User blog:UnderAPineapple/Hamilton: Live to Tell (Episode 2, Part 1)

Hello. This will be the second episode of the show, Hamilton, the realistic fictional crime show in which storys are reported, and nothing is secret. This episode will, like the previous episode, be divided up into different parts due to the longevity of the episode. At the end of the episode, you will get to ask the episode's host, Neil Hamilton, questions you have about the episode, or his personal thoughts.

'''Warning: A lot of content on this episode will be very disturbing emotionally. It may also be seen as offensive to some viewers, so I apologize in advance for anyone who is offended when it comes to this story in particular - considering one of the victims has a disability.'''



Preview
Location: Suffolk County, Massachusetts

911 Operator (female): Suffolk County 9-1-1, what is the address of your emergency?

Antonio: I'm at 102 Lexington Avenue. I got a house that's on fire right now, and I need an ambulance quickly.

911 Operator:' Okay, do you know who is in the house?

Antonio: There's gotta be at least one person in there, but I don't know ma'am.

911 Operator: Okay, we're sending help right away.

"anarchy"

- I do not want to relive that night again, it just pains me way too much. I can barely even talk about it without choking up.

Neil Hamilton (to Anonymous): How did you first see what was going on?

Anonymous Man (to Hamilton): I saw two people running out of the house, and minutes later it just burst into flames. I lived across from the Cutter home the night of May 16, 2005.

"anarchy"

- Laurie Cutter was a very positive, kind, and sweet 16-year old girl. She attended Charlestown High School, and was almost about to graduate from tenth grade. She had a very loving family. Nancy Cutter worked at a shelter for women suffering from domestic abuse. Every single person who met Nancy would say the same thing, that she was generous and never took anything for granted. John Cutter, was a fantastic person in his own right. He was a member of the Marine Corps, before going into the business of teaching physics in high school. All of the students loved John Cutter, and vice versa. This is a family, who did not deserve, to go through this much pain.

Neil Hamilton (to Ann): Give me a rundown on what happened that Monday night.

Ann McCaskell (to Hamilton): What appeared to have happened, was that two people, broke into the Cutter home, with the intent of killing everyone inside. When we found the victims, John Cutter was stabbed repeatedly in the head and the chest area, and Nancy Cutter had been bound and gagged. Following this, the perpetrators decided to finish the job, just to make sure they were dead, or to wash away evidence, and they doused the house in gasoline, and lit it on fire. (reenactment of house catching on fire) When the two of them left, they expected that all three victims, were dead.

"anarchy"

- I'm Dr. Marie McGowanm, and I was the doctor who was assigned to look at the autopsies of the victims. When I saw John Cutter's body, it was clear to me, that despite his body being burned from the waist down, the stab wounds he had were visible to the naked eye. I found that Nancy Cutter, died from smoke inhalation. The killer did this specifically to make sure that Nancy had to inhale the chemicals, at some point in order to be able to inhale and exhale.

Neil Hamilton (to Marie): How close was Laurie Cutter, from dying at the hospital?

Marie McGowan (to Hamilton): To this day, I'm surprised that she made it to the ambulance. She should've died right then and there.

"anarchy"

- When I first questioned Laurie about, what had happened, she said that she thought it had been an accident. She allegedly did not see her mother and father killed at that time her house was in flames. My name is Arthur Gonzales, and I was a Suffolk County detective for the homicide unit.

"anarchy"

- I get emotional, still today, when I think about what these people went through, when these killers broke into their homes (takes a deep breath). This case made national news, because of the atrocity of the crimes. But I don't think anyone knew that at the end of it all, somebody was going to live to tell her story.

Neil Hamilton (to Laurie): If you can say your name please.

Laurie Cutter (to Hamilton): My name is Laurie Cutter, sir.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCcZMjsvHtE

(commercial break)

Story
Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): There isn't a lot that goes on in this part of town when it comes to crime. Where we're from, we know each other very well, and we tend to be very cordial with each other.

