Joel Jackson Fisher, 33, was born in Memphis, Tennessee, the son of Wayne and Christine Fisher.
Elementary school records describe Joel as anxious, withdrawn, and exhausted, and cite trouble at home as the likely cause. Despite the stress, Joel maintained a solid B-plus average.
Entering Pontotoc High School, Joel found himself socially at a loss. Unlike Ned, his younger brother, Joel was painfully shy. The situation worsened when Wayne moved out for good and Christine filed for divorce. A withdrawn Joel was forced to attend school counseling sessions.
Even though Joel's home life was more stable without Wayne, finances were extremely tight. Stu Menton, the manager of the Fun Time Roll-A-Rena, hired Joel for after-school and weekend work. Joel spent most of those earnings helping to pay for Christine's outpatient alcohol treatment. Following rehab, Christine landed a part-time job at a hardware store.
After Wayne left, Joel's resentment transferred to Ned, who remained in contact with his father. Christine told friends that her boys were constantly at each other's throats. The brothers' mutual animosity resulted in the only disciplinary action on Joel's school record when he was a junior and Ned a freshman. The two got into a violent fight in the cafeteria when Joel allegedly overheard Ned calling Christine "a whore."
Joel might have gotten into further trouble, but Stu Menton took the shy teen under his wing. He asked the youngster to help plan the rink's renovation, and Stu's instincts proved right. Joel kept all the paperwork organized, developed a plan to keep the snack stand open during construction, and helped select and install new video games.
Stu encouraged Joel to continue his education and wrote a recommendation for Joel's Ole Miss application, which helped Joel get accepted on scholarship. Ignoring his mother's suggestions that he stay in Pontotoc, Joel started classes in Oxford. His work-study jobs let him send money home to Christine, even as he bought books second- or third-hand.
Joel reportedly remained angry at Ned, who showed no ambition to do anything but continue sponging off their mother—and, by extension, Joel as well. When Joel got an apartment in Oxford, he refused to give Ned his new address. Joel visited his mother only when Ned was away, and he encouraged Christine to move to Oxford and leave Ned to his own devices.
After graduating, Joel needed a couple of computer prerequisites to pursue a master's degree in library science. While enrolled through the university extension, he met Delia Winters, manager of a local bank branch. She was so professional-looking that Joel would never have dreamed of approaching her, so it was lucky that she had no qualms about making the first move.
Delia and Joel married in a small ceremony in Oxford two years later. Christine attended the wedding, but Wayne and Ned were not invited. Pastor Ryan Gibbons recalls Joel telling him during premarital counseling that Wayne was dead as far as he was concerned.
When the couple's first child was born just before their fourth anniversary, Joel quit his job and became a full-time parent. Christine was overjoyed to be a grandmother, and Joel frequently took little Charlie to Pontotoc for visits. When Charlie started preschool, Joel returned to work and also enjoyed volunteering for the local arts council, which published several of his poems in its annual newsletter.
Four years ago, Joel learned through Christine that Wayne and Ned were in business together in Oxford. He ignored Chr stine's pleas to heal the rift between them and refused to tell Wayne he was a grandfather.
Joel told Delia he was certain Ned and Wayne were up to no good and vowed not to speak with them, fretting they would try to ruin his life. Delia confided to a coworker that she asked Joel to seek counseling to resolve his rage toward his father and brother, worried that her otherwise gentle and sensitive husband seemed to have so much hatred deep within him.
