William Bradford Bishop Murder Case: FBI Removes Family Annihilator From Its Ten Most Wanted List
Two years ago, I made the case in this blog for removing William Bradford Bishop from the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List. I argued that after 40 years, the trail was too cold, little fresh evidence had turned up, and there are younger, more dangerous bad guys with hotter trails who deserved to be placed on the list. I also maintained that he was dead and had been so for many years. Well, with no fanfare, the FBI last week took Bishop off the list.
The FBI has only three criteria for removing a fugitive from its most wanted list: 1) capture; 2) charges are dismissed; 3) the individual is no longer considered to be a “particularly dangerous menace to society.” If still living, Bishop will be turning 82 on August 1.
Placing Bishop on the list at age 77 was the Bureau's last push to try to bring him to justice. To his credit, Special Agent Steve Vogt was instrumental in getting Bishop on the list. Vogt grew up near the Bethesda neighborhood where the Bishops resided and recalled bitterly the horrendous Bishop family killings there in March 1976. It still begs the question of why it took the Bureau four decades to place Bishop on its most wanted list. Had they put him on it immediately following the murders, Bishop might have been apprehended.
I've written pretty exhaustively about this case over the years, been interviewed on television and even wrote a novel based on the murders. Unless something major breaks on the case, this is likely my final commentary on it.
What gets in my craw is that Brad Bishop got away with it. A man brutally slaughters his wife, mother and three young sons and gets away scot-free, one of only 34 FBI most wanted criminals (out of 594) to do so. He also is only the tenth person removed from the list since 1950 without prosecutors dropping charges or the fugitive being captured or dying.
Should you still be alive and kicking, Brad - may you soon burn in hell.
See also ~
William Bradford Bishop Murder Case: After Forty Years, Is It Time to Move On?