Alvin King

Mass Murderer

Alvin Lee King III and the 1980 Daingerfield Church Shooting

Background

Alvin Lee King III was a former high school mathematics teacher who carried out a deadly attack inside the First Baptist Church in Daingerfield, Texas, on June 22, 1980. The shooting left five members of the congregation dead and ten others wounded. King also seriously wounded himself shortly after leaving the church. King had moved to Daingerfield with his wife, Gretchen, and their two children during the 1960s. He taught mathematics at Daingerfield High School and was described as intelligent but eccentric. His unconventional behavior reportedly included refusing to sign a required statement acknowledging belief in God and allowing some students to determine borderline grades by drawing cards. He eventually left teaching and worked as a truck driver. King accumulated numerous firearms and lived with his family on an isolated farm several miles outside Daingerfield. Years before the church shooting, he had accidentally shot and killed his father while examining a shotgun in Corpus Christi. Authorities ruled that death an accident.

Criminal Charge and Growing Resentment

In October 1979, King's adult daughter went to authorities and accused him of sexually abusing her for approximately ten years. King was arrested and charged with incest. His trial was scheduled to begin on June 23, 1980, one day after the church massacre. As the trial approached, King reportedly asked several Daingerfield residents to testify as character witnesses on his behalf. Some of those individuals were members of the First Baptist Church. They refused to support him in court. Investigators later believed that King's anger over those refusals was an important factor in his decision to target the congregation. The complete reasons for King's actions were never firmly established. His preparations, weapon collection and behavior on the morning of the attack showed that the shooting was planned rather than spontaneous. Statements attributed to him during the assault also indicated that he viewed the attack as an act of war against people he believed had rejected or betrayed him.

Preparations on June 22, 1980

On the morning of Sunday, June 22, King ate breakfast with his wife at their rural home. He then overpowered Gretchen King and tied her to a kitchen chair with rope and telephone cord. He reportedly told her that he loved her and did not want to hurt her. King dressed in military-style clothing, including Army fatigues, a helmet and protective flak jackets. He gathered a large collection of weapons and ammunition. His arsenal included a scoped Colt AR-15 SP1 semiautomatic rifle fitted with a bayonet, an M1 carbine with a bayonet, a .22-caliber revolver and a .38-caliber revolver. A pack carried by King contained approximately 250 rounds of ammunition. He left the farmhouse in a small white automobile and drove approximately eight miles into Daingerfield. His destination was the First Baptist Church, where hundreds of people were attending the Sunday morning service. ...

Confirmed Victims: (5)

Gene Gandy 50 yr old Male

Daingerfield church shooting