United States of America
ELLEDGE
James
Active in 1974 & 1998 in Washington
DID YOU KNOW...
Self-Fulfilling Fact
Elledge placed a Bible next to a survivor, telling her it would keep her safe
Interesting Fact
Elledge was unequivocal in his request for a death sentence
Sad Fact
The medical examiner testified Fitzner's murder involved an element of torture
THE DISPATCH
The Beginning
James Homer Elledge was born in Louisiana on December 9, 1942.
Elledge’s first brush with the law was at age 10. In 1953, he was convicted of breaking and entering, and was sent to a juvenile corrections facility. This was repeated in 1954. In 1956, he was charged with theft and sent to a juvenile correctional facility. At one point, Elledge even tried to rob a bank.
Attempted Murder
Linda Sue Guillon (survivor)
- October 26, 1964
- Roswell, New Mexico
On October 26, 1964, Elledge committed the armed robbery of a Western Union office. He took Linda Sue Gullion, the clerk, hostage. They stopped at a gravel pit. He sexually assaulted her and beat her with a pistol, knocking her unconscious. Elledge then tried to kill her by pouring gasoline on her. Gullion fled when Elledge returned to the car. She flagged down a passing trucker who took her to safety.
Elledge was arrested the next day at a Roswell motel by State Troopers. Elledge was tried and sentenced to prison for a term of 10 to 50 years. He escaped prison once, and was sentenced to 2 to 10 years after his recapture. Elledge was released from prison on parole in 1972.
The Murders
Bertha Maude Lush
- May 18, 1974
- Seattle, Washington
It took only two years before Elledge would be successful at his first murder. On May 17, 1974, in Seattle, Washington, Elledge got into a disagreement with Bertha Maude Lush.
Lush was the night manager of the El Dorado Motel where Elledge was staying. They got into an argument over the bill. Elledge beat Lush to death with a ball-peen hammer, striking her 28 times. Elledge fled.
Elledge Arrested
- July 19, 1974
- Albuquerque, New Mexico
Elledge was arrested for driving a stolen car and carrying a concealed weapon. Police find out he has a warrant for Seattle, for the murder of Lush. He was returned to Seattle for trial.
Elledge Convicted & Paroled & Paroled & Paroled
- April, 1975 - August, 1995
- New Mexico & Louisiana
Elledge was convicted of first degree murder of Lush in April, 1975. He was sentenced to life with a chance of parole, and was paroled in July, 1989.
Although he was living with his daughter, Elledge did not stay out of trouble. His parole was revoked because of charges of attempted burglary of a bar in November, 1989. He went back to prison and was paroled in April, 1994.
This parole was revoked in September, 1994, and he went back to prison until he was again released on August 3, 1995. He stayed under police radar until 1998.
Eloise Fitzner and "S.C."
- April 18, 1998
- Lynnwood, Washington
Elledge worked as a janitor at the Lighthouse Methodist Church in Lynnwood, Washington. His job meant he had easy access to people who trusted him. Of course, he abused that trust.
On April 18, 1998. Elledge invited Eloise Fitzner and her friend, “S.C.,” out for dinner. He promised gifts and a fun time. Being good Christian women, they met Elledge at the church, got a brief tour, and met the pastor. The pastor left for the evening as the trio continued the tour. They thought nothing of it when Elledge led them to Room 102, used for bible study.
In Room 102, Elledge closed the door, pulled out a knife and began to extract his revenge on Fitzner. Elledge believed that a year earlier, Fitzner had interfered with his marriage.
They had been neighbours in the same apartment complex. Fitzner wrote to Elledge’s girlfriend at the time, advising her not to stay “with that awful man anymore.” Fitzner warned the woman that Elledge was using her for sex and her income. Fitzner said that Elledge had even hit on her. Elledge also read the letter.
Despite Fitzner’s attempt to interfere, Elledge and his girlfriend later married. But Elledge did not forget Fitzner’s words. “I had been carrying around… anger inside of me for over a year [and it] just got to the top and it just spewed out,” he later said.
Elledge had bought a nylon cord and checked out the church rooms with murder in mind. He wrote a letter to his wife and another to his employer, and set his plan in motion.
Elledge lured Fitzner and her friend into the bible study room and bound them both with nylon cord. He had nothing against S.C., Fitzner’s friend, so he placed her on an upper riser and placed a bible near her. Elledge put a black sweatshirt over her head and made her face the wall.
