Paul Ezra Rhoades

{{Infobox serial killer

| name = Paul Ezra Rhoades

| image = Paul Ezra Rhoades.jpg

| image_size =

| caption =

| alt =

| birth_name =

| alias = Sam Johnson
Rick Edwards
John French

| birth_date = {{Birth date|1957|1|18}}

| birth_place = Idaho Falls, Idaho, U.S.

| death_date = {{Death date and age|2011|11|18|1957|1|18}}

| death_place = Idaho Maximum Security Institution, Kuna, Idaho, U.S.

| cause = Execution by lethal injection

| conviction = First-degree murder (x3)

| sentence =Baldwin and Michelbacher
Death (x2)
Haddon
Life imprisonment (x1)

| victims = 3–7+

| beginyear = February 28

| endyear = March 21, 1987 (confirmed)

| country = United States

| states = Idaho
(possibly Utah and Wyoming)

| apprehended = March 26, 1987

| imprisoned =

}}

Paul Ezra Rhoades (January 18, 1957 – November 18, 2011) was an American spree killer and suspected serial killer convicted of three murders committed in Idaho during a three-week crime spree in 1987. He is the prime suspect in at least four additional killings in Utah and Wyoming dating back to 1984, however, he was never conclusively linked to these murders. He was executed for two of his confirmed murders in 2011, becoming the first person to be executed in Idaho in over seventeen years.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/rhoades-addresses-the-victims-families-his-mother-and-executioners-in-final-statement/277-325789105|title=Rhoades addresses the victims' families, his mother, and executioners in final statement|publisher=KTVB|date=July 11, 2013|archiveurl=https://archive.today/20211201085117/https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/rhoades-addresses-the-victims-families-his-mother-and-executioners-in-final-statement/277-325789105|archivedate=December 1, 2021}}

Early life

Paul Ezra Rhoades was born on January 18, 1957,{{cite web|url=https://www.idoc.idaho.gov/content/prisons/death_row|title=Death Row | Idaho Department of Correction|website=idoc.idaho.gov|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110502060524/https://www.idoc.idaho.gov/content/prisons/death_row|archivedate=May 2, 2011}} in Idaho Falls, Idaho, the first of four children born to Augustus and Teresa Rhoades. His early life proved turbulent, as Rhoades was struck with polio since the age of 4, for which he constantly had to be hospitalized, and at home, his parents constantly argued.{{Cite web|url=https://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/2011/11/killer_paul_ezra_rhoades_put_t.html|title=Killer Paul Ezra Rhoades put to death in Idaho -- state's first execution in 17 years|publisher=The Oregonian|date=November 18, 2011|archiveurl=https://archive.today/20211201083756/https://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/2011/11/killer_paul_ezra_rhoades_put_t.html|archivedate=December 1, 2021|access-date=December 1, 2021|url-status=live}} At the age of 10, he began drinking and soon dropped out of high school, after which he started using various drugs. Because of this, Rhoades developed an addiction to methamphetamines which would persist up until his arrest. To provide for his family, he took on various odd jobs both in Idaho and the surrounding states, specializing in sheetrocking.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82884576/paul-ezra-rhoades-1/|title=Did Idaho Serial Killer Operate in Utah?|author=Mike Carter|publisher=The Salt Lake Tribune|date=April 30, 1988|page=15|via=Newspapers.com}} At the same time, however, he started breaking into various homes and stole any valuables he could find.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82884621/paul-ezra-rhoades-2/|title=Did Idaho Serial Killer Operate in Utah?|author=Mike Carter|publisher=The Salt Lake Tribune|date=April 30, 1988|page=18|via=Newspapers.com}}

Murders

On the morning of March 1, 1987, the body of 21-year-old Stacy Dawn Baldwin, a Red Mini Barn clerk who was working the night shift, was found in an archery range about five miles northwest of Blackfoot.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82885180/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Prosecution offering case|publisher=Times-News|date=March 4, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} She had been shot three times, and it was quickly determined that her killing was likely linked to a robbery gone wrong that occurred the night before.

Soon after, on the morning of March 17, 20-year-old Nolan Haddon, a clerk working at a convenience store in Idaho Falls, was found critically injured in the establishment's walk-in cooler.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82885512/paul-ezra-rhoades-stacy/|title=Rhoades draws 2 life terms for '87 slaying of store clerk|publisher=Times-News|date=April 19, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} Haddon was quickly rushed to the Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center for treatment, but succumbed to his injuries only hours later.

