Michael Allen Ray: The Story (2025)

18/12/2024

The Shooting of Michael Ray
December 18th—40 Years Later

By: Larry J. Griffin
Special Investigative Reporter
The Wilkes Record

Christmas was a week away, in December 1984, and 20-year-old Michael Ray had already completed holiday shopping for his family. In fact, all the gifts had been wrapped and were tucked away at Girlfriend Cindy Robertson’s Valdese residence, where he had been living with her family for the past two years.

“A couple of days prior to the 18th, Michael let the kids open presents,” recalled Cynthia McCracken, Michael’s older sister. “He had purchased boxing gloves, and we were laughing, amazed at how well the kids did with them.”

Cynthia also remembered that her brother had purchased gifts for others of the family. They too had been wrapped, waiting to be opened on Christmas Day. All seemed right, as the Ray Family looked forward to celebrating the holiday in their typically unique fashion.

But that would all change on the Tuesday afternoon, seven days before Christmas morning, when Cynthia received a hysterical phone call from Michael’s girlfriend Cindy. “He’s been shot; Michael has been shot!”

“All I remember doing at the point was screaming at the top of my lungs for my brother, Charles, who was in the yard looking after the animals.”

The call came into Valdese Police Department at 2:45 PM, EST; it was fielded by Sergeant Rena Benfield. The caller, who was located at Russell’s Body Shop on Laurel St, informed the Sergeant that a shooting had occurred at 1603 Laurel St, the address of the Robertson residence. She immediately dispatched officers Hoyle, Brendle, Lambert, and Chief Pascal to the crime scene—all of whom arrived about three minutes later at 2:48 PM EST. EMS was notified and was already on the way to the Robertson residence on Laurel St., arriving shortly after police officers.

Charles Ray Jr—Michael’s and Cynthia’s older brother—recalled hearing his sister scream out his name. “I immediately drove to the [Valdese Hospital] emergency room,” Charles recounted. “I got there 30 or 40 minutes ahead of EMS. I was waiting in the parking lot when they finally showed up with my brother. When they removed him from the emergency vehicle, he was already inside a black zipper body bag, although he was still alive.”

The exact time of Michael’s arrival at Valdese General Hospital was obscured on the report; however, Emergency Room (ER) personnel immediately began attending to what appeared to be a gunshot wound to the chest. Family members reported that ER staff informed them, at that juncture, that young Michael had about a 50/50 chance of survival. Around 4:00 PM, EST, he was transported from the ER to a surgical suite upstairs.

“When they wheeled Michael out in front of us, on his way to surgery, I remember thinking how dark his skin looked. But he was still alive because when he rolled past our mother, Michael reached for her,” Charles Jr. recalled.

For the next hour, surgical personnel—under the direction of Dr. Frank Steele—endeavored to save the life of the 20-year-old lying on the operating table before them. At one crucial juncture, Dr. Steele performed open-chest heart massage in an attempt to resuscitate—Michael was unresponsive as he silently slipped away. He was pronounced “dead” at 5:00 PM EST.

It has been 40 years since the hour of Michael Ray’s departure. But for the Ray Family and their friends, the events of December 18, 1984 continue to play in their hearts and minds. Just this morning, Donna Ray Balekdjian, Michael Ray's younger sister, posted a tribute to her brother on Facebook:

"Today was the day we lost you my dear brother Michael . Heaven gained such a beautiful person that day. Each year passes by and we pray that we will finally have closure and know what really happened that day. You are so loved and will never be forgotten."

Sister Cynthia McCracken wrote a responsive comment: “He is missed so very much and loved more than he ever knew, and will never be forgotten; love you my brother.”

Notably, Judy Hinson—whose daughter, Rhonda, was murdered two days before Christmas 1981 in the Burke County town of Valdese, 2.7 miles away from the Laurel Street location of the shooting of Michael Ray—commiserated, “Thinking about your family today.”

