Timothy O'Bryan

popular name: Tony Accardo

date_of_death: May 22, 1992

age: 86

cause_of_death: Respiratory illness and heart disease

claim_to_fame: Crime and their Victims

best_know_for: Tony Accardo was the longest-serving boss of the Chicago Outfit. He worked for Al Capone, then ran the crime group for many decades before his death in 1992. Although he is suspected in participating in over 20 murders, he only spent a single night in jail and died of natural causes - rare for a man in his line of business.

popular name: Henry Bedard, Jr.

date_of_death: December 16, 1974

age: 15

cause_of_death: Homicide - blunt force trauma

claim_to_fame: Crime and their Victims

best_know_for: Henry E. Bedard Jr. was a 15‑year‑old sophomore at Swampscott High School in Massachusetts. He was active in school sports—playing youth baseball and "Big Blue" football—and also worked at his father’s service station. Henry was considered a beloved member of his community, known for spending time with family and friends. On December 16, 1974, Henry was last seen after school doing some Christmas shopping. He stopped at a CVS in Vinnin Square, buying perfume as a gift for his sister. After leaving the mall, witnesses (including Swampscott Police Lieutenant Peter Cassidy) saw him walking along Paradise Road and entering a wooded area near the town’s Department of Public Works yard, a place known locally as “Swampscott View” or “Kite Hill.” The next day his body was discovered in that wooded area, behind the DPW building, under a pile of leaves. He had been severely beaten to death. Investigators found a Louisville Slugger baseball bat near the body—31‑inch, wooden—with distinctive carvings or markings on the handle, possibly Roman numerals or letters. The bat is believed to be a key piece of evidence. Despite investigations, including interviewing dozens of people, reviewing the evidence, and even exhuming Henry’s body recently to run updated forensic tests (such as DNA) and autopsy work, no one has been charged in his murder. The case remains unsolved half a century later with no suspect and no motive.

popular name: Marilyn Sheppard

date_of_death: July 4, 1954

age: 28

cause_of_death: Homicide - blunt force trauma

claim_to_fame: Crime and their Victims

best_know_for: Marilyn Sheppard was violently murdered in her home of Bay Village, Ohio on July 4, 1954. Her husband Dr. Samuel Sheppard was the primary suspect and convicted of her murder, but after 10 years in prison he was acquitted in 1966 at a second trial. The case was controversial from the beginning, with extensive and prolonged nationwide media coverage. The U.S. Supreme Court determined that the "carnival atmosphere" surrounding Sheppard's first trial had made due process impossible.