Police detective and forensics team conduct their investigation behind crime scene tape. (SynthEx/Shutterstock)
Dallas-Fort Worth is home to plenty of exciting spots, but it’s also been the scene of some of the most infamous true crime cases in the country.
Dallas has a storied past, and that history contains some truly infamous crimes. These events range from premeditated murder to escaped convicts on the loose, but they’re full of ghastly gore and frightful behaviors.
We’re diving into seven of the most notorious true crime cases to hit the Dallas-Fort Worth area, starting with one that rocked the entire world.
1. The Assassination of JFK
You don’t even need to be a true crime fan to know about all the interest around the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The 35th President of the United States was shot and killed while traveling in a motorcade through Dealey Plaza on November 22, 1963.
A special investigative unit, the Warren Commission, concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone, firing a rifle from the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository. Shortly after fleeing the scene, Oswald killed Officer J.D. Tippit, who had pulled up alongside Oswald on the street. Oswald was caught and arrested that afternoon in the Texas Theatre. He claimed he was a “patsy” and didn’t kill the President. Yet the world never learned the true details of his involvement or motives because he was killed two days later on November 24, 1963. Jack Ruby, a nightclub operator, shot him point-blank as he was being moved to another jail.
Even with the official reports, conspiracy theories have popped up about who really killed Kennedy. The assassination has been the subject of movies such as “JFK” and referenced throughout pop culture, including a notable scene in an episode of “Seinfeld” that featured a “magic loogie” hitting Kramer and Newman.
2. The Texas 7
On December 13, 2000, a group of seven prisoners escaped from the John B. Connally Unit, located near Kenedy, Texas. The prisoners had originally been committed for a variety of crimes ranging from murder to sexual assault. The ringleader of the group, George Rivas, was serving 18 consecutive 15-to-life sentences.
While the prisoners were on the loose, they robbed a Sports Authority in Irving, stealing guns, ammunition, and $70,000. An Irving police officer, Aubrey Hawkins, responded to the scene and was immediately ambushed. The escapees shot him 11 times and ran him over as they fled. The murder of Hawkins occurred on Christmas Eve; about a month later, an episode of “America’s Most Wanted” aired featuring the escaped convicts. Several people phoned the police after watching the show, and the seven men were captured.
One of them, Larry Harper, shot himself in the heart before police arrested him. The remaining six have been sentenced to death. As of this writing, all but two have been executed. One of the surviving convicts, Randy Halprin, was granted a new trial by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in November 2024.
3. The Murder of Amber Hagerman
You’ve likely received an AMBER Alert on your phone, an indication that a child under 18 has been abducted and is at risk of serious injury or death. The alerts have helped law enforcement find abducted children. As of December 31, 2024, 1,268 children were successfully recovered through the AMBER Alert system, with another 226 rescued due to wireless emergency alerts. Amber Hagerman is the reason this system exists.
The nine-year-old Hagerman was riding her bike in Arlington. Her younger brother, Ricky, was playing with her but went home early. When Ricky and his grandfather returned, they only found Amber’s bike, with no sign of her. A neighbor reportedly witnessed the abduction and called 9-1-1, while Hagerman’s mother called the news and the FBI to begin a search for her daughter.
Four days after the abduction, a man walking his dog found Amber’s body in a creek near an apartment complex. She was discovered less than five miles from where she disappeared. To this day, her murderer has never been caught.
4. The Betty Gore Murder
Candy Montgomery met middle school teacher Betty Gore at a church service in Collin County. Montgomery, who was married, soon began an affair with Gore’s husband, Allan (no relation to the future Vice President of the United States).
While Allan was out of town, Montgomery went to the family’s Wylie home and found a three-foot-long axe. She struck Betty with it 41 times, killing the teacher and leaving Gore’s baby alone and crying in another room. Montgomery later said she took a shower at the residence before leaving.
The killing and subsequent murder trial received quite a bit of media attention. Montgomery’s defense team claimed she was acting in self-defense, that Betty had grabbed the axe to confront Montgomery about the affair. After a four-and-a-half-hour jury deliberation, Candy was found not guilty of all charges. The Como Motel, where Montgomery and Allan Gore had their affair, was demolished earlier this year.
5. Margaret Schlosser’s Killing
Dena Schlosser was living in Plano when, on November 22, 2004, she amputated the arms of her ten-month-old daughter, Margaret. The day Margaret was born, Schlosser attempted suicide and was placed in a psychiatric ward. She later received a diagnosis of bipolar disorder with psychotic features.
Schlosser’s trial gained notoriety throughout DFW. Disturbing details emerged, such as Schlosser believing Margaret would marry veterinarian-turned-pastor Doyle Davidson and claiming God commanded her to remove Margaret’s arms before her own in preparation for the coming apocalypse.
Schlosser was found not guilty because of insanity and committed to the North Texas State Hospital. While she was hospitalized, she was a roommate of Andrea Yates, who had drowned her five children in the family’s bathtub. Schlosser was released in 2008, though she was recommitted a couple of years later. As of December 2020, she’s been ordered to stay in a state hospital.
6. The Texas Cadet Murder
When they were 14 years old, Diane Zamora wanted to be an astronaut, and David Graham hoped to become a pilot. The pair met at a Civil Air Patrol meeting near Crowley and soon began dating. They got engaged, with plans to marry upon graduating from college. The two attended different schools; Graham was on the cross-country team with another woman, Adrianne Jones. One night, Graham claimed to have given Jones a ride home from a track meet and had sex with her in his car.
Zamora demanded that Graham kill Jones as a result, and the two hatched a murder plan. Graham picked up Jones on December 3, 1995, to drive her to Joe Pool Lake. Zamora hid in the hatchback and eventually confronted Jones about sleeping with Graham in the early morning of December 4. Zamora hit Jones with a dumbbell over the head, and when Jones tried to fight back and then flee, Graham shot her twice with a pistol. Upon returning to the car, Zamora claimed Graham said, “I love you, baby. Do you believe me now?”
The police investigation took nine months, and officials have stated they believe Graham lied about the sexual encounter with Jones. Graham has maintained that it happened. Whatever the truth may be, both Graham and Zamora were charged with capital murder and received life sentences.
7. The Eyeball Killer
Charles Albright grew up in Amarillo and, by 13, was already a petty thief and had an arrest for aggravated assault. He had an interest in becoming a doctor and surgeon, attending North Texas University, but was arrested at age 16 with stolen cash and guns. He spent a year in jail; after his release, he falsified his degree and bounced around various jobs, continuing to commit crimes.
Between October 1988 and March 1991, four sex workers were found dead around the Dallas area. The bodies had been stabbed or shot, and in three of the cases, their eyes had been removed. After rookie police officer Regina Smith discovered evidence, Albright was charged with four murders.
During the trial, an expert witness testified that Albright’s hair fibers were found at the murder site of Shirley Williams. The hairs actually belonged to a dog, yet the jury still found Albright guilty of Williams’s murder. He’s the suspect in the other three killings, as well, although he was never formally charged. Albright was incarcerated at John Montford Psychiatric Unit in Lubbock, dying in prison in 2020.
This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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