I discussed the general topic of gaybashing and hate crimes with a female deputy sheriff in the very kind of small red-state town where Jack Twist might of met his theoretical end, a gal of the age to have been on the job at that time, 1983.
Judge, thank you for contributing a great post (not just because you sort of complimented me
). I won't take up the space to quote the whole thing here, just the first paragraph so readers will know to which I'm referring.
I'd particularly like to mention that I've thought about the prominence of the Newsomes in the community possibly also being a factor in any hypothetical "cover-up," so I'm glad you mentioned that.
What I want to say here is that I think it's possible that even if Jack's death occurred just the way Ennis envisions it, it still might, in a way, have been a crime of opportunity. If there were rumors about Jack circulating in the Childress area, and some low-life types had heard them, perhaps they just accidentally came on Jack, all by himself alone, changing a tire on some deserted back road, and decided to have a little "fun" with the alleged "queer."
Jack could have been having trouble with that tire, and the mechanics just happen by and offer to "help." There's Jack, all by himself, outside the truck (thus away from any firearm that he might have had inside the truck). Conceivably, he might even have handed the instrument of his own death--the tire iron--to his murderer.