Robert Wayne Danielson: The Campground Serial Killer
Overview
Robert Wayne Danielson Jr. was an American serial killer and repeat violent offender whose crimes stretched across the western United States during the 1970s and early 1980s. He is generally associated with seven killings, including a 1970 homicide in Oregon for which he was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and a later series of six murders committed after his release from prison. His known victims were killed in Oregon, Arizona and California, often in isolated outdoor locations where Danielson could rob his victims and escape with little immediate risk of detection.
Danielson's most concentrated period of violence occurred between December 1981 and November 1982. Campgrounds, parks and remote desert areas became recurring settings in his crimes. Several victims were restrained before being shot, and robbery was frequently an important part of the attacks. Danielson stole vehicles, credit cards, travelers checks and other property from victims, sometimes using those possessions afterward. Investigators ultimately connected crimes occurring hundreds of miles apart through witness accounts, stolen property and the cooperation of Danielson's teenage accomplice, Lanora Hart Johnson.
The 1970 Killing of Thomas Elroy Davis
Danielson's documented history of homicidal violence began in Oregon in 1970. On June 23, 1970, 21-year-old Thomas Elroy Davis encountered Danielson near Marcola, Oregon. An argument developed during the roadside encounter, and Danielson shot Davis to death.
Danielson was initially prosecuted for first-degree murder. The original proceeding ended in a mistrial after improper evidence was introduced, and the murder charge was ultimately replaced by a plea to voluntary manslaughter and other offenses. In November 1970, Danielson admitted responsibility for the fatal shooting while maintaining that he had acted in self-defense. He received a 25-year prison sentence.
Danielson served approximately eleven years in the Oregon State Penitentiary before being paroled in November 1981. His release proved disastrous. Within weeks, two people were dead in Arizona, beginning a multistate series of robberies and killings that would eventually establish Danielson as a serial murderer.
The Murders of Harold and Betty Pratt
In December 1981, Harold David "Hal" Pratt, 60, and his wife, Elizabeth Ann "Betty" Pratt, 55, were camping in a remote portion of the Arizona desert. Accounts of the case place Danielson's encounter with the couple on December 9, with their bodies discovered the following day.
Danielson restrained the Pratts and shot them in the head. He then stole their pickup truck and fled. The isolation of the campsite allowed him to put considerable distance between himself and the crime before the bodies were discovered. The stolen truck was later located abandoned in Yuma, Arizona. Authorities publicized the double homicide and eventually offered a reward for information, but at that stage investigators had not yet assembled the evidence that would connect the murders to Danielson's later crimes.
The Attempted Murders of Edwin and Ida Davis
Danielson's violence was not limited to people who died. On March 22, 1982, Edwin and Ida Davis, both 64, encountered Danielson and a younger female companion near El Cajon, California. The couple initially treated the strangers as acquaintances rather than threats.
The encounter became a robbery and attempted murder. Edwin and Ida Davis were overpowered, injected with a powerful animal tranquilizer and abandoned under circumstances suggesting that their attackers expected them to die. Both survived after receiving medical treatment. They later identified Danielson from photographs. Evidence concerning the attack was eventually presented during the penalty phase of Danielson's California murder trial as an example of his prior violent conduct.
The Murder of Arthur Edwin Gray Jr.
Danielson returned to Oregon during 1982. In June, he and Lanora Hart Johnson encountered 62-year-old Arthur Edwin Gray Jr., who had gone fishing. The available accounts place the attack in June 1982 and Gray's body was discovered on June 25 at or near the Twin Springs Campground east of Eugene.
Gray had been restrained and shot in the back of the head. Members of a youth group discovered his body. The similarities between Gray's death and Danielson's other crimes would later become significant: a vulnerable person in a relatively isolated recreational area was subdued before being killed.
Gray's murder became one of the crimes for which Danielson was eventually prosecuted separately in Oregon. Evidence about Gray's death was also introduced during Danielson's California capital case.
