April 2, 2023 Russ Winter Articles by Russ Winter, Crime, Culture, US News, Winter Watch Articles 10

The murder of 29-year-old Elizabeth Barraza in the early morning hours of Jan. 25, 2019, in northwest Harris County, Texas, strikes us as similar in motive and typology to the 1978 discordian Sons of Sam killings in New York City — but with a current-day twist.

The actual cold case murder and some forensics can be seen and evaluated in the video below. The main description starts at 9 minutes.

Elizabeth was curbside of her home preparing for a garage sale at 6:58 a.m. on a Friday morning when she was approached by a strange character with long hair (or possibly a wig) who was wearing boots and what has been described as a robe or trench coat. To me it looks like a young man in drag. After a brief unclear exchange, the killer shot her point blank four times and even administered a coup de grace Mafia-style head shot. Nothing was stolen.

There is a large forum discussing this case and some debate about the sex of the shooter. Whoever it was ran away at a fast, athletic sprint, thus was likely youthful.

Elizabeth was described as happily married. The investigation turned up no evidence of martial issues, and her husband, Sergio, has been described as fully cooperative.

Sergio had left for work shortly before the shooting. Some have speculated that the shooter would have to know beforehand that Elizabeth would come outside. However, if she was being stalked, it was evident that the garage door was wide open. Even absent that opportunity, the killer still could have attempted to attack her in the house.

The couple were also devout “Star Wars” and “Harry Potter” fans, and they actively designed and participated in what is called cosplay or costume play, which is shown in the YouTube analysis starting at minute 3:55.

The other characteristic of Elizabeth was her good will and charity. She has universally been described for her goodness and likability almost to a saintly level. Thus, she would be an ideal target of a discordian role-playing evil.

The character of Anakin Skywalker is central to this case. He is a Jedi prophesied to bring balance to the Force. But he is lured to the dark side of the Force and becomes a Sith lord, assuming the title Darth Vader. Darth Vader has become one of the most iconic villains in popular culture and has been listed among the greatest villains and fictional characters ever.

“Stars Wars” and “Harry Potter” represent the cosmic battle between the forces of good and evil. “Harry Potter” is literally about black versus white magic. “Star Wars” posits a yin-yang balance of opposing powers, which it calls “the Force.”

When it comes to its epistemology, “Star Wars” could attract individuals wedded to righteousness and goodness, like Elizabeth. But it could also attract competitors who embrace the dark side. That’s what we theorize happened here. It may not be anybody that the Barrazas knew personally but instead some wingnut perp who may have known of Elizabeth and, in a delusion, created a fantasy antagonist. “Star Wars” is totally about antagonists and protagonists, often with twists and turns.

“Star Wars” root knowledge is firmly in the realm of subjective feelings, urging viewers with pithy moral relativism admonitions such as “feel, don’t think.” This is perfect fodder for twisted elements and products of Hollyweird pop culture.

There is an element of “Star War”” fandom that is fanatical and that sometimes takes the role playing literally. The Anakin character is shown below as robed and suited and booted.

Yes, it seems we have a delusional Anakin Skywalker wanna be. He either had long hair or was wearing a wig. He wore a robe and boots. Someone who thinks they’re an assassin from playing way too many video games and absorbing fantasy movies. Throw in a drug like meth, and there would be a perfect brew.

We described something similar in the background of Israel Keyes and his binge drinking and insane clown posse obsession.

To our sensibilities, this looks like a very personal murder but in a twisted and deluded way. The killer of Liz was a obsessive cosplayer fully committed to the evil dark side. Such a killer would not choose random victims. They would carefully select one to fit into their fantasy dark world role playing. This also has a Brian Kolberger vib to it.