Historic Crimes

Albert DeSalvo after turning himself in for escaping imprisonment The Boston Strangler was a presumed serial killer that operated in the Boston area from June of 1962 until January of 1964. The killer (or killers, as some would say) was responsible for the deaths of thirteen women. Of course, as with most serial killings, it is difficult to know whether more murders took place in other areas. One man in particular–Albert DeSalvo–is widely believed to have been responsible for the Boston Strangler murders. However, it is important to bear in mind that he was never charged with the murders. In fact, no one ever was. The Boston Strangler first struck on June 14, 1962. The victim was 55-year-old Anna Slesers. Anna's son found her on the floor of the bathroom in her apartment on Gainsborough St. in Boston. She was wearing only a bathrobe, which had been left open, exposing her nude body. She had been sexually assaulted, but not raped. Anna was strangled with the belt ...

J. Ruffell portrait of William Bligh Back in 1798, the most infamous mutiny in history occurred on a ship known as the Bounty. The story has been immortalized in film and the history books. While, it's often sensationalized for the sake of entertainment, the true story is just as action-packed. Captain William Bligh was in command of the Bounty when it went on its fateful journey. He was hired to bring the Bounty to the South Pacific in search of breadfruit trees. Bligh was able, but quite strict. During the voyage, he kept a meticulous account of the ship's provisions, rationing out food carefully based on his calculations. He was also keen on keeping his men on task. At one point during the voyage, Captain Bligh was compelled to flog some of his men for attempting to desert the Bounty. A harsh punishment surely, but it was the practice. Captain Bligh's nature began to wear on master at arms Fletcher Christian, who began to show visible disdain for the captain. Ho...

Dana Sue Gray is a serial killer who is hard to categorize. She was a nurse, but she did not kill her patients. She killed elderly women, but she did not poison them as so many nurse killers are wont to do. Her serial murders were violent, but she did not have a male counterpart helping her as many female serial killers who commit violent murders do. She is not unique, though. She had a clear motive, a modus operandi that could be compared to those of other serial killers and she had a lack of remorse that is all too familiar in the world of serial killings. Dana Sue's parents divorced when she was two-years-old. Her mother raised her, though she died of cancer when Dana was still a teenager. Rumor has it that she tried to live with her dad, but that she could not get along with her stepmother. She graduated from high school with average grades and behavior. From there, she went to nursing school. While Dana Sue Gray was in nursing school, she dated athletic men and became som...

Drawing of Jesse Pomeroy Jesse Pomeroy or Boston's "Boy Fiend" is numbered among the most sadistic and remorseless serial killers of all time. He was brutal, demented and, well, fiendish. However, unlike most criminals who are dubbed "serial killers," his murder count was quite low. Jesse Pomeroy was guilty of killing only two people (two people is two too many, but few in the world of serial killers). Another very strange fact about Jesse Pomeroy that is also frightening is that he was only 14 years old when he committed these murders. He was even younger when he began torturing young boys.   Jesse Pomeroy was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts on November 29, 1859. His full name was Jesse Harding Pomeroy and he was the younger of two children (both boys) born to Ruth and Charles Pomeroy. According to his mother and records, Jesse took ill when he was just a baby. He fully recovered and was described as intelligent when he was older. However, his ...

Tommy Lynn Sells is an American serial killer who claims to have killed more than 50 people, possibly more than 70. Like many serial killers, his claims and reality may be very different. Nevertheless, Tommy Lynn Sells is known to have been responsible for several murders, all of them heinous. Sells was born on June 28, 1964. He was a twin. His twin was a girl named Jean. The twins had two older brothers. Three younger brothers would follow. Their mother was a careless woman named Nina. It is unclear who Tommy's father was. He was supposed to have been a man named William Sells. However, Tommy often told investigators his father's name was Joe Levins. When Tommy and Jean Sells were about a year and a half old, they were living in St. Louis. At that time, they came down with meningitis. Jean did not survive. Six months later, Nina sent Tommy Lynn to live with her aunt Bonnie. Nina rarely, if ever, visited the child, so Bonnie sought to adopt the boy. Nin...

Fred and Rosemary West are one of the thankfully rare serial killer couples in England's history. They are also among the most demented, cruel and sexually sadistic killers in world history. It is always shocking when more than one person is involved in a string of serial murders. However, it is even more shocking when it came to Fred and Rosemary West. They were a married couple with several children, two of which they brutally murdered. Before Fred and Rosemary West met and married, they were both on the wrong path. Fred was aggressive with women from his teenage years on. He claimed that his father raped his sisters and Fred himself was guilty of impregnating his own younger sister, a crime that made him a convicted child molester by the age of 20. When Fred was 17, he was in a serious motorcycle accident that resulted in a traumatic brain injury and a plate in his head. He hurt his head again when he put his hand up a girl's skirt and she pushed him off a fire escape. E...

Police shootouts, are about the closest thing to warfare as U.S. citizens typically experience. They terrorize both the lawmakers and the civilians who find themselves witnessing gunfire and even explosions. Here are a few shootouts that are infamous in the collective memory of this country. The 1985 MOVE Shootout and Subsequent Fire MOVE is a commune style group that preaches against technology and for living in harmony with the Earth. However, they were not averse to using violence. Their name is not an acronym for anything, though their members do all adopt the last name "Africa." The group is still active as of 2016. On May 13, 1985, police approached the home of the MOVE group on Osage Ave. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Neighbors had been complaining of loud preaching and anti-American sentiment being broadcast from the house. They also complained of trash strewn in the yard for making compost and that there were nude children walking around the property. ...