Steven Brian Pennell

Steven Brian Pennell (November 22, 1957 – March 14, 1992), aka The Route 40 Killer, was Delaware's only known serial killer, convicted of the murders of two New Castle County, Delaware women and suspected of killing three others. Most of his victims were abducted from U.S. Route 40, near Bear.

Shirley Ellis

The first victim was 23-year-old Shirley Anna Ellis, a nurse. On November 29, 1987, she left Wilmington Hospital around 6 PM, where she was aiding an AIDS patient, catching a lift on her way home on Route 40. Her body was later found by the roadside by two boys. She was partially nude, her legs spread out, hands and feet tied with adhesive tape. There were no signs of sexual assault, but she had been seriously abused, with her killer tying a string around her neck and hitting her head with a hammer before she died.

Catherine DiMauro

The second victim was 31-year-old divorced prostitute Catherine A. DiMauro. On June 28, 1988, about seven months after the first murder, around 11:30 PM, she was seen walking down Route 40, but it was unclear if she was prostituting herself. At 6:25 AM, construction workers found her naked body at a construction site. Her wrists were tied to her feet, her mouth was clogged with adhesive tape, no signs of sexual assault were found. Like Ellis, she was killed by hammer blows and strangulation, but unlike the first murder, DiMauro's body was covered in blue fibers.

Special police forces, along with the FBI's profiling unit, concluded that a serial killer was operating in close proximity to Route 40. Police and federal agents disguised as prostitutes in attempt to gather information, with a task force of over 60 people being formed solely to capture the killer, but to no avail.

Margaret Lynn Finner

On August 22, 1988, 27-year-old prostitute Margaret Lynn Finner disappeared. A number of witnesses had seen her enter a blue Ford driven by a white male near Route 13.

About three months later, her body was found floating in the Chesapeake-Delaware Canal. The body was so badly decomposed that the cause of death couldn't be determined.

On September 14, 1988, Renée Tashner, an undercover cop posing as a prostitute, roamed Route 40 in an attempt to capture the killer. After passing several vehicles, she spotted a blue Ford seven times in 20 minutes. She went to a more isolated area, and the vehicle stopped next to her. The driver was white, with Tashner noticing that the floor had a blue carpet. The man appeared nervous, hardly looking her in the eyes, but still attempted to convince her to enter the car. She refused, claiming that she was tired, but managed to tear some fiber from the blue carpet and write down the license plate number. Upon examination of several license plates, it emerged that the vehicle belonged to Stephen Brian Pennell, a 31-year-old electrician, married and father of two, with no criminal record.

Michele Gordon

Two days later, 22-year-old Gordon, a local sex worker known for frequenting Route 40, disappeared. Witnesses saw her enter a blue Ford, identified as a panel car. On September 20th, her body was found on the rocks in the Chesapeake-Delaware Canal. In the autopsy, it was discovered that she had been drugged with cocaine, which had caused her heart to stop before the torture had begun.

Kathleen Meyer

On September 23rd, 26-year-old Kathleen Anne Meyer, of Brookmont Farms, disappeared. A police officer saw her board a blue Ford on Route 40, at 9:30 PM. He was able to write down the identification plate, which turned out to belong to Pennell's car. Her body was never found.

Delaware public prosecutor Charles Oberly approved a police search warrant of the panel van, while at the same time searching for other offences they could arrest Pennell. While searching the vehicle, prints matching the blood and hair of the victims, as well as the same adhesive tape used in the DiMauro killing, were located. A "torture kit" was also found, which included pliers, whips, handcuffs, needles, knives and restraints. Pennell was arrested on November 29, 1988, a year after he murdered the first victim, and was charged with killing three - Ellis, DiMauro and Gordon. He decided to enact his right to remain silent.

At the start of the trial, a panel of defense attorneys claimed that the initial fiber taken by Officer Tashner was obtained illegally, because it was taken from his car. Judge Richard Gebelein dismissed these allegations, saying that the carpet was visible to Tashner's eyes as soon as she opened the vehicle, so evidence from these fibers was legal. Once the fibers were examined, it was shown that they had DNA residues belonging to the victims. It was the first trial in the United States that used DNA evidence as absolute legal evidence. Judge Gebelein had to set a legal precedent and listen to the opinions of experts and scientists, who helped verify the DNA evidence.

However, the strongest evidence against Pennell was the testimony of his lawyer, who decided to stop representing him because of the things he heard. He testified that Steven had told him how he picked up Catherine DiMauro, paid her for sex and then killed her. He added that his former client showed no remorse for his actions, and spoke without emotion. This testimony caused a great deal of shock among the jury. The psychiatrists ruled that Pennell's sanity is questionable, but was still charged with three homicides. The jury reviewed and discussed the evidence for eight days, causing the hearing to become the longest in Delaware's legal history.

On November 23, 1989, the jury reached a decision and convicted Pennell of murdering Catherine DiMauro and Shirley Ellis, but acquitted him of Gordon's murder because of lack of evidence. The jury decided not to recommend the death penalty, but two life sentences. Shortly after the decision, a bouquet of flowers was sent to the prosecutor's office, with a note reading: "You made us feel human again, from the women of Route 40."

Pennell's lawyer appealed the court's decision on the grounds that the fiber was obtained illegally. The court dismissed it, and based on new evidence introduced in the case, convicted Steven of murdering Michele Gordon and Kathleen Meyer. At this point, Pennell dismissed his lawyer and asked to represent himself, which the court approved of. In a surprising move, he announced that he was wished for the death penalty. He argued that the entire constitution began with a verse from the Hebrew Bible, and as soon as the court found two witnesses who could testify to his guilt, he deserved the death penalty under the Bible's laws. He cited two passages from the Bible to explain his position.

On Halloween 1991, the court sentenced Pennell to death. Under the Delaware State Constitution, every death penalty judgment requires further hearing from the Supreme Court, and on February 11, 1992, Pennell appeared before them, demanding that he be sentenced to death. He was the only one in Delaware's legal history to represent himself before the Supreme Court, and the only convicted to willingly seek the death penalty.

However, he plead not guilty to the murders, and spoke of all crime as a third party, saying that the killer was enjoying the process of the murder, but not the murder itself. The Delaware State Attorney General objected to the death penalty, but the judges sentenced Pennell to death anyway. His execution was scheduled for March 14, 1992.

Two people appealed against Pennell's execution, but both were unanimously dismissed by the court. His wife, Vera Catherine Pennell, appealed the Supreme Court's decision, seeking help from the local branch of the American Citizens Association, and a law professor who was part of the board of directors, decided to come to her aid. He argued in his appeal that Pennell was insane and could not fully understand the gravity of his actions, so the trial should be reopened, with Steven being barred from representing himself. The Supreme Court rejected the demand.

Prior to the execution, numerous reporters tried to ask Pennell for exclusive interviews, hoping to reveal the location of Kathleen Meyer's body. He turned down every single one, but when it came close to his execution date, he agreed to be interviewed by one newspaper, with his lawyer present. During said interview, Pennell revealed no new information, nor where he had hidden Meyer's body.

On March 14, 1992, at 9:49 PM, Steven Brian Pennell was executed by lethal injection, becoming the first person executed in Delaware in 46 years, and the 165th person to be executed in the United States since the death sentence was reinstated in 1976.