Elledge then began his attack on Fitzner. Her last words were, “No, stop, I can’t breathe.” Elledge duct taped her mouth and strangled her. He shoved her body under a riser. Thinking she was still alive, he stabbed her in the neck.
Elledge covered her with blankets, shirts, boxes and packages from the room.
Elledge fled the church with S.C. and took her to his home, where he raped her. The next day, he drove S.C. to her car, released her, and said he would find her if she went to police. S.C. went to the police immediately.
Arrest & Conviction
Elledge Turns Himself In, is Charged
- April 21-24, 1998
- Everett, Washington
Elledge turned himself in on April 21 and described Fitzner’s murder “in great detail.”
“…The Parole Board is obviously gonna revoke my parole uh and that is still carrying a life sentence..․ [s]o I don’t feel that I have anything to uh gain or lose by holding back․ I’ve already made my bed, now I’ve gotta sleep in it the rest of my life,” he said.
“… There’s something wrong with my nature. I don’t know where it comes from or what it is uh, but at times uh this particular type of nature comes up in me uh, an evil that I can’t control uh. This happened several times in the past few years but I had been able to control a lot of it by uh power of prayer. I am a Christian but this particular time, Saturday, uh, it was just something I couldn’t control.”
On April 24, 1998, Elledge was charged with one count of aggravated first degree murder, based on the aggravator of kidnapping in the first degree.
Elledge Enters Guilty Plea, Sentenced
- May 27-October 21, 1998
- Everett, Washington
On May 27, the State advised him they would seek the death penalty. On the same day, Elledge pleaded guilty.
The court accepted the plea and, following several continuances, began a preliminary hearing. Elledge said he would not contest the death penalty.
On October 21, a special sentencing proceeding was held, with only three witnesses. The lead detective, the medical examiner and the victim’s brother spoke. Elledge expressed remorse but said “this wicked part of me needs to die.” Both the jury and the trial court agreed, and Elledge was sentenced to death.
The courts said Elledge “shows a pattern of violence towards others.”
Elledge’s Death
Killer Executed
- August 28, 2001
- Washington
Elledge was executed by lethal injection at Washington State Penitentiary.
SIMILAR SERIAL KILLERS
Wayne Clifford Boden
Boden was also 58 when he died
Israel Keyes
Like Elledge, Keyes had also robbed a bank
Randy Roth
Roth and Elledge both spent time in Washington State Penitentiary
BOOKS
Books which include James Homer Elledge
Death Penalty USA, 2001-2002 by Michelangelo Delfino & Mary E. Day
ISBN: 9780972514170
Published by MoBeta
Publishing on 2009
Pages: 449
The taking of a human life is in all circumstances reprehensible and must be punished within the confines of U.S. law.
The basic concept underlying the Eighth Amendment is nothing less than the dignity of man. While the State has the power to punish, the Amendment stands to assure that this power be exercised within the limits of civilized standards. (Trop v. Dulles (1958) 356 U.S. 86, 100)
This is the third book in a series of books providing a brief history of 21st century capital-punishment executions in the United States. Each volume in the series begins with an overview of capital punishment in the United States and follows with the case histories of two consecutive years of U.S. executions.
These books are not intended to be easy reading. The crimes for which the death penalty was imposed are truly horrific and described in graphic detail based on public record. Compilations are taken from and referenced to case citations. Original names and places are retained. Some cases are necessarily more comprehensive than others. High profile murders and those involving multiple victims, difficult conviction, and vigorous defenses have more extensive records than capital crimes involving the murder of a homeless person or a clerk during a convenience store robbery. Cases where the conviction is based on circumstantial evidence tend to be more detailed than those based on voluntary confessions as do cases that take advantage of the appellate process.
Each case history is written in a non-sensationalized way that is respectful of all those touched by death. The crimes are written such that each is self-contained and can be read either sequentially or randomly. Supplemental information such as a condemned prisoner’s last meal and last words are added when such material is insightful, and the prosecution and the disposition of accomplices is included when known. The names of the executed prisoners are indexed chronologically in the Table of Contents. A reference list and an Index are provided.
Lying in Wait by Ann Rule
ISBN: 9781982138271
Published by Simon and Schuster on 19 November 2019
Pages: 336
Ann Rule presents a collection of fascinating and disturbing true-crime stories—drawn from her real-life personal files—in this seventeenth volume in the #1 New York Times bestselling Crime Files series.