Across years and miles, and more than a few tears and smiles, the Ray Family has discussed the shooting of their son, brother, uncle, and friend-to-quite-a-few amongst themselves. Though the family understands that Michael’s death was ruled a “su***de” by investigators back in 1984, questions have emerged, in the course of their conversations, relative to the accuracy of that ruling --questions that the Robertson Family, with whom Michael lived for two years and whose residence was the site of the shooting-in-question, appears loath to discuss with the Ray Family, with whom they enjoyed a close relationship up until the afternoon of December 18, 1984.

Moreover, local law enforcement, whose officers, at the time, purportedly investigated the shooting, have refused to allow the Rays access to the 40-year-old “closed case” file—a file that may contain the answers they seek. “It just doesn’t add up. We were quiet for years; but we are determined to find answers,” Donna Ray Balekdjian averred during an initial interview. “And if, at the end of it, the conclusion is that my brother shot himself, we are willing to accept that as fact—but not until we have had our questions answered.”

During her initial interview, Michael Ray’s older sister Cynthia McCracken allowed her mind to wander back to Christmas 1984—a week subsequent to her brother’s demise:

"You know, on Christmas Eve that year, someone—I don’t remember who—came to our door to deliver, from the Robertsons, the presents that Michael had bought for the rest of the family. All of them were wrapped, I remember. I couldn’t bring myself to open my present for a long time. When I did, I discovered Princess House Lanterns inside. And I still have mine—the lanterns and the boxing gloves that he bought for the kids."

On Christmas Day 1984, the Ray Family received posthumous Christmas gifts from the 20-year-old whom they love and remember today—40 years later.

[Editor's Note: The photos are of Michael Ray and Sister Cynthia McCracken, who is holding the last gifts she received from her brother, Christmas 1984.]

18/12/2023

The Shooting of Michael Ray
December 18th--39 Years Later

By: Larry J. Griffin
Special Investigative Reporter
The Wilkes Record

"Death comes likes this I know; snow-soft and gently cold; impalpable battalions of this mist—light-quenching, sound-smothering, and slow." –The Poetry of John Reed (1887-1920).

It was an unseasonably warm Tuesday December 18th in 1984, three days before the solstice that would announce the beginning of Winter in Burke County, NC.

The early morning found Michael Ray stretched out in a recumbent position on his bed at his parents’ home in Connelly Springs. His hat was pulled down over his eyes—at least that was the way that his sister, Cynthia, and brother, Charles, observed him when they walked through the door of the Ray Residence. Both siblings noted that it appeared, that morning, as if he had been crying—neither ventured to ask what was on his mind.

Whatever thoughts were ruminating inside his brain--perhaps evoking tears—he unlikely was entertaining the notion that this day would be his last. And why would he have thoughts of dying? Michael was only 20 years old; his life was just beginning. According to those who knew him well, Michael loved life and had every reason to look forward to a multiplicity of happy, productive years. Besides, it was three days before his mother, Shirley, would celebrate her 39th birthday and seven days before Christmas.

About an hour after speaking to his brother, Charles recalled that one of Michael’s friends arrived to talk with him. Suddenly and inexplicably, the 20-year-old bolted from his bed, hopped in his Camaro and, with wheels spinning, sped away.

Approximately a half-hour after Michael’s precipitous departure, Cynthia answered the phone at her parents’ residence. “I heard Cindy [Robertson—Michael’s girlfriend/fiancée] screaming ‘He’s shot! Michael’s been shot,” she recalled. Reflexively, she yelled, “at the top of her lungs,” for her brother Charles and delivered the disturbing news. Without hesitation, he rushed to Valdese General Hospital where he waited thirty or forty minutes for the EMT vehicle that transported his wounded brother to the emergency facility there.

Despite the efforts of hospital ER and surgical staffs, Michael Ray died in the Valdese Hospital operating room at 5:00 PM—as daylight commenced to yield to the encroaching darkness.

It is now 5:00 PM—39 years later since the day. And for 39-years now, the Ray family, bereft of their son and brother, remain enshrouded in a darkness—the darkness born of unanswered questions relative to the sequence of events that actually transpired between the time he departed from his parents’ residence and the shooting of Michael Ray.

25/09/2023

The Shooting of Michael Ray
Installment V

By: Larry J. Griffin
Special Investigative Reporter
The Wilkes Record

"I wonder when an address written wrong on a police report is germane to the outcome of a su***de. It appears that the investigative reporter is looking for a way to blame law enforcement for a plain and simple su***de." –July 2023 Social media post by Rena Benfield.

Rena Benfield was a sergeant at the Valdese Police Department (VPD), whose service spanned two decades—1973-1993—according to her social media page. Her responsibilities included, “General law enforcement duties as Sergeant/Investigations, accident reporting, and general supervisory duties, answering to the Chief of Police (only) as Personal Assistant.”

During her 20-year tenure, Sergeant Benfield studied law enforcement at Western Piedmont Community College (WPCC), ostensibly graduating with the Class of 1987—almost three years subsequent to the shooting of Michael Ray. In fact, she was one of the co-authors of the single-page official report of the incident that occurred on the afternoon of Tuesday December 18, 1984. The other reporting officer was the late Steve Hoyle who, coincidentally, was married—at one time—to Sergeant Benfield’s younger sister.

There have been times that Ms. Benfield has voiced support for the law enforcement “team” of which she was a part and for the profession in general—particularly in the wake of public criticism. In a Wednesday December 21, 2022 post written for the Valdese People page, she reminisced about the VPD team’s efforts at Christmastime to enhance the quality of the holiday for those who were in need. She prefaced her supportive remarks by stating, “Recently public servants, police especially have gotten a bad rap and maybe some have deserved some of it.”

When Ms. Benefield posted a 1985 throwback photo of the VPD on social media on Monday September 19, 2022, she asked, “Does anyone remember these people?” Donna Ray Balekdjian—Michael Ray’s younger sister—saw it a week later and commented:

"My family remembers those years very well since some of those police officers, including Pascal, were there on the scene when my brother Michael Ray was shot in 1984. Unfortunately we still have not been allowed to have closure since the [Robertson] Family will not talk to us about what happened, and sadly the police department refuses to turn over the entire report for us to read—since back then we were only allowed to read certain things. And 37 years later my family is still grieving and pleading for closure. If anyone here can find it in their hearts and knows what really happened that day, since there are numerous stories, we are offering a reward to anyone that can come forward and tell us what really happened that day so that we can finally have closure and put the past behind us and allow my brother and us to be at peace finally. This is not a fight or any insulting, just bring [Sic] into the attention if anyone knows anything to please let our family know."

Rena Benfield responded, and a short conversation between the two ladies ensued:

"Honey, he died immediately. He could not have been saved if doctors had been there…The officers who were there with me have all passed away. There may be one who would know a little (very little) but he was not there that day. Cindy [Robertson] and Todd [Robertson] were in the house and did not go outside till we arrived. No other officers were there and all that werer [Sic] have passed away….

I was there after he shot himself with the rifle he held vetween [Sic] hus [Sic] legs. It was clear that he shot himself. We arrived shortly after and it was a clear case. If there would have been any doubt we would have called the SBI in the case. Believe me, I am so sorry for your loss and understand why you question his death but it was a case of su***de after he and Cindy had an argument…He did it…."

Ms. Benfield continued:

"I was in the car on Laural Rd. just as we got the call. We were there within minutes and found him in the dog lot. We talked with Cindy and Todd and they stated him and Cindy were arguing and about the break up. That’s when he went outside with the rifle. When they heard the shot, they called the PD and we were there. He had already passed. However EMS was in route and he was pronounced and taken to the hospital for legally pronounced…

There is no secret about what happened that day. It was all clear to everyone involved. The dog lot was at the back corner..if you are facing the front of themhouse [Sic] it was on the back left corner.\ I can still see that sceen [Sic] in my mind. There was no struggle over the weapon. He justwalked [Sic] outside with it and they did not question it."

