Received DOC # Last Name First Name Sex Race County of Conviction; 8/21/1985: 0234897: Laws: Wayne M: White: Davidson: 4/30/1991: 0085045: Conner: Jerry M: White: Gates He first unearthed the body of the lone victim, which had been concealed under about three feet of dirt, under the middle of the Butler home. Others have speculated that they were all housekeepers on the Butler farm. Second, Butler was actually 54 years old at the time, not 40. By 1915, Butler had been dead for years and many had no doubt nearly forgotten about the strange man who had occupied the now-vacant farmhouse on the edge of Niagara, but on June 27th, 1915, the Bismarck Daily Tribunes headline announced a horrifying discovery in large type: Beneath the terrible headline, other details were disclosed in successively smaller fonts. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. A family in pieces T. Eugene Thompson was paroled 20 years later and settled into a quiet life in the Twin Cities, eventually remarrying, the historical society says. Argus Leader. It is believed by the authorities they were murdered by Butler while employed by him as farm hands. "[25], Starkweather chose to be extradited from Wyoming to Nebraska. North Dakota. "The 12th Victim" (2023) Showtime limited series focuses on Caril Ann Fugate's role in the crime spree. The Killer Clown of Chicago, John Wayne Gacy was the classic two-faced psychopath. Listen to Tracy Briggs "Niagara's Millionaire Murderer" podcast here: NIAGARA, N.D. Imagine the excitement Leo and Lottie Verkuehlen must have felt that hot June day in 1915. He was off the wall. He returned several times during the night to purchase small items, until finally, brandishing a shotgun, he forced Colvert to give him $100 from the till. We see that you have javascript disabled. [23] He became angry with her and fatally shot her as well. It was Farmer Eugene Butler again, who had recently started riding his horses late at night, yelling at the top of his lungs. He picked out three quarters of a section of land near Larimore and started in to farming. The authorities had apparently determined that the original theory, six transient farm laborers killed one at a time, was incorrect, and that a family of five was killed first, followed by one individual. Some of the victims had their legs broken so as to better fit in the shallow grave in the crawlspace under the house. Directed by Josh Zeman, the four-part series focuses on investigative journalist Maury Terrys lifelong obsession with the murders, his belief that Berkowitz didnt act alone and that the common thread linking the killings was a satanic cult. A lot of people felt bad that this happened to a good guy like me. Henry Layer had moved five of the bodies into the basement and the other three into the barn, where he covered them in hay. [14] He was born with genu varum, a mild birth defect that caused his legs to be misshapen, and was teased by classmates because he had a speech impediment.[14]. The body had been dropped to its place of concealment through a hole cut in the floor. Starkweather then began to bully those who had once picked on him. Carns underwent many years of therapy to help heal his injuries, both physical and emotional. [18] Starkweather dropped out of high school in his senior year and took a job at a newspaper warehouse[12][15] because it was near Fugate's school; he began to visit her every day after school. [10][11], Starkweather was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, the third of seven children of Guy and Helen Starkweather. On January 21, 1958, Starkweather went to Fugate's home. [7] He then had used black dirt and red clay subsoil in order to cover up the burial place of the bodies. Just a few miles outside of town, a family farm owned and run by the Wolf family was the scene of one of the most gruesome, horrible mass killings in North Dakota's history. [1] He was then admitted to an asylum, where he died in 1913, two years before his crimes were discovered. List of serial killers in the United States, "Six Skeletons in His Cellar: Man Died in Insane Asylum and Never Mentioned How They Got There", "Family of Five Killed, With Single Murder At Later Date, Revealed on Eugene Butler Farm", "Gruesome Find By Workmen In Old Basement", "Visitors Pick Murder Bones As Souvenirs", "Think One of Skeletons May Be Brother's", "Long Prairie Man Fears His Brother Was Killed In North Dakota", "Are you holding key clues to 100-year-old serial murder case? Would it be possible a family just happened upon Butlers home asking for directions or shelter from a storm? Starkweather killed him with a shotgun blast to the head. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. It was April 22 of 1920 when this horrific story unfolded. After Lopez's arrest in 1980, police found the graves of more than 50 of his preteen victims. It wasn't until two days later that someone stopped by and discovered this gruesome scene and alerted authorities. Jerenique Cunningham and Cleveland Jackson have been sentenced to death for the execution-style killings of a 17-year-old girl and a 3-year-old girl in 2002. Accused Man Died at Jamestown in 1913. The source claims each of the young men died from head trauma, or "Crushing blows to the back of the head.". This made him one of North Dakota's wealthiest farmers at the time. At least one-third of those murders were tribal women. She was paroled in June 1976 after serving seventeen-and-a-half-years at the Nebraska Correctional Center for Women in York, Nebraska. The pair also shot six others during. [10][9] Initially, there was a theory that five of the remains belonged to a family consisting of two women, probably housekeepers, and their children. The five bodies were buried in a hole that was dug from the outside of the house, under the foundation. Butler is now listed on several national resources and registries alongside other notorious serial killers, such as, Ted Bundy. Gein died in a mental hospital in 1984, but his presence still haunts the backwoods of Plainfield. According to investigator Frank Salerno in the docuseries, the attacker said several things to his female victim, among them, I am the Night Stalker.. Listen to Robin Huebner's interview with retired Ward County Sheriff's Deputy, Glenn Gietzen. He lived alone in the modest home on the prairie and he liked it that way. Priceless Reaction To Assignment, Popular 90s Rock Band Just Announced A Summer Rock Concert. The Verkuehlen family purchased Butlers property in the years following Butler's death. [5] Due to being considered a public nuisance, he was admitted to the North Dakota State Hospital under the supervision of Dr. W. M. [20], The murders of the Wards and Fencl caused an uproar within Lancaster County. But Carns said he and his girlfriend felt safe in neighboring Orange County, partly because of distance and a 5-foot-high fence surrounding the backyard of the home. Hulu has ordered Mastermind, a documentary series about a member of the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit who revolutionized the way law enforcement investigates serial killers.. In the bedroom where Carns and his fiance were sleeping, Ramirez fired five shots from a .25-caliber handgun, three of which struck Carns in the head. He also mocked police and threatened to kill again. The townsfolk had no idea that, in the coming years, the story of Eugene Butler would get much stranger. Enter your e-mail address for things to do, restaurants to try and much more! Each victim was struck with the same kind of bullet, leading police to describe the killer early on as The .44 Caliber Killer., In April 1977, however, he was given a different handle after leaving a handwritten letter near the bodies of his latest victims, in which he called himself the Son of Sam.. Judge Harry A. Spencer did not believe Fugate was held hostage by Starkweather, as he determined she had had numerous opportunities to escape. [citation needed], Starkweather attended Saratoga Elementary School, Irving Junior High School, and Lincoln High School. North Dakota link to notorious Son of Sam murders part of new Netflix documentary Retired law enforcement officers Glenn Gietzen and Mike Knoop talk about their roles in investigating satanic. Clara arrived first alone, and was also stabbed to death. The bodies had been dropped into the basement through a cleverly constructed trap door. [5] Starkweather's execution by electric chair in 1959 was the last execution in Nebraska until 1994, when Harold Lamont Otey was executed for murder. [18], Starkweather and Fugate drove to a wealthy section of Lincoln, where they entered the home of industrialist C. Lauer Ward and his wife Clara. Since he was a county investigator and the church was within city limits, he forwarded the matter to the city police department, he said, thinking his involvement was finished. They gave themselves to the devil, Gietzen said. Such a great story. New Hampshire. On February 4th, 1904, the Jamestown Weekly Alert republished a story that ran a few days earlier in the Grand Forks Herald: From brooding over the hallucination that all the widows and old maids in the country wanted to marry him, Farmer Eugene Butler became insane and was committed to the insane hospital at Jamestown. The Carr brothers were never questioned or charged in connection with the murders. Were these people really employees of Butlers? Fugate was convicted as an accomplice and received a life sentence on November 21, 1958. However, they never got a chance to arrest and charge him for his crimes. [3][failed verification], The salesman's car had a parking brake, which was something new to Starkweather. However, when officers searched his apartment afterward, they found an item of particular interest the jacket of the book The Ultimate Evil, written by Maury Terry. Bodies of the five members of the family were buried in a single hole, while that of the other victim was buried