Biography
Tracy Housel was born in King Edwards VII Memorial Hospital, Paget, Bermuda at 11.45 am on May 7th 1958.
Housel's parents, William Franklin Housel and Lula Mae Elkins Housel, lived in Bermuda at the time of his birth.
Lula was fourteen years old when she married Tracy's father, Bill, who was forty three. She came from an impoverished background in North Carolina and had a family with a long history of health problems, including diabetes and low blood sugar. Lula herself suffered from severe arthritis and low blood sugar.
They were American civilians and Housel's father was employed at the Kindley Air Force Base as a sheet metal worker. At that time Bermuda was in British possession. On February 1st, 2001, the Foreign Office confirmed Tracy was born and remains a British national.
The family left Bermuda about a year after their son's birth.
Childhood
His childhood was spent in impoverished circumstances in North Carolina and Columbia Heights, Rhode Island, a ruined former mill town.The mill had moved out, and when Tracy was a child, the neighborhood was nothing more than a "white ghetto." The Housel family was among the poorest in the area. Children as young as ten were often seen out on their own late at night with no parental supervision. Tracy was no exception. Drugs and alcohol were prevalent among children and adults.
As a child, Tracy was affected byserious illness and injury. He suffered constant headaches and fevers, for which his father - who 'did not believe' in doctors - refused to seek medical help.
Tracy's Parents
Lula was a well-known alcoholic throughout Tracy's
childhood. A co-worker described how she drank straight alcohol from a
thermos and got drunk at work. Lula would often show up at the Legion
Hall drunk, and would frequently be asked to leave, or carried out. Bill
Housel, also an alcoholic, was violent toward Lula. They argued with each
other at the Legion Hall, often elevating into fist fights.Witnesses at
Housel's appeals described how Tracy would try to end their fights, only
to find both parents turn their anger on him. After one such incident
when he was 14, he ran to the home of one of Lula's friends. When she
called his mother, Lula responded: 'If you've got him, you can f**king
keep him. Come get his s**t.' He ended up staying for three months, and
soon after his return, left home for good.
Tracy's father Bill had a reputation for unpredictable violence. He frequently hit his children in the head and face with his hands, and often beat them with a belt. Tracy and his brothers often came to school with black eyes, broken noses and bruises. One neighbor recounted a time when another young neighborhood boy hit one of the Housel children; Bill chased the child, caught him, and beat him.
At School
Despite such horrendous home circumstances, Tracy
was obedient and well behaved at school. Teachers were well aware of his
poverty. They describe him as a troubled child, but not a troublemaker.
His sixth grade math teacher said he was an over-achiever for his social
situation and was impressed by Tracy's efforts
These teachers also testified, however, that Tracy was in need of special
help and attention because of his troubled home life. Katherine Caroselli,
who was both a teacher and a trained social worker, testified that although
never disrespectful, Tracy just "wasn't there" in school. Irene
Hutton testified how Tracy was unfocused and unable to concentrate on
his schoolwork. She said that although he was quiet and never said much
in class, "his sad eyes spoke a lot."
As an Adult
In the early 1980s, Housel moved to Iowa, where
he formed a relationship with a widow, Robin Banks. Most of the time he
was relaxed and easy-going, and acted as a loving father to her children.
But he was also prone to sudden mood swings, when he would fail to eat
for days on end, drink and take drugs.