2 Alleged Murderous "Curses"

[Music] before today's video starts we have a quick word from our sponsor amino amino is an amazing social media app that allows you to build and join communities about nearly every topic on earth this includes true-crime comic books kpop creepypasta and so much more recently Amina launched a new feature called stories which allows users to create short narrative videos crimini list is creating exclusive material for amino stories for our first story we cover the horrifying 1984 murder of Derek Roby the only thing more shocking the Derek's murder is the identity of the person who killed him you can only watch this story on the amino app Amina was free to download and he was available on both iOS and Android you can find the story in our profile by following the link in the description box below this video or you can search for our profile and they mean a lab our username is criminally listed and make sure you follow us and press the button for notifications because we'll be doing more stories in the future so please download amino today and check out our leia story and don't forget to follow us so you can watch outcoming stories number 2 The Village of the Damned [Music] tridon is a small town in New York's Finger Lakes region because of a string of grisly murders and untimely deaths that happened over a decade the town has been called the Village of the Damned because of all the tragic deaths some people think that the town was cursed in 1989 sure I didn't have a population of just over 30,000 people one family that lived in the town was the Harris family the family consists of 39 year old Warren Harris his 41 year old wife Delores and their children 15 year-old Shelby and 11 year-old mark Warren was a sales manager for an electronics company in Dolores owned a craft and antique shop they lived in an upscale handling of dried-in called Ellis Hollow the hamlet was home to about 150 families who lived on large tracts of land with lots of privacy [Music] it was a quiet Hamlet in a quiet town many residents did not lock their doors on the morning of December 23rd 1989 one of the Harrises neighbors called 9-1-1 the Harrises house was on fire the fire department came and they put the fire out they made a gruesome discovery inside the house it was the dead bodies of the Harrises the bodies of Warren Delores and their son mark were found in one room they had been bound to chairs of hillo cases were put over their heads they had all been shot in the back of the head with a 22 caliber handgun Shelby's body was found in a different room she had been sexually assaulted and then she was shot once in the head the medical examiner thought that the family having killed sometime between 6:00 p.m. and 10:15 p.m. the night before their bodies were found troupe SIA the New York State Troopers were the investigators on the case the state troopers thathe the killer may have stayed in the house until 6 a.m. just before the fire was discovered at first the police weren't sure what the motive was the family didn't have any enemies so the state troopers didn't know why someone would execute them three days before Christmas then they looked at Warren and Delores is Craig her transactions on the same day that their bodies were found their credit cards were used at stores in the nearby cities of Syracuse in Auburn someone had purchased diamonds electronics and clothes in total six purchases at 1334 dollars were made the state troopers interview employees of the stores where the purchases were made the employee said that black man in his mid 30s used the credit cards the state troopers had eight eyewitnesses talk to a sketch artist and result in eight different sketches some witnesses that woman who was also black but a little bit older than the man also made some purchases using Dolores Harrison's credit card about five weeks after the murderers the police got a tip a 33 year old Michael King might be the killer the state troopers watched Michael for about a week now February 8th 1990 they went to arrest him as mother's apartment using a battering ram they knocked down the door of the apartment when the state troopers under the apartment Michael was pointing a shotgun under his chin he then turned the gun on the state troopers it fired once the state troopers returned fire and Michael was hit he died a short time later Michael's mother Shirley King was arrested in the raid the state troopers were convinced that Shirley was involved in the murders or at least the aftermath surely admitted that she use Delores Harrison's credit card she said that her son had given it to her she said she only used it before she learned about the murderers Shirley swore that she had nothing to do with the murders or the fire Shirley was charged with nine felonies which included burglary arson and hindering the prosecution the state troopers said that they had one piece of evidence that tied Shirley to the crime scene it was a gas can that belonged to the Harrises that was found near their bodies the state troopers claim they found fingerprints on it and they were Shirley's finger friends [Music] Shirley King went to trial in the autumn of 1990 the fingerprints on the gas can was the prosecution's key piece of evidence Shirley's trial lasted for three months and then the jury deliberated for 11 hours she was found guilty on all charges she was sentenced to 18 to 44 years in prison and in 1991 there was an odd twist in the case one of the state troopers who investigate the crime David Harding was recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency which is better known by its acronym the CIA part of the recruitment process was that he was interviewed by an aging while he was hooked up to a polygraph machine he was told if he admitted to committing any crimes there would be an investigation and he could be charged during the interview hurting was asked if he would ever break the law to help his country in response hurting bring about fabricating evidence while working with the state troopers he boasted that he created evidence when they knew someone was guilty he said that in one case he lied about the amount of cocaine that wasn't a man's possession this resulted in a harsher sentence for the man hurting also admitted that he stole a thousand dollars from a drug raid after the interview the CIA told