The Alday Murders

Discover the shocking crime spree of Carl Isaacs and his gang, whose violent escape from the Maryland State Penitentiary led to a terrifying series of events in 1973. How did a group of fugitives leave a trail of car thefts, burglaries, and brutal murders across several states? Unravel the gripping narrative of their journey southward, culminating in the harrowing Alday family massacre in Donaldsonville, Georgia, an event that left an indelible mark on the community and the justice system.

Experience the desperate and chaotic flight of these criminals, from the haunting break-in at the Alday family trailer to the tense showdown with armed citizens at a country store in Virginia. Witness the relentless pursuit by law enforcement, as these fugitives sought refuge in the West Virginia mountains, leaving behind a trail of devastation. This episode captures the chilling nature of their crimes and the intense manhunt that followed, as society scrambled to comprehend the impact of such heinous acts.

Reflect on the enduring legacy of the Alday family tragedy, a chapter in history that transformed the judicial landscape of Georgia. The trials and retrials of Carl Isaacs and his accomplices highlight the challenges of achieving justice amid widespread media attention and legal complexities. Explore the ripple effects of their actions on the Alday family and the broader community, as we honor the memory of those lost and examine the changes that arose from this dark moment in Southern history.

Chapters

• 0:04 Southern Escape, Crime, Pursuit
• 6:49 Fugitives on the Run
• 22:38 Legacy of Georgia Family Massacre
• 30:39 Remembering the Allday Family Tragedy

Transcript

Carole Townsend: 0:04

At just 19 years of age, carl Jr Isaacs was already a hardened criminal. He had been in and out of foster care and in and out of trouble for most of his life. In March of 1973, he was arrested for stealing and sent to the Maryland State Penitentiary. On May 5th of that same year, he masterminded an escape from that prison. With him he took his half-brother and fellow inmate, wayne Coleman, and his friend George Dungy, with whom Wayne was said to have developed a romantic relationship. The three prisoners made their escape that night At around 3 o'clock am. All three men escaped through a bathroom window and hid in the woods surrounding the prison. Since none of the men was considered dangerous, local authorities were not notified of the escape. Stealing a blue Thunderbird in Baltimore, the escapees picked up Carl's 15-year-old brother, billy, who was thrilled to accompany them on this adventure. The plan was to live out their days as free men in Florida or Mexico. Fugitives committed a string of burglaries in Maryland and Pennsylvania. On May 10th they stole a pickup truck in McConnellsburg, pennsylvania. 19-year-old Richard Miller recognized the truck as one belonging to his neighbor and he chased the men until they stopped. Carl Isaacs murdered Miller and the outlaws disposed of his body on a pile of trash near Flintstone, maryland. They abandoned a pickup truck they had stolen after the Thunderbird in favor of Miller's 1968 Chevy Supersport and they drove south History.

Carole Townsend: 2:26

It's a subject that, in my opinion, gets sold short Too often. What comes to mind when we mention history is the rote memory of name, date and place. At first glance, history is flat dry and forgettable, but that's because we forget that it's people who make that history. It's people, it's greed, it's desire, it's lust, it's anger and shame and deceit. It's pride and courage and passion. It's fascinating and sometimes it's ugly. The names and dates, my friends, are merely window dressing, or merely window dressing.

Carole Townsend: 3:05

As an author and a journalist, I have investigated Southern history and crime for more than 20 years and I know that it's anything but boring. There's something different about the South, and if you've ever spent any time here you may know what I mean. The air is thicker, the soil is heavier, the colors are richer. The history of this region is laden with mystery, with intrigue and often with astounding surprise, even shock. Southern legends are often spoken in whispers, in close circles and among friends. Are often spoken in whispers, in close circles and among friends, lest the ghosts of those who walked before us begin to stir and take notice. The following podcast contains material that may be disturbing. Listener discretion is advised.

Carole Townsend: 4:09

Meanwhile in Pennsylvania, richard Miller's father had reported his teenage son missing. Once police had checked all of the possible teen runaway scenarios and found that the 19-year-old was clearly not a runaway, they began investigating. One of Richard's friends had told the police about the stolen truck and Richard's pursuit of the thieves, and another witness, norman Strait, said that he saw four men taking items out of a blue Chevrolet and transferring them to a pickup truck. In order to get a better look at the men, strait said he got his hunting rifle and used the powerful scope to see their faces more clearly. Sure enough, the man who was leaning against the car watching the others do the work was Carl Isaacs. Later Strait said I guess I should have shot that son of a bitch right there. It would have saved a lot of lives. Richard Miller's body was discovered a few weeks after Isaacs killed him and sadly, his would not be the only body left in the wake of the dark days that followed May 5, 1973.

