Authorities later revealed that John kept lying to his family about his jobs. In 1965, when List and his family moved to affluent Westfield, N.J., he seemed to be a model of suburban success and propriety. [11], Westfield, where few violent crimes had been recorded since 1963, received national attention as the site of one of the most notorious felonies in New Jersey since the kidnapping and murder of the Lindbergh baby. His zodiac sign is Virgo. He was 82. At sixty-four, John's father was twenty-six years older than Alma, whom he had married one year earlier, after his first wife died of cancer. According to trial testimony, Helen had pressured List into marriage by falsely claiming that she was pregnant, then insisted that they marry in Maryland, which did not require the premarital syphilis test mandated in most other states at the time. Subsequent jobs didnt pan out. Bradford Patricia Colosimo (23 years), director of arts programming Jon Draeger (35 years), associate professor of chemistry Andrea Robbins (40+ years), instructor of chemistry and algebra, Division of Physical and Computational Sciences. There, he eventually became director of accounting services. Oct 9, 2018. Also in 2022, Netflix released a seven-part dramatic fictional miniseries called The Watcher. The Army, realizing List's accounting skills, reassigned him to the Finance Corps. National Park Service: 'Never push a slower friend down' in a bear encounter, March 2 (UPI) -- The National Park Service offered some sage advice for park visitors who encounter bears: "Never push a slower friend down. Because syphilis is not infectious in its later phases, she did not pass it on to John List or her children, although she suffered several miscarriages during her first marriage. March 2 (UPI) -- A Maryland woman scored a $100,000 prize from a scratch-off lottery ticket less than 12 hours after she scored an $11,000 jackpot at a casino. [35] At his sentencing hearing, he denied direct responsibility for his actions: "I feel that because of my mental state at the time, I was unaccountable for what happened. Feb. 20, 2002 -- Thirty years ago, accountant John List methodically murdered his whole family his mother, his wife, and their three children. He told her she went through a slow, agonizing death, the friend said. Their faces were covered. Contents 1 Background 2 Familicide, Capture, and Incarceration 3 Modus Operandi 4 Known Victims 5 Notes 6 On Criminal Minds 7 On Suspect Behavior 8 Sources He says he wanted to spare them the shame of losing their New Jersey mansion and to make sure they got to heaven. Delores Clark, asking reporters to respect my right to my personal privacy during this very dramatic and uncertain time, issued a statement that was copyrighted Friday by the Richmond News Leader. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. That left his oldest son. Jurors deliberated for about . He is most remembered for Murdered his entire family in 1971. So he spent his days at the train station, reading the newspaper and secretly skimming money from his mothers bank accounts to pay the mortgage. On 9 November 1971, John murdered his wife, mother, and three children by shooting them. John List was an American mass murderer, who became infamous in the 1970s for killing his mother, wife and three children. Under Review. John Emil List, a.k.a. Elijah Miller has presented testimony from witnesses, including a Lutheran pastor who knew the Lists in the early 1960s in Rochester, N.Y., to describe the troubled family. She is famous for Second wife of murderer John list. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, K-Pop isnt the only hot ticket in Koreatown how trot is captivating immigrants, Los Angeles is suddenly awash in waterfalls, Officials admit being unprepared for epic mountain blizzard, leaving many trapped and desperate, Desperate mountain residents trapped by snow beg for help; We are coming, sheriff says, Newsom, IRS give Californians until October to file tax returns, Californias snowpack is approaching an all-time record, with more on the way, This is me, this is my face: Actress Mimi Rogers on aging naturally, without cosmetic surgery, Hidden, illegal casinos are booming in L.A., with organized crime reaping big profits, Look up: The 32 most spectacular ceilings in Los Angeles, Elliott: Kings use their heads over hearts in trading Jonathan Quick. He spent his days at the train station reading, napping, and wondering how to get his family out of their financial mess. He is most remembered for Murdered his entire family in 1971. 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. YouTubeThe note John List wrote excusing his children from school. John confessed to committing the murders in February 1990. After light bulbs began burning out one by one, they called the police. When authorities entered the Westfield, New Jersey house on December 7, 1971, they heard organ music piped through the intercom system. When they entered the house, music was still playing on the intercom, but List was long gone. They also found the five-page note from John List explaining that the bloodied bodies on the ballroom floor were his family members, killed out of mercy. 