about ten feet from them. This theory was given weight when a man in Long Prairie, Minn., told authorities his brother went to work for a bachelor farmer in Niagara and hadnt been heard from since. Just a few miles outside of town, a family farm owned and run by the Wolf family was the scene of one of the most gruesome, horrible mass killings in North Dakota's history. His family back in New York became aware of his mental health problems and in 1904 had him committed to the North Dakota State Hospital in Jamestown (known by most then as the North Dakota Hospital for the Insane.). Article continues below advertisement Alaska: Robert Hansen the Butcher Baker He went to bed, and around 3 a.m., Ramirez slinked into the house through a window left open due to the late summer heat. Berkowitz was tracked down by police a little more than a week later through a parking ticket, of all things, after leaving his vehicle in front of a fire hydrant not far from the crime scene. To this day, the identities of the victims is unknown. What was the motive? Six of South Dakota's Most Notorious Criminals George Sitts was the only person to be executed in the electric chair in South Dakota. Ive found your photography compelling. ' Stubblefield said. Another horrific crime that journalist Maury Terry thought may somehow have been connected to Berkowitz or a satanic cult was the murder in California of a North Dakota woman in 1974. Louisiana has its share of notorious criminals, but it also happens to be where the crazed lovers, robbers, and killers, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow met their demise in 1934. While the Verkuehlens and the people of Niagara (population 157) were undoubtedly horrified by what was discovered that day, sadly, they probably werent that surprised. Days prior, hed received a report of stolen religious items from one of the Catholic churches in Minot, including chalices or large goblets. Gietzen said he saw with his own eyes those rituals of devil worship, that night he walked into the abandoned theater north of Minot. While Carns was unconscious that early morning, his girlfriend was sexually assaulted and beaten by Ramirez. [2], Butler was born in 1849, one of three sons born to Ephraim and Rebecca (ne Pearson) Butler. Gietzen realized satanic cult activity in Minot was more prevalent than he thought, and that Carr played a pivotal role in it. Governor Victor Emanuel Anderson contacted the Nebraska National Guard, and the Lincoln chief of police called for a block-by-block search of that city. A few well-known or infamous North Dakota murders that can be found within the lists of all murders in North Dakota include the following: the 2007 murder of Anita Knutson, the 2002 suspected murder of Russell Turcotte, and the 2017 suspicious death o f Olivia Lone Be ar. Eugene Butler was a North Dakota serial killer who killed at least six boys in his home from 1900 to 1906. Two of the remaining three bombers, Thomas Blanton and Bobby Cherry, weren't convicted until the early 2000s and the fourth suspected participant, Herman Cash, was never charged and died a free man. If you've found a bone that you think might have been taken from the crime scene, email By then, Ramirez was months into his deadly crime spree. 1.08. From the outside looking in, he seemed pretty normal; he was a farmer and a rather wealthy and successful one at that. New York Post, July 3, 1976, Learn how and when to remove this template message, List of rampage killers in the United States, "Five for Charles Starkweather, murderer", "Executing Charles Starkweather: Lethal punishment in an age of rehabilitation", "Reason sought by criminologist for youth's wild slaying spree", "The Starkweather Syndrome: exploring criminal history antecedents of homicidal crime sprees", "Fear of crime, community satisfaction and self-protective measures: Perceptions from a Midwestern city", Charles Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate, World of Criminal Justice on Charles Starkweather, "Teenage slayer of 11 awaits execution with indifference", "Killer hungered for a girl, a gun, power", "Sequence of Events in the Charles Starkweather Case", "Starkweather Executed: Calm To The End, No Final Words", "Wyuka Cemetery: A Driving & Walking Tour", Nebraska State Historical Society website, "Natural Born Killers: La ola de crmenes que inspir la pelcula de Oliver Stone", "Ceremony at Lone Tree and Badlands: The Starkweather Case and the Nebraska Plains", "The Stephen King interview, uncut and unpublished". Again there is a detail in the story that should be clarified. At his request, attorney C. B. DeLaurier wrote to the state attorney O. Really, our only hope for resolution at this point is in the slim chance that someone still alive can provide a break in the case. In police interviews that followed, Berkowitz would explain the Son of Sam reference. [22], Fleeing the area, the pair drove their car into mud and abandoned the vehicle. In order to