John Baughman
John Earl Baughman (October 04, 1941 - May 31, 2000) was an American murderer and suspected serial killer. A former police officer, Baughman was suspected, but never convicted of, murdering a close friend and his first wife, before eventually killing his second wife while on a vacation in Antigua and Barbuda.[1] After being sentenced to death for her murder, he hanged himself in prison in 2000, while still on death row.[2]
John Baughman | |
|---|---|
| Born | John Earl Baughman 1943 Orland Park, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | May 31, 2000 (aged 57–58) |
| Cause of death | Suicide by hanging |
| Other names | "Bottles" |
| Conviction(s) | Murder |
| Criminal penalty | Death |
| Details | |
| Victims | 1–3 |
Span of crimes | 1970–1995 |
| Country | United States, Antigua and Barbuda |
| State(s) | Illinois, Antigua |
Date apprehended | May 28, 1995 |
Early life
John Baughman was born in Illinois and grew up in Chicago. His father, Bill Baughman, worked on the railroad and was originally from Clinton, Illinois. His mother, Letha Smith Baughman, was a bookkeeper who had been orphaned as a young child and whose first child, a male, died as an infant. Baughman was the only other son of his parents, having two elder sisters.
Baughman volunteered for two tours in Vietnam as a Marine infantryman. He later became a heavyset man and had always worn thick-rimmed glasses, which earned him the nickname "Bottles".[3] He once served as a police officer in Homewood.[1] He married his wife Gertrude, nicknamed "Trudy", on July 17, 1964; together they had three daughters. During those years, Baughman worked as a security guard, and did electrical work for an unknown company and eventually worked at Honeywell. Despite his credentials, he was described as a rather controlling man.[2]
Murders
Sgt. Dean Pence
On July 26, 1970, Sgt. Dean Pence, a police officer in Flossmoor, was found murdered near the Prestwick Country Club in Will County. He had been shot with a .38 caliber revolver.[4] A long-time friend of Baughman, then 28, he was killed by the former for being in a suspected affair with John's wife, Gertrude.[1]
Despite becoming the lead suspect, with even an arrest and return to Joliet,[4] the grand jury in Will County refused to indict him, and Baughman was allowed to walk free of charges.[1]
Trudy Baughman
In 1984, Trudy and John were inspecting some equipment in their garage in Matteson.[1] According to Baughman, his wife suddenly tripped over a stove, which ignited some gasoline and set her on fire. Panicked, Gertrude started flailing around, apparently causing herself an injury to the throat.[3] However, an examination by the coroner proved the story to be false, as the autopsy revealed that Trudy had first been strangled and then subsequently burned.[1] Trudy had recently told Baughman that she wanted a divorce.
In spite of the obvious murder scene, during his 1985 trial, Baughman, who claimed his wife's death was accidental, was acquitted by the Cook County judge of murder. He was, yet again, released.[3]
In 1988, Baughman's attorney, Fred Aprati, was "convicted in federal court of paying bribes to Cook County sheriff`s police". It had been testimony by a county coroner who had not examined Trudy's body -- and not the head coroner, who had examined her body -- that shed doubt on the prosecution's case. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1988-12-06-8802220382-story.html
Valerie Baughman
Years passed following his first wife's suspicious death, and since long before Trudy's death, Baughman had retired from the police force and now worked as a salesman for the Honeywell company. One night, he attended a singles' dance, where he met a twice-divorced woman named Valerie. She was an energetic customer service representative for 3M, for whom she had worked for 22 years, and had four adult children. They took a liking to each other, and in February 1991, the couple married.[3]
Valerie was aware of John's past, but believed the claims that he was innocent, in stark contrast with one of her children. In 1995, the couple went on vacation to St. John's in Antigua and Barbuda, registering at the Royal Antiguan Hotel.[1] Interestingly, employees later testified that Baughman had requested a room for two for the first three nights, but then only a one-person room for the last.[2]
On May 27, John took his wife to the roof of the 8-story hotel, where he pushed her off. The fall crushed every bone in Valerie's body, killing her instantly. According to witnesses, Baughman didn't make any attempt to save her from falling.[3]
Trial, sentence and death
Immediately after, Baughman was arrested and held without bail in Her Majesty's Prison.[1] During the investigation, he explained that his wife had accidentally fallen while they tossed love letters to each other. The coroner, however, declared that she had been pushed to her death. At his trial, Baughman was quoted as saying that he loved his wife very much, but that did not dissuade the jury, whose unanimous vote found him guilty of murder.[3]
Sentenced to death, Baughman was escorted out of jail, where Antiguans were cursing at him and cheering for his eventual death, without making a final statement. His lawyer, Gerald Watt, accused the court of bias in favor of the prosecutor, and announced that he was appealing the decision.[3] On May 31, 2000, shortly after his final appeal was rejected, Baughman committed suicide in the Antiguan jail by hanging himself by a bed sheet from his cell window bars.[2]
References
- "Ex-Cop, Acquitted In First Wife's Death, Is Accused Of Killing Second". The Spokesman-Review. June 4, 1995. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
- Donato, Marla; Heinzmann, David (June 2, 2000). "Family's Built-Up Pain Eased By Hanging In Antigua". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
- Cytrynbaum, Pamela (April 5, 1996). "Orland Park Man Guilty of Antigua Killing". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
- "Policeman's Accused Slayer Arrested". Edwardsville Intelligencer. August 14, 1970. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
External links
- "Criminal Appeal No.15 of 1996 between John Earl Baughman and The Queen" (PDF). Antigua and Barbuda Court of Appeal.