In the quiet community of Mannford, Oklahoma, a tragedy unfolded on the morning of May 18, 2020, ending the life of 57-year-old Mary 'Liz' Elizabeth Milam. A thoughtful and loving woman, Liz was known for her devotion to her grandchildren, her skill in the kitchen, and her passion for gardening and various crafts. She shared her home and sixteen years of her life with her companion, Donald Langdon.
That morning, law enforcement officers were called to their residence in the 1100 block of
Osage Place, where they discovered both Milam and Langdon deceased on their property. The investigation into their deaths quickly focused on their 83-year-old neighbor, James Hancock. Hancock admitted to the responding officers that he had shot both Milam and Langdon.
The situation escalated further when Hancock, after his admission, refused to put down his weapon. Following a tense thirty-minute standoff with officers, he turned the gun on himself. Hancock was transported to a hospital in Tulsa, where he died from the self-inflicted gunshot wound. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation took the lead on the case, which was determined to be a double homicide followed by a suicide.
Investigators learned that there had been a history of disputes between Hancock and his neighbors, which may have culminated in the fatal encounter. With Hancock's death, the case was considered closed as he was the sole suspect involved in the tragic deaths of Mary Milam and Donald Langdon. The incident left the small town of Mannford in shock, as a long-standing neighborhood conflict ended in a devastating act of violence.
