind is not a defense. He cannot get off on insanity either because the definition is that a criminal doesn't know right from wrong. Thurber went to great lengths to try and hide the crime and the police believe he was in fact, planning to try and hide her body.
"The average sentence for a murder like this is 60 years, 30 must be served before eligibility for parole. The prosecutor said that Josh has been in prison twice before and it has not changed his behavior. He tried to kill his last girlfriend three times, the last time putting her in the hospital with a concussion, stealing $600 from her and fleeing. He has two warrants out of two different states, broke parole and flees each time he gets into trouble so he is a much bigger risk to society. Because of this, he will either get a longer sentence than 60 years, or never be granted parole because of his violent history.
"I know it's not a lot but I take some comfort in knowing Linda's last act was to see that Josh never hurts another woman, or anyone ever again. I lost my sister, but it accomplished something that no one else had been able to do until then. I know she is in a better place, gets to be with my dad and mom and the rest of our family. She's not in pain, doesn't worry, and is safe from now on."
"The average sentence for a murder like this is 60 years, 30 must be served before eligibility for parole. The prosecutor said that Josh has been in prison twice before and it has not changed his behavior. He tried to kill his last girlfriend three times, the last time putting her in the hospital with a concussion, stealing $600 from her and fleeing. He has two warrants out of two different states, broke parole and flees each time he gets into trouble so he is a much bigger risk to society. Because of this, he will either get a longer sentence than 60 years, or never be granted parole because of his violent history.
"I know it's not a lot but I take some comfort in knowing Linda's last act was to see that Josh never hurts another woman, or anyone ever again. I lost my sister, but it accomplished something that no one else had been able to do until then. I know she is in a better place, gets to be with my dad and mom and the rest of our family. She's not in pain, doesn't worry, and is safe from now on."
Update #2:
"The following information may be too graphic for some of you and if so, you might want to skip this part. I'm posting this information because I truly believe that seeing Thurber's behavior, mindset, violence and final murderous act, might ...somehow aid others to recognize such behavior and seek help or remove themselves from a similar situation.
"The medical examiner determined that my sister's throat was cut *after* she was deceased, as were the cuts on her wrists, arms and legs. When I first heard of these injuries, I asked police if they thought he was trying to dismember her body. They declined to comment at that time. When I spoke with the prosecutor yesterday, he provided additional information on this act. He stated a fourth witness, a teenage boy who had done yard work for Thurber in the past, was called by Thurber early Monday (detectives believe Linda was murdered late Sunday night or very early Monday morning). According to detective, Thurber asked the teen to come over on Monday morning and "watch the outside of the house" and not allow anyone on the property. He was also directed to take up all the paving blocks in the backyard (see photo) and dig up the yard beneath them. Thurber then told him to "Delete my number from your phone, delete all the texts we sent and forget we ever knew each other" and directed him not to tell anyone he was at the house that day or what he had done. This explained why all the blocks were stacked up in the backyard and a hole started.
"I have no doubt now that Thurber had systematically gone about planning to dismember Linda's body and bury her in the backyard, then replace the paving stones over her body. He initially attacked her in the bedroom; we believe killing her almost immediately with a hammer, wrapped her in a plastic tarp and dragged her into the bathroom where he placed her in the tub. He then began to dismember her with a machete and possibly other knives as the police took several, two machetes and a cleaver. He then cleaned up extensively in the bathroom, cleaning the floor and using commercial cleaners and bleach (bleach destroys blood evidence). For whatever reason, I suspect the meth was wearing off and he lost his nerve, and didn't finish the job. Police said when they confronted him at the front door he appeared intoxicated, as under the influence of alcohol. Meth doesn't affect you like alcohol so perhaps he was drinking to get his nerve up and finish the job, but this is just speculation on my part. In any case, it will be impossible for him to claim he "snapped" while using meth and didn't know what he was doing. He took great effort to hide the crime scene and made plans to dispose of the body. There are four key witnesses, one of which he showed Linda's body, and two others he told about the murder while they were at the house. I know he won't beat the charge and I believe (and pray) he will spend the rest of his life behind bars, never to walk among decent people, never harming another woman, and forever regretting his evil, every day for the rest of his miserable, tortured life."
"The medical examiner determined that my sister's throat was cut *after* she was deceased, as were the cuts on her wrists, arms and legs. When I first heard of these injuries, I asked police if they thought he was trying to dismember her body. They declined to comment at that time. When I spoke with the prosecutor yesterday, he provided additional information on this act. He stated a fourth witness, a teenage boy who had done yard work for Thurber in the past, was called by Thurber early Monday (detectives believe Linda was murdered late Sunday night or very early Monday morning). According to detective, Thurber asked the teen to come over on Monday morning and "watch the outside of the house" and not allow anyone on the property. He was also directed to take up all the paving blocks in the backyard (see photo) and dig up the yard beneath them. Thurber then told him to "Delete my number from your phone, delete all the texts we sent and forget we ever knew each other" and directed him not to tell anyone he was at the house that day or what he had done. This explained why all the blocks were stacked up in the backyard and a hole started.
"I have no doubt now that Thurber had systematically gone about planning to dismember Linda's body and bury her in the backyard, then replace the paving stones over her body. He initially attacked her in the bedroom; we believe killing her almost immediately with a hammer, wrapped her in a plastic tarp and dragged her into the bathroom where he placed her in the tub. He then began to dismember her with a machete and possibly other knives as the police took several, two machetes and a cleaver. He then cleaned up extensively in the bathroom, cleaning the floor and using commercial cleaners and bleach (bleach destroys blood evidence). For whatever reason, I suspect the meth was wearing off and he lost his nerve, and didn't finish the job. Police said when they confronted him at the front door he appeared intoxicated, as under the influence of alcohol. Meth doesn't affect you like alcohol so perhaps he was drinking to get his nerve up and finish the job, but this is just speculation on my part. In any case, it will be impossible for him to claim he "snapped" while using meth and didn't know what he was doing. He took great effort to hide the crime scene and made plans to dispose of the body. There are four key witnesses, one of which he showed Linda's body, and two others he told about the murder while they were at the house. I know he won't beat the charge and I believe (and pray) he will spend the rest of his life behind bars, never to walk among decent people, never harming another woman, and forever regretting his evil, every day for the rest of his miserable, tortured life."
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