US Journalism-In Cold Blood: The Clutter Murders

Richard Eugene Hickock and Perry Edward Smith were in prison when they heard from another prisoner that Herb Clutter was very wealthy and he had money stashed in a safe in his house. This prisoner, who told Hickock and Smith this, had previously worked for the Clutter family. After being released from prison, Hickock and Smith immediately drew up plans to get their hands on the stashed cash.

They went to the Clutter home outside of Holcomb, Kansas when four of the six family members happened to be home. Once entering the home, they realized that there was not a safe which contained money, they awoke Herb Clutter. Mr. Clutter gave them the little cash he had and said there was no more. They aroused the remainder of the family and again searched the house, confirmed Clutter’s story for themselves. They ransacked the entire house getting no more than roughly fifty dollars, a pair of binoculars and a transistor radio. Once the two had all they could find and assuming that Herb Clutter wasn't volunteering the information of where the cash was stored, executed in cold blood all four family members.

For the full police story, click HERE.

(Art: MAY 20, 2019 ~ JESSICA BELMONT)

"Kansas will have to cough up more than $168,000 in legal fees over its attempt to prevent the publication of investigative files related to the murders portrayed in Truman Capote’s book “In Cold Blood.”

The book, which Capote called a nonfiction novel, brought decades of attention to the slayings of four members of the Clutter family in their Holcomb, Kansas, home in 1959.

The Kansas Court of Appeals last week ruled the state owes the legal fees because of its conduct six years ago when it sought to block the sale of private notebooks kept by one of the lead investigators in the case, the late Harold Nye of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. "

To read the full story, click HERE.

Photo added by Paula Berry Nelson

BIRTH:                27 Oct 1928, Huntington Valley, Elko County, Nevada, USA
DEATH:              14 Apr 1965 (aged 36): Lansing, Leavenworth County, Kansas, USA
BURIAL:             Mount Muncie Cemetery, Lansing, Leavenworth County, Kansas, USA

Murderer. Along with Richard Hickock, he murdered the Clutter Family: father Herbert Clutter, his wife Bonnie, and their two children, 16-year-old Nancy and 15-year-old Kenyon. Novelist Truman Capote chronicled their crime in his book, "In Cold Blood" (1966). The book is considered historical fiction, because it includes conversations and actions that were not confirmed by either the killers or the police, however, many police officials familiar with the case believe it is fairly accurate. Born in Huntington, Nevada, his parents moved the family to Juneau, Alaska the following year, where the elder Smith brewed bootleg whiskey for a living. The father was abusive to his wife and four kids, and in 1935, Perry's mother left her husband, taking the children with her, and moved to San Francisco. Perry would spend his growing up years with a street gang, then in detention homes, until he was returned to his father. At 16, Perry joined the Merchant Marines, and two years later, joined the Army, where he served in the Korean War.

For the full article, click HERE.

olcomb, Kan., Nov. 15 (UPI)--A wealthy wheat farmer, his wife and their two young children were found shot to death today in their home. They had been killed by shotgun blasts at close range after being bound and gagged.

The father, 48-year-old Herbert W. Clutter, was found in the basement with his son, Kenyon, 15. His wife Bonnie, 45, and a daughter, Nancy, 16, were in their beds.
There were no signs of a struggle, and nothing had been stolen. The telephone lines had been cut.
"This is apparently the case of a psychopathic killer," Sheriff Earl Robinson said.
Mr. Clutter was founder of the Kansas Wheat Growers Association. In 1954, President Eisenhower appointed him to the Federal Farm Credit Board, but he never lived in Washington.
The board represents the twelve farm credit districts in the country. Mr. Clutter served from December, 1953, until April, 1957. He declined a reappointment.He was also a local member of the Agriculture Department's Price Stabilization Board and was active with the Great Plains Wheat Growers Association. The Clutter farm and ranch cover almost 1,000 acres in one of the richest wheat areas.

Mr. Clutter, his wife and daughter were clad in pajamas. The boy was wearing blue jeans and a T-shirt. The bodies were discovered by two of Nancy's classmates, Susan Kidwell and Nancy Ewalt.

Sheriff Robinson said the last reported communication with Mr. Clutter took place last night about 9:30 P.M., when the victim called Gerald Van Vleet, his business partner, who lives near by. Mr. Van Vleet said the conversation had concerned the farm and ranch.

Two daughters were away. They are Beverly, a student at Kansas University, and Mrs. Donald G. Jarchow of Mount Carroll, Ill.

According to a new report, Dick Hickock, a killer who was immortalized in Truman Capote’s seminal book, might have written a story of his own.

Since its publication in 1966, Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood has faced its fair share of contested facts and alleged fabrications. Now, news of a possible competing manuscript penned by one of In Cold Blood‘s subjects has added another layer to the story of one of America’s most brutal and terrifying murders. Read the full article HERE. 

Photo added by Paula Berry Nelson

BIRTH:               6 Jun 1931, Kansas City, Wyandotte County, Kansas, USA

DEATH:              14 Apr 1965 (aged 33), Lansing, Leavenworth County, Kansas, USA

BURIAL:             Mount Muncie Cemetery, Lansing, Leavenworth County, Kansas, USA

Murderer. Along with Perry Smith,  he murdered the Clutter Family: father Herbert Clutter, his wife Bonnie, and their two children, 16-year-old Nancy and 15-year-old Kenyon. Novelist Truman Capote chronicled their crime in his book, "In Cold Blood" (1966). The book is considered historical fiction, because it includes conversations and actions that were not confirmed by either the killers or the police, however, many police officials familiar with the case believe it is fairly accurate. Born in Kansas City, Kansas, and raised on a local farm, Hickock came from a good, stable farming family. Following high school, he obtained work on the Santa Fe railroad, and shortly afterwards, married Carol Bryan. Together they had three sons, and to earn more money, he became a mechanic for the Mark Buick Company. A 1950 car accident left him with a dislocated jaw that disfigured his face and left him unemployed. While still married, he fathered a child with another girl, Margaret Edna, and his wife promptly divorced him when she found out. Because he was unemployed, he wrote multiple bad checks, and was given five years in Lansing Prison for fraud and burglary. While in jail, he met Smith, and the two became friends

For the full article, click HERE.