Texarkana Moonlight Murders - Consternation & Panic

Consternation & Panic

Although the first double murder caused some parents to warn their children about being out late, and the second double murder shocked the city and suggested curfews for businesses, the height of the town's hysteria snowballed after the murder of Virgil Starks. The Texarkana Gazette stated on Sunday, May 5, that the killer might strike again at any moment, at any place and at any one. While it was normal to leave your house unlocked, residents started locking their doors, pulling down shades, blocking windows, and arming themselves with guns. Some people would nail up sheets over their windows or even nail the window down. Some used screened-door braces as window guards. Part of the hysteria also came from the name of the killer being called a "phantom". During the next day after Mr. Starks' death, many residents bought firearms and locks. Stores soon sold out of locks, guns, ammunition, and window shades and Venetian blinds, making them become hard to find. Other items that sold well included window sash locks, screen door hooks, night latches, and other protective devices.

During that weekend, Texarkana residents kept police officers busy by flooding the station with reports of prowlers. An officer stated that nearly all of the alarms were the result of excitement, wild imagination and even near hysteria. Farmhouses and neighborhoods were blazing with lights. Several businesses, including cafes, theaters and night clubs, lost many customers. One business reported a 20% drop off. The evenings were hopping, but the streets were practically deserted when dawn approached. The city became a virtual ghost town. Because of the drop in business, liquor stores started closing at 9:30 and posted a statement in the paper saying, "We fully understand the state of mind in which Texarkana is now gripped. And we are selling no liquor to persons who already have been drinking. We do not wish to add further to the troubles of the police. Any person who drinks whiskey at this time to get drunk and wander about the streets of Texarkana is further complicating the works of the police and is placing himself in grave danger of being shot by people whose nerves are on edge from the recent murders." Since the citizens were jittery, nervous and armed with guns, Texarkana was a very dangerous place at night. In order for officers to keep from being shot while checking out anything suspicious, they would have to turn their siren on when they drove up. If you wanted to go to someone's house at night, you had to call in advance and let the person know to expect you. One nervous tavern proprietor shot a customer in the foot who were in search of beer.

On the front page of the Texarkana Gazette on Monday, May 6, a headline stated that the entire area was fighting jitters. Captain Gonzaullas helped fuel the hysteria when he announced on the radio Tuesday evening that Texarkanians should "Oil up their guns and see if they are loaded. Put them out of the reach of children. Do not use them unless it's necessary, but if you believe it is, do not hesitate." When asked what advice he could give to quiet the town's fear, he responded "I'd tell them to check the locks and bolts on their doors and get a double-barreled shotgun to take care of any intruder who tried to get in."

During that Tuesday night, many residents around East Ninth street were alarmed and called into the Gazette and News that they believed more murders had been committed because they heard sirens. The sirens turned out to be sound effects from a carnival. Want ads for guard dogs started popping up while others put out ads for selling their own watch dogs. Terrified wives would not go out after dark. One wife set booby traps in her home, which her husband would trip over. One setup included a table leaning up against the door with a pot full of nails which would spill over onto tin trays if the door opened. Other pots on the table would fall over and break causing enough noise to wake them up if the phantom were to enter. Some residents temporarily moved into hotels, while another wife would move into hotels at night and would move back home in the morning. Some husbands that had to go out of town would register his family into a hotel. Another wife would keep lights on during the day to keep any dark corner of her house lit up so shadows wouldn't disturb her. Families would get together and stay in one home, believing in the safety of numbers.Civilians had to watch what they said and what they did or else they would be branded as a suspect or questioned by the police.

On Thursday, May 9, the Two States Press, a weekly paper published on Thursdays, announced:

Texarkana people are jittery, plain frightened--and with reason. Within a period of six weeks five people have been murdered in cold blood and a sixth seriously wounded, escaping death by a seeming miracle. The question in the minds of most of the citizens is, when, where and how soon will another tragedy shock the community, and who will be the victim or victims, since two deaths seem to be the design of the killer?

Over a week after the death of Mr. Starks, police departments on both sides of the city were still being swamped with excited calls about prowlers and gunshots. Reports arranged from the possible to the ridiculous, yet officers still diligently checked every report. On Friday, May 10, officers rushed to a home on Olive street with reports of strange noises coming from an upstairs room. Officers found a cat thrashing about in a trash can. Again on Olive street, officers checked a report that a strange man was on someone's porch. It turned out that he had stepped out of the rain to wait for a bus. On Magnolia street, a report of a prowler bumping up against a house turned out to be hedges being blown against it. On Sixteenth street, a family called in that they heard a tapping at their door. It was later discovered that a messenger was delivering a special letter. There was a time when white-faced calves broke loose around County avenue and slept on lawns. Residents reported seeing "white-faced things in the dark." Gunshots that were heard turned out to be someone shooting at something they thought was a prowler (usually a shadow), accidental discharges from people loading their guns, and even backfires from vehicles.

As news announcements spread and suspects were searched in surrounding counties, the fear crossed over to many other cities, including Hope, Lufkin and Magnolia, even going as far as Oklahoma City. Residents in other cities were also stocking up on guns and even axes. Every three weeks when there were no murders, the town's fear began to drop little by little. The hysteria lasted throughout the summer and eventually faded three months later.