Okay, Where Is William Bradford Bishop Jr. Hiding?

 

 

To try a horoscope reading in a missing persons case, I decided to use the case of William Bradford Bishop, a former Maryland man who was once a secret service agent. He disappeared in March of 1976 after the brutal murder of his wife, mother, and three sons. Several months ago, there was a question as to whether or not Bishop had died in Alabama and been buried, unidentified, but this was not the case.

 

The first house, the house of personality, shows the five of pentacles reversed. Bishop was the type of person who unable to settle for something he did not consider ideal, and he also got bored easily with any type of "status quo". Also, while there is no talk of extramarital affairs, he was not above having one and hiding it. The second house, money and possessions, gives up the ten of swords. Not only did Bishop commit an act of violence, he effectively ended his claim to everything for which he had worked, thus far, in his life. The third house, that of communication and short journeys, gives us Temperance. Bishop had, apparently, planned this event more than anyone suspected, and his next moves and communications were with people who did not know who he actually is, and were unacquainted with his family. The next card bothers me a bit: in the fourth house of home and environment, the Lovers comes up! This is almost self explanatory. Bishop had a lover waiting in the wings. This not only gave him a cover, but gave him a false alibi.

 

In the fifth house, the house of children, creativity, and romantic relationships, the High Priestess reversed appears to tell us that Bishop is just as shallow now as he was while married. This also points to a strong possibility that he never told his new lover his real name. Secrets; unhealthy secrets. House number six reveals the two of swords, stalemating Bishop's health, somehow, and his day to day affairs. Somehow, keeping secrets was not always amenable to moving forward in life. The seventh house, marriage and partnerships, gives us the moon. This is desire, laced with deception. Anyone this man loved heard lies, not the truth. House number eight controls joint finances, wills, and matters connected to death, and here, we get the five of cups. It shows regret, plainly and simply. Also, there is a suggestion that there is something material that Bishop would like to claim, but unless he comes clean about his new identity, it remains unattainable to him. A direct, oppositional path to the ten of swords, where he became violent and ended his career as William Bradford Bishop, is very telling.

 

The ninth house, dealing with life on life's terms, and also with long journeys, shows Strength, reversed. Bishop's style, when met with opposition, was obviously to abuse whatever authority he had, or any person who stood in his way. But where did he go? Strength reversed usually refers stalled projects and things that go nowhere. It has been speculated that Bishop relocated to Europe, but if so, would be associated with a port or a harbor frequented by pirates and criminals. Human trafficking is also suggested when Strength falls reversed. He has spent a lot of time in seaside towns and seedy places.

 

The Knight of Wands comes up in the tenth house, of worldly status, reputation, and career. Under an identity that isn't real, Bishop has established himself as a businessman who is "always on the move". Also, fire is the element associated with wands, it's possible that he is somehow involved in shipping oil. Perhaps one of his haunts was in the middle east, at one point or another. The suggestion is that he is still active in his secondary career, too. In the eleventh house, that of hopes and wishes, we have the Sun, which is success in all undertakings. In Bishop's case, this is simply getting away with murder. The twelfth house, of subconscious, hospitals, and death, produces the four of pentacles, reversed. Here we see more obstacles and setbacks. It appears that a life of crime under a false identity, lived largely on the lam, does not have the best retirement plan. The four of pentacles is all about hoarding and saving when it falls upside right, but upside down, it screams "waste". Another thing that is addressed by the twelfth house is self-undoing. I believe this describes Bishop's own undoing to an extent: when Bishop committed his special crime in 1976, there was no such thing as DNA evidence. He left enough DNA of his own behind for authorities to create a profile for him. He left enough DNA at both crime scenes, his home in Maryland and the place in North Carolina where he hid his family after he murdered them, to place him at both. He obviously did not expect science to progress so quickly in the area of forensic application. So....Bishop will, one day, be identified.

Who Killed Tracy Lynn Kirkpatrick

On March 15, 1989, seventeen year old Tracy Kirkpatrick was found stabbed to death at her Frederick, Maryland part time job at a shopping center. My question for the cards is "who killed Tracy, and will there be justice?"

The first two cards here are Temperance, crossed by the two of swords. This shows that there was a harmonious partnership and combination in Tracy's life, and the two of swords is a card of temporary truces and stalemates, so this would hardly fit in with the scenario of harmony! Unless....someone was quietly waiting for mishaps or relationship problems, in order to influence Tracy's decisions. This gives us a basic backdrop, of sorts, for exchange that led to the murder.

We find the five of cups beneath this. This is rejection and disappointment, with the rejected party failing to look at anything else. It is also cited here as a motive. The next card is the Moon, which is mystery, betrayal, deceit, and actions carried out under the cover of darkness, both literal and figurative. The ace of swords follows of the heels of the Moon, and it describes force, lots of force, both in love and hatred. This card often appears in readings about subjects who have been stabbed. Following this, we have the Hierophant. The Hierophant is the card of the conformist, and here, I think we are being told that the murderer is someone who can conform very well, and pretend to be an upstanding member of society. He has the "cover" of social approval, and over twenty-six years, has not had one worry about accountability. Not one. 

The state of the investigation right now is described by the Fool, the card of beginnings. This gives us all an idea of where the investigation of Tracy Kirkpatrick's murder actually sits. It has not actually taken any direction, toward any viable suspect, and this suspect is still at large. The card which is given to describe public opinion, and the surrounding details of investigators, themselves, is the eight of pentacles, reversed. This is no surprise. When the eight of pentacles falls reversed, it speaks of lackluster work done by lazy, untalented people. The seven of swords reversed in the place of hopes shows us a snapshot of Tracy's community hoping that someone competent will one day start the process for justice in this case. The last card is the eight of cups, showing that justice will be delayed indefinitely unless the community gives the police in Maryland a lot of pressure to make an arrest.

