The zodiac was overturned on the beach as it is not designed that way to overturn. The officers spotted him and notified the FBI. I just finished this after reading And the Sea Will Tell (a 2nd time last week). And I long ago accepted I'll never know what happened down on that island.". WebFind helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Final Argument: An Inquiry into the murders of Mac and Muff Graham on Palmyra Island by Buck Walker and Stephanie Stearns at Amazon.com. Important Note: To access all the resources on this site, use the menu buttons along the top and left side of the page. There may be some prejudice of the author against Bugliosi. Stephanie Walker Husband. Island Search Fearing for the Grahams the FBI agents traveled to Palmyra Islands to see if they had been stranded there. For myself, after arguing on behalf of thousands of defendants as a Los Angeles County Deputy Public Defender, I too now change sides, and argue on behalf of MAC and MUFF GRAHAM. The trial lawyer who represented Walker, Earle Partington, sued Bugliosi for defamation, claiming that both the book and the docudrama portrayed Partington in a negative light. Bugliosi's book 'And the Sea Will Tell,' presenting as it did a reasonably full account of the murder of 'Mac' and 'Muff' Graham on the island of Palmyra, is a compelling read. [5], Malcolm Graham's body has never been found.[6]. Also on Palmyra were Wesley G. Walker (a.k.a. The Mac and Muff Graham murders frustrated authorities until a container holding human remains washed up onshore. They had thought that Palmyra would be deserted. Brief content visible, double tap to read full content. The separate murder trials were transferred to San Francisco because of publicity in Hawaii. They started bartering their possessions for food with the other yacht owners in the area. They signed off with plans to talk again on the same day at the same time the following week. His landlord, P. Parker, said he largely kept to himself and enjoyed reading, listening to audiobooks and scouring the Internet for research. The new arrivals were Mac Graham, age 53, and his wife Eleanor, nicknamed Muff, who was slightly younger than Mac. We have provided a download link below to Firefox 2 installer. Her boyfriend, Buck Walker, was convicted of murder in June and sentenced to life in prison. He was happy sitting there listening to books on tape," she said, adding Walker contacted her by e-mail through a Craigslist ad for a rental. No one knew what happened to the owners of the yacht Sea Wind -- Malcolm and Eleanor "Muff" Graham -- until Muff Graham's bones were found on Palmyra in 1981. [2], Walker was released on parole in September 2007 at the age of 69, after serving 22 years of a life sentence, and died of a stroke on April 26, 2010 at the age of 72. Palmyra atoll was a prime destination for sailors and there were a number of people already there when Walker and Stearns arrived. He also used a chainsaw to cut down a coconut tree to get to the coconuts. Her son, Dorian Graham Muncey, 58, Macs nephew, said he was shocked to learn his aunts bones were being passed around in a law class. Please try your request again later. Walker has a date of Aug. 28 for his "projected" release from federal prison, according to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons Web site. Stearns, who sobbed as she read entries from her 1974 log to the jury about the Grahams disappearance, denied there was any feud. Palmyra was privately owned by the Fullard-Leo family until 2001, when the Nature Conservancy bought it for $37 million for preservation and research purposes. Stearns told authorities she and Walker had discovered the overturned dinghy on a beach in the lagoon and had only taken the Sea Wind to protect it from vandals. : The duo has been together since 2004. It was revealed that Buck and Stephanie had been living on the island of Palmyra as well and had known the Grahams. Graham and her husband, Malcolm Mac Graham, had disappeared on Aug. 29, 1974, after sailing about 970 miles south from Hawaii to the Palmyra atoll. It had a top-notch navigational system and plenty of supplies on board. Her body was then placed in a small metal storage container that had been removed from one of the old military rescue boats on the island and then finally dumped into the lagoon. Reviewed in Canada on March 27, 2016. Forty-fiveyears ago today, on August 30, 1974, at least one and probably two grisly murders occurred in one of the most faraway locales on planet Earth--a small Pacific atoll called Palmyra, a thousand miles south of Hawaii, which has no permanent human population. She was acquitted Friday by a federal court jury. Especially when he started talking about his plans to grow marijuana and exchange it for supplies. Besides the zodiac was with the Sea Wind when it docked in Hawaii. There was an error retrieving your Wish Lists. Defense lawyers said Walker was solely responsible for the murder and hid it from Stearns, who testified she thought the Grahams had drowned on