Thomas Warren Whisenhant

Serial Killer

Thomas Warren Whisenhant: The Mobile County Serial Killer

Early Life and the Beginning of a Violent History

Thomas Warren Whisenhant was born on January 29, 1947, in Prichard, Alabama, a community located in Mobile County. He was the youngest of four children and grew up in a troubled household marked by poverty, alcoholism and frequent conflict between his parents. Accounts presented during later legal proceedings described him as increasingly moody, resentful and violent during adolescence. Whisenhant's suspected involvement in murder began when he was only 16 years old. On May 6, 1963, 72-year-old widow Lexie Haynes was shot and killed in Prichard. The murder weapon was reportedly recovered from an empty lot near the Whisenhant family home. Investigators immediately considered the teenager a suspect, particularly because he and several friends had recently been handling a stolen handgun. A witness later recalled that Whisenhant had removed a cartridge from the gun, displayed it and suggested that it would soon be used to kill someone. Haynes had reportedly confronted or spoken to him about his behavior before her death. Despite the suspicious circumstances, Whisenhant's family provided an alibi claiming he had been home at the time of the shooting. He was not prosecuted for the murder, although he confessed to killing Haynes many years later after his arrest for additional crimes.

The Attack at Ent Air Force Base

After leaving Alabama, Whisenhant joined the United States Air Force and was stationed at Ent Air Force Base near Colorado Springs, Colorado. On October 25, 1965, he attacked 22-year-old Air Force servicewoman Rose Covington inside a finance office at the base. Covington was struck repeatedly in the head and face with a heavy metal ashtray and left unconscious. She survived but suffered severe injuries requiring approximately two months of hospitalization. Covington testified that she had never met Whisenhant and did not recognize him as someone she knew. Investigators connected him to the attack partly through shoe impressions found at the scene. On March 14, 1966, a military court convicted Whisenhant of assault with intent to commit murder. He was sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment with hard labor, reduced in rank, ordered to forfeit his military pay and dishonorably discharged. His sentence was later reduced to ten years, and he was paroled on November 28, 1973. His release allowed him to return to the Mobile area, where a series of murders soon followed. ...

Confirmed Victims: (3)

Venora Hyatt Age: (44), Date of Death: 1976-04-16

Suspected Victims:

Lexie Haynes Age: (72), Date of Death: 1963-05-06

Survivors:

Rose Covington Age: (22), Date of Attack: 1965-10-25

Thomas Whisenhant - Wikipedia