Vanessa Richardson (19:10)
On July 24, 1946, 60 years before the Pettit family's nightmare began, a different family experience experienced something tragically similar. William John Logan had done well for himself. After graduating From Princeton in 1913, he made his fortune as vice president of the Central Hanover bank and Trust Company. He married a woman named Marjorie Church, and they had a daughter, Marjorie Jean. But William was much More than a businessman, he was deeply involved in his community as well. After moving to the affluent town of Flower Hill on Long island, he served multiple terms as mayor in the 1930s. He also liked to keep his mind active. Following his retirement from the bank in 1941, the 50 year old still kept one foot in the business world. By 1946, the Logan's were living comfortably in a 20 room Georgian mansion. The grand red brick home was set on two acres in an exclusive pocket of Long Island. A place where wealth met privacy and where, like the Pettits, they probably believed they were safe. On the morning of July 24, 1946, William was away on business in New York city. Meanwhile, his 52 year old wife and 26 year old daughter were at home and going about their normal routines. As was their housekeeper, Mrs. Della Bra, who was in her quarters at the rear of the property. None of the women knew they were about to have company. His name was ward caraway. The 23 year old was a former soldier from North Carolina who'd been dishonorably discharged for stealing. Since that time he and his expecting wife had found work as domestic employees at a different estate less than a half mile away. Ward was familiar with the area. He knew what kind of families lived in Flower Hill. He knew how wealthy they were. And he figured they had more than enough to spare. Just after 10:30am on the 24th, Ward entered the Logan estate. But what followed was far worse than a simple robbery. As he slipped into the living room, ward came upon Mrs. Logan and demanded money. His eyes seemed wide and vacant like he was in a daze. He held a nickel plated pistol to make it clear that he meant business. But if Mrs. Logan was scared by a strange man with an unsettling gaze breaking into her house and shaking her down, she didn't show it. She stayed calm and called upstairs to her daughter. Mrs. Logan didn't mention that there was a burglar in the house. She just asked Marjorie for $10 saying it was to settle a debt. She figured that would be enough to send the intruder on his way. Marjorie had no idea there was someone else in the house. So she tossed the money downstairs and didn't think any more of it. A few moments later she heard a gunshot downstairs. Ward Caraway had fired his pistol and killed Mrs. Logan with a single bullet to the head. After that he went up to find Marjorie holding her at gunpoint. He asked the 26 year old for more money. He said that was all he wanted. He was lying. After Marjorie gave Ward the cash. He ordered her into her parents bedroom and told her to undress. Then, still pointing the gun at Marjorie, he sexually assaulted her. Afterward, he shot Marjorie, hitting her in the left cheek. She survived and when she tried to run, Ward shot her again, this time in the back of the neck. After that, Ward finally left the house. But Marjorie Jean Logan wasn't dead. Bleeding and in shock, she managed to escape out the back. She ran to a neighbor's house and called for help, but a barking dog scared her off. So she tried another house, but no one answered her desperate pleas. Finally, she found a painter working on a nearby home. He saw the state she was in and knew she needed urgent medical attention. So he got her into his car and started to drive her to a doctor. As they sped toward the hospital, Marjorie spotted Ward Caraway boldly walking down the road. She pointed him out to the painter, but knowing Ward was armed and dangerous, she told him to keep on driving. The painter didn't argue with her. As he drove off, he saw Ward vanish into the woods. By the time authorities arrived at the scene, their suspect was already long gone. On July 24, 1946, the Logan family was violently attacked at their Flower Hill, Long island home. While 54 year old William Logan was out on business, his 52 year old wife, Marjorie Church and their 26 year old daughter Marjorie Jean were shot by an intruder, Ward Caraway. Mrs. Logan sadly died at the scene, but her daughter survived. Immediately following the break in and shooting, a helpful painter rushed Marjorie to the hospital where doctors were able to save her life in the aftermath. In the aftermath of the crime, the Nassau County Police Department dedicated incredible resources to catching the killer. 100 detectives and uniformed officers were dispatched to calm the entire neighborhood. They blocked off roads, scoured hedgerows and canvassed just about every mansion and carriage house across the shrub lined streets of Long Island's North Shore Bay. Based on Marjorie's description, they knew the suspect was a tall young black man, 6 foot 1, slim, no more than 150 pounds. He had a soft voice and a dramatic pompadour hairstyle flipped up in the front. By late afternoon, nearly 200 individuals had been questioned, but none of them were able to point the police in the right direction. A killer was on the loose in one of the wealthiest enclaves in the state and nobody knew who he was or where he'd gone. As it turned out, the answer was uncomfortably close to home. In the days following the attack, a woman named Mrs. Rose started to develop a frightening theory. Mrs. Rose lived only A half mile