Issue 42: Murder Of A Bully
Author’s Note: While usually I title each issue with the victims name, as the victim in this case was also the perpetrator, I have chosen be sensitive and mindful to all victims.
Trigger Warning: Child rape, multiple mentions of animal deaths
Usually when a crime happens, the perpetrator will be caught. But what happens when the power that is meant to help us is instead helpless? For the town of Skidmore, this is exactly what happened. Skidmore is a tiny town located in Nodaway County, Missouri in America. After 40 years, the population has almost halved itself. In the 2020 census data it counted 245 people, 95 households, and 45 families. Back in 1981 the towns population was 437. It was on the 10 July 1981 that Ken Rex McElroy was murdered and there were whispers that it had been a long time coming.
A year before the murder, one of Ken’s sons got in an argument with a clerk, Evelyn Sumy, in a local grocery store owned by 70-year-old Ernest "Bo" Bowenkamp and his wife Lois, allegedly because the young child tried to steal some candy. Ken and his wife Treena didn’t believe their son would ever do such a thing. This lead to the stalking of the Bowenkamp family by Ken. It escalated when Ken threatened Bo Bowenkamp in the back of his store with a shotgun in hand. In the ensuing confrontation, Ken shot Bowenkamp in the neck; Bowenkamp survived, and Ken was arrested and charged with attempted murder. Ken was convicted at the trial of assault; however, freed on bail pending his appeal. Right after his post-trial hearing, Ken went to the D&G Tavern, a local bar, with an M1 Garand grand rifle with a bayonet attached, and made graphic threats about what he would do to Bo Bowenkamp.
The town had finally had enough and wanted to make sure he would not hurt anyone else, Bo Bowenkamp had not been his first victim. He had a reputation for being the town bully as well as a womaniser. Ken fathered more than 10 children with different women.
Ken met his last wife, Trena McCloud in 1969. He was 35 years old, she was 12 and in the 8th grade. He raped Trena repeatedly. Her parents initially opposed the relationship, but Ken threatened them into agreement by burning down the house and shooting the family dog.
When Trena was 14 she got pregnant which caused her to drop out of school. She went to live with Ken and his second wife Alice. Pending charges against him for raping an underage girl, Ken would weasel his way out of charges again by divorcing his second wife and marrying Trena so she couldn’t testify with him because of spousal privilege. Sixteen days after Trena gave birth, she and Alice fled to Trena's parents' house. According to court records, Ken tracked them down and brought them back. When Trena's parents were away, Ken went to their home, where once again he burned the house down and shot the McClouds' new dog.
Based on Trena's story, McElroy was indicted in June 1973 for arson, assault, and statutory rape. He was arrested, booked, arraigned, and released on $2,500 bail. Additional charges where filed after Trena and the baby went into the foster system causing Ken to sit outside the foster home for hours.
Fast forward to July 1976, a farmer by the name of Romaine Henry encountered Ken. He confronted Ken after he was caught shooting weapons on Henry’s property. Ken retaliated by shooting Henry twice in the stomach with a shotgun.
Once more Ken was charged with assault with intent to kill. Ken denied he was at the scene.
The case was constantly delayed and Henry said that Ken had parked outside his home at least 100 times. When the trial finally got underway, two raccoon hunters testified they were with Ken the day of the shooting away from Henry's property. Henry was forced to admit in court, under questioning by Ken's attorney, that he had concealed his own petty criminal conviction from more than 30 years prior. Ken was acquitted.
Now on the 10 July 1981 the people of Skidmore called a town meeting with the county sheriff Dan Estes to discuss how to protect themselves. At the time that the meeting was happening Ken arrived at the D&G Tavern and went inside to have a drink. Word soon got back to the meeting that Ken was in town. Sheriff Estes instructed the assembled group not to get into a direct confrontation with Ken, but instead seriously consider forming a neighbourhood watch program. Estes then drove out of town in his police cruiser.
The town knew that a neighbourhood watch was not going to stop Ken. With the meeting adjourned a group of about 60 people walked the 300 meters around the corner to the tavern. While the majority flanked all sides of the truck a few members went inside and watched him finish a drink. Ken then went up to the bar, brought a six pack and exited the tavern, followed by his wife Trena, before hoping into the truck. With the townspeople following him from inside.
There was a moments silence before Ken was shot at several times by two separate guns. Some people got Trena out of the way once it was understood that two of those shots hit Ken. No one called an ambulance. Trena would later say that she saw the shooter; however this could not be corroborated. Every other witness was either unable to name an assailant or claimed not to have seen who fired the fatal shots. Then, just as if nothing happened, everyone went home, someone opened the truck door and yelled, 'It's over, you can sleep tonight. Now just stand behind us.'
The DA declined to press charges, and an extensive federal investigation did not lead to any charges either. Missouri-based journalist Steve Booher described the attitude of some townspeople as ‘…he needed killing.’