In Broad Daylight: New Details on a Classic Case
[CR Note: We know the story. Ken Rex McElroy, an illiterate “hog farmer,” terrorized all of northwest Missouri—mainly Skidmore—for over twenty years. He committed nearly every crime in the book, including rape, assault, arson and kidnapping. With the help of his Kansas City lawyer, he outwitted the criminal justice system every time.
Reading Edgar Award-winning author Harry MacLean’s In Broad Daylight, you get the feeling that there’s only so much a human being can take before he or she snaps. You understand the bond of a community fed up with injustice. Ken Rex McElroy was beyond a neighborhood bully; he was the epitome of arrogance and perhaps even evil. In the 1991 movie version of MacLean’s book, Brian Dennehy played the part as though he and McElroy were channeling each other. Dennehy wasn’t Treat Williams collecting a paycheck for a Lifetime Television hack job—he was McElroy. Now, in his updated version of one of the best true crime books ever written, MacLean brings new witness statements to the table and “possibly” reveals who actually killed the Skidmore Bully. What you thought you knew about this case is likely wrong.]
Guest blog by Harry MacLean
The killing of Ken Rex McElroy could well be the hottest cold case on record. On the morning of July 10, 1981, he was shot to death as he sat in his pickup on the main street of Skidmore, Missouri. Forty-five townspeople witnessed the killing. All denied seeing the shooters. After three grand juries and an eight-month FBI investigation, no one was indicted. Twenty-five years later, still no one has been charged with the murder.
In December 2006, St. Martin’s Press re-released In Broad Daylight, the story of McElroy’s incredible reign of terror, his killing, and the aftermath. The new epilogue contains startling information about the identity of McElroy’s killers and the killing itself.
In the spring of 2006, I obtained unprecedented access to the state police and FBI files on the killing. The files contain a hand-written statement from an eyewitness which corroborates in detail McElroy’s wife’s identification of Del Clement as the first shooter. The statement also identified, for the first time, Gary Dowling, a local farmer, as the second shooter. The statement is detailed and convincing. Interestingly, the eyewitness appeared at the sheriff’s office the following day in the company of Del Clement’s lawyer and recanted the statement. Despite this, the statement, combined with Trena’s identification, stands as convincing evidence of the identity of the shooters.
The files also dispel a great myth about the killing. The media seized on the notion that the entire town had killed Ken McElroy, characterizing it as a vigilante killing, or an example of vigilante justice. My interviews, and the numerous statements in the files, make it clear that, other than the two shooters, the men on the street that day were not part of a plan to kill Ken McElroy. They were involuntary witnesses to a murder.
I believe that the killing of Ken Rex McElroy will long remain the hottest cold case on record. No one—not law enforcement, not McElroy’s family or friends, and certainly not the residents of Skidmore—seems to care that his killers remain at large. The men on the street that day are bound in a silence that is immune to the passage of time or the glare of the spotlight. In their view, while murder might be a sin, what Ken McElroy did to the town and its residents, to young girls and old men, was unspeakably evil. It would be a far greater sin to turn the men who brought the nightmare to an end over to the very justice system that had failed the community for so many years.
I lived in the town for three years while researching the book. When I first arrived, I had doors slammed in my face, a shotgun pulled on me, and I was bitten by a dog. By the time I left, I was judging dance contests at the annual Punkin’ Show and selling tickets to the Mother’s Day bazaar at the local Methodist Church. I became quite attached to the town and the people, and I stayed in touch over the years.
Personally, my sympathy has always lain with the townspeople, although it bothers me as a member of civilized society that the two killers remain unpunished for their crime. I doubt, however, that any good would come of the prosecution of the men. A prosecutor would be hard pressed to find a jury of twelve Nodaway County citizens who would convict anyone of McElroy’s murder. Memories remain strong and hearts unforgiving, and even the youngsters in the area know well the story of Ken McElroy. When I was back in Skidmore for the one-year anniversary of the killing of Bobbi Jo Stinnett—the young pregnant housewife who was strangled and her baby ripped from her womb—I asked two girls what they knew of Ken McElroy.
“He was a bad guy, who bullied lots of people,” the older of the two said.
“He was shot here in town,” the younger one joined in. “Right over there.” She pointed to the tavern.
“He had it coming,” the older one said.
Ken Rex was much more than a town bully. He had all of Northwest Missouri terrorized. Even the cops and judges were scared of him. Maybe, as the townspeople say, he needed killing; the main regret seems to be the way he was finished.
“The guys who did it deserve a medal,” one local told me. “But they should be strung up for the way they did it.”
Meaning, I presume, In Broad Daylight.
January 4th, 2007 at 8:20 pm
Just like Dexter, you don’t necessarily codone the killing, but you can’t love the victims either…so how do you balance the ambiguity?
I don’t usually believe that the end justifies the means, but somehow there is a karmic balance in McElroy’s death…more than could ever be obtained with death penalty executions.
I can’t wait to get and read this book!
January 5th, 2007 at 12:26 am
Harry,
Welcome! Enjoyed your guest blog as well as your book. I read it years back, before I’d seen the movie. Call me uncivilized, but in this case, I feel the people of the area did what they had to do to stop the unlawful and terrorizing behavior of an individual who seemed above the law. The law of the land is “of the people, for the people”. When trying to go through the proper channels all those years to stop McElroy’s behavior, and failing to do so, I could see a whole town of otherwise law abiding citizens just saying enough is enough.
Thanks again for revisiting this case and I will definitely read your newly released version.
D.P.
January 5th, 2007 at 4:11 am
Harry,
Yes I’ve seen accounts of this story before, I’ve seen the movie but must apologize, I’ve not read the book. If my memory serves me I believe there was even a NEWS PIECE done on this guy, the network escapes me.
Obviously it’s difficult for anyone in todays society to believe, myself included, that this type of thing could happen today. I’m speaking of the bully aspects of the case, the killing of McElroy whether it be at high noon on a crowded street, or at midnight in an open corn field is much easier to believe possible. I remember the sensationalism around the thing when the NETWORK NEWS PROGRAM covered it, I remember the chuckle I gave when I learned of the allegations against McElroy. Kind of reminded me of George Kennedy’s character in the classic ” Cool Hand Luke ” Nobody does anything unless I say so.~lol
The fact of the matter is that if the guy did do these things he’s accused of and the LE of the area did nothing to stop it, and if some of the offenses were in fact criminal, than in my opinion it’s pretty ” OPEN AND SHUT ” Justice was served! The broad daylight thing was just a way of showing everyone, including LE that TWO can play the kind of game McElroy played for years in Skidmore. It being high noon was just a simple slap in the face of the local LAW! A simple message with a smile.
JMHO~
Mark
January 5th, 2007 at 5:51 am
Mr. MacLean,
Thank you for the guest blog. I did read this book many years ago. In fact my mum read it and told me to read it as she was fascinated by it. I am in agreement here that McElroy got what he deserved. What is interesting is that I don’t find this case to be any different to the happenings in todays society. For example: drug dealers and gangs working the streets in broad daylight and at night terrorizing neighborhoods without fear of the law. I have often times wondered why honest people in these types of neighborhoods don’t take the law into their own hands seeing as our criminal justice system can’t get the job done.
