The Classic Middle Name
It only occurred to me in the early 1990s that "Wayne" was a popular middle name among a few of the most heinous murderers of our time, e.g., the clown John Wayne Gacy (who killed almost three dozen boys and young men in the late 1970s and buried most of them beneath the floorboards of his Des Plaines, Ill., home) and Elmer Wayne Henley (sentenced to six consecutive life terms in 1974 in Houston for his role, with ringleader Dean Allen Corll, in the murders of 27 young men). I began to publish periodic lists in 1996, and soon readers made sure I never missed a one that made the news.
This is a mighty impressive (so to speak) group, and below is an alpha listing.
But first, several disclaimers:
(1) Theoretically, a few of these people are probably innocent (or, if not "innocent," then at least the charges have been dropped). At the first instant that I find out about such a person on my list, I wipe him off and publish a correction in the weekly News of the Weird column. But, rest easy: The vast majority of these men, no matter how much they protest, are in fact murderers.
(2) I have been too unmotivated to update the list in other respects. Most notably, there should be more names (i.e., some have been withheld because they were mere "suspects," but many of those were subsequently arrested, not to mention convicted), and there should be more, well, dead people on the list, if you get my drift. (I have only designated the executions that I know about.)
(3) My list is only of murderers (or those charged with murder). Manslaughter is not enough. Other violent crimes are not enough. And it's only of middle-name Waynes who have been in the news; I have not pored over penitentiary rosters to get the old-timer Waynes.
(4) Before anyone asks me, I will answer: No, I have no idea whether the number of middle-named Wayne murderers is statistically significant. I suspect that aggressive-personality fathers during the 1950s and 1960s did in fact hopefully and disproportionately name their boys after that era's icon of ruggedness, John Wayne. Beyond that, I dare not venture.
Herewith is the list, as of News of the Weird M047, March 2, 2008 (*deceased):
[This list of names is (as with everything else on NewsoftheWeird.com) copyrighted by Chuck Shepherd, with All Rights Reserved]
Michael Wayne Adams (Virginia)
Timothy Wayne Adams (Texas)
Shannon Wayne Agofsky (Texas)
Thomas Wayne Akers (North Carolina)
Matthew Wayne Almand (Florida)
Stephen Wayne Anderson (California)*
Joshua Wayne Andrews (Virginia)
David Wayne Arisman (California)
Dennis Wayne Bagwell (Texas)*
Timothy Wayne Barnett (Alabama)
Michael Wayne Baxter (Maryland)*
Kenneth Wayne Beck (Missouri)
Gerald Wayne Bivins (Indiana)
John Wayne Blair (Tennessee)
Scott Wayne Blystone (Pennsylvania)
Donald Wayne Booth (Texas)
Elvis Wayne Botley (California)
Steven Wayne Bowman (South Carolina)
Larry Wayne Brigman (Minnesota)
Ricky Wayne Brown (Florida)
Michael Wayne Brown (Oklahoma)
Michael Wayne Brunner (Kentucky)
Edward Wayne Bryant (Oklahoma)
Dennis Wayne Bryant (Virginia)
Estell Wayne Buck (Ohio)
Bradley Wayne Cagle (Texas)
