Earle Nelson
Encyclopedia
Earle Leonard Nelson aka The Gorilla Killer (May 12, 1897 - January 13, 1928) was an American
serial killer
.
Nelson's childhood was a difficult one. His mother and father both died of syphilis
before Nelson turned two. He was subsequently sent to be raised by his maternal grandmother, a devout Pentecostal
. Around the age of 10, Nelson collided with a streetcar while riding his bicycle and remained unconscious for six days following the accident. After he awoke, his behavior became erratic and he suffered from frequent headaches and memory loss
. When Nelson was 14, his grandmother died and Nelson went to live with his aunt, Lillian, and her husband.
Nelson began his criminal behavior early, and he was sentenced to two years in San Quentin State Prison
in 1915 after breaking into a cabin he believed to be abandoned. Later, he was committed to the Napa State Mental Hospital after behaving oddly and erratically during his short stint in the United States Navy
. He managed to escape three times from the hospital before hospital staff stopped trying to find him.
Nelson began engaging in sex crimes when he was 21 years old. In 1921, Nelson attempted to molest a 12-year-old girl named Mary Summers but he was thwarted when she screamed and brought attention to Nelson. He was committed once again to the Napa State Mental Hospital. After several escapes and attempted escapes, Nelson was released from the Napa mental institution in 1925 and started on his killing spree early in 1926. He killed his first victim, Clara Newman on February 20, 1926, and two weeks later, he claimed his second victim, Laura Beal.
Nelson's victims were mostly landladies
, whom he would approach on the premise of renting a room. Nelson often studied his worn Bible
, using it to keep his victim at ease and off-guard around him. Once he gained their trust, he would kill them, almost always by strangling them, and engage in necrophilia
with their corpse. He would often hide the body, leaving the corpse under the nearest bed. Nelson stashed the body of 14-year-old Lola Cowan under his bed in a rooming house, luring her to his room on the pretense of buying flowers from her.
By using false names and moving on quickly after he committed the murders, Nelson avoided capture for eighteen months. Nelson claimed victims in several West Coast
cities (including San Francisco, San Jose
, and Portland, Oregon
), throughout the upper Midwest, and finally in Canada
. Police were hampered in their efforts by the fact that serial murder was a relatively unknown crime. They were also slowed down by a number of mistaken arrests. Four days after the murder of Laura Beal in San Jose on March 2, 1926, police arrested an Austria
n national named Joe Kesesek because he was "acting suspiciously" and wore similar clothes to those worn by the killer. Stephen Nisbet was held in jail for two days after the murder of his wife Mary. Two days after the murder of Isabel Gallegos on August 19, 1926, a Russian immigrant named John Slivkoff was arrested but later released.
Nelson was arrested twice in Canada, where his murder spree ended. He was first arrested on June 15, 1927 in Wakopa, Manitoba
, not long after murdering two women in Canada: 14-year-old Lola Cowan, found decomposing in a room Nelson had rented, and housewife Emily Patterson, who was found by her husband underneath the bed. Nelson was incarcerated at the local jail after giving police the alias Virgil Wilson. He escaped that evening from the jail in Wakopa. However, Nelson made the mistake of trying to catch the same train that was transporting members of the Winnipeg police, and was recaptured and arrested again the next morning by an officer from the Crystal City, Manitoba
police department.
His trial began on November 1, 1927 in Courtroom Number One of the Manitoba Law Courts Building. Though Nelson's lawyer James Herbert Stitt
attempted to portray Nelson as mentally ill and therefore not responsible for his crimes, the jury found Nelson guilty of the Winnipeg slaying of Emily Patterson, found strangled underneath her own bed by her husband who had knelt by the bed to pray for her safe return after finding her missing on the afternoon of June 9. Patterson had been Nelson's fifth victim in just 10 days.
Nelson was hanged at the Vaughan Street Jail, Winnipeg
at 7:30 am on January 13, 1928.
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...
.
Nelson's childhood was a difficult one. His mother and father both died of syphilis
Syphilis
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The primary route of transmission is through sexual contact; however, it may also be transmitted from mother to fetus during pregnancy or at birth, resulting in congenital syphilis...
before Nelson turned two. He was subsequently sent to be raised by his maternal grandmother, a devout Pentecostal
Pentecostalism
Pentecostalism is a diverse and complex movement within Christianity that places special emphasis on a direct personal experience of God through the baptism in the Holy Spirit, has an eschatological focus, and is an experiential religion. The term Pentecostal is derived from Pentecost, the Greek...
