This week (January 26-February 1) in crime history – The Mad
Butcher of Cleveland claimed third victim (January 26, 1936); The Vampire of
Sacramento claimed final victims (January 27, 1978): Charles Starkweather and
his teenage girlfriend kill three during their murderous crime spree (January 28,
1958); Brenda Spencer kills two and injures none in San Diego school shooting
(January 29, 1979); Indian Prime Minister Mohandas Gandhi was assassinated
(January 30, 1948); Guy Fawkes jumped to his death just prior to his execution
(January 31, 1606); Ted Bundy murdered Lynda Ann Healy (February 1, 1974); King
Carlos I of Portugal was assassinated (February 1, 1908).
Highlighted crime
story of the week -
On January 27, 1978, Richard Chase, who becomes known as the
"Vampire of Sacramento," murdered Evelyn Miroth , Daniel Meredith, as
well as Miroth's 6-year-old son and 22-month-old nephew, in Sacramento,
California. Chase sexually assaulted Miroth with a knife before killing her and
mutilating her body. He removed some of her organs and cannibalized them. The
previous year, the 28-year-old Chase had been found in the desert, naked and
covered in cow's blood. His behavior did not come as a complete surprise to
those who knew him. As a child, he had been known to kill animals, drinking the
blood of a bird on one occasion. He had been in and out of psychiatric
hospitals for most of his life.
Chase’s first known victim, Ambrose Griffin, 51, was killed in
a drive-by shooting in December 1977 in the drive way of his home. He committed
his second known homicide on January 23, 1979, when entered the East Sacramento
home of 22-year-old Teresa Wallin, who was shot to death and then mutilated and
partially cannibalized. After several tips from the public, Chase was apprehended
on February 1, at his apartment. Police found his home covered in blood and
filth. On May 8, 1979, a jury found him guilty of six counts of first-degree
murder and sentenced him to death. Chase committed suicide in his cell at San
Quentin prison on December 26, 1980 by taking an over dose of anti-depressant
medication.
Check back every
Monday for a new installment of “This Week in Crime History.”
Michael Thomas Barry is a columnist for www.crimemagazine.com and is the author
of six nonfiction books that includes the award winning Murder and Mayhem 52 Crimes that Shocked Early California, 1849-1949.
Visit Michael’s website www.michaelthomasbarry.com
for more information. His book can be purchased from Amazon through the
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