Curtis Wayne Campbell (Oklahoma)
Seth Wayne Campbell (Texas)
Darren Wayne Campbell (Oregon)
Mark Wayne Campmire (Connecticut)
Michael Wayne Carter (Indiana)
Rodger Wayne Chastain (California)*
Douglas Wayne Clark (Texas)
Ronald Wayne Clark, Jr. (Florida)
Darryl Wayne Claughton (Alberta)
Ira Wayne Cloninger (Virginia)
Timothy Wayne Coalson (Georgia)
Kevin Wayne Coffey (Texas)
David Wayne Cole (Pennsylvania)
Michael Wayne Cole (North Carolina)
Timothy Wayne Condrey (North Carolina)
Joseph Wayne Cook (North Carolina)
Billy Wayne Cope (South Carolina)
Alvin Wayne Crane (Texas)*
David Wayne Crews (Tennessee)
Donald Wayne Darling II (Alabama)
Christopher Wayne Davis (Louisiana)
Gary Wayne Davis (Kentucky)
Jerry Wayne Dean (Kentucky)
Aryan Wayne Duntley (California)
John Wayne Duvall (Oklahoma)*
Dennis Wayne Eaton (Virginia)*
Dale Wayne Eaton (Colorado)
Timothy Wayne Ebert (Texas)
Michael Wayne Eggers (Alabama)
Gary Wayne Etheridge (Texas)
Michael Wayne Farmer (Maryland)
Ellis Wayne Felker (Georgia)*
Darrell Wayne Ferguson (Ohio)*
Matthew Wayne Ferman (Ohio)
Lewis Wayne Fielder Jr. (South Carolina)
Michael Wayne Fisher (Pennsylvania)
Earl Wayne Flowers (North Carolina)
Terry Wayne Freeman (Illinois)
Percy Wayne Froman (Alabama)
Ronald Wayne Frye (North Carolina)*
Morris Wayne Givens (Alabama)
John Wayne Glover (Australia)*
Richard Wayne Godwin (Oregon)
Arthur Wayne Goodman, Jr. (Texas)
Richard Wayne Gorrie (New Zealand)
Jeffrey Wayne Gorton (Michigan)
Keith Wayne Graham (California)
Coleman Wayne Gray (Virginia)*
Charles Wayne Green (Arkansas)
Kenneth Wayne Gregory (Florida)
Christopher Wayne Gregory (Texas)
Ralph Wayne Grimes (Kentucky)
Anthony Wayne Grimm (Illinois)
Randall Wayne Hafdahl (Texas)*
Conan Wayne Hale (Oregon)
Kenneth Wayne Hall Sr. (South Carolina)
Michael Wayne Hall (Texas)
Steven Wayne Hall (Alabama)
Bradley Wayne Hamrick (Washington)
Jerald Wayne Harjo (Oklahoma)*
Emmanuel Wayne Harris (Arizona)
Robert Wayne Harris (Texas)
Nathaniel Wayne Hart (Texas)
Jerald Wayne Harvel II (Oklahoma)
Mark Wayne Hauseur (California)
Billy Wayne Hayes (Tennessee)
Carl Wayne Heath (Maine)
Brandon Wayne Hedrick (Virginia)
Michael Wayne Henry (Texas)
Rodney Wayne Henry (Kansas)
David Wayne Hickman (Texas)
Donald Wayne Holt (Maryland)
Jeremy Wayne Hopkins (Texas)
Bryant Wayne Howard (Oregon)
Christopher Wayne Hudson (Australia)
Calvin Wayne Inman (Texas)
Derek Wayne Jackson (Pennsylvania)
Kenneth Wayne Jackson (Texas)
Eric Wayne Jacobs (California)*
Allen Wayne Jenecka (Texas)*
Mark Wayne Jennings (Virginia)
Robert Wayne Jiles (New York)
Timothy Wayne Johnson (North Carolina)
Terry Wayne Johnson (Florida)
Jason Wayne Johnson (Texas)
Mark Wayne Jones (Ohio)
Tyler Wayne Justice (Texas)
Kenneth Wayne Keller (Texas)
Gary Wayne Kleypas (Kansas)
Bruce Wayne Koenig (Maryland)
Derrick Wayne Kualapai, Sr. (California)
Dudley Wayne Kyzer (Alabama)
Ronald Wayne Lail (North Carolina)
Monty Wayne Lamb (Texas)
Robert Wayne Lambert (Oklahoma)
Jonathan Wayne Larrabee (South Dakota)
Jeffrey Wayne Leaf (Oklahoma)
Bobby Wayne Ledbetter (Alabama)
Darrell Wayne Lewis (Arizona)
John Wayne Lewis (Oklahoma)
Christopher Wayne Lippard (North Carolina)
