Lee Roy Martin: The Gaffney Strangler

Morbid

08/22/24

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66m

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In the winter of 1968, reporter Bill Gibbons got an anonymous call from a man who wanted to confess to three murders in the small town of Gaffney, South Carolina. Gibbons thought the call was a prank, but he took it to the sheriff and the two men travel out to the first of three locations where the caller claimed to have left the bodies. After searching casually through the underbrush for a short time, the men discover the nude body of twenty-year-old Nancy Carol Paris, who’d been strangled to death. At the second location, they discovered the body of fourteen-year-old Tina Rhinehart, who appeared to have been killed in the same manner as Paris. Investigators soon learned that the third location the caller gave was where police had discovered the body of Annie Dedmond six months earlier.

In the days that followed, the “Gaffney Strangler,” as the press would come to call him, would contact Gibbons several more times, demanding that he print stories about the murders in the newspaper. He also insisted that Gibbons and the sheriff’s department needed to do something about the fact that Annie Dedmond’s husband, Roger, was sitting in jail for Annie’s murder. Then, a week later, the strangler struck again, this time kidnapping fifteen-year-old Opal Buckson in broad daylight, throwing her in the trunk of his car while her sister watched helplessly. Opal’s body would be discovered a week later, dead like the others.

A few days after the discovery of Opal’s body, police arrested Lee Roy Martin, a local mill worker and father of three who’d been born and raised in Gaffney. The arrest shocked the local residents and left everyone wondering, in a town as small as Gaffney, how could they have lived their entire lives with a violent psychopath and never known it?

Thank you to the incredible Dave White of Bring Me the Axe Podcast for research!

References

Charlotte Observer. 1972. "About Roger Dedmond, convicted of killing his wife." Charlotte Observer, November 7: 30.

2015. A Crime to Remember. Directed by Christine Connor. Performed by Christine Connor.

Dalton, Robert, and Craig Peters. 2009. Gaffney Strangler terrorized town 40 years ago, murdering 4 women. July 5. Accessed July 29, 2024. https://www.goupstate.com/story/news/2009/07/05/gaffney-strangler-terrorized-town-40-years-ago-murdering-4-women/29885910007/.

Fuller, Bill, and Jack Horan. 1968. "Dog only murder witness?" Charlotte Observer, February 10: 1.

Gaffney Ledger. 1968. "Attorneys ask court transcript of trial." Gaffney Ledger, February 21: 1.

—. 1968. "Officers search well; find Opal's clothing." Gaffney Ledger, February 28: 1.

Howe, Claudia. 1968. "Grim mystery, violent deaths engulf Gaffney." Charlotte Observer, February 14: 10.

Jones, Mark R. 2007. Palmetto Predators: Monsters Among Us. Charleston, SC: The History Press.

Martin, Tommy. 1988. "Lives of golf pro, texile worker crossed paths on February 13, 1968." Gaffney Ledger, February 5: 4.

—. 1968. "Martin sentenced to life in prison." Gaffney Ledger, September 19: 1.

McCuen, Sam E. 1968. "Crank telephone calls plague Gaffney police." The State, February 16: 19.

—. 1968. "Gaffney girl is kidnapped." The State, February 14: 1.

—. 1968. "Mother convinced her son innocent." The State, February 9: 1.

Skipp, Catherine. 2009. "Gaffney, S.C. haunted by murderous memories ." Newsweek, July 8.

The Gaffney Ledger. 1968. "Martin is charged in 3 stranglings." Gaffney Ledger, February 19: 1.

The State. 1968. "2 bodies found after phone call." The State, February 9: 1.

—. 1968. "Suspect attempts suicide." The State, February 21: 15.

Truluck, Jack. 1968. "In-laws believe Dedmond is guilty." Gaffney Ledger, February 21: 1.

United Press International. 1968. "Lee Roy Martin indicted in 4 Gaffney stranglings." Greenville News, May 21: 1.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Previous Episode

Nellie May Madison: California’s First Woman on Death Row

August 19, 2024

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96m

On the afternoon of March 25, 1934, Belle Bradley found one of her tenants, forty-five-year-old Eric Madison, dead on the floor of the apartment he rented with his wife, Nellie. Madison had been shot in the back four times with a .32 caliber revolver and there was no sign of Nellie Madison, nor was there any evidence of a break-in or a robbery. In the days that followed, investigators quickly determined that Nellie had shot her husband and they tracked her to a remote cabin in northern California, where she was arrested and taken back to Los Angeles and charged with the murder.

To the Los Angeles police and press, Nellie Madison was suspicious from the very start; not for any obvious reason or evidence against her, but because she openly defied the categories and characteristics used to define a wife and woman at the time. Although she was only thirty-three years old, she had been married five times and yet had no children. She also had a strong skillset from having worked many jobs, and having been raised on a farm in Montana, she was a skilled survivalist who had never needed the help of a man. Going into the murder trial, it was these facts, more than any physical evidence or witness testimony, that would count against her.

After a two-week trial, Nellie Madison was found guilty for the murder of her husband and sentenced to death, making her the first woman to ever sit on death row in the state’s history. However, Nellie’s death sentence was hardly the end of her case; in fact, it was the turning point in the story that would finally bring the truth about Eric’s death into the light.

Thank you to the incredible Dave White of Bring Me the Axe Podcast for research!

References

Cairns, Kathleen. 2005. "Saved From the Gallows." California Supreme Court Historical Society 5-14.

—. 2007. The Enigma Woman: The Death Sentence of Nellie May Madison. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press.

