 The first murder trial in Erie County was held in June 1815. Soldiers Charles Thompson and James Peters were convicted of killing James Burba, a local resident. While on a scouting mission of Scajaquada Creek, the soldiers went beyond their limits, quarreled with Burba and killed him. A third man escaped but Thompson and Peters were tried and convicted of murder. A public execution followed in August.
A second capital crime took place in 1821. Kauquatau, an Indian squaw, was accused of causing an Indian's death while using sorcery in an attempt to cure him. The Indian Council sentenced her to death. She was subsequently lured across the reservation line where Soonongise, a Seneca Indian chief, known to White villagers as Tommy Jimmy, killed her. Kauquatau's body was found the next day. The Indians claim of sovereignty over the reservation was not sufficient to satisfy the protests of the villagers who were determined to bring the murderer to trial. While many were hesitant to go on the reservation to serve the arrest warrant, Pascal P. Pratt, a friend of both Red Jacket and Tommy Jimmy assumed the task. The next day, both Indian leaders appeared in court and although the jurisdiction of the Whites was questioned, Justice of the Peace Stephen G. Austin held Tommy Jimmy over for trial. The Indian Council, as well as witnesses, agreed that the squaw was executed in accordance with Indian law and that such execution was justified due to the Indian laws against witchcraft. The jury was in accordance but the case was appealed to the United States Supreme Court to decide whether the facts exempted Tommy Jimmy from punishment. The court rendered no judgment as it was unwilling to decide if the Indians had the authority to commit murder but was unable to deny that they were an independent people with broad rights. Consequently Tommy Jimmy was released. Laws were later passed subjecting Indians to the same penalty for crimes as Whites.
Four years later the saga of the Three Thayers began. In Boston, New York, Israel Thayer and his three sons, Nelson, Israel Jr. and Isaac befriended John Love, a sailor and peddler who was relatively well off and frequently lent money to those in need. While staying with the Thayers, Love disappeared and over time, his disappearance was noticed by neighbors together with the Thayers sudden abundance of money. Family members were seen riding Love's horse as well as trying to collect his outstanding debts. It was believed that Love loaned money to the Thayers, including $275 to Isaac. It was this debt that served as a possible motive for the murder. After questioning, Nelson and Israel Jr. were arrested for murder although no body or other proof of a crime was evident. A reward of $10 was offered for the recovery of Love's body. Some say that a police officer spoke to the family and said that the body had been found when in reality it had not. The story continues that while under surveillance, one of the boys, in an attempt to verify the officer's story, inadvertently led police to the burial site. Another version states that a visitor went to see young Isaac in jail and provided a very vague description of where the body had supposedly been found. Isaac provided more details to this concocted description. Regardless of the specifics, the body was found in a shallow grave behind Israel Jr.'s house. Although testimony cleared the father of any involvement, Nelson, 25, Israel Jr., 23 and Isaac, 21 were tried April 19-20, 1825. The evidence was so convincing that it took the jury only 30 minutes to find all three brothers guilty. A confession followed the verdict and the boys stated that Love had obtained much of the Thayer's property in exchange for small favors he had done for the family. On June 7, with 10,000-30,000 onlookers, all three brothers were hanged simultaneously using triple gallows erected in Niagara Square. According to newspaper accounts, the sheriff's sword cut the rope and the brothers were "launched into eternity".
 On September 6, 1901, President William McKinley was shot in Buffalo by anarchist Leon Czolgosz at the Pan American Exposition held in Delaware Park. Arriving with John G. Milburn, President of the Exposition, McKinley was standing in a public reception line when Czolgosz shot him in the stomach. Within the next week, gangrene set in and infection spread leading to his death on September 14. McKinley died at Milburn's home at 1168 Delaware Avenue. Theodore Roosevelt was sworn in as the 26th President of the United States at the Wilcox Mansion at 641 Delaware Avenue.
The trial of Leon Czolgosz took place in Buffalo at City and County Hall, Part III, in the criminal term of Supreme Court. Twelve men served on the jury with an average age of 48. Their occupations varied including one farmer, two plumbers, one builder, one contractor, one blacksmith, one boot/shoe dealer, one butter/egg dealer and one manufacturer. Czolgosz was sentenced to death and was incarcerated at the Auburn State Prison where he was electrocuted on October 29, 1901.
Another sensational trial resulted from the murder spree which began on September 22, 1980. On that night, a hooded gunman killed Glenn Dunn, 14 years old, as he sat behind the wheel of a stolen car. The following day, Harold Green, a 32 year old industrial engineer, was gunned down and later that night 30 year old Emmanuel Thomas was also shot. On September 24, the attacks shifted to Niagara Falls where, like the other victims, Joseph McCoy, 43, was shot in the left side of the head.
These crimes became known as the .22-caliber murders. Victims appeared to be random, the only requirement being their dark skin. This, together with the change of weapon from a .22 caliber gun to a knife, had police baffled. On October 6, police leads were so slim that Buffalo Homicide Chief Leo J. Donovan met with leading astrologers and psychics for any possible information. Erie County District Attorney, Edward Cosgrove, supervised the investigation. On October 8 and 9, two taxicab drivers were beaten to death, their hearts surgically removed. The next day a White man attempted to strangle a Black detox patient at the Erie County Medical Center.
On December 12, a dark skinned Hispanic and a Black man were stabbed in Manhattan with four other Black men stabbed in Buffalo and Rochester over the next several weeks. On January 18, 1981, Joseph G. Christopher, a 26 year old White Army private stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia, was arrested following a knife attack of a Black soldier. But it wasn't until April of that year that Christopher was indicted for the first three .22 caliber killings, based on the testimony of two nurses from the Georgia base.
On April 27, 1982, Supreme Court Justice Frederick Marshall rejected the insanity plea and found Christopher guilty of second degree murder. The verdict was overturned on appeal and Christopher was later convicted on three counts of manslaughter and sentenced to 33-1/3 years in prison for the Manhattan murders plus 25 additional years for the manslaughter convictions. In a 1983 prison interview, Christopher claimed to have killed 13 Black men. In 1993, Christopher died of cancer, at Rikers Island prison, at the age of 35. Until his death, he claimed that he had been "ordered" to kill and that the directive told him that all his victims were to be dark-skinned. |