Former Sergeant Benfield assured Donna that her memory is “very good” at 78 years of age. However, there are discrepancies between her Messenger recollections and the official report that the Ray Family was given. First, Sgt. Benfield indicated that she was present at the scene of the shooting of Michael Ray. In the one-page official document co-authored with Officer Steve Hoyle, she specified all the officers who were present at the shooting scene, listing each by name—Rena Benfield was not among them.

Second, Sgt. Benfield averred that, “The officers who were there with me have all passed away. There may be one who would know a little (very little) but he was not there that day.” There was a cadre of VPD responders listed on the incident report as being on-site—“Officers Hoyle, Brendle, Lambert and Chief Pascal…” Of that quartet of officers, three are deceased—Steve Hoyle (1948-1991), John Lambert (1960-2021), and Oscar Pascal (1918-1996)—Kevin Brendle, however, remains among the living. [This writer has attempted telephonic contact with former Officer Brendle for comment. As of this writing, he has not returned the phone call.]

A third discrepancy pertained to the location at which a wounded Michael Ray was discovered when officers arrived at the Robertson residence. Sgt. Benfield writes, “I was in the car on Laural [Sic] Rd. just as we got the call. We were there within minutes and found him in the dog lot… The dog lot was at the back corner..if you are facing the front of themhouse [Sic] it was on the back left corner.”

“None of us [the Ray Family] remember a dog lot in the Robertsons' backyard,” Donna Ray Balekdjian explained. “My family would visit the Robertsons on occasion while Michael was living with them. We were friends. But none of us recall seeing dog lot in their backyard.”

However, Donna’s youngest brother, David, who was eight years old when Michael purportedly shot himself, apprised his sister that he recalls seeing a dog lot on the Robertsons’ property. “He told me that if you pull into their driveway…it was to the right [in the backyard.].”

While facing the same direction relative to the backyard, Sgt. Benfield placed the dog lot in the back left corner—David Ray recollected that it was to the right.

An anonymous informant, who was friends with both the Rays and the Robertsons and visited the Robertson home periodically, recalled during an interview with the Wilkes Record, that “The Robertsons had a puppy who lived inside; so, there would have been no need for a dog lot. I mean, I remember bushes toward the back of their yard but no dog lot.”

In 1984, Joe Shuffler was an employed at Russell’s Body Shop [now D&C’s Custom Auto Painting], located at 100 Lovelady Rd. NE and across a fence from the Robertsons’ property that sits at the corner of Laurel St. and Lovelady Rd. During a conversation with Donna Ray Balekdjian, Mr. Shuffler averred that he, and others working in the body shop, heard the loud report of a rifle coming from the direction of the Robertsons’ residence next door. He decided to walk around the fence to investigate the origin of the gunshot. “He told me that he walked into Ben’s backyard and saw my brother lying on the ground beside the garage, rifle next to him, and reaching out toward Joe as if asking for assistance.”

No mention of a dog lot in Mr. Shuffler’s description. [This writer has attempted to reach Mr. Shuffler via telephone for comment; as of this writing, he has yet to return the call.] Notably, the official investigative report does not specify the location at which officers discovered the shooting victim when they arrived on the scene.

A fourth discrepancy, of greater import, is Sgt. Benfield’s asseveration that …”he [Michael] died immediately. He could not have been saved if doctors had been there… He had already passed. However EMS was in route and he was pronounced and taken to the hospital for legally pronounced….”

Records from the then Valdese General Hospital, acquired by the Ray Family, indicate that Michael Ray, who was still alive upon reaching the facility, was initially treated by emergency room personnel before being transferred to the operating room for surgery performed by Dr. Frank Steele. Michael was pronounced dead at 1700 hours [5:00 PM] on Tuesday December 18, 1984 by the attending physician.

