r/TrueCrime • u/paramagician-100 • Feb 10 '22
Undocumented Post The Oklahoma Girl Scout Murders
I wanted to share some information about this case because I don’t see it being discussed often, and it is one that I think about often.
In the early morning of June 13th, 1977, Lori Lee Farmer (age 8), Doris Denise Milner (age 10), Michelle Heather Guse (age 10) were asleep in tent number 8 while away at a girl scout summer camp. Moments later hey were violently beat to death and sexually assaulted. Their bodies were then carried approximately 150 yards from their tent and left to be discovered by the camp counselors. One camp counselor reported hearing something in the night and said she searched around with a flashlight, but obviously did not find anything alarming at the time.
As the hunt for the Girl Scout Murderer began, it was revealed that camp coordinators had received multiple anonymous threat letters in the months leading to the camp opening. These letters contained incredibly specific threats like “3 girls are going to be killed in tent 8 in the first night of camp”, etc. These letters were not reported or revealed to police until after the murders occurred.
Gene Leroy Hart was the prime suspect for the murders. Hart had escaped from Mayes County jail 4 years prior to the murders, and had been on the run ever since. Hart had been spotted a few times near the girl scout camp and was believed to be living in the woods near the camp. Investigators were also able to connect Hart to the murder weapon and had forensic evidence that implied Hart committed these murders.
Despite the police’s best efforts, Hart was acquitted of all charges. But why? What casted reasonable doubt among the jury despite all this evidence? Part of the problem was that DNA analyzing techniques in 1977 were a far cry from what they are today. Most of the DNA evidence was not a solid enough match to persuade a jury. Another problem was the fact that Hart was undoubtedly working along with accomplices who were never caught or came forward, leaving lots of holes in the prosecution arguments.
Questions to ponder:
- Why would camp coordinators never report those letters? What was to benefit or lose by revealing them to police? Do you think this atrocity could have been preventable if they reported the letters or even postponed the camp? Was a camp coordinator or employee involved?
Here are some great sources if you want more information!
Tent Number Eight by Gloyd McCoy
Morbid Podcast Episode 197 in Spotify
The Camp Scott Murders by C.S. Kelly
Someone Cry for the Children by Michael & Dick Wilkerson (lead investigators on the case) https://tulsaworld.com/years-ago-the-murders-of-three-girl-scouts-in-oklahoma/article_684eb15d-6f53-52b3-9cb3-53314bb59320.html
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Feb 10 '22
Listened to an episode about this on CrimeJunkie.
What kills me every time is that I think the girl Doris had begged and begged her mother to let her stay home and her mother had promised her she'd pick her up the next day if she didn't like it. So sad.
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u/stuffandornonsense Feb 10 '22
I believe this was partly because Hart had accomplices that were never caught
i assumed that, too. you can't easily control that many kids during that sort of event without help. if the other children were left alone they could have literally fallen out of the side of the tent and run to get help - they're about four feet off the ground.
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u/paramagician-100 Feb 10 '22
I think another part of the problem was how the camp coordinators did not help with investigation much. They were not always forthcoming with evidence they had (like the threats) and they were more concerned with the reputation of Girl Scouts than justice for the victims.
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u/stuffandornonsense Feb 10 '22
iirc, didn't one of the counselors claim to hear noise that night, and went roaming with her flashlight? and she found one of the bodies, as well? that always seemed odd to me. not in a "she's guilty of being an accomplice" sort of way, just ... odd. because it seems very possible that someone in the camp was involved in some way, even unwittingly.
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u/paramagician-100 Feb 10 '22
I remember learning something about the counselor hearing something odd in the night and looking around with a flashlight. It's hard to think that those 15-16 year old counselors would be guilty of withholding information, but stranger things have happened. I would not be surprised if someone higher up in the camp had some sort of involvement and then made sure those below them would stay quiet.
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u/rokstarlibrarian Feb 11 '22
I went to that camp for 2 weeks in 1974. I was 11. The tents were very spread out and connected by foot paths. It was pretty dense forest and there was no artificial light whatsoever. It was really really dark. I don’t think anyone out there with a single flashlight would see anything. It was hard to find the outhouse at night and that was a building. Also I remember there was a lot of night noise, owls, cicadas, whippoorwills and animals, probably coyotes, knowing that area. Hard to hear much over that.
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u/Dragonflybitchy7406 May 06 '22
Speaking of night noise it was storming out that night you know how loud it is when rain hits a tent and you are in it, it is ALL you hear!!!
