Kelvin Shelby Malone (January 10, 1961 – January 13, 1999) was an American

spree killer A spree killer is someone who commits a criminal act that involves two or more murders or homicides in a short time, in multiple locations. The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics defines a spree killing as "killings at two or more locations ...

who murdered at least four people in March 1981. Convicted of three murders but suspected in five; he was sentenced to death in both

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 ...

and

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

in 1983 and 1984 respectively. He remained on

death row Death row, also known as condemned row, is a place in a prison that houses inmates awaiting Capital punishment, execution after being convicted of a capital crime and sentenced to death. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of ...

San Quentin State Prison San Quentin State Prison (SQ) is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men, located north of San Francisco in the unincorporated place of San Quentin in Marin County. Opened in July 1852, San Quentin is the ...

until he was extradited to Missouri in December 1998 to face execution. He was executed in January 1999 at the

Potosi Correctional Center Potosi Correctional Center (PCC) is a Missouri Department of Corrections prison located in unincorporated Washington County, Missouri, near Mineral Point. The facility currently houses 800 death row, maximum security and high-risk male inmate ...

via

lethal injection Lethal injection is the practice of injecting one or more drugs into a person (typically a barbiturate, paralytic, and potassium solution) for the express purpose of causing rapid death. The main application for this procedure is capital puni ...

Early life

Malone was born on January 10, 1961, in

Seaside, California Seaside, formerly East Monterey, is a city in Monterey County, California, United States, with a population of 32,366 as of the 2020 census. It is located east-northeast of Monterey, at an elevation of , and is the home of California State Uni ...

. He grew up near

Monterey Monterey (; es, Monterrey; Ohlone: ) is a city located in Monterey County on the southern edge of Monterey Bay on the U.S. state of California's Central Coast. Founded on June 3, 1770, it functioned as the capital of Alta California under both ...

but had relatives in

in the

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

area. As such, he moved states and lived there for some time during his youth. He attended Brentwood High School in St. Louis County, where he met Michael Terry Crenshaw. According to Crenshaw, when he first met Malone he was calm, however, after Malone went on a trip to

in 1978, he returned a different person, and wanted to get involved in gang activity. On February 15, 1979, Malone and another man, Andrew R. Armstong, robbed

Missouri Court of Appeals The Missouri Court of Appeals is the intermediate appellate court for the state of Missouri. The court handles most of the appeals from the Missouri Circuit Courts. The court is divided into three geographic districts: Eastern (based in St. ...

judge George F. Gunn Jr. near his home in Brentwood. Armstrong pointed a loaded pistol at Gunn, and the pair stole only $4 in the robbery. Armstrong was sentenced to twenty years after fleeing the state in a stolen car. Malone was sentenced to seven years as he was considered the accomplice in the crime. Malone began his sentence on January 24, 1980, at the Missouri Intermediate Reformatory at the

Algoa Correctional Center Algoa Correctional Center (ACC) is a minimum security prison in Jefferson City, Missouri operated by the Missouri Department of Corrections. It houses approximately 1600 inmates, with a staff of approximately 470. It is located at 8501 No More Vi ...

Jefferson City Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the capital of Missouri, United States. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 census, ranking as the 15th most populous city in the state. It is also the county seat of Cole County and the principa ...

. Despite being sentenced to seven years, he served just under ten months and was paroled in November 1980. After being released on parole, Malone headed to California. In January 1981, he was convicted of burglary and grand theft in

Monterey County Monterey County ( ), officially the County of Monterey, is a county located on the Pacific coast in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, its population was 439,035. The county's largest city and county seat is Salinas. Montere ...

. He faced sentencing for the crimes, but while he was awaiting his punishment, he escaped.

Murders

Malone's crime spree began on March 10, 1981, when he kidnapped 37-year-old Leroy Cambs in

Santa Maria, California Santa Maria (Spanish language, Spanish for "Mary, mother of Jesus, St. Mary") is a city near the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California in northern Santa Barbara County, California, Santa Barbara County. It is approximately no ...

