On September 29, 1983, Deems A. 'Toby' Thulin, a 37-year-old loan officer from Tyler, Minnesota, was tragically killed. Thulin was shot in the throat while sitting inside a vehicle in the driveway of an abandoned dairy farm owned by the Jenkins family near Ruthton, Minnesota. The incident also involved Rudolph 'Rudy' Blythe, the 42-year-old president of the Buffalo Ridge State Bank, who was wounded in the car and subsequently shot multiple times as he attempted to flee.
The primary suspects in the case were Steven Jenkins, then 18 years old, and his father, James Jenkins, aged 46. The Jenkins family had lost their farm to the bank in 1980 due to a loan default, which fueled James Jenkins' anger towards Blythe, whom he blamed for giving him bad credit references. On the day of the murder, the Jenkinses lured Thulin and Blythe to their vacated farm under the pretense of discussing financial matters.
Following the murders, Steven and James Jenkins fled to Paducah, Texas. On October 2, 1983, James Jenkins committed suicide by shooting himself in the head, while Steven Jenkins surrendered to the police, admitting his involvement in the murders. During his trial, Steven Jenkins claimed that his father was the one who fired the shots, and that he had hidden behind the garage during the incident. Despite his claims, Steven Jenkins was convicted of first-degree murder for Blythe and second-degree murder for Thulin, and was sentenced to life imprisonment.
Steven Jenkins' conviction was upheld by the Minnesota Supreme Court in 1985, despite his appeals on various grounds, including claims of an unfair trial. The court found sufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Steven Jenkins was involved in the premeditated killing of both Thulin and Blythe.