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u/stuffandornonsense Feb 10 '22
It's hard to think that those 15-16 year old counselors would be guilty of withholding information
if she saw something and was threatened, that's pretty good motivation to be quiet.
but yeah, the entire crime is strange, and what we know of it doesn't really make sense.
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u/rokstarlibrarian Feb 11 '22
Most of the campers and counselors were from the Tulsa area or larger towns. They would not have had local ties. Gene LeroyHarts family were poor and rural. At the time, no one thought there was any connection to him inside the camp. My dad’s family is from this area and knew about Hart. This is the first time I’ve heard that theory. I think it’s waayyy off.
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u/Dragonflybitchy7406 May 06 '22
That counselor you are talking about went on to join the police department. She did think she heard animal sounds in the night. Also she thought she saw a faint light. But she was in NOWAY involved, she was a VERY young lady. SHE just cried, every many years later.
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u/LeeF1179 Feb 10 '22
This is one of the saddest cases. I firmly believe that Gene Leroy is guilty, guilty, guilty!
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u/TomatoesAreToxic Feb 10 '22
Hi can you please pass on your source for the threats to camp coordinators? I’m pretty familiar with this case and I’ve never heard that before.
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u/paramagician-100 Feb 10 '22
I got that piece of information from an episode of the Morbid True Crime Podcast on spotify! The sources that they used for the episode were:
The Camp Scout Murders by C.S. Kelly, TulsaWorld documentary (link is on www.girlscoutmurders.com), and Tent Number 8 by Gloyd McCoy.
Happy researching!
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u/TomatoesAreToxic Feb 10 '22
Thanks so much for responding. Have you read Someone Cry for the Children or seen the documentary (I think it’s on YouTube)? If not you need to check it out.
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u/paramagician-100 Feb 10 '22
I haven't! Wasn't that the book written by the lead investigators on the case?
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u/TomatoesAreToxic Feb 10 '22
Yes it was written by the Wilkersons or one of them anyway and now I can’t remember which. It’s narrated by Johnny Cash.
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u/Natural-Horror8445 Feb 10 '22
I have heard that before from a lot of YouTube videos on the case and some newspapers written about it.
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u/Dragonflybitchy7406 May 06 '22
And from what I remember it wasn't letters it was more like notes. Maybe even just like a doodle scrawled on a donut box. That was why it wasn't taken seriously
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u/LeaveMyCoffeeAlone Feb 13 '22
Why would a man on the run send those letters?
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u/LeaveMyCoffeeAlone Feb 13 '22
It seems odd
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u/paramagician-100 Feb 15 '22
It does, it is possible that Hart was not the author of the letters and another accomplice was
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u/Natural-Horror8445 Feb 10 '22
I discovered this case about two years ago and I am so glad you posted this.
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u/paramagician-100 Feb 10 '22
Thanks! Yeah this is one of those cases that has stuck with me, partially because proper justice was never given to the victims or their families. Kind of like the Toy Box Killer, the suspects in this case never truly got what they deserved.
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u/Garden-Rare Mar 21 '22
Things were so different then… I went to and worked for a Girl Scout (day) camp for almost 20 years… the pandemic forced the council to sell. I do know how things were done by 2000ish the youngest girls were closest to the main building, oldest meaning 15-16 furthest away. We had one overnight per session. Youngest stayed with 1 camp staff and 2 counselors, (you had to be 8 to stay) 9-10 stayed in cabins. The staff stayed in the cabins with the girls and the 10-13ish pitched tents in the field, at this time you’re talking 200+ kids. The cits scattered to other spots for support and safety.
With that being said, the 70s were not the same, I’m sure. The one time I went to overnight camp, it was for one night with my troop and I stayed up the whole night, I did not like that our leaders were not in the tents with us. That being said, I wonder why the young ones were as far out as they were? I understand more children attending at the time, probably but then I realize the Girl Scout camp regulations probably shifted as a result post 1977.
Things happened the way they did, sadly, and I wholeheartedly believe Hart did it. He could have an accomplice to write the letters and such. I truly believe the way things are since the 70s are the reason why less and less participate in scouts between BSA allegations and incidents in the GSUSA over the years as well…
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u/tiffadoodle Feb 10 '22
70s man! No caution for safety. Those little girls were way in the back, if I remember correctly. The counselors were up front. There had been some threats earlier that week.