View source for Elmer Wayne Henley

{{short description|American serial killer}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2023}}
{{Infobox serial killer
| name              = Elmer Wayne Henley
| image             = Henleyaged41in1997.jpg
| caption           = Henley in 1997
| birth_name        = Elmer Wayne Henley Jr.
| alias             =
| birth_date        = {{birth date and age|1956|05|09}}
| birth_place       = [[Houston, Texas]], U.S.
| cause             =
| victims           = 7 (including Corll, which was ruled to be [[Right of self-defense|self-defense]])
| conviction        = [[Murder|Murder with malice]] (6 counts)
| country           = United States
| states            = [[Texas]]
| beginyear         = March 24, 1972
| endyear           = July 25, 1973
| apprehended       = August 8, 1973
| penalty           = [[Life imprisonment]]
| imprisoned        = [[Telford Unit]]
| criminal_status   = [[Incarcerated]]
}}
'''Elmer Wayne Henley Jr.''' (born May 9, 1956) is an American [[serial killer]] incarcerated in the [[Texas Department of Criminal Justice]] (TDCJ) system. Henley was convicted in 1974<ref name="olsen">{{cite book | last = Olsen | first = Jack | title = The Man with the Candy | url = https://archive.org/details/manwithcandyt00olse | url-access = registration | publisher = [[Simon and Schuster]] | location=New York City| date = 1974 | isbn = 978-0-7432-1283-0}}</ref>{{rp|219}} for his role as a participant in a series of murders known as the Houston Mass Murders in which a minimum of 28 teenage boys and young men were abducted, tortured, raped and murdered by [[Dean Corll]] between 1970 and 1973. Henley and [[David Owen Brooks]] (Corll's other teenage accomplice), together and individually, lured many of the victims to Corll's home. Henley, then 17 years old, shot Corll dead on August 8, 1973.<ref>Serial Killers {{ISBN|0-7835-0000-9}} p.111</ref>
Henley is serving six consecutive terms of 99 years for his involvement in the Houston Mass Murders,<ref>{{cite magazine|first=Austin|last=Kurth|title=The Houston Mass Murders: What Really Happened|url=http://www.texasmonthly.com/2011-04-01/webextra8.php|magazine=[[Texas Monthly]]|date=August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214112044/http://www.texasmonthly.com/2011-04-01/webextra8.php |archive-date=February 14, 2012|access-date=February 18, 2012}}</ref> which at the time were characterized as "the deadliest case of serial murders in American history".
== Early life ==
Henley was born May 9, 1956, in Houston, Texas, the eldest of four sons born to Elmer Wayne Henley Sr. (September 21, 1938 – June 18, 1986) and Mary Pauline Henley (née Weed) (born May 4, 1937). His father was an alcoholic who physically assaulted his wife and sons. Despite the abuse, Mary Henley tried to ensure that her children received a good education and stayed out of trouble. The couple divorced in 1970 when Henley was 14. Henley's mother—who worked as a cashier at a parking lot<ref>{{cite news|title=Trial Opens Today in Texas Killings |date=July 1, 1974|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1974/07/01/archives/trial-opens-today-in-texas-killings-defendant-charged-in-six-of-27.html |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=May 24, 2018}}</ref>—retained custody of her four sons.
Initially, Henley was an excellent student at school;<ref name="olsen" />{{rp|201}} but after his parents' divorce he took a series of menial part-time jobs to help his mother with household finances, and his grades dropped sharply. At the age of 15, Henley dropped out of high school. He would later develop a minor criminal record, being arrested for assault with a deadly weapon in 1971 and burglary one year later.<ref>{{cite news|first=Paul L. |last=Montgomery | title=Houston Finds Murder Ring a Random, Enigmatic Intrusion |date=July 21, 1974 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1974/07/21/archives/houston-finds-murder-ring-random-enigmatic-intrusion-the-talk-of.html |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=June 20, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Killer was Known as a Gentle Person |date=August 14, 1973 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/32136607/elmer-wayne-henley-mass-murders-tx-73/ |newspaper=[[The Odessa American]] |access-date=January 22, 2022}}</ref>
Nonetheless, in late 1971, Henley also began spending time in Corll's company. Corll told Henley that he was involved in organized theft, and he, Brooks and Henley burgled several addresses, for which Henley was paid small sums of money.<ref name="conaway" /> On one occasion, in an apparent test of character, Corll asked Henley if he would be willing to kill if required, to which Henley replied, "Yes."<ref name="conaway" />
The same year, Henley became aware of an insidious pattern of disappearances in his neighborhood: since the previous December, a minimum of eight boys ages 13 to 17 had disappeared from [[Houston Heights]]. Henley was friends with two of the youths, David Hilligiest and Gregory Malley Winkle, who had disappeared on May 29, 1971, on their way to a local swimming pool. Henley himself had actively participated in the search for them.<ref name="olsen" />{{rp|46}}{{refn|group=n|Following the revelation of Henley's subsequent involvement in the murders initiated by Corll, the mother of David Hilligiest would recollect: "He (Henley) would ask if we had heard anything... and he would look off into the distance. Looking back, I can see he was carrying a burden he was trying to [[sedation|sedate]].<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/117863825/ ''Arizona Republic''. Aug. 13, 1973]</ref>}}