January 5th, 2007 at 5:51 am
alright~ I’ll jump in the deep end again because there’s nothing wrong with adding some spice to the topic, I think it makes for more lively discussion. JMHO~
ONE: How can it be a cold case when 40 plus people saw it go down?
Two: Why the need for all of the sugarcoating? I eat very little, if any sugar, so it stands to reason I wouldn’t like it sprinkled on a TOPIC.
Harry: I read the bio and the MYTHS of this, case or story, I’m confused. Facts, nothing like actual facts to set the stage for a decent discussion about this topic. Since there are several women who read and blog here I think they would find it interesting that Rex McElroy fathered over 20 kids and beat a rape charge, she was 12 at the time, by forcing the child’s parents into marriage consent by intimidating them. She was in the pickup as his wife when he was shot to death.~~~~~WTF Rex was 47 when he died. How old is/was Trena when he was shot? How old was Rex when he raped her?
I can’t believe this bastard wasn’t strung up long before 1981.
JMHO
Mark
January 5th, 2007 at 5:57 am
Mark- that is too bad, I really like my sugar. Especially in the first cup of java for the day.
I didn’t remember the information about the rape charge until you put it here. She obiviously wasn’t too worried about him being shot as Mr. Harry pointed out not even his family is seeking “justice” over this. Some people just know when they have a bad egg in the basket.
January 5th, 2007 at 5:59 am
Oh and I think it is only a cold case in the regard that no charges were brought against anyone.
January 5th, 2007 at 6:54 am
Ummm – the justice side of me thinks this should be solved…the inner Fiz thinks “he had it comin’”to quote “Chicago”( the musical, not the band). My favourite ever was a case my Texan email friend sent me was a case where the accused said earnestly, “He needed shootin’”!!! Fiz
January 5th, 2007 at 7:08 am
I read this book awhile back and found it so interesting. This guy was just bad to the bone. But I think justice should be served as far as his murder. I have to admit though…my last thought at the end of the book was: “what took them so long to kill him??”
To think that ONE man could terrorize not only normal citizens, but that he had cops and judges shivering in their boots is really an interesting look at our society. And instead of these guys taking him out some place that he’d never be found… they do it right in the middle of the street where they KNEW they had many townspeople watching….. I think this town was ROCK SOLID in their feelings about Ken, and the murderers had nothing to fear. Maybe they wanted and needed people to see the bloodbath, so they could finally RELAX, and not worry that “ole Ken” had just gone off for awhile and he’d be BACK!!
I’ll definately be looking for the new book!!! Thanks.
January 5th, 2007 at 7:25 am
To quote an over quoted quote…
Some people just need killin…
January 5th, 2007 at 7:36 am
” ROTFLMAO ”
I love quotes/lines: my favorite all time is from the movie: The Outlaw Josey Wales.
” He ain’t a hard man to track, he leaves dead men where ever he goes ”
Yes some need shootin and some need killin~ Rex was long overdue in my book!
Mark
January 5th, 2007 at 7:41 am
I have never heard of this man before. I’m intrigued by this story. Can’t wait to read it.
January 5th, 2007 at 7:42 am
Mark, was the new arrival announced? If so, I missed it. Congrats!
January 5th, 2007 at 7:45 am
JrZyChris~
yes she was and thank you for asking. All are doing very well so far.
Mark
January 5th, 2007 at 8:20 am
Okay…I have visited Crime Library and now also remember what I read from the book “Baby Be Mine.”
McElroy is the classic antisocial personality disorder with NPD sprinkled in living in a very unsophisicated town where law enforcment are neither properly trained or paid well. This is a classic problem in rural areas. Small towns do not have the tax base to pay for proper law enforcement and generally are pretty crime free in the first place. Their LE are more equipped to handle loose cows, a simple drunken brawl, car accidents, etc. While on one level, the town knew they were living with a psychopath, they did not have the capacity to understand the deeper issues. True that stalking laws and domestic violence laws improved since his death, there could have been a lot more done by law enforcement.
In one place, I read that they claimed that the justice system failed the town. No…the law enforcement system failed the town. If LE can not act courageously or build the case right, the criminal justice can do nothing at all.
I don’t know about Missouri, but in Texas, a public threat, like McElroy engaged in on a regualr basis was enough for an arrest. It probably should have been handled by the state police, and there should never have been bail allowed after the arrest.
I believe it was self-defense.
January 5th, 2007 at 8:25 am
And another thing…has anyone looked into the psycholsocial history of McElroy’s family? Was there abuse, how did the 15 other siblings turn out?
January 5th, 2007 at 8:27 am
JrZyChris,
Go about two blogs back and you will find the link to the baby pics of Mark’s pretty girl!
January 5th, 2007 at 8:34 am
Pati-
Interesting that you should say the LE failed. I agree, but I also happen to feel that the police nowadays are more clean up squads then policing units. When I was a kid and we were out at night the cops said go home, we did, no questions asked. Now a cop can’t just tell someone get off the street corner because everyone starts screaming about their civil rights. More often then not the police are involved after the crime is comitted and can’t really do anything legally until then.
January 5th, 2007 at 9:05 am
If you have any questions for Harry MacLean about True Crime writing or this guest blog, please send them directly to me. gregg@greggolsen.com. I’m going to bundle a few together and get them to Harry.Look for a Q and A posted over the weekend.
Gregg
January 5th, 2007 at 9:20 am
I have read this story and McElroy was another Saadam Hussin. I don’t feel the least bit sorry for him and the men that killed him should not be punished. LE was afraid to do anything with him. And he shot an old man and woman that owned a local store for an unjustifiable reason. Skidmore is a better place because two courageous citizens stepped up and risked their own future to protect the citizens of Skidmore. Something their local LE should have done.
January 5th, 2007 at 9:57 am
Michelle, you are mostly correct, I think that really applies to large cities where they do not have the manpower to really do a half-ass job of community policing…they are just putting out fires more than anything. Small towns and small jurisdictions within metropolitan areas are still quite different. They do have the abilit to do community protect and serve stuff.
DAs can not do a thing unless the LE does their work. That is how the system is designed. The rural county in which my husband is a pharmacist and also serves a reserve at the Sheriff’s office is a typical case. The city itself (1,900 pop.) has no police dept., they contract with the county. The county does not have a lot in their coffers. Therefore, they do not send their LE to outside training. Everything they are taught comes from in-house instruction. To me that is very sad because they do not have the opportunity to learn from the experiences of other departments. Because hubby has the experience and training from elsewhere, he feels truly sorry for these guys. The manpower is such that at night one person is patrolling the entire county with the only back up from the state trooper.
January 5th, 2007 at 9:58 am
Gregg,
The question I have is… has anyone looked into the psycho-social history of McElroy’s family? Was there abuse, how did the 15 other siblings turn out? Are they in the community still?
January 5th, 2007 at 10:03 am
oops, sorry sent this to your email Gregg!
January 5th, 2007 at 10:15 am
Leah~
very well put! I agree 100%
For the life of me I can’t grasp why anyone would take issue with this idiots demise, or come to his defense in ANY FASHION! His death was more than justified regardless of who did it or how it was carried out. The time of day is/was and should be a non factor. Now if they would have chained his body to the back bumper of his own truck and then dragged his body through town until the wind whistled through his bones, or propped him up in front of city hall with a sign around his neck saying: ” This is what happens to criminals in Skidmore ” then I think that that might have been going just a little tooooooo far!