Interestingly, the official VPD report, co-authored and ‘signed’ by Sgt. Benfield and Officer Hoyle, stipulates that, “Michael Allen Ray was transported to Valdese General Hospital for treatment of his wounds.”

In her narrative to Donna Ray Balekdjian, Sgt. Benfield stated, then reiterated six times, that Michael shot himself and that it was a clear case of su***de. “There was no struggle over the weapon. He justwalked [Sic] outside with it and they did not question it.” And in an additional Messenger missive to Donna, in August 2023, she reasserted her oft-repeated asseveration, this time with an admonition: “It was a clear case of Su***de. You need to accept it….”

And the Ray Family has consistently maintained that if there is incontrovertible evidence, in the almost 39-year-old case file, that supports the ‘official conclusion’ that Michael committed su***de, then they are willing to accept that as fact. To date, however, the family has been denied access to the contents of the case file. Moreover, the information that they have been able to garner over the years, and most recently, is full of ‘holes,’ inaccuracies, and inconsistencies—all of which have produced more questions than answers.

Likely, Sgt. Benfield initially intended to be helpful by attempting to offer clarification relative to the events as they unfolded on the afternoon of Tuesday December 18, 1984—one week before Christmas that year. Her intentions notwithstanding, the former VPD officer obfuscated more than she illuminated; therefore, questions persist that transcend the imprecision of, “an address written wrong on a police report.”

In a July 2023 social media post, the former Sgt. Benfield refers to Michael Ray’s death as, “… a plain and simple su***de.” According to recent data provided by the Amen Clinic, there are 49,000 su***des perpetrated in the United States in a calendar year—that’s approximately 11 per minute. It is doubtful that any of the families and friends, whose lives were upended by those self-inflicted deaths, would characterize them as, “plain and simple.” And neither does the family of Michael Ray.

[Editor's Note: The 1985 photo of the Valdese Police Department (VPD), published in the Morganton "News Herald," has been previously showcased. It appears in this article to identify former Sergeant Rena Benfield--she is the only female depicted and is standing to the right of the late VPD Chief Oscar Pascal.]

11/06/2023

Michael Ray was born on Thursday, June 11, 1964. Today, is the anniversary of what would have been his 59th birthday. So, happy birthday, Michael Ray❣️🙏🏻
🎊🎊🎊

21/04/2023

The Shooting of Michael Ray
Installment IV

By: Larry J. Griffin
Special Investigative Reporter
The Wilkes Record

"There are two ways to be fooled: One is to believe what isn’t true, the other is to refuse to believe what is true." –Soren Kierkegaard

The death certificate appears definitive. Michael Allen Ray, the son of Charles H. and Shirley Ann Blevins Ray, died at 5:00 PM on Friday December 18, 1984—at Valdese General Hospital—from a gunshot wound to the left-side of the chest, lacerating the left pulmonary artery. The immediate cause of his demise was a, “massive internal hemorrhage.” The gunshot wound, resulting from a projectile fired by a “30-30 riffle [Sic],” was adjudged to be self-inflicted. No autopsy was performed.

Burke Medical Examiner, S. H. Yuan, MD, certified that, “On the basis of the examination of the body and/or the investigation, in my opinion, death occurred on the date and due to the cause(s) stated.”

Born in Buncombe County on June 11, 1964, the decedent was 20-years-of-age, unemployed, never married, and officially resided in the Burke County town of Connelly Springs. Funeral arrangements were handled by Kirksey Funeral Home, Valdese, NC. Burial occurred on Friday December 21, 1984 in Davistown Cemetery, located in the McDowell County town of Old Fort.

These appear to be the irrefutable facts relative to the shooting of Michael Ray, as delineated on the death certificate filed at the Burke County office of the Register of Deeds. Other “facts” reported on this official document either lack specificity or are inaccurate. Interestingly, the time at which the fatal gunshot wound was inflicted is listed as, “Approx. 2:40 P[M].”

The “Place of Injury” is designated as a home located at, “1605 Laurel Road,” in the Burke County town of Valdese, NC. This address is inaccurate. Notably, it would not be the only instance in which the location of the fatal shooting is misstated on an official document.

