On November 9, 1971, John List did a terrible thing. He murdered his entire family. His day started as normal. He had his normal routine: coffee with his wife and seeing his children off to school before heading into work. However, today would be different.
After meticulous planning, he pointed a gun at the back of his wife’s head and with one click he she was dead. He continued his carnage by going into the attic where his 84-year old mother was sleeping. He murdered her by shooting her in the face above her left eye.
When his daughter Patricia and son Frederick came home from school, List hid behind the door. As they walked inside he shot both children execution style. He thought it was ok because they never saw it coming and didn’t suffer.
All that murdering made John hungry. He made a sandwich and drove to the bank to withdraw his money and close all his accounts. He then went to the local high school to watch his only living son's soccer game. When they got home List blindsided his son and shot him in the chest…the boy fought for his life but succumbed to the bullets that ravaged his body.
John List moved the bodies of his wife, daughter and sons into the ballroom and dumped them on top of sleeping bags and covered their faces with a white cloth. He left his mother in the attic to rot. Next he sat down and calmly and wrote a letter to his pastor explaining that he feared his financial struggles would make his family turn away from God. The world was full of poverty and evil. He killed them out of mercy. He slept peacefully in his bed that night.
The next morning he canceled all deliveries and called his children’s schools letting them know their family would be on vacation. He cleverly cut his face out of all the pictures in the house. It would be like chasing a ghost. When he disappeared he left all the lights on and a radio playing religious hymns in the background.
John planned the murders perfectly and month passed before anyone suspected a thing.
JOHN LIST - A BACKGROUND
John List was born on September 17, 1925 in Bay City, Michigan. When he graduated from Bay City Central high school he enlisted in the Army as a laboratory technician during WW2. After his discharge he attended the University of Michigan earning a bachelor's degree in business administration and a master's degree in accounting.
List met a widow named Helen and they were married in 1951. They had 3 children. Patricia, John and Frederick. They were devout members of a Lutheran church where List taught Sunday school.
List met a widow named Helen and they were married in 1951. They had 3 children. Patricia, John and Frederick. They were devout members of a Lutheran church where List taught Sunday school.
In 1965, List scored a position as vice president and comptroller at a bank in Jersey City, New Jersey. His family and mother moved into Breeze Knoll, a 19-room Victorian mansion at 431 Hillside Avenue in Westfield, New Jersey. Coincidentally, it was the same town that the Lindbergh baby was kidnapped and murdered in 1932.
By the early 1970's List's American dream was crumbling. He lost his job. For months he pretended to go to work while he looked for other jobs to no avail. He couldn’t bear to tell his family about the loss of his income. He couldn't disappoint his family. He was ashamed of his failures and believed he must kill his entire family in order to "save" them.
List initially fled to Denver, Colorado, landed an accounting job and assumed a new identity calling himself Robert Peter "Bob" Clark. The real Robert Clark was one of his college classmates who later claimed he never knew John List. He met Delores Miller at church and they were married in 1985.
By the early 1970's List's American dream was crumbling. He lost his job. For months he pretended to go to work while he looked for other jobs to no avail. He couldn’t bear to tell his family about the loss of his income. He couldn't disappoint his family. He was ashamed of his failures and believed he must kill his entire family in order to "save" them.
NEW PLACE, NEW IDENTITY
In February 1988, the couple moved to a house in Midlothian, Virginia. List resumed his career as an accountant for a small accounting firm.
AMERICA’S MOST WANTED
In 1989 America’s Most Wanted with John Walsh debuted their first season and showcased the story of John List and his murdered family.
The program had an audience of 22 million people and nine days later John List was apprehended.
List was a fugitive for 17 years, 6 months and 23 days. John thought he would never be caught. They were perfect murders. He didn't leave a trace. He was found guilty by a jury and a judge sentenced him to five life terms. John List died in prison in 2008 at age 82.
WHAT DID THE NEIGHBORS THINK?
The memory of the murders still haunts Westfield residents. In an interview in 2008, parents told a reporter in New Jersey that children will not walk past that property, nor do they even want to live on the same street.
Nine months after the murders the List family home burned down. The cause of the fire was arson but the crime was never solved. A few years later a new home was built in its place.
Currently there is a Netflix series called "The Watcher" which is loosely based on the crimes of John List.
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If you liked this story, you can watch Forensic Files HERE showcasing the List murders.