There is no sympathy in any part of my being for anyone who rapes anyone let alone a 12 year old child. If you ask me the ole boy got off easy by eating a few pieces of lead! I can come up with many many better ways that they could have sent this bastard to hell. The Native Americans would have surely given this guy a proper send off.
Mark
January 5th, 2007 at 10:34 am
Your comments are all very interesting. McElroy would undoubtedly qualify for the definition of an antisocial personality. He was also paranoid, seeing slights everywhere, taking offense when none was intended. His whole life was about payback; the more farmers’ wives he could sleep with, the more of their hogs and cattle he could steal, the more of their daughters he could get, the better he felt.
Pati, you are absolutely right about the nature of the small town and the role it played in the story. To my surprise, I found Missouri to be more of a southern state than midwestern. It was, after all, a slaveholding state. People in towns like Skidmore like to be left alone. They didn’t even want a sheriff in town. They don’t understand how much of a role that attitude played in allowing McElroy to become the menace he did.
I call it a cold case, because it’s not solved. Most cold cases aren’t solved because there is no evidence. Here there is plenty of evidence. Everyone knows who killed McElroy, but no one wants to say in under oath. It would only take one.
Pati, regarding McElroy’s background and family, that is dealt with extensively in the book. The father was a drinker and a brawler. McErloy was the youngest of 12 kids. They were poor hog farmers, and McElroy felt the other farmers always looked down on them. Some of the other kids were unsavory, but none as bad as Ken.
Michelle, the similarity you draw between McElroy’s reign of terror and what goes on in street cornes in urban areas is an apt one. Sooner or later, people will decide they’ve had enough. I’ve read stories about it happening in some crack areas. People arming themselves, patroling, etc. The town of Skidmore will always be known as the town that took the law into its own hands. It’s their burden to bear, and they resent it. Every aspect of the criminal justice system failed the town: cops, judges, prosecutors.
Trena was in her early twenties when Mcelroy was shot. She had been running with him for years at that point, pulling guns on cops, etc. When I interviewed her, she still stuck up for him, but it seemed like she was doing it for the kids. She’s remarried twice and lives in the Ozarks.
Sorry to take up so much space.
Harry
January 5th, 2007 at 10:51 am
Harry- The Ozarks! I thought I heard banjos down the holler!
Thank you for sharing your insights, much appreciated.
Mark
January 5th, 2007 at 11:01 am
Harry, thank you for this post. I will definitely be getting the book. I am intensely interested in the criminal mind. I was thinking paranoid personality but the hair dye and the need to have many sexual partners speaks of narcisscism.
According to Robert Simon, a forensic psychiatrist would classify the belligerent callous behavior of McElroy as anti-social personality disorder. He says the old term psychopatch and sociopath are the same thing and that this personality disorder is “narcissim…malignantly transformed into living, breathing evil.”
Dr. Debra Niehoff says the violent aggression of APDs is different than someone who lack impulse control. The APDs have slower heart and are less likely to feel pain, and are much more violent. I am not surprised to see that the father was a drinker and a brawler (they are also abusers of children and often sexually abuse their daughters).
I thought I read 16 children, but 12 is plenty enough. It is no wonder there are some that also have issues.
Can’t wait to read the book!
January 5th, 2007 at 11:12 am
Pati-
In some instances I agree with you that the LE has not done their job properly. So many times though I see that the police have their hands tied by the laws put into play to protect the accused. I live around an urban area but my city is still very small town. The police here don’t come unless they are called. The real shame of this story is that the people required to carry out the law were unable due to fear. Those people should not have been in the postion to begin with. I know I don’t want a police officer who is afraid to handle a tough situation protecting me.
January 5th, 2007 at 11:14 am
I don’t see why we can’t just say ‘psychopath’ and have done with it! Everybody in the world knows what it means! If if moves like one and it acts like one…
January 5th, 2007 at 11:21 am
Michelle,
A well run police dept is only as good as what the citizens demand. At the end of the day, they are the customer. If a community is not happy with the quality of their police, they DO have the power to change it.
Fiz,
LOL! I agree with you, but in today’s psychiatric community they want politically correct terms. The new studies coming on the heels of awesome neurobiology are quite amazing and in the next decade will help to come up with better understanding and hopefully, better terminology.
January 5th, 2007 at 11:23 am
Fiz, I’m with ya there. As I have said before, you shoot a rabid dog. It kinda surprises me that it took as long as it did to off the fool.
January 5th, 2007 at 11:24 am
The Native Americans would have surely given this guy a proper send off.
Mark and
Pati wrote :- I thought I read 16 children, but 12 is plenty enough
FOFL!!!! I think if I had 16 kids I might be a bit batty! (2 is more than plenty!) You two are funny! Fiz. xxx
January 5th, 2007 at 11:26 am
Fiz,
My grandmother had 18 single births all healthy babies. She was the most awesome woman I have ever known.
January 5th, 2007 at 11:26 am
No doubt Pati. It is up to the community. The thing that interests me is how two people raised in similar circumstances, like McElroy and his siblings, don’t go the same route. I honestly feel that the screw was loose from birth, the environment they grow up in only loosens it more.
January 5th, 2007 at 11:28 am
18 holy cow!! I thought my four contributed to premature hair loss, slight insanity and more then a few greys in what is left that I haven’t pulled out…God bless your grandmother.
January 5th, 2007 at 11:31 am
Michelle,
Niehoff says no. While the genetic tendancies for for drug and alcohol abuse are there, and DNA coding for what switches go on and off to certain stimuli can play a role, it happens all the time. Some people grow up in the starkest of circumstances and grow to be fine healers or leaders. Some grow up like Charles Manson. I think many times it comes down to emotional strength are spiritual awareness. Because why else do all women who were raped or sexually abuse not turn out to be street whores?
January 5th, 2007 at 11:33 am
said badly…emotional strength are spiritual awareness.
should be emotional strength and spiritual awareness.
BTW, I asked my grandmother how many were unwanted and she said none!
January 5th, 2007 at 11:34 am
Well that is true, not all people are affected the same way. To be sure there are serial killers that have come from good homes. I think I worded that wrong. Anyway what I mean to say is that there has to be that in you to begin with. Does that make more sense?
January 5th, 2007 at 11:47 am
It doesn’t surprise me that Trena stuck up for McElroy. I am pretty certain that she was abused. Most people in abusive relationships defend their abuser even after they have been removed from the situation. Just curious, Mr. Harry, did she ever say that she feared him?
January 5th, 2007 at 12:00 pm
Michelle,
I think you are referring to Stockholm Syndrome and it does not require an abusive background, just the current abuse. Patty Hearst? remember her? came from a well-heeled family and rob banks with her abusers.
January 5th, 2007 at 12:10 pm
Mark,
I hear that same banjo duet….da, da, da, da, da, da, da, dahhh
January 5th, 2007 at 2:27 pm
I’ve got two toy hamsters that with disconcerting leers on their faces that play that tune ! Pati, I am in total awe of your grandmother!