== Introduction to Dean Corll ==
In the winter of 1971, when he was 15, Wayne Henley was again taken by David Brooks to meet Corll. In his confession given almost two years later, Henley told detectives Brooks lured him to Corll's home on the promise he could participate in "a deal where I could make some money." At Corll's home (where he was possibly taken as an intended victim), the youth was told by Corll that he belonged to an organization based in [[Dallas, Texas|Dallas]] which recruited young boys for a [[child sexual abuse|child sex slavery ring]]. Henley was offered the same fee as Brooks ($200) for any boy whom he could bring to Corll.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Overton|first1=James L.|title=Horror still haunts families|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1946&dat=19750317&id=-QoyAAAAIBAJ&pg=3181,125023&hl=en|access-date=October 17, 2015|work=[[Montreal Gazette]]|agency=[[UPI]]|date=March 17, 1975}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|title=Dean Corll|magazine=Murder in Mind|publisher=[[Marshall Cavendish]]|location=Singapore, Malaysia|date=January 1, 2000|issn=1364-5803|page=18}}</ref>
Henley later told police that he ignored Corll's offer for several months. However, in early 1972, he decided he would "help find a boy" for Corll, as he was in dire financial circumstances.<ref name="644sw2d950">{{cite court |litigants = Henley v. State |vol = 644 |reporter = SW2d |opinion = 950 |pinpoint = |court = Texas Court of Appeals, 13th Dist. |date = 1982 |url= https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=8083535093559731840&hl=en&as_sdt=2&as_vis=1&oi=scholarr/}}</ref> At Corll's home, Corll and Henley devised a ruse in which they would lure a youth to Corll's home and Henley would then cuff his hands behind his back, release himself, then con the victim into placing the handcuffs upon himself. The pair then drove around Houston Heights and, at the corner of 11th and Studewood, Henley persuaded a youth to enter Corll's [[Plymouth GTX]]. Henley lured the victim to Corll's Schuler Street apartment on the promise of smoking some [[marijuana]]. At Corll's address, Henley helped con the teenager into donning the handcuffs,<ref>[https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-06-08-1591312208_x.htm/ USA Today.]{{dead link|date=April 2012}}</ref> then watched Corll pounce on the youth, tie his feet and place tape over his mouth. Henley then left the youth alone with Corll, believing he was to be sold into the sex slavery ring. The next day, Corll paid Henley $200.
The identity of this first victim in whose abduction Henley assisted remains unknown.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.leagle.com/decision/19821594644sw2d95011448|title=Henley vs. State (09/16/82) |date=September 16, 1982|via=leagle.com}}</ref>
=== Participation in killings ===
On March 24, Henley, in the company of Corll and Brooks, persuaded an 18-year-old friend of his named Frank Aguirre to accompany him to Corll's home on the promise of smoking marijuana with the trio. At Corll's home, Aguirre was supplied with marijuana, then persuaded to handcuff himself. Corll dragged Aguirre to his bedroom and secured him to his torture board where he was raped, tortured and strangled before being buried at [[High Island, Texas|High Island Beach]].<ref name="hollandsworth">{{cite web|last1=Hollandsworth|first1=Skip|author-link1=Skip Hollandsworth|title=The Lost Boys|url=http://www.texasmonthly.com/articles/the-lost-boys/|website=[[Texas Monthly]]|access-date=October 17, 2015|date=April 2011}}</ref> Henley later claimed that he attempted to talk Corll out of raping and killing Aguirre, but Corll adamantly refused. At this point, Corll told him the youth he had previously assisted in the abduction of had been killed and that Aguirre was to suffer the same fate.<ref>[https://archive.today/20120717033230/http://texascrimenews.com/killer-conversation-interview-with-elmer-wayne-henley-jr-part-p126-68.htm/ Texas Crime News.]</ref> Corll rented a boat shed on Silver Bell Street in southwest Houston (where police eventually found eight bodies) <ref>{{cite news|title=Dean Corll and Elmer Wayne Henley: Houston's most notorious serial killers By Chris Hanson|url=https://abc13.com/elmer-wayne-henley-dean-corll-serial-killer-pasadena-texas-murders/1218667/#:~:text=The%20man%20Henley%20shot%20was,police%20dug%20up%20eight%20bodies.}}</ref> Later, Corll and Brooks told Henley that his childhood friend, David Hilligiest, had also been killed and buried in that same boat shed along with his swimming companion Gregory Malley Winkle.<ref name="644sw2d950" />
Despite the revelations to the reality of the fate of the boys brought to Corll, Henley continued to assist Corll and Brooks in the abductions and murders of youths, who would be lured to Corll's home either alone or in pairs. Less than one month later, Henley and Brooks persuaded another friend of theirs, 17-year-old Mark Scott, to attend a party at Corll's home. As had been the case with Frank Aguirre, Scott was raped, tortured, strangled and buried at High Island Beach before another two Heights youths, Billy Gene Baulch Jr. and Johnny Ray Delome, were also murdered and buried at High Island on May 21.
Corll moved to an address at Westcott Towers in June 1972 and within one month, a 17-year-old youth named Steven Sickman had been murdered. On October 3, Henley assisted Corll in the abduction and murder of two Heights boys named Wally Simoneaux and Richard Hembree. David Brooks later stated Hembree was accidentally shot in the mouth by Henley who, according to Brooks' confession "just came in (the room where the two boys were bound) waving the .22 and accidentally shot one of the boys in the jaw." The two boys were killed by strangulation later the same day. Both were later buried in the boat shed. Sometime in the following month, an 18-year-old named Willard Karmon Branch Jr. was [[emasculation|emasculated]] and shot before his body was buried in Corll's boat shed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://archive.org/stream/DeanCorllAutopsyReports/ML%2073_3350#page/13/mode/2up|title=Case 73-3350: Investigator Cecil Wingo |date=July 3, 1985|via=archive.org}}</ref> The same month, a 19-year-old named Richard Kepner was abducted while walking to phone his fiancée from a pay phone.<ref>{{cite news|title=Woman's 11-Year Search for Son Ends in Morgue|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2519&dat=19830916&id=l31iAAAAIBAJ&pg=1385,1958685&hl=en|access-date=October 15, 2020|work=Observer-Reporter|agency=Associated Press|date=September 16, 1983}}</ref>
By the time Richard Kepner had been killed and buried at High Island, Henley had assisted in the abduction and murder of a minimum of nine teenage boys. On February 1, 1973, Corll abducted and killed a 17-year-old youth named Joseph Lyles, apparently without the assistance of Henley, who had temporarily moved to [[Mount Pleasant, Texas|Mount Pleasant]] in early 1973.
In the spring of 1973, Henley attempted to enlist in the U.S. Navy, but his application was rejected on June 28 due to the fact he had dropped out of high school and—although a later intelligence test would reveal his [[Intelligence quotient|IQ]] to be 126<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1974/07/21/archives/houston-finds-murder-ring-random-enigmatic-intrusion-the-talk-of.html ''New York Times''. July 21, 1974]</ref>—possessed a limited education. In a 2010 interview, Henley stated: "I couldn't leave anyway. If I did go, I knew Dean would go after one of my little brothers, who he always liked a little too much."
{{quote box
| quote = "Dear Daddy,
I have decided to go to Austin because I have got a good job offer. I am sorry that I decided to leave but I just had to go.
PS I will be back in late August. Hope you understand, but I had to go.
Daddy I hope you know I love you.
Your son,
Billy."
| source = Transcript of letter Billy Lawrence was forced to write to his father by Corll.<ref>Texas Crime News, April 2011</ref>
| width = 22em
}}
Nonetheless, between June and July 1973, Henley, Brooks, and Corll killed a further seven victims between the ages of 15 and 20, at least five of which Henley participated in either the abduction or murder.
On June 4, a 15-year-old friend of Henley's named Billy Lawrence was abducted and, after three days of abuse and torture at an address Corll had moved to in [[Pasadena, Texas|Pasadena]], strangled with a ligature and buried at [[Lake Sam Rayburn]].
[[File:Homer Garcia.jpg|90px|left|thumb|Homer Garcia, aged 15]]
Less than two weeks later, a 20-year-old hitchhiker named Raymond Blackburn was likewise strangled and buried at Lake Sam Rayburn, and then a 15-year-old [[South Houston]] youth named Homer Garcia was shot and buried at the same location after his July 7 abduction. Two additional youths, John Sellars and Michael Baulch, were killed on July 12 and 19. Fifteen-year-old Michael Baulch was the younger brother of Billy Gene Baulch Jr., who was murdered the previous spring. On July 25, Henley lured two friends of his named Charles Cobble and Marty Jones to Corll's apartment where, two days later, Cobble was shot and Jones strangled before the youths were buried in Corll's boat shed.
On August 3, Brooks and Corll – without the assistance of Henley – abducted and killed a 13-year-old boy named James Dreymala, who was strapped to Corll's torture board, raped, tortured and strangled before being buried in Corll's boat shed.
== August 8 party ==
On August 8, 1973, Henley brought a further potential victim, 19-year-old Timothy Kerley, to Corll's home upon the promise of a party. Before Corll was able to [[manacle]] Kerley to his torture board, the pair left Corll's home to purchase sandwiches. Henley and Kerley later returned to Corll's home – in the company of a 15-year-old girl named Rhonda Williams. Corll was furious that a girl had been brought to his house, telling Henley in private he had "ruined everything." Externally, however, Corll remained calm: he waited until Henley and the other two teenagers fell asleep from a night of drinking and smoking marijuana before binding and gagging them.
