Half brother of Legg says his mom thought Sam killed Angela Hicks

ELYRIA — When Angela Hicks went missing in the summer of 1990, Samuel Legg III's mother believed her son may have been responsible, according to Legg's half-brother, Todd Lucas.Lucas, a chief petty officer in the U.S. Navy who now lives in Virginia Beach, was 13 years old when Angela disappeared."I remember, when Angie disappeared, my mom talking about, 'Did he do something?'" Lucas said. "She thought possibly Sam did it. My mom was kind of a gossiper, so who knows?"Lucas said over the years, he also has wondered if his half brother was Angela's killer. He said most of his family did, as well."We always had this thought that it was him that had accidentally done something to hurt her and then he tried to get rid of her," Lucas said.Now though, as new DNA evidence has linked Legg to a previously unsolved rape in Medina County, an unsolved homicide in Austintown and possibly two other unsolved homicides, Lucas said he's no longer sure Angela's death was an accident.Legg never was charged with Angela's death, though police suspected him after the 14-year-old's remains were found in a wooded area near Midway Mall in August 1990. The Elyria Police Department has said the investigation into Angela's death is once again active, with police once again looking at Legg as a suspect.Lucas said he hasn't seen his half brother since 1990, shortly after Angela's body was found."From the point where we had the funeral, that was the last time I ever saw Sam," he said. "That was the last time. Whatever happened, him not being around again made you feel (like maybe he had done it). I think my mom may have pushed him out, like an I-think-you-did-it-and-you-just-won't-admit-it kind of thing. That may have pushed him away."Lucas said he met Legg when he was about 11 and Legg was 19. While the two shared a mother, Legg lived with his father and stepmother growing up, Lucas said.Lucas was born in Medina, remained there through kindergarten and then moved to Georgia with his father. A few years later, his mother brought her children back to Ohio where they lived in Kipton and then Elyria.It was then that he was introduced to Legg, who lived in the Akron area at the time, Lucas said."I remember going out there and staying the night with him once or twice," Lucas said. "He always drove around these older cars. He had a thing for them, like a '70s Dodge Dart. That's what I remember about him. He was always cool with me."Legg was quiet and not outgoing, which is something that seems to run in the family, Lucas said.A short time later, Legg and Angela's mother, Nancy, married. That's when Angela entered Lucas' life."We probably went to school together, and we probably passed each other a bunch of times in elementary school," Lucas said. "We didn't know each other, though, until Sam met Nancy and introduced us."Lucas said he, Angie and her friends would hang out at times."She always found it funny that I was her uncle, even though she was older than me," Lucas laughed. "I really didn't know her all that long, though."The two met in 1989, he said, and Angela went missing the following year.Lucas said Legg had a rough childhood, from the stories their mother, Barbara Borbas, would tell."What I always heard from Mom was that Sammy was abused growing up by his father or stepmother," Lucas said. "He hated his stepmother. That may have been a factor in the way he was and in turn the things he's been doing."Law enforcement has said Legg has schizophrenia, which Lucas said their aunt also suffered from and that "mental illness runs in the family."After Angela disappeared, and his mother appeared to believe her son was possibly to blame, Legg became estranged from the family. He eventually vanished.Lucas said he tried to get in contact with Legg at one point, but "he just disappeared."Then he heard the news that Legg was being extradited from Arizona in connection with the unsolved rape in Medina County and that he was being linked to other crimes, including unsolved homicides."I was in shock. I couldn't believe it at first," Lucas said. "I couldn't believe it was him, but then I realized that I didn't doubt (what they're saying about him)."Lucas said he just wants some closure for everyone who knew Angela. He said he also wants closure for himself, and wants the question of whether Legg killed his stepdaughter to finally be answered."If he did it, he deserves to rot in jail or wherever he's going to be," Lucas said. "It'll probably be a mental institution if he's schizophrenic and can't even answer a damn question. I see pictures of him now, and he looks like a lunatic."Contact Scott Mahoney at 329-7146 or smahoney@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @SMahoneyCT.