January 5th, 2007 at 2:36 pm
Just read the crimelibrary story on this. I guess I’m a little amazed at the responses to Bo and his wife’s calls to the police, and that no one in the community was really willing to help before it was too late. But then again, I’ve never lived in that kind of town. Harry wrote: To my surprise, I found Missouri to be more of a southern state than midwestern. It was, after all, a slaveholding state.
Interesting comment, because the Southern town that I come from in NC, we all took care of each other. Anyone messed with me or anyone else in the town, a family member or neighbor would make sure they were taken care of. No one like this McElroy would have made it this long without being taken care of.
I look forward to reading the book, because I really want to get into his criminal mind, and try to understand the townspeople a little bit better.
Thanks for the blog Mr.MacLean!
January 5th, 2007 at 3:20 pm
Mark!! I agree, there are some quotes from movies, etc. that are just TOO much and you never forget them.
My favorite: from Cool Hand Luke….
“What we have here…. is a FAILURE to communicate”
Tried using it on my hubby one time, and he burst out laughing!!! (Of course, I was trying to imitate the warden).
Congrats on the new one!!
January 5th, 2007 at 3:21 pm
Hope this question hasn’t already been answered, but was Ken the one who would go out and steal other neighbors’ hogs and other livestock??
January 5th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
Kimpossible,
Fear does incredible things. Folks will put up with an awful lot.
Isn’t Skidmore culturally a lot like the ozarks? I mean, they’re rather improvised…according to Wipedia, “The median income for a household in the city was $30,500, and the median income for a family was $36,250″
January 5th, 2007 at 3:28 pm
Yes, Ken would steal the livestock belonging to others.
January 5th, 2007 at 3:31 pm
Yes, Scarlett. He was a thief among other things. In fact one of the most disgusting things I have ever read was regarding that particular thing. I think it was Trena [if not her then another of Ken's wives or girlfriends] said that in order to keep the hogs quiet while they were stealing them they inserted a finger in the hogs butt! I think that topped just about anything I have ever read.
January 5th, 2007 at 3:35 pm
ewe, yuck!!!!!
January 5th, 2007 at 3:37 pm
duh….not improvised, but impoverished! sheesh!!!
January 5th, 2007 at 3:39 pm
Leah, I loved your description of McElroy propped on the street with a sign around his neck. In fact, he sat in his truck dead and bloodless for over and hour and a half. His attorney finally notified the cops and they came to town, a few scared he really wasn’t dead. More than a few townspeople drove by and checked it out, to see McElroy’s head full of holes and slumped forward on his chest.
As for the kids, he had twenty that I can account for. I know there were many, many more. After the book came out, I would run into women in those small towns who would pull me aside and tell me stories about holding stolen critters for him on their farms and rasing his kids. My guess is the total would be closer to 50.
Trena was very scared of McElroy. She tried to escape more than once, and in fact she made it once for several months. Then she broke down and called him from the small town she was hiding in. He beat and raped her badly, until she gave up all resistance.
I would love a cite on some of the nuerobiology studies on the criminal mind. I’ve come across them from time to time, but only in summary form.
Sixty Minutes did the first real big piece on the shooting. Morely Safer narrated it. That was before the townspeople knew how badly they were going to be portrayed in the press. Diane Fanning, who wrote Baby Be Mine, told me she couldn’t get any of the townspeople to talk to her when she was there researching the murder of the pregnant woman whose baby was taken from her womb.
January 5th, 2007 at 3:40 pm
This was a fabulous blog! But… now I am more curious than ever. I’m heading to crime library to read about it there and hopefully pick up the book while in MN to read on the plane home. Be back in a jiffy to rant.
One thing though. I also live in a very small town. Approx. population is about 600 and we are basically a tourist area. The nearest city with a Sheriff is about 30 minutes away. When we have problems here, mostly young kids vandelizing something, they take forever to get here to deal with the situation. Granted we don’t need them much, but it’s uncomfortable at times knowing that they are so far away. My husband and I own a campground here (and are building a large resort as we speak) and if something were to ever go seriously wrong we have no one in the immediate area to call for help. Even the local fire station got shut down last year – idiots in the community voted against the continued expense. At high season this last summer someone set fire to the contents of one of our dumpsters (large metal one luckily). The fire was well contained in it but we had to wait over 25 minutes for the fire department to show up. When you need LE around here, you have to wait for quite awhile to get help. It’s very scary.
P.S. – I really hate to get off topic here but my Grampa passed away last night and I needed to thank you all for your kind words yesterday. It is very comforting to communicate with others that care so much.
January 5th, 2007 at 3:48 pm
Harry,
Here are a couple of my favorite books on more recent studies of neurobiology and violence:
The Mind and the Brain: Neuroplasticity and the Power of Mental Force
by JM Schwartz
The Biology of Violence
Debra Niehodd, Ph.D.
The Human Predator
Katherine Ramsland, Ph.D.
The Anatomy of Motive
John Douglas and Mark Olshaker
A mind of Her Own
Anne Campbell
And the December issue of Scientific American had a couple of really great articles.
January 5th, 2007 at 3:51 pm
Harry,
My husband met Diane Fanning when she came to write about Richard McFarland killing his wife in 2004 (Gone Forever). My hsuband was the chief of police in the city where the McFarland’s lived.
January 5th, 2007 at 3:54 pm
Nik,
May he rest in peace and I send blessings to you and your family.
Yeah, LE in remote areas…ever thought about getting in as a reserve to the fire department or Sheriff’s department???
January 5th, 2007 at 4:09 pm
Oh Nik..I am so sorry to hear that. was holding out a little hope for you last night. I suppose peace is now at hand.
January 5th, 2007 at 4:30 pm
Nik, I’m so sorry for your loss. Know that you are in the thoughts of your “Rant”ing friends.
January 5th, 2007 at 4:43 pm
Harry,
my hands are not worth a damn today.
correction:
The Biology of Violence
Debra Niehoff, Ph.D.
January 5th, 2007 at 11:21 pm
There’s nothing like good old fashioned justice. Sometimes, it just needs to happen. (I suspect 30 years of living in Texas might have something to do with my attitude. If you’re born again, they’ll kill you twice!)
January 6th, 2007 at 3:57 am
Nik, I am so sorry for your loss. Fiz. xxx
January 6th, 2007 at 4:00 am
Leah, I loved your description of McElroy propped on the street with a sign around his neck. In fact, he sat in his truck dead and bloodless for over and hour and a half. His attorney finally notified the cops and they came to town, a few scared he really wasn’t dead. More than a few townspeople drove by and checked it out, to see McElroy’s head full of holes and slumped forward on his chest.
It sounds like when Harry Goldwyn died – there were scads of people at the funeral, and someone said they were just there to check he was really dead!!!!
January 6th, 2007 at 7:04 am
Sorry for your loss Nik, may he rest in peace.
January 6th, 2007 at 10:00 am
Harry,
Have you followed up on McElroy’s children from Alice? To see where they are and what they are doing with there lives?
January 6th, 2007 at 10:09 am
If I lived in that town, I’d have been one of the first to drive by and check to make sure he was dead too. After reading the crime library story last night, I’m suprised that the people in that town waited so long. What a miserable pile of s*it. I cannot believe how many times this guy got away with crime after crime. It’s absurd! I’m still hoping to pick the book up asap, because I really enjoyed this blog.
