Michael J. Devlin
Encyclopedia
Michael John Devlin is an American
criminal convicted of kidnapping
and child sexual abuse
. He is currently serving three life sentences
at Crossroads Correctional Center in Cameron, Missouri.
into a large family, where he had three brothers (also adopted) and two sisters. He grew up in Webster Groves, Missouri
. His parents and siblings all live in Missouri
.
and as a part-time funeral home
worker at Bopp Chapel in Kirkwood, Missouri
. He was living in Kirkwood at the time of his arrest.
According to a friend, Devlin had once been outgoing. He had changed "to a much quieter person" after he developed diabetes and had two toes amputated in 2002.
. No one had heard from him until he was discovered in Devlin's apartment.
The children were discovered after police noticed Devlin's white pickup truck, which matched the description of a vehicle in the vicinity of the 2007 abduction, in the parking lot of his apartment complex. They happened to be there to serve an unrelated arrest warrant
. Hornbeck lived with Devlin, who presented the boy as his son. He was separated from his family for a total of four years, three months and six days, and during that time the Shawn Hornbeck Foundation
and Search and Rescue Team were established. Both boys were reunited with their families after their discovery.
Soon after Devlin's arrest, prosecutors and investigators from Washington, Franklin, St. Louis
and Lincoln
counties, along with the FBI, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, and Kirkwood and St. Charles police, formed a task force to investigate Devlin's possible involvement in other unsolved cases.
in Franklin County, Missouri
, as well as one count of kidnapping and armed criminal action in Washington County
. On January 18, 2007, Devlin pleaded not guilty via closed circuit television on the charges of child kidnapping. Prosecutors in the case said Devlin already confessed. He was held at the Franklin County Sheriff's Department on a $US1 million cash-only bail
. He also has a $US3 million bond in Washington County
. In a January 2007 interview with The New York Post, Devlin was quoted as saying "I don't know how I'm going to explain myself to my parents." During the same interview he claimed to have been happy while Hornbeck lived with him, and lonely prior to that, since most of his friends had gotten married and disappeared.
On February 5, St. Louis County
Prosecutor Robert McCulloch added 71 new felony
charges to the existing charges previously filed by Washington and Franklin County
Prosecutors. The first 18 counts (one count of kidnapping and 17 counts of forcible sodomy
) pertain to the 2007 abduction. The remaining 53 charges are kidnapping and forcible sodomy charges related to the 2002 abduction. Each of these individual counts is a felony and carries the possibility of life in prison.
On February 6, a motion by Devlin's attorneys, Ethan Corlija and Michael Kielty, for a gag order
against the New York Post
and reporter Susannah Cahalan was denied in Franklin County Court. Franklin County Associate Circuit Judge David Tobben also denied a motion for her to turn over her notes to the attorneys, and denied or refused to immediately hear two other requests by Devlin's attorneys.
On February 28, a felony
indictment
in Franklin County charged Devlin with one count of child kidnapping and one count of armed criminal action for allegedly using a deadly weapon in kidnapping Ownby. This grand jury
indictment
replaces the previous Franklin County kidnapping charge against Devlin and adds the weapon charge.
On March 1, Devlin was charged in federal court
with four counts of producing child pornography
and with two counts of transporting a minor across state lines to engage in sexual activity in both Arizona
and Illinois
. According to prosecutors, all six counts relate to the kidnapping of the older child.
On April 16, Washington County
prosecutor John Rupp filed additional charges against Devlin, accusing him of attempted murder
, kidnapping, armed criminal action, three counts of forcible sodomy and one count of attempted forcible sodomy.
On October 8, Devlin pleaded guilty to the charges against him in Franklin County
. During that court appearance, he was sentenced to life in prison for child kidnapping and to a shorter, concurrent sentence for armed criminal action. He appeared in the three other jurisdictions in which he has been charged in the Ownby, Hornbeck and child pornography cases, on October 9 and 10.
On the morning of October 9, Devlin pleaded guilty to charges against him in Washington County. During that court appearance, he was sentenced to three life sentences for kidnapping and other crimes against Shawn Hornbeck. The sentences are to begin after he has served the life sentence imposed on October 8 for kidnapping Ben Ownby.
On December 21, Devlin was sentenced to an additional 170 years for making pornography of one of the boys while in captivity. Devlin was transferred to the Crossroads Correctional Center in Cameron, Missouri
, to begin serving the first of his life sentences on January 30, 2008.
, Troy L. Fenton, who is serving a life sentence for robbery and the shooting of a police officer. Prison guards spotted the assault and ordered Fenton to stop. He complied by dropping to the ground on his stomach. Devlin received several wounds and was briefly treated in a hospital. He has since returned to the prison.
According to prison officials, Fenton had made the "ice picks" from metal guide bars on his typewriter. He also was cited for having a 15-inch sharpened steel rod, complete with a plastic handle, hidden under his pillow in his cell. Fenton said he was motivated to attack out of anger at Devlin's crimes. Investigation of the assault is ongoing and Fenton may face charges of the attack.
Devlin's security has been a concern for state prison officials since his arrest. Officials contemplated sending him out of state or providing him with a new identity. However, some victims' family members objected to the move, and the plan was dropped.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
criminal convicted of kidnapping
Kidnapping
In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...
and child sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include asking or pressuring a child to engage in sexual activities , indecent exposure with intent to gratify their own sexual desires or to...
. He is currently serving three life sentences
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
at Crossroads Correctional Center in Cameron, Missouri.
Early life
As a child, Devlin was adoptedAdoption
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
into a large family, where he had three brothers (also adopted) and two sisters. He grew up in Webster Groves, Missouri
Webster Groves, Missouri
Webster Groves is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 22,995 at the 2010 census. The city is named after New England politician Daniel Webster....
. His parents and siblings all live in Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
.
Career
Before his arrest, Devlin worked as a manager for Imo's PizzaImo's Pizza
Imo's Pizza is a U.S. chain of pizza restaurants based in the greater St. Louis, Missouri area. It is headquartered in unincorporated St. Louis County....
and as a part-time funeral home
Funeral home
A funeral home, funeral parlor or mortuary, is a business that provides burial and funeral services for the deceased and their families. These services may include aprepared wake and funeral, and the provision of a chapel for the funeral....
worker at Bopp Chapel in Kirkwood, Missouri
Kirkwood, Missouri
Kirkwood is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,540. Founded in 1853, the city is named for James Pugh Kirkwood, builder of the Pacific Railroad through that town. It was the first planned suburb located west...
. He was living in Kirkwood at the time of his arrest.
According to a friend, Devlin had once been outgoing. He had changed "to a much quieter person" after he developed diabetes and had two toes amputated in 2002.
Crimes
On January 12, 2007, Devlin was taken into custody and charged with the abduction four days earlier of 13-year-old William Benjamin "Ben" Ownby, whom police found that day. At the time of his discovery, law enforcement officials found another missing teenage boy, Shawn Hornbeck. He had disappeared on October 6, 2002, at age 11 while riding his bike to a friend's house in Richwoods, MissouriRichwoods, Missouri
Richwoods is an unincorporated community in northern Washington County, Missouri, United States founded in 1830. It is located just off Route 47 about fifteen miles west of De Soto and nineteen miles south of St. Clair.- 911 :...
. No one had heard from him until he was discovered in Devlin's apartment.
The children were discovered after police noticed Devlin's white pickup truck, which matched the description of a vehicle in the vicinity of the 2007 abduction, in the parking lot of his apartment complex. They happened to be there to serve an unrelated arrest warrant
Arrest warrant
An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by and on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual.-Canada:Arrest warrants are issued by a judge or justice of the peace under the Criminal Code of Canada....
. Hornbeck lived with Devlin, who presented the boy as his son. He was separated from his family for a total of four years, three months and six days, and during that time the Shawn Hornbeck Foundation
Shawn Hornbeck Foundation
The ' is a non-profit charitable organization based in Richwoods, Missouri, devoted to the search for and rescue of abducted children. It runs the Search and Rescue Team....
and Search and Rescue Team were established. Both boys were reunited with their families after their discovery.