Kenny Wayne Lockwood (Texas)*
Mark Wayne Lomax (Texas)
Christopher Wayne Luttrell (Kentucky)
Darrell Wayne Maness (North Carolina)
Shelly Wayne Martin (Maryland)
Donald Wayne Martin (Texas)*
Randall Wayne Mays (Texas)
Steven Wayne McBride (Minnesota)
George Wayne McBroom (Arizona)
David Wayne McCall (Texas)
Rocky Wayne McGowan (Kentucky)
Robert Wayne McMillion (Florida)
Jason Wayne McVean (Colorado)
David Wayne Mears (Michigan)
Wesley Wayne Miller (Texas)
Jimmy Wayne Miller (Texas)
Don Wayne Moody (Texas)*
John Wayne Moore, Jr. (Missouri)
John Wayne Moses (North Carolina)
Dustin Wayne Nall (Texas)
Jack Wayne Napier (Kentucky)
Michael Wayne Nelson (Florida)
David Wayne Nelson (Alaska)*
Oral Wayne Nobles (Massachusetts)
Danny Wayne Owens (Alabama)
Bryan Wayne Padd (Arizona)
David Wayne Pallister (England)
Jeffrey Wayne Paschall (Utah)
John Wayne Peck (Virginia)
Douglas Wayne Pepper (North Carolina)
Michael Wayne Perry (Tennessee)
Jason Wayne Petershagen (Texas)
Michael Wayne Poe (Tennessee)
Curtis Wayne Pope (Texas)
Bruce Wayne Potts (Texas)
Lonnie Wayne Pursley (Texas)*
Donald Wayne Rainey (Mexico)
Gary Wayne Ray Jr. (Oklahoma)
Earl Wayne Reynolds (Virginia)
Michael Wayne Richard (Texas)*
Randy Wayne Richards (Canada)
Barry Wayne Riley (British Columbia)
Robert Wayne Rotramel (Oklahoma)
Roy Wayne Russell (Washington)
David Wayne Satterfield (Texas)
Christopher Wayne Scarber (Kentucky)
Patrick Wayne Schroeder (Nebraska)
Randy Wayne Seal (Florida)
Michael Wayne Sears (Virginia)
Timothy Wayne Shepherd (Texas)
Kenith Wayne Sherrill (Washington)
Donald Wayne Shipe (Virginia)
Dallas Wayne Shults (Tennessee)
Mark Wayne Silvers (South Carolina)
Daryl Wayne Smith (West Virginia)
Justin Wayne Smith (Texas)
David Wayne Smith (Virginia)
Richard Wayne Smith (Texas)*
Richard Wayne Snell (Arkansas)*
Ronald Wayne Spencer Jr. (Texas)
Richard Wayne Spicknall (Alabama)
Jerrell Wayne Stanley (Texas)
Randall Wayne Stevens (Illinois)
John Wayne Stockdall (Missouri)
Michael Wayne Summers (Missouri)
John Wayne Surratt Jr. (North Carolina)
Gary Wayne Sutton (Tennessee)
Bobby Wayne Swisher (Virginia)*
Charles Wayne Thomas Jr. (Texas)
Reginald Wayne Thomas (Texas)
Michael Wayne Thompson (Indiana)
John Wayne Thomson (Washington)
Andrew Wayne Toler (Texas)
Robert Wayne Vickers (Arizona)*
Russell Wayne Wagner (Maryland)*
Billy Wayne Waldrop (Alabama)*
Jerry Wayne Walker (Kentucky)
Anthony Wayne Walker (Ohio)
Jessie Wayne Walker (North Carolina)
Chadwick Wayne Wallace (Illinois)
Daniel Wayne Warfield (Virginia)
John Wayne Warrener (Colorado)
Alexander Wayne Watson Jr. (Maryland)
Louis Wayne Watters, Jr. (Texas)
Anthony Wayne Welch (Florida)
Coy Wayne Wesbrook (Texas)
Melvin Wayne White (Texas)*
Larry Wayne White (Texas)*
Timothy Wayne Widman (Pennsylvania)
Michael Wayne Williams (Virginia)
Richard Wayne Willoughby (Maryland)
Kenneth Wayne Woodfin (Virginia)
Bobby Wayne Woods (Texas)
William Wayne Wright (Texas)
Darrell Wayne Wright (Texas)
Jerry Wayne Wright (Tennessee)
Robert Wayne Wyant (Virginia)
[Copyright, Chuck Shepherd. All Rights Reserved.]
Subject: The Classic Middle Name: Murderers 
Wed Sep 22, 2010 8:08 am