"anarchy"

- Suffolk County, Massachusetts. It's located in the heart of Boston, and its' home to the famous Charlestown High School. Alumni from the school consist of Shabazz Napier, a professional player, now playing for the Brooklyn Nets, Steve Sweeney, a famous comedian who made it big in the 1990's, and Carlton Fisk, a major league catcher, who spent 24 years, devoted to baseball.

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): Our family has lived in Massachusetts since the late 1700's. My ancestors were colonists, and we settled here with the goal of benefiting our family.

Neil Hamilton (to Bill): So you obviously have a lot of pride for this town, given that you've lived here all your life.

Bill Cutter (smiling and nodding his head): That is correct, sir.

"anarchy"

- Bill Cutter, now 80 years old, spent his entire life in Suffolk County. He raised two boys with his now late wife, Pat; the youngest of which, was John Cutter.

Neil Hamilton (showing Bill a picture of John smiling: Tell me about this guy.

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): Oh lord (chuckling). He was an amazing kid. Took a lot of pride in his country, and was so intelligent. He got it from his mother of course (laughing).

"anarchy"

- John Cutter was born on September 15, 1961. He graduated from Charlestown High School at the age of 17, as a valedictorian, before enlisting in the United States Military.

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): John & Dennis were two guys you'd consider as patriots. Dennis was a hostage negotiator, John fought in the frontlines during the Gulf War.

"anarchy"

- Bill is referring to the Persian Gulf War in 1990. 29-year old John was deployed to Saudi Arabia, as a Marine. His older brother, now 66-year old Dennis Cutter, served as a hostage negotiator, and was part of the Iran Hostage Crisis back in 1979, with trying to negotiate with the captors.

Bill Cutter (smiling): I've always been proud of my boys. They're my pride and joy. I never thought I'd be doing this interview.

"anarchy"

- Before John entered Saudi Arabia, he met a young woman in college, Nancy Swanson. Just one year younger than him, John fell head over heels, in love with her. And within a few months, the two began dating.

Neil Hamilton (smiling to Bill): How often did John flaunt off his new girlfriend to the family?

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): Every time I saw him (laughing). But, we all got along with Nancy. She was easy-going, and I felt like her and John were destined for each other.

"anarchy"

- In 1987, the two tied the knot, and became Mr. and Mrs. Cutter. A little over a year later, Nancy became pregnant, with a baby girl.

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): They were both incredibly happy, knowing they were gonna be a mother and a father. I think that this was gonna be a life-changing moment for them.

"anarchy"

- On March 16, 1989, Nancy gave birth to Laurie Marie Cutter in Massachusetts General Hospital. However, hours later, the doctors would reveal to them, some unexpected news.

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): They said that Laurie might have Down Syndrome, and I believe John said something along the lines of "what the hell?". Luckily, Nancy I think was able to get him to worry less and to prepare for what would come next.

Neil Hamilton (to Bill): What do you think he was thinking, when he first thought of Laurie having a disability?

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): Probably just fear. Fear that maybe their daughter might be physically handicapped or something along those lines. You have to remember that they weren't expecting a baby with Down Syndrome, and considering this was the late eighties, I would argue that we were still learning to cope with babies, having disabilities, and perhaps, learning to accept that.

Neil Hamilton (smiling to Laurie): How are you today, Laurie?

Laurie Cutter (smiling to Hamilton): Good.

"anarchy"

- Laurie Cutter is now 29 years old. She requested that we not show her face. I interviewed her for this story, and details about her early childhood. Laurie also suffers from severe brain damage, and she is speaking through a computer device, as she has lost the ability to speak.

Neil Hamilton (to Laurie): Do you remember mom and dad, Laurie?

Laurie Cutter (nodding her head): Yes.

Neil Hamilton (to Laurie): Did you love mom and dad?

Laurie Cutter (smiling): Yes.

Neil Hamilton (to Laurie): How often do you think about them, Laurie?

(Laurie looks down and appears to be confused, being quiet for a few moments)

Off-Camera Helper: Ask yes or no questions.

