Serial Killer: Charles Ray Hatcher (Crazy Charlie)

[Midnight Man 2]

Charles Ray Hatcher also known as "Crazy Charlie, A one-man crime wave, and Mr. Prince;" was born in the small town of Mount City, Missouri at 4:00 p.m. He was the youngest sibling having three older brothers; Arthur Allen Hatcher, Jesse Hatcher Jr., and Floyd Hatcher. His parents where Jesse and Lula Hatcher. Charles did have trauma in his childhood. At the young age of six years old he watched his oldest brother Arthur die of electrocution while they were flying a kite. His mother left the home and was married at least three times. At the age of 16 he moved to Saint Joseph, Missouri to live with his mother and her third husband. Then at the age of 18 he got a job but had trouble keeping a job. He first worked at the bowling alley in Saint Joseph. He then got a job in the fall of 1947 at Iowa-Missouri Walnut Co. driving a truck. By October 9th, 1947 he had stolen a company truck and returned it the next morning intoxicated. This is where his crimes started. He received a two year suspended sentence and was fired from his job.

On February 5th, 1948 Charles got a job at the St. Francis Hotel in Saint Joseph washing dishes. Just a couple of days later he received his first prison sentence. Hatcher was released from the Missouri prison system just a little over a year on June 8th, 1949 serving only 3/4 of his time. On October 10th, 1949 Charles was convicted of forgery for a ten dollar check at a gas station in Maryville, Missouri. For this crime Hatcher received three years in the Missouri State Penitentiary. It was just a couple of years later on March 18th, 1951 when Hatcher escaped from the prison but was caught but not before he had time to attempt yet another crime; burglary; for this he got two years added to his sentence. He was released from prison after serving his additional time on July 14th, 1954 and almost made it a year before committing his next crime.

On February 5th, 1955 at the age of 25 he stole a 1951 Ford in the small town of Orrick, Missouri. He was sentenced to four years for auto theft and served his time in the Ray County Jail in the small town of Richmond, Missouri. He still had not changed his pattern. He again attempted to escape and received another additional sentence of two years. He was released from prison on March 18th, 1959 from his fifth and sixth sentence of his criminal career. On June 26th, 1959 Hatcher moved his criminal activity from steeling cars to making his first known attempt to abduct a 16 year old paper boy of Saint Joseph, Missouri named Steven Pellham. Hatcher was sentenced to five years for the attempted abduction and car theft on November 20th, 1959. Staying true to his nature the very next day Hatcher attempted to escape the Buchanan County Jail with no success. Unsure if he received any additional time for the escape attempt. Charles Hatcher arrived at the Missouri State Penitentiary on November 25th, 1959. It was at this time he started taking pride in his criminal career claiming to be the most notorious criminal in northwest Missouri since the great Jesse James.

On July 2nd, 1961 inmate Jerry Tharrington was found raped and stabbed to death on the kitchen loading dock of the Missouri State Penitentiary. It is believed that Hatcher killing started here. The only punishment that Charles Hatcher received this murder was solitary confinement due to a lack of evidence to take further action. On January 18th, 1962 Hatcher was still in solitary confinement for the murder of his fellow inmate. At this time he wrote a letter to the Major of the penitentiary making the claim that he realized he needed psychological treatment. This is where the system made a huge mistake in thinking it was just a scheme to get out of solitary and possible out of prison early and refused to get Hatcher any kind of treatment. The question that many ask is if he have gone to treatment at this point in his life would things have turned out differently? With no treatment he was released to the general population October of 1962, and with the release from prison on August 24th, 1963 still receiving no psychological treatment.

