"No One Saw a Thing” - The Man Killed By An Entire Town

Added: 2026-05-10

[00:00:00]If you were to visit the tiny farming town of Skidmore, Missouri in the early 1980s, you'd find a place where everybody knew everybody and everybody was afraid of the same man. And what they did about it in broad daylight is one of the wildest unsolved cases in American history.

[00:00:26]Hey y'all, I'm Christina and you're listening to History and Hearay. I got a new chair so that hopefully y'all can see Stella better because sometimes she hides behind me in the big chair. And some of you guys get pretty upset when you don't see her in every single episode. I got one of those like crisscross chairs, so I let her sit on the arm. But I don't know. We'll keep playing around with it until we get it right. July 10th, 1981, a quiet, hot day in Skidmore. Ken McElroy sat in his truck outside the D&G tavern with his engine idling. Beside him was his wife, Trina. Young, nervous, and very aware that the town didn't want them there.

[00:01:04]She could feel it. The stairs, the silence, the way conversations stopped when they pulled up. This wasn't just tension anymore. It felt like something waiting to happen. Ken stayed in the driver's seat, calm on the surface, but Trina had lived with him long enough to know when something wasn't right. People were gathering, not in a rush, not in a panic, just slowly forming like a storm building without wind. Then, without warning, a shot rang out. The back window of the truck exploded. Glass shattered across Trina's lap, cutting into her skin as she flinched, instinctively ducking. Before she could even process what was happening, more shots followed. Loud, deafening, impossibly close. She turned toward Ken.

[00:01:53]He was still in the driver's seat, but something had changed instantly. His body jerked, then went still. The man who had been sitting beside her just seconds ago was suddenly gone in a way that didn't feel real. Trina screamed, not just in fear, but in disbelief, in confusion, in a kind of panic that comes when your world collapses in front of you. And no one is helping. Because outside the truck, people were there.

[00:02:21]Dozens of them watching. And yet, no one moved. No one ran to get help. No one chased the shooter. No one even seemed surprised. To Trina, it must have felt like the entire town had decided in that moment that her husband's life didn't matter. She sat there trapped in a truck filled with shattered glass and gunfire smoke next to the man she loved while the people around her chose silence.

[00:02:50]Hands grabbed her and pulled her from the truck to safety. Later, when authorities came and questions were asked, Trina told them what she saw, but it didn't seem to matter because somehow in broad daylight in front of dozens of witness, no one else saw anything at all. Ken was born on May 1st, 1934 in Overland Park. He was one of 16 children raised in a poor farming family that eventually settled in Skidmore, Missouri. Skidmore was a small town of less than 500 people. A town so small that privacy doesn't exist. Everyone knew your name, your family, your mistakes, and if you didn't fit in, there was nowhere to hide. From early on, Ken struggled in school. teachers couldn't control him and he was held back again and again until eventually somewhere between the fifth and eighth grade depending on who you ask he just stopped showing up. By 15 years of age he was completely done with school and from there his life seemed to drift in a direction that wasn't good for anyone.

[00:03:56]Stories started to follow him.

[00:03:58]Accusations people accused him of arson SA. They said he stole livestock, gasoline, grain, antiques, basically anything that could be resold if it had value. Someone had claimed that Kin had taken it. Sometime in his adolescence, Ken had fallen from a hay wagon and the injury was so severe that it required him to have a steel plate implanted in his head. And some wonder if this is where it had all gone wrong for Ken. Did this explain the rage that people saw in him? By his teens, Ken had a reputation.

[00:04:32]The town bully. This was someone you didn't dare cross. In a small town, your reputation is everything, and Ken's only got worse with time. He was arrested again and again. Indicted more than 20 times. However, nothing ever seemed to stick. Cases fell apart as witnesses backed down. So, while people whispered about what Kin had done, the courts could never prove it. And that created a strange kind of reality. A man surrounded by accusations but protected by doubt. Some said he was manipulating the system. That he intimidated people, threatened them into silence. People were terrified of Ken McElroy. Anyone who spoke out against him was threatened, harassed, even physically attacked. So when it came time to testify, they didn't. And Ken walked free every single time. Ken had a way of taking what he wanted and over time that seemed to include women. They came in and out of his life one after another.