Benjamin and Edith Shaffer
During the summer of 1982, Danielson and Johnson traveled into Mendocino County, California. According to testimony later accepted by a jury and described by the California Supreme Court, the pair were short of money and discussed robbing and killing someone. Their eventual victims were Benjamin and Edith Shaffer, an older married couple traveling with a camper.
One morning in July 1982, Danielson and Johnson forced their way into the Shaffers' camper. Danielson displayed a handgun while Johnson guarded the couple. Danielson then drove the Shaffers' truck and camper into a wooded area. At Danielson's direction, Johnson tied the couple's hands. Danielson sent Johnson away with the Shaffers' dog, and while she was away she heard gunshots.
When Johnson returned, Benjamin and Edith Shaffer had been shot in the head. Danielson disposed of their bodies down an embankment before the couple's property was searched and stolen. Danielson and Johnson took travelers checks, credit cards and other belongings and drove away using the Shaffers' vehicle.
The stolen property became particularly important. Danielson and Johnson traveled through Nevada and made purchases using the Shaffers' credit cards and travelers checks. Danielson also reportedly spoke about the murders to an acquaintance. The Shaffers disappeared without an immediate explanation, and their case remained unresolved until investigators obtained information from Johnson.
The Murder of Ernest T. Corral
Danielson's known series continued into November 1982. Ernest T. Corral, 38, was an Apache Junction, Arizona, resident and employee of Kennecott Mineral Corporation. Corral's body was found on November 14, 1982, near Apache Junction.
Corral had been shot and left in a remote area. His murder shared important characteristics with other crimes attributed to Danielson, particularly the use of a firearm and the selection of an isolated location. Corral became the final known homicide victim in Danielson's 1981-1982 killing series.
Known Victims
- Thomas Elroy Davis, 21 - June 23, 1970 - Near Marcola, Oregon. Davis was fatally shot following a roadside confrontation. Danielson later pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and received a 25-year prison sentence.
- Harold David "Hal" Pratt, 60 - December 9-10, 1981 - Pinal County, Arizona, in the desert near Oracle Junction. The attack is reported as occurring on December 9; Harold and his wife were found dead on December 10. Danielson restrained and shot the couple and stole their pickup truck.
- Elizabeth Ann "Betty" Pratt, 55 - December 9-10, 1981 - Pinal County, Arizona. Betty was murdered with her husband Harold during their desert camping trip. Their bodies were discovered December 10.
- Arthur Edwin Gray Jr., 62 - June 1982; body discovered June 25, 1982 - Twin Springs Campground area east of Eugene, Oregon. Gray had gone fishing before he was restrained and fatally shot. Accounts differ on whether June 25 represents the killing date or discovery date, so the discovery date is specified here rather than presenting it as an unquestioned date of death.
- Benjamin Frederic Shaffer, 69 - July 1982 - Near Manchester in Mendocino County, California. Danielson and Johnson restrained Benjamin and his wife during a robbery. Danielson shot the couple and stole their camper, credit cards, travelers checks and other property. The California Supreme Court record identifies the murders as occurring in July but does not establish a specific day.
- Edith Shaffer - July 1982 - Near Manchester in Mendocino County, California. Edith was restrained along with her husband Benjamin and fatally shot. As with Benjamin, available court records establish July 1982 but do not provide a reliably established exact day of death.
- Ernest T. Corral, 38 - November 14, 1982 - Near Apache Junction, Arizona. Corral was shot and his body was found in a remote area outside the community.
Lanora Hart Johnson and the Investigation
A crucial figure in unraveling Danielson's crimes was Lanora Hart Johnson, who was only 14 when she became involved with the much older Danielson. She accompanied him during portions of his 1982 travels and participated in the restraint and robbery of victims. Her firsthand knowledge later provided investigators with an account of Danielson's crimes that they could compare against physical and circumstantial evidence.
