United States of America

MANSFIELD Jr.
William "Billy"

Active from 1975-1980 in Florida and California

DID YOU KNOW...

Dopey Fact

Billy and his brother Joe wore paper bags on their heads during perp walks

Interesting Fact

Mansfield tried covering up the burials of his victims with the bones of chickens and cows. It didn't work.

Tricky Fact

Mansfield built a trapdoor in his mobile home so he could avoid arrest

THE DISPATCH

The Beginning

William “Billy” Mansfield Jr. is the eldest son of a convicted child molester. By the 1970s, Mansfield was already sexually assaulting teenagers. He was in and out of prison for his entire life. He was convicted of criminal sexual conduct in 1977 and 1979.

The Murders

Elaine Louise Zeigler

Elaine Louise Zeigler and her family were at a KAO campground in Florida, on holiday from Ohio.

After leaving her family to take a shower, she was not seen alive again. The family had all gone to sleep, not realizing she had not returned. A search the next day by the family showed she had taken only the hair dryer she had gone with.

On December 31, 1975, Mansfield had kidnapped the petite Zeigler. He took her to his home on the junk-filled 6-acre Mansfield property. He killed her with a penetrating wound to the skull. He buried her nude body close to the home.

Zeigler was 15 years old.

More than a week later, police began searching. Fifty Hernando County deputies and civilians scoured the nearby woods for Zeigler. She had been reported missing on January 1, 1977, but police waited before conducting a search. “We don’t conduct intensive ground searches for every missing teenager,” said Hernando County Sheriff Melvin Kelly.

An anonymous man called the Sheriff’s department to report he had been in the area. He had spoken to a girl on a (stolen) motorcycle who said she was returning to Ohio. This may have been Mansfield, confusing the search efforts. Zeigler’s friend reported that Zeigler may have left the area with a man driving a 1966 blue Fairlane Ford with 1976 Florida tags.

Mansfield Paroled

By 1979, Mansfield had been arrested and jailed for a sex crime. Police had no idea he was a murderer. Mansfield testified against a cell mate who had committed murder. Mansfield pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and was got 1 year rather than a life term, for two charges of rape. He was paroled in February 1980, and began killing within 2 months.

Sandra Jean Graham

After getting out of prison, Mansfield lived with his parents at their 6 acre property in Weeki Wachee, Florida. He would keep some of his victims’ bodies near him on the land. He has already killed Zeigler and buried her here.

Sandra Jean Graham, 21, went missing on April 26, 1980. She had been at Pam’s Liquor Lounge at the Horizon Park Shopping Centre. Mansfield had strangled her with electrical wire. Her nude body was buried on the property.

Graham, like Zeigler, was very petite. She was 21.

Mansfield Arrested for Assault

On June 19, 1980, Mansfield was charged with battery and false imprisonment. The victim, Pamela Sherrell, did not know at the time how lucky she was to survive his attack. By early September, he left for California. On November 23, he is arrested in Santa Cruz and released on bond. Had he not been accidentally released, René Abbey Saling, and the others who followed, would still be alive.

René Abbey Saling (Salings)

In the late night of December 6, 1980, René Abbey Saling (sometimes printed as Salings) was seen leaving a tavern with Mansfield. She was not seen alive again. On December 7, she was found strangled to death in a drainage ditch in Watsonville, California. A passing motorist saw her partially clad body from the roadway. She had been raped.

Saling was the mother of 3 small children. She was last seen by her husband earlier in the evening. Rene Saling was 29 years old.

Arrest, Investigation & Trials

Mansfield Arrested for Saling Murder

On December 10, 1980, Nevada police arrested Mansfield and his brother Joe Terry on suspicion of the California murder of Saling. They were living in a beat-up trailer on a KOA Campground. The younger brother was charged as an accessory to murder. They were quickly extradited back to California. To protect their identities, the Mansfield brothers wore paper bags on their heads, and were mocked in the media.

On December 22, both men pled not guilty to the charges. Before Mansfield went on trial, the first body will be discovered on the family property.

Zeigler Found

On March 16, 1981, following a tip, police descended on the family homestead, a 6-acre junk yard. They were told the body of Graham was buried there.

On March 17, police make their first discovery. The unidentified remains of a woman were found buried on the property. She had heavy wire wrapped around her neck. Her skull was fractured. Police continued digging for days. On March 22, police announce the body is Zeigler, curled in a fetal position with a blanket. She was buried in a shallow grave behind the family house.

More Remains Found

Throughout March and April, police continue digging. Each woman was buried on the property, two very close to the killer’s house. Some were buried with the knowledge and help of family members: water pipes and electrical wiring were installed over top of one of the bodies.

Police try facial reconstruction to identify the unknown victims. They have not yet been identified.

