Small Town Murder: “Down South Death Demon - Edwards, Mississippi”
Podcast: Small Town Murder
Hosts: James Pietragallo, Jimmie Whisman
Episode Date: September 12, 2025
Overview
In this episode, James and Jimmie dive into the tragic and twisted story of James Cobb Hutto III, a man with a profoundly troubled past who became the focal point of a brutal murder in tiny Edwards, Mississippi—and possibly much more. The hosts unravel not only the shocking crime, but the generational trauma and systemic failures that paved the way for Hutto’s violence, ultimately shining their classic, irreverent comedic light on the darkness of small-town true crime.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Setting the Scene: Edwards, Mississippi
- Location & Demographics:
- Rural, west-central Mississippi, near Jackson.
- Population: Just over 1,000.
- Area code 601, median income $28k, typical home price $103k—about 40 years behind national averages.
- "It's interesting, a little bit of history... Everything is just scaled back about 40 years here." (James, 05:07)
- Town Oddities & Notable Features:
- Formerly named Amsterdam.
- Hit by cholera and yellow fever epidemics in the 1800s—erased and reborn multiple times.
- Home to "the world's only cactus plantation," run by a resilient octogenarian named John.
- Reviews highlight the town’s lengthy decline: "A ghost has to pay to haunt a place for 60 years." (Jimmy, 09:06)
- Local Life:
- Main events: May Day Jubilee, with 90s nostalgia.
- The hosts poke fun at small-town attempts at ‘magic’ and community.
2. The Troubled Life of James Cobb Hutto III
- Hometown: Jasper, Alabama.
- Family Dysfunction:
- "Dad's an abusive alcoholic... beats the shit out of everybody, but mostly just leaves." (James, 11:19)
- Mother: severe bipolar disorder (untreated), substance abuse, neglect.
- Stepdad: “Somehow was worse than dad ... an abusive alcoholic who not only beats the mother, beats the kid up too.” (James, 12:28)
- Sexually abused by multiple relatives (notably his “aunt/grandmother Faye”).
- Systemic failure: Even as a 7-year-old seeking police help, Hutto was laughed out of the station, never receiving intervention or counseling.
Notable Moment
"At 7 years old, he went to the police station and said, my stepfather beats the shit out of my mom... and they laughed at him..."
—James, 15:47
- Adult Disintegration:
- Fostering of intense anger, “splitting” behavior (idealizing then devaluing people), and inability to form or maintain healthy relationships.
- Joins the ‘tough man’/MMA fighting circuit as “Hitman Hutto.”
- Gets tangled with famed local boxer Butterbean—whose presence the hosts can’t help but satirize.
3. A String of Crimes & Disturbed Behavior
- Criminal Escalation:
- Early adult pattern: trespassing, domestic assault, harassment, reckless driving.
- Serial sexual abuse: multiple convictions for sexual assault (statutory rape of 17-year-old girls, sometimes minimized in court as “affairs”).
- Refusal to register as a sex offender.
- Violent and disruptive in prison; paroled after only 3.5 years on two concurrent 10-year sentences.
- Marriage falls apart; ex-wife describes a man transformed by fighting, drugs, and anger.
Quote
"This is not the guy you want to put out into the world abused and damaged and untreated for this shit."
—James, 17:28
4. The Murder of Ethel Winstead Simpson
(Main True Crime Story Begins ~40:10)
Victim Introduction:
- Ethel Winstead Simpson:
- 81, vivacious, brightly dressed, Red Hat Society member, “probably one of the most generous, giving people I've ever met…” (Jan Cossett, 38:59)
- Known for upbeat spirit; recently widowed.
- "She was lively... loved to eat, loved people. She was alive and full of life." (Prosecutor, 69:01)
How Their Paths Crossed:
- Hutto, carless and stranded after a weekend tryst, talks his way into the trust of Ethel at a local Healthplex by claiming he has cancer and is stranded.
- “He’s walking around...mainly old people in this, by the way...started telling everybody that he has cancer.” (James, 35:29)
Timeline
- September 13, 2010
- 3:00–4:30pm: Hutto meets Ethel at Healthplex, befriends her with a sob story.
- 4:30pm: Ethel gives Hutto a ride to the Comfort Inn.
- 8:36pm: Her Mercedes is caught heading toward a Vicksburg casino.
- 8:45–11:24pm: They’re seen on casino surveillance, seemingly comfortable and social; she pays for everything.
- September 14, 2010
- 12:44am: Only Hutto is seen returning with her car to the Comfort Inn.
- By morning, Ethel hasn’t come home; her family reports her missing.
- 7am: Her brother notices her absence.
- By late evening: The hunt for both Hutto and Ethel is in motion.
- September 17, 2010
- Farmer discovers Ethel’s body in a grain bin, covered in hog feed.