Henley woke to find Corll placing handcuffs upon his wrists,<ref name="olsen" />{{rp|100,101}} Kerley and Williams had each been bound and gagged and lay alongside Henley on the floor.
Corll then dragged Henley by his cuffed hands into his kitchen and placed a .22 caliber pistol against his stomach, threatening to shoot him. Henley pleaded for his life, promising to participate in the torture and murder of the other youths if Corll released him. Corll agreed and untied Henley, then carried Kerley and Williams into his bedroom and tied them to opposite sides of his plywood torture board: Kerley on his stomach; Williams on her back.
Henley was handed a long hunting knife by Corll, who ordered him to cut away Williams' clothes, insisting that he would rape and kill the youth as Henley would do likewise to Rhonda Williams. Henley began cutting away the girl's clothes as Corll placed the pistol upon a table, undressed and climbed on top of Kerley.
=== Shooting of Corll ===
As Corll began to assault and torture Tim Kerley, Henley began to cut away Williams' clothes with the knife Corll had handed him. As he did so, Williams lifted her head and asked Henley, "Is this for real?" Henley replied in the affirmative and Williams then asked Henley whether he intended to "do anything about it," upon which Henley grabbed the pistol Corll had laid on a bedside table and ordered Corll to stop what he was doing, shouting, "You've gone far enough, Dean!"
Even with a weapon pointed at him, Corll was not cowed: he walked towards Henley, shouting, "Kill me, Wayne! You won't do it!" Henley fired a round at Corll, hitting him in the forehead. As Corll continued to advance upon him, Henley shot him a further two times in the shoulder, upon which Corll staggered out of the room where the teenagers were held. Henley then fired a further three rounds into the rear of his right shoulder and upper back, killing him. He then released Kerley and Williams, phoned the Pasadena police and subsequently confessed to his role in the Houston Mass Murders.<ref>{{cite news|title=Mass Murder Case Traced|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=861&dat=19750618&id=yAxZAAAAIBAJ&pg=6928,3045619|access-date=May 30, 2018|publisher=The Victoria Advocate|date=June 18, 1975}}</ref>
[[File:Elmer Wayne Henley Corll Boat Shed August 8 1973.jpg|145px|right|thumb|Henley, pictured outside Corll's boat shed on August 8, 1973]]
== Confession ==
On the evening of August 8, Henley confessed to police that for almost three years, he and David Brooks had helped procure teenage boys – some of whom had been their own friends – for Dean Corll. Henley unequivocally stated that since the winter of 1971, he had actively participated in the abductions and, later, the murders of the victims. He stated that Brooks had also been an active accomplice – albeit for a longer period of time than he.
Henley stated to police that Corll had paid him and Brooks $200 for each victim they were able to lure to his apartment, and informed police that Corll had buried most of his victims in a boatshed in [[Southwest Houston]], and others at [[Lake Sam Rayburn]] and [[High Island, Texas|High Island Beach]]. He agreed to accompany police to each of the burial sites to assist in the recovery of the victims.
In one of the more dramatic moments in Houston television history, Jack Cato, a reporter for Houston's NBC television affiliate [[KPRC-TV]], accompanied Henley and police as Henley led them to the storage shed where he and Corll had buried some of the murder victims' bodies. Cato allowed Henley the use of his mobile radio telephone to call Henley's mother, at which time Henley blurted the words, "Mama, I killed Dean," into the receiver, confessing to her that he had killed Dean Corll, all while Cato was capturing the conversation on film. The footage played several times on KPRC-TV's local news and was picked up for nationwide broadcast by ''[[NBC Nightly News]]'' that evening.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://nppa.org/news/2933 |title=Houston Legend Jack Cato, 70 |date=May 30, 2006 |publisher=NPPA The Voice of Visual Journalists |access-date=December 21, 2014 |archive-date=December 22, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141222000234/https://nppa.org/news/2933 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
[[File:Elmer Wayne Henley High Island August 12 1973.jpg|195px|left|thumb|Elmer Wayne Henley Jr. Photographed at [[High Island, Texas|High Island]] Beach August 10, 1973]]
Between August 8 and 13, 1973, a total of 27 boys between the ages of 13 and 20 were found buried at the three locations where Henley (and later, Brooks) had stated they and Corll had buried the victims, with an additional victim being discovered in 1983.<ref>[http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/video?id=7115632/ ABC Local.com.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006081111/http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/video?id=7115632%2F |date=October 6, 2012 }}</ref> Seventeen of the victims were found buried in the boat shed, a further four victims were found at [[Lake Sam Rayburn]], six bodies were found buried at [[High Island, Texas|High Island Beach]] (although the body of a seventh victim buried at High Island, Mark Scott, still lies undiscovered at this location) and the body of a 28th victim was found buried at [[Jefferson County, Texas|Jefferson County Beach]] in August 1983.
