Caril Ann Fugate Essay

Caril Ann Fugate was a spectacle in the late 1950s, and today, she appears to be a forgotten criminal. Caril Ann Fugate and Charles Starkweather, a couple, went on a killing spree in 1958. Fugate, an innocent child, and Starkweather, a legal adult, sent the Midwest into panic as their murders were sporadic and vicious. The two had no pattern to their killings, and their capture led to some questions. The questions that arose following the arrest of Fugate and Starkweather still arise in controversy today. Was Fugate a criminal or another victim of the infamous Charles Starkweather?
Before the Run Caril Ann Fugate was brought into this world on July 30, 1943, to parents Velda Bartlett and William Fugate on July 30, 1943 (Caril Ann Fugate: Biography). Fugate was also welcomed home by an older sister, Barbara. Fugate's parents divorced when she was a young age, the specifics are unknown; so she was raised by her mother and stepfather, Marion Bartlett. Fugate also had one half-sister from her stepfather, Betty Jean. (Caril Ann Clair). Subsequently, Fugate did not seem to have trauma or any indication that she would be a killer on the run at just fourteen years of age.

Starkweather had stuck to the easy route of killing his victims using his gun, but he didn’t stray too far away from his stabbing method. Upon arriving back in Lincoln, the couple forced themselves into the home of C. Lauer Ward. Starkweather stabbed the maid, Lillian Fencl, and Ward’s wife, Clara (Brown). Upon awaiting the arrival of C. Lauer Ward, Starkweather searched through the house for anything of value and beat the dog to death. When Ward returned home, he was shot by Starkweather. Fugate and Starkweather, following their pattern, stole the Ward vehicle and fled with a few household possessions