Four days later, the body of 34-year-old Susan Michelbacher, a special ed teacher, was found in a remote lava field west of Idaho Falls.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82882466/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Murder trial opens today in I.F. slaying|publisher=South Idaho Press|date=January 18, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} She had been abducted from the parking lot of a supermarket two days prior after dropping off lesson plans at the school where she worked. During the abduction, she cashed two $1,000 checks at separate branches of a bank. She was shot nine times and then raped, quite possibly after she was already deceased.

Arrest and trials

On March 27, 1987, an arrest warrant for grand larceny was put out for Rhoades, who was promptly arrested in Wells, Nevada.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82882278/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Idahoan arrested in Nevada charged in teacher's slaying|publisher=Times-News|date=March 27, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} While he was detained at the Nevada Highway Patrol Office, his items, including a handgun, were confiscated and handed over to authorities in Idaho. Shortly after, the handgun's bullets were proven to be an exact match to the ones used in the recent slayings in Blackfoot and Idaho Falls. As a result, Rhoades was first charged with Michelbacher's murder, in addition to first-degree kidnapping, robbery, rape, desecration of a corpse and five counts of firearm violations. It was decided that the two other murder charges would be tried in separate trials.

On January 18, 1988, Rhoades' first trial began, after his attorneys' bid for an insanity defense was rejected by the Idaho Supreme Court. Among the possible choices for jurors was then-Governor Cecil Andrus, who was later excused from the panel due to his familiarity with the case due to signing the extradition documents from Nevada. Among the prosecution's witnesses was Nevada detective Victor Rodriguez, who claimed that he and five other officers had heard the defendant admit to Michelbacher's murder while in their custody, but had failed to file the statement in a report due to "an oversight".{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82882526/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Deputy testifies to slaying admission|publisher=Times-News|date=January 20, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} This claim was later contested by defense attorney John Radin, as Rodriguez later claimed that this had never occurred while being questioned by him. By January 26, the defense team had rested their case, with the proceedings being delayed for two hours as court officials had to wait for Rhoades' suit to be returned from a dry cleaning store.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82882609/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Defense in Rhoades' trial rests case|publisher=Times-News|date=January 26, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} On the following day, after less than five hours of deliberations, the jury returned a verdict of guilty on all counts against Rhoades, with his sentencing phase set for March 16.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82882688/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Rhoades found guilty faces trial in Blackfoot|publisher=Times-News|date=January 27, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}}

In the meantime, Rhoades was sent off to stand trial for the murder of Baldwin, which was held on March 3. His attorneys contended that the circumstantial evidence of the prosecution was flimsy, and that his client's alibi of babysitting his sister's two children at the supposed time of the crime could be easily corroborated by his family members.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82882847/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Opening arguments given in murder trial for Rhoades|publisher=Times-News|date=March 3, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} In addition, they also claimed that a man's watch found in Rhoades' possession, which was claimed to have been stolen from Baldwin, was actually bought by Teresa Rhoades as a Christmas gift for her son. While the prosecution team did admit that the evidence was largely circumstantial, they pointed out that it overwhelmingly pointed towards Rhoades: most notably, a distinct shoe imprint that was an identical match to the defendant's unusually large foot, as well as the bullets from his handgun. On March 12, Rhoades was again found guilty on all counts by jury verdict, and his sentencing date regulated for May 9 of that year.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82882996/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Jury finds Rhoades guilty in store shooting|publisher=Times-News|date=March 12, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} His final trial for the murder of Haddon was subsequently set for April 25.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82883125/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Killer aims chair at the prosecutor|publisher=South Idaho Press|date=March 25, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}}

On March 24, Rhoades was sentenced to death for Michelbacher's murder and to life imprisonment for all the remaining charges. After the sentence was read out, he grabbed the chair he had been sitting in and threw it at the prosecutor, but it was caught by Sheriff Rodriguez before anyone could be hurt. Rhoades was subsequently escorted out of the court room by deputies, while his sister hurled verbal abuses at the prosecutor. Once the Haddon trial approached, Rhoades' lawyers filed a motion to have Justice Larry Boyle to be disqualified from presiding over this trial, citing the fact that he had sentenced him to death in the Michelbacher trial.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82883342/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Rhoades lawyers ask new judge|publisher=South Idaho Press|date=April 11, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} That motion was denied, and Boyle was allowed to proceed as the main judge.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82884013/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Judge won't withdraw from murder trial|publisher=The Spokesman-Review|date=April 14, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} In a bid to avoid another prolonged trial, Rhoades pleaded guilty to all charges, while still retaining his right to appeal his convictions.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82883872/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Rhoades pleads guilty|publisher=Times-News|date=April 16, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} As a result of the plea, he was subsequently sentenced to two life terms, but still claimed that he was innocent of this crime.