the United States Department of Justice what Harding has admitted to but amazingly 14 months went by before anything was done about it the delay was blamed on an oversight in the Justice Department in early 1992 the Justice Department started investigating troop C one of the first cases they looked at was the murder of the Harrises he turned out with a hurting head lifted fingerprints from Shirley King's workplace and they attached the fingerprints to an evidence card he then claimed that the fingerprints were found on the gas can [Music] in August 1992 Shirley's lawyer filed a motion to vacate her conviction the motion was granted and she was given a new trial she was released on bond while she awaited her trial since she had already spent two-and-a-half years in prison because of false evidence the district attorney chose not to prosecute her fairly moved to New Jersey after she was released and then she see the state of New York for five hundred million dollars she won a settlement of $250,000 [Music] the investigation and the troops he took for years thousands of cases were reviewed the Justice Department found 36 cases where finger prints were planted in ten more cases that could have been tainted the Justice Department thought at least six troopers have fabricated evidence five of them ended up serving jail time and one was acquitted David Harding whose admissions to the CIA launched the investigation was sentenced to four to twelve years of prison when Harding was asked why he bragged about manufacturing the evidence he explained that he was being recruited for the anti-terrorism unit he said that they told him we don't want to acquire or alter boys that we don't want any Boy Scouts the troops he scandal was the biggest scandal in the history of the New York State Police the supposed curse of Dryden struck again about three and a half years after the murder so the Harrises in the early 1990s Paul Jackson who grew up and Dryden was living in Virginia that was where he met Holly Mumma they dated for a year and a half and then they moved to a trailer park and ride in in July 1993 Mumma broke up with Jackson looma started moving her stuff from the trailer to an apartment just down the road she moves her possessions and sporadic trips throughout July in early August Jackson was hoping that he Mumma were going to get back together he wanted to marry Mumma and start a family with that in the first week of August we were told Jackson something he did not want to hear she was dating someone else it was their mutual friend 26 year old Scott Hume Hume lived in the same trailer park as Jackson and Mumma he'll frequently have barbecued and had drinks with Jackson mumma Jackson was devastated by the news on August 14th 1993 Paul Jackson who was 26 what - moon was apartment the door was unlocked so he let himself into the apartment he found human Mumma sleeping on the couch Jackson picked up a butcher knife except Hume once in the chest then knife in hand he ran away from the apartment got into his car and drove away moolah woke up and started screaming no n11 was called and Hume was rushed to the hospital but sadly shortly after arriving at the hospital 26 year-old Scott Hume was pronounced dead about an hour after the stabbing Jackson turned himself in he was charged with attentional second degree murder second degree felony murder at first degree manslaughter he went to trial in February 1994 and he pleaded not guilty he said that he just wanted to hurt him he had no intention of killing him he was found guilty of second-degree felony murder the first-degree manslaughter but he was found not guilty of intentional second-degree murderer he was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison the next chapter the suppose occurs started to unfold ten months after Paul Jackson's trial the star family lived in Courtland mill which is a Township just outside of dried-in at the end of 1994 Stephen Starr was 42 years old he taught sixth grade at Dryden Elementary and he was the coach of the Dryden high school football team he was married to a woman named Judy then they have three daughters Amy and Amber who were twins were 17 years old and Tiffany was 15 years old all three girls attended ridin high and they were popular they were all cheerleaders in the fall of 1994 amber started dating 20 year old Jonathan P merchant they dated for a few months and then amber broke it off merchants desperately wanted to get back together with Amber but is it attempts to reconcile soon became stalking then just after Christmas 1994 merchants threatened to kill Amber's new boyfriend when merchant made the threat Amber's father Steven was out of town playing in a basketball tournament on December 27th amber and her mother Judy went to the sheriff's office and filed an order of protection against merge in Martin was arrested that day he was released the next day after his family posted a $500 bail hours after merchant was released he called and threatened amber Judy went back to the sheriff's office and asked to have an officer and watch their house the sheriff's office sent an officer to sit in front of their house an officer watched the family's home on December 29th as well but when his shift was over he left and no one replaced him later that same night Steven returned home from his basketball tournament and he went to bed several hours later in the early morning of December 30th Merton walked up to the back door of the family's home using a 20 gauge shotgun he shot the lock off the door it entered the star's home he went directly to Amy's bedroom Steven went to protect his daughter the merchant shot him twice the rest of the star family made it out of the house safely and they ran to a neighbor's home Stephen left the house and drove to the cemetery three years earlier Mirjam was in high school and he was dating a fellow student while they were dating his girlfriend took her own life when she went to her grave and killed himself by shooting himself in the head 42 year old Stephen Starr was rushed to the hospital but sadly he died from his wounds his family considers him a hero he died protecting them another family that was devastated by the suppose occurs was the pace family billion Scott pace both attended Dryden high both boys were popular and they were star athletes they both played on the Dryden High