bury the victims, the three bottom stones of the foundation wall were loosened. Instead of minors drinking alcohol, he said he saw people gathered around tables set up in a cross formation, passing around chalices containing human urine. Butler had paranoid delusions that they were planning to rob him, so he made the first move to rid himself of any risk. Inside, they found bones and human skulls. Just over a year after the first murder, the final crime happened in Brooklyn in late July 1977, when a man and woman, both 20, were shot as they sat in a car on a first date. He said if he was to be executed, then Fugate should be also. Heres What Type Of Food North Dakotans Like The Most. On Feb. 17, 1978, deputy sheriff Gietzen was summoned to the Minot Air Force Base to remove a person named John Carr from base housing. This reporter told Gietzen, the retired North Dakota deputy, that people in the state like to believe this sort of evil can never touch us here. The source says it's possible there were other motives, but with the little research/knowledge on the nature of serial killers, those investigating the case ran with what they believed to be the most logical reasoning. The Netflix documentary, divided into four episodes, drew criticism for its use of graphic crime scene photos and other explicit details. [14] Starkweather stabbed their maid Ludmila "Lilyan" Fencl to death, then waited for Lauer and Clara to return home. That would be like finding more than $215,000 today. [6], The Starkweather case has been analyzed by criminologists and psychologists in an attempt to understand spree killers' motivations and precipitating factors. That's when they uncovered the nightmare of what happened before Butler got medical attention. [15], In 2016, the Grand Forks County Sheriff's Department reached out to the public in an effort to find new leads, as the old case records were either destroyed or lost.[16]. The letter's post mark indicated it had been mailed from Larimore, the town where Butler conducted business. In a further blow to the investigation, the original case files, if they ever existed, are missing, possibly destroyed or lost over the years. In June of 2018, Santa Clara authorities used DNA to tie Crawford to the crime scene. [2] Fugate's mother and stepfather, Velda and Marion Bartlett, told him to stay away. If you like true crime, take a look at 10 of the most gruesome murders the state of New York has ever seen-some may date all the way back to the 1800s, but all of them are horrible. [citation needed] He came from a prosperous family, and around 1882, he moved to North Dakota from Buffalo, New York,[3] buying a 480-acre farm in Niagara, North Dakota. I also wanted to give mention of my appreciation for your writing. In refilling the hole, black dirt was thrown in, and the manner in which the burial place was dug, indicated by the marked lines of distinction between the black dirt used as a covering and the red clay subsoil. Shortly after his death in 1915, workmen found six skeletons under his house. During these uncertain times, please keep safety in mind and consider adding destinations to your bucket list to visit at a later date. 0.91. . H. H. Holmes. See also: Schafer Jail, a Mass Murderer and a Vigilante Lynch Mob. He was sentenced to death in 1989. He was of English descent, with his family having roots in Braintree, Essex, England. Clothing Removed. Now more than 100 years after his murderous spree, authorities say you might hold the key to identifying his victims. The 'Night Stalker' serial killings have North Dakota ties featured in new Netflix documentary series A Williston, North Dakota native and former NDSU student, along with his former. 1. Butler was a man of small stature, very gallant and fond of attending hospital dances. After the group scattered in a panic, Gietzen said he saw at least a half dozen dog carcasses outside; dogs that had been killed, mutilated and apparently offered up as a sacrifice. Everything was just one big joke to him. When he was 33, Eugene and a handful of other men from the county decided to take the U.S. government up on its offer of free land on the frontier of Dakota Territory. [9], After Butler's death, the estate was divided between his living relatives with the help of attorney W. E. The Butler home was razed, and today a workshop owned by an area family stands on the site. Four years after he died, an excavation at Butler's home uncovered a . Over the years, residents of the town noticed Butler had been displaying some very odd and downright concerning behavior. This is a list of notable male murderers who committed their murders in Oklahoma, USA. One of these workmen, named Leo Verbulehn,[6] was digging a cellar under the house when he discovered the skeletons. Belle Gunness (also known as Lady Bluebeard, The LaPorte Black Widow, The Mistress of Murder Farm, and Hell's Belle) was probably one of America's most prolific serial killers who likely killed between 25 