Craig Titus and the Art of Lame Explanations

Craig Titus has not demonstrated himself to be the most clever of accused murderers. After all, he allegedly hid his victim's body in his own car. Then there was all that talking to police in which he allegedly offered conflicting accounts of how his former assistant, Melissa James, 28, died: ranging from an overdose on drugs to possibly rough sex with him. On the other hand, his consistency will probably not help him either; according to police, Titus has consistently offered two motives for murder in his explanations trying to clear himself by allegedly admitting to both an extramarital affair with James as well as accusing his alleged victim of stealing from him.

More evidence of Titus intellectual limitations were on display yesterday in court, if the witness testimony is to be believed. According to today's Review-Journal, James' mother in testimony revealed that Titus tried to convince her that her daughter had faked her death and was not the corpse found in Titus' burned car. In fact, Titus even magnanimously informed Mrs. James that he was not angry at the 28 year old for burning his Jaguar. Yet, when Mrs. James told Titus that DNA tests would soon clear that issue up she testified that Titus seemed caught off guard as if he had not anticipated that possibility.

Leaving aside Titus' intellect, also in court yesterday Titus demonstrated an eerie lack of originality with his imitation of a far more famous athlete charged in murder. Entering his plea, OJ Simpson style, Titus told the judge in a loud voice that he was: "100 percent not guilty."

Of course, while not a mathematician, if in fact he has allegedly already confessed to disposing of James' body in his car that he then set on fire perhaps the correct percentage--- even if he didn't kill her----should, at best, be closer to 87% not guilty. Well, that is a decision for a jury to make and only after a trial which yesterday was scheduled to begin in January, 2007. Link