a fishing trip, and joined Walker on a search that found the Grahams overturned dinghy but no sign of the couple. Duane Buck Walker was convicted in 1985 for the grisly murder in 1974 of a San Diego woman on an island paradise on Palmyra atoll about 1,200 miles from Honolulu. It is considered an incorporated territory of the United States and is under its sovereignty since 1911. So too, there is considerable variance between Bugliosis cross-examination as revealed in the original trial transcript re Pollock and Shoemaker and his recounting this same testimony in his book. Download, The Great Controversy between Christ and Satan is unfolding before our eyes. In 1974, a wealthy couple from San Diego, California, Malcolm "Mac" Graham III, 43, and Eleanor LaVerne "Muff" Graham, 40, sailed their 38-foot ketch, Sea Wind, to Palmyra Atoll 1,200 miles south of Honolulu hoping to find it deserted and to spend a year or more there. Some of his theory is speculative. Walker was paroled in 2007 at age 69 due to declining health after serving 22 years in federal prison and he retired to a trailer outside of Willits until he had a stroke. Use of this site signifies your agreement to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy/Your California Privacy Rights , updated March 2009. Stephanie Walker Husband. The killer was Buck Duane Walker, also known as Wesley G. Walker, a tough ex-convict and noted con artist, who had also sailed to Palmyra that summer with his girlfriend, Stephanie Stearns. A careful reading of FINAL ARGUMENT answers these, and many more questions that should have been asked, but were not. Mr. Walker and Miss Stearns turned up here in October 1974, sailing the Grahams's yacht, the Sea Wind, which they had partly disguised and repainted. "It's just covered in palm trees. California schools tried to cover up their expulsion rates. Walker receives an annual salary that ranges between $46,796, as per NBC News The night before Sanders and Wolf were to leave Palmyra they had cocktails with the Grahams aboard the Sea Wind. While researching the case of a San Diego sailing couple brutally murdered on Palmyra Island in 1974, retired L.A. deputy public defender Tom Bucy, made a surprising discovery. Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club thats right for you for free. Walker had a stroke early this year and died April 26 after several months in a nursing home, according to several friends. Walker and Stearns concluded that the Grahams had a fishing accident. She had some photos sent off to be developed while in jail and those photos were intercepted by authorities. By happenstance, two uniformed officers were eating in the same restaurant. Malcom and Eleanor Graham Extended Preparation. Read honest and unbiased product reviews from our users. On August 30, according to Stephanie Stearns, Buck Walker told her that the Grahams had invited the two of them over for dinner aboard the Sea Wind. There were other boats in the harbor. In October, the Sea Wind was recognized in a Honolulu yacht harbor with Stearns and Walker now its crew. However, when he dove off the pier he left his wallet behind. Roy and Stephanie were not prepared for life at sea and had run out of supplies pretty quickly. Try again. When Stephanie and Roy arrived they could see how the Sea Wind outshined The Iola in every way. The book was adapted into the 1991 television film And the Sea Will Tell, directed by Tommy Lee Wallace which aired on CBS as a 4-hour film. Now the island did have natural resources, such as fish, crabs, birds eggs, and coconuts, but this young couple didnt know anything about how to go about harvesting them. Stephanie indicated no saying that they had drowned or at least that is what she thought. Bugliosi professing his belief in Stearns innocence is duped by his client. Your browser's security settings are preventing some features from appearing. WebStephanie Stearns was tried separately in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California in San Francisco. WebStephanie Walker Photo Stephanie Walker Salary. Please try again. A report by Stephens Media said Walker is in "poor health.". Fearing for the Grahams the FBI agents traveled to Palmyra Islands to see if they had been stranded there. : Authorities would later identify them as Buck Duane Walker and Stephanie Stearns. The young couple had nearly run out of all their supplies. Buck Walker was not as fortunate as Stephanie and was found guilty and received a life sentence. You will then have access to all the teacher resources, using a simple drop menu structure. However, the 31-year-old weatherwoman has remained tight-lipped about her husband. There was a problem loading your book clubs. Reviewed in Australia on January 26, 2017. He told his friend that perhaps they wanted a truce. Next, she said that they left the island in the Sea Wind towing the Iola behind them. Buck Walker) and Stephanie Stearns (referred to as "Jennifer Jenkins" in the book), who had sailed there together from Hawaii on Stearns's sailing vessel