Clementine Barnabet

Serial Killer

Clementine Barnabet: The Louisiana-Texas Ax Murder Case

Overview

Clementine Barnabet was a young Louisiana woman who became the central suspect in one of the most disturbing and confusing series of family murders in the early twentieth-century American South. Born around 1894 in St. Martin Parish, Louisiana, Barnabet was still a teenager when she was arrested in November 1911. Newspapers eventually portrayed her as an extraordinarily prolific serial killer, and Barnabet herself gave sensational confessions in which she claimed involvement in numerous murders. At one point she claimed participation in as many as 35 killings and said that she had personally committed many of them. The historical record, however, is considerably more complicated than the reputation that developed around her. Barnabet was convicted of only one murder: the killing of Azema Randall in Lafayette, Louisiana. Several murders attributed to the same supposed killer occurred after Barnabet had already been jailed, making it impossible for her to have personally committed those attacks. Her confessions also changed repeatedly and sometimes contradicted known details from the crime scenes. For those reasons, Clementine Barnabet is best described as a convicted murderer and suspected serial killer whose actual number of victims remains uncertain.

The Beginning of the Ax-Murder Panic

The crimes associated with Barnabet formed part of a larger series of nighttime attacks in Louisiana and Texas. Entire families were attacked inside their homes, usually while sleeping. Axes or hatchets were commonly used, and robbery generally did not appear to be the motive. Many of the victims were African American families living in communities located along or near major railroad lines. An early crime later associated with the series occurred in Rayne, Louisiana, during the early hours of November 13, 1909. Edna, or Edmee, Opelousas and her three children were attacked in their home. Edna was killed, and her mortally wounded children subsequently died. Other people were investigated in connection with that crime, and there is no reliable evidence proving that Barnabet committed it. Nevertheless, the case later became incorporated into accounts of the Louisiana-Texas ax murders. ...

Confirmed Victims: (0)

Clementine Barnabet - Wikipedia