I think they recently did the same sort of tests on Jesse James (who did indeed die in Missouri in 1882). I have a vague suspicion that old Pat Garrett will be vindicated by DNA testing, but pilloried by those who prefer the notion that Billy the Kid eluded the law for decades.

Billy's mother is buried in Silver City. He had a brother who died in Denver maybe in the 1950s and it should be possible to get genetic material from them. Billy's bones (if it was Billy) were washed away in a flood in Ft Summer when town was flooded about 75 years ago. Anyway there are no bones we can call Billy's. What about the other guys who claimed to be Billy? Why not pardon Billy anyway since Governor Wallace broke his promise to Billy.

i would like to know when the tests are gonna be performed as well as the results if anyone gets new info and if anyone cares i think brushy bill was billy i have seen a stagering amount of evidence that points to that conclusion

Never believed Garrett shot Billy the Kid since I heard his own daughter had insisted that. I've spent a looooong time reviewing William Henry Roberts evidence and now KNOW that he was indeed Billy the Kid.
Remember what Pat Garrett had done and the whole reason he left Texas for New Mexico - he murdered a man. Garrett was nothing more than a murderer with (after the incident in old Ft. Sumner) two notches in his gun.
The lady in Silver City is nothing more than a half aunt - won't be a lot of DNA matches there. If New Mexico is serious about the investigation (I still think it was to drum up more tourists)then they need to get William Henry Roberts mother exhumed and test her with Kathrine and Billy (Just for good measure - you know - to expell that dumb unfounded rumor that W. H. Roberts wasn't born until 1879...puhleeze)
Mr. Roberts (Bonney) was just a victim of the times when he came to New Mexico Territory and merely branded an 'outlaw' by crooked men. No more...no less...

Do you believe that Jesse James knew either Pat Garrett or Billy the Kid?

I have studied the Brushy Bill case immensely and have come to the conclusion that he was indeed Billy the Kid. Does anyone know when or if they are actually going to exhume Brushy Bill?

Was reading on msn yesterday about more reason to exhume Brushy Bill and do dna testing. I am fascinated by the whole story and the history. Had our kids watch the Hollywood version of the whole story in YG2 last night, and now think they will become history buffs of the Old West too! Well, I think Brushy Bill was really the grandfather of Martin Sheen....or was that Strom Thurmond that was his grandfather????

I have been investigating this story of Billy the Kid for probably 10 years now. I thought in the back of my mind that some day I would " see the light" and give in to tradition, but in my experience, it is harder to accept truth than to just agree with what so called experts call historical fact. There is, in my eyes, too much similarity between Brushy Bill and Billy the Kid, and why would some 90 year old man want to make up such a story. This day and age, there are alot of people who are up tight and every one wants to take all the credit without putting forth an effort. If Roberts is not the Kid, then prove that, it's just easier to say that Garrett killed him in 1881 than it is to investigate it yourself and form your own opinion. Very sad. Rest in Peace, Kid.

I've reviewed this case over and over again. Many of the facts and encounters Roberts describes are to detailed and at the time you either had to have been a court record researcher or had been at the scenes roberts described. email me if any one has more info.

Even If , or if not Brushy Bill was Billy The Kid
the last time I checked I remmber hearing that Pat's daughter said that he confessed to her that he did not kill Billy ?
And also it is said that the man that was in the coffin in 1881 in Ft. Sumnter had a beard ?
and last but not least Didn't Billy and the regulaters start the fall of the
Santa Fe Ring ?
I say Rest In Peace Billy

Notwithstanding other substantial and overwhelming evidence supporting the theory that Brushy Bill was indeed Billy the Kid, I believe a comparison of known photos of Brushy Bill to the tin type photo of Billy the Kid is evidence enough. Even to the "untrained eye" it is immediately apparent to me that Brushy Bill and Billy the Kid were one in the same. Before ever looking at the photos of Brushy Bill, I looked at the tin type photo of Billy the kid, and instantly noted the prominent, distinctive ears. When I looked at the photos of Brushy Bill, I had no doubt that those were the same ears. And the stance and shape of the body (also distinctive in the tin type) were exactly the same as well. How likely would it be that a 90 year old man claiming to be Billy the Kid would have those same features, as well as know so many of the details of what transpired in New Mexico AND have the same wounds on his body that Billy the Kid was known to have. I think any reasonable jury would not have to debate too long on this one.

