United States of True Crime is an anthology series with books devoted to the most disturbing cases in each of the 50 states. This book focuses on 10 of the most chilling crimes in Alabama history.
True crime junkies may recognize some of the highly publicized cases, but I’ve made sure to include lesser-known, equally unsettling crimes.
The cases included in this book:
Audrey Marie Hilley: Black widow who murdered her husband, then attempted to poison her own daughter. She was able to evade capture by posing as her fictional twin sister.
Daniel Lee Siebert: Spree killer who butchered his girlfriend, her two sons who were both under age six, and his friends.
Michael McLendon: To date, McLendon’s massacre in 2019 was the bloodiest in the state of Alabama. He murdered his friends, family, and even his family dogs.
Richard Hawes: A family annihilator in 1888 whose crimes sparked a statewide riot.
Sixteenth Street Church Bombings: Racially motivated attack by KKK members that left four young Black girls dead and is now viewed as a turning point for the Civil Rights Movement.
Amy Bishop: Harvard-educated professor who became infamous after she went on a shooting rampage that left three coworkers dead. However, the attack was not her first time killing. When she was a teenager, she shot her brother under suspicious circumstances.
Joseph Dewey Akin: Code-blue junkie nurse who was convicted of intentionally overdosing a patient in his care and is suspected in the deaths of 17 of his former patients.
Thomas Whisenhant: Murderer with a pattern of desecrating the bodies of his victims.
Scottsboro Boys: One of the most notorious court cases of the 20th century where two white women falsely accused nine Black boys of rape.
Gerald Patrick Lewis: Serial killer whose heinous crimes include slaying a woman who was eight months pregnant and removing the fetus from her body.
If you’re a true crime enthusiast who enjoys hearing about some of the most depraved monsters in our country, you will love United States of True Crime.