football team and Stephen Starr had been their coach in the spring of 1995 Billy graduated from dragon high on August 20th 1995 he was riding in a car in collided with a highway sign Billy pays who was 19 years old was killed in the accident on September 10th 1996 just over a year after Billy died Billy's brother disguised attended football practice at her practice he was getting a ride to his girlfriend's house as they were driving a pickup truck backed out onto the road in front of them and the pickup truck Scott was riding in collided with it Scot who was 17 did not survive the collision two weeks after Scott died the town experienced another horrifying loss in the first week of September 1996 29 year-old Robert Bergman his wife and their two daughters moved into a house they just purchased and dried in Bergman was the supervisor of the reconditioning shop by a car dealership and ride in on the morning of September 14th 1996 Bergman went to work another employee at the dealership was 28 year old Edward Baily Bergman was not Bailey's direct supervisor they did not even work in the same department but Bergman supposedly boss Bailey around he chastised him at times Bailey did not like the way that Bergman treated him and he had complained to a supervisor on the morning of September 14 1996 Bailey and Bergman got into an argument Bailey went home and grabbed his 20 gauge shotgun and he returned to the dealership in shall 29 year-old Robert Bergman to death after killing the husband and father of two Billy went and told a co-worker and the police were called Billy was arrested in charge of the second degree murder he went to trial in February 1997 his lawyer had several psychologists testify they all said that Bailey had personality disorder they also said that at the time of the murder he was under extreme distress he was worried that Bergman was going to get him fired illy likes his job and without days he wasn't sure if he would be able to support his family the jury ended up acquitting Bailey of second-degree murder but they did find him guilty a first-degree manslaughter he was sentenced to 12 and a half years to 25 years in prison while all this was going on the star family was trying their best to move on with their lives amber Namie graduated from Dryden high and they moved away to college Tiffany became the head of the Dryden High cheerleading team the cheerleading team was a major source of pride for the town for 12 consecutive years they won the cheerleading championship on October 11th 1996 Dryden High had a football game it was an emotional game because only three weeks earlier their teammate Scott pace was killed in a car accident the cheerleaders had a problem when it came time to do the routines see with our teammates Jennifer ball duck is Sarah Haney who were both 16 didn't show up for the game the rest of the cheerleading team was concerned because neither of them had ever missed a game little do they know where the police have been called as Sarah hey nice home Sarah's parents were out of town and the night before the game Jennifer had slapped at their house some of the Sarah's family had gone to check on her and they were disturbed by what they found in the bathroom there clearly had been a struggle the shower curtain had been torn down and the shower soap dish was broken both Sarah and Jennifer's cheerleader outfits were in the house but the girls were nowhere to be found the police discovered that the Haney's car was missing it was found abandoned about four miles from the Haney's home the police force the trunk open and they found evidence that the girls had been in the trunk one of the first people the police interviewed was a man who lived next door to the Haney's 31 year old johnny Andrews from a window in an upstairs bedroom in Andrews house you could see directly into the Haney's bathroom where there had been a struggle Andrews had served in the Air Force and he had been stationed in Germany while he was stationed there he attacked two women while he was wearing a ski mask he was charged with assault he was dishonorably discharged he served time at the United States penitentiary love and Werth after he got out of prison he moved to the dryden area and got a job as a lathe operator he told the police he did not know what happened to the girls about 48 hours after Jennifer and Sarah went missing a woman called the police and told them that she had found a puddle of blood on the floor of her hunting cabin the cabin was less than 40 miles away from where the girls were kidnapped it turned out that the woman who called about the blood was Johnny and her sister the police heard searching in the area around the cabin and they found some of Sarah and Jennifer's body parts they found more body parts gather along the road leading up to the cabin the police never publicly discussed what happened to the girls except to say that they were tortured and dismembered Johnny Andrews was arrested in charge with their murders November 2nd 1996 about a month after the girls were kidnapped hinders hanged himself in his jail cell sadly this gruesome double murder was at the end of Dryden's backlog Katie Savino was a classmate close friend of Sarah and Jennifer she was also a member of the Dryden high cheerleading team Savino graduated in 1998 and she went to State University of New York on June 11th 1999 Savino was back and Dryden she went out to a bar that was just a sighted riding with her friend Cheryl Thayer how driving several drinks Savino three male friends if they are caught into a car there who was 19 was driving and she was intoxicated she blew a stop sign on the country road in a truck collided with her car everyone in the car except for Katie Savino God l live she was just 19 years old there was sentenced to 6 months of prison the sad final chapter the suppose occurs havin three months after kaci Savino was killed Mike thought was a close friend of Savino he had played linebacker for Dryden high he played with Scott pace and he was coached by Stephen Starr one day in August 1999 Bob walked into the woods been using a shotgun he took his own life Mike thought was 19 years old when he died from 1989 to 1999 fifteen people living in the Dryden area died violent and untimely deaths for this reason many people believe that Dryden was cursed other people think that the cluster