Murder of Thomas Clinton Beebe

On October 9, 1891, 24-year-old Thomas Beebe had difficulty with cows destroying his corn on his land near Woodland, Washington. He confronted Robert Day's son about the cattle's destruction. During the argument, Thomas smacked Robert's son's face. At the time Robert was out hunting.

When Robert returned his son told him of the argument. After dinner, Robert confronted Thomas at his camp about 3/4's of a mile away from Robert's Ranch. He found Thomas and his cousin David Beebe

Robert confronted Thomas about slapping his son and asked him to walk down the road to talk. Thomas did not deny that he smacked his son. Robert having met the fork in the road that leads to his home he turned around with his gun a Winchester. He shot and killed Thomas without hesitation. The bullet went through his right side and exited through his left going through both of his lungs.  Robert spoke to David roughly and asked him if he also wanted som.

David fled the scene after the gun didn't discharge. David was able to get authorities. Robert fled into the woods and attempted to flee authorities. He was caught the next morning from authorities. A lynch mob came for Robert, but the constable prevented him from being taken.

Robert claimed that the boys were acting as if they were going to attack him. In defense, he shot Thomas.  Robert went to trial and was convicted of the murder on December 16, 1891.

While in prison on December 17 Robert attempted suicide by slashing his arm just below the elbow. He used a knife given to him for his meals. On February 4, 1892, the judge issued the warrant for his execution. On Feb. 28th

On June 3, 1892, Robert was set to hang in Kalama. He was Catholic and before he was sent to hang he talked to Father Kearnes of La Center. When on the Scaffolds he stated that he had remorse for taking a life for which he had to forfeit his own and that he forgave those who sinned against him and hoped those he sinned would do the same. He then stated that he was innocent of the murder he was charged with. He also asked the crowd to take care of his wife and kids.

He was hanged at 11:13 a.m. and his death was instant. They let him hang for 13 minutes before being pronounced dead and another 5 before being cut down and his body turned over to the family.


SOURCES:
Spokane Chronical October 13, 1891
The Seatle Post-Intelligencer December 17, 1891
The Spokesman-Review February 4, 1892
The Seatle Post-Intelligencer  June 4, 1892 (part 1)
The Seatle Post-Intelligencer  June 4, 1892 (part 2)
The Spokesman-Review June 9, 1892
Chicago Tribune January 1, 1893

Missing: Anker Ljunggren

In October of 1935 29-year-old Anker Ljunggren was last seen by his wife in Craik or Craven, Saskatchewan, Canada. At the time he was working in Yellow Grass as a farmhand but was heading north to find more work.

SOURCES:
Canadas Missing

End of Watch: Murder of Officer August Baker and the Lynching of William Burns

On October 3, 1907, 22-year-old William Burns and Gus Little who were both African Americans were drinking at a Hussey's Saloon near canal wharf in Cumberland, Maryland. They were making threats to other patrons and being disorderly. They were ordered to leave and the duo did not do so. Officer August Baker came to arrest the two for disorderly conduct.

William was not having any of it and was supposedly resisting arrest. Officer Baker tried to subdue him with pepper spray, but during the scuffle, William shot Officer Baker.  He was able to handcuff William, but Gus Little escaped during the fight. The shot was proven fatal and Officer August Baker died due to his injuries on October 6.

 William had admitted he was drunk but did not remember that night. He sat in jail for several days and was fearful that the townspeople were going to go after him.

Which when the townspeople heard that an officer had died anger consumed the town. Sheriff H.R. Hamilton did not place extra guards on duty at the jailhouse because he didn't believe that people would harm his prisoner. Deputy Sheriff Noah Hendley was on guard at midnight on October 6.

Several small groups of men were in the streets making their way to the jailhouse. Many of them wore their jackets inside out and handkerchiefs over their faces. By 1 a.m. a group of around 50 men approached the jail and 100 were gathered by the time they reached the jail.

There were conflicting stories of how many were there. Deputy Hendley reported over 2,000 while others said no more than 25. Spectators claimed that Deputy Hendley did, in fact, give over the keys easily even though he claimed that they tore at his clothes for them.

The men stormed the jail doors and demanded the keys from Deputy Hendley. Hendly refused which enraged the group. They tore down a telegraph pole and forced the doors open. They dragged William out of his cell with a smashed nose, a torn ear, and numerous cuts and bruises.

There were two motives of the people who attended the mob. One was that they wanted William to confess to the murder. The other was to lynch William because they were convinced he was already guilty. It was said that several prominent men in the city were a part of the mob.

A rope could not be found, so the men decided to shoot William. After he was shot and his body fell to the ground they checked to see if he was still alive and when confirmed he was, in fact, dead the mod dispersed quickly.

On October 12, 1907, Allegany County was able to raise $500 for the conviction of those who were a part of the mob. Judge Boyd directed a grand jury to investigate the lynching. No one could be identified for the prosecution of the crime. The Afro-Ledger protested the lynching in an article that summed up the situation well.

"The men who lynched Burns are greater murderers than he was, for while he shot his man while under the influence of liquor, and without premeditation, these men deliberately planned and carried their plans in execution. Without a doubt, every one of them is guilty of murder in the first degree and justice will not be done until everyone implicated in it is brought before the bar and receives the penalty of his crime."

No one was arrested or caught for the lynching though. 

SOURCES:

Maryland 

Wikipedia

Murder of Earl Fuller Jr.

Photo of Joseph Altringer

At 7:30 p.m. on October 4, 1930, 12-year-old Earl Fuller Jr. left his home in Dubuque, Iowa. He went to go play football with friends in an area near the "bottoms" along the Mississippi River. The scrimmage was done at 9:30 and some of the boys witnessed Earl going off with a man afterward.