Carole Townsend: 5:28

Carl and Billy Isaacs, wayne Coleman and George Dungy continued driving south after killing Miller in Pennsylvania and stealing his truck. Nine days after their escape, they had made it as far as Donaldsonville in Seminole County, georgia, not far from the Florida state line. When they reached Donaldsonville, in the southwest corner of the state, they were tired, they were hungry and broke, and they needed gas. Cruising through Seminole County, the men looked for a gas station to rob, an opportunity to solve all these problems, and before long they spotted a trailer on River Road, a farm property that belonged to a Mr Ned. All day Behind that trailer they spotted a gas pump, and they desperately needed more fuel if they were ever going to get to Florida. The secluded trailer and the gas pump looked like the perfect opportunity for the fugitives to get both money and gas. And if they ran into any problems, well, there was no one around to hear about it. Carefully, they entered the driveway to the trailer and slowly drove up to the home.

Carole Townsend: 6:49

Carl and Wayne broke into the trailer, leaving Billy and George to stand watch outside. No one was home at the time, but not long after the break-in, ned Alday and his son Jerry pulled up. They had just had lunch at Ernestine Alday's house, as was their daily custom, before going back to work on the farm. The two unsuspecting men were forced inside the trailer and robbed at gunpoint. Then they were taken to bedrooms on opposite ends of the mobile home. Carl Isaacs shot Jerry Alday in the head four times. Wayne Coleman shot Jerry's father, ned, once in the head, but the shot was not fatal. Ned managed to stand and fight for his life until Carl Isaacs came in and shot him five more times Later. Carl would laugh as he recalled Ned begging for mercy.

Carole Townsend: 7:50

Within just a few minutes of these murders, jerry's brother, jimmy, arrived at the trailer driving a tractor. He headed toward the door to plan for the next day with his father and brother, as they always did. Jimmy was taken inside, forced onto a couch and shot twice in the back of the head by Carl Isaacs. Ready to leave, carl went out to move the tractor. Before he even got it started, though, jerry's 26-year-old wife Mary arrived After work. She had gone to the grocery store After work. She had gone to the grocery store. As she got the groceries from the trunk of the car, carl sneaked up behind her and forced her inside the mobile home at gunpoint. The only member of the Alde family not immediately executed was Mary. Two of the men raped her on her kitchen table in her home. As she lay, trembling and praying quietly under the table.

Carole Townsend: 8:53

After the assault, the men ransacked the trailer, looking for guns and money. In the darkness of the trailer, mary desperately strained to see what the men were doing. While they were tossing the trailer looking for anything of value, jerry's brother Chester and Uncle Aubrey pulled up in a pickup truck. Carl went out and brought them inside. At gunpoint, chester was taken into the room where Ned's body lay and Wayne Coleman shot him. Isaacs took Aubrey into the room with his nephew Jerry and there he killed him. When the bodies were found, aubrey's hand was laying over Jerry's.

Carole Townsend: 9:36

Eventually, billy Isaacs grabbed Mary and jerked her to her feet Get dressed, he said. They dragged Mary out to her car, pushing her down in the floor of the back seat while George Dungy held a gun on her. They drove about six miles north to a secluded area where Mary was raped again and again by three of the four men, each of them sweating and swigging whiskey from a bottle, as they watched and awaited their turn. When they were done with her, george Dungy shot her and left her there. But before Dungy fatally shot Mary, the men took pictures of her with her own camera, which they had stolen. The photos were later found and used as evidence. Driving Mary's stolen car, the men traveled north on River Road into Early County, heading away from the crime scenes and the six bodies they left behind. Mary's body was found two days later.

Carole Townsend: 10:42

The four men had fled the secluded scene of Mary's brutalization and murder and headed to Alabama where they stole a Chevy Caprice. 24 hours later they pulled into the driveway of a remote country store in Virginia. Carl parked the car, encased the store's interior. Seeing maybe five people inside Should be a piece of cake, considering their recent escapades. Still, carl told the other three men to accompany him inside.