of death was just a tragic statistical anomaly many of the residents who live through Dragons dark days have tried to move on with their lives but they said that they have some scars that will never heal number one the curse of The Little Rascals [Music] in September 1922 the first film in the arguing series was released the short silent film was the start of one of the most successful comedy franchises in history the film series feature The Adventures of a group of children who lived in a poor neighborhood the series was created by film producer Hal Roach in total there was 220 short films and they featured 167 child actors in 1955 80 of the short films which were all talkies were syndicated for television and broadcast under the title The Little Rascals there are rumors that the cast of the series was cursed proponents occurs point out that several stars of the show died young in untimely deaths for example in 1936 Norman Chaney who play the character chubby in 19 of the films died after an operation he was just 21 years old William Robert lifeline who portrayed the character froggy from 1940 to 1944 was killed at the age of 16 in a scooter accident where there's Bobby Hutchinson he played the character Weiser from 1927 to 1933 in May 1945 he was training to be a pilot for the army he died at the age of 20 after a mid-air collision during a training exercise these are just a few examples of cast members who died young several other cast members died from health problems and accidents before the age of 65 but some other cast members were people very close to them died in very violent ways Harold Switzer was born in January 1925 of Harris Illinois chewing off years later his brother Carl was born in 1934 Harold Carl and the rest of their family were on vacation in Los Angeles California [Music] while they were on their vacation they visited Hal Roach Studios which lost the careers of Will Rogers and LaRon Hardy it was also the studio that produced the archaic films during their visit to the studio the family stopped off at the cafeteria which was open to the public in the cafeteria Herald ocurro started singing and dancing are again creator Hal Rhodes saw them perform and he was oppressed he offered both of them roles in arguing films for the arguing films Harold was given the nicknames deadpan and slim [Music] Carl's character was named alfalfa Harold a Carl first appeared in the short film beginner's luck which was released in February 1935 alfalfa proved to be a fan favorite and he became one of the main characters of the series nearly 85 years after his debut alfalfa is the most recognizable character from the low Rascals he is known for his cowlick if we're singing off he Harrell did not have as much success and he became a background character Harold appeared in over 30 arguing films after he left the series in 1940 he stayed away from the film industry Carl was in twice as many films as his brother but he also left the series in 1940 at the age of 12 unlike his brother Carl continued to work as an actor but he struggled to get roles the problem was that since he was so famous for being alfalfa he was typecast when he did laying the role it was usually a minor one after failing for years he has steady work in the film industry he tried to get roles on TV shows but once again he did not have much luck as an adult Carl works several part-time jobs because his acting didn't generate enough income also he didn't receive any residuals from his work on our game in 1854 but Karl was 27 he went on a blind date with a woman named Diane thick hauling blood they were married three months later in the mid-1950s Karl was still having problems finding acting work so he decided to stop pursuing that career in 1955 Karl diantha moved to diantha's family farm the pretty fairy Wisconsin other time diantha was pregnant Karl told his friends they plan to be a farmer but Karl did not have any experience working on a farm and he found the work very difficult not long after they relocated diantha gave birth to a son in 1957 Carlin diantha got divorced the Karl moved back to the Los Angeles area in 1958 Karl got supporting role in the movie the Defiant ones which starred Sidney Poitier and Tony Curtis Karl finished filming his scenes in early 1959 well Karl look for his next role he worked two part-time jobs he was a bartender and he worked for his Godfather the legendary singer and actor Roy Rogers Rogers own a business that took celebrities bear-hunting Karl worked as a guide on the hunting expeditions for the bear hunting business Karl borrowed a dog from his friend Moses stills but not long after Karl got the dog he ran away Carl put up posters offering a reward for the dogs returned a few days after the dog ran away a man called Carl and told him he found the dog Carl had the man bring the dog to the bar where he worked he paid the man thirty five dollars and he gave him $15 worth of drinks a couple weeks went by and Carl was out of money at the same time the Carl was suffering financial hardship the our gang films were in television syndication under the title The Little Rascals the show was immensely popular and alfalfa was one of the most famous characters on television the show was generating millions of dollars in revenue but Carl saw none of the money because he was now contractually entitled to any residuals in the weeks after Karl got the dog back he drank heavily he also began to think that even though he was the one who lost the dog Moses still should have paid the reward to get the dog back On January 21st 1958 Karl and his friend Jack Pyatt were drinking they decided to go collect the money from stilts there are three different versions as to what happened when they got there what is known is that when the police arrived karl was bleeding from a gunshot wound in his crotch he was rushed to the hospital but he was pronounced dead on arrival when he died Karloff Alfa Switzer was 31 years old stilts had a black eye if Hyatt was unharmed the police interviewed stills and he gave them one version of what happened he said that Karl Mayer came to his door and started pounding on it Karl told him to open the door or he would kick it down SILS said that he opened the door and saw that car oh my you were drunk Karla pie had stepped inside the Carl demanded $50.00 to reimburse him for the money he