Neil Hamilton (to Laurie): Okay, my bad. Um, do you think about them all the time?

Laurie Cutter (giggling): Yeah.

"anarchy"

- Although she may not remember everything that occurred in her childhood, we do have records showing that she lived in the same home, for the first sixteen years of her life. Laurie was enrolled in special education programs throughout her years in school. However, she didn't have it easy.

Neil Hamilton (to Bill): Let's talk about these claims of bullying. Explain please.

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): Yeah, Laurie did not have a good time in high school, at all. Nancy told me a lot of the times, that Laurie would come home crying a lot of the times, saying that numerous kids teased her, called her names, among other horrible things. I can confirm that Laurie was assaulted multiple times in high school. John also knew about this, I believe dating back to 2004.

Neil Hamilton (to Bill): John ended up telling the administrators about it, and what did they do?

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): Not a damn thing. They told my daughter-in-law, "kids are gonna be kids, we can't do nothing about it".

"anarchy"

- John Cutter was furious at that response. John, who was a hired physics teacher in Charlestown High School at the time, threatened to quit his job at the school. The same school that he, along with everyone in the entire Cutter family, had attended, and graduated from.

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): I remember John saying something to me one day along the lines of, "this school has changed so much since I first was here. Everyone's new and it's just not good". I looked at him and I asked, "what happened to Laurie this time?".

"anarchy"

- I decided not to bring up any part of her high school years, because I was concerned it might bring back haunting memories of what her family says was "her own version of hell". Instead, I sat down for an interview with another Charlestown High student, who was the same age as Laurie. Her name, was Maura Wilson.

Maura Wilson (to Hamilton): I remember one time in school, there were a group of girls in our gym class, and they ended up deciding to spread a rumor about her to the boys.

Neil Hamilton (to Maura): What was the rumor?

Maura Wilson (to Hamilton): That she was HIV positive.

Neil Hamilton (surprised): Excuse me, what?

Maura Wilson (to Hamilton): Yeah, those rumors were debunked. But I know it got to her. Some students made fun of her disability. She had Down Syndrome, so she was often called "Mr. Potato Head". It repulsed me to my core.

Neil Hamilton (annoyed, sarcastically to Maura): And so, you being the repulsed hero of this story, decided to put an end to this bullying, right?

Maura Wilson (to Hamilton): I tried to stop it but the girls began to isolate me as well.

(Hamilton rolls his eyes, but Maura cannot see it)

"anarchy"

- We learned from Maura, that Laurie sat alone at a lunch table, occasionally with a paraprofessional. She got along with teachers just fine, according to them, but with students, it was a much different story. Laurie was harassed both physically and verbally by her classmates. At one point, a girl one year her senior, crept up behind her, and pulled out a large chunk of her red hair. The photo you can see of Laurie, is from when she was in high school, back in 2004.

Maura Wilson (to Hamilton): Many people threatened to fight her, and I think that was a result of Laurie trying to ask a guy she liked out.

Neil Hamilton (to Maura): Was there anything else they did?

Maura Wilson (nodding her head): Yes! Oh my god, yes, they were brutal! One time, Laurie was leaving to go to her bu, when two guys pulled out a fake knife on her.

Neil Hamilton (to Maura): What did they do afterwards?

Maura Wilson (to Hamilton): They said, "the next time we see you, it's gonna be a real one".

"anarchy"

- Throughout all of this abue, which was documented by both Laurie's parents, and her grandfather, Bill, the school board, did nothing.

Neil Hamilton (to Maura): When was the first time the school administration actually decided to take action?

Maura Wilson (to Hamilton): (shrugs) May 17.

Neil Hamilton (annoyed): You're telling me that the school administration, who had hired Laurie's own father, did nothing to protect John Cutter's daughter, or to even acknowledge it?

Maura Wilson (with her head down): Mr. Cutter was the only one, and I literally mean the only one, to ever bring it up. I remember the students had to act like nothing was wrong in his classroom so he wouldn't know who picked on his daughter - everyone did.

