American Killers

Shawn “Mickey” Stines is a former Letcher County, Kentucky, sheriff charged with the murder of District Judge Kevin Mullins, his former boss and friend. On September 19, 2024, Stines entered Mullins’ chambers at the Letcher County Courthouse in Whitesburg and shot him multiple times. Surveillance footage captured the shooting, and Stines surrendered to police immediately afterward. He has pleaded not guilty and is pursuing a mental-health defence, with his attorneys arguing that he lacked the capacity to intend to kill Mullins. As of August 2026, Stines remains in custody without bail awaiting trial.

Shelby John Nealy killed his wife, Jamie Ivancic, in Florida in 2018 and concealed her death while impersonating her through messages to her family. As Jamie's relatives became increasingly suspicious, Nealy travelled to their Tarpon Springs home and murdered her parents, Richard and Laura Ivancic, and her brother, Nicholas Ivancic, in December 2018. He was arrested in Ohio in January 2019 with his two young children and later pleaded guilty to charges arising from all four deaths. Nealy received a 30-year prison sentence for Jamie's death and, following separate penalty proceedings for the three Ivancic family murders, was sentenced to death in April 2026.

Stanley "Tookie" Williams was an influential Los Angeles gang figure who co-founded the Crips with Raymond Washington before being convicted of four murders committed during two robberies in 1979. Sentenced to death in 1981, Williams spent more than two decades on California's death row while consistently maintaining his innocence of the murders. During his imprisonment, he renounced gang life, wrote books warning young people about gangs and became an anti-gang activist whose work attracted international attention and Nobel Peace Prize nominations. His supporters sought clemency based on his claimed rehabilitation, but California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger rejected the request, and Williams was executed by lethal injection at San Quentin State Prison on December 13, 2005.

Stephanie Hudnall became the focus of a high-profile Oklahoma homicide investigation following the death of her husband, William "Bill" Hudnall, in June 2011. Although she initially claimed he had died from natural causes, investigators uncovered evidence that Bill had been intentionally poisoned. Following a lengthy investigation and trial, Stephanie Hudnall was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.

Stephen William Beal killed his former girlfriend and business partner Ildiko Krajnyak with a package bomb planted inside their day spa in Aliso Viejo, California, on May 15, 2018. The explosion killed Krajnyak and seriously injured two clients, triggering a lengthy federal investigation that focused on Beal's explosives knowledge and evidence recovered from his Long Beach home. After an initial arrest, release and later rearrest, Beal faced federal prosecution and a 2022 mistrial before being convicted at retrial in 2023. He was sentenced in January 2024 to life imprisonment plus an additional 30 years.

Steve "Clem" Grogan was a member of Charles Manson's Family who participated in the 1969 murder of Spahn Ranch worker and stuntman Donald "Shorty" Shea. Already living and working around the ranch before becoming closely associated with Manson, Grogan joined Manson and fellow Family member Bruce Davis in the attack on Shea after Manson came to believe the ranch hand was an informant. Grogan was convicted of first-degree murder in 1971 and initially sentenced to death, but the trial judge reduced his punishment to life imprisonment. Years later, Grogan cooperated with authorities and led investigators to Shea's concealed remains. He was paroled in 1985, becoming the first Manson Family member convicted of murder to be released from prison.

Steven Arthur Rios was a Columbia, Missouri, police officer who was convicted of murdering 23-year-old University of Missouri student Jesse Valencia in June 2004. Rios had been involved in a secret sexual relationship with Valencia, who was reportedly threatening to reveal the relationship to Rios's police chief. Valencia was found with his throat slashed near his apartment. Rios was initially convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life without parole, but the conviction was overturned because of evidentiary errors. At his 2008 retrial, he was convicted of second-degree murder and armed criminal action and sentenced to life imprisonment plus 23 years, with the convictions subsequently upheld on appeal.

Susan Denise Atkins was one of Charles Manson's earliest and most devoted followers and participated directly in the Tate-LaBianca murders that left seven people dead over two nights in August 1969. At the Tate residence, Atkins helped restrain the victims, fatally stabbed actress Sharon Tate and wrote the word "Pig" on the front door using Tate's blood. She also participated in the murders of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca the following night. Convicted in 1971 of seven counts of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder, Atkins was initially sentenced to death before her punishment was reduced to life imprisonment after California temporarily abolished capital punishment. She remained incarcerated until her death from brain cancer in 2009.