The Disturbing Case Of Serial Killer Shawn Grate: The Ohio Strangler

On the 31st October, 1974, Halloween night, the children of Deer Park, Texas were out knocking on doors.Ronald Clark O'Bryan, was out, watching over his 8 year old son Timothy who was dressed as a character from the movie Planet of the Apes and his 5 year old daughter Elizabeth. Joining them was their neighbor Jim Bates and his 2 children, Mark and Kimberley.That Halloween night, Ronald decided to take his children around Jim’s neighbourhood, as Jim lived in a nicer area, and Ronald believed the trick-or-treating would be better there.As they went from house to house trick or treating in the suburban neighbourhood near their home, they approached a home which had all its light switched off.After knocking on the door a few times with no reply, the kids and Jim grew impatient, so they ran off to another house, leaving Ronald behind still waiting in case someone did answer. He remained behind for about thirty seconds.A short while later, Ronald caught up with the rest of the group, showing them that the owners of the house had finally answered and had given him 5x 21-inch Pixy Stix, tubes of powdered sour candy saying that it must be their lucky day as ”rich neighbours” had given him “expensive treats”.Ronald offered to carry the pixy styx for the children and the group carried on trik or treating for a bit longer, but once it began to rain, Ronald took his children home, before handing out 4 of the Pixy Stix to each of the children there, leaving him with one.Later that night, a group of children knocked on Ronald’s door and Ronald offered the children some gum and sweets and then pulled out the last Pixy Stix from behind his back, asking the kids who wanted it.All the kids exclaimed in excitement, but one 10 year old boy named Whitney Parker shouted out that he knew Ronald from church as being one of the church leaders, so Ronald gave Whitney the last Pixy Stix.Before bed, Ronald’s son Timothy O'Bryan asked if he was allowed some of his candy, and his parents said he could have 1 item.Timothy chose his Pixy Stix tube—but the powdered sugar was stuck in the straw and the opening of the Pixy Stix had been stapled shut so he had difficulty opening it and so Ronald helped him to dislodge it so that Timothy could take his first mouthful.Immediately, Timothy complained that the powdered sugar tasted bitter, so his father RonaldI gave him a glass of Kool-Aid to wash the taste away.Timothy immediately started having stomach pains, and he ran to the bathroom vomiting and convulsing, but less than an hour later, Timothy O’Bryan was dead.