Mack Ray Edwards
Encyclopedia
Mack Ray Edwards was an American
serial killer
. He murdered at least six children in Los Angeles County, California
between 1953 and 1970.
. He moved to Los Angeles County in 1941. As a heavy equipment operator
contracted by Caltrans, he worked on freeways
. The body of one of his victims was found underneath the Santa Ana Freeway
, and he claimed to have disposed another of his victims under the Ventura Freeway
.
Edwards killed three children from 1953 to 1956, and three more in 1968 and 1969. In 1970 Edwards and a teenage male accomplice kidnapped three girls from their home in Sylmar. When the girls escaped, Edwards surrendered to police and confessed to molesting and murdering six children.
After three bodies were recovered, Edwards pleaded guilty to three counts of murder and was sentenced to death
.
On 30 October 1971, following two unsuccessful attempts, Edwards was successful in committing suicide
by hanging himself
with a television cord in his cell in San Quentin State Prison
.
Edwards confessed to three additional killings. Because their bodies were not recovered, he was not charged with these murders:
he said the number was only six. The twelve-year interval between the disappearance of Baker and Howell, and the shooting of Rochet, led led investigators to suspect Edwards may have committed similar crimes during that time.
As of March 2007, the Los Angeles Police Department
was investigating the possibility of Edwards' involvement in the disappearance of Thomas Eldon Bowman, 8, of Redondo Beach, California
, who disappeared in Pasadena, California
on 23 March 1957. Author G. Weston DeWalt was researching the Bowman disappearance when he noticed the similarity between a photo of Edwards and a sketch of Bowman's abductor. DeWalt was later shown a letter which Edwards had written to his wife in which he states that he "left out" Thomas Bowman from his confession to police.
Edwards is also considered a suspect in the disappearances of Bruce Kremen of Granada Hills and Karen Lynn Tompkins and Dorothy Gale Brown of Torrance, California
. Kremen, 6, disappeared from a YMCA
camp in Angeles National Forest
on 12 July 1960. Tompkins, 11, disappeared on 18 August 1961. Dorothy Gale Brown, 11, disappeared on 3 July 1962. Her body was recovered from the ocean at Corona del Mar, Newport Beach; she had been molested and drowned.
On 15 June 2011, the Santa Barbara, California
Police Department announced plans to search the area near a Goleta
freeway overpass that was under renovation, looking for the remains of Ramona Price, a 7-year-old girl who disappeared in August 1961. The police did not announce at that time what evidence led them to believe Price's remains may be buried there, but local news reports suggested a possible link to Edwards. On 16 June 2011, local media reported that four teams of cadaver dog
s had alerted on the same "area of interest" at the site, but that a decision had not been made about whether to undertake further excavation. The news reports indicated that comments made by Edwards about other victims, along with the fact that Edwards worked in Goleta at time of Price's disappearance, suggested a link.
which aired 25 November 2008, detective Dutch Wagenbach refers to Edwards while interrogating a teenager who he believes is a young serial killer, making the point that serial killers without a catchy nickname are easily forgotten by the general public.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
. He murdered at least six children in Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states...
between 1953 and 1970.
Biography
Mack Ray Edwards was born in ArkansasArkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
. He moved to Los Angeles County in 1941. As a heavy equipment operator
Heavy equipment operator
A heavy equipment operator drives and operates heavy equipment used in engineering and construction projects.-Operator training:*The International Union of Operating Engineers has equipment schools where apprentice operators are trained....
contracted by Caltrans, he worked on freeways
Controlled-access highway
A controlled-access highway is a highway designed exclusively for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow and ingress/egress regulated...
. The body of one of his victims was found underneath the Santa Ana Freeway
Santa Ana Freeway
The Santa Ana Freeway is one of the principal freeways in Southern California, connecting Los Angeles and its southeastern suburbs including the freeway's namesake, the city of Santa Ana. The freeway begins at the Four Level Interchange in downtown Los Angeles, signed as U.S. Route 101...
, and he claimed to have disposed another of his victims under the Ventura Freeway
Ventura Freeway
The Ventura Freeway is a freeway in southern California running from Ventura to Pasadena. It is the principal east-west route through Ventura County and in the southern San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County. From Ventura to its intersection with the Hollywood Freeway in the southeastern San...
.
Edwards killed three children from 1953 to 1956, and three more in 1968 and 1969. In 1970 Edwards and a teenage male accomplice kidnapped three girls from their home in Sylmar. When the girls escaped, Edwards surrendered to police and confessed to molesting and murdering six children.
After three bodies were recovered, Edwards pleaded guilty to three counts of murder and was sentenced to death
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
.
On 30 October 1971, following two unsuccessful attempts, Edwards was successful in committing suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
by hanging himself
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
with a television cord in his cell in San Quentin State Prison
San Quentin State Prison
San Quentin State Prison is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men in unincorporated San Quentin, Marin County, California, United States. Opened in July 1852, it is the oldest prison in the state. California's only death row for male inmates, the largest...
