Suddenly Gone Suddenly gone is a thrilling, factual account of how one man, with very little help, murdered four young women in their mid twenties. Richard Grissom, hired as the maintenance man at the apartment complex where the murders took place, was given easy access to his prey. Granted a master key that would open every door in the complex, he just let himself into each apartment as he pleased. Therefore, there were no signs of forced entry at the crime scenes. The ill-fated women were Joan Butler (24), Christine Rusch (22),Terri Maness (25), and Theresa Brown (22). There was a fifth known attack, but Michelle Katf was fortunate enough to get away. Terri Maness was found dead at the scene. The other three girls were not only murdered, …show more content…
Sleeping soundly, Michelle was startled awake one night by a big shadow of a man in her doorway. Undoubtedly, it was Grissom. He covered her mouth, pressed a gun against her chin, and ordered her to stand up. She did as she was told. After telling her to put clothes on, he ordered her out of her room. He was leading her down the staircase to his getaway vehicle. However, in a fight for her life, Michelle struggled to get free. “The man paused, then fired twice at point-blank range… The gun had sounded snap, snap… the gun was not real”(Mitrione 23). Michelle realized that Grissom’s gun was a phony. However, he hit her hard enough in the head to bring her to her knees. She braced herself as he repeatedly hit her with intense force until he eventually gave up, leaving her for dead. He walked away hoping that the blows to her head were enough to make her bleed out on the staircase. Nevertheless, determined to live, Michelle made it back to her apartment and tried to call 9-1-1. Unfortunately, the phone was dead. Without hesitation, she went to the neighbor’s for help. This murder attempt would be a downfall for Grissom. Michelle lived to tell all of the gruesome details of her plight and her neighbor’s were witnesses to the horrible