Births
Mary Ann Holder
1935 – James Ford Seale – was a Ku Klux Klan member who gained notoriety for his involvement in a heinous crime during the civil rights movement in the 1960s. Born in Franklin County, Mississippi, Seale was charged by the U.S. Justice Department on January 24, 2007, and subsequently convicted on June 14, 2007, for the kidnapping and murder of Henry Hezekiah Dee and Charles Eddie Moore, two African-American young men in Meadville, Mississippi. His actions were driven by white supremacy and racial hatred. Seale abducted the two young men, both 19 years old, as they were hitchhiking near Roxie on May 2, 1964. He falsely claimed to be a federal revenue agent investigating moonshine stills and ordered them into his car. He then drove them into the Homochitto National Forest between Meadville and Natchez, where he and other Klansmen subjected them to unspeakable violence. At the time of his arrest, Seale worked at a lumber plant in Roxie, Mississippi, and had also worked as a crop duster. He briefly served as a police officer in Louisiana during the 1970s. Seale was a member of the militant Klan organization known as the Silver Dollar Group, whose members were identified by a silver dollar, occasionally minted in the year of the member’s birth. A federal jury convicted him on one count of conspiracy to kidnap two persons and two counts of kidnapping. Seale received a sentence of three life terms for his role in the 1964 murders of the two Mississippi teens. Although his kidnapping conviction was initially overturned, it was later reinstated by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Seale spent his remaining years incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) in Terre Haute, Indiana, where he passed away in 2011.
1938 – Walter B. Kelbach – was a notorious figure in the mid-20th century, known for his involvement in a series of violent crimes. Born on June 25, 1938, Kelbach’s life took a dark turn when he and his cousin, Myron Lance, embarked on a five-day crime spree in December 1966. Kelbach and Lance, both ex-convicts and veterans of prison, were involved in a series of robberies, rapes, and murders. Their victims included two 18-year-old gas station attendants, a cab driver, and three people in a Salt Lake City tavern. The duo’s violent acts were characterized by a chilling fondness for inflicting pain and death. Kelbach and Lance were initially sentenced to death for their crimes. However, their sentences were commuted to life imprisonment after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the death penalty unconstitutional in 1972. Kelbach spent the subsequent years in prison, arguing for his release or resentencing for second-degree murder. Despite his attempts to argue for a lesser sentence, the Utah Board of Pardons unanimously denied parole and recommended that Kelbach and Lance spend the rest of their lives in prison. As of 1992, Kelbach was 53 years old and had been in jail for 25 years.
1950 – David R. Leisure – In early 1977, Ray Massud assured Anthony Leisure, cousin of David Leisure, that he would succeed Massud as the business manager of Local 110 of the Laborers Union in St. Louis. While hospitalized with a terminal illness, Massud changed his plans and asked Anthony Leisure to take on the role of assistant business manager so that his son, John Massud, could assume the position of business manager of the union. Anthony agreed to the new arrangement. This agreement became effective on June 30, 1977, following Ray Massud’s passing. Anthony would handle the hiring and firing of union officers, while John would oversee the business office. However, John Massud exceeded his authority outlined in the agreement and made hiring decisions for union officers without consulting Anthony Leisure. Notably, Massud hired Vince Giordano as a union organizer and Mike Trupiano as President of the Union, both of whom were related to Anthony Giordano, a rival of the Leisures who led the Italian faction of the union. Anthony Leisure, feeling betrayed by Massud’s actions, contemplated drastic measures. He convened a meeting with his brothers, Paul and David, along with Ronald Broderick, John Ramo, and Charles Loewe, to discuss the possibility of taking violent action against Massud. However, they ultimately decided against it due to Massud’s influential political connections. As tensions escalated, Massud announced his intention to terminate Ronald Broderick from his position as a union officer, the only official Anthony Leisure had hired. In response, Anthony Leisure gathered his brothers, Broderick, Ramo, and Fred Prator to discuss drastic actions again. They considered targeting James Michaels Sr., the head of the Laborers’ Union in St. Louis, believing his removal would strengthen their position within the union’s Syrian faction. Additionally, they suspected Michaels of protecting the murderer of David Leisure’s older brother, Richard, fueling their desire for revenge. After an unsuccessful attempt to shoot Michaels at a St. Louis restaurant, the group decided to bomb Michaels’ car. David Leisure and John Ramo practiced planting a bomb on a similar car, with David Leisure also surveilling Michaels to learn his routines. On September 17, 1980, David Leisure spotted Michaels’ car at St. Raymond’s Church in St. Louis City. Anthony Leisure, Broderick, and Ramo acquired a van, and David Leisure planted a bomb on Michaels’ car while it was parked at the church. Despite initial failed attempts, the bomb detonated while Michaels was driving on Interstate 55, resulting in the destruction of his car and Michaels’ tragic death. Following the incident, Paul Leisure met with John Vitale, the new leader of the Italian faction, agreeing that the Syrians would maintain control of Local 110. Subsequently, two of Michaels’ relatives were dismissed from their positions within the union. Following a thorough investigation involving law enforcement agencies from St. Louis City and County, as well as the federal government, David Leisure was arrested and charged with murder.
1950 – Jim David Adkisson – is known for his involvement in the tragic Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church shooting that occurred on July 27, 2008. Adkisson was a former private in the United States Army from 1974 to 1977. He gained notoriety when he went on a shooting rampage during a church youth performance at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. He killed two people and wounded six others before he was restrained by church members. The victims were 60-year-old Greg McKendry, a longtime church member and usher who deliberately stood in front of the gunman to protect others and 61-year-old Linda Kraeger. The shooter was stopped when church members John Bohstedt, Robert Birdwell, Arthur Bolds, and Terry Uselton, along with visitor Jamie Parkey, restrained him. In a letter found in his vehicle after the shooting, Adkisson attributed his motivation for the rampage to a hatred of liberals, Democrats, African Americans, and homosexuals. He also described what he believed to be the cult-like atmosphere of the church. Adkisson pled guilty to two counts of murder and received a sentence of life in prison without parole.
1961 – David Stephen Middleton – also known as “The Cable Guy”, was born on June 25, 1961, in Boston, Massachusetts. He is an American former police officer, kidnapper, murderer, and suspected serial killer. Middleton was the only son of a police officer. He moved to Miami, Florida, where he studied at a police academy and later applied for a job at the Miami-Dade Police Department. He was accepted sometime in 1981 and served as an officer in the Miami-Dade County area. During his tenure at the Miami Police Department, Middleton used his position to pick up and rape vulnerable young women. Middleton was convicted and sentenced to death for the murders of two women in Nevada committed in 1994 and 1995. He is also the prime suspect in at least one additional murder in Colorado and rapes committed while serving in the Miami-Dade Police Department. After being charged with rape, the jury was deadlocked on the rape charge, and Middleton was instead convicted of false imprisonment. He was given a 5-year sentence at a local penitentiary. Middleton was paroled two years later and moved out of Florida, settling first in Colorado and then Nevada, where he found work as a cable TV repairman. He is currently imprisoned at Ely State Prison, Ely, Nevada.
1962 – Anthony Allen Shore – was an American serial killer and child molester. He was responsible for the murders of one woman and three girls. He was active from 1986 to 2000 and became known as the “Tourniquet Killer” because of his use of a ligature with either a toothbrush or bamboo stick to tighten or loosen the ligature. Shore was born in Rapid City, South Dakota, to Robert and Deanna Shore. His parents were both in the military, and the family, which grew to include Shore and two younger sisters Laurel and Gina, moved frequently. They eventually settled in Houston, Texas. Shore’s parents fought constantly and engaged in extramarital affairs before finally divorcing in 1976. He later claimed that his father frequently beat him and that his mother molested him when he was 13. He exhibited antisocial behavior from a young age, killing a neighbor’s cat and harassing and molesting his female classmates and, sometimes, younger friends of his sisters. In 1983, Shore married Gina Lynn Worley; Shore and Worley had two daughters, Amber and Tiffany. The couple divorced a decade later. Shore married Amy Lynch in 1997; they divorced after she accused him of abuse. At his murder trial, Shore’s daughters testified that their father drugged, abused, and raped them. Shore’s first known victim was 15-year-old Laurie Tremblay, whom he killed on September 26, 1986. He also sexually assaulted and strangled Maria del Carmen Estrada, 21, on April 16, 1992. On October 19, 1993, Shore entered the home of 14-year-old Selma Janske, then bound and sexually assaulted her. Shore was sentenced to death in 2004, and executed by lethal injection on January 18, 2018. In his final statement, Shore was apologetic and his voice cracked with emotion. “No amount of words or apology could ever undo what I’ve done,” Shore said.
