Alfred Leonard Cline (March 12, 1888 – August 5, 1948), known as The Buttermilk Bluebeard, was an alleged American

serial killer A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A * * * * with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...

responsible for murdering at least nine people.

Biography

Cline was born on March 12, 1888, in

Frederick, Kansas Frederick is a city in Rice County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 8. History Frederick was incorporated in 1909. It was a shipping point at the junction of the Missouri Patfic and the St. Loui ...

. He was never convicted of murders, as no supporting evidence was found. He married women of status, convinced them to will their possessions to his name, and persuaded them to drink a glass of poisoned

buttermilk Buttermilk is a fermented dairy drink. Traditionally, it was the liquid left behind after churning butter out of cultured cream. As most modern butter in western countries is not made with cultured cream but uncultured sweet cream, most mod ...

that contained powerful

sedatives A sedative or tranquilliser is a substance that induces sedation by reducing irritability or excitement. They are CNS depressants and interact with brain activity causing its deceleration. Various kinds of sedatives can be distinguished, but th ...

. After a fatal dose of drugs, a local doctor would issue a death certificate citing the cause of death to be heart failure. Cline

cremated Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India and Nepal, cremation on an open-air pyre i ...

his later wives to hide any evidence of murder. He acquired over $82,000 in possessions from eight of his wives. Cline was prosecuted for a murder charge, but jailed for

forgery Forgery is a white-collar crime that generally refers to the false making or material alteration of a legal instrument with the specific intent to defraud anyone (other than themself). Tampering with a certain legal instrument may be forbidd ...

. He was sentenced to 126 years in Folsom Prison,

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. Cline died of a heart attack in the prison on August 5, 1948.

References

External links

Birth Index for Cline
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cline, Alfred Leonard 1888 births 1948 deaths Criminals from Kansas Poisoners People convicted of forgery People from Rice County, Kansas Suspected serial killers

Biography

See also

References

External links