from the Logans. And she realized that the new butler she'd recently hired, Ward Caraway, perfectly matched the suspect's description. However, Mrs. Rose didn't report Ward to the police. She just didn't think he was acting like a guilty person would. Despite all the talk about what had happened, he seemed calm and composed. In the end, it didn't matter that Mrs. Rose kept her suspicions to herself. On July 31, a week after the attack, the police brought Ward in for questioning as part of their wide ranging manhunt. After a five hour interview, it was clear they had their suspect. But they didn't arrest him right away. They needed more evidence first. So they took Ward's photograph and let him go. But they kept a very close eye on him to make sure he didn't make a run for it. Afterwards, the police wanted to show Ward's picture to Marjorie Logan so she could confirm he was the killer. She was still recovering from the attack though, so she couldn't help them until two days later. But the moment she saw the picture, she didn't hesitate. She said, that's the man who shot me. Later that same night, August 2, 1946, Ward Caraway was taken into custody. Up to that point, Ward had been compliant and polite with the authorities. But when they questioned him in earnest, he became more resistant. More than 12 hours passed before he finally gave in and confessed. Ward told police that he had no problems with the Logan family. He'd never even met them before. He said the crime was completely random, but his movements that day threw that into question. Ward said that he spent the morning of the attack driving his boss, Mr. Rose, to the train station. It just so happened that Mr. Rose was taking the same train that William Logan had boarded for his business trip to New York. Ward denied knowing that William would be away from home. Instead, he claimed that after dropping off Mr. Rose, he decided to take his gun and wander out with no specific plan whether or not he'd specifically targeted the Logans. What happened next was undeniable. And after his confession, Ward led officers to a field where he disassembled and discarded the gun. The authorities had a positive id, a confession and the murder weapon. They had everything they needed to charge Ward Carraway with first degree murder. But even in the face of all that evidence, he pleaded not guilty. And when the trial began in December 1946, he took the rare step of taking the stand in his own defense. Ward claimed that he'd made his confession under duress. He said he'd been denied food, sleep and rest until he signed a statement. According to Ward, detectives had threatened to take him downstairs if he didn't cooperate. Allegedly, one investigator had even held a knife to Ward's throat and another had whispered, let's kill him now and get it over with. But even if that was true, it didn't account for why he'd taken his gun apart and left it in a field, or how Marjorie Logan had been able to identify him as her assailant. And two days later, Marjorie got the chance to tell her side of the story. She was 27 by then and had recovered from the ordeal, physically at least, but she showed unwavering courage throughout the trial, sitting in the front row next to her father for Ward's testimony. When she took the stand herself, she pointed directly at Ward when asked to identify her mother's killer. Once both sides had rested their cases on December 14th, it only took the jury three hours to come to a verdict. Guilty. In 1946, a first degree murder conviction in New York came with a mandatory sentence, death. When the verdict was read aloud, Ward's pregnant wife, Scott, screamed and collapsed in the courtroom. William Logan, seated silently in the front row, said nothing. Marjorie elected not to be there. About seven months later, on the evening of July 3, 1947, Ward Beecher Caraway was executed by electric chair at Sing Sing Prison in New York. He was 24 years years old. Looking back at these events from crime history, it's eerie how strikingly similar they are. Despite taking place over 60 years apart, the attacks on the Pettit and Logan families stand out for their violence, depravity and senselessness. Both cases were horrific crimes of opportunity, marked by profound, profound and shocking loss not just of human life, but something deeper, too. A loss of trust, of safety, of that invisible barrier we all imagine protects us when we lock our doors at night. And that's the truth that lingers. There's only so much control we have over our lives. We plan, we prepare, but we never really know what's waiting on the other side of the door. Thanks so much for listening. I'm Vanessa Richardson and this is Crime House the Show. The show is a Crime House Original Power by Pave Studios At Crime House, we want to express our gratitude to you, our community, for making this possible. Please support us by rating, reviewing and following Crime House the Show. Wherever you get your podcasts, your feedback truly matters. And for ad free and early access to Crime House the Show plus exciting bonus content, subscribe to Crime House plus on Apple Podcasts will be back next Monday. The show is hosted by me, Vanessa Richardson and is a Crime House original. Powered by Pave Studios, this episode was brought to life by the Crime House the Show Team Max Cutler, Ron Shapiro, Alex Benedon, Natalie Pertzovsky, Lori Marinelli, Sarah Camp, Nani Aqualagu, Hanias Said and Michael Langsner. Thank you for listening. Warning the following ZipRecruiter radio spot you are about to hear is going to be filled with F words when you're hiring.
