Two sisters rejoice at father's conviction on The Murfreesboro Post

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Two sisters rejoice at father's conviction

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Two ex-wives implicate husband in murder

Two witnesses testify McFarlane admitted murder

By: Lisa Marchesoni

Posted: Sunday, January 24, 2010 1:45 pm

EDITOR’S NOTE: Contents of this story may offend some readers.

Two sisters rejoiced when they witnessed their biological father convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison last Wednesday.

A Rutherford County jury convicted Mac Ray MacFarlane and sentenced him to life in prison for killing co-worker Gene Stump in 1982. During the investigation, sheriff’s Cold Case Detective Lt. Bill Sharp and Detective Sgt. Dan Goodwin discovered MacFarlane fathered the two sisters.

The sisters accused MacFarlane of raping their mothers at age 15 in 1978 in Dickson and Hickman counties. They said they were the products of the rapes, born three months apart.

The sisters accused their father of raping them respectively at age 13 and 15 in Dickson and Hickman counties. Because they were believed sex abuse victims, they will be identified only as Nichole, now 32, and Lynn, now 31. Their father was never charged with raping their mothers or them.

“His excuse for rape was to make sure he was part of my life forever – as if his DNA wasn’t enough,” Nichole said bitterly.

When Lynn asked him why, he replied, “I wanted to make you part of me forever.”
Lynn said she and Nichole attended the trial to show support for the district attorney’s office prosecuting her father and to get closure for themselves.

“He deserves to die in prison,” Lynn said. “We want people to know he was on trial for murder. Murder is just one of the many things. We’re using this for closure for the things he did to us.”

Murder investigation

As part of their investigation, Detectives Sharp and Goodwin learned about the sisters and contacted them to determine if they had any information about Stump’s murder. Instead, the detectives heard from the daughters and four other children allegations about McFarlin molesting them.

Both sisters said Goodwin listened to them and battled to get McFarlin charged with raping his daughters.

“He has been convicted of child sex crimes in New York State,” Goodwin said.

Goodwin and Sharp checked with prosecutors but learned it was too late to file charges for the sisters’ cases.

“I absolutely believe them,” Goodwin said with conviction in his voice.
Assistant District Attorney Paul Newman said McFarlin could have been prosecuted for the sex crimes only until the victims turned 19.

Luke Evans, their father’s attorney in the murder trial, said he learned about the women through the detectives’ investigation.

“To my knowledge, they are not the daughters of Mr. MacFarlane,” Evans said, calling their information an “unsubstantiated claim. Mr. MacFarlane would adamantly deny anything like that every occurred. No allegations were ever made when this supposedly took place.”

Evans suggested murder trials “tend to draw out people seeking attention for their 15 minutes of fame.”

Several people claimed MacFarlane did something to them years and years ago.

“If these people were so traumatized by him, no fresh complaints were made,” Evans noted. “That needs to be considered.”

But Lynn said a court ordered McFarlin to take a blood test after she was born showing he was the father and he admitted he was her father when she was 18. He offered to sign her birth certificate. He signed a document in 1996-97 stating he was her birth father and she was entitled to his Social Security benefits.

Early life

Lynn’s mother, who attended the trial with her, met Randy McFarlin when she was 15 and he was 18 at a community club in Dickson County. McFarlin changed his name after Stump’s murder. Lynn’s mother accused McFarlin of raping her, resulting in Lynn’s birth.

Nichole’s mother’s family knew McFarlin from church in Hickman County. When her mother was 15, she accused McFarlin of raping her, resulting in Nichole’s birth three months before Lynn.

As children, their mother and grandparents raised both Nichole and Lynn. They didn’t know the circumstances of their conception and longed to know their father.

At age 13, Lynn learned her father and his wife, Donna, had sons who played baseball. She went to the ball field and met him. She began visiting the family on weekends.

During one weekend, Lynn said her father took her to a bar and allowed her to drink. They went to the parking lot where he raped her inside his car when she was 13. A couple stopped to check on her but McFarlin told them she was drunk and they went on.

Because of the family ties, McFarlin’s mother, Reba, wanted visitation with Nichole. Her grandparents allowed her to visit as long as Donna was home. Sometimes the sisters visited together.

Nichole recalled one time when Donna wasn’t home, her father slipped drugs to them and started having sex with Lynn. Nichole tried to stop him “but I couldn’t get to her. I remember lying on the floor trying to reach her.”

“I was trying to get him off (of her),” Lynn said, adding they didn’t willingly participate in the sex acts.

Lynn didn’t tell anybody because she feared her maternal grandfather would kill him and she would lose her grandfather, who was also the only father figure she had. After age 14, Lynn never spent time with McFarlin again.

An angry Nichole described McFarlin as a “flipping con man. You wanted him to be your friend. If he didn’t, your life was a living hell.”

After McFarlin and his first wife, Donna, divorced, the sisters visited when Nichole was 14. They went to a bar and “he got smashed.” Nichole had to drive them home.

She blocked out something that happened with him and refused to go back to visit.
Later, Nichole asked her mother and grandparents what happened. They didn’t know.

“I said I never wanted to go back,” she recalled. “I’m probably better off not knowing.”

Seven years later, McFarlin called her to tell her she had a baby sister. She hung up on him.