Iola, a deteriorating, patched-together wooden sloop that lacked a reliable auxiliary engine. There was no sign of Mac's body. Its been grueling, Stephanie Stearns told reporters after hugging her tearful parents, who sat in the front row throughout the trial. However, the 31-year-old weatherwoman has remained tight-lipped about her husband. Bucy, who now lives in Canada, earlier had tracked down Macs sister, Mary, who was once married to the late hydroplane boat racer Bill Muncey, of La Mesa. He was recaptured in 1981 in Arizona. Authorities would later identify them as Buck Duane Walker and Stephanie Stearns. She had begun rowing to shore hoping to make it before they caught up. While in prison, Walker is said to have read extensively, studied Buddhism and corresponded with a host of people enthralled by the Palmyra case. When they arrived at the atoll, they had already eaten most of the provisions meant to last six months and had to be towed into the atoll with a broken motor. Macs friend feared the worst. Walker, 69, earned release from the U.S. Parole Commission in part because of advancing age and poor health. . In that wallet was a drivers license with Roy Allens name on it. Walker was an ex-convict fleeing a drug possession charge and had come up with the idea of growing cannabis on Palmyra to support himself. However, the 31-year-old weatherwoman has remained tight-lipped about her husband. I believe that Walker, and possibly Sterns are guilty, but other possibilities are a murder suicide (husband shoots wife and then himself), or that they really did drown, someone finding a body on the beach at some time later and burying it in a trunk. Mac Graham then took out his .357 Magnum handgun and assured the two men he could take care of himself and wasnt afraid of Roy. 12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, Maryland 20904. She had moved to Seattle, and since has died. Not long after The Iola arrived another yacht arrived in the harbor,the impressive Sea Wind. The Grahams, however, felt bad and tried to include them inviting them aboard their boat on July 5, 1974. The Iola was a wooden sailboat. Suffering from terminal cancer, he was paroled in 2007 and has since died. By this time the Grahams had been alone for 10 days with Roy and Stephanie. The murder was the basis of a best selling book And the Sea Will Tell, which was turned into a popular mini-series starring James Brolin. , Item Weight The Grahams were a happily married couple touring the world, and Mr. Graham ran his business remotely. It was a difficult case. They were flagged down by another boat owner who told them that the Coast Guard was looking at their boat the other day. Privacy Policy/Your California Privacy Rights. Including serial killers, cannibals, and mass murderers. 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So the FBI put a trace on the make and model of her car and that led them to a hotel in Nevada. Her moronic pronouncements (all of which went unnoticed) regarding the birth of the Iola (for the most part wisely left out of Bugliosis account of the trial) are absurd to the point of zaniness. The book has kept interest in the case alive. "It was a very high-profile case at the time," said Partington, who called Walker a "very bright guy, very sociable." A few hours later, the vote was changed to 10-2. And the Sea Will Tell is a true crime book by Vincent Bugliosi and Bruce Henderson. Partington doubts that authorities will release Walker, because he recently published a book claiming to be innocent. Dental records confirmed that it was Muff Graham. Her husband has never been found. Having read the clippings, the couple contacted authorities who identified the remains as those of Muff Graham. Instead, Stephanie and Buck were charged with interstate transportation of stolen property, which was a pretty open and shut case. Having Roys picture and knowing about Roy trying to grow marijuana gave the FBI a starting point in their search. Make sure you have Adobe Acrobat Reader v.5 or above installed on your computer for viewing and printing the PDF resources on this site. A graduate of the University of Michigan with a bachelor's degree in psychology, Juris Doctor degree from the San Fernando Valley College of Law. The home port for their sailboat, the Sea Wind, was a marina on Shelter Island, and they were well known in the San Diego sailing community. In 1985, Walker was convicted of murdering the Grahams and was sent to prison. The pair were desperate enough to murder the Grahams and steal their boat. Roy also noticed a Coast Guard boat in the harbor coming towards them. Her broken and bleached bones were spilling out of a half-buried metal chest that apparently had washed ashore. In June 1974, they set sail with their three dogs for the Palmyra atoll planning to spend two years there. : Bernard Lenard spotted a 38-foot ketch with distinct lines in a Honolulu marina that looked like The Sea Wind, but it had been repainted. So you have the boat that Bernard recognizes as the Sea