Joseph Donald Ture: Minnesota Serial Killer and Serial Rapist
Overview
Joseph Donald Ture Jr. is an American serial killer, serial rapist, kidnapper, and mass murderer convicted of killing six people in Minnesota between December 1978 and September 1980. His known victims included a mother and three of her children, an 18-year-old student attacked inside her family’s home, and a 19-year-old waitress abducted while walking home from work. Ture was also convicted of several nonfatal kidnappings and sexual assaults involving girls and young women.
Ture’s crimes occurred in different Minnesota communities and initially appeared unrelated. The Huling family was killed with a shotgun in a rural house near Clearwater. Five months later, Marlys Wohlenhaus was beaten inside her home near Afton. In 1980, Diane Edwards was kidnapped from West St. Paul and murdered in another county. Years passed before investigators and prosecutors established that Ture was responsible for all six deaths.
The Huling Family Murders
During the early morning hours of December 15, 1978, an intruder entered the Huling family’s isolated home in rural Stearns County near Clearwater, Minnesota. Alice Huling and three of her children were killed during the attack. Alice was assaulted downstairs before being shot. The killer then went upstairs and entered the children’s bedrooms.
Thirteen-year-old Wayne Huling was awakened when the intruder entered the bedroom he shared with his 11-year-old brother, William “Billy” Huling. When Wayne asked the person to identify himself, the intruder shot and killed him. The gunman then entered the bedrooms of 16-year-old Susan Huling and 12-year-old Patti Huling, shooting each girl in the head.
Billy Huling survived by remaining beneath his bedding and pretending to be dead. The gunman fired twice toward him, but both shots missed. After waiting for the intruder to leave, Billy escaped from the house and traveled to a neighbor’s residence to obtain help. He became the only surviving eyewitness to the massacre.
Four days after the murders, police encountered Ture at the Clearwater Travel Plaza after employees complained about his behavior. He was arrested because the automobile he was driving had been reported stolen. A search of the vehicle uncovered a ski mask, a long metal bar wrapped in material resembling a steering-wheel cover, and a small toy car. Investigators later argued that the metal bar was consistent with a bruise found on Alice Huling and that the toy resembled one missing from the Huling home.
Although Ture was interviewed shortly after the killings, he was not charged at the time. The investigation remained unresolved for approximately two decades. Authorities eventually presented evidence that Ture had made incriminating statements to other prisoners. A written confession allegedly dictated by Ture described entering the house, attacking Alice, and shooting the children. Ture denied that the confession was genuine and continued to maintain his innocence.
The Murder of Marlys Wohlenhaus
On May 8, 1979, 18-year-old Marlys Ann Wohlenhaus returned to her family’s home in rural Afton, Minnesota. An attacker was apparently already inside the residence or entered while she was alone. Marlys was sexually assaulted and struck repeatedly in the head with a heavy blunt or sharp-edged object.
Her mother found her unconscious in a downstairs hallway during the afternoon. Marlys had suffered devastating head injuries, including a fractured skull and numerous wounds to her scalp. Injuries to her hands and fingers indicated that she may have attempted to defend herself. She was transported to a hospital but never regained consciousness. Marlys died from her injuries on May 10, 1979.
Ture was considered during the original investigation but was initially cleared because records appeared to show that a person with his name had been working at the Ford Motor Company plant in St. Paul. Investigators later discovered that the employee listed in those records was Ture’s father, who had the same name. The mistaken alibi had allowed Ture to remain free.
The case was reopened during the 1990s. Prosecutors relied on circumstantial evidence, the corrected employment information, and testimony concerning a confession that Ture allegedly dictated while incarcerated. He was convicted of killing Marlys and received another life sentence.
The Abduction and Murder of Diane Edwards
On the night of September 26, 1980, 19-year-old Diane Edwards finished her shift as a waitress at a Perkins restaurant in West St. Paul, Minnesota. She was walking home when a man driving an older, dark-colored station wagon stopped near her. Several teenage witnesses saw a man seize Diane, lift or force her into the vehicle, and drive away while she screamed.
Diane was taken from West St. Paul to a remote area. She was sexually assaulted, restrained, and stabbed repeatedly. Medical evidence indicated that she died late on September 26 or during the first hour of September 27. Her body was discovered in a roadside ditch near Elk River several days later. Her clothing had been placed nearby.
