True Crime by Chris Bunton
On November 8, 1985, 18 year old Tom Odle murdered the five members of his family in Mt. Vernon, Illinois.
He killed his father first; stabbing him repeatedly with a knife. Then, he waited on his mother to get home and killed her in the same way.
According to Illinois Supreme Court records, Tom left the house for a bit, and then returned to meet his 10 year old brother, Scott. He then strangled his brother to death, and left him in the master bed room with his mom and dad.
After this, Tom went and picked up his two other siblings, Sean and Robyn at school.
He then brought them home and stabbed 13 year old, Sean.
After making sure Sean was dead. He went to get his sister.
He covered her eyes and told her he had a surprise. Then he led her to the bedroom where the bodies lay. Then he removed his hands and said, “Surprise!”
He killed her by stabbing her as well.
After killing them he went out and partied. He was arrested at a nearby motel.
He was found guilty and sentenced to death. It was one of the worst cases of familicide in U.S. History. He was also the youngest person on death row at the time.
But, on January 30, 2000 George Ryan the governor of Illinois started a moratorium on executions.
Then, in 2003, after a long battle over capital punishment, the governor commuted all death penalty convictions in Illinois to life in prison without parole. and now Tom Odle, sits in Dixon Correctional Center.
He helped write a book with Professor Robert E. Hanlon in the hopes of making some kind of amends and maybe preventing future murders. He wanted to answer the question: Why did I do this? (Read a review of the book.)
Today, Tom writes and posts his writings on a blog you can read.
***
I traveled to Mt. Vernon, which is only an hour from my home. I did not really know what to expect. When researching crimes and traveling to locations, things change over the years.
I knew the location of the house by reading the book “Survived by One” but the motel where Tom was arrested, was either destroyed or had changed it’s name.
When I got to town I ate at a local Mexican restaurant, where i approached a customer who had lived in Mt. Vernon her whole life. She said the current Comfort Inn had changed it’s name from the Travel Inn. So I went and took some photos.
This is the motel.
He was staying in room 125 with a girlfriend who had no clue that Tom had just killed his whole family earlier that day.
This is a photo from where I assume the police sat to stake out Tom’s room.
The Police sat in the Eagle’s club parking lot while staking out Tom’s room. I assume this is the former Eagle’s Club. It looks like an old Eagles and is currently a Mexican Restaurant.
This is the location on record where the murders took place. Tom and his siblings also faced abuse here. It sits in a lower to middle class neighborhood. There’s some dispute about whether the house burned and was rebuilt or not. But, this is the location.
I found the location of the cemetery where the family was buried. But I did not have the exact burial location.
So my wife and I rode around the cemetery, and I said to her.
“I’m not sure where they are here. There’s not much on the exact location. Normally, I’ll just ride around and God will just open doors…oh my God, there it is.”
I had stopped the car and looked down right beside the driver’s door, and there was the name “Odle”.
All 5 of them were in a row together. I cleaned the leaves off the graves, said a prayer, took some pictures, and then left them in peace.
In 2013, Professor Robert E. Hanlon published a book on the murders in collaboration with the killer Tom Odle.
The book is entitled “Survived By One” and is a very informative read. It’s a must for someone interested in true crime, familicide and the added interest of the collaboration with the killer, in his own words.
Having read the book and other sources surrounding the crime. I want to point out some spiritual aspects of it.
According to the book, Tom places blame on his abusive mother and enabling father.
But, we can look at the facts of the case and wonder what kinds of demons led to this. Did abuse really cause the murder of 5 people?
I think generations of abuse through the mothers side of the family, led to her being abusive and opened the doors for demonic activity.
Lots of kids face abuse. Lots of kids kill their abuser. But, few kill their entire family including the innocent siblings.
That’s why this case stands out.
Did genetics play a part? Sure, in the book “Inside the Criminal Mind” by Stanton E. Samenow; he makes it clear that some people are born bad apples. They have a genetic per-disposition to criminality and rebellion.
It’s my personal belief that environment and genetics can allow doors to be open to demonic activity.
These demons do not possess. But, whisper into the mind over years and years, building up hate, rage and resentment until they send their puppet to kill.
Years and years of pride, fear, unforgiveness, darkness and anger builds. Then add the drugs and alcohol into the mix.
This opens a playground for demonic activity.
I’m not saying that Tom Odle was demon possessed. I’m saying the right conditions and right buttons were pushed by demonic forces, to get him to do evil. This can happen to anybody, although some might be more prone to it.
I know it seems crazy. I know humans can do awful things. But, have you ever wondered how many times the devil really did make them do it?
When you look at the details of a lot of cases. You have to wonder if there is something beyond, nature and nurture which drives these killers.
In the book “Survived by One”, in chapter 7, Tom describes how he was feeling at that time. How things were falling apart and there was no where to turn and he could do nothing right. At the same time he is still using drugs.
This was a point of Rock Bottom. A point where our lives fall apart and we are left with a choice to turn to God, or make a deep change. Or turn the other way and keep going down the tubes. Tom decided to keep going down. What if someone had been there to give him a positive message? Just like suicide victims. Could a kind word or act have changed things?
Tom also describes a voice screaming at him to act and guiding him in his actions as he is killing. Like a demonic entity is working on him. This voice and this feeling has been described by many killers and many who have done violent acts.
Perhaps it’s real. Perhaps there’s something behind it.
Sources and Further Reading:
Survived by One by Robert E. Hanlon and Thomas Odle. Amazon Affiliate Link
https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1985-11-10-8503170477-story.html
https://law.justia.com/cases/illinois/supreme-court/1992/72371-7.html
https://case-law.vlex.com/vid/people-v-odle-no-892523836
https://www.casemine.com/judgement/us/59148727add7b049344e08af
https://www.britannica.com/video/186002/Robert-Hanlon-Tom-Odle-familicide-case-siblings
https://www.idoc.state.il.us/subsections/search/ISinms2.asp
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Familicide
https://www.themidwestcrimefiles.com/post/massacre-in-mount-vernon
“Inside the Criminal Mind” mentioned in the article is a must for any true crime library. Check it out through the affiliate button below for pricing details and more shopping.
Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger from Southern Illinois. He has published in several magazines, and has written a poetry eBook called “Against the Man” and an Addiction Recovery eBook called “Made Free: Overcoming Addiction“ His newest book is called “The Future is Coming” and is a collection of dystopian short stories.
Follow Him on Medium: https://chris-bunton.medium.com/
Read His Spiritual Writings on Blogger: https://chrisbunton.blogspot.com/
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Photos by the author
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