. Malone asked Cambs for a ride and then took out a gun and held him hostage. After forcing Cambs to drive him around for two hours, Malone ordered him into the trunk of his car in an underground parking lot in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Malone then drove Cambs around in the car for an hour before finally letting him go near a freeway in

Long Beach Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

. On March 11, Malone robbed a gas station in

Arroyo Grande Arroyo often refers to: * Arroyo (creek), an intermittently dry creek Arroyo may also refer to: People * Arroyo (surname) Places United States ;California * Arroyo Burro Beach, a public beach park in Santa Barbara County, California * Arroyo ...

, and is suspected to have murdered a man on the same day in

Merced County Merced County ( ), is a county located in the northern San Joaquin Valley section of the Central Valley, in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 281,202. The county seat is Merced. The county is named after ...

, however, he was never prosecuted for the killing and authorities never released details of the circumstances of the murder. One week later, Malone took a bus trip back to

where he reunited with Crenshaw. On March 18, Malone shot and killed 62-year-old cab driver William Parr in St. Louis. Parr was found with a bullet in his head in a park near Crenshaw's home. According to Crenshaw, the pair then headed to

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

, where they encountered 39-year-old James T. Rankin. On March 19, Rankin was kidnapped in the parking lot of a

Denny's Denny's (also known as Denny's Diner on some of the locations' signage) is an American table service diner-style restaurant chain. It operates over 1,700 restaurants in many countries. Description Originally opened as a Diner, coffee shop un ...

restaurant in downtown Kansas City. Malone and Crenshaw stole Rankin's car and took him in the trunk to a remote spot in the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily in ...

just in or near California. According to Crenshaw, Malone took Rankin out of the trunk in the early hours of March 20 and shot him to death. Hours later, the pair arrived at a gas station in

Baker, California Baker is a census-designated place located in San Bernardino County, California, US. As of the 2010 census, the CDP had a total population of 735. Baker's ZIP Code is 92309 and the community is within area codes 442 and 760. History Baker w ...

. The cashier, 55-year-old Myrtle Dee Benham, was kidnapped, robbed, sexually assaulted, and battered to death with a pipe by Malone. Her body was found eight days later in an abandoned shack just outside Daggett. At dawn on March 21, just north of

Blythe The name Blythe ( or ) derives from Old English ''bliþe'' ("joyous, kind, cheerful, pleasant"; modern ''blithe''), and further back from Proto-Germanic ''*blithiz'' ("gentle, kind"). People * Blythe (given name), including a list of people named ...

, Malone shot 51-year-old Minnie Ola White to death after robbing her. On March 24, Malone and Crenshaw were arrested in a stolen car in

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

. The pair were carrying guns as well as credit cards belonging to White and Rankin. They were taken into custody and placed in separate jails in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

Trials

On June 14, 1983, Malone was sentenced to death in California for the murder of Benham. He also received a life sentence for White's murder. His death sentence was upheld in 1988. On April 26, 1984, he was sentenced to death in Missouri for the murder of Parr. He was prosecuted by St. Louis County prosecutor Bob McCulloch. Malone chose to be imprisoned in California over Missouri, with a circuit judge agreeing to his request. He was returned to California and placed on

. Malone was never charged in the 1981 murder of Rankin, whose body was never found. Details of the murder of a man in Merced County were never released, and Malone was not charged in that killing either. Crenshaw was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for his role in the crime spree.

Execution

On December 30, 1998, Malone was extradited from California to Missouri to face execution for the murder of William Parr. He was executed on January 13, 1999, at the

via

. He was pronounced dead at 1:20 a.m. and did not offer any last words.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malone, Kelvin Shelby 1961 births 1999 deaths 20th-century executions by Missouri 20th-century executions of American people American spree killers Executed American serial killers Executed spree killers Male serial killers People convicted of murder by California People convicted of murder by Missouri People executed by Missouri by lethal injection People from Seaside, California Violence against women in the United States

Early life

Murders

Trials

Execution

See also

References