Wednesday, January 26, 1983
Daily Nebraskan
WMMl
9-1:00
Continued from Page 6
still alive.
But when a relative entered the house the next morn
ing, Mrs. Ward was dead in the bedroom, not of the injury
to her back, but of multiple stab wounds to her chest and
neck. Fend was tied to another bed, with fatal stab
wounds to her chest and stomach.
Although some authorities believed Fugate played a
large role in those slayings, she never was brought to trial
for them, and it remains another mystery from the mur
der spree.
Taking the Wards' 1956 Packard, Starkweather and Fu
gate lied west again, stopping for gas at Grand Island and
Broken Bow.
By Jan. 29, Starkweather and Fugate crossed the state
line into Wyoming. While driving on Highway 87 through
Douglas, Wyo., he decided to switch cars again. Twelve
miles west of Douglas, he spotted a parked car owned by
37-year-old Merle Collison, a traveling salesman from
Montana. Starkweather approached the locked car and
shot Collison nine times with his .22. Fugate climbed into
the back seat when a geologist, Joe Sprinkle, drove by. He
stopped and wrestled the gun from Starkweather. As they
were fighting, a Wyoming deputy sheriff saw them and
also stopped. Fugate suddenly jumped from Collison 's
car and screamed that it was Starkweather.
Meanwhile, Starkweather escaped in the Packard and
headed back through Douglas. He ran through a police
roadblock and droye east at speeds approaching 120 mph.
A pursuing sheriff shot out the Packard's back window,
and the flying glass cut Starkweather's ear.
Starkweather stopped abruptly in the middle of the
highway, got out and stood before the sheriff's car. It
was his last act as a free man.
After several days in custody in Wyoming, Stark
weather and Fugate were brought back to Nebraska and
came under the close attention of both the local and
world media.
Starkweather was arraigned March 26, 1958, and plead
ed innocent to a first-degree murder charge in the death
of Robert Jensen Jr. His court-appointed lawyers, T.
Clement Gaughan and William Matschullat, entered a plea
of insanity, but Starkweather objected and did not coop
eratc. An 18-day trial, hinging on whether or not Stark
weather actually knew what he was doing at the time
of the killings, followed. On May 23, 1958, an eight
woman, four-man jury deliberated nearly 24 hours be
fore returning the verdict. Starkweather was found guilty
and sentenced to die in the Nebraska electrjc chair.
Because of a number of judicial reviews and appeals,
the execution date was postponed four times, ultimately
being appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. But the ap
peal was refused, and the execution date was set - June 25,
1959. Soon after midnight, Starkweather was taken from
his cell in the Nebraska State Penitentiary to the electro
cution chamber. After being strapped in, he was offered
the customary chance for last words. He shook his head.
He was pronounced dead at 12:04 a.m.
Fugate's trial began Oct. 27, 1958. She also pleaded
innocent to an identical murder charge for aiding Stark
weather in the death of Robert Jensen Jr. After a highly
emotional trial, the jury rejected her contention that she
was an unwilling companion on the eight-day spree. She
was convicted for first -degree murder at age 14, the
youngest female in U.S. history to be so convicted. She
was sentenced to life in prison at the Nebraska Center for
Women in York. Paroled on June 20, 1976, she moved to
Michigan with a new identity.
It is difficult for most people to comprehend why a
19-year-old youth, with no previous criminal record,
would be involved in murders of 11 people. But Stark
weather was far from an ordinary person. The next
part in this series will focus on Starkweather's back
ground and personality.
3
AGRICULTURALISTS...
Ytyj
Ml TOdflUG
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( fl ( .
Ask Peace Corps volunteers why rheir agriculture degrees or farm
backgrounds are needed in developing notions. Ash them how
rheir knowledge of crops, livestock production, farm mechanics or
beekeeping methods help alleviate hunger, increase personal
income and develop technical skills They II tell you of the
rewards of seeing direct results of their efforry They'll tell you
Peace Corps is the toughest job you II ever love.
S i y n up for an interview and
pick up an application n o v; :
ry . PLACFMFMT OFFTCF-FT CAMPUS
Thurs . , Feb . 3
Police
Report
The UNL Police Department received
the following calls and complaints from
7 a .m .Mondayto7a.m. Tuesday :
8:27 a.m. - Security alarm malfunc
tion reported; location withheld for
security reasons.
11:05 a.m. - Electric motor reported
stolen from 715 N. 16th St.
11 :39 a.m. - Traffic accident reported
in Parking Area 2 near 10th and Avery
streets; no injuries reported.
2:30 p.m. - Auto accessories reported
stolen from car in front of the Nebraska
State Historical Society Museum.
3:10 p.m. - Book reported stolen from
Love Library.
3:36 p.m. Stereo boosterequalizer
and speaker reported stolen from car in
Parking Area 3 on 14th and New Hamp
shire streets.
7:32 p.m. - Belated report of weight
lifting equipment stolen from Schramm
Hall.
10:37 p.m. - Floor buffer reported
lost or stolen from East Campus.
10:29 p.m. - Report of beer bottle
being thrown at person at Cather Hall.
3:01 a.m. - Person at Selleck Quad
rangle taken to hospital treated for ill
ness and released.
It's The 17th Annual Lincoln
at Pershing Auditorium
January 28tfi-29tli-3tli, 19S3
v x 'xs' -.,
ii i)
Hi millet iW
WWs TOSite (Xn)(ln;ic tiavfnl
I ! I )' j
Oil jfe. lit
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1
if
ft
u . plus
Harrison
Fords DLDe Rur.ro cm
Manum Pi's Ferrari
The English LsaSher-TUrbo-T
The Battle of the Sexes Svimsuit
Competition $300 cash 1st Prize
$200 cash 2nd Prize
$100 cash 3rd Prize
PLUS MUCH, MUCH MORE
v:vvn. Hours: Friday 5-11 pm v.ii4
Saturday Noon-11 pm j"- - ?
Sunday Noon-10 pm V;::,
Meet Tom Selleck's Clone (Roger Rochon) In Person
Don't Miss It This Is The Dig One
L"'- 'lUJi .' .. . .-. - . . ..U...! J..J1 " .. . -
. : 7 I ; .
n iii.unMn vuki i i ffii i iif im i vi. tiiu iui- vuiim '
nuiu itru'in jrLLinL v.uuru 1 ujl ii u iiil. juutv (t--.
Adult Admission
Good for Admission on January 28-29-30
Pershing Auditorium
- r
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