Carole Townsend: 11:16

The four fugitives stood around the soda machine pretending to consider their choices, while they glanced this way and that in an effort to plan their attack. But then Wayne moved quickly without warning, shoving a gun in the face of the only adult male in the store. Carl then told George to tie up the others, which proved to be quite a challenge for the challenged escapee. Then another customer walked in and then another, and George continued to try to tie them all up, while Carl and Billy ran haphazardly here and there, grabbing merchandise and taking the store's meager money for the day from the cash register. For some reason, george then walked to the back of the store and began frantically calling for Wayne. A woman, a baby and a toddler were in that back room and George had no idea what to do. Wayne brought another woman to the back room, tied both women up and forced them to lie on the floor. Then the four fugitives sprinted to the door and ran out into the parking lot. Two more men were just pulling in and instinctively they knew that something was very wrong about this scene. These two men were heavily armed and when they called to the escapees to stop and were ignored, they opened fire. Carl slammed the car into reverse and peeled out of the parking lot, crossing over the line from Virginia into West Virginia.

Carole Townsend: 12:54

Within minutes the road became harder to navigate, with twisting turns and steep grades that simply didn't allow a speedy escape. Carl was ironically driving the speed limit when a state trooper approached the car, coming the opposite direction. The officer's name was Hoyt Ryan, and he and his partner had just been advised that a dark-green Chevy Caprice had fled the scene of an armed robbery and the suspects were headed their way. Ryan and his partner, meadows, hung a sharp U-turn and engaged in high-speed pursuit of the Caprice, losing the suspects as they careened precariously around curves and along steep mountain drop-offs. But coming around one last curve, the officers spotted the Caprice parked alongside the road and it was empty.

Carole Townsend: 13:49

Both officers knew that the men had escaped by foot into the densely forested mountainside. It would simply be a matter of time until they were caught or gave themselves up. This terrain, the officers knew, was terribly unforgiving. Radioing for backup, the two officers learned that the men they were chasing were heavily armed. Backup arrived within minutes and several officers, having already spoken with residents who had seen the men exit the car and run, pursued the fugitives on foot.

Carole Townsend: 14:26

Others slowly drove the road looking for any sign of men running or hiding. Up ahead, the officers saw three men run across the road and they gave chase on foot. The three men disappeared, however, bobbing and ducking into the brush as they ran. But the officers knew that there was a fourth man who wasn't with that group. So they crossed back over the road and entered the thick woods. There, within a few hundred yards, they spotted a paunchy black man crouching behind a tree and frantically trying to load a pistol. Don't move, ryan, said, leveling his gun at the man's head, commanding George Dungy to place his hands on his head. Ryan frisked him pulling a woman's Timex watch from one of George's pockets. He wondered at the time why this man would have a woman's watch in his possession. As it turned out, ryan also discovered that George Dungy was desperately trying to load .380 caliber ammunition into a .32 caliber weapon. Ryan surmised that Dungy was terrified at the thought of

Carole Townsend: 15:44

being apprehended. Officer Ryan loaded a handcuffed Dungy into the backseat of his patrol car. A quick radio call told him that the cowering man in his backseat was wanted for six murders in Georgia. You're in a lot of trouble, george, ryan said to him. Hours later the district attorney arrived to take the statement George agreed to give and he saw that the trembling fugitive was still as terrified as Ryan had described when he approached him hours earlier. Do they have the death penalty in West Virginia? George nervously asked West Virginia? The DA replied I don't think you've done anything here that would warrant the death penalty. Georgia, however, does have the death penalty. There might be some things down there you'd be worried about. George was indeed worried, unbelievably. You see, he had been incarcerated in Maryland, not for violent crime. Rather, he had been convicted of failure to pay child support and was due to be released. Just a few weeks before the three men had escaped by climbing out that bathroom window and embarking on a

Carole Townsend: 17:02

murder spree. Meanwhile through the night and into early the next morning, hundreds of men and women were combing the treacherous West Virginia mountain terrain looking for the other three heavily armed fugitives, searching a wide-spanning grid and with helicopters searching overhead. Officers Harold Hall and LD Townley, along with a prized tracking dog named Prince, trudged with two other officers through the thick brush. Prince was running a zigzag pattern of tracking, doubling back and seeming confused but determined, and it eventually became clear that he had become confused after catching the scent of the men from the interior of the Caprice. It appeared as though he was actually tracking the cops who were following him. So the men started over. They took Prince back to the car, let him pick up the scent again, and he took off this time with such drive and purpose that it was hard to keep up with him. Soon Prince was tracking the men by sniffing the air and not the ground, which meant that the fugitives were nearby. When Prince began foaming at the mouth with excitement, the officers knew they were on top of the armed murderers. Prince was well-trained enough not to bark, though, so the officers carefully scanned the terrain to see if they could spot anything at all unusual there a shirt. At closer glance, the officers had spotted three men lying on the ground, partially concealed under a granite shelf that jutted out of the mountainside. Circling for better position, the officers commanded the men to come out. No one stirred. One of the officers emptied a 20-round clip from his AR-15 into the air, and that got the suspect's attention. One by one, they were instructed to crawl out and to raise their hands over their heads. They were disarmed and taken into custody