paid for the reward to get the dog back accounting for inflation in 2019 that has about $440 still said that they got into an argument if I had hit him in the head with a dome glass clock still said that is how he got the black eye still says he went to address her and pulled out a 38 caliber revolver out of a drawer still said that he and Carl fought over the gun and a gun went off the bullet went into the ceiling and no one was hurt still said that Carl got rolled the gun but he was able to wrestle it back stills clay that Carl had pulled a knife which he described as a switchblade still said Carl threw the knife at him and then he fired the fatal gunshot SILS claimed he was acting in self-defense the police found a penknife on the floor in the area where carl collapse from his wound hyatt had a slightly different story he said that stills did not act in self-defense he claimed that one still shot Carl Carl was unarmed I said that the only reason he got out of the house alive was because he begged for his life [Music] the day after the shooting Moses stills was booked on suspicion of murderer four days later he testified for the coroner's jury and told his version of what happened the night Carl died the jury decided that he acted in self-defense and the charges against him were dropped carl switzer died on the same day as famed director Cecil B DeMille as a result Carl's death received little attention in the news people believe that this is just more evidence that the cast of The Little Rascals was cursed 42 years after Carl's death a third version of what happened on the night he died emerged in 2001 a 56 year-old man named Tom Corrigan was interviewed by a reporter with a news wire service Tom is the son of actor and stuntman Rey crash Corrigan his stepdad was Moses stilts Tom told the reporter that he was in the house on the night that Carl was killed he claimed that Carl was murdered and that his stepfather did not act in self-defense heesu the carl knocked on their door and he said he was from Western Union Tom said that his stepfather instantly recognized Carl's voice Tom said that still sweating grabbed his gun and still slick Harl into the house and they fought over the gun the gun fired in the bullet entered the ceiling Tom said he was hit in the leg with a piece of plaster from the ceiling after the first shot was fired Tom said that his sister's ran to his neighbor's house to get some help Tom said that he started to walk out of the house himself Tom said that when Carl saw he was hurt he realized how serious the situation had become and he told Piatt thought they should leave Tom told the reporter as he was walking out of the house he heard a second gunshot he turned around and he saw Carl slump against the wall in the hallway beside him was an unopened penknife Tom said that was the first time he saw the penknife he thought for the penknife might have fallen out of Carl's pocket what he slumped against the wall Tom said that still centered the gun towards pyon pyon beg for his life Tom's mother Rhea Corrigan step between them if I was able to leave the house unharmed after the article was published Tom was interviewed by a police officer and he was asked if he would testify in front of the coroner's jury Tom agreed but he never ended up testifying if Moses stills did murder Carl it was too late for him to face justice Moses had died in May 1983 at the age of 62 every Christmas up until the year he died still swagga card in the mail they were always signed Alfie the identity of the person who sent the cards is unknown Carl's brother Harold Switzer also did not escape the suppose a hearse when Harold was in his forties he owned a laundromat with a man named Michael is Oh at times their relationship was turbulent and they would argue on April 14th 1967 just eight years after his brother was shot to death Harold it was 42 oh it is oh it was 29 we're drinking together at the home of eso's father they got into an argument and Harold shot him multiple times his Oh died as a result of his wounds hours later Harold shot himself in a remote area your gun down California another victim of the supposed curse was Scott back at Beckett was born in October 1929 in Oakland California when he was three years old he was visiting his father in the hospital so make his father feel better Beckett's saying to him a film producer heard him saying and he told Becca's parents they should audition for movies Becca's first role was in the 1933 movie gallant lady after appearing in the movie Hal Roach hired Beckett to act in our gang Beckett's characters trademark was wearing a baseball hat that was always ask you in an oversized sweater Beckett appeared at 15 arguing films often in the role of the best friend while the main characters Spanky he left the series in 1935 and he continued to get film roles as a teenager he played a young Al Jolson in the Al Jolson story he played a younger version of Ali Baba in Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves his most notable posts arguing role was on the sci-fi show rocky Jones Space Ranger it was a supporting role but it was steady work for Beckett the show ran for two seasons the older Becket God the harder was for him to find roles in the early 1950s he started to drink heavily and do drugs in February 1954 the police were called to a hotel in Los Angeles an armed man had robbed the night clerk of $137 hours later Beckett was found asleep in a shower in the basement of the hotel the police searched his car it found a loaded rifle Bhagya claimed he didn't rob the night clerk he said he had been driving and he was exhausted so he went to the hotel's basement to sleep the clerk was not able to identify Beckett as the robber so he wasn't charged with robbery but he was charged for violating gun control laws Baggett posted $2,500 for bail and he was released from jail after he was released back at his wife and their three-year-old son flied to Mexico in Tampico Mexico Becca cash three fake checks and then the family left the city the Mexican police track them to Ciudad Victoria when the Chief of Police in Ciudad Victoria went to question them at their hotel room Beckett his wife and his son tried to run away the chief caught them avec ade opened fire on him this led to a gunfight between Beckett and the chief in at least 20 shots were exchanged