August 1969 was a busy month for Charles Ray Hatcher. He confessed to the abduction of a boy in Antioch, California on the 27th of August. Hatcher asked the boy to take a ride with him. Hatcher drove to a creek and strangled the boy to death with his hands. Then just two days later on the 29th of August a six year old Hispanic boy was reported missing in San Francisco, California. A little girl the boy had been playing with reported that he walked away with a man that offered him ice cream. A man walking his dog came across them in the middle of a sexual assault and beating. The young boy did survive the horrifying encounter. When police arrested the man committing the crime he would not answer any question just claimed his name was Albert Ralph Price. However he was caring an identification with the name Hobert Prater. It was not til later that the FBI finally identified him as Charles Ray Hatcher.

On September 12th, 1969 Hatcher was brought before a judge in California for this assault, attempted murder, and kidnapping. At this time he was still claiming his name was Albert Price causing the judge to order a psychiatric evaluation. Hatcher was in the California State Hospital for a 90-day evaluation. During the first part of his stay Hatcher was completely unresponsive. Later claiming to hear voices, having delusions of persecution, being confused, and suicide attempts, was the first time Hatcher claimed a mental illness and avoided prison time. On September 30th, 1969 Hatcher began the first of five tours in the California State Hospital.

On December of 1971, Hatcher was 41 years old and the California State Hospital repeatedly sent him back to court declaring him competent to stand trial but every time was sent back to the hospital. Charles Hatcher was identified as a passive-aggressive personality with sexual deviation and murder. On January 21st of 1971, the first psychiatrist declared Hatcher insane and incompetent to stand trial. Then the very next day on the 22nd the second psychiatrist who referred to Hatcher as Mr. Prince, concluded that Hatcher was insane and incompetent to stand trial. This is when he was sent back to the hospital. On May 24th 1971 Charles was finally sent to trial and pleaded guilty by reason of insanity. Hacher was ordered another evaluation this time by a different hospital and was again found incompetent to stand trial. The actual evaluation took place on May 27th, 1971 with Dr. Carl Drake Jr. At this time Charles Hatcher still claiming to be Albert Price lied about his life history to the doctor.

The next month Charles Hatcher keeping true to his natural pattern escaped for that California State Hospital on June 2nd, 1971. He was picked up in Colusa, California 90 miles from the hospital a week later. He was arrested for auto theft giving the police the name of Richard Lee Grady. When taken to the hospital on July 15th, 1971 for evaluation the hospital staff know who he was. It was not until April 4th, 1972 that the hospital staff and doctors decided that Charles Ray Hatcher's treatment was not going any where and he was a danger to the other patients. These is when he was finally sent to the prison state hospital at Vacaville, California. It was just a few months later that he was transferred to the San Quentin Prison in August of 1972. This is where Hatcher was finally forced to stand trial for his crimes. It had been three years since he had committed these crimes when this happened. October 24th, 1972 Hatcher was ordered to have two more evaluations. The first one was to determine if he was competent to stand trail and the second was to determine if he was sane at the time he committed the crimes. On December 12th, 1972 Charles Hatcher was tried for the abduction of Gilbert Martinez; the six year old Hispanic boy; he was convicted of the charges. Hatcher was sentences to the California State Hospital. He entered the hospital on January 9th, 1973 as a mentally disordered sexual offender.

Hatcher could not help himself her on March 28th, 1973 he tried yet another escape attempt. This time unsuccessful. A security guard found him hiding in a cooler in the main courtyard. Hatcher had two sheets stuffed into his paints for some reason. He later confessed that this wad an escape attempt. This made the doctors feel that it was time for Hatcher to go back to court because he was a threat to society. In May of 1973 Hatcher received yet another evaluation by psychologist W.D Lewis who declared that Hatcher was "manipulative institutionalized sociopath." Then on June 15th, 1973 Hatcher was recommended for a transfer to a maximum security prison. Due to this recommendation Charles cut his wrists because he did not want to go. After this out burst he was concluded to be paranoia and schizophrenia and this saved him from the maximum security prison. On May 20th, 1977 Hatcher was released to the Home Care Services Center; which is a halfway house in San Francisco, California. This early release happened due to a bill being pasted giving inmates credit for time served in mental health facilities as well as time in jail. He also had received very good reviews at the parole board hearings. Less than a month later Hatcher was on the run declared a parolee at large.