I ordered Murder in the Heartland and got it just in time for my trip. I have read the preface and part of the first chapter already. Can’t wait to finish it.
Thank you all for your kind words. It means alot to me. This will be my last post until next Monday unless I can get ahold of someones computer to check in. Hope everyone has a good week!
January 6th, 2007 at 10:24 am
Nuerological research is saying that people who have been on the receiving end of abuse are less aggressive than mainstream and therefore often don’t stand up for themselves. This explains the town and it explains alot about people who stay in abusive relationships.
January 6th, 2007 at 4:22 pm
One of Alice’s kids, Juarez, has gotten in serious trouble with the law and has spent time in prison because of it. He was convicted of pulling a knife on a guy in a St. Joe bar, the very bar that his dad shot a hole in trying to scare Alice’s stepfather thirty years earlier. One of Trena’s kids has not turned out too well, I hear, but I don’t know the details.
Good news on the book today: the AP ran a wire story on the re-release.
I’m enjoying all of your comments. This is my first time on a blog. Pati, thanks for the amending the cites. I will check them out.
Harry
January 6th, 2007 at 5:37 pm
Gregg, (on another note), I was watching a re-run the other night on Mary Kay Let., and saw your appearance…. Good!!!
January 6th, 2007 at 5:39 pm
Harry,
Niehoff’s book is the best. Campbell is great for the evolution of aggression. Ramsland is like a compendium of multiple/serial killing through the ages, Schwartz for the ability of the mind to re-wire and heal, magazine has some great questions being debated about the legalities of the implications of these new studies.
Pati
January 6th, 2007 at 5:51 pm
How did they ever come about naming a kid Juarez???
January 6th, 2007 at 11:14 pm
I never asked Alice where the name Juarez came from. He gave the same name –Oleta–to daughters from two different women. One of the interesting things was that while he beat his girl friends and wives, and the kids saw it, the kids were all very loyal to him. At least the ones I talked to. Maybe the next time I go back I’ll track a few of them down and see what they think of him now.
January 7th, 2007 at 5:34 am
Fifty kids~~~~~~~Not only was this guy a bully, he had to be the Wilt Chamberlain of Missouri. To father fifty children would mean this guy spent a considerable amount of his time rolling in the hay or his semen was some kind of very powerful spunk!
Man that’s a lot of pickin and grinnin!
Mark
January 7th, 2007 at 6:15 am
Harry,
My take on that kind of loyalty is fear. Since they watched him beat their mothers, they learned that to not catch his wrath was to be loyal. Mix that with the notion that children growing up in abuse for the longest time do not know that other homes are different and by the time they fugure it out, they fear abdandonment more than any other thing. Abandonment is a huge issue with children.
What I am surprised at is that from what you’re saying, more the children didn’t turn out like him….seeking approval and all that. Could it be that dad was so tyrannical, so authoritarian, that he could not tolerate even a subordinate status of any of his children? You know, much like a real hard=nosed dictator?
Mark, Glad to hear from you…how is the little one and mama?
January 7th, 2007 at 11:28 am
Here’s an article about Harry and his book that CR readers might want to take a look at:
http://www.columbiatribune.com/2007/Jan/20070107News010.asp
Gregg
January 7th, 2007 at 11:35 am
McFadin said the people of Skidmore were unhappy with McElroy?? Can we list that as the understatement of the century??
January 7th, 2007 at 1:39 pm
Pati:
I think your take on the kids is a good one. He wove the women and the kids into his own paranoia; the townspeople look down on us, they think they’re better, we’re accused of stuff we never did; they’re after us, etc. The whole us vs. them mentality, which can be a strong glue.
The editor wanted to take the bit about keeping the hogs quiet by sticking a finger up their butts out. I fought hard; it was original and graphic, if nothing else.
There were a few slaves in Skidmore before the war. And the Southern irregulars recruited heavily in northwest Missouri. The people there don’t consider themselves as part of the south, but some of their attitudes reflect it, particularly at the lower end of the ecnomic scale.
January 7th, 2007 at 2:45 pm
Harry,
Thanks for your responses! I can’t wait to read the book.
January 7th, 2007 at 4:53 pm
Pati, have you read INSIDE THE CRIMINAL MIND by Stanton Samenow? Very interesting take on the subject.
January 7th, 2007 at 5:11 pm
Another ARF,
No, but in looking at the book on Amazon, it seems to overlap the work by Douglas, Ramsland and Niehoff. I may see if I can get a look at in my library before I pop for the book.
I noticed that it was originally published in 1984 and updated in 2004. Niehoff’s book published in 1999, interprets data from the ground-breaking nuerobiological studies. I am so fascinated by the book, I can recommend it strongly enough.
January 7th, 2007 at 5:12 pm
I can not recommend it strongly enough!
January 8th, 2007 at 12:16 pm
Mr. MacLean, thank you for this blog. “IBD” is one of my favorite TC books of all time. I’ll be looking for the updated version.
January 8th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
You’re quite welcome, Rae. And thanks to every one who’s taken the time to comment on the blog/book. It was a fun and interesting experience.
January 8th, 2007 at 8:52 pm
Hey, Mark? Hate to break the news to you-but 50 children does not require a huge amount of ‘romantic stamina’- only about 10 hours out of 30+ years. Ken McElroy was hardly Casanova, so probably even less.
January 9th, 2007 at 6:19 am
Rae… Maybe that would be true if pregnancy occurred 100% of the time, but it doesn’t work that way. So many factors have to be just right for a successful pregnancy to occur. 50 kids is just unreal, no matter how you put it.
Seems the town acted in self-defense. They weren’t getting any help from the law and there is only so much they could take before the need to protect themselves takes over. They saw no end to this, so somebody ended it.
January 9th, 2007 at 8:09 am
Terri, even so, spread out over 30 years, McElroy did not spend all that much time playing the local Lothario.
Not to mention that I was being facetious.
January 9th, 2007 at 1:42 pm
Half-facetiously, I mentioned in the epilogue the possibility of a “battered town syndrome” defense. McElroy was not a threat to anyone at the moment he was killed, but the town had been terrorized for so long, and was so convinced that the law could not touch Mcelroy, that it lacked the necessary intent to commit a crime.
January 9th, 2007 at 3:13 pm
But the guys who signed that paper were facing a real threat, weren’t they?
January 9th, 2007 at 3:16 pm
RE: “Battered town syndrome” – so, really, it was a matter of reacting instinctively but not intentionally?
January 9th, 2007 at 3:32 pm
Deeper than that…it was survival, fight or flight reaction, there is no thinking, instinctive or otherwise.
January 9th, 2007 at 4:27 pm
The four guys who signed the affidavit to revoke McElroy’s bond were definitely at risk. McElroy had been stalking them. McElroy had great motive to either shoot them or scare them away, and he had ten days in which to do it. There was some speculation that the people ouside thought McElroy might have a gun in truck and start shooting. But he didn’t, and he posed no immediate threat. Yes, I think that the shooting was in the end an instinctive act. If there had been time to think, they wouldn’t have done it the way they did, in front of the whole world.
January 9th, 2007 at 4:30 pm
actually, I should say, there was no thinking, conscious or subconscious.