the family managed to get into their car and they drove off no one was hurt in the gunfight twenty five miles away from the scene of the shooting the family got a flat tire the police arrested back in without further incident bengi will sentence one year in prison in Mexico and he ended up serving four months even went back to Los Angeles he was getting probation on the weapons charge in the summer 1964 that he got into an argument with his 14 year old stepdaughter Susan Becky wanted to use the phone and Susan would not let him so Beckett swore at her and pulled her hair during another fight that same month Beckett hit Susan over the head with a crutch Beckett was arrested and charged with battery he plead guilty to a lesser charge he was sentenced to three years probation how long after he was sentenced he attempted suicide by swallowing 30 sleeping pills he was rushed to the hospital and he survived three years later back ahead who was 38 years old checked himself into a nursing home in Los Angeles he checked himself into the home because he had just suffered a severe beating who beat him up and why they'd be the mob is a mystery to this day however it's suspected that he was beat over a drug deal gone bad few days after Rebecca checked into the nursing home the 38 year old former child actor was found dead in his room it was thought that he died after purposely overdosing on barbiturates another possibility is that he died as a result of the wounds he suffered when he was beat up when autopsy was performed and no cause of death could be determined sadly not even the dog actors from the arguing films were immune for the supposing hers the first dog to play Peetha pop was a dog named Pao the wonder dog howl was an American Pit Bull Terrier on my dog trainer Harry listen Harry before pal was featured in the our gang films he was in a series of uh sir Brown films Powell naturally had a nearly full circle of dark fur around his right eye for the Buster Brown films the eye was used to make it a complete circle but hogging to work on the arguing films he still had died around his right eye Rocinha wanted him to have a circle around his eye but there was nothing that could be done because the die was permanent but it turned out to be a benefit because of me the character Pete the pop one of the most recognizable dogs in film history Powell was an incredibly popular part of the film series [Music] he started off being paid $125 a week and then it was increased by $25 every week this made him the second highest paid actor on the show with that in June 1930 how the wonder dog died it turned out that he was fast and poisoned me whatever poison Powell was never identified there is speculation that the dog was killed because someone had a grudge against his owner area loosen Harry but since the killer was never caught it's unclear what his or her motive was after pal died one of his offspring Pete took his place Pete lacked his father's signature circle around the I so legendary makeup artist Max Factor would draw a circle around pizza while pal circle was around his right eye factor would draw a circle around Pete's left eye so that they were mirror images of each other Pete's owner Harry loosen Harry was fired in 1932 so Pete left the show after Pete the studio used a variety of dogs to replace him when the series came to an end in 1944 one of the dogs was given to an employee of the studio er Lloyd Lloyd ended up giving the dog to his daughter and her family the Robertsons who lived in Norco California the dog who was also an American Pit Bull Terrier named Pete was a friendly dog the family thought of him as a family member the youngest child in the family learned to walk by holding onto peat in April 1946 the family found Pete dead just a few feet from their back door he haven't shot once with a buckshot they had no idea who shot him or why someone would commit such a senseless crime the most recent crime connected to the suppose occurs involves a man who was born michael james gubitosi michael was born in 1933 to James and Elizabeth gubitosi in Nutley New Jersey from a young age his parents called him Mickey James and Elizabeth desperately wanted Mickey and his older brother an older sister to get into the movie business but Mickey was a toddler his family relocated to Los Angeles California Elizabeth took her kids around to auditions and in 1939 when Mickey was five he landed an uncredited role in the movie Bridal Suite the same year he got a role on the arguing film series between 1939 and 1944 Mickey whose character name was also make he appeared in 40 arguing films in 1942 producers of the show suggested that Mickey she got a new stage name so he took on the name Bobby Blake the arguing film series came to an end in 1944 and Mickey was the last main character of the series after our game Blake continue to get film work well Blake had a fairly successful career he said that his home life was a Horror Story growing up he said that both his mother and father physically and emotionally abused him he said that sometimes they would lock him in the closet and leave him there all day other times they made him eat food off the floor in 1950 Blake was drafted into the Army and he did a short stint in 1956 he started using the stage name Robert Blake the same year his dad died by suicide plane continued to get sporadic roles but he was a concern movie star or a television star and in 1967 he got rolled that launched him into stardom it was playing real-life mass murderer Perry Smith in the abdication of Truman Capote's in cold blood the cold blood is widely considered the first true crime book ever written the book and the movie about the murders the four members the clutter family who were killed on November 15 1959 in their home in Holcomb Kansas Perry Smith and his partner Richard Hickok were arrested convicted and executed for the crime the movie was ahead and led to more roles for Blake in 1975 the television show beretta debuted on ABC Blake started in the show as tony beretta a plainclothes tough-talking detective with a pet cockatoo named Fred he often used catchphrases which included if you can't do the time don't do the crime the show was popular at in 1975 Blake won an Emmy for the role this was followed by a Golden Globe in 1976 were either lost in it for three seasons Brenna's considered