South Dakota is known for beautiful scenery and, typically, for being a very safe place to live. While our state is considered much safer than most of the nation, we have had our fair share of homicides. Do you remember any or all of these famous murders in South Dakota? Tell us your thoughts in the comments.
- Robert LeRoy Anderson
David~O / Flickr In the summer of 1996, Robert LeRoy Anderson appeared at the door of the Streyle family, pretending to be interested in sending his kids to the bible camp the family ran. A few days later, Piper Streyle was abducted from her home. Though her body was never found, Anderson was convicted of the rape and murder of Streyle. He was also found guilty of the murder of Larisa Dumansky. After being sentenced to the death penalty, Anderson committed suicide in prison in 2003.
- Josh Gilchrist
Søren Niedziella / Flickr At the age of 16, Josh Gilchrist used a sword to murder his mother, Betty, in Huron, South Dakota. He then attempted to go after his sister and a foreign exchange student. When police officers arrived, Josh swung at an officer and cut him multiple times before police ended the scene by shooting him.
- Elijah Page
lamoix / Flickr Elijah Page, assisted by two accomplices, was charged with the murder of Chester Poage. The three men abducted and tortured Poage for three hours before murdering him. Although Elijah eventually admitted his guilt and pleaded guilty, he was nevertheless sentenced to death.
- William Raymond Nesbit
Sean MacEntee / Flickr William Nesbit, a well-known jewel thief, murdered his partner, Harold Baker, back in 1936 in a gun powder explosion. He was sentenced to life in prison (later commuted to 20 years) and became a trusted inmate. He was allowed to leave prison grounds to drive the warden around and perform errands. One day, he simply didn’t return from an errand. After being added to the FBI’s very first Ten Most Wanted List, Nesbit was arrested and promptly returned to prison.
- Eric Robert
Emergency Vehicles / Flickr This case is especially memorable because the homicide did not take place until after Eric Robert was already in prison. In 2005, Robert posed as a police officer, pulled a young woman over and bound her in his trunk. The woman got away unharmed but Robert was sentenced to 80 years in prison. It was in his escape attempt that he killed 62 year old Ronald Johnson, a corrections officer. Robert committed the murder using a lead pipe; he was sentenced to death for his crimes.
These shocking homicides are ones we can never forget. What other homicides in South Dakota will you remember forever? Why? Tell us your thoughts in the comments!
David~O / Flickr
In the summer of 1996, Robert LeRoy Anderson appeared at the door of the Streyle family, pretending to be interested in sending his kids to the bible camp the family ran. A few days later, Piper Streyle was abducted from her home. Though her body was never found, Anderson was convicted of the rape and murder of Streyle. He was also found guilty of the murder of Larisa Dumansky. After being sentenced to the death penalty, Anderson committed suicide in prison in 2003.
Søren Niedziella / Flickr
At the age of 16, Josh Gilchrist used a sword to murder his mother, Betty, in Huron, South Dakota. He then attempted to go after his sister and a foreign exchange student. When police officers arrived, Josh swung at an officer and cut him multiple times before police ended the scene by shooting him.
lamoix / Flickr
Elijah Page, assisted by two accomplices, was charged with the murder of Chester Poage. The three men abducted and tortured Poage for three hours before murdering him. Although Elijah eventually admitted his guilt and pleaded guilty, he was nevertheless sentenced to death.
Sean MacEntee / Flickr
William Nesbit, a well-known jewel thief, murdered his partner, Harold Baker, back in 1936 in a gun powder explosion. He was sentenced to life in prison (later commuted to 20 years) and became a trusted inmate. He was allowed to leave prison grounds to drive the warden around and perform errands. One day, he simply didn’t return from an errand. After being added to the FBI’s very first Ten Most Wanted List, Nesbit was arrested and promptly returned to prison.
Emergency Vehicles / Flickr
This case is especially memorable because the homicide did not take place until after Eric Robert was already in prison. In 2005, Robert posed as a police officer, pulled a young woman over and bound her in his trunk. The woman got away unharmed but Robert was sentenced to 80 years in prison. It was in his escape attempt that he killed 62 year old Ronald Johnson, a corrections officer. Robert committed the murder using a lead pipe; he was sentenced to death for his crimes.