Graham Found

Sandra Jean Graham’s body was found on the family land on April 7, 1981. Her remains were identified the next day. She was the last victim found. The police had spent significant time dealing with “false alarms” such as buried dog and cow bones. They even found chicken bones buried under the hearth in the home.

Trial on Saling Murder Begins

The California murder trial for Saling’s death began on July 21, 1981.

Mistrial Declared

On August 10, the judge declared a mistrial. Only 9 of the jurors could agree on a guilty verdict, and it must be unanimous in the case of a death penalty sentence. Prosecutors made a deal with Mansfield’s brother. In exchange for immunity, he agreed to testify at Mansfield’s second trial for the murder of Saling.

Mansfield Escapes

Mansfield escaped from prison on October 26. Dogs were used to hunt him down, and he was rearrested within 12 hours.

Mansfield Guilty of Killing Saling

Florida indicted Mansfield on January 12, 1982. California began its second trial on February 7, 1982. On February 23, he was convicted of first degree murder. On April 6, he was sentenced to 25 years to life for the murder of Saling. His brother never testified in court.

Mansfield Pleads Guilty

On May 7, Mansfield was returned to Florida. He did not go to trial, but instead pleaded guilty on August 4, 1982. He was sentenced to 4 concurrent life terms and 5 years, for 4 counts of murder and 1 count of attempted sexual battery and forcible confinement. It is concurrent to the California sentence. He was eligible for parole in 25 years.

Three days after the sentence, Mansfield chose not to attempt an escape when with another serial killer, Robert Dale Henderson, tried to make a break for it.

Mansfield Still Jailed

As of July, 2021, Billy Mansfield remains in custody. He is housed in the California Health Care Facility, in Stockton. The unidentified woman are still known only as Anna from Michigan and Joanne of Tampa.

SIMILAR SERIAL KILLERS

Dayton Leroy Rogers

Both Rogers and Mansfield had 5 siblings

Robert Benjamin Rhoades

Both Rhoades and Mansfield had fathers who were pedophiles

John Wayne Gacy

Gacy also buried bodies on his property

WHERE IT HAPPENED

A non-interactive map of where things happened

BOOKS

Books about or including William “Billy” Mansfield Jr.

When Angels Weep: The Weeki Wachee Homicides by W.R.R. Langston

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Xlibris US (May 19 2007)
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 100 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1425782535

Two of the four shallow graves excavated on the Mansfield property held the remains of unidentified teenage girls. One is believed to be between the age of 12 and 16 and the second between 16 and 19. No one has come forward with any information to help detectives identify the two victims.

Murders in the Swampland by Patricia Ann Lieb

Publisher:Xlibris Corporation LLC (May 2001)
Page count:288
ISBN:9781401055615

This overview of a series of murders includes Chapter 17, The Story Of Billy Mansfield & Secrets Hidden In The Green Bus

VIDEOS & PODCASTS

A brief biography of Billy Mansfield

Billy Mansfield Jr Murders by Crime Salad

William “Billy” Mansfield Jr. by Spooks and Crimes

THE STATS

Siblings

Victims

Life terms

Serial killer rating

Killer in a Historical Timeline

Statistical table for William “Billy” Mansfield Jr.

Killer Name	Mansfield Jr., William ''Billy''
Gender	M
Arrest Date	December 10, 1980
Sentence	25-Life term in California February 23, 1982; 4 concurrent Life terms in Florida on August 4, 1982
Birth Location	Grand Rapids, Michigan USA
Birth Date	, 1956
Status	Alive or Unknown
Poor	Yes
Caused Problems in School	Bullied by others, bullied others
Military Service	yes
Military Service	US Army
Job Types	factory worker, electrician, maintenance
Labour Type	Blue
Sexual Preference	Bisexual
Marital Status	Divorced/Separated
Number of Children	2
Killer Type	Sexual/Sadistic, Wanderer
sk_killer_type2	Wanderer
Alcohol Abuse	Yes
comment1	Son of convicted child molester
comment2	Mansfield's mother constantly denied her son was capable of killing anyone, even as the bones were unearthed. She also said her husband was innocent of sex assaults on children.
Total Dead Victims	5
Victims (Convicted)	5
Victim Gender	F
Victim Race	White
Victim Age	15, 21, 29
Victim Type	Strangers
Method of Killing	Strangulation, beating, shooting
Weapon	Wire, nylon cord, tire iron, wrench
Abduction	Yes
Sex Assault	Yes
Binding	Yes
Sex Assault on Minor	Yes
Body - Left, Buried	Yes
Body - Stored Near Killer	Yes
Previous Crimes	Sexual assault, theft, vandalism, battery, petty larceny, false imprisonment
Investigation Errors	Becoming a jailhouse informant allowed Mansfield to plea to significantly lesser sex assault charges, right before his murder spree. The deal was made because some of Mansfield's victims were "not believable" because they had previously had sex.

Killer Rating

 5/5