i am a big billy the kid fan. i was just woundering if anyone knew for sure the that is the real kid. i would love to know this and would love for someone to email me and let me know what happened with the dna tests. thanks

pienso que realmente era bill el cabrito por que el estaba intentando rehacer su vida despues de la injusticia padecida al ser engañado con la promesa del perdon y no hay pruebas claras de que garret matara al cabrito

First please bear in mind that proving the man Pat Garret killed wasn't Billy the Kid, doesn't mean Brushy Bill was.
1-Why would Billy the Kid ask John Poe and Thomas McKinnely questions in Spanish? When he realized they could not understand him, why didn't he ask in English?
2-Does it make sense that Billy walked right past Poe and McKinnely without either of them being suspicious? Billy was anglican (white), most of the people at Ft Sumner were Mexican. He matched the description of a notorious outlaw, and was wondering around armed in the middle of the night. (Contrary to western movies people didn't carry guns everywhere)
3-Wouldn't the real Billy have seen the well armed anglican (white) men in the middle of this mostly Mexican settlement and run away?
4-If Billy or whoever Pat Garret shot was armed what happened to the gun and why can't Poe and Garret agree on the type? Poe claimed it was a "self cocking" (double action).38; Garret claimed it was a single action .45; Billy was known to use .41s and no gun was recovered off the body.
5-What happened to the orgional copy of the coroner's report? The one displayed is a copy and most likely forged. If you notice all the signatures are in the same hand writing. Even so, no one on the coroner's jury ever saw the body.
6-Why did Pat Garret refuse to sign an affidavid stating he killed Billy the Kid?
7-Why does Poe's account say that a wake was held with the body that night, while Garret's account says the body was kept in the room and guarded until burial the next day?
8-Why was there such a rush to burry Billy? Usually pictures were taken of the bodies of gunned down outlaws.
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DNA testing would do very little to solve this case. The cemetary in Silver City was moved. Its hard to tell if all the bodies were buried under the correct head stone in the cemetary's new location. Making it questionable weather you could find Cathrine (McCarty) Atruim's body. Errosion at the fort Sumner graveyard mean's there probably no body at all under Billy the Kid's head stone. Also Tom O'Floyd and Charlie Bowdre were buried in the same plot and the grave went 20 years with no marker. Finally Brushy Bill's version of the story claims Cathrine is his maternal aunt, not his mother.

As a Homicide Detective and a former Intelligence Analyst at DIA, I truly get a good laugh at these conspiracy theories. But this one just absolutely anoys me due to the lack of COMMON SENSE people get when they want to believe something that just is not true. 1. You cant look at the odd things that brushy knew about, you have to look at the odvious events he didnt know about. Like being at Tunstals funeral when he was actually in JAIL. 2.You cant look at a picture of an old man and say he looks like a picture of the young man, not when there are earlier pictures of brushy available that look nothing like billy. And why would brushy take all these pictures if he is hiding? 3. Brushys original grave marker showed a DOB of 1868, the family bible shows 1879, there are census reports that back up the 1879 birth. If he was born in 1879, than he was 2 when he escaped Ft Sumner. 4. The man Brushy says was actually killed at Ft Sumner was Billy Barlow, which just happens to be the name of a famous song written in 1834. 5. If brushy is billy and he was born in 1859, that would make him approx 91 when he died, pretty good for the 1950's especially for a man who had been shot multiple times and lived a rough life on horseback in the desert with little or no medicine. Its most likely because he was really 71 not 91 when he died. 6. last but certainly not least, the part that people of Hico dont want to talk about is the photo that was published in the New York Times and elswhere of Frnak Dalton laying in bed with his pal Brushy by his side. Frank Dalton claimed to be Jesse James and Brushy also claimed to have been in the James Gang at one point. They had to dig Jesse James body up in Missouri just to prove that Dalton was a fraud, which is probably why there isnt a Jesse James museum and statue in Hico, oh and Brushy does not look 90 in that photo, not by a long shot. Take a look at Hico for a second. this town was dieing when all the factories left. Now it is a tourist attraction because of this idiot Brushy. Anything to save a town. It is so odvious that Dalton (Jesse James) and Brushy (former james gang member turned Billy the Kid)happen to be the two most famous out laws in American history and they decided to move down to this beachfront property in Texas so they could hang out together and swap stories. People this is a FRAUD that keeps Hico alive, I am even thinking of going down there and telling them I am Elvis, maybe I can get a statue. Bottom line, stop digging up graves.

I dunno...its a great story and all. Cool to think Billy got away...but...you guys seem to miss the fact at one time Brushy claimed to have been a member of the Jesse James gang, posing for newspapers with a man who claimed to be Jesse in the 1920s! So Brushy had claimed to have been two different outlaws? http://www.angelfire.com/nm/boybanditking/pageBrushy.html has the pics and some other things about Brushy not being Billy.