Soon after Devlin's arrest, prosecutors and investigators from Washington, Franklin, St. Louis
St. Louis County, Missouri
St. Louis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri. Its county seat is Clayton. St. Louis County is part of the St. Louis Metro Area wherein the independent City of St. Louis and its suburbs in St. Louis County, as well as the surrounding counties in both Missouri and Illinois all...
and Lincoln
Lincoln County, Missouri
As of the census of 2000, there were 38,944 people, 13,851 households, and 10,554 families residing in the county. The population density was 62 people per square mile . There were 15,511 housing units at an average density of 25 per square mile...
counties, along with the FBI, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, and Kirkwood and St. Charles police, formed a task force to investigate Devlin's possible involvement in other unsolved cases.
Prosecution
Michael Devlin, who had no criminal record at the time, was charged with one count of kidnappingKidnapping
In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...
in Franklin County, Missouri
Franklin County, Missouri
Franklin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri on the south side of the Missouri River. Franklin County is part of the St. Louis Metro Area and contains many of the St. Louis exurbs. Census 2010 put the population at 101,492; making it the 10th most populous county in Missouri....
, as well as one count of kidnapping and armed criminal action in Washington County
Washington County, Missouri
Washington County is a county located in East Central Missouri in the United States. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the county's population was 25,195. The largest city and county seat is Potosi...
. On January 18, 2007, Devlin pleaded not guilty via closed circuit television on the charges of child kidnapping. Prosecutors in the case said Devlin already confessed. He was held at the Franklin County Sheriff's Department on a $US1 million cash-only bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
. He also has a $US3 million bond in Washington County
Washington County, Missouri
Washington County is a county located in East Central Missouri in the United States. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the county's population was 25,195. The largest city and county seat is Potosi...
. In a January 2007 interview with The New York Post, Devlin was quoted as saying "I don't know how I'm going to explain myself to my parents." During the same interview he claimed to have been happy while Hornbeck lived with him, and lonely prior to that, since most of his friends had gotten married and disappeared.
On February 5, St. Louis County
St. Louis County, Missouri
St. Louis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri. Its county seat is Clayton. St. Louis County is part of the St. Louis Metro Area wherein the independent City of St. Louis and its suburbs in St. Louis County, as well as the surrounding counties in both Missouri and Illinois all...
Prosecutor Robert McCulloch added 71 new felony
Felony
A felony is a serious crime in the common law countries. The term originates from English common law where felonies were originally crimes which involved the confiscation of a convicted person's land and goods; other crimes were called misdemeanors...
charges to the existing charges previously filed by Washington and Franklin County
Franklin County, Missouri
Franklin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri on the south side of the Missouri River. Franklin County is part of the St. Louis Metro Area and contains many of the St. Louis exurbs. Census 2010 put the population at 101,492; making it the 10th most populous county in Missouri....
Prosecutors. The first 18 counts (one count of kidnapping and 17 counts of forcible sodomy
Sodomy
Sodomy is an anal or other copulation-like act, especially between male persons or between a man and animal, and one who practices sodomy is a "sodomite"...
) pertain to the 2007 abduction. The remaining 53 charges are kidnapping and forcible sodomy charges related to the 2002 abduction. Each of these individual counts is a felony and carries the possibility of life in prison.
On February 6, a motion by Devlin's attorneys, Ethan Corlija and Michael Kielty, for a gag order
Gag order
A gag order is an order, sometimes a legal order by a court or government, other times a private order by an employer or other institution, restricting information or comment from being made public.Gag orders are often used against participants involved in a lawsuit or criminal trial...
against the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
and reporter Susannah Cahalan was denied in Franklin County Court. Franklin County Associate Circuit Judge David Tobben also denied a motion for her to turn over her notes to the attorneys, and denied or refused to immediately hear two other requests by Devlin's attorneys.
On February 28, a felony
Felony
A felony is a serious crime in the common law countries. The term originates from English common law where felonies were originally crimes which involved the confiscation of a convicted person's land and goods; other crimes were called misdemeanors...
indictment
Indictment
An indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
in Franklin County charged Devlin with one count of child kidnapping and one count of armed criminal action for allegedly using a deadly weapon in kidnapping Ownby. This grand jury
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
indictment
Indictment
An indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
replaces the previous Franklin County kidnapping charge against Devlin and adds the weapon charge.