Though a relatively inconsequential misstatement, the funeral arrangements—inclusive of the burial details—were managed by Kirksey Funeral Home in Morganton in lieu of the one located in Valdese, according to records. As it happened, the Ray Family received friends on Thursday December 20, 1984 from 7:00 PM until 9:00 PM. The funeral service was conducted at 2:00 PM at Calvary Freewill Baptist Church in Connelly Springs; the Reverend Mr. Leonard Lindsey officiated.

One other notable departure from the “facts of the case” can be found on the Kirksey Funeral Home Obituary Information Form. The date and time of Michael Ray’s demise are recorded as, “18 December 1984 Tuesday 8 pm.” The former is correct; the latter is not. “I don’t know where they came up with the time,” Donna Ray Balekdjian averred. “My brother was pronounced dead at 5:00 PM at Valdese Hospital—three hours before.”

The death certificate of Michael Allen Ray was officially signed, eight days after-the-fact, on December 26, 1984 and registered at the Register of Deeds (ROD) the next day. The registrar at the time was Charles W. Buckner who did not personally sign the document. Rather, his name was typed by another member of the ROD staff in the signature rectangular block: “ Charles W. Buckner/km.”

Unlike the death certificate, the official Valdese Police Department (VPD) Incident/Investigation report was not dated as to when it was generated. However, there were typed “signatures” of two VPD officers—Rena Benefield and Steve Hoyle— who ostensibly compiled the report under the supervision of Chief Oscar Pascal.

According to the report, a white male, born “06/11/64,” named, “RAY, Michael Allen,” committed “Su***de…By shooting himself in the chest with a 30-30 Rifle.” The “Offense Date At (Found)” is listed as, “1445 (2:45PM) on Tuesday, 12/18/84.” The temperature that clear afternoon—a week before Christmas—was, “72 Deg.” The victim’s address is reported as a post office box in Connelly Springs, NC.

The shooting occurred in the “Residence/Yard” of a house located at, “1601 Laural [Sic] St., Valdese. The individual who reported the incident to VPD, according to the official record, was Richard Barker, whose address is listed as, Russell’s Body Shop.” At the time, the body shop was located next door to the crime scene, on the corner of Laurel Street and Lovelady Road.

The report’s narrative reads:

"On 12/18/84 at 1445 Hrs. Officer R.O. Benfield received a call from Richard Barker at Russell’ [Sic] Body Shop on Laural [Sic] Str., reporting a shooting (boy shot himself). Caller advised that Todd Robertson had ask [Sic] him to call. Officers Hoyle, Brendle, Lambert and Chief Pascal were dispatched and an Ambluence [Sic] was send [Sic] to the scene. Officers arrived on the scene at 1448 Hrs. 12/18/84 and ask [Sic] that EMS be advised this was emergency traffic. EMS was radioed and there [Sic] location was Laural [Sic] Rd. in route to the location. Michael Allen Ray was transported to Valdese General Hospital for treatment of his wounds."

According to the one-page report, the case status indicates that “further investigation” was to be conducted. It also stipulates that “evidence was found.” Two “witness names” appear on the form: “ROBERTSON, Cindy and ROBERTSON, Todd,” both of whom resided at the location of the shooting. Born on Saturday April 6, 1968, Cynthia Lynn ‘Cindy’ Robertson was 16-years-of-age at the time of the incident; Brother Ritchie Todd Robertson, born Monday February 24, 1969, was 15-years-of-age.

A perusal of the official VPD incident report reveals a number of inaccuracies. Aside from the obvious grammatical lapses, the address at which the shooting transpired is incorrect. The fatal incident actually occurred at the Ben Robertson residence, situated at 1603 Laurel Street in Valdese.

