Every Town - Unmasking the Sinister: The Haunting Abduction and Assassination of America’s Most Hated Woman

Episode Date: May 12, 2023

Some women end up as the public’s most-wanted enemies for taking other people’s lives. Madalyn O’Hair tho,  became the target of vitriol for despising what Christians believe is the source of life. This week’s episode spotlights Madalyn O’Hair and her triumphs and defeats as a prominent figure in atheism in America. How did she evolve into “America’s Most Hated Woman” and live with it until she died at the hands of a former ally who ironically killed her with so much hatred?💥 Watch On Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/scarymysteries🎧 Our Other Podcast: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1235579💀 Follow Our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/scarymysteries 💀 Follow Our Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andrew.fitzg👁 Follow Our TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewfitzgerald💥 Follow Our Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scarymysteriesofficial🗣 Business Inquiries: [e-mail] Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you love true crime, grab your favorite mug and pour yourself a dose of creepy true crime every single morning with a morning cup of murder. This short daily show is the perfect podcast to incorporate into your morning routine, because in less than 15 minutes, you'll hear about a true crime that took place on a day's date in history. Each day's dark history lesson will kickstart your morning with intriguing tales of murder, abduction, serial killers, cults, and everything in between. With over 20 million downloads, Morning Cup of Murder has something for every true crime lover. One listener describes the show as a small package with a powerful punch of crime.

Another writes that the show is an absolute delight in the morning. Support yourself a piping hot cup of murder every single morning with Morning Cup of Murder. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Every town has a dark side. Madeline Murray O'Hare said, I love a good fight. I guess fighting against God and his spokesman is sort of the ultimate, isn't it? Madeline O'Hare was an American activist,

who was a staunch supporter of atheism, and someone who advocated for the separation of church and state since the 1960s. With such feisty pronouncements and abhorrence of Christianity, Madeline inevitably courted hordes of adversaries from the religious right, who dubbed her Mad Madeline. One of her efforts, as an atheism advocate, resulted in a landmark victory. Madeline was then labeled the most hated woman in America by Life magazine back in 1964. While most people longed to be loved, Miss O'Hare relished being loaded by many.

She had a certain enigma that gained her both popularity, and notoriety up until her last breath. Hey guys, I'm Andrew, and welcome back to another episode of Everytown. Some women end up as the public's most wanted enemies for taking other people's lives. Madeline O'Hare, though, became the target of vitriol for despising what Christians believe is the source of life. This week's episode, Spotlights, Madeline O'Hare in her triumphs and defeat is a prominent figure in atheism in America. How did she evolve into America's most hated woman and live with it until she died at the hands of a former ally

who ironically killed her with so much hatred? Love her, hate her, let's head down to San Antonio, Texas now because the unforgettable story of Madeline O'Hare is truly one for the books. It's been public knowledge for many decades that Madeline Murray O'Hare was a fervent advocate for atheism in America, despite the country's majority of citizens professing to practice Christianity.

The United States had even signed into law in 1956, its official motto, as in God we trust, over Madeline didn't believe in this and instead chose to challenge the religious practices of Christianity through her many lawsuits. This made her stand out and received vilification all across America. She was born Madeline Evelyn Mays on April 13, 1919 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She grew up in a middle-class family with her father, John, the building contractor, and her mother, Lena, being a homemaker. Madeline was baptized into her father's Presbyterian Church at the age of four, but her family faced financial struggles during the Great Depression and moved from Detroit to Chicago, and then finally to Akron, Ohio, where her father worked at a glass factory.

In her teenage years, she was reportedly appalled by cruelty, brutality, and violence, and the Bible, which further strengthened her disbelief in a supernatural power and the existence of God as a whole. She graduated from Rossford High School in Ohio in 1936, then went on to attend the University of Pittsburgh. Her studies were interrupted when she married steelworker John Roths in 1941. During World War II, Madeline was in the Woman's Army Corps and had a brief affair with Captain William Murray Jr. in Italy, leading to the birth of her illegitimate son, William Murray III. Madeline then completed a bachelor's degree from Ashland University in 1948, and got a law degree from the South Texas College of Law in 1952, although she failed the bar exam. She had short-lived jobs in Texas and Maryland and later joined the Socialist Workers Party.