In this gripping collection of investigative accounts from her private archives, “America’s best true-crime writer” (Kirkus Reviews) exposes the most frightening aspect of the murderous mind: the waiting game. Trusted family members or strangers, these cold-blooded killers select their unsuspecting prey, wait for the perfect moment to strike, then turn normality into homicidal mayhem in a matter of moments. Ann Rule will have you seeing the people and places around you with heightened caution as you read these shattering cases, including:
• New mothers murdered, their infants kidnapped, in an atrocious baby-selling scheme
• The man who kept his criminal past hidden from his wife—and his wife from his mistress—until he coldly disposed of one of them
• The beautiful daughter of a State Department official ran away from the privileged world she knew and hitched a ride with a man she didn’t . . . with fatal consequences
• For months, a vicious, rage-filled serial rapist eluded police and terrorized Seattle’s women—when would he strike next, and how far would his violence escalate?
• A criminal known for his Houdini-like escapes is serving time for murder in a botched robbery—now the convict is being served dinner in a civilian’s home, where he has one more trick up his sleeve
• A long-lost relative who came home to visit, leaving a bloody trail through Washington and Oregon; no one realized how dangerous he and his ladylove were—until it was far too late. . . .
With her ability to translate the most complex cases into storytelling “as dramatic and chilling as a bedroom window shattering at night” (The New York Times), Rule expertly analyzes the thoughts and deeds of the sociopath, in this seventeenth essential Crime Files volume.
Last Dance, Last Chance by Ann Rule
ISBN: 9780743424066
Published by Simon and Schuster on 1 January 2003
Pages: 480
“America’s best true-crime writer” (Kirkus Reviews), Ann Rule presents an all-new collection of crime stories drawn from her private files — and featuring the riveting case of a fraudulent doctor whose lifelong deceptions had deadly consequences.
Dr. Anthony Pignataro was a cosmetic surgeon and a famed medical researcher whose flashy red Lamborghini and flamboyant lifestyle in western New York State suggested a highly successful career. But appearances, as this shocking insider account of Pignataro’s tailspin from physician to prisoner proves, can be deceiving — and, for the doctor’s wife, very nearly deadly. No one was safe if they got in his way. With scalpel, drugs, and arsenic, he betrayed every oath a physician makes — until his own schemes backfired. Now, the motivations of the classic sociopath are plumbed with chilling accuracy by Ann Rule.
Along with other shocking true cases (Elledge is one of those), this worldwide headline-making case will have you turning pages in disbelief that a trusted medical professional could sink to the depths of greed, manipulation, and self-aggrandizement where even slow, deliberate murder is not seen for what it truly is: pure evil.
THE STATS
James Homer Elledge in a Historical Timeline
Statistical table for James Homer Elledge
| Killer Name | Elledge, James Homer |
| Gender | M |
| Arrest Date | April 21, 1998 |
| Conviction Date | May 27, 1998 |
| Sentence | Life sentence 1975, released; Death sentence |
| Birth Location | Louisiana, USA |
| Birth Date | December 9, 1942 |
| Death Date | August 28, 2001 |
| Deceased | Yes |
| Executed | Yes |
| Cause of Death | Lethal injection |
| Family Event | He leaves home |
| Age at Family Event | 15 |
| School Grade | GED earned in prison |
| Military Service | US National Guard |
| Sexual Preference | Straight |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Killer Type | Sexual/Sadistic, Territorial |
| Alcohol Abuse | Yes |
| comment2 | Large numbers of people petitioned for his clemency, including Catholic Archbishop Alex Brunett |
| Victims | 2 |
| Victim Gender | F |
| Victim Age | Unknown |
| Victim Type 2 | Stranger, church associate |
| Binding | Yes |
| Previous Crimes | bank robbery, abduction, assault |
| Spent Time in Jail | Yes |
| Previous Prison Time | Yes |
| Prison Name | Washington State Penitentiary |
| Prison Problems | In November 1987, Elledge is credited with saving a prison lieutenant's life during prison riots in Atlanta. |
| Parole/Release | Paroled in July, 1989. Revoked. Paroled in April, 1994. Revoked. Paroled in in September, 1994. Revoked. |
Killer Rating
RESOURCES
- Alamogordo Daily News (Oct 27, 1964)
- Albuquerque Journal (Feb 03, 1965)
- Albuquerque Journal (Jul 20, 1974)
- The Akron Beacon Journal (Apr 23, 1998)
- The Spokesman-Review (Apr 28, 1998)
- The Akron Beacon Journal (May 28, 1998)
- Corvallis Gazette-Times (May 28, 1998)
- Longview Daily News (Oct 16, 1999)
- Seattle PI (July 6, 2001)
- Appeal No. 67342-0