In the spring of 1961, Betty Williams and Mack Herring were students at Odessa TX High School. She claimed to have halfheartedly tried to kill herself by taking four aspirin. October 2022 Reader Quiz: What Did You Learn? He had parked his Jeep a short distance from the stock tank, and he and Betty had sat there for a while and talked. We get our Senior rings Wednesday. I just stood there with the gun, Mack told reporters. When her father lived with my parents, he used to threaten to kill himself in the middle of the night, says Shelton. November 2022 Reader Quiz: What Did You Learn? After 11 hours of deliberation, Mack was deemed to have been insane at the time of pulling the trigger. Heres hoping youll always have the best because youre one of the best!I find the tears clouding my eyes as I say goodbye to those I love. Mack Herring was duly charged with the first-degree murder of Betty Williams. According to the Texas law, an offender was allowed to be set free if proven they had been temporarily insane at the time of the crime. Sometimes I think I am watching someone else. As he sat in the witness chair, he appeared solemn and contrite. Even when she began acting more erratically during rehearsals for Winterset, her peers wrote off her overwrought confessions about wanting to die as nothing more than a theater girls high school histrionics. Herring pledged to support Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax if Northam steps down. I have spoken with Lieutenant Governor Fairfax and assured him that, should he ascend to the governorship, he will have my complete support and and commitment to ensuring his success and the success of our Commonwealth., Lieutenant Governor Fairfax has said, about Northams year book page, that he cannot condone the actions from his past that, at the very least, suggest a comfort with Virginias darker history of white supremacy, racial stereotyping, and intimidation., In December, Herring, a Democrat, told the Washington Post that he is planning to run for governor of Virginia in the next election. If Mack wounded an animal when we went hunting, he would pursue it and dispatch it, says Larry Francell, who grew up across the alley from him. Mack Herring was a handsome football player with all the right friends. The next day, Betty pulled Mack aside during rehearsal. Herring argued that the ban on same sex marriage violated the constitution and that he would not defend the ban. The pre-trial did not change anyones opinion on Mack, but peoples perception of Betty worsened. In his melodious baritone, he peppered his arguments with Shakespeare and Scripture and won over jurors with his down-home charisma, so much so that no jury had ever sent a client of his to prison. Even after nearly 60 years, Betty Williams is not forgotten in Odessa. We figured that if Mack did it, then there had to be a good reason., After the arrest, the gossip centered less on Mack than it did on Betty. Herring tied the knot on August 12, 1989, and have two children; daughter Peyton E. Herring, 26, and son Timothy R. Herring, 22. Mrs. & Mr. If they determined that he had been temporarily insane, he should not have to stand trial for murder. Well, the bell is about to ring so Ill write more later. Ive done a lot of things, I know, that were bad and cheap, but I swear before God that I didnt mean them to be like that. Herring explained how he believed Betty was to blame and that the letter she gave him was valid in absolving him of any consequences. He was a WWII veteran having served as a corporal in the Army Air Corps. Following graduation, John enrolled at Texas Tech University. On March 22, 1961, at 8:45 AM, the 17-year-old was reported missing. After graduating he returned to Odessa where he married and divorced twice. Not only is she still talked about, but many people believe her spirit still lingers in the high schools auditorium. Mrs. [3], Herring killed Williams on March 20, 1961. She hoped to one day become an actress, and in her bedroom, where movie posters and playbills covered the walls, she devoured magazines like the Hollywood scandal sheet Confidential. He and his wife were pleased to send both of their children to St. Ann School. But in 2014, after being elected to his first term as attorney general, he announced that he had changed his position. According to legend, by parking across the street from the school at midnight and either flashing the headlights three times or honking and calling out her name, Betty would appear in the auditoriums windows. Next year??? Mrs. Mack sat behind the defense table in a dark suit, his head often bowed. He died on January 5, 2019, at the age of 75, according to CBS. Not Mack! a sixteen-year-old girl shrieked as she collapsed in tears against a wall in the police station. Super featherweight elite Jamel Herring may be a treacherous persona in the ring. [3], Shelton Williams, a cousin of the homicide victim and an alumnus of Permian High School who played against Herring in American football games, wrote the book Washed in the Blood, published in 2006. Kiss and Kill Murder Victim Betty Williams Still Haunts the High School in Odessa, #Texas https://t.co/SA1o0Mtj0k. The murderer is no longer among us. Mack Herring was a handsome football player with all the right friends. Ill be glad. I just cant believe it! When Ronnie White, who graduated from Odessa High the year that the murder took place, returned to his alma mater to teach history, in 1978, he was astonished to hear students talking about the former drama student named Betty whose spirit supposedly haunted the auditorium and the popular football player who had had a hand in her killing. They belonged to the informal sororities called Tri-Hi-Y clubsCapri, Sorella, and Amicaewhich cherry-picked the most popular high school girls. He can be trusted to lead a normal life, Grice assured the jury. They were the parents of at least 9 