She also had a romantic relationship with a man named Michael, Fioreau. Rillo, who fathered her second son, John Murray. Madeline attempted to emigrate to the USSR in 1959 and 1960, but was denied citizenship for her son Bill. Upon returning to Baltimore, Madeline's homecoming marked a significant change in her life as an atheist and led her to being labeled as the most hated woman in America. For many years, the Baltimore public schools had recited prayers, most notably the Lord's Prayer or Our Father. This prayer was often the first taught to children and is one that members of a Christian congregation recite in unison. Christian prayers were being recited in many public schools across America back then,

reflecting the cultural and political norms of the late 50s and early 60s. The Cold War was perceived by many as a battle between religious forces, with America's Christianity facing off against the communist Soviet Union's atheism. This enthusiasm for America's religious heritage, was reflected in the Pledge of Allegiance in 1954, the nation's currency in 1955, and the national motto in 1956. Despite this widespread approval of references to God and civic life,

non-believers often went along with the majority. However, Madeline was not one of them. In West Baltimore, Madeline enrolled her eldest son Bill in junior high at the Woodburn Junior High School. On the day of enrollment, she saw students, reciting the Lord's Prayer and marched into the counselor's office to ask why this was happening. She claimed that the practice was unconstitutional. The school defended its practice, citing the tradition of praying in Baltimore schools from its earliest days.

When Madeline wasn't satisfied, and in 1960, she filed a lawsuit against the Baltimore City Public School System for violating the separation of church and state. She named her son Bill as the plaintiff and challenged the city school system's requirements for students to participate in Bible readings. Additionally, she claimed the bill was bullied for refusing to participate and that administrators condone this behavior. Madeline became a public voice for American atheist then and asked questions on behalf of the 68 million Americans who did not attend church.

She asked why they were subjected to prayer at public meetings, why they were faced with currency stamped with, in God we trust, and why their mail was stamped with Pray for Peace. The Maryland Attorney General supported the practice of prayer in school, claiming that the children of Maryland had the right and the duty to bow their heads and humility before the Supreme Being. This was echoed by the Supreme Court of Baltimore and the Maryland Court of Appeals. Over Madeline and Leonard Kerperman, the only attorney who would take on her controversial case for free,

appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. The case, Murray v. Curlitt, was consolidated with a separate. similar case from Pennsylvania, Abington Township v. Shemp, and heard by the U.S. Supreme Court on February 26, 1963. The First Amendment to the Constitution with its Establishment Clause stating that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof was open to varying interpretations. The Supreme Court then voted eight to one in favor of Madeline on June 17, 1963. a ruling that mandatory public Bible readings by students were unconstitutional.

Madeline saw herself as the champion of American atheists, declaring that Americans had an unalienable right to freedom from religion as well as freedom of religion. The ruling was met with strong opposition and criticism, but this only fueled Madeline's determination to remove Christianity from everything in America. And despite the hate she received from many of her countrymen, Did she not deserve recognition for her efforts? Madeline's landmark victory in the Supreme Court coincided with her becoming a grandmother. For some Bill had a baby girl named Robin, whom Madeline later adopted as her own daughter.