1965 – Paul Augustus Howell – was a notorious figure known for his involvement in a tragic incident that took place in Florida in 1992. Born in Jamaica, Howell was involved in drug trafficking. His life took a dark turn when he was convicted for the murder of Florida Highway Patrol Trooper Jimmy Fulford. The incident occurred on February 1, 1992, during a traffic stop. Howell had hidden a pipe bomb in a gift-wrapped microwave oven in a car driven by another man. The bomb was intended for a woman in the Florida Panhandle who could have implicated Howell and his brother in a drug-related murder. However, the plan went awry when Trooper Fulford stopped the car for speeding. Fulford searched the car and was killed when he opened the package containing the microwave oven. The explosion was so powerful that it left a depression in the roadway. Howell’s actions led to a state and federal investigation that dismantled a drug ring and resulted in the indictment of 28 people. He was sentenced to life on federal drug charges and later received a death sentence on state charges of murder and making, possessing, placing, and discharging a destructive device. On February 26, 2014, Howell, then 48, was executed by lethal injection at the Florida State Prison in Stark.
1966 – Richard Matt – known for his numerous prison escapes, most notably the one in 2015 from the Clinton Correctional Facility. Matt was born and raised in Tonawanda, New York, a suburb of Buffalo. He and his older brother Robert were raised in foster care. Matt had a lengthy criminal history, with recurrent prison terms in the 1980s and 1990s for various crimes including burglary, rape, theft, and assault. In December 1997, Matt and an accomplice kidnapped and murdered his former boss, William Rickerson. After fleeing to Mexico to avoid capture, he murdered a second man, Charles Perrault, in February 1998. He received a 23-year sentence for this crime. Matt was extradited back to the United States in 2007 and was convicted for Rickerson’s murder. He began serving a 25-year to life sentence for second-degree murder at the Clinton Correctional Facility. In June 2015, Matt escaped from the Clinton Correctional Facility with fellow prisoner David Sweat. After twenty days on the run, he was killed by the U.S. Border Patrol. Sweat was captured two days later. Matt passed away on June 26, 2015.
1975 – Mary Ann Holder – was a resident of Greensboro, Guilford County, North Carolina, USA. She is unfortunately known for a tragic incident that occurred on November 20, 2011. On this day, Holder carried out a shooting spree that resulted in the deaths of five people, including her two sons, her niece, her nephew, and her older son’s girlfriend. The weapon used in the shootings was a .38-caliber handgun. Following the incident, Holder took her own life. The motive behind her actions remains unclear. This event marked a dark day in the history of Greensboro and left a deep impact on the community.
Deaths
Wesley Higdon
1591 – Euphame MacCalzean – was a wealthy Scottish heiress who became a tragic victim of the North Berwick witch trials in the late 16th century. Born before 1558, she was the illegitimate daughter of Thomas MacCalzean, a prominent and wealthy Edinburgh lawyer. Despite her illegitimate birth, her father legitimized her and showered her with inheritance, including the Cliftonhall estate. Marrying Patrick Moscrop, Euphame secured her social standing. However, her life took a dark turn in 1590. Accusations of witchcraft arose during the North Berwick trials, a frenzy fueled by fear and suspicion. Euphame, a powerful woman in her own right, became a target. Accusations against Euphame were multifaceted. Some alleged treasonous acts against King James VI, while others painted her as a practitioner of harmful magic, using witchcraft to cause illness and death. Many historians believe these accusations stemmed from property disputes and personal rivalries. Despite her social standing, Euphame was found guilty and sentenced to death. In a particularly brutal execution, she was burned alive at the stake on Castle Hill in Edinburgh on June 25th, 1591. Her lands and properties were confiscated by the King and gifted to his favorites. Euphame MacCalzean’s story stands as a stark reminder of the dangers of superstition and mob mentality. Today, she is remembered as a victim of injustice and a symbol of the horrors of the witch trials.
1889 – Sarah Whiteling – also known as “The Wholesale Poisoner,” was a German-born American serial killer who lived during the late 19th century. Sarah claimed to have been born in Germany in 1848. She first married a man named Tom Brown in Clinton, Iowa in 1868. The couple moved to Chicago and then to Philadelphia after the Great Fire. After Brown was imprisoned for highway robbery and died serving his sentence, Sarah had a child with a man named Thomas Storey. In March 1880, she married John Whiteling and brought along her then 9-month-old daughter, Bertha. In 1886, the couple had their own child, William C. Whiteling, nicknamed ‘Willie’. In the span of three months in 1888, Sarah poisoned her husband John and their two children, Bertha and Willie. John died suddenly on March 30, 1888, followed by Bertha on April 24, and Willie on May 26. Each death was attributed to different causes such as inflammation of the bowels, typhoid fever, and congestion of the bowels. Sarah collected insurance money on the lives of each of her victims. The short intervals between the deaths aroused suspicion, leading to an investigation. The bodies were exhumed and found to contain arsenic. Sarah initially denied all knowledge of the crime but later made a full confession. Sarah was tried and convicted of first-degree murder. She was sentenced to death and executed by hanging at Moyamensing Prison in Philadelphia on June 25, 1889. She became the first woman to have been executed in Philadelphia County.