Johnson eventually implicated Danielson and described the Shaffer murders. She led investigators to the area where the Shaffers had been killed, enabling authorities to recover evidence and reconstruct what had happened. At Danielson's later California trial, Johnson testified under an immunity arrangement. Her account was supported by other evidence, including stolen property, financial transactions involving the Shaffers' belongings and testimony from an acquaintance who said Danielson had admitted killing the couple.
Investigators also traced property belonging to Benjamin Shaffer to Danielson. A duffel bag recovered among Danielson's possessions was identified as Shaffer's, and investigators developed evidence involving the use or attempted use of the victims' financial instruments. Ballistics evidence also provided support for the prosecution's case.
Capture
By early 1984, Danielson was being actively sought in connection with multiple violent crimes. Warrants had been issued, and investigators were attempting to locate him across state lines. Federal authorities eventually traced Danielson to Odessa, Texas, where he was working with a traveling carnival.
Danielson was arrested in April 1984. His capture ended a period during which he had moved through several western states while using different locations and temporary circumstances to avoid detection. By then, investigators in Oregon and California had accumulated enough information to prosecute him for murders committed in both states.
California Trial and Death Sentence
Danielson was prosecuted in Mendocino County for the murders of Benjamin and Edith Shaffer. He faced charges including burglary, robbery, kidnapping and two counts of first-degree murder. Prosecutors also alleged special circumstances based upon multiple murders and murders committed during robbery and kidnapping, making Danielson eligible for the death penalty.
Johnson's testimony provided the jury with a detailed account of how the Shaffers had been selected, restrained, robbed and killed. Other witnesses and physical evidence corroborated portions of her story. The jury convicted Danielson of the murders and related offenses in 1986 and returned a death verdict.
One unusual incident associated with the case occurred when Danielson's mother, Mary Ann Bishop, attempted to provide him with a loaded handgun at the Mendocino County courthouse. The escape attempt was discovered, and Bishop herself was prosecuted and imprisoned.
Oregon Conviction
Danielson also faced prosecution in Oregon for Arthur Gray's murder. Evidence concerning Gray had already been heard during the penalty phase of the California case. Danielson was subsequently convicted of Gray's killing in Oregon and received a life sentence. Because of the timing of Gray's murder and Oregon's capital-punishment law, the Oregon prosecution did not result in another death sentence.
Appeals and Death
Danielson challenged his California convictions and death sentence, but in October 1992 the California Supreme Court affirmed the judgment. The court concluded that his convictions for the murders of Benjamin and Edith Shaffer and the accompanying death sentence would stand.
Danielson never reached an execution chamber. On September 7, 1995, while incarcerated on California's death row at San Quentin State Prison, he was found hanging in his cell. Prison personnel were unable to revive him, and his death was treated as a suicide. He was 49 years old.
Pattern and Legacy of the Crimes
Danielson's murders were characterized less by a single geographic hunting ground than by mobility. He moved between Oregon, Arizona and California and repeatedly encountered victims in places where isolation worked to his advantage. Campgrounds, parks, desert areas and other secluded settings offered victims who could be approached without immediately attracting witnesses.
Robbery was a consistent element of the series. Danielson did not simply kill and leave. Vehicles and personal belongings were taken, and in the Shaffer case the stolen credit cards and travelers checks became part of the evidence that ultimately helped expose him. Restraining victims and using a firearm were also repeated features.
The seven deaths commonly associated with Robert Wayne Danielson span twelve years, although six occurred within an approximately eleven-month period after his 1981 parole. The chronology illustrates one of the most disturbing aspects of the case: Danielson had already killed once, had spent more than a decade in prison for that death, and then returned to lethal violence almost immediately after obtaining his freedom. While he was investigated or suspected in additional crimes in the western United States, those cases are not included among his confirmed or commonly attributed victims without sufficient evidence to identify them as established Danielson murders.
