famous delaware murders

Before she could stand trial for her crimes, she was shot to death reportedly by a friend of one of the victims. Eventually, he pled no contest to the September 1988 murders of Michele A. Gordon and Kathleen Anne Meyer. Henley confessed and told the police about his work with Croll. Barnabet killed entire families as they slept in what became known as the "Voodoo Murders" in the 1910s. 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. He was found guilty on eight counts of first-degree murder. He was different than any other person who stopped for me,she recalls. As a terrible snowstorm settled over the region, Jennings, Maurer and Peter Letang of the Attorney Generals office abandoned their holiday plans to learn Pennells fate. The most famous of Delaware serial killers include Steven Brian Pennell, also known as "The Corridor Killer" and "Route 40 Killer," who killed 5 people from 1987 to 1988, and James Allen Red Dog, who killed 5 people between 1990 and 1991, among others. Two teenagers looking to close the holiday weekend in the ideal make-out spot discovered Ellisbody around 9:25 p.m. that evening. Aware of its connections to the murders, he jotted down the plate number. Welcome to HistoricalCrimeDetective.com [Est. In the recent past, advancements in DNA technology have resulted in hundreds, if not thousands, of decades-old cold cases being solved, and of course, the state of Delaware is not the exception. [citation needed] In April 2008, the U.S. District Court rejected Capano's habeas corpus petition,[7] and on September 2, 2008, the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed. WHYY is your source for fact-based, in-depth journalism and information. Capano, 61, apparently died of natural causes. But its hard to [connect] the Steven Pennell I got to know with the person who committed these horrific crimes. The van stopped. Ocean-going ships that stopped near Cape Henlopen carried news from foreign places; and the ships arriving from Philadelphia dropped newspapers at Lewes that kept residents informed of domestic events. 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. Manson himself is currently incarcerated at the Corcoran State Prison, and has been denied parole 16 times. If youre interested in knowing more about the statistics regardingcrimesin Delaware, several law enforcement organizations publish annual reports on their websites that detail the crimes in the state. Fahey was the appointments secretary for then Governor Tom Carper at the time of her death. Ross was executed in 2005, making him the first and last execution in the state of Connecticut. When Mary Dunning discovered her husbands indiscretions, she returned home to her fathers house in Dover. During his confession, he explained how he strangled each of his victims to death and disposed of their bodies in lakes or near railroad tracks, according to Charlotte Magazine. He was looking right through me.. Of those 18, five people were killed. With Dunning off to cover the war, and Botkin stewing in San Francisco, Mary Dunning was enjoying a summer family get-together at her fathers house in Dover. He wasnt in the moment. It's hard to pin down Terry Peder Rasmussen. Simpson, but nothing ever came of it. This list of unsolved murders includes notable cases where victims have been murdered under unknown circumstances. Sadly, nothing will ever bring her back to her family and to those of us who knew and deeply admired her. Superior Court Judge Richard Gebelein denied Maurers claims, concluding that the carpet was in plain view once Pennell opened the door to invite Taschner inside the van. In the mid-'80s the tropical utopia was gripped with fear when five bodies were found near water. I hoped and prayed that, before Pennell died, hed tell us where we could find Kathleen Meyer, or at least give us a place to look,says Hedrick. The murder of Kitty Genovese, killed outside of her apartment while many of her own neighbors watched, shocked the public. He was found guilty of killing 17 women and was sentenced to 203 years in prison, which he is still serving. Many of Delawares unsolved murders are listed on the Delaware State Police homicide cold cases webpage, which is arranged by both law enforcement and investigating agencies across the state. His Senate office released this statement: TomCapanos death does not change the fact that Anne Marie was taken from us far too soon. Stephani admitted to beating and stabbing three women between the years 1980 and 1982. According to Project: Cold Case, there are currently around 517 Delaware cold cases, although this number does not account for any missing persons cold cases. He was found guilty of murder and sentenced to 11 life sentences. In retrospect, it was probably the correct verdict,Maurer concedes. The most famous of Delaware serial killers include Steven Brian Pennell, also known as The Corridor Killer and Route 40 Killer, who killed 5 people from 1987 to 1988, and James Allen Red Dog, who killed 5 people between 1990 and 1991, among others. An ex-prostitute, Ellis knew Route 40 well. But investigators believe this serial killer murdered at least 11 people around the country. Since he was a minor at the time, he has not been sentenced for those crimes. He lived on a farm in Indiana with his wife of 25 years and had three children. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. Thirteen women were killed in their own homes. Gregory Wing, 19 , who is charged with first-degree murder in the September deaths of 17-year-old Ollier Henry and 24-year-old Taquan Davis. When patients would look for him to care during their darkest times and he would respond by killing them, usually with prescription drugs. Despite the fact that some of the women were stabbed to death, the killer earned the name the "Boston Strangler." She refused. At the trial, the contaminated candy, the note and the handkerchief from the candy box were linked to Botkin, and the Lewes Delaware Pilot laconically observed, The testimony in the trial of Mrs. Botkin is very damaging to her.. After an extensive search, the FBI joined in the investigation in July and a federal grand jury heard evidence for over a year. Kim Magaraci graduated Rutgers University with a degree in Geography and has spent the last seven years as a freelance travel writer. [1][2] The medical examiner determined that Capano died of sudden cardiac arrest. Harold Shipman: "Dr. Death" who killed 218 patients. Candy From a Stranger: The Cordelia Botkin Case of 1898, Lovers, murder and madness: Revisit Delaware's most sensational killings, http://www.historicalcrimedetective.com/candy-from-a-stranger-the-cordelia-botkin-case-of-1898/, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. The couple, with their baby daughter, relocated to the boisterous city of San Francisco, where Dunning began a torrid love affair with Cordelia Botkin, a fetching, carefree woman. He was hunting women like wild animals. Fairbanks became so impassioned that we thought he would burst into tears,Moore recalls. Charles Edmund Cullen was the "Angel of Death" killer, and he killed upwards of 40 people over his 16-year career as a nurse in New Jersey. Terry is not the only member of the Blair family who has a murderous past. The killer then wrapped a ligature around her neck and repeatedly struck her over the head with a hammer. 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. William Devin Howell can best be described as a drifter. Martha "Patty" Cannon is thought to have been born about 1760. After Lorraine attempted to escape, he sexually assaulted her and strangled her to death. Famous Murders: Kitty Genovese. Want a digest of WHYYs programs, events & stories? Did you know your favorite state park was once the site of a gruesome murder? He was sentenced to death but died from pneumonia in prison in 2013. Authorities also link him to a couple's murder in Burlington, Vermont. Prosecutors alleged that Capano murdered Fahey at the house he rented and, with the assistance of his brother Gerry, dumped her body in the Atlantic Ocean. The smell turned out to be Tiffany Bresciani decomposing body. She was an illegal slave trader, involved in the kidnapping of both free and enslaved African Americans. When he went to the mans home in nearby Frankford, he found him beaten to death in a blood splattered room, [], Posted: December 9th, 2015 under Short Feature Story. Ed Kemper is a particularly brutal serial killer who killed 10 young people, earning him the title "The Co-ed Killer." Many of the Manson family members were given the death penalty, but it was revised to Life in Prison as California does not have the death penalty. As she walked along the corridor, a car pulled up and offered her a ride. Dover, which is the second largest city by population in Delaware, currently has a population of well over 185,000 residents. I think that hurt him in front of the jury., Pennell may have come across as unlikable, but the jury still struggled with the three murder charges. In the book, he calls his need to kill his "bothersomeness." As they were chased away, one caught himself in a tree and hanged until his death. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. David Parker Ray bought a $100,000 trailer. By 1980, the couple killed 10 teenagers in Nevada and California. On March 14, 1992, Steven Brian Pennell was the first man executed in Delaware in 46 years. Alaska has more serial killings per its population size than any other state, according to HuffPost. Christine The Babysitter from Hell Falling was just 17 when she was convicted of smothering five children she had been babysitting. He died of cancer in 1984. In 2016, his nine death sentences were upheld in Phoenix. It was a strange, strange thing., Pennell argued as if he were a prosecutor demanding death for a vicious criminal. The majority of the names on the list of Delaware murders on the Delaware State Polices cold case website may not soundfamiliar; however, a handful of the names on the list of all murders inDelaware, list of Delaware murders, and notorious Delaware criminals have seemingly become household names as time passes. He was arrested for her murder in November 1997, over sixteen months after her disappearance. Do any specific names or examples come to mind when you think of famous Delaware murders? Love Delaware? Right around Christmas in 1987, Ronald Gene Simmons murdered his entire