Deborah Cuyle - Murder & Mayhem in Spokane

Published by The History Press

Charleston, SC

www.historypress.com

Copyright 2022 by Deborah Cuyle

All rights reserved

First published 2022

E-Book edition 2022

ISBN 978.1.43967.479.6

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021952405

Print Edition ISBN 978.1.46715.039.2

Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

CONTENTS

I dedicate this book to all history lovers and true crime explorersfor there is so much fascinating history out there that has been forgotten or simply barely documented at all. As I pored over thousands of pages of old newspapers, I was confused and boggled by how many hideous crimes were committed, some hardly acknowledged. I also found it sad yet humorous that many judges working in nearby cities and towns gave the criminal two choices: either go to their city jail or go to Spokane! Why it became normal to ship local criminals to Spokane was bizarre and perplexingespecially since most of the lawbreakers eventually found their way back to the town they were just banned from, only to commit more crimes.

I also dedicate this book to the many victims who unfortunately lost their lives at the hands of their ruthless murderers. Sometimes their untimely deaths were over a very trivial matter: a few stolen pennies, a misunderstanding or a drunken disgruntlement. No death should be completely forgotten, ever. I hope that by bringing some of these crimes to the surface and making them known, the victims may find some sort of peace.

FOREWORD

Having worked with Deborah on past materials, I find her writing intriguing and engaging. Having read her work, I enjoy the subtle nuances of her backstory and the lengths she goes to for research in her endeavors. Her ability to go from historical fact-based books to historical fiction is a natural transition we all will enjoy.

Living in Spokane all of my life, and knowing about the history of eastern Washington, I found Murder & Mayhem in Spokane easily relatable and factually significant. Deborahs deep knowledge of local history, evident in her writing, made this book a pleasure to read.

You will immediately feel the characters relatable and endearing to your heart and soul. This is a great read for a lazy day of pampering yourself to relaxation; all you need to do is sit back and enjoy hours of mentally running through the streets of Spokane with her to solve (or at least discover) these cases.

Mark Porter, researcher

Spokane, Washington

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

There are many people to thank for this endeavor, and without their help and guidance, this book would not have been possible. My wonderful editor, Laurie Krill, has been such a pleasure to work with, along with all of the other incredible people at Arcadia Publishing and The History Press. Their mission to promote local history is passionate and infectious, and I am blessed to work on my books with them. Their dedication to recording local history and peoples stories is remarkable, and without them, many books would never be published.

My appreciation and thanks to every single person who does what they can to preserve historywhether it is volunteering at the local historical society or maintaining old buildings that would otherwise be neglected. In this fast-paced and high-tech world, the past can unfortunately be easily forgotten, and every effort to maintain and record valuable data, photographs, diaries, documents and records is of the utmost importance for future generations. I urge people to take the time to learn more about the fascinating history of Spokane and the people who participated in developing it over the past one hundredplus years!

INTRODUCTION

The history of old Spokane, Washington, is so full of murders and reckless crimes that every front page of the local newspapers includes some sort of homicide or wrongdoing lurking between the lines. Stories of hundreds of the messy details of violent offenses and sinister dealings literally take over the towns past. In fact, the judges of nearby towns used to give criminals the choice between going to their local jail or disappearing to Spokane! Of course, the convict always took the train ride to his nearby freedom. The town was platted by James Glover in 1878 with just a half-dozen log cabins, and its population soon shot to over 100,000 by 1910. It attracted a cluster of rich men and was considered the wealthiest city in America with over 20 millionaires (and 28 half millionaires) living there. But with all this financial glory came dreadful consequences. Violent and unsolved murders, hasty disputes, vicious scandals and hushed suicides were commonplace for Spokane.

Some murders to note were:

• The killing of Spokane police officer George Conniff, who lost his life over the burglary of butter and milk during the Depression era. The crime went unsolved for over fifty years, until a deathbed confession by a fellow policeman and the reopened cold case by Tony Bamonte.
• The Lizzy Bordenstyle murder of a Spokane businessman named Sloane, hacked to death by his teenage son over twenty-five dollars, his bloody body carted to a back alley via a wheelbarrow.
• The Black Hand gang member who was sent to murder the notorious Frank Bruno, a local Italian saloon owner and sex slave pimp. A crude tattoo scratched into his arm was a silent warning from the gang and became the only clue left behind to help identify the murderer.

Spokanes first territorial jail cell building, in 1903. Some nearby cities would give criminals the crazy option of going to their local jailor just being sent to Spokane! Washington State Archives (WSA).

These and many more Spokane murders, crimes and unsolved mysteries are to be discovered in Murder & Mayhem in Spokane!

PART I

MURDERS

When the fox hears a rabbit scream, he comes running, but not to help.

Thomas Harris, Hannibal

CHAPTER 1

UNSOLVED MURDERS

McNeil Island Federal Penitentiary in 1937. McNeil held inmate Charles Manson from 1961 to 1966 for a federal check forgery charge. WSA.

SPOKANES RUTHLESS ITALIAN GANG: THE BLACK HAND

One of the many victims caught in the tangled, brutal web of the Black Hand gang fell prey to foul play in the fall of 1909 in Minnehaha Park near Spokane.

The mangled body of an Italian bodyguard named Ernest Santaro was found stabbed twenty-one times on the grounds of the park. The good-looking Italian man was hired as protection for a local mobster named Frank Bruno. Bruno had a long history of marital, criminal and financial troubles and woes. He was also running a house of prostitution and illegal gambling racket that covered the whole front of a block on Main Street. He was making himself a very wealthy man with his illicit businesses, but his luck would soon run out.