Soon his parents became worried when Earl didn't come home before 10 p.m. They would search for him. His body would be found the next day in the bottoms in a clump of willows. He had been strangled to death It was believed that he had been sexually assaulted too as he had no clothes on him. 

They would then interview several people for the murder, but they would come across one suspect soon a 22-year-old Joseph Altringer. They would interview him for 15 hours and admit to the murder. Two of Earl's friends would confirm that Joseph was the man they saw him leave with.

Joseph would enter a plea of guilty and Judge P.J. Nelson gave him his sentencing. He would be sentenced to death. Joseph did not seem to accept his sentencing. His lawyer tried to plea on his behalf stating he was still so young, but this fell upon deaf ears.

Joseph would be hanged on November 6, 1931.


SOURCES:
Legal Executions in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, and Missouri
The Daily Times October 6, 1930
Quad-City Times October 13, 1930
The Daily Times October 13, 1930
The Des Moines Register October 20, 1930
The Des Moines Register November 5, 1930
The Gazette November 9, 1930

Murder of William Lamb

By 02 October 1801 73-year-old James Legg, and Mary and William Lamb shared an apartment at the Royal Chelsea Apartments in London, England. On the morning of 02 October, Mary Lamb woke up around 7 a.m. James Legg was already up and pacing the common room angry and swearing to himself. As a response to his behavior, Mary asked James "What's the matter?" He didn't take that kindly and responded with threatening to turn her out of the room if she said another word.

She went back to check on William and he was sleeping like she thought. He started to get up and then James rushed into the room and forced a pistol into William's hands. William responded with "What is this for?" and threw the pistol into the common room. William then began to get dressed.

This was when James shot William through the side. Another resident of the hospital, John Forester, came to the room after hearing the gunshot. He saw that William was dead and said that James came out of his bedchambers and said "I had done it" twice. John then took the pistol from James. He noticed it was discharged. He had also noted another pistol (the one William threw) was laying broken by the chest of drawers in the common room.

Another resident, Charles Coates, came into the room. He stated that James was also saying along the lines that he was the person or man who did it. He asked why he had killed him James responded with "I gave him a pistol to fight like a man but he threw it down and I fired." Charles stated he was so little agitated and it seemed as if he was joking with him. Charles then stated that he got agitated again and said: "I am satisfied with it."

On the stand, James claimed that he and William quarreled and he insulted James. He said that at one point he had two pistols and the two planned to end their quarreling. He asked William to chose his pistol and when William pulled it out his hand and this angered James and so he fired.

Friends of James claimed that he was deranged. They tried to prove he was insane at the time of the murder, but it wasn't proof enough for the case. He was calm and collective throughout the trial. James was found guilty and ordered to hang on 02 November 1801.

James was hanged on 02 November along with Richard Stark. James kept a soldier like appearance. The two men hung for an hour before being cut down.

SOURCES:
Capital Punishment UK
Aberdeen Journal, and General Advertiser for the North of Scotland

The Bury and Norwich Post

The Exeter Flying Post or, Trewman's Plymouth and Cornish Advertiser

The Caledonian Mercury

The Caledonian Mercury (Execution)

Serial Killers: Ida Schnell the 13-year-old Serial Killer

13-year-old Ida Schnell worked as a nursemaid in Munich, Germany. She was under the service of several families. She was described as being big for her age, dull and sulky. She didn't stay very long at each home. No one suspected the young teen of the deaths of their children until after the funeral of the 6th infant that died in her care. Each one had died sudden and mysterious deaths within six months and all under her care.

It was decided that they would exhume the body of the last victim, a 14-day-old son of Mr. and Mrs. Bichler of Ampermoching. The investigation revealed that the baby had been killed. The death was caused by a perforation of the child's soft skull with a sharp instrument. This was when it was confirmed that Ida had killed infants in her care. They tried exhuming two other victim's but they were too decomposed to tell the cause of death.

She was quickly questioned about Bichler's sons death. At first, she denied and said that his wound was from a fall. She would soon confess though. She stated that she hated hearing the baby cry and that she stuck her hairpin into his head until he stopped crying.

She would then go on and confess to doing it to the other babies that died under her care. She said that she had gotten into the habit of stabbing them in the back of the head with her hairpin until they stopped crying. She hated hearing them cry and wanted it to stop.

I could not find what had happened to the case and if Ida had served anytime in jail or an asylum.

SOURCES:
The Bundaberg Mail and Burnett Advertiser  (19 Oct. 1907)
The Baltimore Sun (03 Nov. 1907)
Buffalo Evening News (04 Nov. 1907)
Buffalo Evening News (18 Nov. 1907)

UNIDENTIFIED: September 30, 1952 Gilpin County Maria Doe

On September 30, 1952, a man went on a hunting trip in a wooded area in Gilpin County, Colorado. He spotted legs underneath a burned log and reported it to the police. The log was 7ft long and was in an unused gravel pit 100 yards from Highway 119 and 35ft from Clear Creek.

 The body belonged to a young woman who had been killed within the last month. She had blunt force trauma to her head, but it was unknown what her cause of death was. It was possible that the injury had killed her, but also possible that it simply knocked her unconscious and she was burned alive.

She's a white female between 17 and 30-years-old. She was around 5'7" and had brown/black hair. She would have had a notable overbite. A fragment of a turquoise sequinned blouse, metal rivets of blue jeans, and a sole of a shoe. She was wearing a whinstone necklace and earrings. A purse, small electric razor, and an empty lipstick container. A man's wedding ring with no setting was found near the scene.

This case is often known as Maria or Pyre Case.

SOURCES:
NamUs
Doe Network
Greeley Daily Tribune (October 1, 1952)