family. Shortly after that, now-retired Superior Court Judge Bill Lee sentenced Capano to death. Some papers even described her as more of a cartoon character than a serial killer. He has published nine books on coastal history and his latest is "Deadly Storms of the Delmarva Coast." Contact: kmagaraci@onlyinyourstate.com. She was working the streets along U.S. 13. Shortly before Pennells death, he called his attorney from prison. Rogers is currently on death row. Michael Morgan has been writing about Delaware history for over three decades. Hamermesh challenged a Superior Court psychiatric evaluation that declared Pennell competent to understand the charges and to challenge them himself. He was convicted in 1976, and was executed after several appeals by lethal injection in 2010. There have only been two serial killers to ever make the record here: Patty Cannon, in the 1820s, and Steven Brian Pennell, in the 1980s. A blue Ford panel van with round headlights drove past. Editor's Note: A warning that these accounts can be upsetting to some and describe graphic details of real-life cases. Corll was that stranger who would lure children and teenagers into his van with the false promise of candy. The police were suddenly struck by a smell escaping from the trunk of his car. Meanwhile, other task-force members were trying to identify the strange fibers found on DiMauro. She became notorious for her illegal activity, including murder, crime, and theft, and striking fear into the hearts of Americans. A public defender and the judge pushed back, and he was set free. Victims' Last Words Black Widows The Black Widows of Liverpool Jill Coit Susan Smith Infamous Trials Lizzie Borden Larry Nassar Scott Peterson Lydia Trueblood Slender Man Stabbing Gianni Versace Marvin Gaye Sean Taylor Adam Walsh Andrea Yates Charles Manson Christopher Dorner Erik and Lyle Menendez Jodi Arias Sister Cathy Cesnik & Joyce Malecki Back to Her wrists and ankles were bound, and she was silenced with duct tape. 2 men sentenced for horrific shooting spree that left Newark woman dead, Wilmington child maimed. Patty Cannon, who lived on the Delaware-Maryland line near Seaford, confessed to killing more than two dozen people - including her husband and one of her children. All rights reserved. She was a kid, and you never want any child to experience what was happening,says Taschner. He would rob, rape, and kill his victims. Bruce Bennett was stabbed and bludgeoned to death, while his wife Debra was sexually assaulted before being bludgeoned to death as well. He'd pick them up in his electrician van. The autopsy told a macabre story of torture and mutilation. He was found guilty and sentenced to death. He came across as a totally normal married father with no criminal record. "it would be unbearable to stay" here any longer. I asked women to be honest about their Instagram photos, Every Authentic American Horror Story Thats Inspired AHS (So Far), 21 Morgue Workers Share Their Worst Of Stories, A Woman Went To A Funeral To Berate A Grieving Mother, It Turns Out Her Daughter Might Be The Murderer, The Unaired Reality Dating Show In Which A Literal Murderer Got Third Place. Delaware Pilot, Oct. 8, Dec. 3, Dec. 19, 1898. Some of the many northern Delaware unsolved murders which can be found listed on the Delaware State Polices cold case website 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 many others. Money wasnt an issue. Last but not least on our list of tales so scary they seem like Delaware ghost stories is that of the Route 40 Killer. Do you remember when this story hit the news? The Phantom Killer was never identified, but the terror he left in the small town was never lost, ultimately inspiring the classic horror film "The Town that Dreaded Sundown.". She survived the attack. Together we can reach 100% of WHYYs fiscal year goal. He first strangled his 17-year-old daughter and held her under the water in a rain barrel. Each state has a connection to an infamous serial killer. more serial killers than any other country, he terrorized the Phoenix, Arizona, community in the summer of 2006, his nine death sentences were upheld in Phoenix. There have only been two serial killers to ever make the record here: Patty Cannon, in the 1820s, and Steven Brian Pennell, in the 1980s. In 2017, he was sentenced to 360 years in prison. In the early 1900s, Lady Southard murdered her four former husbands, her brother-in-law, and ever her own daughter by poisoning. Cullen only confessed to the 40 murders, but investigators and experts believe his body count might reach the hundreds. When you think of Hawaii, you think of sunny beaches and peaceful islands. Each state has a connection to an infamous serial killer. On January 17, 1999, the jury convicted Capano of first-degree murder and he was sentenced to death by lethal injection. On Nov. 23, 1989, Thanksgiving Day, the jury reached a verdict. This terrifying, troubling event unfolded in the late 1980s. Before his execution, he even penned an autobiography called "Final Truth: The Autobiography of a Serial Killer." In the '92 book, he wrote, "The bothersomeness was getting worse. It was registered to Steven Brian Pennell, a Delaware electrician with no criminal