Davy Crockett excaped from the Alamo, the police killed a man who only looked like John Dillinger, Amelia Earhart wasn't killed in an airplane crash, the youngest daughter of Romanov Tsar Nicholas II, Anastasia, was living in Charlotteville, VA in the 1980's, Paul is dead and has been for some time now, Elvis really didn't croak but went undercover for the CIA, Jesse James lived to be an old man as did Butch Cassidy and William Bonney, and the rings of Saturn consist mainly of lost airline luggage.

History is full of this stuff. When folks leave the realm of the mind, they will believe what they want to believe and disregard the rest. Brushy Bill Roberts is the very definition of a logical fallacy, but since that interferes with a good tale, let's just cherry-pick those details that fit his story and ignore all those inconvenient, contradictory facts that prove him a fraud.

Like the detective above me, when you take all the evidence and analyze it, Ray Charles could SEE that Brushy Bill was full of crap. I love the BTK saga. I have been to many of the historical places in new mexico that the kid frequented. I wish he would have lived to be an old man, to tell the world the amazing stories he had. But...it just isnt so. BTK died the night of July 14, 1881. If you cant see that from reviewing the evidence, then all i can say is "You can lead a horse to water, but you cant make him drink."

A good detective would take a more objective approach and really check out the rumors before assuming they are fact. Billy The Kid was "not" in jail at the time of the Tunstall funeral and there were witnesses who said he was at the funeral. The family Bible says Oliver P. Roberts was born in 1879, yes, but Brushy was "not" Oliver P. and never claimed to be. He used the alias Oliver L. who I believe was a different cousin who died at a young age. That cousin Oliver was probably born in 1868 or at least Brushy thought he was. There is abundant evidence Brushy had to have been born prior to that and there is a different family Bible that lists William Henry Roberts (Brushy) born 1859. Most Roberts family members denied that Brushy and Oliver P. were the same person. Only one disagreed and she, Geneva Pittmon was just a young girl when Brushy died. How would she know the fact of his true identify? As for the Jessie James thing, Brushy never said he was a member of the James gang. It is reported he said he rode with Jessie but there is no proof he ever actually said that. He did identify J. Frank Dalton as the real Jessie James but the supposed "proof" that Dalton was a fraud has been debunked. I'm not saying I believe Dalton was Jessie James, but I do think Brushy believed he was. In any case, that does not make Brushy a fraud unless you believe in guilt by association. Or maybe you think if you can prove that Brushy ever in his life told a lie about anything, that means he lied about being Billy The Kid? That logic doesn't hold up under objective scrutiny.

People need to keep an open attitude over this whole issue. Let the investigation go forward.

Too many people in the know say something is wrong with the legend.

If BTK was killed and buried, as the legend says, the investigation will show it to be true. What is wrong with that? Understand, this is a murder case, and the Government of New Mexico has the responsibility and the authority to investigate it, just like any other case. There is no such thing as a cold murder case. Any county judge that tries to block it can and should be overturned in State and or Federal Court. But it shouldn’t get to that, we all should start using our common sense.

There is nothing wrong with exhuming the graves sites and obtaining M-DNA samples that will be on file form that time on. Just the exhumations alone would answer questions. Opening a grave site is not evil or immoral, it’s just a grave site. The contents would be finally replaced and resealed. It’s just a grave site, it’s not a shrine.

Ultimately, the exhumations have to be done. I say they have to be done because there is family out there that want to know the truth. They alone should be honored. They alone have the right to know the truth.

Let me repeat that. BTKOG take the gun out of your mouths ... THERE IS FAMILY OUT THERE THAT WANT TO KNOW THE TRUTH !

The rest of us should back off and stay to the sidelines. It's not our story. It not our family.

If the legend is true, let the investigation verify it. If not, the family wants to know where BTK went and what happened to him and they want to know if there are any other unknown family members out there. It’s their right to know.

In the mean time, those not a part of this story should not add to the smoke and fog. Like the 1930 flood theory washing out bones buried six feet deep ..... really! Check the topographic maps and tell me any flood in the last 500,000 years has ripped away 6 ft of earth in that area ... come on people why would you even say that? What did you gain? Was that fun? What is it about this subject that brings these types out of the woodwork?

Look at the bright side, if the investigation shows the legend is correct we can all go on to other more important things.

