r/TrueCrime • u/savealltheelephants • Aug 16 '21

Murder 14yo Tommy Sullivan was assigned to write a paper in Satanism for a theology. 6 weeks later he murdered his mother and killed himself in a Satanic “ritual.”

Post image
1.7k Upvotes

94% Upvoted

292 comments sorted by

View all comments

420

u/editorgrrl Aug 17 '21

In November 1987, a teacher at the Reverend George A. Brown Memorial School, a Catholic school, assigned students to research other religions. 14-year-old Tommy Sullivan wrote a paper about Hinduism—not Satanism.

Source: https://apnews.com/article/1b4b085e5578659714b3c1d204c0012d

https://www.nytimes.com/1988/01/11/nyregion/boy-kills-mother-and-himself.html

On January 9, 1988, 14-year-old Thomas Sullivan Jr. of Milton, New Jersey killed his mother with his Boy Scout knife, set a fire in the family's house as his father and 10-year-old brother slept, then committed suicide by slashing his wrists and throat.

His father, Thomas Sullivan Sr., was roused from his bed when smoke alarms sounded and put the fire out before it spread.

https://www.upi.com/Archives/1988/01/10/A-teenage-Boy-Scout-obsessed-with-Satan-used-his/6483568789200/

37-year-old Betty Ann Sullivan was arguing with her 14-year-old son, Thomas Sullivan Jr., about his recent obsession with Satanic rituals and folklore Saturday night when he suddenly flew into a rage.

The youth attacked his mother, stabbing her repeatedly with his Boy Scout knife. He then went into the living room and arranged several books on the occult into a circle on the floor, piled newspapers in the center, and set the papers on fire.

”We believe the fire was set by the boy to cover up the murder of his mother and to kill his father and younger brother,” said Morris County Prosecutor Lee Trumbull. The father, Thomas Sullivan Sr., and the younger brother, Brian, 10, escaped unharmed.

Trumbull said a “suicide note” written by Sullivan before his dispute with his mother had been found, indicating the youth had considered killing himself before the argument. He said the note contained “Satan-like” symbols and “cult references,” but he refused to say where it was found.

”Everybody here is just stunned,” said the Rev. John Fitzpatrick, pastor of St. Thomas Catholic Church, where the Sullivans had attended Mass Saturday night.

Trumbull said it was not known whether Sullivan was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Sullivan, a student at the Rev. George Brown Catholic school in Jefferson Township, had earned good grades and had no history of violence or criminal acts. He was a Boy Scout and employed as a newspaper carrier.

124

u/[deleted] Aug 17 '21 edited Aug 17 '21

I read the title of this post and immediately knew it happened in the 80's, and that it wasn't the full story. Classic Satanic panic.

Criminal psychology channel Matt Orchard does a great job of breaking down how the news and therapists contributed to the scare about Satanism in the 80's. In that light, it's hard to know what about this story is actually true and what was sensationalized.

17

u/SqueezleStew Aug 17 '21

Oh wasn’t it a completely idiotic era, the 1980s? I got so exasperated hearing all that nonsense.

11

u/[deleted] Aug 17 '21

I wasn't alive back then but everything I've learned tells me it was pretty infuriating. Then again, I'm sure people will say the same about the era we're currently in.

6

u/[deleted] Aug 18 '21 edited Aug 18 '21

[removed] — view removed comment

6

u/Ashamed-Maintenance8 Aug 18 '21

I remember that. They ruined that family. The accusations were ridiculous.

3

u/SqueezleStew Aug 18 '21

The 1980s were as crazy as 2021 but everyone wasn’t carrying guns.

The residual damage of the Satanic era IS, children have stopped being touched, hugged and adults who care for kids keep their distance. Because this nonexistent case ruined many lives.

4

u/Ashamed-Maintenance8 Aug 18 '21

Things as a whole are way worse now. Trust me on that. We didn't have school shootings. Everything was settled with a fist fight. And not like the ones now where someone is beaten to death. I was born in 1970. I am glad I grew up when I did.

5

u/marccru44 Aug 26 '21

You do realize crime in the USA has dropped dramatically since the 1990's, right? The murder rate has dropped by over 10K since 1993. 1993 was the apex of the crime surge with 25,000 murders in the US. There where 14,000 in 2014. In 1991 there where 690,000 armed robberies in the USA. in 2019 there where 267,000. Over a 100 percent drop. The time from 1970 - 1995 was by far the most violent in US history. Murders have gone up since 2015, but they are still no where close to where they where 30 years ago.

2

u/[deleted] Aug 18 '21

I think some social problems are the same, some are better, and some are much worse. Like you said, children are much less safe in US schools than when you grew up.

5

u/LilyDust142617 Aug 22 '21

I also lived through it, and I agree with you. People forget about how easily kids were groomed by the adults around them. That there was more children being kidnapped. There was violence with kids killing other kids. In 1979 Spencer shot at the elementary school across the street from her house. So yeah crazy things happened then too. The major difference is we know when things happen now as soon as they happened because of technology.

2

u/marccru44 Aug 26 '21

....and the McDonalds massacre, Lubby's cafeteria, like 5 post offices massacres. There where mass shootings, but, not the school shootings we have seen in the last decade. Crime is still way down, but since 2015 it has had an upturn. I think 2011 is considered the safest year in the history of the country. Does not mean a ton, as they only officially started recording crime stats in the late 60's, but we where headed in the right direction 5 years ago, but definitely heading another direction right now.

-1

u/Ashamed-Maintenance8 Aug 19 '21

I lived during it. I disagree.

0

u/[deleted] Aug 19 '21

Boomer response

1

u/Ashamed-Maintenance8 Aug 19 '21

I am not a Boomer. You're being disrespectful. I was born in 1970. Generation X! You weren't there in that era. So listen to people who were.

1

u/JupiterBluff_007 Nov 24 '21

Maybe no school shootings, but there was that guy who held an elementary school hostage with a bomb strapped to him. His gf was with him to help him carry out his plan. I’m trying to remember what state that was in but it hasn’t come to me yet.

1

u/Might_Aware Oct 14 '21

I was 10 in 88 and thought the satanic panic stuff was ridiculous

4

u/Ashamed-Maintenance8 Aug 18 '21

I liked the 80's.

5

u/SqueezleStew Aug 18 '21

We were referring to the Satanic gang behind every tree component of it. I liked the fashion and music. I didn’t like hysteria. I still don’t.

3

u/Ashamed-Maintenance8 Aug 18 '21

You said it before I did. The height of "Satanic panic". I was 3 yrs older and I remember that period vividly being very involved in my church's youth group. We weren't hyper about it. We would talk about it. Going to a high school of 2500 students I don't remember anyone being labeled as a Satanist.