[[File:BrooksHenleyHighIslandBeachAugust13 1973a.jpg|195px|right|thumb|Henley (left) and [[David Owen Brooks|David Brooks]] (right), pictured at High Island Beach. August 10, 1973]]
All the victims found were young males and many had been sexually tortured in addition to being sexually assaulted. Autopsies revealed each victim had been killed by either strangulation, shooting or a combination of both.<ref name="phinney">{{cite web | last = Phinney | first = Debera | title = Police News Reporter "Identifies" Houston Mass Murder Victim – Bodies to be Exhumed | work = The Police News | date = September 13, 2010 | url = http://thepolicenews.net/default.aspx?newsletterid=22837&category=News+1-2&act=Newsletter.aspx&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1/&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport= }}</ref>
At Henley's trial in 1974, one of the six bodies found buried at High Island, that of 17-year-old John Manning Sellars, was disputed as being a victim of Corll by a [[forensic pathologist]] who examined his remains. The youth, who vanished on July 12, 1973, had died of four gunshot wounds fired from a rifle, whereas each other victim of the Houston Mass Murders had either been strangled or killed with the .22 caliber pistol Henley had used to kill Dean Corll. However, Henley and Brooks had led police to Sellars' body on August 13, 1973, and the youth's body was found bound hand and foot and buried in a manner similar to Corll's other known victims.<ref>{{cite news|title=One Body Not Murder Victim?|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jL8dAAAAIBAJ&pg=3162,1473642&hl=en/|access-date=May 4, 2023|work=[[The Daily News (Kentucky)|Daily News]]|agency=[[Associated Press]]|date=July 11, 1974}}</ref>
== Indictment ==
On August 13, 1973, a grand jury convened in [[Harris County, Texas|Harris County]] to hear evidence against Henley and Brooks. The jury heard evidence from both Rhonda Williams and Tim Kerley, who each testified to the events of August 7 and 8 leading to the shooting of Dean Corll, plus the testimony from various police officers who recited and discussed the written statements each youth had made and described how both Brooks and Henley had led them to each of the burial sites. The assembled jury also heard the testimony of a youth named Billy Ridinger, who had been abducted by Corll, Henley and Brooks in 1972 and who testified as to his torture and abuse at the hands of the trio.
After listening to the evidence presented, the jury initially indicted Henley on three counts of murder and Brooks on one count. Bail was set at $100,000.<ref>{{cite book | last = Hanna | first = David | title = Harvest of Horror: Mass Murder in Houston | publisher = Belmont Tower | edition = mass market paperback | date = 1975 }}</ref>{{rp|161}} Henley was not charged with the death of Dean Corll, which was ruled [[Self-defense (United States)|self-defense]].
On October 8, Henley and Brooks were brought to court to face a formal [[arraignment]]. Henley was charged with six counts of murder and Brooks with four counts.<ref>{{cite news | title = Houston youths arraigned today | newspaper = Ellensburg Daily Record | location = Ellensburg, WA | pages = 5 | publisher = UPI | date = October 8, 1973 | url = https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=REJPAAAAIBAJ&pg=5888,436097&dq/ | access-date = April 19, 2012}}</ref> Both youths pleaded not guilty to the charges against them.<ref>{{cite web | title = 2 Texas Youths File Pleas of Not Guilty In Mass Slayings (abstract) | work = The New York Times | url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10A13FB3D5D127A93CBA9178BD95F478785F9/ | access-date = April 19, 2012}}</ref>
== Trial and conviction ==
Henley was brought to trial in [[San Antonio, Texas|San Antonio]] in July 1974,<ref>{{cite news|title=Henley Gets 594 Years|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=886&dat=19740809&id=kLtaAAAAIBAJ&pg=5256,776821|access-date=May 9, 2018|work=The Prescott Courier|date=August 9, 1974}}</ref> charged with the murders of six teenage boys whom he himself had lured to Corll's apartment between March 1972 and July 1973.<ref name="644sw2d950" /><ref>Murder in mind {{ISSN|1364-5803}}, p34</ref><!-- loislaw gives a paragraph; other cite to the case is complete [http://www.loislaw.com/ogpc/login.htp?WSRet=12&dockey=3748536@TXCASE&OLDURL=/gpc/index.htp&OLDREFURL=http%3A//news.google.com/archivesearch%3Fq%3Delmer%2Bwayne%2Bhenley%26scoring%3Da%26hl%3Den%26ned%3Duk%26sa%3DN%26sugg%3Dd%26as_ldate%3D1980%26as_hdate%3D1984%26lnav%3Dhist2// Loislaw] --> Throughout his trial, Henley was represented by Will Gray and Edwin Pegelow.<ref>{{cite news | title = Henley Trial Evidence Held Admissible | newspaper = Spokane Daily Chronicle | location = Spokane, WA | pages = 2 | publisher = Associated Press | date = February 1, 1974 | url = https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=a5JYAAAAIBAJ&pg=7379,15157&dq/ }}</ref>
