True Crime/Paranormal/Conspiracy Theories Part VII

Dr. John Dale Cavaness

Classification: Murderer

Characteristics: Parricide - To collect insurance money

Number of victims: 2

Date of murders: April 7, 1977 / December 13, 1984

Date of birth: 1925

Victims profile: His eldest son, Mark Dale Cavaness, 22 / His son, Sean Cavaness, 22

Method of murder: Shooting

Location: Illinois/Missouri, USA

Status: Sentenced to death in Missouri in January 6, 1986. Committed suicide by hanging himself in his death row cell with an electrical cord on November 17, 1986

Jury Requests Death Penalty For Man Who Killed His Son

November 21, 1985

UPI - Jurors recommended today that Dr. John Dale Cavaness, a general practitioner from southern Illinois, die in the gas chamber for murdering his son. The jurors found Dr. Cavaness, 60 years old, guilty of first-degree murder Tuesday night, and then heard arguments on whether the doctor should die or be sentenced to life in prison without parole.

A jury today convicted a debt-ridden doctor of killing his son with two shots to the head to collect more than $140,000 in insurance benefits.

Jurors deliberated less than three hours in finding Dr. John Dale Cavaness, a 60-year-old general practitioner in southern Illinois, guilty of first-degree murder in the death of his son, Sean, 22, whose body was found last December near Times Beach, Mo.

The jury was recessed until Wednesday morning to begin the sentencing phase of the trial. Dr. Cavaness, who showed no emotion when the guilty verdict was read, faces death in the state's gas chamber or life imprisonment.

It was the second time Dr. Cavaness had been tried on the charges. His first trial ended in a mistrial when the judge determined that the jury had seen documents not introduced as evidence.

Doctor Sentenced to Death

January 8, 1986

UPI - Dr. John Dale Cavaness has been sentenced to death in the gas chamber for murdering his son to collect $148,000 in insurance.

Judge Drew Luten Jr. of St. Louis County Circuit Court imposed the sentence Monday. No execution date was set. In Missouri, a death sentence is automatically appealed to the State Supreme Court. The doctor's son Sean, 22 years old, was shot dead Dec. 13, 1984 in an isolated area near the St. Louis suburb of Times Beach. Dr. Cavaness, 60, practiced in southern Illinois.

The Deadly Dr. Dale

The Malefactor's Register - MarkGribben.com

June 21, 2006

To his patients in the Little Egypt area of southern Illinois, Dr. John Dale Cavaness was an old-school healer who still made house calls, often waived fees for those unable to pay, and was willing to spend as much time with them as they needed, despite his busy practice.

"Dr. Dale, as he was affectionately called, was akin to Mother Teresa to his patients and friends," according to the summary of his case in the acclaimed Crime Classification Manual. "Cavaness's family and closest office workers, however, knew he had another, darker side."

He grew up in the Little Egypt area and was taught to be tough and stand his ground by his gandy dancer father. A bright young man, he was fortunate to come from a family that was well off during the Depression so he managed to scrape together enough money to attend college and medical school.