and 30 people, including women and children, at the turn of the 20 th century. Gietzen ran to the bedroom to find John Carr slumped over a gun with a fatal gunshot wound to the head. In the century since Butlers crimes were revealed, little progress has been made and the victims have never been positively identified. [3] He killed ten of his victims between January 21 and January 29, 1958, the date of his arrest. Butler actually died in 1911, not 1913, and the belief that Butler killed six individuals in separate acts would later be called into question. Pedro Lopez. The first of what would become known as the Son of Sam murders happened early one morning in July 1976, when two young women were shot as they sat in a parked vehicle in the Bronx. She said yes and pointed Gietzen down a hallway to a bedroom on the right. According to Murderpedia, no one in the town recalled anyone reported missing. (LogOut/ Eugene Butler (1849 October 22, 1913) was an American serial killer who murdered six teenage boys at his residence in Niagara, North Dakota from 1900 to 1906. She said Starkweather told her that if she cooperated with him, her family would be safe; otherwise, they would be killed. David Berkowitz did not look like half of those composites, Knoop said. The skull of the single victim is similarly marked. According to the 2010 Census, Niagara has 53 residents. A 2017 story published in Time magazine and USA Today said genealogy was the second-most popular hobby in the U.S., just behind gardening. Minnesota. Del Harding, reporter for the Lincoln, Nebr., Star, who covered the murders, the Starkweather and Fugate trials, and Starkweather's execution. One of North Dakota's wealthiest farmers was also a serial killer Eugene Butler was a founding father of the town of Niagara, N.D., in 1882. Fugate served seventeen years in prison, gaining release in 1976. In the early 1900s, residents near the tiny town of Niagara, in the new state of North Dakota, began to hear strange noises in the night. BISMARCK William "Billy" Carns doesnt remember the attack at the hands of the notorious serial killer known as the "Night Stalker" 35 years ago, but he asks himself daily what he did to deserve it. The source indicated that people in the town remembered him saying he believed people were out to rob him, so that was later determined as the motive. At some later date one man was killed. It would just be closure to this stuff Im going through, he said. John, who also went by the name John Miller, was a young man who disappeared near Niagara in 1902. North Dakota isn't known for being home to many serial killers, but one has been documented and reported. Perhaps someone reading this might have their memory jogged, maybe they found some bones in a box in their attic, or remember a story told by their parents or grandparents that could provide a break in the case of the midnight rider, Eugene Butler. [26] Starkweather first said that he had kidnapped Fugate and that she had nothing to do with the murders. He's one of the United States most prolific serial killers for good reason. As he grew older and stronger, the only subject in which Starkweather excelled was gym,[12] where he found an outlet for his rage against those who bullied him. Carns has relied on her past recollections to recount what happened to them. The odds of finding an answer to the victims' identities are the highest theyve been in decades with more people researching their ancestries and with larger DNA databases of missing people. Unless someone comes forward with the remains, no DNA analysis is possible. "[18], Starkweather drove off and was involved in a car chase with three officers (Natrona County Sheriff's Deputy William Romer, Douglas Police Chief Robert Ainslie, and Converse County Sheriff Earl Heflin), exceeding speeds of 100 miles per hour (160km/h). The skulls of each had been crushed. The story of the Wolf family murders is one of the most well-known murder stories in North Dakota. Carns, a radio announcer who went on to study engineering at North Dakota State University and later worked as a computer technician for Burroughs Corp. in Fargo, now known as Unisys, landed in California via a job transfer. He was a hell of a lot of fun to be around, too. This interview has been edited for clarity and length. At first, they thought the skeletons were all young males, possibly farmhands that worked and lived with Butler. 