January 9th, 2007 at 6:02 pm
Well, isn’t that the same as “instinctive”? To act or react without thought or intent?
January 9th, 2007 at 8:32 pm
No instinct is more or less what is hard-wired without involving reason. Subconscious action is something that is done so repetively that it no longer requires active attention as goes into what is called second attention, subconscious or unconscious. This is why we can drive a car, drink coffee, put on mascara and talk on a cell phone all at once
January 10th, 2007 at 10:27 am
Pati;
Remind me what roads you drive on, cause I’m going to stay out of your way! LOL
January 10th, 2007 at 10:28 am
LOL!!!! I was using an example I have seen my ex-sister-in-law do…but I don’t wear make-up, LOL!!!
January 10th, 2007 at 11:52 am
This book was one of my favorite books as well. I do wonder if the shooting of McElroy played a huge part in why the town has been experiencing such a downgrade (no grocery, many closed buildings, etc)
January 10th, 2007 at 12:30 pm
I think the town is dwindling for the same reason most of the small towns in the USA are…they call it the brain drain in socilogy. There are little or no opportunities to make good salary, so they go off to college and stay in metropolitan areas for employment. US Agriculture has a study they published in the late 90s about this issue.
January 10th, 2007 at 2:53 pm
I doubt the shooting had much to do with the downturn of the town. It was already on the slide when this happened. When Maryville got a WAL-MART, the local stores closed. When a Maryville Bank bought the Skidmore bank and then closed it, the farmers had to go to Maryville for their banking. But mainly it’s the lack of any economic opportunity in town. When the kids get educated, they don’t come back.
January 11th, 2007 at 6:23 am
ok I am reading Matt’s book murder in the heartland and read the mention of this case intertwined in it last night. Now Imma gonna hafta get your book too!
January 11th, 2007 at 9:08 am
Jeanne
Glad to hear it. I hope you enjoy it.
January 11th, 2007 at 12:44 pm
Amazon has shipped mine, can’t wait to read it.
January 11th, 2007 at 3:49 pm
hrm. anyone else smell a conspiracy b/w matt and Harry to each get a book bought by mentioning the others in theirs?
just kidding.
January 11th, 2007 at 4:50 pm
I wished I thought that far ahead.
January 11th, 2007 at 5:46 pm
ehh, the way Matt wrote it into his, it got me intrigued enough. Actually I was reading it going, this sounds familiar but I’m not sure why. They I logged back on here and was like DUH! More than likely I won’t be the only intrigued if people read Matt’s book, let alone your post here.
January 11th, 2007 at 10:30 pm
I am glad this is an interesting story for everyone, but he was loved by some of us, like my self. You people only go by what you are told some of us lived it. I am not saying he did no wrong, but he was not a monster either. I saw him help people how did not have an money for food, diapers, rent and so on, so do not tell me there was no good in him. Maybe these people that like to talk smack on him and thought they where just in murder where not so nice to him either did you ever think of that, they where no innocent victims. As for raping trina that is just crap, she did that all because he was not doing what she wanted and as soon as he did no more rape charge. I so happy to see that all of you have no bones to bare in your closets that you have so much time to spend in other peoples died ones. Maybe you all should get a life that is your own.
January 11th, 2007 at 11:03 pm
Pati, for your information we where not abused by our father physically or sexually and we where never spanked by him or around him, and he most definitely was not living, breathing evil any more than the ones who killed him was. Maybe everyone in that town needs to die so that their rain of evil will be over, sense they even teach it to their young, after all they have taken from me and mine I don’t even teach mine to hate
January 12th, 2007 at 10:40 am
Interesting to see one of the McElroy children come forward. Tony, my guess is you were named for your grandfather, Tony McElroy, your Dad’s father. I know all of Ken’s children thought he was a good guy, at least the ones I talked to. Your loyalty is admirable, and I’ve no doubt he did good things for people. Whether you want to accept the rest of the facts of your dad’s life is up to you. It would be difficult for any child, I’m sure.
January 12th, 2007 at 12:13 pm
Ok, I will keep in mind Tony is a child of the subject. I understand how you feel having everyone just contantly judging something they aren’t living. I know that not everyone is 100% evil and are known to do good things.
Our posts come from the facts we have been presented via Harry’s book and blogs here. I am glad you jumped on here and spoke up. Maybe you could give us a different perspective by telling us about how you grew up etc.
January 12th, 2007 at 6:30 pm
Tony,
I did not say or suggest that the kids were abused. I suggested that they watched their mothers be abused…that does constitute growing up in an abusive home and it does damage the children.
Instead of blind faith, try formal education. Major in psychology and try to get a handle on your life so you can move on. Don’t grow up like your daddy!
January 14th, 2007 at 5:49 pm
I have no sympathy for Ken Rex.
You reap what you sow.
While I can understand that “Tony” wants to defend his father, maybe he needs to talk to some of Ken Rex’s victims.
January 16th, 2007 at 7:03 pm
No reasonable jury would convict.
Was a matter of self-defence.
Who are the turds who are asking these questions.
January 17th, 2007 at 11:34 am
I think this Tony is Tonia (a woman by now).
Harry, Have the book, reading as fast as I can and am loving it!!! You have done an awesome job of gathering family history.
January 17th, 2007 at 10:04 pm
Pati, thanks. I’m glad you’re enjoying the book, And yes, I’m sure Tony is Tonia, Ken’s daughter by Alice Wood. She was a sweet kid when I met her years ago. I doubt being one of Ken’s offspring is an easy burden to bear, no matter how good he might have been to her.
January 18th, 2007 at 3:21 pm
I think you are right about that.
Was Ken committing suicide by going to town that way? It seems that was feeling fatalistic and almost depressed.
January 18th, 2007 at 4:18 pm
A lot of people believe in the suicide theory, and I think there’s a lot to it. McElroy had gotten fat, and he couldn’t run through the woods with his coon dogs as he loved to do, and he couldn’t get the young girls anymore, which was his second favorite thing in the world to do. Either way, he won. If he bluffed the town, if he drove out of there alive, he would have brought the town to its knees. If he was shot unarmed, which he was, he would have turned the town into murderers. It would have particuarly pleased him to know that the killers shot him in the back, a coward’s way.
January 18th, 2007 at 5:01 pm
Very interesting. What a complex man he was. I struck by the temperment of his dad and think that perhaps the true psychopath gene gets passed around a bit. Especially when you look that most of his siblings were okay. That being said though, the Dad and Mom dynamics were odd, and the Dad was quite cold and he never got his dad’s approval. That alone can take genetic predisposition and crank out the anti-social personality.
Earlier in this blog the number of siblings was debated but in the book, I see that Mabel had 16 children and two died leaving her to raise 14 of them. I did get that correct, didn’t I?
January 18th, 2007 at 8:08 pm
Wow! I got to your last epilogue that you wrote when you re-published. I saw your remark about suicide by vigilante. Yes, I was thinking about people who commit suicide by cop. It’s just like that, isn’t it?
What a powerful book! I can not say that enough. Thank you for your posts on Crime Rant and being so gracious to continue to look on and respond.
Now I am going to have to find your other book
January 18th, 2007 at 8:10 pm
And oh! I am taking an ethics class this semester and am going to use your book as the basis for my argument.
