On the evening of March 21, 1955, a simple inquiry about the price of a room set in motion a night of terror at a motel in Milton, Washington. Andrew K. Stolen, a 74-year-old Male, co-owned the small roadside business with his wife, Anna. His life would end that night in a heroic act, defending his wife from a frenzied, unprovoked attack by a man who had already killed and would do so again.
The assailant was Harvey John Collins, a decorated World War II veteran whose life had spiraled into violence.
Earlier that day, Collins had stopped at the Stolens' motel and asked Anna, then 67, about the cost of a room for the night. When she told him the rate was $4, he said it was too much and left. But Collins returned later, knocking on their door. When Anna answered, he immediately attacked her with a paring knife. As she fought back and tried to flee, he escalated his assault, drawing a samurai sword, a grim trophy he had brought back from his service in the Pacific during the Battle of Iwo Jima. The sword slashed down, severing one of Anna's fingers.
Her screams awoke her husband, Andrew, who was disabled. Without hesitation, Andrew rushed to his wife's aid, placing himself between her and the armed attacker. Collins turned his fury on Andrew, brutally slashing him to death with the samurai sword. After killing Andrew, the enraged Collins was not finished. He got into his car and tried to run over the wounded Anna as she fled, but she managed to dodge the vehicle. Collins then sped off into the night.
Despite her injuries and the horror of what she had just witnessed, Anna Stolen was able to provide sheriff's deputies with a clear description of her attacker and, crucially, the last two digits of his license plate. This vital information led to Collins's arrest just an hour later. A search of his car uncovered the bloodied sword and clothing that tied him directly to the brutal crime scene. The quick capture brought an end to a killing spree that spanned two states. Collins soon confessed to the attack on the Stolens and the murder of Andrew.
Investigators quickly linked Collins to other violent crimes. Just weeks earlier, on February 7, 1955, he had shot and killed 25-year-old gas station attendant Edward Morley in Federal Way, Washington, during a robbery. He also confessed to the 1953 murder of Edna Iona Hall in Kentucky, a crime he committed while serving in the U.S. Army. Collins had beaten and stabbed Hall with a screwdriver before burying her alive. Kentucky prosecutors agreed to waive their case as long as Washington authorities sought the death penalty.
Harvey John Collins's trial for the murder of Andrew Stolen began on June 27, 1955. Psychiatrists testified that he was sane at the time of the killings. He was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to death. In September of that year, Collins and six other inmates managed to escape from jail, but he surrendered to the sheriff's office just two days later, stating he had "thought the situation through" and decided to accept his fate. After his appeals were denied by the Supreme Court, Harvey John Collins was executed by hanging at the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla on December 3, 1957. His last words were, "I ask forgiveness for everything I've done."
