Despite this, Delawares numerous law enforcement agencies will continue to attempt to investigate and solve every one of Delawares true crimes which remain unsolved. 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. His killing sparked a full panic in the small city. Not every murder gets solved. He can be reached atspinway@aol.com. But its hard to [connect] the Steven Pennell I got to know with the person who committed these horrific crimes. So I ask that the sentence be death as said by the states laws and Gods laws. Delaware case results in first-ever convictions on charges of cyberstalking resulting in death. He broke their bones, bit them, and sometimes acted on his cannibalistic instincts. She was sentenced to life in prison and is still there to this day. Maurer rolled the dice and had his client testify how the victimsblood and hair found their way into his van. Also known as "The Route 40 Killer", Pennell was found guilty for the torture and murder of 2 New Castle County women and is believed to have murdered 3 others. It took a year and several deaths before police were able to break open the case and arrest Brian Pennell. This terrifying, troubling event unfolded in the late 1980s. Keep a pulse on local food, art, and entertainment content when you join our Delaware Today newsletter. During his sentencing, Pennel bizarrely asked to be put to death; however, he never admitted to the crimes. Thomas Capano, a prominent Democrat, was one of four brothers. He was sentenced to death and met the electric chair in 1989. 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. Had you heard any of these ghost stories that are part of Delaware history? If that was ruled inadmissible, everything else wouldve been kept out under the fruit of the poisonous treelegal doctrine. 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. 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 different than any other person who stopped for me,she recalls. Moore cant recall any other oral argument in the Supreme Court without at least one question. If you travel the swamp trail alone, you might hear the screams of the young runaway who was raped and killed here in the 1870s she still haunts these woods. Manson implied heavily to his followers that he was a Christ figure, that coupled with LSD usage and isolation from the outside lead to brainwashing of the family members. This list of unsolved murders includes notable cases where victims have been murdered under unknown circumstances. Looking further into the statistics on the same website, there were around 1,993 murders in Delaware from 1965 to 2019, and through the years, roughly 1,476 of those murders were solved, leaving around 517 unsolved murders in the state of Delaware alone. These killings occurred on separate days in. He has published nine books on coastal history and his latest is "Deadly Storms of the Delmarva Coast." He was found guilty on all 33 counts of murder and was put to death in 1994. This report shows, in detail, the data and statistics surrounding the crime rates, crimes, and the locations of these crimes in most, if not every, city, county, and state throughout the United States, including Delaware. Gordon's body washed up on the rocky banks of the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal on Sept. 20. 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. It also described him as a pleasant, attractive, friendly 33-year-old man who related well to the examiner., His acts were unspeakable,says Pennells attorney, Eugene Maurer. Related:Lovers, murder and madness: Revisit Delaware's most sensational killings, Marys father had a chemist examine the unconsumed candy, and the chemist found that they were laced with arsenic. She fought back and got away. In 1829, she was arrested on charges of murder. He wasnt in the moment. Some believe his stabbings were racially motivated because the majority of his victims were African American. Five other relatives, including his mother, were convicted of murder. 2013], where you will discover forgotten crimes and criminals lost to history. No one was ever charged. Steven Brian Pennell, Delawares only documented serial killer, did all of these things. 