January 18th, 2007 at 11:57 pm
[...] Author Harry MacLean is not a blogger (at least not yet). But he has guest blogged at Crime Rant and you can find his contributions here and here. And from what I understand we may be seeing him show up as a guest blogger on other blogs. (A little birdie told me that he has been seen over at Lost in Lima Ohio also.) And he is definitely an author. For his first book he took on a formidable task when he decided to write and publish a book about an unsolved 1981 murder in a small town. He first published ‘In Broad Daylight’ in 1989. That book won him an Edgar Award for Best True Crime, made the New York Times bestseller list and was made into an NBC Movie of the Week. He has now republished a twenty-fifth anniversary edition of the book adding an epilogue containing even more details about the crime, information about another murder that has occurred and the affect the unsolved murder had on the town. I spoke with Mr. MacLean about his book and he told me a little more about it and why he wrote it. [...]
January 20th, 2007 at 10:12 am
Pati, you got it right on the number of children. I think the discussion sometimes got confused when we were talking about his siblings and the number of kids he had, which is the great imponderable. Someone asked about Sally’s third child. When she gave the three kids up, this one, a boy, was not well, and was separated from the other two (athough they remember him). No one I know knows what happened to him.
It has been educational and fun reading your comments and answering your questions. The story keeps changing for me as time goes on.
January 20th, 2007 at 12:54 pm
Harry,
Do you know how many of his children were adopted out? The reason I ask is that Michawl Devlin was arrested recently in Missouri for the abductions of two boys. In the stories it came out that he comes from a decent albeit somewhat estranged family and that he was adopted. The thought that keeps creeping through my mind is could he be one of Ken’s children. Devlin is 41, which means he was born approx. 1966. How old would Sally’s third child today?
January 22nd, 2007 at 5:46 pm
Dont mean anything,he deserved what he got!But my grandfather and ken got along and my grandpa said if he liked ya he was a hell of a nice guy!
January 23rd, 2007 at 6:54 am
Mark…who is your grandfather?
January 23rd, 2007 at 8:34 am
Sharon’s third child by McElroy, Jeffery, was born in 1964, which is a couple years off from Devlin. But you never know; my date might be off, a year or two. I haven’t checked my records to see what the source of it was. I would point out, thought, that Ken’s other two childen by Sharon turned out quite well, as far as I know. Wouldn’t McELroy have freaked if he knew one of his kids–a son–went to college?
I just learned that Alice Wood, Tonia’s mother–Tonia wrote in a week or so ago, died from cancer. I remember Alice smoked a lot. I actually came to like her quite a bit. She had a lot of spirit, despite what McElroy had done to her.
January 23rd, 2007 at 11:59 am
Really sorry to hear that Alice died. I liked her too and saw mostly as an fortunate victim.
Were there any other illegitmate children from all the famr houses Ken was servicing? Isn’t that how got so much information on people’s coming and goings and where he would temporarily hide stolen livestock?
January 25th, 2007 at 3:22 pm
McElroy had a network of people throughout northwest Missouri who kept track of things for him. Some worked with and for him, others were just friends, and some were more than that. I agree with the earlier comment: if McElroy liked you, he was a good friend and very loyal. The problem was when he didn’t.
February 18th, 2007 at 1:31 pm
Harry thank you so much for the books it was great talking to you and my friend tell her to give me a call if your ever in missouri would love to see you both it was nice talking to you both it’s been a while. Julie
February 26th, 2007 at 10:14 am
Julie
I didn’t quite follow your post. Could you e-mail me at
hnmacl@msn.com
Harry
April 16th, 2007 at 4:03 pm
I went to Skidmore And I dropped a load of feed right after all that had happened. The people were really nice, but you felt that underneath qall the smiles and polite chatter a sadness was there and would be for a time.
May 9th, 2007 at 1:35 pm
I’m not going to use my real name – he was my second cousin no one knew what knew what was wrong with him. When he was young from the stories that people have shared he was not that way – no one talks about him. On top of that I know the true story about what happened in skidmore missouri that day that he was killed! Everyone was truly afraid – the legal system and OJ trial isn’t like it is today as it was then. You will never know – lady from Melvern Ks I know her to – that’s where I grew up! My blood – my aunts and uncles people I loved were around skidmore then the lady from Melvern Ks who went to church at the church my parents my neice my sister and the very church was going to – let the story go – our family will never forget about the the terror of ken Elroy – they lost friends – it was a small community the same as Burlington Jct and Maryville – but this Montogomery lady who kills a lady to get a child – her husband had nothing to do with it. Skidmore has suffered enough – I find it crazy that I lost people that I loved from a second cousin I didn’t even know – and yet the town of skidmore always accepted me – now Melvern Kansas – and yes, she does deserve the death penalty – premenated – I am now working as a paralegal nurse now for law firms. But know one ever hurt her nor did they hurt ken they were both flat nuts. No one will ever till you the truth what happened that day in skidmore with Ken Elrory. I am sorry – that somehow, Skidmore that provided me with such love and acceptance as a child through young adulthood has had to suffer. They are a wonderful town with great values. Values that many people seem to lose – like family being important, taking time for the neighbor, helping others. That is what Skidmore is about and has always been about since I was 5 and now I am 37.
May 20th, 2007 at 8:54 am
The time has come for the story to be put to rest. I have just finished reading the current issue of the book In Broad Daylight. Being from the KC area I remember the story very well. I very well remember grabbing the book’s first run editions. I became very good friends and still am with a lady who’s family is from the Skidmore area. Her stories and her moms stories at times almost seem un-blieveable, but upon reading the book you see where they are in fact probably the whole honest truth. Ken was a very smart bully to say the least. He knew just how to play the law in his favor and use this knowledge to plant terror in those who crossed him. Did he deserve to be murdered? I have to say after some thought on the issue is that he had to be taken off the streets no matter what. As to what would have been the right way we will never know because it never happend. The time has come for a great amount of healing to take place and in some areas I’m sure it has happened. The people and their families should now be allowed to go on with their lives in peace. A bad era for a community came to an end and many of us will never understand it but fact is we wasn’t there and we wasn’t living in fear as many did. Let us go on from here knowing what happened years ago, and leave it at that.
June 21st, 2007 at 7:08 pm
can the movie in broad daylight be found, wouldd like to have a copy of the movie
October 10th, 2007 at 12:28 pm
That horrible Trena should have been shot to death as well. I wish they had a POSSE here in New York, would come in real handy with the terrorists around us. It was a fascination book, I believe people that hunt and abuse/kill animals for kicks are practicing their sickness until they can get an opportunity to kill a human being.
October 20th, 2007 at 5:14 pm
I just found copies of the movie available online, for the first time. This should please a lot of people, since I’ve been asked how to get one over the years. Just google in broad daylight movie, or Brian Dennehey.
Harry
October 26th, 2007 at 5:32 pm
I HAVE READ THE BOOK AND ALSO KNOW THREE OF HIS CHILDREN. THEY ARE WONDERFUL PEOPLE AND I THINK IT IS A SHAME THAT THE TOWN OF SKIDMORE CAN LIVE WITH THEIR SELVES KNOWING THAT THEY MURDERED A HUSBAND, AND A FATHER. FROM WHAT HIS CHILDREN SAY HE WAS GREAT FATHER TO THEM. YEA HE HAD A TEMPER BUT WHAT MAN THAT WAS RAISED IN LOWER CLASS AND LOOKED UPON AS TRASH WOULDN’T HAVE A BAD TEMPER.
