Posted on 03/25/2008 3:35:04 PM PDT by Bubba_Leroy
John E. List, who escaped his drab existence as a failed New Jersey accountant by killing his family in 1971, disappearing and building a new life far away until a true-crime show on television led to his capture almost 18 years later, died on Friday. He was 82.
[snip]
In 1989, Union County prosecutors asked the producers of the Fox program “America’s Most Wanted” to look at the case.
[snip]
Agents went to the home of “Robert Clark,” confronted his stunned wife, whom he had met at a church social, then obtained her help in filling in blanks from the past. They arrested him at his office on June 1. Fingerprints confirmed that he was John List, although he had denied it. As a fugitive, he had lived quietly in Virginia and in the Denver area.
At Mr. List’s trial in 1990, a psychiatrist for the prosecution testified that Mr. List had been suffering only from a “midlife crisis” when he slaughtered his family and that he had enjoyed life in the years afterward.
Mr. List was convicted of murder and sentenced to five life terms in prison. He appealed, unsuccessfully, on grounds that his judgment had been impaired by post-traumatic stress disorder from military service in World War II and Korea and that his letter to the pastor should have been kept confidential.
In a 2002 television interview on ABC with Connie Chung, Mr. List was asked why he did not take his own life if he felt so overwhelmed. Mr. List said that he thought suicide would have barred him from heaven and that he had hoped to be reunited there with his family.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
This guy gets to die of natural causese at the age of 82. Now that’s justice. /s
Sounds like a person who took no responsibility. I remember this case. No justice for his family members I think his hope of seeing them in heaven is not going to happen, so maybe there is some justice.
People are always trying to make it out like it was some weird religious murder, but List was in debt and being pressured by his wife over money. He took the easy way out, living with a new wife for years after he disappeared.
One of the more interesting side notes to the story, after he took off it was discovered that a large window in his home was an original Tiffany stained glass. Selling it would have more than paid off his problems.
“wait a minute, who am I here.”
No justice. He should have died in the electric chair or gas chamber.
Well, the five page confession that he left for his pastor saying that he did it because he felt his family was becoming sinful and this was the only way to save their souls might have had something to do with that impression.
The letter ended with a PS: "Mother is in the attic. She was too heavy to move."
As I recall he chased his terrified kids around the house until he caught and killed them.
He also killed his mother in law I think.
A real piece of crap.
The MSM loves to play up that angle. But he was in severe financial trouble, had a bad relationship with his wife, was burdened with kids and ill mother, and was trying to support the mortgage of a house way over his means. Plus he was doing the whole midlife crisis thing. After he runs off with another woman and makes a new life for himself, with no kids and no other family burdens.
He comes up with this “I killed them because the world is too terrible. I just couldn’t do it to myself”. Yea right. Simply because the press loves to paint religious people as nuts doesn’t mean I have to buy it.
http://www.crimelibrary.com/notorious_murders/family/list/1.html
In a 2002 television interview on ABC with Connie Chung, Mr. List was asked why he did not take his own life if he felt so overwhelmed. Mr. List said that he thought suicide would have barred him from heaven and that he had hoped to be reunited there with his family.Oh, killing himself wyould be a sin that would keep him out of heaven, but murdering his whole family wouldn't?
Bill Kurtis narrated that. I think I recorded a dvd of it off my machine.
No great loss.
Call me crazy, but I don’t think money was actually one of his problems.
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