While exploring the possibility that the location’s address had been altered or re-numbered across the ensuing 38-years, this writer contacted Larry Johnson, Director of Planning and Zoning for the Town of Valdese—a position that he has held for nine-years. According to Director Johnson—a long-term resident of the area—the address has never been changed. “Yes, I know Ben Robertson; and he has always lived at that address.” Mr. Johnson explained during a telephone interview. “No renumbering has occurred to my knowledge.”

Moreover, the report stipulates that evidence was found, none of which is referenced in the narrative. Additionally, the “case status,” checked within a rectangular box located near the end of the official one-page document, indicates that additional investigation was to be conducted, without referencing a single detail garnered during that inquiry.

“For instance, I asked Valdese PD Chief [Jack] Moss if any gunshot residue testing (GSR) was conducted on my brother to see if he had even fired a weapon that day,” Donna Balekdjian averred during a recent interview with this writer.

Gunshot residue (GSR) testing has been employed by law enforcement for decades. It is utilized to ascertain the presence of chemical and particulate residue that tend to adhere to a shooter’s hand, arm, face, hair, and/or clothing subsequent to the discharging of a weapon.

“And when I asked him, he [Chief Moss] simply replied there was no testing done,” Ms. Balekdjian explained. “Wouldn’t they want to know that before concluding that my brother definitely shot himself?”

For the Ray Family, the official VPD report, acquired during a face-to-face conversation with the current chief of police, Jack Moss, raised more substantive questions than it answered. Further, none of the police officers on the current force were involved in the initial investigation relative to the shooting of Michael Ray. And out of all the officers who were dispatched to the Robertson residence that afternoon and whose names were referenced in the narrative of the report, only one remains; the others are deceased.

Interestingly, on Monday September 26, 2022 during the late evening, a former VPD officer, whose name appears on the incident document, engaged in a social media conversation with Michael’s sister, Donna Ray Balekdjian, offering to answer questions and provide clarification. However, the purported details of the case, proffered during the exchange of media messages, obfuscated more than it illuminated.

[Editor’s Note: The 1985 photo depicts officers on the Valdese Police Department. Of the nine officers photographed, five of them are mentioned in the official investigative report of the shooting of Michael Ray. Credit: The News Herald, Morganton, NC with the original camerawork.]

03/03/2023

The Shooting of Michael Ray
Installment III

By: Larry J. Griffin
Special Investigative Reporter
The Wilkes Record

"A 1984 youth su***de “epidemic” was a statistical quirk…[An] analysis…found that young people--especially white males 20 to 24--have come to dominate U.S. su***des…And the most common means of su***de--in nearly two-thirds of the cases--is a gun, the report said. –Los Angeles Times Reporter, Allan Parachini, in an article: ‘84 Youth Su***des a Blip in 7-Year Drop, Report Says.’"

In the Orwellian year of 1984, there was a spike in US su***des among young people, ages 20-24, according to a news article that appeared in the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday November 19, 1986. Reporter Allan Parachini proffered an explanation for the “statistical quirk…that obscured a seven-year decline in su***de rates among young Americans…”:

"What happened in 1984 was a series of statistically improbable and unexplained su***de clusters, which gave the impression that youth su***de had reached a new level, attracting widespread national attention, the report said. News magazines put the story on their covers; television produced at least four movies on the subject."

Factually, in 1984, su***de ranked as the second most common cause of death, after accidents, for young people, ages 15-24; significantly, for the first time, the su***de rate amongst youth exceeded that of the oldest segment of the population. In the prior year—1983—the rate dropped to 11.9 su***des per 100,000 people before rising to 12.4 in 1984. The most common means of su***de—in approximately two-thirds of the cases—was a gun.

In a Sunday March 4, 1984 New York Times article, that pre-dated the aforementioned report, writer Jane E Brody explored “The Haunting Specter of Teen-age [Sic] Su***des,” for the year in question:

"The su***de rate at all ages is highest among white males, followed by black males, white females and black females, in that order…The availability of fi****ms was shown in two studies to correlate with the increase in teen-age su***des. One reason for the disproportionately high su***de rate among boys is that, unlike girls, they tend to choose methods - such as shooting, hanging and gassing - that are reliably and rapidly lethal."

