A Murder-Suicide in Wyoming: The Case of Christopher Krumm
For this case, I watched an episode of Unraveled. It’s season 2 episode 3, titled ‘A Beautiful Mind.’
A professor and his girlfriend are killed by someone they trusted.
Background
Christopher Krumm was the only child of James and Carol Krumm. He loved to sail and be on the boat with his parents. He was described as shy, but very intelligent.
James, or Jim as he was referred as, was a computer science teacher at Casper College in Casper, Wyoming. Carol was a stay-at-home mom and painter. Christopher was extremely close with his mom.
Jim Krumm and Heidi Arnold
Christopher Krumm
Heartbreaking News
In the spring of 2005, Christopher was close to graduating from high school. He had just learned that he had been accepted into the School of Engineering at Colorado State University. Sadly, Carol also learned that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer, and the cancer was already advanced.
By that summer, Carol’s health had deteriorated. Christopher didn’t want to leave her side even if it meant giving up school. Carol didn’t want that for him, so he agreed to go to school and started school the next fall.
Christopher had once been shunned by his peers but seemed to thrive at school. He became friends with several guys from the church club and even moved in with them.
Carol passed away shortly before Christopher was set to take his midterms. Christopher didn’t attend Carol’s funeral. Many of those close to him believed that he couldn’t face it. Jim threw himself into work at Casper College.
The Betrayal
Several months later, around Christmas, Christopher returned home. Jim attended several breakfast outings with his colleagues and became close to another professor named Heidi Arnold.
Jim and Heidi began dating. She eventually moved in with Jim about 6 months after Carol’s death. Christopher was very angry about it. There was a lot of tension in the house when Christopher returned home. Heidi believed that Christopher hated her. She became so afraid that she mentioned to her colleagues that she didn’t want to be alone with him.
In 2009, Christopher earned his Master’s Degree in mathematical engineering. He moved back to Casper while he searched for a job. He became OCD, and would constantly scratch himself until it caused sores on his arms.
Heidi seemed to notice that Christopher couldn’t deal with the simplest everyday tasks. She was becoming uncomfortable living in the house and mentioned it to Jim.
Jim became concerned for Christopher too. He did some research and thought that Christopher should look into psychological therapy. He believed that Christopher had Asperger’s, which has very similar symptoms to Austim. This really angered Christopher, and he cut off all contact with his dad.
Christopher was excited when he learned that he was hired by one of the top engineering companies in Colorado. However, he didn’t fit in very well with his new co-workers. He felt that he was asked to do tasks that didn’t meet his potential. He was eventually fired and went on to be fired from his next several jobs.
A Downward Spiral
Christopher began to overreact about very small things, especially in his apartment in Colorado. He had been hearing a chirping noise in his bedroom, so he moved out to the living room. It ended up being the batteries in the smoke alarm needing to be changed.
Christopher began to do his own research on Asperger’s. He became convinced that this was the reason for his failures. He refused to see a doctor or be treated for it.
Christopher moved back to Casper after 2 years on his own. His hatred for Heidi seemed to increase and his relationship with Jim was almost non-existent.
In early 2011, Christopher decided to move to Connecticut to work as an electrical lineman. He was fired after only 3 months on the job.
By 2012, Christopher refused to talk to his dad. Jim didn’t even know where Christopher was living. Christopher started to have delusions. He thought that Jim’s sperm had given him Asperger’s. In May 2012, he sent his family an email. In the email, he demanded that Jim apologize for reproducing. The email went unanswered. He also wrote a suicide note that blamed Jim and the country for not castrating Jim.
The Murder-Suicide
In November 2012, Christopher packed his car with a bow and arrow and 2 hunting knives. He drove over 30 hours to Casper.
By the time he arrived, on November 30, Jim had already left for work. Christopher snuck in through the basement window. Heidi was asleep but woke up when she heard breaking glass. Heidi was able to flee the house, but Christopher chased her down. Heidi was stabbed outside the house about 18 times. He then drove to Casper College.
Christopher entered the college and walked up 3 flights of stairs. He had the bow and arrow under a blanket, which he dropped in the hallway. He entered the room where Jim was teaching and shot him in the head with an arrow. Jim was also stabbed 33 times. Christopher turned the knife on himself.
The police arrived several minutes later. Jim and Christopher were already dead.
Other
This wasn’t mentioned in the episode, but the police have referred to Jim as a hero for fighting with Christopher. Jim saved his students that day. However, I personally don’t believe Christopher would have harmed anyone else. Christopher was only angry at Jim and Heidi.
FINAL THOUGHTS
It’s heartbreaking that Jim wanted to help Christopher. However, it made things worse and maybe caused Christopher to turn on his dad. Christopher had been angry ever since his mom died. Maybe they could have done more to get him help, but at the end of the day, Christopher refused to get the help he clearly needed.
Sources
https://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/02/us/girlfriend-of-wyoming-teacher-slain-by-son-also-killed.html
https://k2radio.com/casper-police-release-details-of-chris-krumms-letters/
