Charles Starkweather
Charles Raymond Starkweather, born in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1938, was the fourth of seven children in a working-class family. His father, a carpenter often unemployed due to arthritis, admitted at trial to pushing his son into a window; his mother worked as a waitress. Starkweather had a mild birth defect causing misshapen legs and claimed he was teased for a speech impediment, though his elementary teacher did not recall this. He excelled only in physical education, where he bullied those who had previously bullied him. He dropped out of high school in his senior year. In 1956, he met thirteen-year-old Caril Ann Fugate, and he took a job near her school to see her daily. After Fugate crashed his father’s car, Starkweather was banished from home and became a garbage collector. He developed a nihilistic philosophy, believing dead people were all on the same level.
His first murder occurred in late November 1957, when he killed service station attendant Robert Colvert after a dispute over a stuffed animal. In January 1958, Starkweather went to Fugate’s home and fatally shot her mother and stepfather, then clubbed their two-year-old daughter to death. He hid the bodies in an outhouse and chicken coop. Fugate later said Starkweather claimed her family were hostages. A note reading “Everybody is sick with the flu” was placed in the window. The pair remained there until police, alerted by Fugate’s grandmother, arrived on January 27. After the bodies were discovered by Starkweather’s brother and a friend, an alert was issued. Starkweather then killed seventy-year-old August Meyer, a family friend, with a shotgun. Over nine days, he killed ten people. He was arrested on January 29. Starkweather was convicted and executed by electric chair in 1959, the last execution in Nebraska until 1994. Fugate served seventeen years in prison. The case became a national scandal, inspiring the film *Badlands*, the song “Nebraska” by Bruce Springsteen, and a mention in Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire.”
- field
- Spree killer
- nationality
- American
Lore & Background
Starkweather was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, the fourth of seven children of a working-class family. He was born with genu varum, a mild birth defect, and claimed he was teased for a speech impediment. He excelled only in physical education, where he found an outlet for rage against bullies, and later began bullying others. He dropped out of high school in his senior year and worked at a newspaper warehouse and as a garbage collector. He hid the bodies and placed a note reading 'Everybody is sick with the flu' in the window. The pair remained in the house until January 27, when police broke in and found no one.
Reader's Guide
Charles Raymond Starkweather, a nineteen-year-old spree killer, murdered eleven people in Nebraska and Wyoming between late 1957 and early 1958, with ten of those killings occurring in a nine-day span in January 1958. His fourteen-year-old girlfriend, Caril Ann Fugate, accompanied him during the spree. Starkweather was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, into a working-class family; his father was a carpenter frequently unemployed due to arthritis, and his mother worked as a waitress. Starkweather had a mild birth defect causing misshapen legs and a speech impediment, and he claimed to have been teased at school, though his teacher did not recall this. He excelled in physical education, using it as an outlet for rage against bullies, and later began bullying others. His writings from prison suggest strong class envy and bitterness. After dropping out of high school, he worked menial jobs and developed a nihilistic worldview, believing his situation justified doing whatever he desired. His first murder was a service station attendant, Robert Colvert, whom he shot after a robbery. The spree escalated when Starkweather killed Fugate’s mother, stepfather, and two-year-old half-sister, hiding their bodies on the property. He later killed a family friend, August Meyer, and his dog. Criminologists and psychologists have studied the case to understand spree killers’ motivations and precipitating factors. The crime spree became one of the earlier nationally prominent crime scandals, with media outlets openly condemning him, and has endured in popular culture as inspiration for films and songs. Starkweather was executed by electric chair in 1959, the last execution in Nebraska until 1994.
Did You Know?
- Starkweather was born with genu varum, a mild birth defect that caused his legs to be misshapen.
- His great-great-grandfather, George Anson Starkweather, was a U.S. Representative from New York.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Caril Ann Fugate in relation to Starkweather?
Caril Ann Fugate was a fourteen-year-old girl who traveled alongside Starkweather during his murder spree and was subsequently charged as an accomplice. Her involvement turned the case into a national media firestorm and sparked intense public debate over juvenile complicity in violent crime.
Why is Charles Starkweather significant in popular culture?
The Starkweather-Fugate case was among the first crime stories to break through into sustained national media coverage in the late 1950s. Its dramatic details have since inspired multiple films, songs, and other works of fiction, keeping the story alive in American pop culture decades later.
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