What made him particularly noteworthy is the cat and mouse game he played with authorities. "it would be unbearable to stay" here any longer. A white male opened the side panel. Everything was consistent with the Ellis case,recalls James Hedrick, a former New Castle County Police captain and a member of the task force that captured Pennell. The state of Delaware only has one documented serial killer: Steven Brian Pennell or more commonly known as the "Route 40 Killer." The day after Christmas when his extended family arrived at the house, Simmons shot his children and their spouses before strangling their two infant children and his 7-year-old granddaughter. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast). In the early '70s, Kemper started to pick up young hitchhikers who were Fresno State students. Billy Joel & Stevie Nicks floor seat tickets, Thomas Capano heads for the courthouse in Wilmington, Del., Friday, Oct. 9, 1998. A second victim was decomposing in the basement. The motion was granted. As part of a plea bargain to avoid the death penalty, Rudolph plead guilty to all charges. A public defender and the judge pushed back, and he was set free. Delaware was the scene of the crime, but the authorities decided that the murder trial would be held in California. A few days later, Whisenhant returned to her body and mutilated it. And speaking of beautiful, weve put together a list of some of the most picturesque destinations in Delaware for you to visit. In some homicide cases, detectives are able to collect enough Kent County murders evidence to charge someone with the murder and bring them into Kent County murders trial. He hanged himself in jail just hours after confessing. Thank you! In 2011, Bill and Lorraine Currier were asleep in their home when Keyes broke in and caused a "blitz attack," waking them from their sleep and dragging them to his car. The official cause of death was from "softening of the brain, due to melancholy,"but some say she died of the lingering effects of sweet revenge. He was executed by lethal injection in 1990. Inside the trailer, he made a personal torture chamber, fitted with sex toys, handcuffs, whips, and chains. Many of both the recent and decades-old murders in Dover, Delaware, have not been solved, and law enforcement continues to use every resource available to them in order to continue investigating each homicide. Gacy killed 33 boys and young men in the '70s, They later found 11 bodies just 50 feet from his home, 1948 and 1980, Cole strangled and killed 13 women across multiple states. As early as the 1800s, the United States has seen killers who murdered on a massive scale. Lyda Southard makes the list because she's often credited with being Idaho's (and sometimes the country's) first woman serial killer. Gordon's body washed up on the rocky banks of the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal on Sept. 20. Story by Jason Lucky Morrow Posted: December 9, 2015 On November 9, 1927, twenty-year-old Howard Hitchens of Georgetown, Delaware, was growing concerned for his uncle, Robert, whom he had not seen in several days. Delaware case results in first-ever convictions on charges of cyberstalking resulting in death. The town of Texarkana which spanned Texas and Arkansas lived in fear, as he apparently attacked eight people and killed five. Charlie Weems, Ozie Powell, Clarence Norris, Andrew Wright, Leroy Wright, Olen Montgomery, Willie Roberson, Haywood Patterson, and Eugene Williams were the nine "Scottsboro Boys." The nine Black teenagers, aged between 13 and 19, were accused of raping two white women. She survived the attack. Known as a prostitute to local authorities, Gordon was last seen on Route 40, hopping into the passenger side of a blue Ford panel van. As of 2017, Colorado Police are still attempting to close this case with DNA evidence. Thomas Capano, a once-prominent Delaware attorney who was convicted of killing his mistress after a dramatic trial more than 12 years ago, has been found dead in his prison cell. Two teenagers looking to close the holiday weekend in the ideal make-out spot discovered Ellisbody around 9:25 p.m. that evening. (AP Photo/Tim Shaffer, Pool), This is a police handout photo of Thomas Capano, taken in Wilmington Del., Wednesday, Nov. 12, 1997. Since then, the country has become captivated with true crime, particularly serial killers. From there, Reid went on to rob four different fast-food restaurants and kill people inside. While Florida has seen the likes of Aileen Wuornos and Ted Bundy, one unknown serial killer makes this list for her brutality. Thomas Capano, a prominent Democrat, was