In the quiet farming community of Bennet, Nebraska, the winter of 1958 was shattered by a wave of violence that claimed the life of a respected 70-year-old White / Caucasian man named August Meyer. A family friend of the Fugate family, Meyer lived a peaceful life on his farm, unaware of the approaching danger that would so brutally end his life on January 27, 1958.
His death was not an isolated incident but a key event in a horrifying crime spree that terrorized the state.
The perpetrators were 19-year-old Charles Starkweather and his 14-year-old girlfriend, Caril Ann Fugate. Their deadly rampage began days earlier with the murder of Fugate's own family. Seeking refuge and resources, the pair arrived at August Meyer's farmhouse. After gaining entry to his home, Starkweather shot Meyer in the head, leaving his body in a washhouse behind the main residence. In a further act of senseless brutality, Starkweather also killed Meyer's dog. Before fleeing, the couple stole food and money from the farm.
Starkweather and Fugate's run from the law was short-lived. Their spree of violence, which ultimately claimed eleven lives across Nebraska and Wyoming, came to an end with their capture on January 29, 1958, in Douglas, Wyoming. The arrest was made after a confrontation that began when a passerby noticed the body of their final victim.
Following their apprehension, Charles Starkweather was tried, convicted of murder, and sentenced to death. He was executed by electric chair in Lincoln, Nebraska, on June 25, 1959. Caril Ann Fugate was also arrested and charged with murder. She was convicted and received a life sentence. Fugate maintained that she was a hostage and unwilling participant in the crimes. After serving 17 years in prison, she was paroled in 1976.