[00:05:35]He was married multiple times and had between 10 and 17 children depending on the source. But the thing was these weren't exactly women because Ken liked them young. When Ken met his first wife Sharon, she was just 15 years old and he was around 20. They had children together, built something that from the outside might have looked like a family, but behind that image, there were already cracks. People later said that Sharon lived in fear, that violence wasn't uncommon, and before long, she wasn't the only one there. By the time their second child was born, a girl named Sally entered the picture, and she was only 13 years old. Ken, now 27, brought her into the same home where Sharon and their children were already living. Ken fathered three children by Sally and had two more with his wife, Sharon. By this point, Ken was bored with Sharon and Sally. They were probably getting a little too old for him. He went out and found another underage girlfriend by the name of Alice Wood. Now, some sources say that Alice was Ken's third wife, but it's more widely believed that she was his second because it doesn't sound like he ever married Sally. He simply moved her in with him and his first wife. Either way, he decided to do things a bit differently this time, and he moved out of the family home to be with Alice.

[00:06:58]After giving birth to Ken's son, Alice had enough of the verbal and physical abuse and moved out to live with her parents who lived in the next town over.

[00:07:07]For a moment, it looked like someone had finally gotten away. But leaving Ken wasn't simple. The threats started almost immediately. Phone calls, promises of violence, and he said that he was coming to get his son. Anyone who stood in his way would pay. Alice's stepfather decided that he was going to get in Ken's way. And things quickly escalated from there. Gunfire shattered the quiet of the house as Ken shot through the living room window and hit the stepfather in the leg. After that, Ken was arrested and it seems like things had finally started to catch up with him. But then the pattern repeated as the case against Ken depended on testimony. Testimony that Ken would not allow. When he was released on Bell, the threats returned. He started to threaten to kill the entire family. He followed them around, would stay outside the family's home for hours on end, and eventually he showed up at a bar and stuck a shotgun in the stepfather's face. After that, the charges were dropped and Alice moved back into Ken's home with her son. At this point, it's 1971, and 35-year-old Ken decides he needs another young woman in his life.

[00:08:16]He meets Trina Mloud, who is just 12 years old. Some sources say that Trina was just as obsessed with him as he was with her, while others reports this was completely one-sided thing and that Ken was saing Trina. Now, of course, being that Trina was only 12 years old, we would consider this assault, regardless of what she thought she felt. Either way, by the time Trina was 14 years old, she was pregnant with Ken's child. So, she drops out of school and goes to live with Ken and his wife, Alice. So, now you had two young women in one house with the man whose control seemed to follow them everywhere. For a while, they endured it until they couldn't.

[00:08:57]After the baby was born, Trina and Alice gathered their children and left, going to Trina's parents' home, hoping that distance might finally mean safety. It didn't because Ken immediately followed them. What happened next unfolded fast and violently. The family dog was shot, both women were beaten, and then the Mloud's house was set on fire. And then, just as quickly, Ken forced the two women into his truck and drove away.

[00:09:23]Trina's injuries were severe enough that she ended up in the hospital. And for once, there was a crack in the silence.

[00:09:30]She told someone. A doctor listened and made a call. Child services got involved and Trina and her baby were placed into foster care. Suddenly, there was real undeniable evidence against Ken. For the first time, Ken was facing some serious charges that didn't rely solely on rumors or reluctant witnesses. He had arson, assault, and weapons charges. And then also, of course, there was the rword that YouTube doesn't let us say.

[00:09:58]But Trina's child was direct evidence that Ken had done this, that he had abused a minor. This could have been a turning point. But time has a way of wearing people down. And Ken had a good lawyer who was able to cause delays, which meant the case stretched out. And as days turned into months, Trina, who was still just a teenager, grew tired of being isolated, having her life be so uncertain, living in a foster care home.