Over the hostility they faced in Baltimore as a result of her anti-Christianity crusade drove Madeline's family to move to Hawaii and then to Mexico. In Mexico, Madeline attempted to take control of an experimental school called Blake College. However, the teachers and students found her to be too controlling and offensive, which led her to being pushed out. It was here that she met Richard O'Hare, a hard-drinking American, who was either a retired artist or a former CIA agent and FBI informant. Madeline remarried in October of 1965 and changed her surname to O'Hare. After the assault charges against her were dismissed, the O'Hare settled near Austin, Texas. although the couple separated, Madeline and Richard were still legally married

until his death in 1978. Using her court case as a springboard, Madeline founded the group of American atheists. The aim of this group was to defend the civil rights of non-believers, advocate for the separation of church and state, and address First Amendment public policy issues. She served as the first CEO and president of the organization

and became the public voice in face of atheism in America, during the 60s and 70s. Donations from fellow atheists allowed Madeline to continue her fight against religion. At the peak of the American atheist, it is estimated that she controlled up to $15 million in assets. She built an empire around her movement, creating smaller groups, hosting a television show, publishing books about her philosophies on atheism and more. Madeline was known as America's most outspoken and militant atheists, and her influence led her to file more cases.

related to the separation of church and state. She even tried to remove in God we trust from American currency and wanted the words under God removed from the Pledge of Allegiance. She also sought to end the Catholic Church's tax-exempt status for property. Over these attempts were unsuccessful

and her combative style earned her more enemies. Nevertheless, Madeline felt tireless and continued to make her presence felt by appearing on national talk shows and writing for adult magazines. She even joined Reverend Bob Harrington of New Orleans and a traveling debate show,

which was later exposed as a money-raising scam. In the mid-1980s, Madeline relinquished her position as president of the American atheist to her second son, John Garth, although she retained most of the power and decision-making. She became estranged from her eldest son, Bill,

who converted to Christianity and became a Baptist minister. Bill then published a memoir about his spiritual journey, which criticized Madeline's work, Madeline expressed her displeasure and said, One could call this a post-natal abortion on the part of a mother, I guess. I repudiate him entirely and completely for now and all times. He is beyond human forgiveness.

As American culture became more diverse in movements advocating for civil rights gain momentum, Madeline had largely disappeared from public life in the early 1990s, But a 1995 sensational case that involved her, her son John and granddaughter Robin, regained the public's interest in her. And the most hated woman in America and her family, and became the victims of hatred from someone in her inner circle. In 1993, Madeline fired David Waters, an office manager in her American atheist organization for stealing $54,000.

She didn't know that Waters was a convicted murderer with a, violent past out on parole pre-employment. But anyhow, Madeline believed everyone deserved a fair chance. But Waters took that chance to another level that proved fatal for Madeline's family. In August 27, 1995, the American atheist employees were surprised to see a type-ridden note attached to the locked office door that said, The Murray O'Hare family has been called out of town on an emergency basis. We do not know how long we will be gone at the time of the

writing of this memo. When authorities came, it looked like Madeline, her son John, then granddaughter Robin, had left suddenly. The disappearance, though sudden, was not initially viewed as strange by those close to the family who assumed Madeline's family left to enjoy retirement overseas. No red flags were detected, as the trio said in phone calls that they were on business in San Antonio, Texas. But a month after they disappeared, their phone calls also stopped. Turned out that Madeline, John and Robin were kidnapped by three men, and they all checked in at the small budget Warren in in northwest San Antonio, Texas. The two-bedroom, one bathroom-rented space, became their place of captivity for a month,

which was spent playing card games, monopoly, and engaging in philosophical discussions while awaiting ransom. In September of 95, the Mario Hare's had $600,000 wired to the U.S. from New Zealand, which was then used to buy gold coins. On September 29th, John picked up half a million dollars worth of coins from a small jeweler on Fredericksburg Road, but never returned to get the remaining $100,000. Their organization, American Atheist, was facing serious financial problems because of the withdrawal of funds and membership dwindled in the face of an apparent scandal.