7-year-old baseball umpire seeks Guinness World Record. videos, He was finally apprehended in Virginia on June 1, 1989, after the story of his murders was broadcast on the television program America's Most Wanted. Helen had turned into an alcoholic, which caused them to engage in a lot of fights. Helen and her three children were buried at Fairview Cemetery in Westfield. List and his family were the embodiment of the American dream in 1965. he is the biggest con man who ever walked the Earth, another unidentified friend told the paper. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). During his years on the run, List went by the name Robert Clark. As his daughter Patricia, 16, and younger son Frederick, 13, arrived home from school, List shot each of them in the back of the head. New revelations in the episode include what List said through tears to his shocked and heartsick second wife, who hoped it was all some mistake and her husband was really the man she thought she had married Robert Clark when she visited him in jail. List left the bodies of his wife, his mother, Alma, 84, and his children, Patricia, 16, John, 15, and Frederick, 13, and several confessions and apologies in his Westfield home in November 1971 and disappeared for 17 years. He worked as an accountant, bringing a stable income back to his Victorian mansion; home to himself, his wife, three children and his mother. "I feel when we get to heaven we won't worry about these earthly things. ', Suspected burglar inside New Brunswick home was a panicked deer. "I don't know whether it was only because he was still jerking that I wanted to make sure that he didn't suffer, or that it was sort of a way of relieving tension, after having completed what I felt was my assignment for the day," List said. The new lovers wed on 1 December 1951 in Baltimore, Maryland. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Bank Vice President and Sunday School Teacher. He murdered his mother, wife and three children in November 1971, due to financial distress and other issues within the family, and fled. [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. "I remember talking about funerals and cremation and burials. "[38], Over the years, List and his crimes have furnished inspiration for documentaries, television dramas and feature films. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. to add information, pictures and relationships, join in discussions and get credit for your contributions. 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. All five victims had been shot. Minnesota officer removes jar from raccoon's head. John Sr. drove over to his school and watched him playing in a soccer game. Fast forward 18 years to 1989. They were shot methodically one by one. He was previously married to Delores Miller and Helen List. Moreover, his wife was a heavy drinker and she had also contracted Syphilis from her first marriage. In the afternoon, he killed his children as they came home first his daughter Patty, a budding actress at 16; then his youngest, 13-year-old Frederic; and finally 15-year-old John, his namesake and his favorite. After making the decision, List says, there was no turning back. But back in Denver, his former neighbors did recognize him, and called police. . Expert psychologists believed rather that List was going through a mid-life crisis and as the prosecution pointed out, that was no excuse for killing five innocent people. But his defence was rejected and he was imprisoned at the New Jersey State Prison. It took Johns fingerprints to match with the military records to convince the authorities that he was John List. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The neighbors tipped the police after a month of not seeing anyone entering or leaving the house. John List is a revolutionary experimenter whose unique methods and ideas have changed how the field of economics functions. By then, progression of the disease combined with her excessive alcohol consumption had, according to testimony, "transformed her from an attractive young woman to an unkempt and paranoid recluse"[30][32] who frequently and often publicly humiliated List, comparing his sexual prowess unfavorably with that of her first husband. In 1950, John List was recalled to active military service. A former Denver neighbor alerted the police, who made the arrest later. [13] List also stopped milk, mail, and newspaper deliveries. The family later moved to Rochester, New York, to work with Xerox. He simply exploded.'. First Patty, 16. He feared his family, confronted with a world full of evil and poverty, would turn from God; this was the only way to ensure their safe arrival in heaven. "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. They separated in 1973 and he moved . Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? He murdered his mother, wife and three children in November 1971, due to financial distress and other issues within the family, and fled. Delores kept a low profile after Johns arrest, and it is unclear what happened to her. John List may refer to: John A. That same year, he enlisted in the United States Army and served as a laboratory technician during World War II. If things had gone on who knows if that would be the case," he wrote. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. List saw the children off to school and then shot her in the kitchen as she sipped her customary morning coffee. Details of Delores life before she married John List are unavailable. List caught the tail end of the show with his wife, who did not know his past. When his daughter and youngest son came home, he shot them in the back of the head. "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." Like her sister, Rosanne Cindy inherited her father's musical talent, and by the time she was 16 she was already performing on stage with Johnny and his second wife June Carter. Then, he went to the bank to close his accounts and cash his mother's savings bonds. John and Helen had three daughters when he worked as an audit supervisor at a paper company in Kalamazoo. [16] In reporting his death, the New Jersey Star-Ledger referred to him as "The Boogeyman of Westfield. In a second attempt at love, he was lucky enough to find a business and life partner in Allain, a producer and hairstylist. ", Woman wins $100,000 lottery prize 11 hours after $11,000 casino jackpot. List diverted money from his mother's bank accounts to avoid default on his mortgage. In November 1971, the mass murderer and long-time fugitive killed his wife, mother, and three children at their home in Westfield, New Jersey. We have estimated John A. List's net worth , money, salary, income, and assets. His father-in-law had heard from the county sheriff: After nearly 18 years, List had been caught. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. He also claimed to be suffering from PTSD. Read on to discover more details. At one religious gathering, he met an Army PX clerk named Delores Miller and married her in 1985. Human name disambiguation pages. Born In: Bay City, Michigan, United States. Then he went downstairs, dragged his wife's body into the ballroom and began scrubbing up the blood so the children would not realize what was going on when they got back from school. An aerial view of the List family home in Westfield, New Jersey. List had a masters degree in accounting, but lacked social skills and had a history of losing jobs. Joe Sharkey's DEATH SENTENCE is an account of the life of John Emil List who, in a case that was well known in the 70s, killed his mother, his wife, and their 3 children. 2023. 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. After the June 7, 2021, killings of Maggie . Born in 1925 in a conservative Lutheran family, single child John List was a fairly shy, odd and obsessed with military books child from Michigan. John List - History, Crime. List's death ended a sordid chapter in Westfield's history. When they met, she led a simple life working as an Army PX clerk. This is either the most unbelievable mix-up or . A federal appeals court rejected both arguments. Wikimedia CommonsJohn List with his wife and three children. By then, he was assigned to the finance corps, from where he was discharged in 1952. Officers entered through an unlocked window leading to the basement and discovered the family's bodies. and more from FamousFix.com. He had been fired from all his jobs due to his cold demeanor and his inability to be social with his co-workers. The suspect denied he is List but the FBI said a positive link had been made through fingerprints. The neighbours called the police when Johns daughter Patricias dancing teacher came home to see why Patricia was not coming to the classes. 07, 2022, 8:00 a.m. One night after dinner, he even asked his family what should be done with their bodies after they died. All List wanted was to reunite with his wife, mother, and children in the afterlife, where he believed there would be no pain or suffering. Once inside the kitchen, John Sr. shot him in the back of the head. John List (murderer) (1925-2008), American mass murderer. With his first wife, John Frederick had had a son, William George, who happened to be the same . John enlisted in the United States Army in 1943 and was a laboratory technician during World War II. Soon after his high school graduation, he joined the United States Army during the Second World War, where he worked as a laboratory technician. The 14th and final defense witness was the defendant's brother John . [16], List died of complications from pneumonia aged 82 on March 21, 2008, while imprisoned at St. Francis Medical Center in Trenton, New Jersey. After extradition to New Jersey, he was convicted on five counts of first degree murder and sentenced to five consecutive terms of life imprisonment, making him ineligible for parole for nearly 75 years.[2]. The trail went cold. John List was born on September 17, 1925 in Bay City, Michigan, USA. Pending. After finding an old 9 mm pistol he had bought as a souvenir of World War II, and a .22-caliber target pistol, he purchased new ammunition and went to a shooting range for target practice. John Emil List Birth 17 Sep 1925 Bay City, Bay County, Michigan, USA Death 21 Mar 2008 (aged 82) Trenton, Mercer County, New Jersey, USA Burial Burial Details Unknown. All rights reserved (About Us). "[21][22] List was questioned by FBI investigators after his capture, but he denied any involvement in the Cooper case. He later pursued a masters degree in accounting from the same university and as the Korean War had escalated in 1950, he was recalled by the Army and was commissioned as a second lieutenant, stationed at Fort Eustis in Virginia, where he met his wife Helen. He lived at 431 Hillside Avenue with his wife, Helen Morris Taylor; mother, Alma Barbara Florence List; and two children: daughter Patricia, and sons Frederick and John. List is accused of killing his wife, his three children and his mother in 1971. $1 Million - $5 Million. A seemingly admirable and usual American man, John List and his family lived happily in New Jersey. What did Disney actually lose from its Florida battle with DeSantis? "I wish I had never done what I did," he told Connie Chung in 2002. In 1971, John List lost his job at the bank at age 46. YouTubeThe bodies of John Lists wife and three teenage children were found laid out on sleeping bags in the ballroom. 