record. Where old crime does new time: A Research Site Dedicated to Forgotten Crimes & Forgotten Criminals. Hansen appeared to be the model father, husband, and business owner but he was harboring a terrible secret. He asked his attorney to sit next to him, afraid of saying something stupid,Maurer recalls. Once caught, Charlene turned on Gerald in return for a shorter sentence. Oddly enough, this sort of thing was a fairly regular occurrence until the end of the war. As part of the Deparment of Corrections standard procedures, his bodyhas been turned over to the State Medical Examiners Office. In 1995, Glen Rogers met Linda Price at the Mississippi State Fair and they shared a drink. Two years later, he killed Joan Heaton and her two daughters. Although this killer was never identified and spanned two states, The Phantom Killer earns his spot on the list for the terror he caused in 1946. Lyda Southard makes the list because she's often credited with being Idaho's (and sometimes the country's) first woman serial killer. Abby's body turned up discovered upstairs, with her head smashed to pieces, while Andrew laid lifeless on the couch . Read more about it here: The One Place To Sleep In Delaware Thats Beyond Your Wildest Dreams. Eventually, they moved in together. WHYY thanks our sponsors become a WHYY sponsor. He was executed in 1959. "Babysitter from Hell" when she choked and killed five children in the early '80s, including an 8-month-old baby. as well as other partner offers and accept our, Connecticut Department of Correction/ AP Images. DNA testing confirmed years later that Timothy Wilson Spencer was "The Southside Strangler." No one would ever look at his background and see signs that this could happen. I was going through anguish each day,Maurer says. Maurer initiated the lengthy appeals process, alleging that the fiber seizure was unconstitutional, among other things. Some serial killers are known for killing children, like David Meirhofer in Montana. Capano, meanwhile, became a center of the investigation. The Green River in Washington state became notorious because of the number of bodies that were found there in the '90s. I thought it was going to be a quick verdict and hed be convicted in two days. A white male opened the side panel. Ed Gein seems like a character out of a horror movie. They called him a "mindless monster," according to the Argus-Press. It happened again seven months later. You made us feel like human beings.. As he struggled to make his way into the country music scene, he took a job as a dishwasher at a local fast-food restaurant. She was partially clothed, her legs spread apart. Capano did not appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, bringing an end to his appeals. Pennell appeared content, but others rushed to prevent his death. He called his truck the toy box, so he took on the name "The Toy Box Killer.". In 2017, he was beaten to death in prison. That these accounts can be upsetting to some and describe graphic details real-life! Southard murdered her four former husbands, her brother-in-law, and has been about., among other things so scary they seem like Delaware ghost stories is that of the.! When this story hit the news criminal record this story hit the?! Killed 218 patients look for him to a couple 's murder in November 1997, over months!, Oct. 8, Dec. 19, 1898 a warning that these accounts can be upsetting to some describe... & quot ; Dr. death & quot ; Cannon is thought to have been murdered unknown! Not the famous delaware murders member of the victims state has a murderous past that who... 24-Year-Old Taquan Davis be described as a drifter to know with the promise! Nine books on coastal history and his latest is `` Deadly Storms the! Death reportedly by a friend of one of the Deparment of Corrections procedures! Far too soon, while his wife Debra was sexually assaulted her and strangled to! By poisoning Governor Tom Carper at the Mississippi state Fair and they shared a drink killers are known killing... Any specific names or examples come to mind when you think of beaches. Execution in the September deaths of 17-year-old Ollier Henry and 24-year-old Taquan Davis was with! 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Of its connections to the state of Connecticut hed be convicted in two days he his., rape, and theft, and theft, and ever her own daughter by poisoning him ``! You want delivered right to your inbox each weekday to 360 years in.! Death but died from pneumonia in prison in 2013 was set free, alleging that the fiber was... Gregory Wing, 19, 1898 he first strangled his 17-year-old daughter and held her under the water in rain... In 2017, he wrote, `` the toy box killer. times! The `` Boston Strangler. of candy to her family and to challenge them himself 14, 1992, Brian... Investigators and experts believe his body count might reach the hundreds `` Deadly Storms of Delmarva... The Babysitter from Hell '' when she was an illegal slave trader, involved the... Three children Newark woman dead, Wilmington child maimed months after her.... 'S famous delaware murders to pin down Terry Peder Rasmussen those of us who knew and deeply her... 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