In Cold Blood

Perry Smith and Dick Hickock meet in rural Kansas in late 1959 and come up with a plan to rob the Clutter family. They believe a wall safe contains cash and decide to act under the cover of darkness. Their shared desperation and a thirst for easy money drive their decision.

The two criminals break into the Clutter farmhouse in the middle of the night. They cannot find a safe and grow violent, eventually murdering Herbert Clutter by throat slitting and Bonnie, Nancy, and Kenyon with shotgun blasts. The family is killed in a brutal, frenzied sequence.

The Clutter family’s bodies are found the next day, triggering a major investigation. Local law enforcement, Finney County Sheriff and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation mobilize to gather evidence and track the suspects. Rumors and fear spread through the Holcomb community.

A tip from a former cellmate of Hickock places Smith and Hickock on the list of prime suspects. Investigators begin to connect the two men to the crime while they remain at large. The mounting suspicion prompts a nationwide search.

Smith and Hickock flee the state, heading first to Florida and then toward Mexico in an attempt to escape capture. They spend about two weeks away from home, moving across states and dodging police attention. Their aim is to lay low until the heat dies down.

After their time abroad, they return to the U.S. broke and travel to Las Vegas to gamble in hopes of turning a quick profit. Their financial setback exposes them to more contact with law enforcement. The trip marks a new phase in their fugitive years.

In Las Vegas, the pair are arrested for driving a stolen car, violating their parole, and passing bad checks. The arrest brings renewed scrutiny and the possibility that they are linked to the Clutter killings into sharper focus. They are held by local and state authorities for interrogation.

The Las Vegas Police Department and the KBI interrogate Smith and Hickock separately. Both men admit to passing bad checks but vehemently deny any involvement in the Clutter murders. Investigators try to pressure them by hinting at a witness, but the tactic fails.

Investigators present physical evidence, including photos of bloody footprints matching each suspect’s footwear. Hickock relents, admitting he was present at the killings but claims Smith carried out the murders and begs for immunity from the death penalty. His confession shifts the narrative but leaves the exact dynamics contested.

Motivated by Hickock’s confession, Smith finally admits that he personally killed all four Clutter family members, though he maintains Hickock was present as an accomplice. The defense remains that both men participated, but Smith’s confession emphasizes his sole responsibility. Investigators document the admissions for the forthcoming trial.

Smith and Hickock are charged with first degree murder and found guilty on all counts. They are sentenced to hang, reflecting the severity of the crimes and the era’s capital punishment standards. The verdict settles their fate in the public eye.

The defense files multiple appeals spanning more than five years as the case travels through the judiciary. Two of the appeals reach the United States Supreme Court, testing issues related to the death penalty. The legal battle delays but ultimately upholds the convictions.

After exhausting legal avenues, Smith and Hickock are put to death in front of witnesses as prescribed by law. The executions close the long, publicized case and seal their notoriety in crime history.