Crime Details
- Brutality:
- “She has a skull fracture ear to ear… fractured spine at C2, C3... complete severing of the spinal cord… windpipe crushed… defensive wounds… essentially beaten to death.” (James, 53:09)
- Hutto’s Movements:
- He takes her car, hangs with sketchy relatives, stabs a man during a land sale negotiation in Alabama (victim survives and testifies).
- Police Chase:
- Fled at 100mph before crashing and being arrested.
- Interrogations & Defense:
- Consistently blames others (“Ask Mark Cox, he was there...”), invents stories of being molested by Ethel, and maintains a bizarre, confrontational courtroom presence.
- Trial Circus:
- Numerous outbursts, flipping off prosecutors, attempts to fire or object to his own attorney, requests for the death penalty, wild claims.
- Quotes:
- “I don't give a fuck about none of them. Especially them. Them or them, I don't care. Fuck all of y’all. See that? Fuck y’all.” (Hutto, 69:59)
- "Charles Manson couldn't tote my gym bag." (Hutto, 63:41)
5. Legal Aftermath
- Conviction:
- Guilty of murder after only two hours of jury deliberation.
- Sentenced to death by lethal injection.
- “You, sir, may fuck off. Death by lethal injection.” (James, 76:26)
- “My mother died because she was kind. We can't let kindness become a death sentence.” (Ken Simpson, 77:53)
- Prison Life:
- On death row at Mississippi State Penitentiary in “Parchment,” 23-hour lockdown.
- Mississippi’s executions on hold due to lack of protocol and necessary drugs; likely will never be executed.
- Broader Impact:
- Stricter ID requirements at Healthplex, buddy system, senior safety seminars, police presence at senior centers, stronger elder abuse laws.
- The Ethel Simpson Foundation: provides security equipment, self-defense education to seniors.
- Possible Serial Killer:
- Multiple unsolved disappearances of elderly women in Alabama and Mississippi are under review due to patterns and Hutto’s own admissions.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- Dark Comedy/Absurdity:
- “I want to go to trial. I’ll be a good boy in court.” (Hutto, 68:15)
- “Don't say [‘Hitman’] while you're being arraigned for first degree murder, please. That's dumb.” (James, 65:36)
- On the Justice System and Small-town Realities:
- "This isn't gonna help his brain issues. Also, if he's been knocked around, now we're gonna punch him in the head more." (James, 17:26)
- “The judge said, Mr. Hutto, I can't allow that. You have to put on...something. That's why you have a lawyer.” (James, 69:10)
- Butterbean’s Cameo:
- “Butterbean said, ‘I wouldn't put it past him. Just because of how crazy he got, in the end, I wouldn't put it past him.’” (James, 65:08)
- On Ethel’s Kindness:
- “Probably one of the most generous, giving people I’ve ever met in my life. Never met a stranger.” (Jan Cossett, 38:59)
- Galling Denial:
- “[He said] I had sex with her the first day I met her. He said, ‘these old women, they think they can buy young men…’” (James, 64:06)
Timestamps for Important Segments
| Time | Segment | |---------|--------------------------------------------| | 03:51 | Introduction to Edwards, Mississippi | | 10:15 | Introduction to James Cobb Hutto III | | 15:47 | Early Abuses, Generational Trauma | | 17:26 | MMA Career & Escalating Violence | | 20:34 | Butterbean & "Hitman Hutto" | | 22:19 | Sexual Assault Charges and Sentencing | | 28:32 | The “Emergency Camaro” and Move to MS | | 35:29 | Encounter with Ethel at Healthplex | | 40:10 | Victim Profile: Ethel Winstead Simpson | | 41:29 | Timeline of Ethel & Hutto’s Movements | | 53:09 | Forensic Description of the Killing | | 56:27 | Police Chase and Hutto’s Arrest | | 63:41 | Interrogation Ramblings & Court Outbursts | | 69:01 | Opening Statements at Trial | | 76:26 | Sentencing: Death by Lethal Injection | | 77:53 | Broader Legal and Community Impact | | 79:14 | Potential Connections to Other Crimes |
Conclusion
Peppered with black humor and sharp banter, this episode remains one of Small Town Murder’s most harrowing and chaotic builds: a devastating look at how individual trauma, institutional neglect, and community kindness can all intersect in the most horrifying outcomes. James and Jimmie’s storytelling keeps the pace both engaging and thought-provoking, poking holes in old clichés about evil coming from “nowhere”—and exposing how sometimes, it can come from everywhere at once.
For More
- Visit shutupandgivememurder.com for live shows, merch, and Patreon links.
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The summary omits ads, intros/outros, and focuses solely on investigative content as the hosts deliver it—unsparing in detail, gallows humor, and unflinching in exploring the pain underlying small-town murder.