Where Is Michaela Garecht?

In November of 1988, Michaela Garecht was outside of a store, looking for her schooter, which she had initially forgotten, and when she spotted it, was grabbed by a man reaching out of a car! Her friend went back inside the store to call for help, but the man got away, taking Michaela. I will see what a reading will tell us.

This reading begins with the five of pentacles, reversed, crossed by the three of swords. One of the sidebar references of the five of pentacles is lovers lacking a place to meet, and reversed, it would simply mean the opposite, except that the place found by these lovers would be clandestine and possibly illicit. In fact, the whole relationship might be rather illicit. But here it is, part of the basis for the question of what happened to Michaela. Crossing it is the three of swords, and this speaks to a lovers' quarrel! A quarrel involving a break-up, and possibly one party compromising the other party in some way. 

So what does all this have to do with Michaela Garecht? In the background, we find the two of pentacles, which tells us that the person who actually grabbed Michaela was in the process of either of moving from one residence, relationship, or job to another; possibly all three. This person was able to mask any feelings of difficulty, and pretend that he did not have any stresses, even when he did. Following it is the Chariot, which reiterates what we've seen in the two of pentacles somewhat, but the Chariot is from the major arcana, while the two of pentacles is a minor arcana card. This tells me that the circumstances of change in this person's life were not his choice, but imposed upon him, either by circumstances, or by other people. There is also an air of hunter/hunted and chasing down quarry here. Revenge is sometimes indicated with this card, too. This man was hunting.

The next card is the two of swords. The hunting trip, despite it's success, somehow did not proceed as planned. The perpetrator was actually spooked into indecision for a short time by something. That "something" may have been law enforcement, or threats of law enforcement, judging by the predominance in this reading of cards from the suit of swords, and the three of swords in particular. The perpetrator may have had to hide or "lay low" for a few days in order to avoid getting noticed. What comes next is what bothers me the most in this reading: the ten of swords. This is a violent card, describing a violent end. I wish there was some better news, here.

The Emperor shows up in the fears of the perpetrator. He is a person who is afraid of parents, particularly fathers. Something that others see in the perpetrator, and remember about him, is that he mooches, almost never truly pays his own way in life, and has trouble working at any job......so says the six of pentacles, reversed. Following this is the ten of wands, reversed, suggesting that the perpetrator may have won a lawsuit using false testimony or fake evidence, or may have committed fraud and gotten away with it. The last card is the King of Wands, reversed. This suggests a bitter, stubborn, violent man who must have everything his own way. He is between the ages of fifty and sixty, (give or take a couple of years) and had reddish or blond hair as a young man. The suggestion of the reading is that he is still at large. Perhaps that is why the cards have focused on him so much in this reading. The swords seem to be pointing east, for a location for Michaela, as that is the direction of air. Also, the reversed six of pentacles suggests that Michaela may have initially been buried, but the geology of the area somehow changed. It is not possible to get an address from the Tarot, but it does not appear that Michaela was taken far away. I would expect that she is still within the general area, near Hayward California.

Kelsie Jean Schelling

What happened to Kelsie Jean Schelling, and where is she? It has been two years since she was last seen, in Pueblo, Colorado. She disappeared on February 4, 2013, and her car was found a week later. 

The reading starts with the basis of the eight of swords, crossed by the Queen of Pentacles. This beginning already looks like the story of being trapped somewhere; the Queen here is a dark haired woman, possibly Kelsie, herself. The eight of swords is a card of forced inertia....inability to move in any direction. As a location, a run-off stream or drainage pond is suggested. I would expect to find a few buildings nearby, but not close enough to see the water clearly.

Beneath this, as a precursor of the action that led to this situation, we have the Page of Pentacles. Pages are sometimes messages, sometimes ideas, and sometimes young people. I think that the card is referring to the last phone call she made, or the last message she left, when she parked her car in Pueblo. Someone she knew was even anticipating her call. This is followed by the Emperor. The Emperor is the "father" card in the Tarot, and this is a person whose actions here were motivated by the energies associated with fatherhood. It is noted that Kelsie was about eight weeks pregnant at this time, so it is possible that the Page of Pentacles has a double meaning as a message/phone call and Kelsie's pregnancy. The next card is the two of swords, which is a stalemate. There was a disagreement over something, and no compromise was reached. And....I do not like what I see next; the ace of swords. Someone forced his will in the disagreement. 

The staff appears to show us how the perpetrator thinks in this case. It starts with his fears; represented by Justice. This person is worried about justice. It's another card I do not like to see in 

this position, because it's telling us that there is someone out there who is concerned about 

getting "found out". The next card, describing this person's actions and surroundings, is the seven of swords, reversed. He made sure that he left no clues in any obvious place. The next card is the Page of Wands, reversed. This represents bad news, and it is in the place of fears, so it means that this person is deeply worried about the news that information has been discovered about Kelsie. And the last card is the Empress. This card often appears in a reading for a pregnant woman, or for a mother. The Emperor also appeared in this reading. I think we can safely assume that parental energies played a role in the dynamics. Also, instruction and possibly counsel are alternative meanings of the seven of swords when it falls reversed. In addition to a suggestion that the perpetrator has "lawyered up" already, it's quite possible that one other person, besides the perpetrator, knows what happened to Kelsie, and may have even assisted in some small way and left evidence behind. There is also a woman pushing very hard for Kelsie to be found, another double meaning here; this time, the Empress. Also, with the Empress, I am getting a picture of seeds and planting...perhaps that somehow becomes a factor in finding Kelsie. The strongest compass direction I see in this reading is east, suggested by the heavy presence of swords.  I wish the outlook had been more positive. I will keep Kelsie in my prayers.