The State of Texas presented a total of 82 pieces of evidence throughout Henley's trial, including the written confession Henley had given on August 8, which was read to the court in which he admitted killing or assisting in the abduction and murder of several youths, including the six teenagers for whose murders he was on trial. Other pieces of evidence presented included the wooden box used to transport the victims' bodies to the various burial sites and the plywood body board upon which many victims had been restrained. Within the wooden box, investigators had found several strands of human hair which examiners had concluded came from Charles Cobble. A total of 25 witnesses testified as to Henley's involvement in the abductions and murders, including Detective David Mullican. At one point during the trial, Mullican testified that Henley had informed him that in order to restrain the youths he, Brooks, and Corll had "handcuffed (the victims) to the board and sometimes to a wall with their mouths taped so they couldn't make any noise".<ref>{{cite news | title = Torture board among evidence in trial | newspaper = The Prescott Courier | location = Prescott, AZ | pages = 7 | publisher = Associated Press | date = July 10, 1974 | url = https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=GbpaAAAAIBAJ&pg=5507,4699225&dq/ }}</ref>
Following advice from his defense counsel, Henley did not take the stand to testify in his own defense, although one of his attorneys, Will Gray, did cross examine a number of witnesses. On more than 300 occasions,<ref>{{cite news
| title = Henley Trial Arguments Monday
| newspaper = Ocala Star-Banner
| location = Ocala, FL
| pages = 15A
| publisher = Associated Press
| date = July 12, 1974 | url = https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ooZPAAAAIBAJ&pg=4620,2512863&dq/Ocala
}}</ref> Henley's attorneys raised objections to the testimony given or evidence presented against Henley which was overruled by the judge presiding at his trial.
On July 16, 1974, after hearing closing arguments from both prosecution and defense, the jury retired to consider their verdict. After one hour of deliberation they reached their conclusion:<ref>{{cite news | title = To appeal Henley's conviction | newspaper = The Journal | location = Meriden, CT | pages = 18 | publisher = Associated Press | date = July 17, 1974 | url = https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=W7VIAAAAIBAJ&pg=1914,2011255&dq/ }}</ref> Henley was found guilty and sentenced to six consecutive 99-year terms of imprisonment. On July 25, Henley and his attorneys filed an appeal, contending that Henley had been denied an evidentiary hearing; that the jury had not been sequestered; that a motion to move the initial trial away from San Antonio had also been denied; and that the presence of news media in the courtroom had also prejudiced his trial.
=== Appeal ===
Henley's conviction was overturned on appeal on December 20, 1978.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://tvnews.vanderbilt.edu/program.pl?ID%3D497125 |title=&#124; Vanderbilt Television News Archive |access-date=November 26, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321165539/http://tvnews.vanderbilt.edu/program.pl?ID=497125 |archive-date=March 21, 2012 }}</ref> He was tried for a second time in June 1979 and was again convicted of six murders and again sentenced to six life terms, although running concurrently rather than consecutively.
Elmer Wayne Henley first became eligible for [[parole]] on July 8, 1980; on this occasion—and each successive parole hearing to date—he has been denied parole. Henley's next eligible parole date is October 2025<ref>{{cite web | title = Parole Review Information | url = https://offender.tdcj.texas.gov/OffenderSearch/reviewDetail.action?sid=01924387&tdcj=00241618&fullName=HENLEY%2CELMER+WAYNE+JR | access-date = February 9, 2016 | publisher = [[Texas Department of Criminal Justice]] | archive-date = June 5, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200605193728/https://offender.tdcj.texas.gov/OffenderSearch/reviewDetail.action?sid=01924387&tdcj=00241618&fullName=HENLEY%2CELMER+WAYNE+JR | url-status = dead }}</ref><ref>"[http://168.51.178.33/webapp/TDCJ/index2.htm Offender Information Detail Henley, Elmer Wayne Jr] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090705214718/http://168.51.178.33/webapp/TDCJ/index2.htm |date=July 5, 2009 }}." [[Texas Department of Criminal Justice]]. Retrieved on July 20, 2010. Enter the SID "01924387."</ref> when he will be 69 years old.