[00:10:27]And then, of course, you had Ken, who understood the system, and he knew that if he married Trina, she couldn't be forced to testify against him. So, he made a plan. He filed for divorce from Sharon or Alice, whoever it was that he was legally married to at that time. And he went to Trina's parents because he needed their permission in order to marry their daughter. They of course said no at first, but Ken didn't accept no. He threatened them, told them their new home would burn just like the last one if they didn't agree to his demands.

[00:10:57]And eventually, he wore them down and they gave in. Now, I'm sorry, but it is really hard for me to have sympathy for that. I cannot imagine turning your child over to their abuser like that.

[00:11:09]Like, are you kidding me? But they did.

[00:11:11]And at just 14 years old, Trina became Ken's wife. And just like that, the case against Ken began to unravel because once again, the system needed someone to speak. And once again, no one did. So Ken continued his reign of terror in Skidmore. To call Ken McElroy intimidating is an understatement. He stood over 6' tall, weighed somewhere around 270 lbs, and it wasn't just his physical size. It was the way that he carried himself, the way that he looked at people. It just really made it clear without having to say much that crossing him came with consequences. However, as we have kind of already talked about, even when someone had the guts to stand up to Ken, it didn't do much good because charges were brought against him like I mentioned at the beginning more than 20 times. But somehow they always managed to disappear as witnesses backed out, stories changed, and cases collapsed. Ken was very well known for his extreme temper. And he had a pattern for his intimidation. He would show up wherever you were, a bar, your workplace, your own front yard, and he'd walk right up to you with a shotgun in his hands and threaten you, your home, your dog, your family. He made sure that you understood what would happen next if you didn't do what he wanted you to do.

[00:12:36]Then he would just leave. But he would show up again the very next day and the day after that and the day after that and the day after that. And he would just sit out of his accuser's home for hours on end with his engine running, letting the silence do the work. And it wouldn't take long for fear to do the rest. Charges would be dropped and Ken would once again get away with whatever criminal activity he had decided to engage in that particular week. Once a local farmer, Roma Henry caught Kin on his property and he told him to leave.

[00:13:09]Kin left, but then he returned with his shotgun and shot Roma in the stomach.

[00:13:15]Surprisingly, Roma survived. And this time was different because Roma refused to back down. He testified and for once, the case made it all the way to trial.

[00:13:24]And for a moment, it felt like this time it might finally be it. But an alibi appeared. Two people came forward claiming Ken couldn't have been there.

[00:13:35]So, this created doubt and just like so many other times before, the case unraveled. Some in town wondered if the jury had been threatened, while others pointed to Ken's attorney, Richard Jen McFaden, a man who knew exactly how to navigate the system, how to find the cracks, and just create enough uncertainty to keep his client walking free time and time again. At one point, Richard referred to Ken as his best client, which some have pointed out is not a common sentiment from defense lawyers because they don't typically get a lot of repeat business. But while Richard was simply a defense attorney doing what defense attorneys do, law enforcement was another story. Many of the town lived in a constant state of anxiety and felt that law enforcement was doing the town a disservice by allowing Ken to remain walking around on the streets. Because while the legal system struggled to hold Ken accountable, the people of Skidmore were the ones living with the consequences day in and day out, month after month, year after year, always watching, always waiting, and always wondering when they would become the next target. On April of 1980, two young girls were at a local store. The older one paid for her items, and as they were leaving, the younger child, who was just about four years old, grabbed a piece of candy from the counter. The clerk called out saying that someone would need to pay for that candy. So, the older girl quickly snatched the candy from her sister and tossed it back in the jar, and they left. End of story. Or at least it should have been. The clerk didn't think another thing about the interaction. She didn't even know who the two young girls were or more importantly who their parents were. That is until Ken and Trina McElroy showed up and they were furious. Kin of course had his gun with him and Trina who was about 23 years old at the time started yelling at the clerk for the way that her daughters had been treated. Hearing the raised voices, the store owners Boeing and his wife Louisis Boeing came out to see what was happening. Ken and Trina then turned their attention to the Boeing camps and began yelling at them. Eventually, Lewis was like, "Okay, look. This is crazy.

[00:15:44]You guys just need to leave." So, they did. But, as we've already demonstrated with Ken, that was never the end of it.

