Murdered in Their Home: The Brutal Killing of Edwin & Bessie Morris | Part 3 of 3

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"Justice delayed is justice denied" takes on profound meaning in the story of Mark Morris, whose grandparents Edwin and Bessie Morris were brutally murdered on Father's Day evening in 1985. What began as an act of kindness – letting a familiar face use their phone when he claimed to be out of gas – ended in a savage double homicide that has left a family waiting for closure for nearly four decades.

Mark takes us through the painful journey of three separate trials spanning decades, each ending with death sentences for killers Roger Epperson and Benny Lee Hodge, yet never resulting in execution. We learn how a 68-year-old man who had survived multiple heart attacks and strokes attempted to defend himself and his wife, reaching for a gun atop the refrigerator before being overpowered. The haunting detail of his one-eyed wife in her nightgown pleading for their lives before being murdered creates an indelible image of vulnerable people betrayed by someone they knew.

The conversation reveals the devastating ripple effects of violent crime across generations. Father's Day – once a celebration – became permanently tainted for the Morris family. Mark shares how even his son has never given him a Father's Day card because of the painful association. We witness the surreal experience of victims' families funding the continued care of their loved ones' killers through tax dollars, all while watching those killers mock them in courtrooms by blowing kisses and showing zero remorse.

Despite these profound challenges, Mark reveals how his family has preserved his grandparents' legacy through their values of generosity and togetherness. He finds some comfort in knowing what happened – a luxury not afforded to families of missing persons – and in the belief that his grandparents are together in the afterlife, having never spent a night apart in life.

This episode provides a raw, firsthand account of how our justice system can fail victims' families even when securing convictions. It forces us to consider what justice truly means when those sentenced to death outlive the family members who fought so hard to see that sentence carried out.

 
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