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:WilliamLawrence1973.jpg|110px|right|thumb|Billy Lawrence, aged 15]] -->
Henley is incarcerated in the [[Stiles Unit]] in [[Jefferson County, Texas|Jefferson County]].<ref name="TDCJweb">{{cite web | title= Offender Information Details | url= https://inmate.tdcj.texas.gov/InmateSearch/viewDetail.action?sid=01924387 | access-date = February 9, 2016 | publisher = [[Texas Department of Criminal Justice]] }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title= Offender Information Details | url= https://offender.tdcj.texas.gov/OffenderSearch/offenderDetail.action?sid=01922285 | access-date= February 9, 2016 | publisher= [[Texas Department of Criminal Justice]] | archive-date= February 15, 2016 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160215171137/https://offender.tdcj.texas.gov/OffenderSearch/offenderDetail.action?sid=01922285 | url-status= dead }}</ref><ref name="trutv">{{cite web | last = Bardsley | first = Marilyn | title = Dean Corll | work = truTV Crime Library | date = April 19, 2012 | url = http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/serial_killers/predators/corll/index_1.html }}</ref>{{rp|7}}<ref name="TDCJweb" /><ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2008Jun08/0,4670,UnidentifiedMurderer,00.html/ Fox News] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080611004850/http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2008Jun08/0,4670,UnidentifiedMurderer,00.html/ |date=June 11, 2008 }}</ref>
=== David Brooks ===
David Brooks was tried for the June 1973 murder of Billy Ray Lawrence in February 1975. He was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment on March 4.<ref>{{cite news | title = Houston jury finds David Brooks guilty | newspaper = Beaver County Times | location = Beaver Co., PA| pages = A4 | publisher = UPI | date = March 4, 1975 | url = https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=kN4qAAAAIBAJ&pg=2999,726381&dq/ }}</ref> Brooks died of [[COVID-19]] complications in May 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|title=David Brooks, accomplice in Houston Mass Murders, dies at 65 of COVID-19|url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Accomplice-in-Houston-Mass-Murders-dies-in-prison-15331112.php|website=khou.com|date=June 10, 2020}}</ref>
== Art ==
In 1994, at the suggestion of a [[Louisiana]] art dealer, Henley began to paint as a hobby, in part as a means of generating income for himself and his mother.
{| style="float: class="toccolours" cellspacing="5" style="float: right; margin-right: 0.2em; margin-right: 1em; font-size: 115%; background:#c1g1; color:black; width:50em; max-width: 60%"
| style=text-align: left;" | "All I ask is that they    look at my artwork first...it may be the only contribution I can give to society."
|-
| style="text-align: left;" | Henley referring to criticism of his art exhibitions.<ref name="pugh" />
|}
In interviews, Henley has stated that he suffers from a severe color deficiency in his eyesight that makes it impossible for him to clearly distinguish between [[Red-green colorblindness|
reds and greens]]. To compensate, any people Henley paints are in black and white while his other works are usually in color.<ref name="art">{{cite web | last = McVicker | first = Steve | title = Killer Art | work = Houston Press | date = January 30, 1997 | url = http://www.houstonpress.com/1997-01-30/news/killer-art/1/ | access-date = September 13, 2009}}</ref> Henley refuses to paint or draw any images of a violent or exploitative nature; many of his works depict [[wiktionary:serene|serene]] imagery such as landscapes, buildings and flowers. The majority are created using [[Acrylic paint|acrylics]] and graphite.<ref name="pugh">{{cite web | last = Pugh | first = Clifford | title = Sentenced to life in prison for one of society's most heinous mass murders, it's all Elmer Wayne Henley has. Some say it's too much. | work = chron | publisher = Houston Chronicle | date = January 31, 1997 | url = http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl/1997_1392340/artistic-freedom-sentenced-to-life-in-prison-for-o.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100529042830/http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl/1997_1392340/artistic-freedom-sentenced-to-life-in-prison-for-o.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = May 29, 2010 }}</ref>
A [[pen pal]] with whom Henley has corresponded has also organized several exhibitions of his artwork.<ref name="art" /> In 1997, the Hyde Park Gallery in Houston's [[Neartown Houston|Neartown]] area hosted Henley's first art show. This exhibition drew outrage from some victims' relatives.<ref name="art" /> In 1999 the city of Houston expressed interest in building a monument to victims of violent crime, which Henley said he would be willing to help pay for with part of the proceeds from a second art show.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abjectfilms.com/news5.html |title=To Die For |publisher=Houston Press |access-date=September 13, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091115072019/http://www.abjectfilms.com/news5.html |archive-date=November 15, 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref>{{refn|group=n|Displays and public sales of Henley's artwork have drawn severe criticism from victim support groups.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.fox26houston.com/news/one-of-houstons-most-notorious-killers-has-facebook-page|title = One of Houston's most notorious killers has Facebook page|date = January 28, 2016}}</ref>}}
== Media ==
=== Film ===
* A film loosely inspired by the Houston Mass Murders, ''Freak Out'', was released in 2003.<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2096461/plotsummary?ref_=tt_ov_pl IMDb Freak Out plot summary]</ref>
* Production of a film directly based upon the Houston Mass Murders, ''In a Madman's World'', finished in 2014.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Rouner|first1=Jeff|title=Real Horror: Local Filmmaker Brings the Horrific Crimes of Dean Corll to the Silver Screen|url=http://www.houstonpress.com/arts/real-horror-local-filmmaker-brings-the-horrific-crimes-of-dean-corll-to-the-silver-screen-6600050|access-date=October 16, 2015|work=[[Houston Press]]|date=December 4, 2013}}</ref> Directed by Josh Vargas, ''In a Madman's World'' is directly based upon Elmer Wayne Henley's life before, during, and immediately after his involvement with Dean Corll and David Brooks.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://uk.imdb.com/title/tt2260324/ |title=In a Madman's World |publisher=Uk.imdb.com |access-date=December 4, 2013 }}{{dead link|date=December 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Limited edition copies of the film were released in 2017.