[00:15:52]And the Bowen camps had just become his newest fixation. Soon, his truck started appearing outside the Bowen Camp's home night after night, just sitting there.

[00:16:01]Sometimes he'd fire his shotgun in the air, breaking the quiet for no reason other than just to remind them that he could. And all of this over a two cent piece of candy. The Boone camps were in their 70s. They didn't want trouble.

[00:16:16]They just wanted peace. So they tried to ignore it. But ignoring Ken didn't make him go away. If anything, it made things worse. One day, Ken drove to the store, walked around back, found Bo, and shot him in the neck. Now, at this point, Ken probably started getting deja vu because Bo not only survived, but he was fully willing and ready to testify against the man who had shot him. Now, I mean, it's kind of weird that Ken's just walking up to people with a shotgun, no less, and shooting them and then they still walk away from it. So, I don't know. I mean, that's one of those things where it's like at least his luck kind of turned in that sense because these poor people, man. So, once again, we have a case that is actually moving forward with a witness that refuses to be intimidated.

[00:17:07]But then Ken gets released on bail while waiting for trial. And of course, Ken being Ken, he doesn't just go lay low somewhere. He starts spending his days moving through town, showing himself. He went down to his usual spot at the D&G tavern and sat there for hours drinking, making sure people saw that nothing had really changed. He even began harassing the arresting officer. Ken's message was clear. He was there, still free, still untouchable. As the trial once again was delayed for months on end, the tension at Skidmore grew heavier, like something building beneath the surface. Finally, the trial date came and for the first time ever, Ken McElroy was convicted.

[00:17:53]But even that came with a catch. The charges were seconddegree assault with a sentence of just 2 years for shooting a man in the neck. If that's not attempted murder, I don't know what is. While some reveled in the small victory, most felt that this was barely nothing at all. But then it got even worse because while appealing his conviction, Ken was allowed out on bond. Like, who is even making the decisions in this town? Once again, Ken McElroy was back on the streets of Skidmore acting like nothing had happened. He headed straight back to the D&G tavern, rifle in hand. Now, this rifle had Obeanet attached to it, so that was a nice extra little touch. Ken wasn't quiet about it. He waved a rifle around talking loudly, making sure he was heard. According to those there, he bragged about what he was going to do next, about finishing things with Bo Bowen Camp. This time, he said he'd do it right. Several people made calls to the prosecutor reporting what they had just seen, and this time it seemed to actually matter because Ken's bond was revoked. A hearing was scheduled and witnesses stepped forward ready to testify that he had been in that bar armed and making threats. But once again, Ken's lawyer, Richard, worked his magic and managed to push the hearing back two weeks. For the people of Skidmore, a twoe delay felt like Ken was about to get away with this again. The years of tension, fear, and frustration stacked on top of each other with an urgency that had to be answered. Enough was enough. So, the town did something it had never done before. They organized. A meeting was held at the American Legion Hall, which was just across the street from the DNG Tavern, and dozens of people showed up. Some estimates say as many as 40. Others say it was over a hundred people. The focus wasn't on revenge, at least not on the surface. It was about the witnesses, these people who had finally agreed to speak. Everyone knew that Kin would now know who these people were. And so if history had taught them anything, it was that speaking came with consequences. So they needed a plan to protect these witnesses for the next two weeks. But while that meeting was happening, Ken and his wife Trina were sitting across the street in the DNG tavern drinking unbothered. When the meeting ended, something had shifted. The group walked out together, crossing the street as one. There was a kind of resolve now.

[00:20:26]They were in this together and together they would put a stop to it once and for all. Around 20 people went inside the tavern while the rest stayed outside surrounding the exits. Voices were raised and people shouted at Ken telling him his time was up. And Ken, he didn't argue. He didn't shout back. He simply stood up with Trina beside him. And the two of them walked out the bar and into the crowd outside. People moved around them. Voices blended together and tension was thick in the air. They kept walking all the way back to their truck and then they stopped. Ken got in the driver's seat with Trina beside him. For a moment, nothing happened. No rush, no panic. Almost like he was trying to show them that none of this affected him. He lit a cigarette, took a drag, and then gunshots. The sound shattered everything. The truck window exploded inward as a total of 10 to 15 gunshots rang out. Glass spraying across the cab.

