Is it possible that Evil is a Contagion?

Could someone be touched by evil and be affected by it later in life? We know there are diseases that are considered contagions that are passed by contact or indirect contact, so is it possible for someone's fate to be affected the same way by coming into contact or indirect contact with evil?

In some cases it would certainly seem so.

In 1985 a woman commits suicide by putting two bullets into her brain. Janice Self, 27, who shot herself Feb. 25 in Delbert Bryan's bedroom. Police said Delbert was questioned at that time but passed a lie detector test and the medical examiner ruled the death a suicide.

Six months later Aug. 19 Delbert L. Bryan, 33, Audelia Davis, 19, and Tammy L. Wright, 22, were found shot to death in Bryan's north Houston apartment. The nude bodies of Audelia Davis and Tammy L. Wright were found in the bathroom. Both had been shot in the head. The body of Delbert L. Bryan was found on the floor of the livingroom in the ransacked apartment. He, too, had been shot in the head. The 2-year-old daughter of Tammy Wright was alone in the apartment for hours before police found the bodies. They found the little girl Jennifer uninjured with red stains on her extremities from walking around the bloody crime scene, hungry and wearing a dirty diaper.

Only a few days before Tammy died in August 1985, she called her father and told him she was leaving her boyfriend, telling him he'd been abusive. Tammy's parents Charlie and Norma asked her to come stay with them. Tammy, known to be tough and independent, seemed to want to handle the situation on her own. She told them she'd go to a friend's home and that she might come over in a few days. Family members recall that Tammy's boyfriend may have attempted to break in to the friend's home where she was staying, landing him in jail and later eliminating him as a suspect in her death.

This case remains unsolved. Police need public's help Anyone with information about Tammy Wright's 1985 murder is urged to call the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600.

Police said Janice Self's death and the triple slaying are not connected.

Almost 27 years later on May 19, 2012, police discovered now-28-year-old Jennifer McKinley daughter of Tammy L.Wright murdered in her Kingwood apartment. Investigators would later tell the family that McKinley's 8-year-old son Ben was home during the killing. The boy was asleep in his bedroom not knowing that his mother lay dead, strangled and beaten by her longtime live in boyfriend, in another bedroom of their apartment.

After leaving work on Friday, Erick Erminger went with a friend to a bar off U.S. 59 and Greens Road, where he played pool and drank beer. Erminger became inebriated and called his girlfriend Jennifer to pick him up. The couple drove home, and McKinley tucked her son into bed. Then McKinley joined Erminger in their bedroom, where they argued during that time he subsequently killed her. Erminger told police that he went back to bed and woke up around 9 a.m. to find Jennifer dead.

In the morning, Erminger called his mother and confessed to killing McKinley. He also allegedly threatened suicide. The mother called the authorities and when police arrived, Jennifer's body was on her bedroom floor, on a makeshift pallet with blankets and a pillow, as if she were still sleeping.

Police took Erminger in for questioning. Erminger claims some kind of alcoholic amnesia. He claims he doesn’t remember what about or why they were arguing, but he says, "Yeah, I killed her." Medical examiners determined she died from strangulation and blunt force trauma. On her arms, they also found older bruises that were determined to be caused by Erminger during a previous argument.

Family members say Erminger was physically and emotionally abusive toward Jennifer during their four-year relationship. Friends and family who knew of the abuse pleaded with Jennifer to leave him several times before.

None of these cases are directly related however they are indirectly as all of the victims had been connected to each prior victim. Is it possible that evil had marked them to visit them at a later date when they were in the presence of an evil act in the past and escaped death? As relative as they are they are not meant for entertainment purposes but they do beg the question is evil a contagion to fate? Cases similar to this are out there and could even be the inspiration for the "Final Destination" films. 

I don't know if there is any underlying factor that may connect victims by evil encounters. There is certainly no evidence supporting this thought. What I do know is that I have a personal connection to one of the victims and by writing this post I am taking a step in the direction of acceptance of my friends untimely death. In this way I am beginning my journey to heal by sharing my thoughts of this experience. My only hope is to help others who knew these victims to heal as well as asking those who did not know them to never let them be forgotten.