"anarchy"

- We received the names of everybody in the class of 2007, but there were only two students who wanted to talk. One of them was Maura Wilson, and the other, was Natalie Cooper.

Neil Hamilton (to Maura): Describe Natalie Cooper for a moment.

Maura Wilson (to Hamilton): Natalie was very edgy, so to speak. She was into this gothic culture, and had a habit of partying, doing drugs, and always dated the bad boys. She was a bitch.

"anarchy"

- Natalie Cooper was the same age as Laurie Cutter, 16 years old. We learned that her birth father died in a boating accident two months before she was born. In addition, Natalie has an extensive criminal record, dating back to when she was just 11 years old.

Neil Hamilton (to Ann): If you can tell me, what has Natalie Cooper been accused, charged, and/or convicted of, before the age of 16?

Ann McCaskell (to Hamilton): Before age 16? She was arrested for armed robbery, along with a group of boys, for breaking into an elderly man's home. That man is now deceased. She was sentenced to probation for possessing marijuana. Natalie Cooper was arrested and bailed out on a DUI charge in January 2005. And perhaps most disturbingly, when she was just 13, Natalie Cooper, and her then boyfriend, stabbed their pet cat, 79 times. We charged and won a conviction against her for animal cruelty.

"anarchy"

- Ann McCaskell is a Massachusetts prosecutor, and former assistant district attorney. She prosecuted Natalie Cooper for the animal cruelty and marijuana charges, and she has never forgotten Natalie's name.

Ann McCaskell (to Hamilton): Natalie Cooper was a bad influence, in the sense that she was both influenced by bad people, and that she was the one encouraging others to do illegal activities. I would not trust my grandkids with her.

"anarchy"

- In October 2017, I got the opportunity to interview Natalie, for this investigation.

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): I would say that most of my life has been particularly troubled.

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): Why do you say that?

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): I've spent my teenage years in and out of prison. It was hard for me, at the time, to get along with my stepfather.

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): What's the deal with that scar on your face?

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): That was from a schoolyard fight with some chick. She got her hands on a razor blade, and you probably know what happened next.

"anarchy"

- Natalie also attended Charlestown High, and was a sophomore, just like Laurie. Most of the now adults who declined our repeated requests for an interview, denied ever bullying Laurie, however, Natalie openly admits, that she did once, take part in harassing her on a daily basis.

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): Me and a group of friends would pick on her, because she was poor. A lot of us were also kind of jealous because she had nice parents, and we would've been lucky to have even one good parent. We also didn't have many disabled kids in our school, so it was a very difficult thing for us to come to terms with.

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): How often did you bully Laurie Cutter?

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): Whenever I wanted to basically (chuckling).

Neil Hamilton (annoyed): You're smirking like it's some sort of joke.

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): Well, I'm not gonna sit here and deny it. And also, I stopped before all this sh*t happened anyways, so it's obvious people were a lot worse than I was.

"anarchy"

- Natalie is right about having stopped bully Laurie before the house fire; Laurie told us off-camera that Natalie tried to become friends with her. However, what Maura, and Bill Cutter claimed Natalie did to Laurie in high school, will disgust you.

Neil Hamilton (to Bill): Out of all the things that Laurie has been through, your granddaughter.

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton):' Yes?

Neil Hamilton (to Bill): What was the single worst moment for her, in terms of high school bullying?

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): Without question, it was when she was held down, and waterboarded.

"anarchy"

- You heard right; there was one alleged incident, that Laurie was restrained by a group of girls, and assaulted. A towel was put on her face, and water was poured on top of it, causing Laurie to struggle immensely with breathing. Natalie categorically denies being involved in that, and says she has doubts it ever happened. To prevent Laurie from having any type of panic attack, we decided not to ask her about torture or waterboarding.

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): I have in my notes here, that you were apart of a group of people in high school known as the "Volunteers".

Natalie Cooper (nodding her head): Yes I was.

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): Tell me about 'em.

