In the late summer of 1961, the life of Carol Ronan, a 34-year-old Caucasian woman, was tragically cut short in her St. Paul, Minnesota apartment. On September 18, her colleagues became concerned when the social worker did not arrive for her job. Upon checking her apartment, they discovered a horrifying scene; Ronan had been brutally beaten and strangled.
The investigation into her death quickly turned towards a man who had been seen in the area and was using the alias Darwin J. Corman.
This man was later identified as Hugh Bion Morse, a drifter with a violent past who was already on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list for other crimes across the country. Morse had been staying in a rooming house just a few blocks from Ronan's residence. He later confessed that he had been calling apartments in her building with the intention of burglary when he was aroused by the sound of her voice. Gaining entry to her unlocked apartment, he proceeded to rape and murder her.
A breakthrough in the case came when a woman on her honeymoon recognized Morse from a published photograph. This tip led to his arrest on October 13, 1961. During his interrogation, Morse not only confessed to the murder of Carol Ronan but also admitted to a string of other violent crimes, including other murders and sexual assaults in different states. For the murder of Carol Ronan, Hugh Bion Morse was charged with second-degree murder and received a life sentence. He would die in prison decades later, having never regained his freedom.