* In an interview included in the extras on the 3 disk set of the 4k release of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre by Second Sight in 2023, Kim Henkel states that he watched Henley's confession and subsequent assertion that he would "take his punishment like a man." He refers to this juxtaposition of Henley's confession and moral posturing as "moral schizophrenia," which he says influenced how he wrote some of the characters in the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie.
=== Bibliography ===
* Christian, Kimberly (2015). ''Horror in the Heights: The True Story of The Houston Mass Murders''. CreateSpace. {{ISBN|978-1-515-19072-1}}.
* Gurwell, John K. (1974). ''Mass Murder in Houston''. Cordovan Press.
* Hanna, David (1975). ''Harvest of Horror: Mass Murder in Houston''. [[Belmont Books|Belmont Tower]].
* {{cite book| last = Olsen| first = Jack|author-link=Jack Olsen| title = The Man with the Candy: The Story of the Houston Mass Murders| url = https://archive.org/details/manwithcandyt00olse| url-access = registration| year = 1974| publisher = [[Simon & Schuster]]| isbn = 978-0-7432-1283-0 }}
* {{cite book| last1 = Ramsland| first1 = Katherine|author-link=Katherine Ramsland| last2 = Ullman| first2 = Tracy| title = The Serial Killer's Apprentice: The True Story of How Houston's Deadliest Murderer Turned a Kid Into a Killing Machine| year = 2024| publisher = Penzler Publishers| isbn = 978-1-613-16495-2 }}
* Rosewood, Jack (2015). ''Dean Corll: The True Story of The Houston Mass Murders''. CreateSpace {{ISBN|978-1-517-48500-9}}.
=== Television ===
* A 1982 documentary, ''[[The Killing of America]]'', features a section devoted to the Houston Mass Murders.
* FactualTV host a documentary focusing upon the murders committed by Corll and his accomplices. Dr. Sharon Derrick is among those interviewed for the documentary.
* The [[Investigation Discovery]] channel has broadcast a documentary focusing upon the Houston Mass Murders within their documentary series, ''[[Most Evil]]''. This documentary, entitled "Manipulators", was first broadcast in December 2014.<ref>{{cite news|title=Investigation Discovery Reveals Who Is Most Evil with Leading Forensic Psychologist Dr. Kris Mohandie – On Sunday, December 7|url=https://corporate.discovery.com/discovery-newsroom/investigation-discovery-reveals-who-most-evil-lead/|access-date=October 17, 2015|publisher=[[Discovery Communications]]|date=November 24, 2014|archive-date=December 10, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151210182359/https://corporate.discovery.com/discovery-newsroom/investigation-discovery-reveals-who-most-evil-lead/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* Episode 4 of Season 2 of the 2017 [[Netflix]] series ''[[Mindhunter (TV series)|Mindhunter]]'' follows a storyline involving interviews with Henley (portrayed by [[Robert Aramayo]]), centered around his involvement with Corll and the Houston Mass Murders.
=== Music ===
* Australian band [[The Mark of Cain (band)|The Mark of Cain]] included a sample of Henley's confession to his mother over the phone on their 1989 album ''Battlesick''; it is at the start of the song "You Are Alone."
== See also ==
* [[List of serial killers in the United States]]
* [[List of serial killers by number of victims]]
{{Portal bar|Texas|Biography}}
== Notes ==
{{reflist|group=n}}
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
== External links ==
* https://elmerwaynehenleyjr.com/
* [https://www.nytimes.com/1974/07/01/archives/trial-opens-today-in-texas-killings-defendant-charged-in-six-of-27.html ''Contemporary news article''] pertaining to Elmer Wayne Henley's 1974 trial
* [https://www.nytimes.com/1974/07/21/archives/houston-finds-murder-ring-random-enigmatic-intrusion-the-talk-of.html ''Contemporary news article''] pertaining to Elmer Wayne Henley's initial 1974 conviction
* {{YouTube|XYLkeRaMrKg|Elmer Wayne Henley Jr. & Dean Corll Documentary Clip}}
* Elmer Wayne Henley Jr. vs. The State of Texas: Full [https://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar_case?case=4580728464083426899&hl=en&as_sdt=2,5&as_vis=1 transcript of Henley's 1978 appeal] against his 1974 convictions
* {{YouTube|C12R4adG3LQ|Police evidence}} in the case of Elmer Wayne Henley
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090705214718/http://168.51.178.33/webapp/TDCJ/index2.htm TDCJ Online Offender Search]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Henley, Elmer Wayne}}
[[Category:1956 births]]
[[Category:1972 murders in the United States]]
[[Category:20th-century American criminals]]
[[Category:American male criminals]]
[[Category:American murderers of children]]
[[Category:American people convicted of murder]]
[[Category:American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Criminals from Houston]]
[[Category:People convicted of murder by Texas]]
[[Category:Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Texas]]
[[Category:Serial killers from Texas]]
[[Category:Violence against men in the United States]]
[[Category:Juvenile serial killers]]