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): It was basically, a group of us in high school. We all liked to dress the same. A lot of us were very goth, or I guess you would say "emo". I remember meeting a few people outside the school who were goth too, and that was pretty cool.

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): Did you feel like you fit in with that group more than any other group?

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): Yeah. I mean, you know how school is. There's the popular clique with the prom kings and queens and cheerleaders and football jocks. There's the nerdy group with the ugly guys and girls. And I feel our group was kind of the happy middle.

"anarchy"

- The Volunteers were a group of over 20 boys and girls, who were fans of music such as punk rock, heavy metal, and were infatuated with gothic culture. They also had been, reportedly, an amateur Satanist group. Some have said that they worshipped people like cult leader Charles Manson, and others claimed they were obsessed with Adolf Hitler, and the rise of Nazi Germany. Whatever it was that attracted ignorant teenagers to their group, it surely didn't attract the Cutter family, at all.

Neil Hamilton (to Bill): Did Nancy or John ever hear about the "Volunteers"?

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): Um, yeah I think so. John knew that there was something going on, as several of the students were in his class, dressing up the same, and in a very dark manner. They were wearing makeup, and I know some of the boys were wearing a lot of makeup, powdering their face and stuff. Nancy told me that John told her about it, and she said she wasn't surprised, given that she had dealt with teens like that in the past.

Neil Hamilton (to Bill): Specifically, what did Nancy think about the Volunteers?

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): I remember her telling Laurie to stay away from them. She told her that the girls that she had met at the domestic violence shelter, seemed to be enjoying life with drugs, partying, etc.

"anarchy"

- Some of the girls might've been at Nancy's workplace, because they were involved in a messy high school relationship with a boy. According to Natalie Cooper, she was one of them.

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): I remember being mentored for a few weeks by Miss Cutter.

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): Why?

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): Because at the time, I had a falling out with my boyfriend, Michael, and I told her, he had been hitting me, scratching me, all that stuff.

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): So you knew Nancy Cutter before, right?

Natalie Cooper (nodding her head): Yes, sir.

"anarchy"

- By the age of 16, Natalie had been in an on-and-off relationship for two years with a man named, Michael Spokane Washington. Michael was three years her senior, and had prior contact with law enforcement, with charges such as assault on a police officer, and vandalism.

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): I met Michael when I was around 13 or 14 years old. He came off to me as very eccentric. He was kind of like a bad boy, and I think all girls wanted to date the bad boy?

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): Who made the first move?

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): I did. I had a huge crush on him, and we started dating after a few months of meeting.

"anarchy"

- The relationship would be very rocky. Neither one of them were doing well in their classes. Natalie was in middle school, and Michael was about to go into the tenth grade. Michael had previously been held back that year for numerous reasons from tardiness to poor grades. The two were both from the "Volunteers" group, and would see each other outside of school. It was about two to three months into their relationship, when it began to turn abusive... very abusive.

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): What did Michael do to you when you two were alone together?

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): Michael was obsessed with dominance. He wanted to have power over me, physically, emotionally, sexually. He would beat me up a lot, he held a knife to my throat, he told me nobody would miss me if I died.

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): Did he ever sexually assault you?

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): He did, on one occasion. (pauses) I tried to get away, but I think he kept persuading me that he'd change and that he'd promise me gifts and stuff, and I kinda just stayed, I guess.

"anarchy"

- Michael didn't know Laurie. In fact, none of the Cutters knew who he was before the house fire. Nevertheless, Natalie continued to pick on Laurie from the ages of 14-16, mercilessly, along with other students. The school board did nothing, despite John Cutter's demands for action. It was now the end of 2004 and Charleston High, and people were getting read for a much needed Winter Break. For some odd reason, the relationship between Natalie and Laurie, turned around.

Neil Hamilton (to Laurie): If you can remember, and it's okay if you don't. Did you and Natalie, end up becoming friends later?

Laurie Cutter (nodding her head): Yes.

Neil Hamilton (to Laurie): And were you happy?

Laurie Cutter (nodding her head): Yes.

Neil Hamilton (to Laurie): Did you think she was your best friend, at the time?

