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The Starkweather killing spree
Monday, June 30, 2014
Charles Starkweather, insert; 14-year-old Caril Fugate and a Wyoming deputy sheriff.
In January 1958, McCook, along with the rest of Nebraska, was caught up in a near panic situation. Word had come out of Lincoln that one Charles Starkweather had killed multiple victims in cold blood (the number eventually reached 11). He had left Lincoln and headed west in a stolen car, and every community, with many unfounded reports of seeing the fleeing car, was convinced that the killer, Starkweather was either in, or headed toward their town.
In 2014 we have, unfortunately, become hardened to news of individuals who have invaded schools, theaters, and shopping centers and taken lives in indiscriminate shootings. In 1958 such a crime was enough of a rarity that news of Starkweather dominated the airwaves and newspapers from coast to coast.
Charlie Starkweather was strange. Age 20 at the time, he was rather small in stature. He had been born with a disease that had left his legs somewhat misshapen. He was severely near-sighted, had a speech defect, and was a slow learner in school. That had resulted in a great deal of teasing and bullying by his peers. The result was, "He was mad at the world."
At Lincoln High he discovered that he had an aptitude for gymnastics. But instead of giving him self-confidence, he used his newfound talent to bully others. In a short period of time he went from being one of the best behaved students to being the most belligerent. A high school friend later recalled, "He could be a lot of fun to be around. But he could also be mean as hell. If he saw someone who was bigger than he was, or better dressed, or better looking, he'd try to take the poor fellow down to size, for no other reason." His role model was James Dean, in 'Rebel Without Cause.' He attempted to emulate his hero in dress and action. He developed a severe inferiority complex, devoid of morals. He believed that he would never do anything right -- the world was against him, and he was destined to live a life of misery.
In 1956, at age 18 Starkweather dropped out of school and took a job at a Western Union warehouse. He had met 13 year old Caril Ann Fugate, a student at Whittier Junior High, and his job allowed him to see her each day. He was a poor worker at the warehouse, but before he was fired he quit his job to take a job as a garbage collector. The job involved picking up garbage at some of Lincoln's finest homes, which furthered his anger at the "haves" of the world. He began planning a life of crime -- robbing banks and homes of the rich.
Victim 1: 12/1/57: Starkweather had an altercation with a Service Station operator, Robert Colvert, who refused to sell him a stuffed toy (for Caril) on credit. He robbed Colvert of $100 at gun point, drove him to a remote area and killed him with a shotgun blast to the head.
Victims 2, 3, 4: 1/21/58: Starkweather called at Caril Fugate's home. Not finding Caril at home he got into an argument with her mother and step-father, Velda and Marion Bartlett. The parents warned Starkweather to stay away from their daughter. He ended up killing them with a shotgun, then strangling Betty Sue, the two year old baby sister.
Here the story becomes murky. Starkweather hid the bodies in two outbuildings behind the house. At various times Starkweather said that an accomplice had kidnapped the three and if Caril did not do as he wanted he would have them killed. Another time he said that he had immediately told Caril of the murders -- then the two of them disposed of the bodies.
At any rate, Caril Fugate and Charles Starkweather stayed in the Bartlett home for six days. During this time Caril's grandmother attempted to contact her daughter. When she was turned away at the door she became suspicious and contacted the Lincoln Police. However, when the police arrived at the house on January 27th, Caril and Charles had fled.
Victim 5: 1/27/58: Starkweather and Fugate drove to Bennett Nebraska, south of Lincoln, to the home of a family friend, 70 year old August Meyer, who invited them into his home. Their plan was to steal food and money from Meyer. Meyer was killed -- a shotgun blast to his head.
Victims 6 and 7: Fleeing the Meyer home in Bennet, Starkweather and Fugate drove their car into a muddy area and got stuck. They abandoned the car and began to walk. Soon a teenage couple, Robert Jensen and Carol Jensen came along and offered them a ride. Starkweather forced the couple to drive them back to an abandoned storm shelter in Bennet. There Starkweather killed Jensen. He attempted to rape Miss King, but was unable to perform. In a rage he killed Carol King. Later he said that Caril Fugate had killed Miss King. The two took Jensen's car and headed to the Country Club area of Lincoln.
Victims 8, 9 and 10: 1/28/58: In one of the wealthier sections of Lincoln, the pair entered the home of Industrialist, C. Lauer Ward. Mr. Ward was not home, but Mrs. Clara Ward and her maid, Lillian Fenci were fatally stabbed (Starkweather said that Caril Fugate had done the stabbing). Mr. Ward returned later in the evening; Starkweather fatally shot him and the two fled in Mr. Ward's '56 black Packard, which they packed with stolen jewelry and money.
The murders caused an uproar in Lancaster County. There were numerous (false) sightings of the fugitives, and Governor Anderson called out the National Guard to aid the police and State Patrol, but all to no avail, as Starkweather and Fugate had fled Nebraska.
Victim 11: 1/29,58: Near Douglas, Wyo., Starkweather decided that they must abandon the Packard, because of its high profile. They happened on a traveling shoe salesman, Merle Collison, who had pulled off the road and was taking a little nap in his Buick. Starkweather waked Mr. Collison, then killed him with a shot to the head as he sat in his car.
When Starkweather attempted to drive away in Collison's car he had trouble with the push-pedal emergency brake, with which he was not familiar, and stalled the car. A motorist, Joe Sprinkle, stopped to offer aid. When the trouble was explained and remedied Starkweather threatened Mr. Sprinkle with a rifle. This time his intended victim resisted and a struggle ensued. While the two were fighting a Wyoming Deputy Sheriff drove up.
Caril Fugate immediately bolted from the Collison car and ran to the Deputy, shouting, "It's Starkweather! He's going to kill me! He just killed a man! In the excitement Starkweather jumped into the Packard and sped away, leading Wyoming lawmen on a wild chase that at times reached 100 mph, through the streets of Douglas. Soon after, lawmen got close to the fleeing vehicle and shot out the Packard's back window. Flying glass cut Starkweather around the face. Thinking he was bleeding to death, he abruptly stopped and surrendered.
Afterward: Starkweather was extradited to Nebraska. On May 23, 1958, he was found guilty and sentenced to death. On June 25, 1959 he was electrocuted at the State Penitentiary. Starkweather, the killer, initially he said that Caril had had nothing to do with any of the killings. She was a captive and had tried to escape several times. Later, he changed his story, saying she had a hand in all the murders and called her "The most trigger happy person he'd ever known."
Fourteen-year-old Caril Fugate was convicted of murder and sentenced to Life imprisonment. She served, a model prisoner, a nurse's aide, at the Women's Reformatory in York for 18 years, when she received her parole and moved to Michigan. She has always maintained that she had been an unwilling companion to Starkweather; she had stayed with him because he threatened to have her family killed if she tried to get away.
Caril eventually married. In the last year, 70 year old Caril and her husband were in a one car accident. Her husband was killed and she was severely injured.
Steve Berry, a Lincoln Attorney, formerly from McCook has recently collaborated on a book, "The 12th Victim", covering the Starkweather case, in which the authors lay out the case that 14-year old Caril Fugate was another innocent victim. The law let her down. Public opinion had been unjustly critical of the girl. They hope to right this wrong while Caril is still alive.