one of four brothers. He killed 10 people in Wichita between 1974 and 1991. The lone witness to the abduction knew both Gordon and Pennell. In 2001, a television movie based on Rule's book was made, And Never Let Her Go, starring Mark Harmon as Capano and Kathryn Morris as Fahey. Abby's body turned up discovered upstairs, with her head smashed to pieces, while Andrew laid lifeless on the couch . Some deaths stick with us. For a time, people believed it was an interstate trucker.. (AP Photo/Wilmington Police, File), Kathleen Fahey, sister of murder victim Anne Marie Fahey, talks during a news conference after Thomas Capano was sentenced to life in prison Thursday, March 2. In 2017, he was beaten to death in prison. Gaskins claimed he killed 200 hitchhikers. Meanwhile, other task-force members were trying to identify the strange fibers found on DiMauro. Technically, Charles Starkweather is a spree killer but that doesn't make him any less terrifying. Daniel Wayne Cook, John Matzke, Carlos Froyan Cruz-Ramos, and Kevin Swaney all worked together at a restaurant in Lake Havasu City, Arizona during the summer of 1987. He is still in prison. Every year, the Federal Bureau of Investigation publishes a Uniform Crime Report that details the crimes, crime rates, and crime locations in every state, county, and city, which includes a published report for crime in Delaware. The most amazing thing was that he spoke about the crimes in the third person,says former Supreme Court Justice Andrew Moore, who heard Pennells argument. Soon, undercover female officers dressed as prostitutes walked the stretch of highway looking for clues. The perpetrator must have sensed a pleasure in the killings,he told the court. While excavating his former home, they found the bodies of six boys and young men buried under the floorboards. A Delaware Superior Court judge sentenced the once wealthy and well-connected attorney to life in prison without parole for the 1996 murder of Fahey, who was scheduling secretary to then-Gov. They called Donald Henry Gaskins "Pee Wee." Officially, though, the identity of the murderer remains a . She was also strangled with a ligature and bludgeoned with a hammer. With roughly 60 members, it was the states third-largest police department for a time. Gacy would sexually assault the boys, strangle them with rope, and then bury their bodies under his house. Yet, even now, those close to the case are at a loss to explain what happened. She immediately identified the vehicle. Doss was sentenced to life in prison and died in 1965. As the cops circled in on him, he panicked and died by suicide without ever facing trial. In February of that year, the state abandoned its efforts to seek capital punishment, opting to leave Capano imprisoned for life without parole. These true crime stories from Delaware appear on the Historical Crime Detective blog. The highly publicized case went to trial on October 26, 1998, and lasted twelve weeks. By this point, the task force was monitoring Pennells every move. When Mary joined them, she had a box of candies that had arrived unexpectedly with a pretty handkerchief and a note, With love to yourself and baby. Harold Shipman: "Dr. Death" who killed 218 patients. After a notorious escape from prison, she later died from a heart attack. Crime rates in our small state hover around the national median, and it's not common to ever fear for your life while exploring our beautiful state. Two men whom he never met filed appeals on his behalf, but they were quickly dismissed for lack of standing. Renee Taschner was a 23-year-old New Castle County police officer when she came face to face with evil on Sept. 14, 1988. In fact, Gaskins claimed he killed 200 hitchhikers. All five were women ranging in age from 17 to 36, Hawaii News Now reports. It was registered to Pennell. For the most part, Delaware is a peaceful state. I had no death-penalty experience, and the state had pulled out all the stops because of the severity of the crimes.. An article in The Boston Globe said it best: "He stabbed four of his neighbors to death in their own homes before he was old enough to drive.". One night, a group of slave raiders came to the mansion. Capano was convicted of murder charges in the death of Delaware gubernatorial secretary Anne Marie Fahey in 1996. The border town of Delmar was an important railroad town in the late 1800s. Some papers even described her as more of a cartoon character than a serial killer. She was sentenced to life in prison and is still there to this day. I had to let the scientists testify and then make a decision whether their actions were legally sound.. 