The wife of Robert P. Clark--whom the FBI says is really John List, a man who killed his family in 1971--says his arrest is unbelievable and that the alleged killer is not the man I know.. After gruesomely murdering his entire family, John List had begun living a normal life again. Now, in his first-ever public comments about the 1971 crime, the 76-year-old former Sunday school teacher says he is waiting to be reunited with them in the hereafter. This is either the most unbelievable mix-up or . In 2008, John Walsh, the host of America's Most Wanted, donated the age-progressed bust by Frank Bender that played a pivotal role in List's apprehension to a forensic science exhibit at the National Museum of Crime & Punishment in Washington, D.C., whose collection was later moved to Alcatraz East Crime Museum in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. [42] In 2015, the story was covered in the season 2, episode 2 of the Investigation Discovery TV series Your Worst Nightmare. Los Angeles, 12 reasons why Sycamore Avenue is L.A.s coolest new hangout, Fox News finally reveals its kryptonite: the bottom line, The Week in Photos: California exits pandemic emergency amid a winter landscape, Snowboarder dies at South Lake Tahoe resort, California to alter COVID rules in healthcare settings: Masks and vaccinations not required, Welcome to the world, baby Winter, born amid a snowstorm in Lake Arrowhead, Gripped by grace: Thousands gather for Bishop OConnells funeral Mass. March 2 (UPI) -- A Minnesota police officer came to the rescue of a raccoon he spotted running around with a jar stuck over its head. Afterwards, he dragged his wifes body to the ballroom and made himself lunch and ate it. Gwyn Conger Steinbeck - Who was She? 'Saving Private Ryan,' 'True Romance' actor Tom Sizemore dead at 61, 3 children killed, 2 hospitalized in North Texas domestic incident, Dozens killed, injured as Jakarta fuel depot fire engulfs neighborhood, To cut costs, Amazon delays completion of second headquarters, closes retail stores, Migrant woman dies after U.S. Coast Guard stops vessel carrying 54. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Helen and her three children were buried at Fairview Cemetery in Westfield. Helen List apparently was infected with the disease by her first husband, a soldier who was killed in Korea. Born In: Bay City, Michigan, United States. Realizing he was overhearing an important conversation between List and his second wife, the young officer took notes and later related what he heard to investigators from New . Authorities walk John List to a plane in Richmond, Virginia in 1989 before transporting him to New Jersey to stand trial.Steve Helber/AP. John and Helen married on December 1, 1951, in Baltimore, Maryland, the family moving to northern California. John fled the house after putting all the bodies on sleeping bags, turning the house lights on and putting on some classical music. When his daughter and youngest son came home, he shot them in the back of the head. He took a new identity and also joined a Lutheran church, where he met his second wife, Delores Miller. Gwyn Conger Steinbeck was the second wife of John Steinbeck, master story-teller and Nobel Prize winner. Delores Miller (wife) is an American Homemaker. When the children left for school, he shot his wife and his mother to death. Florida woman runs ultra-marathon distances for 23 consecutive days. Though we'd like to say that Wayne and Pilar lived happily ever after, apparently that's not the case. In an interview with Connie Chung in 2002, List said he didnt kill himself after killing his own family because he felt that would prevent him from getting to heaven. ', Suspected burglar inside New Brunswick home was a panicked deer. He is from American. John List met Helen Morris Taylor, a young widow of an American enlisted man who had died in the Korean War. "The body is still at the Mercer County Medical Examiner's Office," said county spokesman Pete Daly. Next he went upstairs, to where his 84-year-old mother was having breakfast, kissed her ("like Judas," he told Downtown), and shot her in the head. YouTubeThe bodies of John Lists wife and three teenage children were found laid out on sleeping bags in the ballroom. All five victims had been shot. Feb. 20, 2002 -- Thirty years ago, accountant John List methodically murdered his whole family his mother, his wife, and their three children. John List appeared to be the perfect son, husband, and father. Liss testified after a judgeruled that information on Helen List's medical condition could be given to the jury that must decide whether List is guilty of murder. The family were devout Lutherans. John List laid the bodies of his family members on top of sleeping bags in the ballroom, then composed a note to his pastor, who he felt would understand. After seeing all his children off to school, John List set his plan in motion. Although the destruction was officially ruled arson, it remains officially unsolved with no suspects. For the economist, see, obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, Dupont de Ligonns murders and disappearance, "Wanted: A Killer Disappears