place best-known role in 1993 Blake played another mass murderer he played John list in the made-for-tv movie Judgment Day the John list story in November 1971 was shot to death his mother his wife his three children he then fled and assumed a new identity he stayed on the lam for 18 years and then he was arrested in June 1989 after America's Most Wanted is segment on him and one of his neighbors recognized him for the world like was once again nominated for an Emmy but he did not win in 1997 Blake had notable role in David Lynch's cult classic Lost Highway he played a character only known as the mystery man at that point in his life Blake only took roles that interested him he was frugal and he invested his money wisely so he was quite wealthy at the end of August 1998 Blake who was nearly 65 by 42 year old bonny Lee Bakley had a jazz club in Los Angeles Blakely started flirting with Blake they talked about the fact that they were both born in New Jersey Blake went back to her hotel room that night it was the start of a romantic relationship Bakley had moved out to California in 1995 shortly after Dean Martin died before moving there Bakley I've been living in Memphis Tennessee she I've been making frequent trips Los Angeles because she was stalking Dean Martin she was hoping to become Martin's mistress and then inherit all his money well the furthest she got with Martin was a photo with him during your trips Los Angeles she fell in love with the city so she moved their vehicle II was described as a grifter and a thief she made her money by selling nude photos of herself and other women throughout she placed in swingers magazines she also ran lonely hurt scams she would meet men through personalized and correspond with them she would promise them sex in exchange for money and gifts but she would never meet up with the man she would reroute the men's checks like from Social Security and then cashed them herself by the time she met Blake she had been married at least nine times many times she married the men because they were rich where they had a big life-insurance policy bakley's big dream was marrying a celebrity this led her to stalk Dean Martin when vaguely met blade she was pursuing another man Christian Brando Christian was the son of actors Marlon Brando and Anna Kashfi in May 1990 Christian shot his half-sisters boyfriend to death and their fathers will halt and drive home krisily guilty to manslaughter and he was released from prison in 1996 after serving about five years of prison Bakley told her friends that sometimes Christian had paranoid delusions [Music] throughout 1998 in early 1999 Begley took a fertility drug and had unprotected sex with both Christian and Blake at the end of summer in 1999 she was pregnant because of the timing she was sure that it was Blake's baby and she told him he was going to be a father Blake was adamant that he did not want her to go through with the pregnancy Begley refused to consider putting an end to the pregnancy being impregnated by a celebrity was exactly what she wanted she also told Christian Brando that he was the father even though she knew that was impossible On June 2nd 2000 make league a birth to a daughter she named her Christian Shannon Brando Begley named her this even though she knew the baby was Blake's most people who saw the baby could tell she was Blake's daughter because of the resemblance Bakley gave birth in Arkansas because of the time she was serving a probation term there in February 1996 shortly after she moved to California she was driving through Arkansas that she was pulled over for running a stop sign the police asked for some ID his 7 driver's license with different aliases on them fell over purse the officer searched her purse and her car they found five social security cards and 16 credit cards they all had different names on them Bakley was arrested and she went to trial 17 months later in February 1998 she was sentenced to three years of probation one of the terms of her probation was that she was not supposed to leave Arkansas the only exception was that she was allowed to go to Memphis Tennessee to see her three children but vaguely didn't follow the rules of her probation and she traveled a California frequently she was on probation when she met Christian Brando and Robert Blake after Bakley gave birth she violated the terms of her probation and she and the baby traveled to Los Angeles to meet Blake in Los Angeles she Blake went to a cafe while the baby stayed with a nanny as they were eating two police officers showed up to arrest Bakley for violating the terms of her probation the officers made a deal with Bakley they told her they wouldn't arrest her as she flew back to Arkansas right away Bakley agreed the Blake said he would take care of the baby it turned out that Bailey's probation officer had no idea she wasn't in Arkansas also the police officer she threatened to arrest her weren't real police officers they were just actors it was all a setup by Blake to get the baby Bakley threatening charge blake with kidnapping this is where he blake so he asked Bakley what he could do to make sure she didn't go to the police Bakley said she wanted to get married Blake agreed and they were Wed in the private ceremony in November 2000 six months later she finished her probation term and she moved into the guest house uh Blake's property even though they were married they never lived in the same house the baby's name was changed to Rosalyn or Sofia Blake on May 4th 2001 several weeks after Bakley moved into Blake's guesthouse Blake asked her to go out for dinner she agreed they went out to what the Blake's favorite restaurants it was an Italian restaurant that had a dish named after Blake after they ate they walked a Blake's car which was parked have a blog from the restaurant about 20 minutes after they left the restaurant Blake started begging on the doors of homes close to where the car was parked blake was screaming that his wife had been shot a man answers his door and he called 9-1-1 first responders found 44 year-old bonny Lee Bakley dying from two gunshot wounds she was sitting in the passenger seat at Blake's car her window was partially rolled down this led the police to think that she was either killed while she was being robbed or she knew the shooter she was alive when first responders got to the