1900-1924. Ridgway said he would kidnap runaways and sex workers along the Route 99 and take them to his home. He was different than any other person who stopped for me,she recalls. Several law enforcement agencies provide reports and information on their websites if youre interested in knowing more about the number of murders in Delaware by year. One example is the Uniform Crime Report, or UCR, that is released annually by the Federal Bureau of investigation. I tried to work with him, but people are who they are., The state prosecutor agrees. Falling claimed that she would hear voices chanting Kill the baby! and the only way to silence them way to push a blanket over the childs face. The 23-year-old had distanced herself from the life of a streetwalker, even purchasing books for nursing school. Wilmington Daily Republican, Dec. 17, 1898. This time, however, police caught a break. In all, he murdered seven people, becoming known as the "Fast Food Killer.". Since he did not commit just one, but continued in the same depraved manner on the others, this pleasure is evident., Deputy Attorney General Richard E. Fairbanks Jr. represented the state. In October 1976, Thomas Warren Whisenhant abducted Cheryl Lynn Payton from the convenience store where she worked. Before earning this moniker, he killed his grandparents at 15 and was in jail for two years. Simmons covered the bodies with coats and his best table cloth, wrapped the babies in plastic and left them in the abandoned cars, before going to his local bar for a drink. B Billy Bailey C Thomas Capano James B. Clark Jr. Cheney Clow D William Devonshire J Shannon Johnson (murderer) P Steven Brian Pennell R James Allen Red Dog S Nelson Shelton Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. DNA testing confirmed years later that Timothy Wilson Spencer was "The Southside Strangler." Get more stories delivered right to your email. Despite the fact that the victims died near Dover, Delaware, the residents of Lewes would have to follow the trial from afar. She also noticed the drivers coldness. A date was set for March 14, 1992. During those years free from jail, he killed four people. Once there, he would strangle them to death. Although there is little recent data on Kent County murders, the homicide rate is higher than in more urban locations due to the countys population. Mason ordered Charles Watson to take Susan Atkins, Linda Kasabian, and Patricia Krenwinkel to go to Terry Melchers house and murder anyone who was there. He drove her to a secluded area and sexually assaulted her in the front seat of his pick-up truck. Delaware Attorney General Charles Oberly approved a search warrant for Pennells van. Of those 18, five people were killed. He then shot her point blank in the head and dragged her body into a wooded area. Also featured in a 2018 episode of Vanity Fair Confidential titled "The Secret of the Summer Wind.". The young officer was prescient enough to playfully rub her hand against the carpeting on the vans floor, pulling out blue fibers for testing. Police believed the murders were the act of a serial killer, but could never find the culprit. Famous Murders: Kitty Genovese. Here in Delaware, you'll find a handful of haunted accommodations where you might encounter something otherworldly. He still refused to admit guilt. Each state has a connection to an infamous serial killer. Some believe Williams has nothing to do with these crimes and think that police pinned them on him because they wanted an answer. killed 10 people in Wichita between 1974 and 1991, killing 17 people with an axe on behalf of the Church of Sacrifice. A few examples of the unsolved murders in northern Delaware include the 2013 murder of Kaiheem White, the 1993 murder of Linda Ann Moody Armstrong, the 2000 murder of Carmen Rodriguez, the 2013 murder of Lamar Wilmer, and the 2013 murder of Samantha Neuwein, among countless others. Bruce Bennett was stabbed and bludgeoned to death, while his wife Debra was sexually assaulted before being bludgeoned to death as well. Michelle Gordon, a 22-year-old New Castle resident, disappeared on Sept. 16, 1988. As a nonprofit organization, we rely on financial support from readers like you. He would rob, rape, and kill his victims. He talked about her like she was some piece of garbage he could just throw away. After being brought into custody Hansen confessed to raping over 30 women, and murdering 17. In January of 1984, just two months after the Bennett family moved into their Aurora home, 3 of the 4 family members were brutally murdered by a still unknown assailant. 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