Laurie Cutter (nodding her head): (pauses for a few seconds) Yes.

"anarchy"

- Natalie and Laurie sat at the same lunch table together, after all those moths and years of bullying, torment and harassment. Laurie felt like, finally, for once, she fit in with the crowd.

Neil Hamilton (to Maura): How was she in those final months when Natalie was kind of, socializing with her?

Maura Wilson (to Hamilton): She was so happy, like I never seen her before. I think it was just the thrill of having someone to talk to, and Natalie made it seem like she was reformed, and happy, and ready to befriend her.

Ann McCaskell (to Hamilton): Natalie Cooper is a sociopath.

"anarchy"

- Prosecutor Ann McCaskell says that Natalie manipulated Laurie into believing that she had good intentions, for something completely sinister.

Ann McCaskell (to Hamilton): I've always believed that Natalie Cooper had something to do with the attempted murder of Laurie Cutter. Natalie has no empathy for other people, and I feel like she planned for this to happen a lot sooner than what many would expect.

Neil Hamilton (confused): What would the motive be?

Ann McCaskell (to Hamilton): To me Hamilton, I believe it's the thrill of killing somebody. We found evidence on Natalie's home computer, that she had been looking up search engines such as Google, and googling "How to Commit the Perfect Murder", or "How to Wipe off DNA Evidence". In addition, she had been obsessed with murder stories. I can almost go as far as to say that she wanted to be in some type of purge so she could kill anyone and everyone.

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): Many people tell me that you befriended Laurie, the same girl you admit to assaulting and bullying for YEARS, and said that this was just to manipulate her, for the purpose of possibly committing murder.

Natalie Cooper (shaking her head): That's a lie. I wouldn't do that for over five months just to kill her. Why would I do that?

Neil Hamilton (to Natalie): So what you're saying is that you and Laurie became friends because at that ime, you wanted to make amends and no longer pick on her, and that you turned a new leaf and became the good person you should've been to her before?

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): Absolutely. And she knew that too, you can even ask her.

"anarchy"

- In the final months before May 2005, Laurie Cutter's life was actually going a lot better than what had occurred before. Although she was still getting verbally harassed by other students, the bullying seemed to lessen. Michael Spokane Washington, now aged 19, was expelled from Charleston High the year prior, and the physical assaults stopped automatically, after John Cutter threatened once more to quit his job, and possibly file a lawsuit against the school, if the board continued to be complicit. The school added more security officers, making it more difficult for people to attack Laurie, and get away with it.

Neil Hamilton (to Maura): Let's go back to the night of May 16, 2005. You said goodbye to Laurie, and less than 12 hours later, you realize something awful happened to her and her family What were your thoughts at that moment?

Maura Wilson (to Hamilton): I was devastated, and also disgusted by how it occurred as well.

(music intensifies)

News Reporter: Massachusetts Police are investigating a house fire, that some are claiming to be an arson attack. It is believed two are dead and a young girl was sent to the hospital, where she is in grave condition.

Natalie Cooper (to Hamilton): These people think I did this. It disgusts me that anyone would think that.

Ann McCaskell (to Natalie): I want to see Natalie behind bars for the rest of her life.

Bill Cutter (to Hamilton): When he did what he did, I was ready to kill the son of a bitch.

(commercial break)

Polls and Questions
Do you believe the school board tried to cover up the bullying of Laurie Cutter? Yes, and they should all be held accountable. No, I don't believe they did anything wrong, but I do believe Laurie was bullied by the students. No, Laurie wasn't bullied at all by students, which means there was nothing to cover up.

(Note: This is a fictional story. The actual Charlestown High School and its' people had no part in this story, I chose to pick a school in Suffolk County near Boston, and that was the first one I could find.)

Make sure you put your thoughts down in the comment section because I would greatly appreciate it. How's Neil Hamilton doing as a host right now? What's going on in your mind relating to the story? I'd be happy to hear it, and Part 2 will be out fairly soon. Thank you for reading! :)