1915 – Syd Jones – was executed for murder in the yard of the Jefferson County jail in Birmingham, Alabama, on June 25, 1915. Before his death, he left a note in his cell admitting to thirteen separate homicides. Of his victims, eleven were said to be black men, while the other two were identified as a Nebraska deputy sheriff and a brakeman on the Mobile & Ohio railroad. In a somber conclusion, Jones expressed remorse for not being able to add one more victim to make an even number, specifically mentioning Richard Moore, whom he missed on September 12, 1912.
1942 – Gordon Cummins – was a British serial killer who terrorized London during World War II. Nicknamed the “Blackout Killer,” the “Blackout Ripper,” and the “Wartime Ripper,” he is confirmed to have murdered four women and attempted to murder two others over a brutal six-day stretch in February 1942. He remains a suspect in two additional killings from October 1941. Cummins’ early life was seemingly unremarkable. Born in North Yorkshire, he received a private education but showed little academic promise. During the war, he served in the Royal Air Force, though not as a pilot. Stationed in London, he took advantage of the wartime blackouts – periods of near-total darkness implemented to hinder enemy bombers – to stalk and attack his victims. Cummins’ crimes sent shockwaves through a city already under wartime strain. He was eventually apprehended and convicted for the murder of Evelyn Oatley. Sentenced to death, he was hanged at Wandsworth Prison in June 1942. Though his killing spree was brief, Gordon Cummins remains a chilling reminder of the darkness that can emerge even amidst the chaos of war.
1959 – Charles Starkweather – born in 1938 in Lincoln, Nebraska, became a notorious figure in American history as a teenager. In 1958, at the age of 19, he embarked on a brutal murder spree that terrorized the Great Plains. Starkweather’s early life is shrouded in some mystery. While his family appeared normal, Starkweather claimed a troubled childhood. He recounted facing bullying due to a speech impediment and a physical abnormality. School offered no solace, and he found success only in physical education, where his rage could be channeled. This rage eventually morphed into violence directed not just at bullies, but anyone who crossed him. In 1958, his violence escalated dramatically. With his 14-year-old girlfriend, Caril Ann Fugate, by his side, Starkweather embarked on a killing spree that left eleven people dead in Nebraska and Wyoming. The motives for the murders remain unclear, with some debate about Fugate’s role. Was she a terrified hostage or a willing participant? The Starkweather rampage gripped the nation. It shattered the innocence of the 1950s and foreshadowed the emergence of the modern spree killer. After a week on the run, Starkweather was captured, convicted, and sentenced to death. He was executed in the electric chair in 1959. The Starkweather case continues to fascinate and horrify. It raises questions about the roots of violence, the influence of media, and the complexities of teenage relationships.
1985 – Morris Mason – was a convicted American rapist and murderer who terrorized Virginia’s Eastern Shore in 1978. Nicknamed “the killer for the Eastern Shore,” Mason’s crimes and subsequent execution sparked controversy due to questions about his mental fitness. Born in Philadelphia in 1954, Mason spent his childhood in Northampton County, Virginia, raised by his mother. He exhibited concerning behavior early on, reportedly hearing voices and showing a fascination with firestarting. In 1978, a series of brutal crimes gripped the Eastern Shore. Mason was responsible for a spree of burglaries, sexual assaults, and ultimately, the murders of two elderly women. He was apprehended and convicted for the rape and murder of Margaret K. Hand. Evidence suggested he was responsible for at least one other murder during the rampage. Mason’s mental state became a central point of debate throughout the legal proceedings. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia and developmental disabilities. Advocates and even his executioner questioned his competency and awareness of his impending execution. Despite these concerns, Mason was executed by electric chair in Virginia in 1985.
1990 – Ronald Gene Simmons – was a retired military serviceman who committed the worst mass murder in Arkansas history. Over a week in December 1987, he killed 16 people and wounded several others. Born in Chicago in 1940, Simmons’ family moved frequently during his childhood. He served in the military for over two decades, including time in the Navy and Air Force. He received decorations for his service, including a Bronze Star. Simmons married Bersabe Rebecca in 1960, and the couple had several children. In 1981, allegations arose that he had sexually abused and fathered a child with his daughter, Sheila. This incident led to his departure from Cloudcroft, New Mexico. In December 1987, in Russellville, Arkansas, Simmons embarked on a horrific killing spree. He murdered fourteen members of his extended family, including his daughter Sheila and the child they shared. He also killed a former co-worker and a stranger. Simmons was apprehended and sentenced to death sixteen times. He refused appeals and was executed in 1990. The case remains the deadliest mass murder in Arkansas history.
