Earl Bramblett murder of entire Hodges family

Eyewitnesses are often considered the be-all and end-all of best evidence to have when prosecuting a crime. But the truth is that eyewitness testimony is often faulty or even flat-out wrong. There are many cases in Forensic Files that demonstrate where an eyewitness to a crime or perpetrator has been 100 percent inaccurate. I've also read multiple books and articles which talk about people's subjective perceptions, and the brain's mechanisms of recording information. Most people seem to feel the brain is like a video recorder, capturing each specific detail about an important moment. In actuality, we can remember some key details if we're focused on them, but otherwise the brain fills in the gaps with its own ideas and information. And as time passes, your "memory rewrites the past with current information, updating your recollections with new experiences." You should explore the countless articles, experiments and studies that demonstrate this.

Image credit: Episode screen capture from Forensic Files

An example from this case was the elderly woman's report that the truck she saw pulling away from the Hodges' home right before the fire had been red. Information and a witness' confidence in their recollection can steer investigators in the wrong direction, either toward the wrong suspects (ones in red trucks) or away from the true perpetrator (Earl with his white truck). Regard the Lucious Boyd case from Forensic Files episode Church Dis-service (s13e18) which documented the murder of Dawnia Dacosta in Broward County, Florida. The two witnesses in that case each vehemently asserted they saw the color of the van spotted with the victim. But the problem was, they were very different colors – burgundy and teal. Like in this episode, it was the nighttime lighting that caused the witnesses to see different colors.

Friendships can evolve in any number of ways. Despite this, Blaine's friendship with Earl Bramblett seemed odd to me. No one I know is, or ever was, friends with an instructor from their high school years. I understand a track coach is a different role than teaching; maybe it's more unlikely than odd. Or maybe there was another connection outside of their school relationship that the episode didn't reveal. When the episode described Earl Bramblett's "home" being a room in a nearby motel, his friendship with the Hodges seemed more unlikely. Was Theresa okay with someone in Bramblett's situation being close to her children? Perhaps Earl was between homes – I can understand having to give up a place or roommate situation and not having an immediate location to relocate. And perhaps this is why Bramblett was paying (actually late in paying) for a storage unit where his recorded ‘diary' tapes were discovered.

Image credit: Episode screen capture from Forensic Files

This case demonstrated an effective technique sometimes employed by investigators – holding back specific evidence or key details about a crime with the hope the perpetrator accidentally reveals information that shouldn't be known without being directly involved. In Earl Bramblett's conversations with police, he revealed that the crime had been a potential murder-suicide. But authorities had only revealed that the Hodges family had died in the house fire, and nothing about evidence of murder. Further implicating Earl's involvement, the stick-figure drawings found on the desk blotter paper behind Bramblett's workplace revealed how each member of the Hodges family had been killed. This was very specific information that no one outside of law enforcement could have known. But I'm betting that even without these additional clues, Bramblett's fate was already sealed.

A criminal usually makes a few mistakes, and these are normally what lead to his capture and/or conviction. But like Jason Funk in Tampa, Florida, Earl Bramblett made more than his fair share of blunders:

• Punching in early at work and trying to blot out the information with ink.
• Leaving his diesel fuel-stained pants soaking in the sink.
• Having shell casings from the murder weapon in the bed of his truck.
• Keep unused ammunition of the exact same kind as used in the murder.
• Drawing details of his crime while at work and simply throwing the damning evidence in the trash.
• Removing the barrel of the gun he wanted police to believe Blaine had killed himself with.

Image credit: Episode screen capture from Forensic Files

This last one deserves some special consideration. Barry Keesee mentioned that an article found in Bramblett's room described a murder using a pistol with no barrel. The hold-back information Earl revealed was that he believed Blaine Hodges had first killed his family and then taken his own life. But if the crime scene was his attempt at a staging, he didn't think it through very well. It might not be impossible to start a house fire after you take your own life. No soot had been found in Blaine's lungs or airways, but one could use a delayed ignition to start a fire – recall Forensic Files episode Yes, In Deed (s12e28). But I know of no cases where suicide with arson have specifically occurred. Zero people can shoot themselves, dismantle the gun, and make the barrel vanish. I think Earl may have taken his Detective magazine's article out of context.

I didn't include the damning audio tapes on the list of blunders above, but these too were strong evidence against Bramblett. But more than damning, they were downright bizarre. These demonstrated a mind that was not making rational, coherent connections. In Earl's mind, Blaine was supposedly using his daughter Winter to entice the older man? How on Earth would this play into Blaine getting any kind of reduced repayment or sentence? The police don't say, "Well, you had six months to serve, but because you helped us identify this pedophile, we're going to take three months off." I can't divine what Bramblett hoped to learn or gain by recording "everything that happens to me". There was some genuine paranoia there, indicated too by his statement that he felt Blaine was "out to get" him. My favorite recorded line on Earl Bramblett's tapes was, "If you deal with the truth then there's not a whole lot you have to be afraid of…" Seems ironic.

A couple of lingering questions haunted me:

When the family came back from fishing with Earl, Blaine had already been killed. It was believed that Bramblett and Theresa struggled on the stairs, and that she met her demise by strangulation. Then both children had been shot "in their beds". Why were the children in their room while their mother struggled, I'm guessing not quietly? Three-year-old Anna was young, but I know an 11-year-old, and she would not stay in her room while all this went on. She'd either investigate or hide.

Image credit: Episode screen capture from Forensic Files

Why did the entire Hodges family agree to go fishing with Earl alone, without Blaine? Bramblett's reason was Blaine wanted to stay behind to "work on chores". But Theresa nor either daughter thought it proper to try to convince him otherwise, or at least say a goodbye to him? I have a hard time imagining the family friend returning to the truck and saying, "Your husband/father decided to stay – let's go!" and the girls not second guessing this.

Where is Earl Bramblett now in 2024?

Earl Bramblett was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death in 1997. He was executed in Virginia's electric chair on April 9, 2003.