.
Known victims
Edwards was convicted of murdering three children:- Stella Darlene Nolan, 8, of Compton, CaliforniaCompton, CaliforniaCompton is a city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, southeast of downtown Los Angeles. The city of Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county and on May 11, 1888, was the eighth city to incorporate. The city is considered part of the South side by residents of Los...
, who disappeared 20 June 1953; - Gary Rochet, 16, of Granada Hills, CaliforniaGranada Hills, Los AngelesGranada Hills is a district in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles.It is located just north of the North Hills and Northridge districts, west of the Mission Hills and Sylmar districts, and just east of the Porter Ranch district. It is accessible by the Ronald Reagan , San...
, who was found on 26 November 1968, after having been shot to death; - Donald Allen Todd, 13, of Pacoima, California, who disappeared 16 May 1969.
Edwards confessed to three additional killings. Because their bodies were not recovered, he was not charged with these murders:
- Donald Lee Baker, 15, and Brenda Jo Howell, 12, of Azusa, CaliforniaAzusa, CaliforniaAzusa is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 46,361 at the 2010 census, up from 44,712 at the 2000 census. Though sometimes assumed to be a compaction of the phrase "everything from A to Z in the USA" from an old Jack Benny joke, the place name "Azusa"...
, who disappeared together on 6 August 1956; - Roger Dale Madison, 15, of Sylmar, California, who disappeared on 16 December 1968.
Possible victims
Edwards may have committed other murders, but his own account was inconsistent: while in prison he claimed to have killed 18 children, but in an interview with the Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
he said the number was only six. The twelve-year interval between the disappearance of Baker and Howell, and the shooting of Rochet, led led investigators to suspect Edwards may have committed similar crimes during that time.
As of March 2007, the Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
was investigating the possibility of Edwards' involvement in the disappearance of Thomas Eldon Bowman, 8, of Redondo Beach, California
Redondo Beach, California
Redondo Beach is one of the three Beach Cities located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 66,748 at the 2010 census, up from 63,261 at the 2000 census. The city is located in the South Bay region of the greater Los Angeles area.Redondo Beach was originally part of...
, who disappeared in Pasadena, California
Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
on 23 March 1957. Author G. Weston DeWalt was researching the Bowman disappearance when he noticed the similarity between a photo of Edwards and a sketch of Bowman's abductor. DeWalt was later shown a letter which Edwards had written to his wife in which he states that he "left out" Thomas Bowman from his confession to police.
Edwards is also considered a suspect in the disappearances of Bruce Kremen of Granada Hills and Karen Lynn Tompkins and Dorothy Gale Brown of Torrance, California
Torrance, California
Torrance is a city incorporated in 1921 and located in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. Torrance has of shore-front beaches on the Pacific Ocean, quieter and less well-known by tourists than others on the Santa Monica Bay, such as those of neighboring...
. Kremen, 6, disappeared from a YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
camp in Angeles National Forest
Angeles National Forest
The Angeles National Forest of the U.S. National Forest Service is located in the San Gabriel Mountains of Los Angeles County, southern California. It was established on July 1, 1908, incorporating the first San Bernardino National Forest and parts of the former Santa Barbara and San Gabriel...
on 12 July 1960. Tompkins, 11, disappeared on 18 August 1961. Dorothy Gale Brown, 11, disappeared on 3 July 1962. Her body was recovered from the ocean at Corona del Mar, Newport Beach; she had been molested and drowned.
On 15 June 2011, the Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
Police Department announced plans to search the area near a Goleta
Goleta, California
Goleta is a city in southern Santa Barbara County, California, USA. It was incorporated as a city in 2002, after a long period as the largest unincorporated, populated area in the county. As of the 2000 census, the Census-designated place had a total population of 55,204, however, a significant...
freeway overpass that was under renovation, looking for the remains of Ramona Price, a 7-year-old girl who disappeared in August 1961. The police did not announce at that time what evidence led them to believe Price's remains may be buried there, but local news reports suggested a possible link to Edwards. On 16 June 2011, local media reported that four teams of cadaver dog
Cadaver dog
Cadaver dog refers to a dog trained to detect dead humans.*Police dogs*Search and rescue dogs...
s had alerted on the same "area of interest" at the site, but that a decision had not been made about whether to undertake further excavation. The news reports indicated that comments made by Edwards about other victims, along with the fact that Edwards worked in Goleta at time of Price's disappearance, suggested a link.
Cultural References
In the final episode of television police drama The ShieldThe Shield
The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons...
which aired 25 November 2008, detective Dutch Wagenbach refers to Edwards while interrogating a teenager who he believes is a young serial killer, making the point that serial killers without a catchy nickname are easily forgotten by the general public.