Stephen D. Richards or Samuel D. Richards (March 18, 1856April 26, 1879), also known in the media as The Nebraska Fiend, Kearney County Murderer, and The Ohio Monster, was an American serial killer who confessed to committing a total of nine murders in Nebraska and Iowa between 1876 and 1878.
Richards was born in West Virginia (then part of Virginia) in 1856. His family later moved to Ohio, eventually settling in the Quaker village of Mount Pleasant. In 1876, Richards left his home and headed westward with the intention of seeking his fortune. For a time, he found work at a local asylum; he claimed that during his time there, he lost all empathy for other people. When Richards later confessed to his crimes, he claimed to have committed his first murder sometime in late 1876, two weeks after arriving in Kearney, Nebraska. He went on to commit several other murders, which he later claimed were done in self-defense. Richards fled after murdering Mary L. Harlson and her three children, but was captured in Mount Pleasant. In 1879, he was convicted of the murders of the Harlson family, as well as the killing of neighbor Peter Anderson, and hanged.
Richards was regarded as handsome and charismatic by contemporary chroniclers, who noted that his appearance and behavior completely obscured his nature as a cold-blooded killer. Many observed that he displayed a complete lack of remorse for his crimes and indifference toward his execution. Modern-day forensic psychologist Katherine Ramsland has noted that these characteristics were also displayed by serial killer Ted Bundy, and she has referred to Richards as The Old West's Ted Bundy.
The nature of Richards' crimes and his behavior after his capture led to a brief period of notoriety, as Richards was widely talked about in the media at the time. Richards has been featured in a handful of books and periodicals, including a posthumous biography, based on an interview conducted after his final arrest. The biography, which also included entries on other criminals of the time, was published in 1879 by the Nebraska State Journal. In modern times he is noted as Nebraska's first documented serial killer in Nebraska and the first person to be executed by the state.
Background
In the mid-19th century, Nebraska experienced a period of territorial expansion in the wake of the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, which saw the creation of Nebraska and Kansas territories in order to facilitate the construction of the Transcontinental railroad. It was not until 1867 that Nebraska was finally admitted into the Union as the 37th state, two years after the conclusion of the American Civil War. Nebraska's newfound statehood led to an influx of settlers, among the growing population and political controversies incited by the state's first governor David Butler, renewed calls for a state constitution were made in 1871. These events in Nebraska's history from 1853 to 1871 occurred during Richards' lifetime, with the criminal law and justice system not yet developed to its fullest extent. At the time of his crime spree and trial Nebraska's law and justice system had only recently been developed, with the state's criminal code only formally being written into state law in 1871. Before the event of Richards' execution, the state had only one recorded execution, which occurred in 1863, four years before its inclusion into the United States.
Early and young adult life
Stephen D. Richards was born in Wheeling, West Virginia, on March 18, 1856. He was said to have had five sisters and a brother. When Richards was six, his family relocated to Ohio; first to Monroe County, and then to Noble County. The family later settled in the Quaker village of Mount Pleasant in Ohio when he was eleven. Richards later described his mother as a devout Methodist, and his father, a farmer, as having "made no profession of religion". Richards attended school in Mount Pleasant; he claimed that the teachers considered him well behaved. At his mother's insistence, he also attended Sunday school and church regularly.
Up until the age of twenty, Richards lived with his parents, working for farmers and other locals in the area. On September 16, 1871, Richards' mother died of an unknown cause. Several years later, at the age of 20, Richards met and became engaged to a young woman named Anna Millhorne, with whom he regularly corresponded during his later travels, up until his final arrest. Richards also met men whom he described as being of "questionable occupation"; he began passing counterfeit bills which he claimed he had obtained by way of a man in New York. In February 1876, he left Mount Pleasant, heading west to find fame and fortune.