1900-1924. Gaskins claimed he killed 200 hitchhikers. After picking up an undercover policewoman, fibres from the back of Pennell's van linked him to the crimes. I had no death-penalty experience, and the state had pulled out all the stops because of the severity of the crimes.. Aware of its connections to the murders, he jotted down the plate number. The American government kept many of these reports quiet, but German U-Boats sank many merchant ships off the coast of Delaware. Bernard Williams. Tags: 1920s, 1930s, Delaware, Execution, Murder, Women, Criminal Cases of America70 Vintage True Crime Stories by Thomas Duke, 1910, All Rights Reserved. OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article. We had a gamut of people stop for her,says Hedrick.Doctors, lawyers, schoolteachers. A blue Ford panel van with round headlights drove past. For example, physical evidence that is often included in trials can range anywhere from blood, saliva, semen, skin cells, or other DNA evidence, to cell phone pings, to gunpowder residue, and most often includes Kent County murders crime scene photos, to show the jury the environment surrounding the crime as well as show the scene surrounding the crime itself and the relativity of any items of evidence. He is still in prison, 10 young people, earning him the title "The Co-ed Killer, convinced the FBI to let him out as an informant. Editor's Note: A warning that these accounts can be upsetting to some and describe graphic details of real-life cases. killed 10 people in Wichita between 1974 and 1991, killing 17 people with an axe on behalf of the Church of Sacrifice. In the '92 book, he wrote, "The bothersomeness was getting worse. In the early 1900s, Lady Southard murdered her four former husbands, her brother-in-law, and ever her own daughter by poisoning. Most of us know that Fort Delaware was home to soldiers during the Civil War, but did you know about the horrific conditions they faced? Check out this list: Want to see them all in one go? Bruce Bennett was stabbed and bludgeoned to death, while his wife Debra was sexually assaulted before being bludgeoned to death as well. Also featured in a 2018 episode of Vanity Fair Confidential titled "The Secret of the Summer Wind.". 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. Rudolph would often use nail bombs where the nails would act like shrapnel. He was found guilty on eight counts of first-degree murder. The 1935 Delaware Execution of a Mother & Son 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. In 1971, he started to abduct sex workers and strippers and bring them to his remote cabin in the woods where he would torture them. Since he was a minor at the time, he has not been sentenced for those crimes. As part of the Deparment of Corrections standard procedures, his bodyhas been turned over to the State Medical Examiners Office. The murder became the subject of worldwide press coverage at the time as well as several books, films and . 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. The medical examiner testified that the drugs in her system made her heart incapable of withstanding the shock of her beating. He came across as a totally normal married father with no criminal record. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast). Until then, though, this mystery will stay on the minds of many Delawareans who remember. Check out thisHaunted Road Trip To Visit Some Of The Spookiest Places In Delaware. What made him particularly noteworthy is the cat and mouse game he played with authorities. The prosecution called a downstate Delaware fisherman to the stand, who testified that he found a cooler floating at sea and kept it for his own use. Kim Magaraci graduated Rutgers University with a degree in Geography and has spent the last seven years as a freelance travel writer. Most of the time, when you hear about Delaware history, you hear about war heroes, colonial surveys, railroad towns, and of course, the elaborate estates of the Du Ponts. Last edited on 18 December 2022, at 05:34, "Thomas Capano found dead in prison cell", "Examiner: Capano died of sudden cardiac arrest", "Capano brothers clash over Delaware family's real estate empire", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Thomas_Capano&oldid=1128066342, This page was last edited on 18 December 2022, at 05:34. Faheys apartment and Capanos home were extensively searched, but it was more than a year before Capano was arrested and charged with killing Fahey. The Horrors of Patty Cannon Flickr / Shubert Ciencia Patty Cannon lived in the Seaford area in the early 1800s. When the ship was evacuated to lifeboats, the U-Boat surfaced and fired shots at the lifeboats and ships. Want a digest of WHYYs programs, events & stories? Ray would bring his victims to this chamber and torture them sexually before murdering them, according to the Albuquerque Journal. 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. Foul play is not suspected. Eventually, police started showing up at the Baumeister home asking questions about missing boys. To this day, I want to know why,says Jennings. Woodfield didn't become well known as a football player. Despite the fibers and the DNA, the strongest case against Steven Pennell was Steven Pennell. Michael Bruce Ross, also known as The Roadside Killer, was a serial rapist and killer who preyed on women between New York and Connecticut. Sign up for our weekly newsletter. The young woman was murdered in cold blood, screaming for help, and the neighbors who . I had to let the scientists testify and then make a decision whether their actions were legally sound.. This time, however, police caught a break. A hearing was held