Into Another Life", "John List, famous murderer The Crime Library", "Breeze Knoll: The John List Murder House", "John E. List, 82, Killer of 5 Family Members, Dies", "In Hiding for 18 Years, a Wanted Man Is Caught by the FBI and a TV Posse", "Prosaic Life of Suspect in '71 New Jersey Murders", "Real Estate Assessment Data for 13919 Sagewood Trace", "Notorious AMW Fugitive John List Dead at 82", "Frank Bender, 'Recomposer' of Faces of the Dead, Dies at 70", "John List Bust Remembered as Sculptor Faces Death", "The List Murders Stun Westfield In 1971", "Slaying Suspect Saw 2 Choices, Doctor Testifies", "I Know That What Has Been Done Is Wrong", "Killer of Family Gets 5 Life Terms: Court: Judge sentences accountant who murdered his mother, wife and children 18 years ago to the maximum sentence", "Judge Sentences Family Killer to Life in Prison", "The boogeyman of Westfield, a ghost story that won't end", "How Profitable Sequels Succeed: They Just Bring 'em Back Alive", "The Watcher's Grisly John Graff Murder Sequence Is Based on True Story of a Family Massacre. Dr. Miller said List had learned before the killings that syphilis was the cause of his wife's worsening medical and psychological problems and that knowing she had a sexually transmitted disease would have a 'tremendous impact' on someone of his background. Examples include "Savior," the season 6, episode 16 of the television series Law & Order; the 1987 film The Stepfather and its 2009 remake; the 1993 film Judgment Day: The John List Story, in which List was portrayed by Robert Blake;[39] and the character Keyser Sze in the 1995 film The Usual Suspects.[40]. [44], In 2022, NJ Advance Media released "Father Wants Us Dead," a podcast serial on the events.[45]. Cindy wrote a book about her family, "The Cash Family Scrapbook." Cindy married three times, and shares a daughter, Jessica, with her first husband, Cris Brock. He left his mother's body in her apartment in the attic. He had saved the souls of the people he loved. He then walked up to the third floor and shot his 85-year-old mother, Alma. If you take gaming seriously, you shouldn't accept anything less than the greatest. YouTubeForensic artist Frank Bender uses photographs to sculpt an aged bust of mass murderer John List. Then he drove to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, where he left his car as a false lead and took a bus into the city. He canceled all deliveries and contacted his childrens schools to let their teachers know the family would be on vacation for a few weeks. His sixteen years old daughter and 13 years old son returned from the school at noon. An aerial view of the List family home in Westfield, New Jersey. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Upstairs, the body of List's 84-year-old mother Alma was found. Later, John took a lucrative job at Xerox and moved to New York and lived there with his family for a few years. The video above will play a live video stream of the Monday, Feb. 27 proceedings in the Alex Murdaugh double murder trial or a replay upon completion. "The Boogeyman of Westfield", was an American family annihilator and mass murderer who killed five members of his family on November 9, 1971, in Westfield, New Jersey. Edward Saresky told the jury Thursday that he heard Helen List taunting her husband by telling him that if he was 'half the man her first husband was the family wouldn't have the troubles they were having. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. March 3 (UPI) -- A New Brunswick couple who initially thought a burglar had broken into their home discovered the invader was actually a panicked deer. ELIZABETH, N.J. -- Accused family-killer John Emil List, who had always looked to his religious faith for answers, was so overwrought over the discovery that his wife had advanced syphilis. Moreover, his wife was a heavy drinker and she had also contracted Syphilis from her first marriage. John List was born John Emil List, on September 17, 1925, in Bay City, Michigan, to John Frederick List and Alma Barbara Florence List. John List (murderer) and Delores Miller (wife) - Dating, Gossip, News, Photos list. John seemingly grew up without incident, reporting a normal childhood with the exception of his stringently religious upbringing, with which he identified wholeheartedly. He grew up as an only child with strict German parents, he had an overly protective and domineering mother (sort of like Norman Bates). Spouse/Ex-: Delores Miller Clark (m. 19851989), Helen List (m. 19511971), children: Frederick List, John, Jr. While there is no set timetable on when that might happen, Daly said the remains of other prison inmates have been stored for up to roughly three months by the medical examiner's office. [4], After completion of his second tour in 1952, List worked for an accounting firm in Detroit, and then as an audit supervisor at a paper company in Kalamazoo, where his three children were born. Forensic artist Frank Bender uses photographs to sculpt an aged bust of mass murderer John List. He later took a job as the vice president at a bank in New Jersey, where the family finally got settled. John List - History, Crime. His middle son, John Jr. who was also his favorite suffered the most brutal death. By then, he was assigned to the finance corps, from where he was discharged in 1952. He has also appeared on television shows such as Your Worst Nightmare and American Justice. As I was doing it I knew it was wrong," he said. Austin Goodrich, an ABCNEWS consultant who is writing a book with John List, contributed material for this report. He was previously married to Delores Miller and Helen List. [24][25] On June 1, less than two weeks after the broadcast, List was arrested at a Richmond accounting firm after a Denver neighbor recognized the description and alerted authorities. In 1950, John List was recalled to active military service. [30] As the year progressed, the family's financial problems became more strained; List encouraged his children to seek part-time work, ostensibly to teach them maturity and responsibility, but in actuality to help keep the family financially solvent. John List is a revolutionary experimenter whose unique methods and ideas have changed how the field of economics functions. "After 18 years, five months and 22 days, it is now time for the voices of Helen, Alma, Patricia, Frederick and John F. List to rise from the grave." He first shot his wife, then his mother, waited for his children to get home, and murdered them. [14] All reliable photographs of List had been destroyed. However, the marriage was not very good. Interview statement on List's confession to his second wife. He worked hard as an accountant at a nearby bank to provide for his family. Additionally, the financial burden on the family was increasing, causing him severe psychological distress. "I grew up with the idea that you should provide for your family and to do that you had to be a success in the job that you had or you're a failure, and that was not a good thing to be," he said. The episode aired on May 21, 1989 (Opens in a new tab), catching the eye of a neighbor who called the police and warned Clark's second wife, who seemed "stunned." (Opens in a new tab) List was . He earned a bachelors degree in administration and a masters degree in accounting. [1] She was the second wife and widow of businessman John Jacob Astor IV . When authorities entered the Westfield, New Jersey house on December 7, 1971, they heard organ music piped through the intercom system. While his children were at school, he shot his wife Helen, 47, in the back of the head, and then his mother Alma, 84, above the left eye. Helen was first. His father was a devout Lutheran who also taught at a local Sunday School in Bay City. But the jury has also seen evidence that List planned both the killings and his escape so carefully that he had been gone for a month before the crime was discovered. Liss summarized Helen List's medical reports for the jury. Then he sat down and wrote a confession letter to his pastor explaining his financial problems. Helen had turned into an alcoholic, which caused them to engage in a lot of fights. List, Patricia List, place of death: Trenton, New Jersey, United States, education: University Of Michigan, Ann Arbor. The department will use any money remaining in List's account at the prison to pay for all or part of the cremation and burial, according to state regulations. He slept in the mansion where his family lay dead, then walked out the door the next morning and wasnt seen again for 18 years. Wikimedia CommonsJohn List with his wife and three children. List saw the children off to school and then shot her in the kitchen as she sipped her customary morning coffee. Based on information gleaned from dozens of interviews and hundreds of pages of police and FBI documents, Father Wants Us Dead is an in-depth and chilling narrative from two reporters with more than 25 years of combined experience. In a second attempt at love, he was lucky enough to find a business and life partner in Allain, a producer and hairstylist. "[21][22] List was questioned by FBI investigators after his capture, but he denied any involvement in the Cooper case. John Emil List (September 17, 1925 March 21, 2008) was an American mass murderer[1] and long-time fugitive. Unlike the others, John didn't go quietly, his body jerking as List emptied both the 9 millimeter and the .22 into his son. Copyright 2023 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Attorney David Baugh, who represented List in Virginia, offers support.AP Photo/Steve Helber. List, who says he remains deeply religious today, acknowledges that his crimes violated one of the Ten Commandments: "Thou shalt not kill.". YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. However, he was a loner who was not socially active and had very few friends in school and his locality. The bodies of John Lists wife and three teenage children were found laid out on sleeping bags in the ballroom. [32][34] Welfare was an unacceptable option, he reasoned, because it would expose him and his family to ridicule and violate his authoritarian father's teachings regarding the care and protection of family members. I ask all affected by this for their forgiveness, understanding and prayer.