True crime Friday: The Briley Brothers - The Family That Slays Together
A serial killer family known as the Briley Brothers terrorized Richmond Virginia in the late seventies. They were the terrible serial killer trio. Linwood Earl Briley, James Dyral Briley and Anthony Ray Briley were serial killers, serial rapists, and serial robbers. These brothers were so evil that their parents were afraid of them. Their father would lock his bedroom door at night for fear of being killed while he slept! They loved exotic pets and would sometimes use them to harm their victims during their crime sprees. I will not go into details about the gory scenes, you can read their story in the reference section of the article. Although the Briley Brother were vicious and ruthless killers they are not well known as some of their infamous counterparts. After reading this article it makes you wonder why. Maybe it is the less dead at play.
Linwood Briley was born March 26, 1954, he was the leader of the serial killers. James Briley Jr., was born June 6, 1956 and Anthony Briley was born February 17, 1958 to parents, Bertha and James Briley Sr. Their oldest brother Edward Jerome Boot born July 7 1952, left home to when he was a teenager to live with relatives in North Carolina and was not involved in his brother’s crime sprees.
In their early years, they seem to be level headed kids. The neighbors often had them to repair cars and mow lawns for them. The brothers were known to love exotic pets such as Tarantulas, Piranhas and Boa Constrictors. As they reached their teenaged year their parents divorced and Bertha Briley moved out of the house leaving James Briley Sr., to raise the boys. It was said that the boys respected their father but even he was afraid of them because he padlocked his bedroom door from the inside to be protected at night while he slept.
Linwood Briley committed his first murder in 1971. He killed a woman and served a year in reformatory school. The police had thought the victim died of natural causes. It was not until an autopsy was done that they discovered she had been murdered. After the investigation they found that Linwood had shot her from his bedroom window. The three siblings along with an accomplice by the name of Duncan Eric Meekins, went on a killing spree in 1979 in Richmond, Virginia. Combined the brothers has eleven victims. There were at least two victims that managed to escape and reported the crime to the authorities. William and Virginia Bucher were lucky to escape a certain death. They got away after the gang left them to burn alive in their Henrico County home.
When the police captured Linwood Briley he was wearing the ring of one of his victims. The victim was John Harvey Gallaher. Johnny as he was known wore this ring every day of his life. The ring was legendary because of the size, color and jewels. One of the police officers who questions Linwood recognized the ring as belonging to Johnny G. Linwood was caught red-handed with evidence.
After entering prison, this trio was so vicious that inmates were afraid of them. They managed to escape from prison with a few other inmates who were quickly apprehended. The two brothers, however were on the run for months before being captured. They were finally discovered under assumed names working for their uncle in an automotive shop in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The brothers were captured on June 19th the year of their escape by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). It had been a massive man hunt to find the killers before anyone else was harmed.
The Victims of the Briley Brothers
- Orline Christian, 57, was executed by Linwood Briley. As far as police knew, he began his murderous career at age 16 when he shot and killed Orline Christian, on Jan. 28, 1971. She was hanging laundry in her backyard. The police thought she had suffer a heart attack.
- Michael Wayne McDuffie, 20, was killed by the trio. He was found March 21, 1979.
- Edric Alvin Clark, 28, he was shot by Linwood Briley over a drug dispute on March 3, 1979
- Mary Gowen, 76, found April 9, 1979.
- Christopher Phillips, 17, found July 4, 1979. He was hanging outside of Linwood car and was suspected of wanting to steal the car.
- John Harvey "Johnny G." Gallaher, 62 was country-and-western disc jockey known as "Johnny G." he was found September 14, 1979. He was performing with his band when he went outside to take a smoke break never to be seen alive.
- Mary Wilfong, 62, found September 30, 1979.
- Blanche Page, 75, found October 5, 1979.
- Charles Garner, 59, found October 5, 1979.
- The Wilkerson/Barton family: Harvey Wilkerson, 27, Judy Diane Barton, 23 (was 8 months pregnant) and their 5 year old son Harvey Barton Wilkerson, Jr.
- William and Virginia Bucher: Survivors.
Lady Justice
The remaining appeals ran out for both of the Briley Brothers. James Briley married a writer before his execution. She was convinced that he was innocent. James Briley and Evangeline Grant Redding married on March 28, 1985, in a prison ceremony. It was attended by his father, James Briley Sr.Linwood and James were executed by electric chair Linwood in 1984 and James in 1985. Anthony Briley and Duncan Meekins are both still incarcerated to this day. The two brothers were executed in at the Virginia State Penitentiary. Linwood Briley was executed on October 12, 1984, and James Briley Jr., on April 18, 1985. Both Briley Brothers claimed they were innocent before their executions. The day James Briley was executed a few of his fellow inmates tried to delay the process. They attacked guards with homemade knives. Nine guards and one inmate were injured. The brothers are buried at the Council family's cemetery plot in North Carolina.
Anthony Ray Briley was convicted of four counts of first degree murder. Three of those for the Barton family murders. He received a life sentence plus 119 years, with the possibility of parole. Anthony avoided capital murder charges since it could not be proven that he had personally committed any of the murders. He is incarcerated at to this day and his parole request have been denied. Duncan Meekins, parole requests have also been denied despite recommendations from former prosecutors Robert J. Rice and Warren Von Schuch, who have cited Meekins' assistance in prosecuting and convicting the Briley brothers.
Reference
Briley Brothers - WikipediaRampage: The Briley brothers terrorized Richmond area
Linwood Earl Briley | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers