Henry Ruhl (February 26, 1909 – April 27, 1945) was a

spree killer A spree killer is someone who commits a criminal act that involves two or more murders in a short time, often in multiple locations. There are different opinions about what durations of time a killing spree may take place in. The United States ...

and the only person executed in

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

by the U.S. government. This was also the second-to-last pre-Furman execution in the state and third-to-last . Ruhl was convicted of the June 30, 1943, murder of Matt Katmo, a Cheyenne war plant worker, at a campground on a military reservation seven miles east of Laramie. Authorities also suspected the same person who murdered Katmo in the murders of Mr. and Mrs. Percy Cota near Laramie two days after Katmo's murder, although Ruhl was never charged. Initially, authorities believed a man named Howard Pickell was responsible for all three murders, and Pickell went as far as to give a

false confession A false confession is an admission of guilt for a crime which the individual did not commit. Although such confessions seem counterintuitive, they can be made voluntarily, perhaps to protect a third party, or induced through coercive interrogatio ...

, but following Ruhl's guilty plea and a further investigation into the evidence, Pickell was exonerated. As Katmo's murder occurred on a government reservation, the homicide was considered a federal capital crime, and Ruhl accordingly received a federal death sentence. At the time, federal death sentences were carried out in the state or territory where the crime took place and by the method of execution that the respective state or territory utilized, so Ruhl was put to death by

gas chamber A gas chamber is an apparatus for killing humans or animals with gas, consisting of a sealed chamber into which a poisonous or asphyxiant gas is introduced. Poisonous agents used include hydrogen cyanide and carbon monoxide. History Donatie ...

in the

Wyoming State Penitentiary The Wyoming State Penitentiary is an American historic and current prison in Rawlins, Carbon County, Wyoming, which has operated from 1901. It moved within Rawlins to a new location in 1981. In 2018, it is a Wyoming Department of Corrections st ...

in Rawlins. Ruhl's execution was the first under new

US President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed For ...

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...

Early life

Ruhl was a native of

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, born on February 26, 1909. Prior to the murder which led to his execution, Ruhl served 11 years in prison in the

Washington State Penitentiary Washington State Penitentiary (also called the Walla Walla State Penitentiary) is a Washington State Department of Corrections men's prison located in Walla Walla, Washington. With an operating capacity of 2,200, it is the second largest priso ...

for leading a

gang A gang is a social group, group or secret society, society of associates, friends, or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over Wiktionary:territory#Noun, territory in a ...

in a 1930

bank robbery Bank robbery is the criminal act of stealing from a bank, specifically while bank employees and customers are subjected to force, violence, or a threat of violence. This refers to robbery of a bank Branch (banking), branch or Bank teller, tel ...

Chelan, Washington Chelan ( ) is a city in Chelan County, Washington, Chelan County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The estimated population was 4,222 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It lies on the southeast tip of Lake Chelan, where ...

Murders and arrest of Howard Pickell

On June 30, 1943, Matt Katmo, a 44-year-old resident of Cheyenne, accompanied Mrs. O.W. Larson to a mountain campground on a

military reservation A military base is a facility directly owned and operated by or for the military or one of its branches that shelters military equipment and personnel, and facilitates training and operations. A military base always provides accommodations for ...

near Dale Creek, south of

Laramie, Wyoming Laramie () is a List of municipalities in Wyoming, city in and the county seat of Albany County, Wyoming, United States, known for its high elevation at , for its railroad history, and as the home of the University of Wyoming. The population wa ...

. When they stopped to pick flowers, a man, later revealed to be Henry Ruhl, accosted the two. Larson was bound and

pistol-whipped Pistol-whipping or buffaloing is the act of using a handgun as a blunt weapon, wielding it as an improvised club. Such a practice dates to the time of muzzle loaders, which were brandished in such fashion in close-quarters combat once the weap ...

, while Katmo was shot three or four times. Larson survived the attack, but Katmo died from his injuries. The gunman fled the scene in Katmo's car and later abandoned it elsewhere. Two days later, middle-aged couple Mr. and Mrs. Percy Cota were shot to death in their ranch home near Laramie. Following an intensive manhunt of the area around Dale Creek, 26-year-old

Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

native Howard William Pickell was arrested on July 3, 1943, in

Pine Bluffs, Wyoming Pine Bluffs is a town in eastern Laramie County, Wyoming, United States. It is located on the county's border with Nebraska. Pine Bluffs is part of the Cheyenne, Wyoming, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,129 at the 2010 censu ...

. Pickell confessed not only to the murder of Katmo and the binding and beating of Larson, but to participating in the murders of the Cotas. He claimed that he tied a rope around Mrs. Cota's neck, while an accomplice, who he only identified as a soldier named "Teddy," shot the couple to death. As for his motive in Katmo's murder, Pickell claimed that he murdered Katmo for refusing to submit to an attempted

carjacking Carjacking is a robbery in which a motor vehicle is taken over.Michael Cherbonneau, "Carjacking," in ''Encyclopedia of Social Problems'', Vol. 1 (SAGE, 2008: ed. Vincent N. Parrillo), pp. 110-11. In contrast to car theft, carjacking is usually i ...

. Initially, Larson identified Pickell as her assailant and Katmo's murderer, and a coroner's jury found Pickell criminally responsible for the three murders on the basis of his confession; subsequently, Pickell was charged with the

first-degree murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse committed with the necessary intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisdiction. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse ...

of Katmo. Authorities declared their intention to seek the

death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence ordering that an offender be punished in s ...

against Pickell. In early August 1943, Pickell rescinded all of his confessions in the murders of Katmo and Mr. and Mrs. Cota, as well as the assault of Larson. Notably, Pickell never signed an official confession in any of the crimes; he stated through his attorney that his confessions were "a bunch of lies" and denied any involvement. With the retraction of his confessions, Pickell also withdrew his guilty pleas in the crimes. Later in August, Pickell revealed that his draft card proved his presence in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

on June 30, the day of Katmo's murder, thus establishing an

alibi An alibi (, from the Latin, '' alibī'', meaning "somewhere else") is a statement by a person under suspicion in a crime that they were in a different place when the offence was committed. During a police investigation, all suspects are usually a ...

; nevertheless, authorities did not drop charges against Pickell.

Arrest and trial of Henry Ruhl

Even after Pickell's confessions and charges, authorities conducted a two-month search to identify the owner of a bloodstained

revolver A revolver is a repeating handgun with at least one barrel and a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold six cartridges before needing to be reloaded, ...

discovered in Matt Katmo's abandoned car. The search led to Henry Ruhl, who, on November 22, 1943, was arrested in

Englewood, Colorado The City of Englewood is a home rule municipality located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 33,659 at the 2020 United States census. Englewood is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan S ...

, in connection with the murder of Katmo. The gun was registered under Ruhl's name. At the time of Ruhl's arrest, several newspapers chose not to identify him by name, only calling him a 34-year-old transient laborer. Subsequent to his arrest in Englewood, he was extradited to a jail in

Albany County, Wyoming Albany County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Wyoming. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 37,066. Its county seat is Laramie, the site of the University of Wyoming. Its southern border lies on the northern Colorado ...

. On January 10, 1944, Ruhl pleaded guilty to state charges in the murder of Matt Katmo. Following Ruhl's guilty plea, Albany County District Attorney Lenoir Bell, who initially pressed for the death penalty against Pickell, requested that Pickell's charges be dismissed. On January 18, 1944, a judge signed an order dismissing Pickell's charges. In March 1944, the

United States federal government The Federal Government of the United States of America (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the Federation#Federal governments, national government of the United States. The U.S. federal government is composed of three distinct ...

arraigned Ruhl on federal capital murder charges due to the fact that Katmo's murder occurred on a military reservation, which was federal property. Ruhl was subsequently transported to

Cheyenne, Wyoming Cheyenne ( or ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Wyoming, most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming. It is the county seat of Laramie County, Wyoming, Laramie County, with 65,132 reside ...

, to await trial. In May 1944, Ruhl went on trial before a federal district court for the murder of Matt Katmo. The trial lasted four days and ended on May 26. The judge's instructions included the ability for the jury to find Ruhl guilty of involuntary or voluntary

manslaughter Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th ce ...

, but the jury took two and a half hours to find Ruhl guilty of first-degree murder with no recommendation of mercy. The next day, a federal judge formally sentenced Ruhl to death, with his first execution date being set for June 30, 1944, coincidentally one year to the day of Katmo's murder.

Execution

Ruhl appealed to the

Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (in case citations, 10th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * District of Colorado * District of Kansas * Distr ...

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

. Both his conviction and death sentence were upheld. In the days leading up to his execution, Ruhl wrote to President

requesting

executive clemency A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...

. Truman denied clemency to Ruhl. Ruhl maintained his innocence to the end. He did not request a special final meal or religious advisors, even as three separate ministers attempted to speak to him while he was in his cell on death row. Ruhl's execution took place on April 27, 1945, at approximately 12:21 a.m, in the

at the

in Rawlins. After his execution, authorities found a two-page letter Ruhl had written and directed towards police and prison guards in general. The ''Casper Star-Tribune'' described the letter as being "abusive," with Ruhl declaring that he would "meet the officers in hell and talk it over with them," and that he could "spill lots of dope" if he wanted to, but that he "was not crazy enough to do so". Following his execution, Ruhl's body was buried in the penitentiary cemetery.

References

External links