June 19, 1975 Oak Park, Illinois Mobster Salvatore “Sam” Giancana is shot and killed in his home Giancana was scheduled to appear at a committee meeting involving an alleged collusion between the CIA and Cosa Nostra, the Sicilian mafia. Shortly before this meeting, the police detail assigned to guard his house was recalled. The same… Continue reading Mobster Salvatore Giancana murdered
Category: Illinois
Woman forced into mental facility against her will after openly disagreeing with husband’s views
June 18, 1860 Jacksonville, Illinois Elizabeth Packard is committed to the Jacksonville Insane Asylum against her will When the first mental hospital opened in Illinois in 1851, a law was passed which prohibited any patient from being committed against their will without a public hearing to determine their mental health. One provision, however, allowed a… Continue reading Woman forced into mental facility against her will after openly disagreeing with husband’s views
Woman shoots man she was obsessed with, US’s first recognized case of criminal stalking
June 14, 1949 Chicago, Illinois Obsessed fan Ruth Ann Steinhagen shoots baseball player Eddie Waitkus in the first recognized case of a stalker crime Steinhagen (19) had become obsessed with Waitkus while he played for the Chicago Cubs, collecting hundreds of photographs and newspaper clippings of him. On June 14, Steinhagen sent a note to… Continue reading Woman shoots man she was obsessed with, US’s first recognized case of criminal stalking
Couple murdered in their bed: wife shot between eyes with shotgun, husband shot in jaw then bludgeoned with butt of shotgun and stabbed in heart
June 5, 1980 Libertyville, Illinois Bruce and Darlene Rouse are killed in their home while their children, aged 20, 17, and 15, sleep Darlene was killed first, shot between the eyes with a shotgun as she slept. She was killed instantly. Bruce, startled awake by the shooting, was shot in the jaw, though this injury… Continue reading Couple murdered in their bed: wife shot between eyes with shotgun, husband shot in jaw then bludgeoned with butt of shotgun and stabbed in heart
FLW: the bad box
Famous Last Words Joseph Windrath Chicago, Illinois June 5, 1896 “Mat, open the bad box! Put him in the bad box! Hang up Mannow!” Windrath had been convicted of the murder of a railroad clerk during a robbery. His accomplice, Julius Mannow, turned state’s evidence in exchange for a lighter sentence. Carrying nearly the entire… Continue reading FLW: the bad box