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Address: South Dakota, USA
The OIYS Visitor Center
Famous Murders in South Dakota June 02, 2022 Tori Jane Where can I find a list of murders in South Dakota? As morbid as it might seem, it’s fairly easy to obtain a “list” - more like statistics – on murder rates for each state, including South Dakota. Some of the best sources for finding a list of murders in South Dakota include the CDC website itself (the homicide rate in South Dakota is 3.6 per 100,000 residents), interesting websites like World Population Review, and even through state police. When it comes to homicide in South Dakota, the state ranks as 20th lowest, which makes it above-average in terms of safety. What are some of the most notorious South Dakota murders? South Dakota might be kind of a quiet, lesser-visited state, but unfortunately, it’s not without its notorious crimes – including murder. Some of the most notorious South Dakota murders include those of William Kunnecke, a known killer and suspect serial murderer whose crimes were so horrific he was known as “the Human Monster,” and the Mathis Family murders of 1981 in which an entire family – except for the father, of course, who remains the only suspect despite being acquitted of the crimes in court – was wiped out in one night. There is no shortage of scary true crime stories in South Dakota, even though it’s a low-key little place. Have any murders in South Dakota made national news? Many! There are, of course, the above-mentioned Mathis family murders, and the murders of William Kunnecke, but what about others? Unfortunately, there are others. On June 26th, 1975, two young FBI agents - Jack Coler and Ronald Williams – were murdered in cold blood on the Pine Ridge Indiana Reservation in southwestern South Dakota. Their vehicle was found to have been shot no less than 125 times, and both men were discovered deceased inside. In 1977, a man named Leonard Peltier was charged with the killings; he was found guilty and has been denied new hearings on the matter.
The OIYS Visitor Center
Famous Murders in South Dakota
June 02, 2022
Tori Jane
Where can I find a list of murders in South Dakota? As morbid as it might seem, it’s fairly easy to obtain a “list” - more like statistics – on murder rates for each state, including South Dakota. Some of the best sources for finding a list of murders in South Dakota include the CDC website itself (the homicide rate in South Dakota is 3.6 per 100,000 residents), interesting websites like World Population Review, and even through state police. When it comes to homicide in South Dakota, the state ranks as 20th lowest, which makes it above-average in terms of safety. What are some of the most notorious South Dakota murders? South Dakota might be kind of a quiet, lesser-visited state, but unfortunately, it’s not without its notorious crimes – including murder. Some of the most notorious South Dakota murders include those of William Kunnecke, a known killer and suspect serial murderer whose crimes were so horrific he was known as “the Human Monster,” and the Mathis Family murders of 1981 in which an entire family – except for the father, of course, who remains the only suspect despite being acquitted of the crimes in court – was wiped out in one night. There is no shortage of scary true crime stories in South Dakota, even though it’s a low-key little place. Have any murders in South Dakota made national news? Many! There are, of course, the above-mentioned Mathis family murders, and the murders of William Kunnecke, but what about others? Unfortunately, there are others. On June 26th, 1975, two young FBI agents - Jack Coler and Ronald Williams – were murdered in cold blood on the Pine Ridge Indiana Reservation in southwestern South Dakota. Their vehicle was found to have been shot no less than 125 times, and both men were discovered deceased inside. In 1977, a man named Leonard Peltier was charged with the killings; he was found guilty and has been denied new hearings on the matter.
The OIYS Visitor Center
The OIYS Visitor Center
As morbid as it might seem, it’s fairly easy to obtain a “list” - more like statistics – on murder rates for each state, including South Dakota. Some of the best sources for finding a list of murders in South Dakota include the CDC website itself (the homicide rate in South Dakota is 3.6 per 100,000 residents), interesting websites like World Population Review, and even through state police. When it comes to homicide in South Dakota, the state ranks as 20th lowest, which makes it above-average in terms of safety.
What are some of the most notorious South Dakota murders?
South Dakota might be kind of a quiet, lesser-visited state, but unfortunately, it’s not without its notorious crimes – including murder. Some of the most notorious South Dakota murders include those of William Kunnecke, a known killer and suspect serial murderer whose crimes were so horrific he was known as “the Human Monster,” and the Mathis Family murders of 1981 in which an entire family – except for the father, of course, who remains the only suspect despite being acquitted of the crimes in court – was wiped out in one night. There is no shortage of scary true crime stories in South Dakota, even though it’s a low-key little place.
Have any murders in South Dakota made national news?
Many! There are, of course, the above-mentioned Mathis family murders, and the murders of William Kunnecke, but what about others? Unfortunately, there are others. On June 26th, 1975, two young FBI agents - Jack Coler and Ronald Williams – were murdered in cold blood on the Pine Ridge Indiana Reservation in southwestern South Dakota. Their vehicle was found to have been shot no less than 125 times, and both men were discovered deceased inside. In 1977, a man named Leonard Peltier was charged with the killings; he was found guilty and has been denied new hearings on the matter.