The investigation must go forward and if they are blocked again. I want the family members to move on those blocking this action and file civil suits against them, their clubs, their companies, their industries, their governments for damages received, for grief and aggravation and I do mean six or seven figures worth. This is their story and yes it’s worth six to seven figures in story-rights alone to them.

Now back off!

All i have to say is the only truth you can go on is what is know from the family. I'm a Garrett, So i'll tell you what i know. I know pat garrett didn't do it, Billy and Garrett we're friends. Yes, Garrett was know better than billy, they worked the range together.I can say Pat Garrett wasn't as crazy as billy but he worked everybody over pretty good if were all still talking about it.

Brushy Bill Roberts=Brushy BULL Roberts

Nobody is ever really going to know what the real truth; so why bother? I don't much evidence that Billy the Kid wasn't killed; although the circumstances are questionable!

I HAVE ALWAYS BELIVED THAT THE KID AND GARRETT WERE GOOD FRIENDS,I HAVE READ THAT A PICTURE WASNT TAKEN OF THE KILLING WHY!DID PAT KILL THE WRONG KID?IF BRUSHY ISNT THE KID AND THE SCARS ARE TRUE THEN WHO IS THIS MAN,

There is no evedence that bodys were buried 6 feet in 1881. Southwest is all clay, hard dirt. I'm sure they wouldn't dig any more then they had to. I tink it's a waste of time. Every person from that era is dead. No justice overturning graves. The sherriff should be concerned with current issues, like catching today's child molesters and murderers.

I still debate whether Billy the Kid was actually killed that night. I have serious doubts that he was; there are too many holes in the account of his death. And why was Pat Garrett in such a hurry to bury The Kid? Also, why did a lot of people claim that the man killed was a full bearded Mexican. Makes you wonder?

I believe that Brushy Bill is in fact BTK. I don't see why a 90 year old man would lie. I also, believe the Garrett family would lie by saying that Pat Garrett didn't kill the Kid. Pat Garrett was considerd a hero for the killing of the Kid. Why tell his family later he did'nt kill him.
In an earlier posting a homicide det. says in my own words, that you can't take pictures of someone through the years and say that this man is that man. I belive that to be true because i look nothing like a variety of pictures i had taken through periods of my life...especially when i was 17,18,19,20,21,22. In short I say believe what you want to believe.

One more thing growing up i always played outlaws with cousins and friends and not knowing if BTK got away really made his legend. I think it should remain that way.

I made a error in sentence 3...what i ment to say is that i believe the Garrett family would NOT lie by saying Pat Garrett didn't kill the Kid.

Read my book, "Billy the Kid, His Real Name Was ..." and you will learn the real truth.

There are so many reasons to discount Brushy being the Kid: the teeth in the jar, the wrong age, the lack of knowledge. My favorite reason is what Brushy did when he was invited to join in a meeting of some of the Kid's living pals. Someone gave Brushy a ticket to the meeting. He peeked into the room of real Lincoln County War vets, many of whom actually knew the Kid. Brushy mumbled something unaudible, turned heal and left town. He just couldn't 't stand up to real scrutiny.

In short, Brushy Billy was a fraud. He also claimed to be Jessie James for a while. For those of you who want to believe that Brushy was the Kid....I suggest that you give it up. Your time will be better spent to help O.J. find the real killers.

Why would Pat Garrett write a book about Billy the Kid claiming he was the one who killed the Kid? While the real Billy the Kid waltzed around town for the rest of his life as Brushy Bill? Thus risking his career as a lawman? And also, didn't Garrett manage to kill two of Billy's friends on sight, thinking they were the Kid before Billy surrended? I mean, there's nothing to suggest that Billy and Garrett were close friends. (Thus allowing for any collusion between the two.) And everything to suggest that Garrett was a highly ambitiuous individual who carried a badge. And was looking for a kill to build his reputation and career. And finally, we know this as well because the bounty on Billy was for him to be captured alive.

Visit my new website and you will learn the truth about Brushy. His face matched, his hands matched, his physique matched, his story matched, the eyewitnesses confirmed it, the voice matched, the teeth matched, the wounds matched, his height matched, his shoe size matched, his eyes matched, his nose matched, his mouth matched, and he was willing to expose himself to a possible death sentence in order to get a long promised pardon. Would "you" do that if it was a lie. Some folks say, "well, he was very old so he didn't have long to live anyway." I say, being executed ain't no fun at any age and he would have to be a raving lunatic to make such a claim unless it was true.

Go to the following URL to see the photographic evidence I've worked on for 8 years.
http://web.mac.com/musicplay/Brushy/Story.html