At the age of 47, on May 25h 1977 Hatcher was supposed to report back to the half-way house every night at 9:00pm and take a total of nine prescribed pills. Five days later, Hatcher violated the terms of his parole and was on the run. He was considered a walk-away.” Then on June 13th 1977, Hatcher was declared a “parolee at large” and besides a sighting in Wilmar, Minnesota, was not seen for about a year.

This is when Hatcher began killing again. On May 27th, 1978 Charles Ray Hatcher had returned to Saint Joseph, Missouri where he had began his criminal career. He kidnapped four year old Eric Christgen. Eric was abducted from a park in downtown Saint Joseph, Missouri. Eric's babysitter had left him at the park to run into the store to buy a flag. When she returned Eric was gone. Melvin Reynolds was falsely accused of Eric's assault and sentences to life in prison on February 14th, 1979. Later Buchanan County Police would find out that due to a rush to close this case the had convicted the wrong man it should have been Charles Ray Hatcher. Then a few months later 150 miles north of Saint Joseph, Missouri on September 4th, 1978 Hatcher was arrested in Omaha, Nebraska. He had sexually attacked a 16 year old boy. Victims name is unknown. Hatcher was released from the Douglas County Mental Hospital in Omaha, Nebraska on January 31st, 1979. This is where he had served his time for the 1978 sexual attack that happened in September. When arrested Charles gave police yet another fake name this time claiming to be Richard Clark. Do to the staff never taking fingerprints the police and staff may never have known who Hatcher really was. On May 3rd, 1979 Hatcher was arrested yet again in Omaha for the assault and attempt to kill seven year old Thomas Morton. Some how the charges where dropped and Charles was sent to another mental hospital for this crime. Hatcher was released from the hospital on May 21st, 1980 but returned just two months later because of another assault charge.

At the age of 51 Charles Ray Hatcher still had not changed he again escaped this time from Norfolk Regional Center. Hatcher was arrested in Lincoln, Nebraska under the name Richard Clark on October 9th, 1980. Hatcher has attempted to assault and murder on a 17 year old boy. He was discharged from a mental facility just 21 days later. Charles Hatcher had moved his crime wave to Des Moines, Iowa. On January 13th, 1981 he was arrested again under the the name of Richard Clark. This time he had been a knife fight. He spent a short time in another mental facility. On April 10th, 1981 he was discharged from the Iowa Mental Hospital to the care of the Salvation Army shelter in Davenport, Iowa. On June 20th, 1981 a man by the name of James Churchill was stabbed to death on the Missouri River banks near Rock Island, Illinois. It was not until later that Charles confused that he and Churchill had been drinking together and Hatchers impulse to kill was growing in him. Charles has stabbed Churchill 10 to 12 times with a knife that had been embedded in a bone in Churchill's right chest near the heart. Arrested in Bettendorf, Iowa forattempting to abduct an 11 year old boy named Todd Peers from a grocery store.The boy was able to run Ironically this was Hatcher’s 52nd birthday.

