(Continued)

By Seamus McGraw

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Lancaster County , PA  (Crime Library)

Though authorities won't discuss their investigation publicly, sources familiar with the probe say there is no evidence to suggest that anyone other than Ludwig was involved in the planning of the crime. In fact, even though authorities have obtained a copy of a videotape in which Ludwig and a friend are seen plotting a chillingly similar midnight raid on another house, investigators now believe that Ludwig did not make his final decision to attack and kill Michael Borden until after he had been summoned to the Royal Drive house that morning.

Ludwig remains in the Lancaster County jail, charged with two counts of murder and endangering a minor. Lancaster District Attorney Donald R. Totaro has not yet said whether he will seek the death penalty in the case. And while sources familiar with the case have said that it is unlikely, in part because of Ludwig's age and lack of a prior criminal record, and in part because Pennsylvania has, in recent history been reluctant to exact capital punishment, it is not out of the question.

District Attorney Donald R. Totaro

There is, say some close to the case, a strong possibility that Totaro will file court papers, perhaps as early as Dec. 16 when Ludwig is scheduled for his next court appearance, declaring his intention to seek the death penalty for Ludwig. If the prosecution's case, as outlined in the court papers, is found to be true, there are certainly sufficient aggravating factors to warrant the death penalty under Pennsylvania law, experts say. To some degree, if the district attorney files a notice to seek death, it might be a legal tactic, designed to prompt Ludwig, who has already made a detailed confession to police, to plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence.

Regardless of what he decides, it will be controversial.

There is no question that there is in Lancaster County a deep division within the community about whether even seeking the death penalty would be appropriate. Residents say there are many in the community, among them deeply religious people, who believe that a crime as heinous as the one which Ludwig allegedly committed, deserves the ultimate sanction and that it would be almost biblically just if he were convicted. There are others, however, who are more conflicted, who believe that the facts of the case, including Kara's own behavior in the weeks before and the moments after her parents' slayings, make the case far less clear-cut. To those people, justice and indeed faith, demands a measure of mercy and Ludwig, they say, should face life behind bars if he is convicted.

Ultimately, the decision will be up to the prosecutor. But before Totaro makes his decision, it is almost certain that he will seek the approval of the surviving members of the Borden family, including Kara, her two adult brothers and her two minor siblings.

So far, they seem to be among the few people in Lancaster County who have not expressed an opinion in public about Ludwig's fate. Those close to them speculate that the family has no lust for Ludwig's blood, that they seek only justice. And as the larger community speculates, the deeply religious and horribly wounded family remains silent.

Borden home boarded up

Last week as a frigid wind whipped down Royal Drive, workmen hoisted wooded barriers into place over the windows of the family's now-silent home. The barriers were really there to repair the damage done to the home, but just as clearly, they send an unequivocal message that strangers are no longer welcome to peer inside.

Previous Page

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