Wineville Chicken Coop Murders - Murders

Murders

In 1926, Saskatchewan-born ranch owner Gordon Stewart Northcott took his 13-year-old nephew, Sanford Clark (with the permission of Sanford's parents), from his home in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. Once in California, Northcott beat and sexually abused his nephew.

Sanford's sister, Jessie Clark, visited Sanford in Wineville concerned for his welfare. Once in Wineville, Sanford told her that he feared for his own life and one night while Gordon Northcott slept, Jessie learned from Sanford about the horrors and murders that had taken place at Wineville. Jessie returned to Canada in the next week or so.

Once in Canada, she informed the American Consul in Canada about the horrors in Wineville. The American consul then wrote a letter to the Los Angeles Police Department, detailing Jessie Clark's sworn complaint. As initially there was some concern over an immigration issue, the Los Angeles Police Department contacted the United States Immigration Service to determine the extent of the complaint from Jessie. On August 31, 1928, the United States Immigration Service (inspectors; Judson F. Shaw and Inspector Scallorn) visited the Northcott Ranch in Wineville. The Immigration Service found 15-year-old Sanford Clark at the ranch and took him into custody. Gordon Northcott had seen the agents driving up the long road to his ranch. Prior to Gordon fleeing into the treeline, Gordon told Sanford to stall the agents, or he would shoot Sanford from the treeline with a rifle. In the 2 hours that Sanford stalled for Gordon, Gordon had kept running, and finally when Sanford felt that the agents could protect him, he told them that Gordon had fled into the trees that lined the edge of Gordon's chicken-ranch property.

Gordon Stewart and his mother Sarah Louise Northcott fled to Canada and were arrested near Vernon, British Columbia.

Sanford Clark testified at the sentencing of Sarah Louise Northcott (his grandmother) that Gordon Northcott (his uncle) had kidnapped, molested, beaten, and killed three young boys with the help of Northcott's mother, Sarah Louise Northcott, and Sanford himself. In addition to the three young boys murdered, Sanford stated that Northcott had also killed a Mexican youth (never identified, but referred to in the case as the "Headless Mexican"), without the involvement of his mother or Sanford. Gordon Northcott had forced Sanford to help dispose of the "head" (of the Mexican youth) by burning it in a firepit and then crushing the skull into pieces with a fence post. Gordon stated that "he had left the headless body by the side of the road near Puente (La Puente, California), because he had no other place to put it."

Sanford said quicklime was used to dispose of the remains, and that the bodies (of Lewis and Nelson Winslow, as well as that of Walter Collins) were buried at the Wineville ranch. Authorities found shallow graves exactly where Sanford had stated that they could be found at Wineville. Upon the discovery of the graves, it was discovered that the graves were empty of complete bodies, however, there were partial body parts that remained. During testimony from both Jessie Clark (Sanford's sister) and Sanford Clark, it was learned that the bodies had been dug up by both Gordon Northcott and his mother, Sarah Louise Northcott, on the evening of August 4, 1928 (a few weeks before Sanford was taken into protective custody by authorities) and that Gordon and his mother had taken the bodies out to the desert where they were most likely burned in the night. The complete bodies were never recovered. There were only partial body remains of hair, blood and bones found in the graves at the Wineville burial sites. It was these partial body parts, coupled with the testimony of Sanford Clark, that allowed the State of California to obtain the death penalty against Gordon Northcott and a life sentence for his mother, Sarah Louise Northcott. It was also this evidence that allowed the State of California to unequivocally conclude that Walter Collins, the Winslow Brothers and the unidentified Mexican boy had all been murdered.