sons and 2 daughters. She was seen as a slut and a diabolical manipulator, says Shelton Williams. Its ruined two lives. But she asked him for one last favor: to kill her. According to legend, she would appear at the windows of the school auditorium at midnightprovided that students flashed their headlights three times or honked their horn and called out her name. Arguing for the state was 32-year-old district attorney Dan Sullivan, an earnest, if not particularly seasoned, lawyer who was out of his depth; in his sixteen months in office, he had prosecuted mostly oil-field theft cases and DWIs. Nonetheless, his reputation around town did not suffer. When he broke up with her during her senior year at Odessa High School, her world fell apart. And he points to his work on the opiod crisis, where he pushed for easier access to the overdose treatment drug naloxone, as another success for his office. Herring says that, as attorney general, his priorities are cracking down on heroin dealers, and going after violent gang members, gun runners, and human traffickers. Birth of Heron "Mack" Herrin. People Projects Discussions Surnames She read Jack Kerouacs On the Road and the poetry of Allen Ginsberg, and she listened to records of Lenny Bruces stand-up routines, in which he railed against racism and skewered middle-class hypocrisy. He began wading back toward land, dragging an object that appeared to be very heavy; when he was near the waters edge, Odessa police detective Fred Johnson could see that he was holding a pair of human feet. In the summer of 1960, they started dating, and Betty wondered if she might be falling in love; Mack, she told friends, really listenedto her. Attorney Warren Burnett (left) and Mack after hearing the final verdict. Worse, she learned that Mack would be playing one of Wintersets lead roles, a remorseless killer named Trock Estrella. If both the governor and lieutenant governor of the state step down, Herring would be next in line to become governor of Virginia. So many times Ive wanted to tell you how much I appreciate you. You can read his full statement about that here. It sounds ridiculous even now writing it. The 17-year-old was now telling her schoolmates shed rather be dead. The jury never heard the indictment read or learned how the crime was committed. Amid several dark days, Herring was fortunate to have his wife, Jennifer Dickerson Herring, all the time. Moments later, Mack turned to his father and confessed, I killed her. Worst of all, it was now public that she had been involved with various boys, which boosted peoples views on her immorality. It was the week before Wintersetwas scheduled to premiere, and students were busy running their lines and painting the set as they readied for the final dress rehearsal. The oldest son of a homemaker and a World War II veteran who owned an electrical-contracting business, Mack grew up in the solidly middle-class neighborhood that was home to many of his teammates and the Tri-Hi-Y girls they dated. Mack did his best to keep their relationship a secret. When you think of me try to think of the good times we had and not of this. .Memories, so many memories to come back and cloud my mind, memories that Ill carry through all eternity. He looked at her confused and she explained that she had finally convinced Mack to kill her. At seventeen, Betty was pretty in an unremarkable way, with sandy-blond hair that brushed her shoulders and big, expressive blue eyes that could feign sincerity when talking to authority figures but were alive with irreverence. I suspect most of us would rather let the thing stay in the past, one Odessa High School alumna wrote me in an e-mail. As he got closer, officers saw he was holding onto Bettys feet. The verdict deemed Mack was innocent for a second time and the crowd broke into applause. Grice claimed that Bettys imploring had impaired Macks judgment leading him to go insane and shoot her. Would they be willing to do it for her, she asked? Ive never been so humiliated and torn to pieces as I am now, Betty wrote to a friend. Birth of Enoch Herrin. She wore whatever clothing she wanted, did not accept her fathers religion, and had several relationships with boys from her school. They allegedly went to a stock tank on his parents property. This has not been a free ride for Mack, says his childhood friend Larry Francell. Next, nine character witnesses testified. Mack was born in Sampson Co and moved to Fayetteville as a small boy. She may have been shunned at the time, but many of the girls who knew her were inspired to become school counselors, her death having had a profound effect on them. Two days earlier, Mack and Betty had planned how he would kill and dispose of her body. Well, Ive finally made the rank of Senior and I can hardly believe it! "[5], Herring attended Texas Tech University and worked various blue collar jobs. [3], Odessa High School staff did not provide counseling after the homicide occurred. I hope shes the best.BettyP.S. . Burnett then asked Mack to explain why he killed Betty. The murderer is no longer among us. Mack was brought down to the police station for further questioning, and 45 minutes later, he broke down. Because the murder had occurred just across the Ector County line, the hearing took place in Kermit, an oil-patch town 45 miles west of Odessa, where the smell of petroleum hung in the air. Im waging a war within myself, a war to find the true me and I fear that I am losing the battle. I am consumed with this burning emptiness and loneliness that has taken charge of me, body and soul. Betty was known to have strong opinions on social issues. Mr. Mack Herring. During the following hours, Bettys closest friends were individually pulled from class and questioned by authorities. But Mack was careful to be discreet about the time they spent together. She was ad-libbing all the way, and it spun out of her control. It didnt move him when he pulled her body out of the water or when he said that hed put a shotgun to her head, remembers retired highway patrolman E. C. Locklear. Burnett relied on his old playbook. 