to determine if the convicted murderer should be spared. The story of Clementine Barnabet is that of voodoo and the occult. Kent County, Delaware, had a population of over 180,700 people as of 2019. He was eventually murdered in prison. Pennell delivered a terse argument for his own death, filled with biblical quotes. There was no pattern or clear idea as to who would be next. Capano did not appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, bringing an end to his appeals. Each of the women was friends with Wallace's girlfriend or worked with him, and each had his name in their phone books. That couldve been devastating.. According to their crime report from 2019, the violent crime rate in Delaware was roughly 422.6 per 100,000 inhabitants. The 23-year-old had distanced herself from the life of a streetwalker, even purchasing books for nursing school. Bardea Food & Drink Launches a New Menu and Outdoor Dining Garden, How Middletown Grew From Farm Country To Mini-Metropolis. Roughly a quarter century later, the questions persist. Corll almost got away with the murders of almost 30 young boys because no one suspected him; he was a straight-laced man who worked at his mother's candy factory. For the most part, Delaware is a peaceful state. An arrest warrant was issued, and on Nov. 29, 1988, a year after hed claimed his first victim, Pennell was in handcuffs. In 1891, Mary Pennington of Dover, daughter of former Delaware Congressman John Pennington, married John P. Dunning, a newspaper reporter. Albert DeSalvo confessed to all 13 murders, but his story didn't fully add up. The lone witness to the abduction knew both Gordon and Pennell. Capano instructed Louis to empty the dumpsters outside of their regular schedule. He is currently serving his 10 life sentences in prison. In just one instance, a Panamanian United Fruit Company ship "San Gil" was hit by a torpedo. When Mary Dunning discovered her husbands indiscretions, she returned home to her fathers house in Dover. Two teenagers looking to close the holiday weekend in the ideal make-out spot discovered Ellisbody around 9:25 p.m. that evening. Kim Magaraci graduated Rutgers University with a degree in Geography and has spent the last seven years as a freelance travel writer. Capano belonged to a prominent family of Delaware real estate developers and building contractors. Thirteen women were killed in their own homes. He was found guilty on three murder charges and was facing the death penalty, but in 2000 it was overturned to a life sentence. When finally caught, Hansen confessed to murdering 17 people but was only convicted for four. She was working the streets along U.S. 13. They were killed by a blow to the back of the head. Grate was found guilty and was sentenced to death in 2018. Shortly before Pennells death, he called his attorney from prison. That murderer turned out to be David Meirhofer, who confessed to four other murders during a four-hour interrogation. WHYY is your source for fact-based, in-depth journalism and information. 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 driver became suspicious and drove off. Uncovered is where the most passionate true crime enthusiasts can learn from and teach others. She immediately identified the vehicle. After confessing Falling was convicted to life in prison with no possibility of parole for 25 years. Get more stories delivered right to your email. No angry boyfriend or anything that would connect a murderer to her death. As she walked along the corridor, a car pulled up and offered her a ride. 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. On February 17, 2023, detectives from the Delaware State Police [] Read More Delaware State Police Investigating Homicide Date Posted: Saturday, February 18th, 2023 [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 provides trustworthy, fact-based, local news and information and world-class entertainment to everyone in our community. At each crime scene, he would leave a clue as to who he was. In January 2006, the Delaware Supreme Court affirmed Capano's conviction but remanded the case for sentencing because the death penalty was imposed by a non-unanimous jury verdict. What the NFL didn't know was that they just drafted one of America's deadliest serial killers. When Cruz-Ramos was caught trying to find some money Cook stole from him in Cooks apartment, Cook and Matzke tied him up and began to torture him for hours. A week later, officers from the Delaware State Police and the New Castle County Police Department sprang into action. There are those who also believe the KKK were the real murderers of these children, but the FBI found no direct link between the group and these murders. What his wife didn't know was that Herb also cruised gay bars at night, picking up young men. She survived the attack. , daughter of former Delaware Congressman John Pennington, married John P. 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