Witnesses described the abductor’s vehicle as an older, rusted station wagon similar to one used by Ture. Investigators also learned that he kept notebooks containing the names, addresses, telephone numbers, vehicle information, and license-plate numbers of numerous women, including waitresses. He was questioned after being arrested in connection with separate kidnapping and sexual-assault cases.
While in custody, Ture gave investigators information about Diane’s murder and led officers to the area where her body had been left. A jury convicted him of first-degree murder, kidnapping, and criminal sexual conduct. He received a life sentence to be served consecutively to sentences imposed for his other violent crimes.
Confirmed Victims
- Alice Rose Huling, 36 — Killed on December 15, 1978, inside the Huling family home in rural Stearns County near Clearwater, Minnesota. She was assaulted and fatally shot during the home invasion.
- Susan Marie Huling, 16 — Killed on December 15, 1978, in her bedroom at the family home near Clearwater. She was shot in the head.
- Wayne Lowell Huling, 13 — Killed on December 15, 1978, in the bedroom he shared with his younger brother near Clearwater. He was shot after awakening and speaking to the intruder.
- Patti Ann Huling, 12 — Killed on December 15, 1978, in her bedroom at the Huling residence near Clearwater. She was shot in the head.
- Marlys Ann Wohlenhaus, 18 — Attacked on May 8, 1979, inside her family’s home in rural Afton, Minnesota. She died from severe head injuries on May 10, 1979.
- Diane Edwards, 19 — Abducted from West St. Paul on September 26, 1980, after leaving her waitressing job. She was sexually assaulted and stabbed to death before her body was left near Elk River, Minnesota.
Other Kidnappings and Sexual Assaults
The six murders were part of a larger pattern of violence against girls and young women. Ture approached or followed women, collected personal information, and sometimes targeted employees of restaurants. He was convicted of abducting and sexually assaulting an 18-year-old woman and a 13-year-old girl in separate incidents in the Minneapolis area.
On October 27, 1980, Ture attempted to force a 20-year-old woman into his vehicle near Lake Street and Pillsbury Avenue in Minneapolis. The woman resisted and burned his face with a lit cigarette, enabling her to escape. Ture was arrested on October 30, 1980, and the investigation into his assaults helped authorities connect him to Diane Edwards’s abduction and murder.
After publicity surrounding the reopened murder investigations, additional women reported that they believed Ture had attacked, followed, or approached them during the 1970s. Many of these allegations could not be prosecuted because of insufficient evidence, the passage of time, or expired legal deadlines. Ture was never convicted of any additional murders beyond the six confirmed victims.
Confessions and Disputed Evidence
Confessions allegedly made by Ture became central to the later prosecutions. While incarcerated during the early 1980s, he reportedly asked another prisoner to write statements describing the murders of Marlys Wohlenhaus and the Huling family. The prisoner testified that Ture supplied the details and signed the resulting documents.
Another inmate later reported that Ture admitted killing the Huling family. Prosecutors used those accounts along with physical evidence, the false or mistaken employment alibi, Ture’s presence near the Clearwater area shortly after the massacre, and items recovered from his vehicle. Ture argued that the prisoners were unreliable and that authorities had used him to close old cases. Courts nevertheless found that the combined evidence was sufficient to support the convictions.
Convictions and Sentences
Ture’s first major convictions arose from the kidnappings and sexual assaults committed shortly before his October 1980 arrest. He subsequently stood trial for the murder of Diane Edwards and was convicted of first-degree murder committed during a sexual assault, kidnapping, and criminal sexual conduct. The murder conviction resulted in a life sentence.
In the late 1990s, a jury convicted Ture of murdering Marlys Wohlenhaus. In January 2000, another jury found him guilty of four counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of Alice, Susan, Wayne, and Patti Huling. He received four consecutive life sentences for the Huling murders in addition to the life sentences already imposed for the murders of Diane and Marlys.
Joseph Donald Ture is serving six life sentences in the Minnesota prison system. He has repeatedly denied committing the murders despite the jury verdicts, witness testimony, physical evidence, and statements attributed to him. His cases remain notable because investigative errors and missed opportunities allowed a suspect questioned within days of the first murders to remain free long enough to commit additional acts of kidnapping, sexual violence, and murder.