2015. A Crime to Remember. Television. Directed by Christine Connor. Accessed July 23, 2024.

Los Angeles Evening Post-Record. 1934. "Calls woman Lady Macbeth." Los Angeles Evening Post-Record, June 20: 1.

—. 1934. "Hint Madison is still alive." Los Angeles Evening Post-Record, June 13: 1.

—. 1934. "Mrs. Madison facinc noose; plans appeal." Los Angeles Evening Post-Record, June 23: 1.

—. 1934. "Self defense may be argued." Los Angeles Evening Post-Record, June 6: 1.

—. 1934. "Widow unmoved by death story." Los Angeles Evening Post-Record, April 12: 7.

Los Angeles Times. 1934. "Auditor found slain; wife hunted in inquiry." Los Angeles Times, March 26: 15.

—. 1934. "Death clew hunt pushed." Los Angeles Times, April 1: 17.

—. 1934. "Death plea hits widow." Los Angeles Times, June 20: 17.

—. 1934. "Deatn case widow mum." Los Angeles Times, Marchh 27: 19.

—. 1934. "Doubt cast on identity." Los Angeles Times, June 14: 17.

—. 1934. "Madison may be exhumed." Los Angeles Times, June 16: 13.

—. 1934. "Second pistol bought by Mrs. Madison hunted in mysrtery murder case." Los Angeles Times, March 28: 5.

—. 1934. "Slaying of mate denied." Los Angeles Times, June 15: 36.

—. 1934. "Widow veils death tale." Los Angeles Times, March 28: 17.

Rasmussen, Cecilia. 2007. "Unwitting pioneer of the battered-woman defense." Los Angeles Times, February 4.

The People of California v. Nellie May Madison. 1935. 3826 (Supreme Court of the State of California, May 27).

Underwood, Agness. 1934. "Widow weeps when held in murder quiz." Los Angeles Evening Post-Record, March 29: 1.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Next Episode

The Disappearance of the Springfield Three

August 26, 2024

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65m

In the early morning hours of June 7, 1992, best friends and recent high school graduates Suzie Streeter and Stacy McCall finished up their graduation festivities and headed back to Suzie’s house that she shared with her mother, Sherill Levitt. When the girls failed to meet their friends for a planned trip the following day, two of those friends went by Levitt’s house to check on them. Despite all three women’s cars being parked in the driveway and the front door being unlocked, no one was home. Perhaps more alarming was the fact that the purses, wallets, and other items of all three women were still at the house, and the television in Streeter’s bedroom had been left on. Hours later, when the three still hadn’t been seen or heard from, Stacy McCall’s mother called the police and reported them missing.

For months the case of the “Springfield Three” dominated headlines in and around the city of Springfield, Missouri and consumed a massive amount of law enforcement resources; yet leads and evidence were sparse, and it seemed to many that the three missing women had simply vanished into thin air. In the thirty years since they went missing, the investigation has produced a number of compelling leads and potential suspects, but none have produced any answers or arrests and the disappearance of the Springfield Three remains one of the city’s most baffling mysteries.

Anyone with information about the disappearance is encouraged to contact the Springfield Police at (417) 864-1810 or place an anonymous call to Crime Stoppers at (417) 869-8477. Tips and information can also be submitted online at P3tips.com.

Thank you to the incredible Dave White of Bring Me the Axe Podcast for research!

References

Barnes, Deborah, and Traci Bauer. 1992. "Frantic families watchful for trio." Springfield News-Leader, June 9: 3.

Bauer, Traci. 1992. "Three women vanish." Springfield News-Leader, June 9: 1.

Benson, Ana. 2021. The Disappearance of the Springfield Three. Duluth, MN: Trellis Publishing.

Bentley, Chris , and Robert Keyes. 1992. "Police follow transient lead." Springfield News-Leader, June 16: 1.

Bentley, Chris. 1992. "Disappearance leaves woman's son 'frantic'." Springfield News-Leader, June 10: 1.

Clark, Christopher. 1992. "Who could be so cruel? Friends shake their heads." Speingfield News-Leader, June 10: 1.

Clark, Christopher, Traci Bauer, and Chris Bentley. 1992. "Typical teenagers, a loving mother." Springfield News-Ledger, June 10: 14.

Davis, Ron. 1992. "Troubled." Springfield News-Leader, June 26: 1.

Keyes, Robert. 1996. "Inmate to go 'under microscope'." Springfield News-Leader, January 19: 1.

—. 1996. "Missing women case leads police to Texas." Springfield News-Leader, January 2: 1.

—. 1992. "Streeter's brother passes polygraph." Springfield News-Leader, June 12: 6.

—. 1996. "Talk with inmate leads to 'nothing shattering'." Springfield News-Leader, January 20: 1.

—. 2006. "Three Missing women: Ten years later." Springfield News-Leader, June 8.

—. 1992. "Too many felonies." Springfield News-Leader, July 11: 1.

—. 1992. "Waitress gives clue." Springfield News-Leader, June 24: 1.

—. 1992. "'We're doing all we can'." Springfield News-Leader, June 21: 9.

O'Dell, Kathleen. 1992. "A sixth sense about a baffling case." Springfield News-Leader, June 28: 1.

Reid, Kyani. 2022. 30 years later family still seeking answers in the disappearance of three Springfield, Missouri women. June 12. Accessed July 31, 2024. https://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/30-years-later-family-still-seeking-answers-disappearance-three-springfield-n1296285.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.