Author Brody further notes that: “…For every successful adolescent su***de, there are reported to be at least 50 and probably as many as 200 su***de attempts.”

And among those 1984 statistics was the shooting of Michael Ray.

Neuroscientists have—for years—endeavored to discover that which transpires in the brains of those who contemplate su***de. Among the most prolific is Neuroscientist/Psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Amen, founder of the renowned Amen Clinics. Through employing the cutting-edge brain-imaging, known as SPECT (Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography), Dr. Amen evaluated 300 brains of individuals who have attempted su***de and many more who admitted to entertaining the thought about ending their lives.

SPECT, according to Dr. Amen, is a nuclear medicine study that evaluates blood flow and activity in the brain. Essentially, a scan yields three pieces of information relative to brain functionality : where there is healthy activity, too little activity, or too much activity. The scans of individuals who have attempted su***de have certain commonalities—unhealthy “holes” (areas that represent low blood flow and activity) in several areas, including the brain’s prefrontal cortex—an area involved in impulse control, judgment, and decision-making.

His inquiry yielded some compelling results:

"Every day, approximately 123 people in the U.S. die by su***de, making it the 10th leading cause of death. Among people aged 10-34, su***de is the second leading cause of death. [Similar to 1984 results.] And it ranks as the fourth leading cause of death in those between 35 and 54 years of age. In 2017, twice as many Americans died by su***de than by homicide…Men are more likely to die by su***de, but women are three times more likely to attempt su***de."

The majority of these individuals tended to get stuck in negative thinking patterns, were impulsive, were prone to anger and irritability, and showed poor judgment. This combination of negative thoughts, anger, and impulsivity can be conducive to dangerous situations—inclusive of contemplating su***de and eventually acting upon the impulse.

Dr. Amen identified and delineated some major risk factors for su***de: being bullied, chronic stress, rejection by family, social isolation, substance abuse, traumatic brain injury (TBI), a chronic medical condition, family history of su***de, history of abuse and/or trauma, family history of substance abuse, mental health disorder—especially depression, and exposure to the suicidal behavior of a family member or friend or even depicted in media.

Further, he explains that a person who is contemplating su***de often exhibits warning signs before taking decisive action; e.g., talking about feelings of hopelessness; talking about being in pain; talking about being a burden; increasing the use of drugs and/or alcohol; sleeping too little or too much; extreme mood swings; talking about seeking revenge; withdrawing socially; and showing rage.

A list of the aforementioned warning signs was submitted to family members and friends of Michael Ray; each were independently asked whether he had ever exhibited any of the behaviors. All were in agreement that Michael had never presented any of the warning signs. One respondent summarized it this way: “I never witnessed him showing any of the signs…I did hear rumors of drug usage—I think I might have heard ma*****na. But I never saw him take anything or act as if he had.”

And yet 38-years ago, the Ray family and intimate friends were led to believe that this 20-year-old young man—who exhibited none of the at-risk behaviors, characteristic of an individual contemplating su***de—took his own life, in a fit of anger, with a 30.30 rifle.

Donna Ray Balekdjian recalled what she was told, over a year ago, by one of the two witnesses to the events as they unfolded—according to the official police report—on December 18, 1984 at the Valdese residence of Ben Robertson:

"…He said he was outside when his sister opened the door and said, ‘Do you see Michael out there anywhere? He took dad’s hunting rifle…’ So, he looked around the [yard] and came around the corner. Michael was standing there with his back to him. He called out, ‘Michael.’ Michael turned around [holding the 30.30 rifle pointed to his chest] and shot."

[Editor's Note: The photograph--furnished by the Ray Family-- depicts the Ray Children: Front Row--left to right: Donna and older sister, Cynthia...Back Row--left to right: Charles Jr., Michael, and youngest child David.

Michael Allen Ray: The Story

18/12/2024

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