The Chilling Saga of Tommy Lynn Sells: The Coast-to-Coast Killer

Early Life

Born on June 28, 1964, in Oakland, California, Tommy Lynn Sells' life was marked by tragedy and turmoil from the start. He was one of five children born to an unwed mother. His presumed father, Joe Lovins, passed away when Sells was only eleven. At eighteen months old, Sells and his twin sister, Tammy Jean, contracted meningitis. While he survived, his sister tragically did not. After Tammy's death, Sells was sent to live with his aunt, Bonnie Walpole, in Holcomb, Missouri. However, this arrangement was short-lived; at five, his mother reclaimed him upon discovering Walpole's intentions to adopt him.

By the age of seven, Sells was already immersed in a world of alcohol, pilfered from his maternal grandfather's stash. The following year, he formed a troubling association with a man named Willis Clark, who Sells later accused of molesting him, a relationship he claimed his mother condoned. These experiences, Sells would later say, fueled the darkness that characterized his crimes.

At ten, Sells' descent into substance abuse began with narcotics. By thirteen, he had crossed a line that severed ties with his family permanently. After an incident where he entered his grandmother's bed nude, he was banned from her home. Abandoned by his mother and siblings soon after, Sells lashed out violently, shooting and assaulting a woman who survived the attack. By 1978, at fourteen, Sells had adopted a transient lifestyle.

Criminal History and Psychology

From 1978 to 1999, Sells roamed the United States, hitchhiking and hopping trains. He drifted from one short-lived job to another, consumed by alcohol and drugs, with frequent incarcerations. His criminal record began to build, including a 1990 conviction for truck theft in Wyoming, leading to a 16-month prison sentence. Diagnosed with personality disorders, addictions, and psychosis, he continued his criminal trajectory.

One notable incident took place on May 13, 1992, in Charleston, West Virginia. A 19-year-old woman, Fabienne Witherspoon, encountered Sells panhandling under an overpass. Moved by his plight, she took him to her home. However, when she stepped away momentarily, Sells seized a knife from her kitchen and tried to assault her. Witherspoon fought back, using a ceramic duck to fend him off and stabbing him in return, causing injuries that landed him in the ICU and police custody. Both sustained severe injuries, and Sells served five years for malicious wounding. During his incarceration, he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and married Nora Price, only to leave her upon his release in 1997 as he resumed his wanderings.

Murders

Police and investigators believe Sells was responsible for at least 22 murders, with some speculating the number could be much higher. He claimed his killing spree began at fifteen in Mississippi, driven by a claimed encounter with a man committing sexual acts on a boy. This account, like many others, remains unverified, but his confirmed and confessed crimes paint a gruesome picture.

Timeline of Murders

• July 5, 1979, Port Gibson, Mississippi: John Cade, 39, was killed with a .32 caliber pistol. A man resembling Sells was seen nearby.

• April 27, 1982, St. Louis, Missouri: JoAnne Tate, 35, was murdered. Her daughter, Melissa DeBoer, later believed Sells, not Rodney Lincoln, was responsible. Lincoln's sentence was commuted in 2018.

• July 31, 1983, St. Louis, Missouri: Tiffany Gill, 4, and her mother Colleen Gill, 33, were found bludgeoned to death. A man matching Sells' description was seen at the scene.

• July 26, 1985, Springfield, Missouri: Ena Cordt, 28, and her son Rory, 4, were murdered by Sells after a violent confrontation over alleged theft.

• May 1, 1987, Lockport, New York: Suzanne Korcz, 27, disappeared after leaving a nightclub. Her decomposed body was found in 1995. Sells confessed in 2004 to a murder matching her description.

• October 15, 1987, Lovelock, Nevada: Stefanie Stroh, 21, vanished. Sells confessed to her murder, claiming he disposed of her body in concrete in a hot spring.

• November 17, 1987, Ina, Illinois: The Dardeen family was brutally murdered by Sells, who had been picked up hitchhiking by Keith Dardeen.

• December 18, 1988, Tucson, Arizona: Kent Alan Lauten, 51, was murdered over a drug dispute.

• December 9, 1991, Marianna, Florida: Teresa Hall, 25, and her daughter Tiffany, 5, were bludgeoned to death. Sells confessed to the crime.

• October 13, 1997, Lawrenceville, Illinois: Joel Kirkpatrick, 10, was stabbed to death. His mother was initially convicted but later exonerated.

• October 15, 1997, Springfield, Missouri: Stephanie Mahaney, 13, was abducted, drugged, raped, and murdered by Sells.

• December 14, 1997, Las Vegas, Nevada: Yvette Sophia Mueller, 19, disappeared. Sells claimed responsibility for a murder fitting her description.

• April 15, 1998, San Antonio, Texas: Thomas Brose, 40, was shot. Sells initially confessed but later recanted.

• April 4, 1999, Gibson, Tennessee: Debra Harris and her daughter Ambria were murdered by Sells during a home invasion.

• April 18, 1999, San Antonio, Texas: Mary Beatrice Perez, 9, was kidnapped, raped, and murdered. Sells was convicted in 2003.

• May 23, 1999, Lexington, Kentucky: Haley McHone, 13, was kidnapped, raped, and murdered. Sells was nearby at the time of her disappearance.

• July 5, 1999, Kingfisher, Oklahoma: Bobbie Lynn Wofford, 14, was murdered after being picked up by Sells.

• December 31, 1999, Del Rio, Texas: Kaylene Harris, 13, was brutally murdered, and Krystal Surles, 10, was gravely injured but survived to identify Sells.

Arrest and Confessions

On the last day of 1999, the brutal assault and murder of Kaylene Harris, and the attack on Krystal Surles, led to Sells' arrest. The courageous Krystal, despite her severe injuries, provided a description that resulted in a sketch and ultimately, Sells' capture.

Sells was incarcerated on death row at the Allan B. Polunsky Unit in Texas, received by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice on November 8, 2000. In 2004, he confessed to the details of a 1997 murder in Illinois, leading to the exoneration of Julie Rea Harper, who had been wrongfully convicted for the death of her son, Joel Kirkpatrick.

Despite his confessions, many of Sells' claims remain unconfirmed, leading authorities to suspect he may have been manipulating the system. His confessions include numerous unsolved crimes, adding to the enigma of his criminal career. Sells claimed to have killed a woman in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1982, and a prostitute in St. Louis in 1986. He also spoke of a woman and her son in Salt Lake City, Utah, whom he allegedly murdered in 1988, and other victims in various locations, including Chicago.

Execution

Tommy Lynn Sells, known as the Coast-to-Coast Killer, was executed by lethal injection on April 3, 2014, in Huntsville, Texas. His life, filled with violence and chaos, ended with many questions unanswered, leaving behind a trail of horror across the United States.

Sources

For more detailed information, please visit the original Wikipedia article on Tommy Lynn Sells.