6/12: Not the Mack Herring . Anyone who had suffered the unrelenting scrutiny that Mack hadthe Odessa American alone ran nearly two dozen front-page stories on the casemight have pulled up stakes and started a new life somewhere else. He complied and entered the water. Ever since Tom Selleck and Jillie Mack got married, they have both been extremely devoted to the family they've built together. His answer struck McAlpine as peculiar; the officer knew that Betty had been dressed for bed when she had slipped out of the house that night. Bettys life had never been worse. She was left devastated and full of guilt. Herring was born Laura A. Huff, on August 6, 1960. Betty thought she sensed in him a kindred spirit; he seemed more sensitive than the other boys she knew, and she thought there was something lonely and romantic about him. McAlpine also felt sure that Betty would not have wanted to sneak back into the house through the front door. [2] Herring did not lose social status from the event, and instead town gossip maligned Williams, accusing her of leading him astray. is a common question for English actress, What Illness Did Gino Odjick Have? An avid hunter, he was happiest when he could spend a few days bagging dove or quail on his fathers hunting lease north of town or ramble around the oil fields with his .22, plinking jackrabbits. Wikipedia & Age Details. You might say she has become a witness for the defense, Burnett quipped. He retired with 35 yrs. Until 2006, there were tales that Bettys ghost haunted the high school. He was born in Johnson City, Tennessee, in the Appalachian Mountains. The oldest of four children, she knew that her parents could not afford to send her away to college, and her part-time job at Woolworths barely paid enough to finance any kind of getaway. "Kiss and Kill" refers to the March 20, 1961 homicide of Betty Williams, a teenager from Odessa, Texas, United States. She was killed by her ex-boyfriend John Mack Herring (September 23, 1943[1] January 5, 2019) at her own request in Winkler County, Texas. Fairfax has denied the accusation. The two teenagers had parked in the alley for a while, but they had been startled to see headlights coming toward them. Mack Herring December 15, 2009 Mr. Mack B. Odessa police youth officer Bobby McAlpine sat Mack down to answer a few questions. She is the daughter of the late Thomas Dale Huff and Margie Huff. Why dredge it up again? But others refuse to forget. He showed them where his and Bettys footprintshis large, hers smallled down a steep incline to a stock tank. They are members of Leesburg Presbyterian Church. Her tale was included on the television episode A Crime to Remember. [3] Herring died on Saturday January 5, 2019,[5] at the age of 75. . Youve made me realize that instead of being smart and sophisticated like I thought, I was only being cheap and ugly and whorish.Forgive me for writing this last note and thank you for reading it. One of those boys was Mack Herring. The boys laughed, thinking she was just being dramatic as usual. She was happy, he recalled. Betty had enlisted himthis worthy young manto do what she didnt have the courage to do herself. After his graduation, John attended Texas Tech University. When I met Sanchez and three of her girlfriends a few weeks later, they told me, in great detail, about all the strange and unexplained things they had heard and seen: the door that had mysteriously slammed closed behind them, the eerie footsteps, the stage lights that had moved when they had called out Bettys name. Northams year book page includes a disturbing photograph featuring one person wearing a Klansmans hood and another wearing blackface. 9: Daughter: Sara Herring. Oh, my God, I didnt think hed come, she had exclaimed. Im sorry about Indiana, but I hope youll understand. . 19: Daughter: Beatrice Herring. On March 20, 1961, John agreed to execute her at her request. It sure does feel funny to be on the top of every thing looking down. Williams, who had counter-cultural views, was not considered popular, while Herring, an American football player, was considered to be popular. Scandal And Relationship With Actor Lee Soo Hyuk, DeSantis seeks permanent ban on Covid-19 masks and vaccine mandates in Florida, How Shakira discovered Gerard Piques cheating. It was like he was talking about shooting a dog.. I wanted to help, but I didnt know what to do. They reside in Leesburg, Virginia. Nobody talked about how Mack could have said no, observes Sandra Scofield, who graduated from Odessa High a year before the murder. wife. Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax is also expected to run for governor, although he has not officially announced plans yet. She was miserable, she told him, and she wanted to die. According to reports, she was less popular than her former partner. Herring later said he remembered seeing his mothers struggles, as a single parent raising a family. Wife: Ada Herring. The couple has two children: a 24 year old daughter, Peyton, and a 21 year old son, Tim. I caught sight of him one afternoon in November as he pulled up to his house, a mint-green frame house not far from where he grew up. Still reeling from their breakup and depressed at the prospect of not being cast in a single play her senior year, Betty began to feel hopeless. Although Mack was near the top of the high school caste system and Betty was at the bottom, they managed to strike up a friendship when she was a junior and he was a sophomore. His and Bettys footprintshis large, hers smallled down a steep incline to a friend she become... Thomas Dale Huff and Margie Huff kill herself by taking four aspirin have the courage do. 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