. Around the age of 10, Nelson collided with a streetcar while riding his bicycle and remained unconscious for six days following the accident. After he awoke, his behavior became erratic and he suffered from frequent headaches and memory loss
Memory loss
Memory loss can be partial or total and it is normal when it comes with aging. Sudden memory loss is usually a result of brain trauma and it may be permanent or temporary. When it is caused by medical conditions such as Alzheimers, the memory loss is gradual and tends to be permanent.Brain trauma...
. When Nelson was 14, his grandmother died and Nelson went to live with his aunt, Lillian, and her husband.
Nelson began his criminal behavior early, and he was sentenced to two years 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...
in 1915 after breaking into a cabin he believed to be abandoned. Later, he was committed to the Napa State Mental Hospital after behaving oddly and erratically during his short stint in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
. He managed to escape three times from the hospital before hospital staff stopped trying to find him.
Nelson began engaging in sex crimes when he was 21 years old. In 1921, Nelson attempted to molest a 12-year-old girl named Mary Summers but he was thwarted when she screamed and brought attention to Nelson. He was committed once again to the Napa State Mental Hospital. After several escapes and attempted escapes, Nelson was released from the Napa mental institution in 1925 and started on his killing spree early in 1926. He killed his first victim, Clara Newman on February 20, 1926, and two weeks later, he claimed his second victim, Laura Beal.
Nelson's victims were mostly landladies
Landlord
A landlord is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called a tenant . When a juristic person is in this position, the term landlord is used. Other terms include lessor and owner...
, whom he would approach on the premise of renting a room. Nelson often studied his worn Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
, using it to keep his victim at ease and off-guard around him. Once he gained their trust, he would kill them, almost always by strangling them, and engage in necrophilia
Necrophilia
Necrophilia, also called thanatophilia or necrolagnia, is the sexual attraction to corpses,It is classified as a paraphilia by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association. The word is artificially derived from the ancient Greek words: νεκρός and φιλία...
with their corpse. He would often hide the body, leaving the corpse under the nearest bed. Nelson stashed the body of 14-year-old Lola Cowan under his bed in a rooming house, luring her to his room on the pretense of buying flowers from her.
By using false names and moving on quickly after he committed the murders, Nelson avoided capture for eighteen months. Nelson claimed victims in several West Coast
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
cities (including San Francisco, San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
, and Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
), throughout the upper Midwest, and finally in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Police were hampered in their efforts by the fact that serial murder was a relatively unknown crime. They were also slowed down by a number of mistaken arrests. Four days after the murder of Laura Beal in San Jose on March 2, 1926, police arrested an Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n national named Joe Kesesek because he was "acting suspiciously" and wore similar clothes to those worn by the killer. Stephen Nisbet was held in jail for two days after the murder of his wife Mary. Two days after the murder of Isabel Gallegos on August 19, 1926, a Russian immigrant named John Slivkoff was arrested but later released.
Nelson was arrested twice in Canada, where his murder spree ended. He was first arrested on June 15, 1927 in Wakopa, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, not long after murdering two women in Canada: 14-year-old Lola Cowan, found decomposing in a room Nelson had rented, and housewife Emily Patterson, who was found by her husband underneath the bed. Nelson was incarcerated at the local jail after giving police the alias Virgil Wilson. He escaped that evening from the jail in Wakopa. However, Nelson made the mistake of trying to catch the same train that was transporting members of the Winnipeg police, and was recaptured and arrested again the next morning by an officer from the Crystal City, Manitoba
Crystal City, Manitoba
Crystal City is a village in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It is located on Highway 3, 16 kilometres north of the Canada-U.S. border border and 200 kilometres southwest of Winnipeg. The village is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Louise....
police department.
His trial began on November 1, 1927 in Courtroom Number One of the Manitoba Law Courts Building. Though Nelson's lawyer James Herbert Stitt
James Herbert Stitt
James Herbert Stitt was a Canadian politician and lawyer.Stitt was born in Picton, Ontario and was educated at Queen's University and the University of Manitoba Law School...
attempted to portray Nelson as mentally ill and therefore not responsible for his crimes, the jury found Nelson guilty of the Winnipeg slaying of Emily Patterson, found strangled underneath her own bed by her husband who had knelt by the bed to pray for her safe return after finding her missing on the afternoon of June 9. Patterson had been Nelson's fifth victim in just 10 days.
Nelson was hanged at the Vaughan Street Jail, Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
at 7:30 am on January 13, 1928.