Arrested on his 52nd birthday(July 16th, 1981) for attempting to abduct an 11 year old boy named Todd Peers. Hatcher using the name Richard Clark when the police picked him up. On March 18th, 1982 again for some reason the charges where dropped against Hatcher and he spent only 49 days in a mental hospital in Mount Pleasant, Iowa before being released on May 7th, 1982. On July 27th 1982 Charles Hatcher had made his way back to Saint Joseph, Missouri. A woman by the name of Stephanie Richie was approached by a strange man wanting to take her for coffee. Something about the man frightened her so she requested that he leave her alone. This strange encounter took place only a half a block from where Eric Christgen had been abducted only four years earlier. The next day Hatcher abducted a ten year old boy; Kerry Heiss, outside the Saint Joseph Mall. Hatcher claiming to be a security guard grabbed the boy and began to pull him away from the record store. Kerry was able to get away and told his grandmother but Hatcher was gone by the time that the police got to the scene. On July 29th, 1982 Hatcher abducted and murdered an 11 year old girl; Michelle Steele. Michelle had gone to a dentist appointment at 10:30 a.m she left the dentist office at 11:30 a.m. It was not until her mother Annette Steele got home at 3:15p.m that Michelle was noticed missing and the police where called. It was not until July 30th, 1982 that Michelle was found by her uncle dead between two logs. Michelle Steele's body was found less than a mile downstream from where Eric Christgen's body had been found. This was the same day that Charles Hatcher checked himself into the St. Joseph State Hospital under the name of Richard Clark.

On August 3rd, 1982 Charles Hatcher was charged under the name Richard Clark for the murder of Michelle Steele. The charge this time was first degree murder. His bond was set at $250,000.00. With the identification by an eye witnesses that Hatcher was the man down by the river, the teeth marks matched the bite marks on the girls body, shoe imprints matching, his knapsack, nylon cords, as well as the photo identifications from the two attempted abductions the police had sufficient evidence to charge Charles Ray Hatcher. On August 13th, 1982 Hatcher received his first mental evaluation in this case and it was concluded that he could understand the charges but need to be sent to another mental facility. It was not until April 19th, 1983 that Hatcher was declared competent to stand trial for first degree murder in the death of Michelle Steele. On May 3rd, 1983 Hatcher was sent to the Buchanan County Jail to await trial. This is when he gave the deputy a peace of paper that said, "Please call the FBI and tell them I would like to see them today. Very important case." FBI agent Joe Holtstag met with Hatcher. This is when Hatcher gave them a map to Churchill's body but still did not admit to killing him. Charles also told Joe Holtstag that there where 16 bodies, 13 adults, and all where male. This is how they got the information to know that they had convicted the wrong man of Eric Christgen's murder. Charles made it clear to Holtstag that he would trade information about the murders for taking the death penalty off the table. On June 20th, 1983 attorneys Dahms and Morrey had obtained a charge for Hatcher and trial date was set for August 22nd, 1983. Just five days later Holtstag received the letter that Hatcher wrote with a detailed account of the murder of four year old Eric Christgen's. This letter contained details that no body else could have know. Taking his time confessing to all his murders he confused to the Churchill murder on August 3rd, 1983. He also confessed to the William Freeman murder in 1969. By the end of the interview on August 3rd he had filled in all the details about his criminal career from auto theft on October 27th, 1947 all the way through and up to the murder of Michelle Steele on July 29th, 1982.

On September 12th, 1983 Hatcher plead not guilty and another trial was set for January 9th, 1984. The on October 13th, 1983 Hatcher was sentenced to life in prison in the MIssouri State Penitentiary for the murder of Eric Christgen. This was also the day that the man wrongfully convicted was released for the crime he did not commit. On January 9th, 1984 the trial was set to start but Hatcher had abused is attorney Dahms so much that he dropped the case. Due to this the trial was moved to Warrensburg, Kansas. The trial started on September 17th, 1984. The jury was picked in one day their were 9 men and 4 women picked to judge this case. The trial lasted five days from 9:00 a.m to 9:00 p.m. On the 22nd of September Hatcher was convicted of capital murder of Michelle Steele. He received 50 years without possibility of parole. In November of 1984 Holtstag met with Hatcher for the last time. Then on December 3rd, 1984 Hatchers motion was denied. Just a few days later on December 7th, 1984 Charles Ray Hatcher was found during morning rounds hanging in his cell. He was hanging from a piece of electrical wire that had been to brace the heavy metal ventilation grate in his cell. Hatchers hang had been tied behind his back with shoelaces. The officer did try to revive Hatcher but he was already dead.

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