Wind, but had been painted over and a person on deck who didnt own the yacht. They had no money and about 6 months of provisions, expecting to live off the ocean for the rest. The Palmyra Islands are primarily unoccupied but do host a transient population mostly made up of scientists and researchers. If youre traveling south from Hawaii the Palmyra Islands are approximately 1000 miles due south. Mac Graham started to explore Palmyra Islands abandoned docks and military base as that had been his purpose of wanting to visit Palmyra. As Walker's method of farming became unsustainable, he and Stearns were forced to plan a voyage in the rickety Iola, against prevailing winds and currents, to Fanning (Tabuaeran), a nearby atoll in Kiribati, to restock a voyage close to impossible without a working auxiliary engine. The federal system generally does not parole aging offenders until they reach 70 at the earliest, he said. (Most egregious were her August 5th log remarks about drooling and dreaming anticipating possession of the SEA WIND on execution of the Grahams.) Let's teach children to be unafraid. To an experienced sailor, Stearns account of her navigational skill is grossly overstated to the point where reading Bugliosis book And The Sea Will Tell becomes an exercise that tests ones patience. It adds much needed objective, incisive analysis of Stephanie Stearns' role in the murders, which was absent from Bugliosi's books "And The Sea Will Tell," which I also read. Read this book - if you read only one book about the Palmyra Murders, read Tom Bucy's "Final Argument"! In 1981, other visitors to Palmyra found Muff Graham's skeletal remains, which showed signs of dismemberment and burning (possibly by Mac Graham's acetylene welding torch) and appeared to have been concealed underwater in a large metal container. Time and again she is exposed as a liar and a perjurer, yet the jury forgives lie after lie all the while ignoring the honest and forthright testimony of the Pollocks (The LEONARDS in ATSWT.) On August 30, according to Stephanie Stearns, Buck Walker told her that the Grahams had invited the two of them over for dinner aboard the Sea Wind. Final Argument: An Inquiry into the murders of Mac and Muff Graham on Palmyra Island by Buck Walker and Stephanie Stearns Paperback May 1, 2014 by Tom Bucy (Author) 37 ratings See all formats and editions Kindle $5.99 Read with Our Free App Paperback $24.95 2 Used from $22.50 6 New from $23.02 Investigators assumed Mac was in the other box, which for some reason never floated up. Unfortunately, because of Enokis refusal to allow Bugliosis tidal data into the trial, the jury was deprived of this information. He had been awaiting sentencing on a drug conviction when he and Stephanie had absconded on The Iola. Dark came, no sign of them. Its been grueling, Stephanie Stearns told reporters after hugging her tearful parents, who sat in the front row throughout the trial. In that first e-mail, Walker said Parker wrote, "I wonder if you would consider renting to an old man who has been wrongly convicted of murder.". Stephanie Stearns was tried separately in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California in San Francisco. The box had been wired shut. As of 2014, Muffs remains are still in FBI custody, 28 years after Stephanies acquittal and Bucks conviction for her murder. He felt that something had happened to Mac and Muff Graham and that Roy and Stephanie were behind it. Because no bodies were found, Walker and Stearns were initially prosecuted only for the yacht theft and convicted in August 1975. Months passed with no word or sighting of the Grahams. The pair were desperate enough to murder the Grahams and steal their boat. [3] Prior to his death, Walker had been living in a trailer home in Willits, California. We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. Stephanie and Buck were charged with the murder of Muff Graham. If released, Walker would normally be returned to the place he was tried, Honolulu. The author makes some fair points but doesn't address any other possibilities in the deaths of Mac and Muff Graham. According to trial testimony, the Iola was not considered seaworthy and would not have made it even to Fanning Island about 175 miles away, the nearest location for equipment and supplies. Teach important lessons with our PowerPoint-enhanced stories of the pioneers! Stearns and Walker were convicted in 1977 of the theft of the Sea Wind, theft of certain personal property of the Grahams aboard the Sea Wind, and transportation of stolen property in interstate commerce. Stearns was acquitted of the murder and Walker was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. For the past 10 days, he had been hiding out in the lava flows on the big island of Hawaii. This act aroused suspicion; acquaintances of the Grahams easily recognized the distinctive Sea Wind despite its new paint job. Although authorities strongly suspected the couple had murdered the Grahams, no bodies were found. Both were charged with murdering Eleanor