scene and she was rushed to the hospital but she was pronounced dead not long after arriving at the hospital the police brought play to the police station for questioning Blake said that after dinner they walked to his car Blake said that he carried a revolver and he said they carry the gun for the benefit of Bakley he said because of her past crimes of ripping off men he thought people would want to hurt her Blake said that he forgot his revolver at the restaurant and he went back to get it Bakley stayed in the car blake said when he came back he found Blakely shot the police found Blake's response and his story fairly odd when vehicle II was taken away in the ambulance she was still alive but while Blake was talking to the police he didn't ask how she was doing he also didn't ask questions like who have killed her or did they arrest anyone the police also thought that the way Blake responded to the shooting was odd Bakley had a cell phone yep Blake didn't use it to call 9-1-1 calling 9-1-1 from the cellphone would have been the fastest way to get Bakley help instead he went to several houses before he found someone who called 9-1-1 the police asked Blake to take a polygraph exam and he refused he said he was too upset the police checked his hands for gunshot residue for the results were inconclusive the police were not able to determine if Blake really did leave his gun at the restaurant no one saw him returned to the restaurant after he paid the bill his revolver was not the murder weapon the police found the murder weapon in a dumpster near the car it was a vintage 25 caliber handgun he'd have been covered in oil so no fingerprints were found on it the morning after the murder Blake's lawyer held a press conference where he bashed Bakley he talked about her past crimes and her criminal record now long after Bakley was killed two men went to the police and told on that Blake had approached them without killing his wife for money both men said they turned him down the police were able to verify that playe talked to the two men on the phone several times in the weeks before Bakley was killed the police then talked to a man who was a Lackey and occasional bodyguard of Blake's named Earl Caldwell the police searched Caldwell's home and they found a handwritten list that included items like a crowbar a rug duct tape a pool acid the police thought it was a murder preparation list one item on the list really caught the attention of the police it said 25 auto Bakley was shot with a vintage 25 caliber automatic handgun something else the police noted was that Caldwell was a vintage gun collector Caldwell told the police that the list was items needed to do maintenance around Flakes property [Music] he said that 25 auto was in regards to a car repair and he showed the police or received from a garage in April 2002 11 months after the murder Robert Blake and Earl Caldwell were arrested Blake was charged with murder with special circumstances two counts of solicitation of murder a conspiracy to commit murder Caldwell was charged with conspiracy to commit murder but the charges were later dismissed in December 2004 Blake's trial began the prosecution argue the flake killed Bakley because she had drifted him and trapped him in a loveless marriage the defense argued that Bakley had ripped off a lot of men so she had plenty of enemies he would want to kill her the defense also says that one person he may wanted to kill her was a man who shot someone to death and went to prison for it Christian Brando the prosecution had the team and he said that Blake asked them to kill his wife testify the defense showed evidence that both men used hard drugs and had a history of hallucinating the defense also contended that the Los Angeles Police Department and the district attorney's office was still upset that OJ Simpson was acquitted eight years earlier the acquittal was very embarrassing to the LAPD and the District Attorney's Office as a result they wanted a high-profile prosecution of a celebrity to redeem themselves the trial lasted for ten weeks the jury deliberated for 35 hours Robert Blake was found not guilty of murder and not guilty on one count of solicitation of murder the jury was deadlocked on the other charges those charges were later dismissed in a press conference after the trial the district attorney did something rare and criticized the jury he said the members of the jury were stupid flakes spent nearly 10 million dollars on his defense many people think that Blake hill Bakley or at least arranged her murderer and he got away with it because he was rich and famous after the trial bakley's three children from her previous relationships filed a wrongful death lawsuit against blake eight months after Blake was acquitted a bakley's murder a jury found him financially responsible for her death he was ordered to pay thirty million dollars the settlement was later lowered to fifteen million dollars [Music] Blake has not had a film or television role since 1998 Lost Highway he claims they now lives in poverty but so many tragedies connected to our gang and the law Rascals people are convinced that the curse is real in 1973 the creator Hal Roach was asked if he believed the curse was real he said naturally some got into trouble or had bad luck they're the ones he made the headlines but if you took 176 other kids who followed them through their lives I believe you would find the same percentage of them having trouble later in life thank you so much for watching hopefully you found it interesting if you did please give us a thumbs up and subscribe for more videos just like it and don't forget to go criminalists comm where you can suggest cases by merge and find out the exclusive podcast well that's all for today thank you again for watching [Music]

Channel: undefined

Views: 1,698,239

Rating: 4.6397276 out of 5

Keywords: Stephen Starr, Dryden, Cheryl Thayer, Katie Savino, Mike Vogt, John Andrews, Cheerleader murders, Jennifer Bolduc, Sarah Hajney, Robert Bergman, Edward Bailey, Johnathan Merchant, Paul Jackson, Scott Hume, Troop C Scandal, Shirley Kinge, Michael Kinge, Harris Family, Our Gang, Robert Blake, Bonnie Lee Bakley, Bonny Lee Bakley, Scott Beckett, Harold Switzer, Carl Switzer, Little Rascals, Alfalfa, Moses Stiltz

Id: huzvUv8nvzM

Length: 76min 12sec (4572 seconds)

Published: Mon Jul 01 2019