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. Spouse/Ex-: Delores Miller Clark (m. 19851989), Helen List (m. 19511971), children: Frederick List, John, Jr. [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. [33], A court-appointed psychiatrist testified that List suffered from obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, and that he saw only two solutions to his situation: accept welfare, or kill his family and send their souls to heaven. They got him down in Virginia.. He believed that killing them would assure their souls a place in Heaven, where he hoped to eventually join them. I thought I was being real clever," he said. He later took a job as the vice president at a bank in New Jersey, where the family finally got settled. Im convinced hes just pulling my chain, Gluck recalled. Helen's mother was in fact ill, and had canceled a visit to Westfield because of it; had she made the trip, List later said, she would have been his sixth victim. List died in prison in 2008 at the age of 82. 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]. "[37] When asked why he had not taken his own life, he said he believed that suicide would have prevented him from going to heaven, where he hoped to be reunited with his family. In 1989, Fox network broadcasted a TV show titled Americas Most Wanted, where an episode featured the New Jersey mass murders of John by his family. In 1950, John List was recalled to active military service. Gwyn Conger Steinbeck - Who was She? From New York, he had traveled overland to Denver, where he began a new life under the name Robert P. Clark, working first as a hotel fry cook and later as an accountant for H&R Block. Austin Goodrich, an ABCNEWS consultant who is writing a book with John List, contributed material for this report. The FBI found his car parked at Kennedy International Airport in New York City, but they never found him. He killed them to save their souls so they would go to heaven. But, during a four-hour interview, he sought to explain how worries that financial hardship would split his family and turn them away from their faith forced him to make a tough decision. It took 18 years for John List to be arrested. He later moved to California, and then Detroit, where he worked as an accountant in a local firm. He imposed a sentence of five terms of life imprisonment, to be served consecutively, the maximum permissible penalty at the time. ", John List, famous murder The Crime Library, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_List_(murderer)&oldid=1139169038, American people who died in prison custody, American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment, People extradited within the United States, People with obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by New Jersey, Prisoners who died in New Jersey detention, United States Army personnel of World War II, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 13 February 2023, at 19:09. [17] From 1979 to 1986, he was the comptroller at a paper box manufacturer outside Denver. This disambiguation page lists articles about people with the same name. After making himself lunch, List drove to his bank to close both his and his mother's bank accounts, and then to Westfield High School to watch his elder son John Frederick, 15, play in a soccer game. Then John, 15, after the boy put his bookbag down on a kitchen countertop. [11], Breeze Knoll remained empty until it was destroyed by fire in August 1972, nine months after the murders. And it came from a family member of all people. He couldnt bear to tell his family about the loss of income. He married Helen and raised three children with her, while working as an accountant in many places, such as New York and New Jersey. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Episodes, photos and other information are also available at fatherwantsusdead.com. Afterwards, he dragged his wifes body to the ballroom and made himself lunch and ate it. He described a woman whose brain was deteriorating and who was going blind, who was addicted to tranquilizers and drank four or five glasses of Scotch a day, who remained in bed because she was afraid of falls but who retained enough social skill to act normally in casual relationships. He had planned the murders so meticulously that even after many years of the incident, the police and FBI found no trace of John. He is a quiet yet friendly man who loves his work and the people he works with.. . List assumed a new identity, remarried, and eluded justice for nearly 18 years. He began living with a new identity in Virginia, where he was spotted by a local and got arrested. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. American Criminal John List was born John Emil List on 17th September, 1925 in Bay City, Michigan, USA and passed away on 21st Mar 2008 Trenton, New Jersey, USA aged 82. [7] In 1965, List accepted a position as vice president and comptroller at a bank in Jersey City, New Jersey, and moved with his wife, children, and mother into Breeze Knoll, a 19-room Victorian mansion at 431 Hillside Avenue in Westfield. He placed the bodies of his wife and . Delores Miller (wife) and John List are divorced. The inconspicuous accountant was arrested without incident Thursday at work. Several films and documentaries have been made to cover the details of the List murders. The third wife was Pilar Pallette, with whom he had three more children. John List was on the run when they met in 1985 after having murdered his family members about 14 years before. Simring said List showed "no evidence of anything that approached genuine remorse," adding, "He's a cold, cold man.". Authorities walk John List to a plane in Richmond, Virginia in 1989 before transporting him to New Jersey to stand trial.Steve Helber/AP. By 1971, he was still leaving for work every morning, but unknown to his family he was unemployed and unable to pay the bills. He married Helen and raised three children with her, while working as an accountant in many places, such as New York and New Jersey. . Feb. 20, 2002 -- Thirty years ago, accountant John List methodically murdered his whole family his mother, his wife, and their three children. After learning about the murders committed by John List, check out the story of Dale Cregan, the one-eyed killer. John List Sr., husband, father, son, accountant, devout Lutheran, had announced that they were going on a family trip, had stopped the paper and milk deliveries and then killed his family. However, the marriage was not very good. After gruesomely murdering his entire family, John List had begun living a normal life again. He turned on the lights and the radio, leaving religious hymns playing in the houses empty rooms. In an interview in 2008, parents told a reporter in New Jersey that children will not walk past that property, nor do they even want to live on the same street. Later, John took a lucrative job at Xerox and moved to New York and lived there with his family for a few years. John was convicted of five counts of first-degree murder and five terms of life imprisonment. List methodically murdered his wife Helen, his mother Alma, and their three childrenPatricia, 16; Frederick, 13; and John Jr., 15. Joshua Boucher/The State via AP, Pool. "I approached all of them from behind so they wouldn't realize till the last minute what I was going to do to them," he said. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. . When the children left for school, he shot his wife and his mother to death. YouTubeThe bust created of John List, right, next to the real John List, left. He watched John Jr. play soccer at school, then drove him home and killed him, too. He grew up as an only child with strict German parents, he had an overly protective and domineering mother (sort of like Norman Bates). John List was a devout Lutheran who lived with his wife, mother and three children. "So eventually I got to the point where I felt that I could kill them. [12], In May 1989, the 18-year-old crime was recounted on the Fox television program America's Most Wanted during its first year on the air. John Emil List, 63, was profiled on the TV program "America's Most Wanted" May 21. [28][29], At trial, List testified that his financial difficulties reached crisis level in 1971 when he was laid off with the closure of the Jersey City bank. John fled the house after putting all the bodies on sleeping bags, turning the house lights on and putting on some classical music. He had drained his and his mothers bank accounts and fled, changing his identity. 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. His middle son, John Jr. who was also his favorite suffered the most brutal death. He took a break and made himself lunch. [5] By 1959, List had risen to general supervisor of the company's accounting department; but Helen, an alcoholic, had become increasingly unstable. He was arrested in 1989 after a former neighbor recognized him from a profile on the syndicated TV show America's Most Wanted. Because this is one of the most. March 3 (UPI) -- A sheep spotted wandering loose on a British highway was given a lift back to its owner by a concerned bus driver on her first day on the job. He. [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. Financial troubles combined with his discontentment with his family over many issues caused severe depression to John, who then decided to take a drastic step to end everything once and for all. [42] In 2015, the story was covered in the season 2, episode 2 of the Investigation Discovery TV series Your Worst Nightmare. His father died in 1944. '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. Then he sat down and wrote a confession letter to his pastor explaining his financial problems. The List house burned down several months after the List family bodies were discovered there. 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 . The two met at a Christian religious gathering. He killed his immediate family since he could not pay the mansions mortgage after losing his job and did not want them to face ridicule. [14] All reliable photographs of List had been destroyed. John was arrested and extradited to New Jersey. WhenAmericas Most Wantedaired the story of the John List murders on May 21, 1989, an audience of 22 million saw Frank Benders sculpture. In an effort to baffle the police, he cleaned the crime scenes and used scissors to remove his image from every photo in the mansion. But unlike the other members of the List family who dropped instantly, John Jr. struggled. After the June 7, 2021, killings of Maggie .