In the beginning of the sentencing phase for the Baldwin charges, Rhoades' attorneys filed a motion for a retrial by request of his family members, which was initially denied by Justice James Herndon.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82884819/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Rhoades denied new trial|publisher=Times-News|date=May 11, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} On the following day, however, he overruled that decision and announced that he would reconsider, as he considered the defendant's complaint about not being present for the arguments phase in the original ruling.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82885310/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Judge will rehear arguments for new trial|publisher=Times-News|date=May 12, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} This was eventually denied, and Rhoades was promptly sentenced to death for this murder as well, in addition to a life term plus 45 years for the other charges relating to Baldwin's death.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82885358/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Murderer gets two more death sentences|publisher=The Spokesman-Review|date=May 14, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}}

Possible additional murders

While awaiting trial for Haddon's murder, Rhoades was interviewed by Utah police for a possible connection to at least three murders in their jurisdiction that matched his modus operandi.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82883265/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Idaho inmate interviewed on more killings|publisher=Daily Herald|date=April 8, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}} The killings, which occurred in Salt Lake City and Layton, were the following:

Christine Gallegos (18): shot to death at a parking lot in suburban Salt Lake City on May 15, 1985.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82884420/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Murder task force says inmate is suspect|author=Bryan Saxton|publisher=Lakeside Review|date=April 20, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}}
Carla Maxwell (20): clerk who was shot five times while working at a 7-Eleven store in Layton on April 25, 1986.
Lisa Strong (25): shot on a street corner in Salt Lake City on May 12, 1986, while apparently running away from her assailant.

According to the task force established to investigate these murders, all of which had been linked via the copper-jacketed, hollow pointed bullets used, they had received information that placed Rhoades in the area at the time of the killings.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82884773/paul-ezra-rhoades-2/|title=Idaho killer tied to Ehlers murder|author=Jean Heller|publisher=The Jackson Hole Guide|date=May 4, 1988|page=17|via=Newspapers.com}} In addition, they had located another handgun which linked him to numerous burglaries and thefts committed at the Wasatch Front. Around the same time, he was proposed as a possible suspect in the June 21, 1984 murder of 25-year-old Lisa Ehlers, who was found shot to death at a roadside in the Jackson Hole valley, near Bondurant, Wyoming.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82884734/paul-ezra-rhoades-1/|title=Idaho killer tied to Ehlers murder|author=Jean Heller|publisher=The Jackson Hole Guide|date=May 4, 1988|page=1|via=Newspapers.com}} The main investigator for the task force, Jim Bell, later revealed in an interview with the Jackson Hole Guide that he was able to place Rhoades in the area at the time after conducting an interview with him. However, despite appeals for information to the public, no evidence connecting Rhoades to the killings ever surfaced, and he was never charged.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82884872/paul-ezra-rhoades/|title=Utah cops fail to find evidence|publisher=Daily Herald|date=May 12, 1988|via=Newspapers.com}}

Execution

For the remainder of his life, Rhoades and his legal team filed appeal after appeal in an attempt to have his sentence commuted, citing reasons such as various legal technicalities, his abusive childhood and the supposed cruelty of capital punishment as mitigating factors.{{Cite web|url=http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2011/nov/18/execution-idaho-proceed-morning/|title=Triple killer Rhoades executed in Idaho|author=Betsy Z. Russell|publisher=The Spokesman-Review|date=November 18, 2011|archiveurl=https://archive.today/20120909234805/http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2011/nov/18/execution-idaho-proceed-morning/|archivedate=September 9, 2012}} All of these appeals were rejected, and he was subsequently executed via lethal injection at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution in Kuna on November 18, 2011.

As his final statement, Rhoades addressed his mother and executioners, stating that he forgave them, before confessing that he indeed had committed the Michelbacher killing, apologizing to her husband. However, he continued to deny responsibility in the Baldwin and Haddon murders, telling the family members that '[they] still have to keep looking', and apologizing that he could not help them. At the time of his execution, he was the second inmate to be executed in the state following Gregg v. Georgia after Keith Wells, who had been executed 17 years earlier. His last meal consisted of hot dogs, sauerkraut, mustard, ketchup, onions, relish, baked beans, veggie sticks, ranch dressing, fruit with gelatin and strawberry ice cream cups. It was the same meal that was offered to all other Idaho Maximum Security inmates that night.{{cite web|date=November 17, 2011|title=Rhoades' Last Meal|work=Idaho Department of Correction|url=https://www.idoc.idaho.gov/content/story/front_news/rhoades_last_meal|access-date=December 1, 2021|archive-date=December 1, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211201205345/https://www.idoc.idaho.gov/content/story/front_news/rhoades_last_meal|url-status=dead}}