There was speculation that the trio may have disappeared to conceal assets or avoid creditors. When the kidnapped ransom was released on September 29th, In 1995, the captors moved the Mario Hairs to a Le Quinta Inn. They decided it was the end, her 76-year-old Madeline, her son, John, and granddaughter Robin. They were strangled, and their dead bodies then rolled up in a bedspread, stuffed into a van, and taken into Austin, Texas. The captors then chopped up the Murray-O-Hare's bodies and loaded the pieces into three 55-gallon metal drums, before driving the hall to Camp Wood in Real County, northwest to San Antonio. The victims were then buried, permanently disabling the outspoken Madeline Murray O'Hare,

from ever speaking again. No one ever knew what happened to them. In August of 1996, though, San Antonio Express News reporter John McCormack probed into the alleged tax irregularities of the American atheist. He then discovered the transfer of the organization's $600,000, funds when the Murray O'Hairs disappeared in 95. In the next couple of years, McCormack worked with an investigator to uncover the case. In June of 98, a tipster told McCormack that the Murray O'Hare's were kidnapped at gunpoint

by a group of men led by David Waters, Madeline's former employee who embezzled $53,000 from American atheist back in 93. Waters later pleaded guilty to the theft and agreed to make restitution. But his hatred for Madeline really became a personal matter in the summer of 95 when she published an account in an atheist newsletter that exposed his lengthy criminal past. According to Waters' girlfriend, Patty Joe Stephens, this fueled Waters' hunger for revenge, who envisioned cutting off each of Madeline's toes. The Cormac's tipster happened to be a relative of one of Waters' accomplices, Danny Fry, who also went missing alongside the Murray O'Hare's. Their connection with Waters was soon established, and on October 2, 1998, Fry's headless and handless corpse was found near a river in Dallas.

The search warrant of Waters' apartment was issued, and authorities discovered ammunition of varied calibers. He was arrested, and his other accomplice, Gary Carr, was contacted and interviewed in Wald Lake, Michigan. A convict who had been serving the last 30 years in prison at the time for kidnapping a judge's daughter, Carr implicated Waters and the deaths of the Murray O'Hare's. He signed an affidavit and drew a map of where the bodies were buried. Carr was then transferred to the custody of the U.S. Marshals in Austin to stand trial for the deaths of the O'Hare's, which found him guilty. In August of 2000, Carr received two life sentences, and meanwhile, Waters entered a plea agreement to the charge of conspiracy and led the authorities to the site where the dismembered bodies of the Murray O'Hairs have been buried.

Waters also admitted to shooting his co-abductor Danny Fry after Carr dismember the victim. Waters requested for a 20-year sentence in federal prison rather than serve time in Texas State Prison on his earlier theft conviction. He didn't go to trial for the kidnapping and murders of the O'Hare's, but he was also ordered to pay back a total of $543,665 to the American atheist and to the estates of Madeline, John, and Robin. Waters died of lung cancer on January 27, 2003, at the Federal Medical Center and Butner, North Carolina. Undoubtedly, so much hate went into the slang of America's most hated woman. When Danny Waters led the authorities in January of 2001 to the Texas ranch, where the remains of the O'Hare's were buried, they saw Madeline, her son and granddaughter, had suffered extensive mutilation and decomposition. position. Their legs have been cut off with a saw, and authorities identified them through dental records,

DNA testing, and in Madeline's case, the serial number of a prosthetic hit from Brackenrich Hospital in Austin. Long after her brutal death, Madeline Murray O'Hare has been immortalized. In 2012, a memorial brick for her, John, and Robin was placed at Lunef Point in Zilker Park in Austin, Texas. In 2013, the first atheist monument to be erected on American government property was unveiled at the Bradford County Courthouse in Florida, on which a quote by Madeline, alongside those of Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin's, is inscribed. Was this perhaps God's wig telling Madeline that despite being hated for despising him, the world still has space to love her?

So that's going to do it, guys, for this week's episode of Everytown. hope you enjoyed it. And if you're craving even more podcasts from us, check out our Scary Mysteries podcast or our YouTube channel if you want to watch these episodes. And tune in next week for another episode filled with scary, strange, and mysterious stories because who knows?

Maybe your town will be next.