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Murder of Christopher Marquis

In 1998, during the early days of online commerce, Chris Dean purchased a CB radio online for 400 dollars. When the package arrived, he quickly discovered that he was ripped off as the seller, 17-year-old Christopher Marquis, sent him a cheaper model than what he paid for.

Dean tried to reach out to Marquis and resolve the issue, but Marquis blew him off.

Dean wanted revenge and mailed a little surprise from Mansfield, Ohio to Dean’s home in Fair Haven, Vermont via the United Parcel Service (UPS). After the package was delivered on March 19th, 1998, Marquis’ mom picked it up, took it into the home, and handed it to her son. Curious what was in it, she stood by as he opened it. The package quickly exploded. Marquis died while his mother was injured.

Investigation

Authorities turned their attention to Maquis’ online business. According to the LATimes, he had a bad reputation in a CB radio group chat and would often offer to trade or sell equipment, but fail to deliver the goods. People were pissed, with one person posting his address publicly and another person threatening, “If I find someone to pay the 2-way airfare, I will go there and collect everyone’s money back and give him some severe dental problems to deal with.”

Authorities soon got a tip that Dean was angry about a CB radio transaction and had talked about roughing up the person who sold it to him. After talking to Dean and searching his home, authorities found evidence linking him to the blast that killed Marquis, and he was arrested.

Legal Proceedings

Dead pleaded guilty to three federal charges to avoid the death penalty. According to SeaCoastOnline, at his February 2000 sentencing, prosecutors bolstered their case by outlining an escape plot Dean was allegedly involved in that could have led to guards being assaulted or killed. They want to show the court how dangerous he is.

According to Rutlandherald, Dean apologized at his sentencing saying, “I understand my actions in March 1998 were deplorable.” He also said, “I have no excuse for what I done in March 1998.”

According to SeaCoastOnline, his attorneys said that a sentence of 30 years was appropriate because he had a troubled childhood and was abused by his father and stepfather.

The judge disagreed and sentenced Dean to life in prison without the possibility of parole plus 10 years.

Fight For Freedom

According to the Rutlandherald, Dean filed a 31-page typewritten motion in January 2006 arguing that his life in prison without parole sentence was unconstitutional. He argued that Rockwell was not happy and responded to the motion by saying, “He should just do his time and keep his mouth shut,” and  “I’ll go to hell making sure he stays in jail.”

Dean’s appeals have gone nowhere, and he remains locked up in a federal prison serving out his life sentence.