All Along the Watchtower, Murder at Fort Devens, by William J. Craig offers a penetrating look into the controversy that enshrouds one of the most complex criminal cases in US history. On a dreary winter afternoon in Ayer, Massachusetts, a quintessential New England town, the type which is romanticized in Robert Frost’s poems. On January 30, 1979, in her off post apartment, Elaine Tyree, a mother, wife, and US Army soldier had her life brutally ripped away from her.
in the following weeks her husband and Green Beret soldier William Tyree and another soldier were arrested and subsequently convicted if her murder, which her husband has always vehemently denied any involvement in.
Some elements of the case seem to have chilling echoes of the Jeffrey MacDonald case made famous in the book and film “Fatal Vision”. As in the MacDonald case, the case against William Tyree and Erik Aarhus raises questions as to whether the government and military suppressed evidence that could prove his innocence.
William J. Craig goes in depth and takes a hard look at the case from the moment Elaine’s body was discovered right through to the conviction of both men. He raises questions of judicial misconduct, government mis conduct and cover ups, clandestine Black Ops by the military and various conspiracy theories ultimately implicating “Deep State” involvement. Through his in depth analysis of this case he exposes truths that the government wants to keep buried.
William J. Craig grew up in Revere, Massachusetts. He has served in the US Army and in the US Air Force. He received his Bachelors degree in history from Gordon college, located in Wenham, massachusetts. He has written other books for Arcadia Publishing, Fonthill Media, and History Press, he has also worked as a technical advisor, script writer and executive producer within the television industry. He currently resides in Kansas City, Missouri with his two daughters.
Mr. Craig is also a sought after speaker and lecturer. He has lectured at the Boston Public Library and the US Naval War College as well as many other various organizations. His lecturers and speaking engagements cover a variety of topics.
Every lecture and speaking engagement that he gives he interacts with the audience and keeps them engaged to ensure his message is delivered and received by his audience.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW IF YOU HAVEN’T READ THE BOOK
Synopsis
William Tyree had grown up for all tense and purposes as a US Army brat. He enlisted at the age of 17 in the paratroopers and served with the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg. While stationed in North Carolina, he was selected to participate in several top secret operations in Central America, which were aptly named Operation Watchtower. These operations involved the unsanctioned use of US Special forces and Airborne soldiers to assist CIA drug trafficking. These operations were part of the larger IRAN/ CONTRA AFFAIR.
Mr. Tyree was later injured in a training accident and discharged. He returns home and works a series of odd jobs before he eventually re-enlists in the Army. Once he re-enlists he is sent to a post in Virginia where he awaits assignment to the 10th SFG (A) at Fort Devens, in Massachusetts. While in Virginia he meets a female soldier named Elaine Hebb. The two quickly fell in love and were soon married.
While at Fort Devens, Tyree begins hanging around with several unsavory soldiers who have reputations for being involved in criminal activity on the post. Elaine Tyree unbeknownst to her husband began keeping two sets of diaries. One diary contains her private thoughts, the other contained any and all gossip about criminal activity and secret operations that she overheard from others on post. Everything seems to come to a head when Bill Tyree request to be reassigned from an illegal operation that involved spying on US citizens. Once this request is made his life begins to unravel. First he and his wife start to receive threatening telephone calls. He then comes under scrutiny during a CID investigation. The aforementioned events culminate when others discover that his wife is about to process out of the Army and that she has been keeping diaries on criminal activity.
When Elaine Tyree is found murdered, her husband is closely watched by the military. Approximately three weeks after the murder, Bill informs the Army CID that a soldier has the weapon that killed his wife. The CID agents immediately search the barracks and discover the murder weapon wrapped in plastic covered in blood and under a pillow on the bed of a soldier,
This was when Bill was arrested with the other soldier who was a known drug addict and had been previously cleared by investigators. The Probable cause hearing took place at the Ayer Court House, The presiding judge quickly realized the fix was in when the witnesses testimony seemed coached. The judge was able to discover that the Ayer Police Chief had coached at least three witnesses. Then the judge noticed that the states top witness seemed to be hiding something. The Judge decided to ask him questions. After the judge interrogated him it brought to close the longest probable cause hearing in Massachusetts history. The judge handed down a ruling that the witness Earl Michael Peters was to be charged with Conspiracy and Murder, Erik Aarhus was to be charged with Conspiracy and Accessory and Bill Tyree was charged with Obstruction after the fact.
Unbeknownst to all involved there had been a secret grand jury indictment against Tyree and Aarhus. The judge was coerced into changing his findings and Earl Michael Peters would not be charged. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court had entered an order that no one could be arrested in this case without there say so. Tyree and Aarhus were convicted and sentenced to life in prison.
It was later discovered that the Ayer Courthouse had been under surveillance the entire time of the Probable Cause Hearing and that the state and law enforcement did not disclose this fact till months later. Further Bill Tyree discovered that the police never got a search warrant for his apartment and his property was never inventoried or returned to him.
Over the years several people have investigated the case along with several mysterious documents that have surfaced raising doubt as to whether or not justice was served.
WHY THIS CASE IS IMPORTANT
- William Tyree and Eric Aarhus have spent over 40 years in prison for a murder they didn’t commit.
- The Ayer Police Department was involved in criminal activity at this time and coerced testimony in another case to get another man imprisoned for a murder he never committed.
- The former Fort Devens Commander has even discovered that he was lied to by CID investigators as they had already taken possession of the murder weapon before they had received authorization to search the room.When he tried to address this issue 40 years later the US Army and Massachusetts Courts have refused to address the issue.
- CID investigators had no jurisdiction in this case yet they involved themselves. They also had previous interactions with Tyree who refused to cooperate with them in a prior investigation which was a conflict of interest.
- Former Senator John Kerry was the Assistant District Attorney who sought the secret grand jury indictment against Tyree and also the same head of the Kerry Commission who investigated Iran Contra.
- Erik Aarhus was a known drug addict yet investigators questioned him and took his statement of involvement while he was incapable of understanding what he was admitting to.
- Most importantly police misconduct, sloppy and poorly conducted investigation and judicial coverups all for the sake of concealing unsanctioned CIA operations needs to be exposed publicly.
- How many coincidences before the mathematical probability is impossible.
INTERVIEW TOPICS AND FOCUS
- How Tyree has been able over the years to prove that his military record was cleansed and that he is not a liar.
- What the problems were with the murder investigation and the absurd mistakes and attempts to cover up the governments illegal activity with regards to narcotics trafficking.
- The military’s refusal to address the contrary findings by multiple private investigations in this case over the years.
- The Constitutional implications of corrupt law enforcement officials, and the American Justice System that is complicit in the imprisonment of two innocent men.
- How Tyree eventually discovered what happened to the diaries that his wife once kept in their apartment.
- Violations of civil rights and liberties were American citizens are concerned.
SAMPLE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
- How did you get involved with this case?
- What in your opinion is the biggest issue surrounding this case?
- How does this case impact the average American?
- What were the failures during the initial investigation by the police?
- What types of coercion did you find present during your investigation?
Author William J Craig 