1997 – William Lyle Woratzeck – was born on September 11, 1945. He is known for his involvement in a criminal case that took place in Pinal County, Arizona, USA. On March 6, 1980, Woratzeck was involved in a robbery and arson, which resulted in the murder of Linda Louise Leslie, a 36-year-old woman. Leslie, who suffered from Huntington’s disease and had the mental capacity of a 15-year-old, lived in a shed rented from Woratzeck and attached to his trailer. She was robbed of approximately $107, strangled, stabbed in the chest and abdomen, beaten on the head, and her body and house were burned. Woratzeck was indicted by a grand jury of Pinal County, Arizona, for first-degree felony-murder, arson of an occupied structure, second-degree burglary, and armed robbery. He was convicted by a jury of first-degree murder, armed robbery, and burglary of a residential structure. The sentencing judge found two aggravating circumstances and no mitigating ones and sentenced Woratzeck to death. Woratzeck was executed by lethal injection in Arizona on June 25, 1997. His remains are buried in the Arizona State Prison Cemetery in Florence, Pinal County, Arizona, USA.
2008 – Robert Stacy Yarbrough – was born on June 1, 1978. He is known for his involvement in a crime that took place on May 8, 1997. At the age of 18, Yarbrough and his friend Dominic Rainey, who was 17 at the time, robbed a store in Mecklenburg County. The store was owned by 77-year-old Cyril Hugh Hamby, who had been operating it for over 50 years. During the robbery, Yarbrough and Rainey tied up Hamby. When Hamby insisted that he did not own any guns, Yarbrough kicked him in the head and upper arm and took cash from the register. Yarbrough then used a pocketknife to cut around Hamby’s neck, nearly decapitating him, as Hamby pleaded for him to stop. The two fled with cash, beer, wine, and cigarettes. They were caught a few days later. Rainey was charged with first-degree murder but received a sentence of 25 years in exchange for testifying against Yarbrough. Forensic evidence, including DNA, linked Yarbrough to the crime. On June 26, 1998, a jury in Mecklenburg County convicted Yarbrough of capital murder and robbery. During the penalty phase, the jury recommended that Yarbrough be executed. Yarbrough was executed by lethal injection in the Greensville Correctional Center at Jarratt, Virginia on June 25, 2008. His final words were, “Tell my kids I love them, and let’s get it over with. Make people happy. Help celebrate the murder.”
2008 – Wesley Neal Higdon – was a 25-year-old man known for his involvement in the Atlantis Plastics shooting, a tragic incident of mass murder that took place at an Atlantis Plastics factory in Henderson, Kentucky, United States, on June 25, 2008. Higdon shot and killed five people and critically injured a sixth person before taking his own life. The shooting is the worst in the history of Henderson County, Kentucky in terms of casualties, surpassing triple homicides occurring in 1799 and 1955. Higdon had a reputation for being difficult and had argued with his supervisor, Kevin Taylor. He had been reprimanded twice before the shooting, once for talking on his cell phone too much and for not wearing safety glasses, then later for an altercation with co-worker Joshua Hinojosa at a convenience store across the street from the factory. The victims were all shot with a Hi-Point Model JHP .45-caliber pistol. Taylor was apparently shot by Higdon outside the factory, then four more workers in the factory’s break room, and finally Hinojosa from behind on the factory floor. Higdon then committed suicide. The victims included Higdon’s supervisor, Kevin G. Taylor, 40, of Dixon, Trisha Mirelez, 25, Rachael Vasquez, 26, Joshua Hinojosa, 28, all of Sebree, and Israel Monroy, 29, Henderson, the brother of Noelia Monroy.
Events
Harry Kendall Thaw
1906 – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania millionaire Harry Thaw shoots & kills prominent architect Stanford White
1910 – The US Mann Act is passed – No woman may cross state lines for immoral purposes
1979 – School principal Jay C. Smith murders his co-worker Susan Reinert
1986 – Former Belgian Premier Vanden Boeynants is sentenced for fraud
1997 – American serial killer Paul Dennis Reid is captured
2008 – Atlantis Plastics shooting, an employee shot and killed five people after an argument which ended in the gunman’s suicide in Henderson, Kentucky
2014 – The US Supreme Court rules that police cannot examine the digital contents of a cell phone without a court order