1.42. A man confessed to the crime in 1965, saying he had been drunk, but the jury didn't buy it and the trial ended in a hung jury. On May 23, 1958, he was sentenced to death, and Starkweather was executed in the electric chair at the Nebraska State Penitentiary in Lincoln, Nebraska, at 12:04a.m. on June 25, 1959. [12] Later, it was discovered that some of the bones were stolen, most likely by souvenir hunters. He still does not have use of his left arm but has many devices and adaptive equipment to help him function. [2] Biography Early life and move to North Dakota But while authorities appeared to have figured out the approximate age and genders of the skeletons, they never learned their names. Crews discovered a hidden trap door in his home. Arizona: William Bracy Murderpedia Bracy was convicted in 1983 for robbing and killing three drug dealers in Chicago in late 1980, and then in 1985 for murdering a mother and son in Arizona. He died of phlebitis in 1911 at the age of 62. The icing on the cake is someone will come forward and say, 'Im missing a relative. In 2020, it was estimated that about 30 million people worldwide have taken DNA tests, more than half through family history sites like Ancestry and 23andMe, opening up millions of possible ancestor or descendent matches. Similar shootings struck fear in other New York City boroughs in the months to follow, with the shooter seemingly focused on young women with long hair, according to media reports. According to Ghosts of North Dakota, the Grand Forks Herald published a report that Butler had been committed to a psychiatric facility in 1904. Though he was considered a suspect early on, law enforcement could find no evidence to link him to the crime. She settled in Hillsdale, Michigan. 4. With Carns incapacitated, Ramirez raped and pistol-whipped the woman and pointed the gun at her, demanding that she pray to Satan. He might not have even remembered doing it. This page was last edited on 30 April 2023, at 23:10. They found he suffered hallucinations and he would ask his attendants if they heard people talking about him. 1.65. Gruesome Find by Workmen in Old Basement. Liza Ward, the granddaughter of victims C. Lauer and Clara Ward, wrote the novel, "Starkweather homicide" is referenced in the lyrics to singer-songwriter, A picture of Starkweather's arrest was used as a backdrop on singer-songwriter. Stubblefield, then an anthropology professor at the University of North Dakota, said even the smallest piece of bone could provide some answers. All of them had had their skulls crushed, most likely by a sharp instrument,[2][7][1] and at least two had had their legs broken. Starkweather and Fugate filled Ward's black 1956 Packard with stolen jewelry from the house and fled Nebraska. [6] In 1915, workmen were sent to excavate the property with the purpose of renovating it. Niagara is also the birthplace, in 1884, of prominent architect Nelle E. Peters (nee Nichols). Starkweather killed the family dog by breaking its neck, to keep it from alerting the Wards. He stayed at the state facility for 7-8 years. There is absolutely no trace of clothing of any kind. Starkweather also killed two family dogs. His final years were uneventful. Infamous Serial Killers Belle Gunness Serial killer Belle Gunness is reported to have murdered more than 40 people between 1884 and 1908 before disappearing without a trace. [28], Starkweather was convicted for the murder of Jensen, the only murder for which he was tried. [21], Late on November 30, 1957, Starkweather became angry at Robert Colvert, a service station attendant in Lincoln, for refusing to sell him a stuffed animal on credit. He is probably the wealthiest man who has ever been committed to an asylum from this county, his property being valued at from $40,000 to $50,000. A couple of weeks after the discovery of the skeletons, Dr. A.W. An added note near the end of the story added specifics from Butlers doctor while he was at Jamestown: REMEMBERS BUTLER. Terry even surmised they may have pulled the trigger in some of the killings in part, because Berkowitz later told him he wasnt responsible for all of them. Instead, complications of lymphatic cancer took his life in 2013 at age 53, before he could be executed. It appeared that five of the victims had been killed and buried together at one time, and a lone man was killed and buried separately at another time. Gietzen, now 71 and retired from law enforcement, told The Forum he knew there was cult activity going on in the Minot area then, but had never seen it. Eugene Butler (serial killer) Eugene Butler (1849 - October 22, 1913) was an American serial killer who murdered six teenage boys at his residence in Niagara, North Dakota from 1900 to 1906. Starkweather later accused Fugate of performing a coup-de-grace after his shotgun jammed. 1.55. Colorado has seen its share of horrible crimes. [further explanation needed][19][20] He began plotting bank robberies, and settled on a personal philosophy: "Dead people are all on the same level". [8] On October 22, 1913, Butler died while imprisoned in the asylum. Fugate said she had stayed in the car the entire time. Ramirez was convicted of 13 murders, along with multiple attempted murders and sexual assaults, and was captured by bystanders while trying to carjack a vehicle in Los Angeles just days after the Mission Viejo attack. He survives mostly on long term disability payments; his mother, who lives next door, takes care of his financial affairs.
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