Carole Townsend: 19:20

without incident. There was just one problem Prince had led the officers on a fast and determined pursuit deep into the thick woods of West Virginia. The officers were lost alone with three very dangerous men. They listened for signs of life and eventually heard traffic from the highway Trudging in that direction. They eventually saw the crowds of people ahead, some in uniform and some in plain clothes. When the crowd spotted them, a smattering of applause broke out and within seconds hundreds were clapping and cheering. Three very bad men had been apprehended

Carole Townsend: 20:06

without incident. It's interesting to note that Betty Isaacs, carl's mother had called the West Virginia State Police to state emphatically that she knew who the killers were, as three of the four escapees were her sons. She went on to say without a doubt that Carl was the one in charge. She went on to say without a doubt that Carl was the one in charge, and I'm quoting here According to his mother, carl was the only one of whom police should be wary. Betty said that she made the call because she didn't want any police officers to get hurt. Once apprehended, the men were flown to Atlanta the next morning and held in separate jails until the following Monday when they were flown to Donaldsonville to be arraigned. During questioning, betty Isaac's conclusions proved to

Carole Townsend: 21:05

be correct. Oddly, wayne Coleman tried to take credit for all six murders and paint himself as the ringleader of the group, but detectives saw through his ruse right away. Wayne didn't have the ego, the gravitas or the mental acuity to lead a group anywhere. George Dungy was himself an intellectually challenged individual and while he admitted to shooting Mary, he said he did so because he feared the group would kill him if he didn't go along with the savagery. Billy Isaac's version of the vicious chain of events seemed rather self-serving, but George's retelling backed up his statement that he hadn't murdered anyone. And then there was Carl, who wasn't talking to anyone about the crimes. All he remembered about that day, he told police, was that May 14th was a pretty May day. Although the details of the other men's stories differed greatly, they all agreed on what they believed to be insignificant facts. But it was Carl who convinced them to escape from prison. It was Carl who decided to stop and pick up Billy. Carl always did the driving. Carl was the first to rape Mary. Carl chose the all-days trailer to rob. Carl was clearly in charge, calling all

Carole Townsend: 22:35

the shots. Once the four prisoners arrived in Donaldsonville, they were led into the Seminole County Courthouse separately. Six counts of murder were read to each offender by District Attorney Ralph Foster and as the charges were read, wayne Coleman laughed. Coleman also admitted to shooting 19-year-old Richard Miller in Pennsylvania and he volunteered to go back there to help locate the young man's body. And he volunteered to go back there to help locate the young man's body. He was sent back to Georgia, however, when it became clear that he had no idea where they had hid his body. All four men were tried by jury in Donaldsonville Because Billy Isaacs cooperated with prosecutors and testified against the other three men, he received a 20-year sentence for

Carole Townsend: 23:31

armed robbery. Carl Isaacs, wayne Coleman and George Dungy were convicted of murder and sentenced to death, as George's death penalty statute had been put in place just nine months earlier. However, in a shocking turn of events, all three of these convictions and sentences were overturned in 1985 by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on the grounds that the pool of Seminole County jurors had been tainted by excessive pretrial publicity had been tainted by excessive pre-trial publicity. This decision led to decades of frustration with the lack of justice by the justice system. All three men faced trial again in 1988, and again they were convicted. George Dungy's second trial took place in Columbus, georgia, where he was sentenced to life in prison. Carl Isaac's second conviction came from a jury in Perry, georgia. For the second time, he was sentenced to die. Wayne Coleman received a life sentence in DeKalb County

Carole Townsend: 24:43

Superior Court. Billy Isaacs was released from prison in 1993. He died in the Florida Panhandle on May 4, 2009. It seems that he was the only one of the four murderers who actually made it to Florida. He was 51 years old at the time of his death. George Dungy died of a heart attack in prison on April 4, 2006 at the age

Carole Townsend: 25:13

of 68. Carl Isaacs was executed by lethal injection on May 6, 2003 at the state prison in Jackson, georgia. He asked for a regular institutional dinner tray of pork and macaroni, pinto beans, cabbage and chocolate cake, but he pushed the meal away when it came. He also declined an opportunity to make a final statement, but he did ask for a final prayer and after the prayer he mouthed Amen. It's left up to theologians smarter than I, I suppose whether that prayer and the amen that followed were heeded by the same God that witnessed the heinous crimes against the Alday family At the time of his execution. At age 49, carl Isaacs was the longest serving death row inmate anywhere in the United States, having spent 30 years there awaiting Georgia's death by lethal injection. A string of state and federal appeals are to credit for that extended stay. His death also marked the first time in Georgia history that victimized family members were allowed to witness a death sentence being

