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| “ | I had a right to know...that I had a son, that I had a boy waiting for me, that my bloodline is sittin' in that truck! | „ |
| ~ William Duke Mason yelling at Tammy about their son. |
William Duke Mason is the main antagonist of the Criminal Minds episode "Outlaw". He is a serial killer, serial rapist, and armed robber who goes on a robbery and murder spree with his partner-in-crime Lester Turner.
He was portrayed by Jesse Luken.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Mason was raised in Las Vegas, Mexico by his mother and his alcoholic stepfather, and from an early age was drawn to an "outlaw" lifestyle of motorcycles, drinking, drugs, and petty crime. Shortly before dropping out of high school and running away from home, he impregnated his girlfriend Tammy Mae Vasquez, but she did not tell him she was pregnant. Unbeknownst to him, she gave birth to a son, Cole.
Mason met petty criminal Benjamin Wade, who took him under his wing and included him in a crime spree that culminated in robbing a diner in El Paso, Texas. They gang-raped two female employees while forcing two male employees to watch, and then killed all four of them. They then robbed a gas station and murdered the clerk, but were arrested while trying to burn down the building.
They were incarcerated for five years in Texas State Prison, where they met Lester Turner, another small-time criminal with a taste for rape and murder. After Mason saved Turner from being killed by another inmate, the two became close, and started planning another crime spree once they were released - specifically, to recreate the El Paso robbery and murders.
"Outlaw"[]
After Mason and Turner are paroled, they go back to Las Vegas and rob a diner, gang-rape a female employee while forcing two male employees to watch, and kill all three of them before setting the diner on fire.
The next day, Mason goes to see Tammy, and finds out that he has a son before she kicks him out. He goes back to the motel where he and Turner are staying, only to find that Turner has robbed a pharmacy and killed two people, requiring them to go on the run.
They stop at a gas station, where the clerk recognizes them from a TV news report and calls the police. Turner kills the clerk, while Mason destroys the surveillance cameras. He finds a man and his young son hiding in the corner and points a gun at them, but he cannot bring himself to kill a child or make him an orphan, so he spares their lives. They stop in the desert, where they get into an argument in which Mason says he is going off on his own to be with Tammy and their son. When Turner insults Tammy and says that Cole is likely not his child, Mason punches him out and rides away. He breaks into Tammy's house and kidnaps her and Cole, driving away with them in Tammy's truck.
Meanwhile, the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) investigates the murders, which they connect to Mason and Turner with help from Technical Analyst Penelope Garcia and Las Vegas Police Chief Raul Montoya. Agents Dave Rossi and Tara Lewis question Wade, who is still incarcerated, and find out about their plan to re-enact the murders. Montoya takes the BAU to talk to Tammy, only to find that Mason has gone on the run while holding his family hostage.
When Tammy's truck breaks down, she and Mason get into an argument in which he inadvertently reveals that he committed the murders. As Tammy recoils in horror, Turner pulls up next to them and tries to persuade Mason to leave them behind. The BAU catches up to them, resulting in a shootout in which Montoya guns Turner down. Mason takes cover and watches as Tammy and Cole are taken to safety, and finally realizes that they can never be together. Resolving to go down shooting, he opens fire on the BAU, forcing Montoya to shoot him dead.
Trivia[]
- Mason and his accomplices are inspired by multiple real-life murderers:
- The late Dale Hausner, one of the two "Phoenix Serial Shooters", guilty of meth-fueled thrill killings and attacks across the namesake city. Hausner also had family problems like Mason.
- Reginald Carr, one of two mass murderers and rapist, along with his brother Reginald, guilty of the Wichita massacre.
- The late Lawrence Bittaker, one of the two "Toolbox Killers".
- The unidentified killers of the Austin yogurt shop massacre victims, consisting of four teenage girls, some who were raped, killed before the shop was set on fire.
- The unidentified killers of the Burger Chef massacre, where four employees were abducted and murdered during what's believed to be a botched robbery. The investigation ended up going cold.
- The late Kenneth McDuff, a.k.a. “The Broomstick Killer”, and his accomplices, guilty of rape and a mass murder before McDuff was released from prison and committed more serial murders.
- Darren Dee O'Neall, a former fugitive, serial rapist, murderer, and suspected serial killer with dreams of outlaw and survivalist lifestyles incorporated into his crimes.
External links[]
- William Duke Mason on the Criminal Minds Wiki