On March 1, Devlin was charged in federal court
United States district court
The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with each United States...
with four counts of producing child pornography
Child pornography
Child pornography refers to images or films and, in some cases, writings depicting sexually explicit activities involving a child...
and with two counts of transporting a minor across state lines to engage in sexual activity in both Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
and Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. According to prosecutors, all six counts relate to the kidnapping of the older child.
On April 16, Washington County
Washington County, Missouri
Washington County is a county located in East Central Missouri in the United States. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the county's population was 25,195. The largest city and county seat is Potosi...
prosecutor John Rupp filed additional charges against Devlin, accusing him of attempted murder
Attempted murder
Attempted murder is a crime in England and Wales and Northern Ireland.-Today:In English criminal law, attempted murder is the crime of more than merely preparing to commit unlawful killing and at the same time having a specific intention to cause the death of human being under the Queen's Peace...
, kidnapping, armed criminal action, three counts of forcible sodomy and one count of attempted forcible sodomy.
Convictions
On October 6, prosecutors announced that Devlin would plead guilty to all charges against him in all four jurisdictions.On October 8, Devlin pleaded guilty to the charges against him in Franklin County
Franklin County, Missouri
Franklin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri on the south side of the Missouri River. Franklin County is part of the St. Louis Metro Area and contains many of the St. Louis exurbs. Census 2010 put the population at 101,492; making it the 10th most populous county in Missouri....
. During that court appearance, he was sentenced to life in prison for child kidnapping and to a shorter, concurrent sentence for armed criminal action. He appeared in the three other jurisdictions in which he has been charged in the Ownby, Hornbeck and child pornography cases, on October 9 and 10.
On the morning of October 9, Devlin pleaded guilty to charges against him in Washington County. During that court appearance, he was sentenced to three life sentences for kidnapping and other crimes against Shawn Hornbeck. The sentences are to begin after he has served the life sentence imposed on October 8 for kidnapping Ben Ownby.
On December 21, Devlin was sentenced to an additional 170 years for making pornography of one of the boys while in captivity. Devlin was transferred to the Crossroads Correctional Center in Cameron, Missouri
Cameron, Missouri
Cameron is a city in Clinton and DeKalb Counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. The population was 8,312 at the 2000 census.The Clinton County portion of Cameron is part of the Kansas City, MO–KS Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the DeKalb County portion is part of the St...
, to begin serving the first of his life sentences on January 30, 2008.
Incarceration
On April 9, 2011, during breakfast at the dining hall of Crossroads Correctional Center, Devlin was stabbed several times with two "ice picks" by another inmate in protective custodyProtective custody
Protective custody is a type of imprisonment to protect a prisoner from harm, either from outside sources or other prisoners. Many administrators believe the level of violence, or the underlying threat of violence within prisoners, is a chief factor causing the need for PC units...
, Troy L. Fenton, who is serving a life sentence for robbery and the shooting of a police officer. Prison guards spotted the assault and ordered Fenton to stop. He complied by dropping to the ground on his stomach. Devlin received several wounds and was briefly treated in a hospital. He has since returned to the prison.
According to prison officials, Fenton had made the "ice picks" from metal guide bars on his typewriter. He also was cited for having a 15-inch sharpened steel rod, complete with a plastic handle, hidden under his pillow in his cell. Fenton said he was motivated to attack out of anger at Devlin's crimes. Investigation of the assault is ongoing and Fenton may face charges of the attack.
Devlin's security has been a concern for state prison officials since his arrest. Officials contemplated sending him out of state or providing him with a new identity. However, some victims' family members objected to the move, and the plan was dropped.
External links
- Search Offenders Record Online
- Devlin's profile at America's Most WantedAmerica's Most WantedAmerica's Most Wanted is an American television program produced by 20th Television, and was the longest-running program of any kind in the history of the Fox Television Network until it was announced on May 16, 2011 that the series was canceled after twenty-three years, with the final episode...
- Missing boys Both Found Alive
- CNN, "Boy tries to reconnect with old life after 4 years", January 15, 2007