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Vigilante Justice and the Small Town Bully – A Crime That Shocked America

Khalid Elhassan December 7, 2024 13 min

McElroy - Ken Rex McElroy, as depicted in film — Ken Rex McElroy, as depicted in film. Pinterest

4. The Town That Kept Mum About Murder

McElroy - Locals inspect the crime scene — Locals inspect the crime scene. Harry N. MacLean

Skidmore had no police. When county sheriff’s deputies and Highway Patrol troopers finally arrived in the small town, the streets were deserted and quiet. The only thing to break the silence was the rumbling and smoking engine of McElroy’s pickup, that nobody had bothered to turn off. Shell casings from at least two firearms, an 8 mm World War I German Mauser, and a .22 caliber Magnum, were recovered at the scene. However, the weapons were never found. Although at least 40 people had witnessed the public killing, the people of Skidmore kept mum.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.