After coming out of an abusive relationship at age 19, Nichole agreed to move in with her father and his third wife, Ellen, in May of 1998. On the surface, she was part of a perfect, welcoming family.

Later in the fall, he began using crack cocaine with her, a habit lasting for the next three years. She remembers him taking her income tax check and using the whole check to buy crack cocaine one weekend.

When Ellen was gone one weekend, he again raped her. After that, she put Ellen’s youngest son in the bed with her in hopes he would leave her alone.

“It happened numerous times after that,” Nichole said.

At age 21, she decided to move out.

The sisters lost touch with each other from about age 15 to 20.

Getting closure

Both sisters credited the jury for their ability to realize McFarlin was guilty.

Nichole said she and her family and her sister and her family, along with the Stump family, can heal – and “for all the families who have been on his path of destruction. He is finally getting what he deserves.”

When the jury gave its guilty verdict against MacFarlane, Nichole felt the weight of the world slip off her shoulders. Now she doesn’t have to worry about what her father might do to other children.

Lynn agreed.

“He deserves to die in prison,” Lynn said.

Both sisters have successful careers with good bosses who allowed them to witness the trial. Lynn is married and has one child. Nichole is divorced with one child. Because of their experiences, they have protected their daughters against sexual predators.

They realize their father is not in prison for what he did to them.

Nichole said with a life sentence, she doesn’t have to look over her shoulder to worry about him anymore. Lynn doesn’t have to worry about the chance he’ll ever meet her daughter.

“We’re good and we’re going to get better,” Lynn said.

“The path of destruction stops here,” Nichole vowed. “I won’t ever spit on his grave.”
Then she smiles briefly. “Maybe I will. I can see the healing beginning now.”

Tagged under Mac Ray MacFarlane, Randy McFarlin

Member Opinions:

By: TimeforJustice on 1/24/10
I am confused...this man was allegedly a horrible rapist but the mother's allowed their children to visit with him knowing what type of person he was? Then after the sisters were raped, they continued to visit with him with at least one of them moving in with he and his wife for a period of time? Even when they knew of his character they did nothing to turn him in while something could be done? Surely there is more to this story that we are just not getting. Otherwise, I am inclined to think his defense attorney may be on to something. It just does not add up.

By: itstopshere on 1/25/10
To "TimeforJustice"... If you read the story fully you would have seen all of the answers to your "concerns" were already there. If that's not enough then please allow me to type this again.
When my sister and I started visiting our father we were ONLY allowed to visit while his wife was present. These events would happen when he would demand that she leave the home after I was already there! As far as "turning him in while something could be done", I've also stated in the story that there was a great fear that my grandfather would kill my father if he had known the things that he had done to me. And then I wouldn't have my grandfather in my life. There is more to this story, MUCH MORE. I would also like to say that if you are not an expert on sensitive matters such as RAPE, INCEST, MURDER, DOMESTIC ABUSE, or DOMESTIC VIOLENCE then you might be more "inclined" to think that there would be more to the story. The "more" would be that the mentioned statements are fragments from two womens lives, two women that are mothers themselves and are trying to move on and start the healing process in their own lives. These were not things that were easy to talk about or to remember. We had not spoke of this until the detectives approached us a few years back. This was something that we needed to say out loud and now it's been said. We have nothing more to fear or nothing more to say. I feel that it's very sad that we can't have a voice against this type of person (one who has the title of MURDERER) without having to defend ourselves against people that think HE might have been spoken against unfairly! I'm also very sorry for anyone else who might read this story and find that "it just dose not add up". You would be right! Nothing about this story SHOULD add up but I'm living proof that it does!
Sorry for those who might be confused or offended, there is no way to explain all of this on a newspaper story or in an opinion nor do we wish to do so.

By: Farmall on 1/25/10
When this guy gets out, and he will with all the good behavior and reduced time plans the prison system has set up. He will not be required to sign onto the sex offender list.

By: ajr3p_mtsu_s10 on 1/26/10
This article written by Lisa Marchesoni was heartrending. Although I have never been put into a situation like Nichole and her sister, Lynn, I still felt compassion for their tragic life experiences. Their father most certainly had a misconstrued psychological filter. To have wanted to “make sure he was part of (their) lives forever,” is disturbing on all levels. It has to be relieving to know that he will never again come into contact with these traumatized females. Despite the fact that McFarlane was sentenced to life in prison for murder and not convicted for rape because the sisters are presently over the age of nineteen is disappointing. But, for these sisters to be able to have closure with their father’s upsetting lifestyle is like a burden being lifted off of them. It is ironic that crimes, such as murder and molestation, from decades ago are just now being solved. Better late than never, is what I believe. The article itself discussed a lot about Nichole and Lynn; the mother’s of these two sisters were not mentioned as much. The raping of the mother’s by the same man is dreadful, and hopefully McFarlane’s prosecution was consoling to them as well. The Rutherford County Department did an excellent job on unfolding this case. I hope that this story has encouraged rape victims to speak up, and to know that there are punishments to the guilty. I would like to thank Nichole and Lynn for allowing their story to be heard.

By: jkryani on 1/27/10
I was on the jury and believe me, there was no doubt at all from any of us that this person was totally guilty. It made me sad that people such as him exist in this world, but I am glad I had a part in getting him off the streets.

By: Boo on 1/30/10
jkryani- Thank you for your part in getting this creep off the street