Carole Townsend: 26:32

carried out. When Carl Isaac's father, george, was asked by a defense team psychologist during the trial about his son, he leaned back in his chair and said I'm just trying to remember which one that was. George had fathered many children by Betty, his wife, and Carl's mother, whom Carl despised. He wasn't any help in his son's defense and in fact knew neither how many children he had nor what their names were. Fifty years later, wayne Coleman is still living, at the expense of Georgia taxpayers, at the Wilcox State Prison. He continues to be eligible for parole and he continues to have that

Carole Townsend: 27:22

parole denied. Tragically, an eighth death can be attributed to the brutal and senseless actions of the four men who just happened upon the Alday family farm back in May 1973. You see, while every effort was made to keep the horrid details of her daughter Mary's death from her, alberta Lane Campbell did learn how her child was inhumanly violated and murdered. She learned the painful details on May 18th, the day after the funerals. The heartbreak proved too much for her and she died just five days after her daughter did. Three books chronicle this evil story Dead man Coming by Charles Postol, blood Echo by Thomas H Cook and Brothers in Blood by

Carole Townsend: 28:19

Clark Howard. The 1988 film Murder One also about the events of May 14, 1973, was widely released across North America, but it was never shown on any screens near southwest Georgia. And while the Alde family strongly objected to the books and the making of the movie, they actually turned out to help the legal case against Carl Isaacs. While making a documentary that eventually led to the film, the filmmaker interviewed Isaacs. On the video, isaacs made several statements that spoke clearly to his callousness and character, saying glibly that he would have killed the All Days again. He made the cold comment that the only thing the All Days ever did that stood out was getting killed by me. He also openly admitted to shooting Jerry, ned and Aubrey All Day and to sexually assaulting Mary. As if the All Day family hadn't been through enough. For decades they struggled to stay updated on the seemingly never-ending quest for justice in these cases. In 2003, paige Barber, ned and Ernestine, allday's granddaughter, successfully lobbied the Georgia General Assembly to pass the All Day Family Bill. This law requires the state to update families of victims in death penalty cases twice

Carole Townsend: 29:56

a year. May 14, 1973 marked a dark day in Georgia, in fact, in the entire country Georgia. In fact, in the entire country. The murders of the six all-day family members were cold, senseless and violent. Only one other such Georgia tragedy left more innocent people dead, and that was the Wolford family murders in 1887. Tom Wolford was convicted and hanged for the axe-bludgeoning death of nine of his family members. We took a look at this case in an earlier episode of Front

Carole Townsend: 30:35

Porch Mysteries. The Aldays are buried in Spring Creek Cemetery in southwest Georgia. Sober marble grave markers are now home for the murdered family members, who were so much more than just farmers, as so many news accounts describe them. Yes, they were farmers and they loved working the land, but they were also devout Christians. They were loving parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and siblings. Some were quiet and reserved and some were jokers and pranksters. And Mary, all day, loved her flower garden. These were people, people who mattered, and a chance, freak intersection of their lives with the poison lives of their killers brought all of that to an end. The innocence of Georgia ended that day more than 50 years ago as well. Until May 14, 1973, people in Georgia, especially rural South Georgia, didn't lock their doors. There was an unspoken trust among neighbors, one that gave people a solid assurance that their lives and homes were not only safe but protected by their friends and neighbors. Not anymore.

Carole Townsend: 32:20

I'm Carole Townsend, veteran newspaper journalist and six-time award-winning author. You can find me on social media and check out my website at www. caroletownsend. com. As always, thanks for listening and if you're enjoying these tales of Southern history and lore, I hope you'll tell your friends. Subscribe to this podcast on Spotify, apple Play, iheart and anywhere you listen. My team and I reference the following materials in researching this case about the tragic Allday family murders the article Allday Murders Still Haunt South Georgia Almost 50 Years Later, by Wayne Crenshaw, the Telegraph newspaper, dated May 14, 2019. The article Retrials for Murders of Six and Family 15 Years Later Rural County Burdened by the High Cost of Justice, written by Joseph B Frazier, the Los Angeles Times, april 10, 1988. The book Blood Echoes by Thomas H Cook and lawgeorgiagov.