November 12th, 2007 at 2:42 pm
Whoever shot this guy deserves a medal. I can understand why Clement doesn’t want to talk, whether he shot him or not, but he should not be hounded about whatever role he played. I’m sure deep down Trena is happy that she got free of McElroy. The town is happy, and so is law enforcement — they didn’t have to do anything. As for “suicide by vigilante,” that is a bunch of bunk for people who have nothing else to think about. McElroy went into town that day for the sole purpose of showing the town that he was in control. Only guess what? You push people far enough and they strike back. McElroy always got away with his crap because people were scared to testify against him, thus no witnesses. Now, there are no witnesses in his death. Ironic.
November 16th, 2007 at 5:45 pm
well cmf i don’t think that mattered to his children all they know is that their father was murdered by towns people and that the family house was burned down cause people are such heartless asses that they don’t give a damn about other things other than to try and fix what they think is a problem. from what i was told is that ken would of went to prison would they have just waited. but hey they didn’t care that he had kids at home. his sons’ mouse and juarez both said he was the greatest father ever and that they hate the towns people for taking a part of their life.
November 17th, 2007 at 11:48 am
but i think it was a shame that they took justice into their own hands. i live in a big town and you see this stuff all the time but you don’t see them out killing people for it. i grew up in a town called poplar bluff where that was a part of life to see the poor take up so much hate cause people made fun of them and always accused them of something even if they didn’t do it. so i can see why he grew up to hate the town. sometimes you need to give people a chance.
December 30th, 2007 at 4:30 pm
The real shame in this case is the manner in which the police and judicial system treated McElroy. If they had done their jobs, it would not have been necessary to empoly vigilante justice. But because the authorities wimped out, the towns people had to take matters into their own hands. Now, (persumably) 2 people have to live with this hanging over them for the rest of their lives all because the people that were hired and paid to take care of these matters refused to do so. That is what I think of the police — chicken shits, more concerned with drawing their paychecks than doing their jobs.
January 5th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
This latest version of the book is no more true than the last. It’s just another persons attempt to make money on someone else’s pain. What about all the people’s lives that were shattered by this whole situation, and now he is trying again to capitalize on it. There is no proof that the people he names in his book did half the things it says they did. His sources are less than credible to hang publish unverified and unsubstanciated claims on. And if these people didn’t trust anybody, then why would they give you correct information. You might as well just pulled names out of a phone book, there aren’t that many in such a small town.
May 29th, 2008 at 9:37 am
I met Ken when I was about 16 or 17 at a dog and gun trade. When a group of us (about 7 or 8)decided to go, my boyfriend was a bit skiddish and I didn’t know why. He decided not to go with us that day. On the way over, his brother told me that he was afraid Ken McElroy might be there and he didn’t want to run into him. I knew that my boyfriend had been shot in the mouth to keep him from telling the law what he knew about some stealing/burglaries that had happened in the area. What I didn’t know was that Ken was the one who shot him. Anyway, Ken seemed pleasant enough, knew a lot about dogs. He seemed a bit laid back, liked to flash around money, and watched everything going on around him. Of course, when I met him (and I met him a few more times after that), none of the things in Skidmore had happened yet. I was around that area in 1976, 1977 and early 1978. My boyfriend was from Stewardsville but was living in St. Joe at the time. I lived in a small town on 36, a little ways from St. Joe. I moved out of state for a while but came back in the 80s and still live in that same small town. The company I work for is out of St. Joe. I heard from my boyfriend and his brother a lot of stories about Ken and his escapades but the side you saw of him at the dog and gun trades was different. But you could also see that he seemed capable of being that mean and you didn’t want to get on his bad side.
And to the person who says the townspeople should have considered his children before they did what they did, maybe Ken should have considered his children before he did all the things he did. If he had spent more time with his family instead of harassing everyone, maybe none of that would have happened.
June 20th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
Well from what Ken’s children say he was a damn good dad took care of them always made sure that they had everything that they needed,they also said he was very loving to them. Sometimes people can act different towards others, but yet love and care to others they care about. I dont think that Harry lied about anything in his book. I think the town of Skidmore finally knew it was ok to talk about the story cause they weren’t scared anymore. But Ann did you ever think that maybe your boyfriend could of been making this story up about being shoot? But from what I have heard and know of his children he was a good person in their eyes and he took care of them and that is all that matters in this story. That town was heartless and did not think how much it might hurt people who really did have love for that man.
June 20th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
Ann what I meant about the shooting of your boyfriend, how do you know it was true that Ken shoot him.
December 23rd, 2008 at 12:00 pm
America I believe has the best laws and justice system in the world, bar none. I believe that the justice system should be used in every extream situation to maintain a peaceful and orderly country and community. However our laws were still made from men however great of leaders they were then. Humans are not perfect.
Therefore there are those times when our law enforcement officers do fall short of our expectations in extream circumstances and something needs to be done outside of our legal system. Just like the Richard Biine charater in the old TV show Have Gun Will Travel. He told the new young lawer about such circumstances (a little differents). He said these words: What do you do when the laws that are suppose to help you are the problem. My friend he said, when common law fails you have no law, no laws except the laws of survival.
However my way that I would have handled it would be to find him out in thee field on his farm somewhere and shoot his knees out andhis pelvis.
That way there would be no murder and he would have never bothered anyone any more. He would still be alvie but a cripp. To my knowledge there is no such thing as a cripple bully. He would still live and be at the mercy of the town. A dose of hi own medicene.
January 22nd, 2009 at 12:40 pm
This was by far the best movie I have ever seen. I will always have it in my collection. Very powerful stuff.
August 16th, 2009 at 12:43 pm
I am not going to be politically correct nor am I writing this to be impressive, this is just the bottom line of what I think about this hog farmer named Ken Rex McElroy.
What the town of Skidmore had to do to rid themselves of the actions of an evil man should not be judged. The members of that town were correct in their actions.
When the law cannot protect the citizens of an entire community, and surrounding areas, then the community this evil man lived in had to take care of each other and end his reign of terror. They needed to take care of each other.
For the sake of his wife and all of his children, it had to be done. Imagine that if this was what McElroy did to the members of the community he lived in, can you imagine what his wife, the women who bore his children, had to endure?
If it is said he was a good father, the man did not respect his family enough to end his reign of terror the moment his first child was born and become a respectable man in his community.
For the sake of the young women he abused and beaten, leaving them traumatized for the rest of their lives, it had to be done.
For the sake of every member of Skidmore and surrounding area that he terrified, property he robbed, burnt and raided, it needed to end.
For the sake of the dogs, I imagine he had a hard hand when he disciplined and trained them. And every animal he abused and killed inhumanely during his life…
For a community to live in such fear and terror for so many years, it had to end. If ending it meant they had to raise a shotgun and stop the life of McElroy behind the wheel of his truck…
…so be it.
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:42 pm
They murdered my father, that is all that needs to be said – they MURDERED HIM!