[00:21:26]Kin slumped forward over the steering wheel struck from behind. And just like that, after years of terrorizing this town, Ken McElroy was dead. It was over in seconds. Trina sat there stunned, frozen in place as the noise faded and reality rushed in. The passenger door opened and someone pulled her out quickly, urgently guiding her back away from the truck, away from the scene into a nearby building. She was covered in blood, but it wasn't hers. She didn't have a single injury, just shock and the echo of what had just happened right in front of dozens of people in the middle of the day. And then it was quiet. The gunshots faded, the dust settled, and everyone just left. No one called an ambulance. No one ran for help. Everyone just went home. By the time law enforcement arrived in Skidmore, the scene was frozen in a way that didn't feel natural. Ken's truck was still running, engine screaming, his foot pressed down on the gas pedal, until the engine eventually blew up. Investigators looked around at what should have been a room full of answers. Instead, they found silence. They determined the shots had come from at least two different guns, which meant more than one person knew exactly what had happened. But when they started asking questions, no one had seen anything. No one had heard anything. No one knew anything. No one except Trina McElroy. Everyone else in Skidmore was angry. For years, they said they had called for help, filed complaints, tried to get someone, anyone, to listen, and nothing had changed. Law enforcement was even scared of this guy. So now suddenly with investigators combing through the scene, asking questions, pushing for answers, they didn't understand why this moment mattered when all the others hadn't. One man reportedly looked at an officer and said, "What are you doing here? You know what he was like? You know how he threatened us. Where were you when we needed you?" It wasn't just defiance. It was years of frustration finally coming to the surface. But Trina had something to say. She told investigators that just before the shots were fired, she had turned and seen a man, Dell Clement, raising a rifle and aiming it at Ken.

[00:23:41]She said she had warned Ken, told him that they needed to leave, but it was too late. And for the rest of her life, she would carry that moment with her.

[00:23:49]Not just the sounds of the gunshots, but the far more haunting memory of an entire town that simply looked away.

[00:23:57]Trina testified before three separate grand juries naming Dell Clement as a shooter. Dell was known to be a heavy drinker who had a hot temper. He owned D&G Tavern with his brother and it wasn't hard to imagine that he was probably just as done with Kin as the rest of the town was. But no one else came forward to confirm Trina's story.

[00:24:19]And Dell denied any involvement until the day that he died. For many years after the killing of Ken McElroy, people wondered if it had all been planned.

[00:24:28]According to the rumors, the sheriff had been a part of that town meeting. And as everyone else walked over to the tavern, the sheriff had simply gotten into his truck and driven out of town. Years later, author Harry McClean would spend time in Skidmore speaking with people who had been there that day. His book titled In Broad Daylight explored what happened, not just the shooting, but the feeling in the town leading up to it.

[00:24:54]And his conclusion was that this may not have been a carefully planned act, but something that had just been building for a very long time and finally reached a breaking point. Man told Insider Edition, quote, "Whatever had been done might not be morally right, but he needed killing. Not a one of them felt sorry for him. Not one of them felt bad.

[00:25:16]Somebody was going to get killed. It was either going to be him or somebody else.

[00:25:21]End quote. Despite speculation, no one ever talked. It was as if the town had made a decision together without ever having to speak a single word. In the years that followed, Trina filed a wrongful death lawsuit for $5 million.

[00:25:35]It settled for $17,600 with no admission of guilt and no clear answers. Eventually, she left Skidmore, remarried, and had more children. She died of cancer in 2012 at the age of just 55 years old. Kin Rex McElroy was buried at Memorial Park Cemetery in St. Joseph, Missouri. He was 47 years old.

[00:25:56]On his tombstone are the words, "Brave, fearless, and compassionate." Somehow that description doesn't seem all that accurate. To this day, the killing of Ken McElroy was never officially solved, but depending on who you ask, it never needed to be. Dozens of people knew exactly what happened. They just chose to never say it out loud.