The Fate of Mrs. Mullenax and the “Almost Perfect Murder”

West Virginia was one of the quietest places in the United States during the 1960s, enjoying as it did a comforting dearth of news of great import. In the spring of 1966, the biggest news in West Virginia was the story of a hen named Oddie that laid green eggs.

But then this quiet corner of Mason-Dixonland got a terrific shock that swept the odd-egg-layer right off the front page.

In Preston County, near Terra Alta, on April 9, 1966, bones were found on the Mullenax farm. And they sure didn’t look like chicken bones.

County authorities collected the curious contents of the Mullenax’s garbage pit and shipped them to the FBI’s Crime Laboratory in Washington. Using a method called neutron activation, in which bone fragments are made radioactive so that they give off gamma rays, the FBI scientists sorted bone from ash, but could not tell if they were human. They could have been the bones of a bear – often mistaken for homo sapiens. So they consulted a Smithsonian Institution anthropologist who specialized in the identification of human remains, Dr. J. Lawrence Angel. He concluded that the charred bones were indeed human and thus established a corpus delicti.

The scientists found hints of the cause of death in the marrow of these bones, where they discovered traces of arsenic.

Grim-faced local deputies turned to the owner of the farm -- Vonda Mullenax, the 33-year-old mother of nine children ranging in age from three to thirteen – for an explanation. Her husband had been missing since December 21. Had Vonda given herself an early Christmas present, a cheap, powdery divorce? And why did she do it?

Under police interrogation, Vonda confessed to poisoning Ray for many months by slipping arsenic into his morning coffee.

Finally, frustrated beyond all get-out, she garrotted him in his bed. Then she burned his 200-pound carcass in the garbage pit. Her lawyer would later flap his lips about the lack of Miranda warnings as well as the police’s failure to obtain a search warrant, but his audience – a federal judge – was unsympathetic.

In July of 1966, Vonda went on trial in Kingwood. She was convicted of first-degree murder – largely on the testimony of the Smithsonian expert and her own confession – and she was sent to the state prison at Pence Springs.

But she remained in residence for mere weeks before she escaped from prison. For the first time. Desperately missing her children, Vonda reportedly caught “the running fever” and escaped eight times to see them before authorities finally gave up on their efforts to confine the murderess. After eleven years of imprisonment, she was paroled in 1977 and restored to her offspring.

If there ever was an explanation for why she systematically destroyed Ray Mullenax and removed virtually all traces of the father of her children from the face of the earth, it never saw print.

And if Vonda is now dead or alive, I couldn’t tell you. My searches of the internet left me empty-handed, revealing only a purebred albino doberman named “Mullenax’s Hot Cup O’ Java.”

But surely someone jests.

Sources:

Charleston (W.Va.) Daily Mail

Charleston Gazette

Morgantown Dominion-News

Comments

[Patrick]

I have a comment about Vonda Mullenax that you might be interested in. I just moved from Terra Alta recently back to my hometown in Central, WV. Just another addition to your story, Vonda is still living, in small trailer outside of Terra Alta, about 5 miles from the original farm where the murdered happened. I have seen the farm and the site of the garbage pile where the charred remains of Ray Mullenax were found. If there is anything else you would like to know, feel free to get back in touch with me.

[Ashley]

Hello,
My name is ashley and i am Vondas Great Neice. Vonda is still living and if anyone is wondering why vonda may have done this, from what i have heard from family stories (i was not alive when this happened) My great uncle ray, vondas husband, was a very very mean man, so much so that there was not even a memorial service held for him by our family and vonda was never cast out by our family either. I believe this in itself says something about the man that ray must have been.

[Laura]

Thank you for your note, Ashley. I am glad you took the time. I have heard the same thing from others. It makes a lot of sense, because her punishment was on the light side. Today she might not have been punished at all, who knows.

[Nathaniel]

Hello. My name is Nathaniel Mullenax. Vonda Mullenax is my Granmother. I just wanted to say that she is a very loving Granmother. Some people are push in to doing thing because they think it is the olny way out. Alot has changed since 1966. If you have any question feel free to ask.

[Tom]

I am Vonda Mullenax's landlord and she has never missed a rent payment. Vonda lives on a limited income, but she Always makes sure all her billls are paid. My wife and I couldn't have a nicer renter.

[Jenny]

When I lived at my parents house I can see the infamous "Mullenax House" and I grew up hearing the stories, and just as Ashley has said, Ray was a mean and from what I heard abusive man...

[A]

vonda is my boyfriends grandmother and he has heard stories about what happenened but he never new that his father had so many siblings and he was wondering what there names are and whatever happened to all of them .

[Michelle Joseph]

Laura James,
Is there some information you can tell me about where you found the story of Vonda J Mullenax I am from Terra Alta WV and would love to beable to better understand the whole story behind Vonda J Mullenax and the killing of her husband my mother once wnet to hteir farm to see about some free kittens and said he had a cruel look in his eyes that made her want to get away from him as soon as possible. She also said Mr. Mullenax would bring home other men and have his wife take care of them if you know what I mean. i think it would be great if someone could interview her and tell her story in a book then donate part of the proceeds to domestic violence prevention. How about you Laura ?? Thanks Michelle

[Paula Holyfield Collins]

I googled Vonda Jean's name after searching for several years for one of her daughter's, Dorothy. Dorothy was a classmate of mine while her mother was incarcerated. She and I kept in contact for almost a year after we graduated from high school. I would like to get in touch with her, so if any of you who are related to Dorothy, know her whereabouts, please ask her to look me up on FB.

[aion power leveling]

we graduated from high school. I would like to get in touch with her, so if any of you who are related to Dorothy, know her whereabouts, please ask her to look me up on FB.

[Brent Alan Woodall]

Hi my name is Brent Woodall I was friends with her oldest son I beleive would be around my age can't remember his first name we lived pretty close together and went to school together. I've been in so many wrecks my head has had alot of trauma. If possible I would love to talk to him. I'm 56 now and can be reached on my cell phone at 540-660-4843 That is a Front Royal VA number. Call me anytime. Thanks.