Muff Graham of San Diego, who disappeared along with her husband, Malcolm, from Palmyra atoll in August, 1974. On August 28, 1974, during the last radio contact anyone had from the Grahams, Mac told the radio operator there is a dinghy coming over to the boat, I guess theyve made a truce. After a brief pause the radio operator said, I heard a womans voice, and there was laughter, then Mac said, I better find out whats happening. Mac signed off at that point. This was the last time anyone heard from the Grahams. Supposedly Walker killed him in self defense after Mac killed his wife. Buck Walker was paroled from federal prison in 2007. After WWII the Palmyra Islands are mostly used as a stopover point for sailors traveling to Samoa. He was incarcerated at United States Penitentiary, Victorville, in California. Bucy was amazed that the remains of slain sailor Eleanor Muff Graham remained unclaimed in FBI storage so long after the trial instead of receiving a proper burial, and he vowed to do something about it. The FBI took Roys photo to the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) who recognized the picture as that of Buck Walker whom the DEA was also searching for. Walker was found guilty in 1985. She is merely married to her beloved husband whose identity is not known. Sanders had a run-in with Roy where he tried to give him some advice regarding his boat and suggested he and Stephanie set sail for Samoa for more supplies. She was acquitted Friday by a federal court jury. Stearns was acquitted, and her attorney, Vincent Bugliosi, wrote a book about the case, "And the Sea Will Tell," made into a 1991 TV movie starring James Brolin as Graham. Their boats were anchored in a lagoon near each other, and the couples inevitably came into conflict. Column: Did Dion Rich crash his own celebration of life? The agent didnt feel that this would involve the FBI because perhaps the owners had sold the boat or the owners were onshore. : Who was Stephanie Stearns in and the sea will tell? Stephanies Miranda rights were read to her, but she didnt heed the warning about her right to remain silent and begins to repeat what she told Bernard Lennard. He was set free Tuesday from prison in Victorville, Calif., although he wasn't up for mandatory release until 2018. In his zeal to prove Stearns innocence, inadvertently, Bugliosi set forth clue after clue proving the guilt of Stearns and her crime partner, Buck Walker. The Grahams had a prearranged radio contact schedule established with an operator in Hawaii. It also sparked a TV miniseries by the same name starring James Brolin and Rachel Ward. : Its been grueling, Stephanie Stearns told reporters after hugging her tearful parents, who sat in the front row throughout the trial. Buck and Stephanies trials were held separately in San Francisco due to the publicity the Graham case had in the media. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness. Copyright 2023 Ellen G. White Estate, Inc. You'll never find him." Authorities found out that a woman had visited Buck the day before his escape. The Iola owners also had very few provisions along with them. Bernard immediately contacted The Coast Guard who had been aware of the search for The Sea Wind. Stephanie Walker Salary. Get your hands on this collection of 30 true crime stories. Do you love reading true crime? Buck was taken into custody on the fugitive warrant without incident. Buck Duane Walker was a convicted felon and fugitive. Bugliosis book identified an older sister, Dorothy Young, of La Mesa. Enter youremail to subscribe to Dr. Munger's updates! In January 1981 a South African couple visiting the atoll, found a human skull and other bones that had apparently fallen out of a World War II vintage metal box washed up on the beach after a storm. She was acquitted Friday by a federal court jury. They found nothing, but sharks. Now Vincent Bugliosi was known for his prosecution of Charles Manson and Mason family members of the Tate-LiBianca murders. She most likely changed her name multiple times again over the years. Walker lived off his Social Security check and paid $400 a month in rent. Wesley Walker (AKA Buck) Stephanie Stearns Buck and Stephanie They buy a boat that had sunk and was raised from the harbor in Maui. : During the years following the Grahams disappearance, Palmyra atoll visitors had maintained a stack of newspaper clippings about the incident in a jungle shack. FINAL ARGUMENT exposes lie after compounded lie, set forth as truth in Bugliosis version of the facts surrounding the murder of the Grahams on Palmyra the August of 1974. Walker, then known as Buck Duane Walker, and his girlfriend, Stephanie Stearns, were arrested in Honolulu in 1974 after returning from Palmyra aboard a yacht stolen from a well-to-do San Diego couple, Malcolm "Mac" Graham and his wife, Eleanor "Muff" Graham. Stearns was pretty easy to get along with so most of the conflict came from Walker. The jury believed the defenses theory that it was Buck who acted alone and concealed what he did from her.