Dean Arnold Corll The Candy Man Murders

1 Dean Arnold Corll: The Candy Man Murders Introduction Dean Arnold Corll is well-known for being the mastermind behind the killing spree of 27 young boys in Houston, Texas from 1970 to 1973. He kidnapped, raped, tortured and murdered these young men with the help of his two accomplices, David Owen Brooks and Elmer Wayne Henley Jr. Dean Corll and the two teen boys are a good representation of the Cohen Cloward & Ohlin Agnew’s General Strain Theory as it relates to crime and disadvantaged individuals. Background Dean Corll was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana on December 24, 1939. Growing up, his parents married and divorced each other twice. As a result of their first divorce, he moved with his mother to Houston. She remarried a new love interest and she also started her own candy business. After graduating high school, Dean worked at his mother’s candy shop and even earned the nickname “The Candy Man” for giving out candy to the children in the neighborhood. At twenty five years old, he was drafted into the army. It is assumed that while he attended the army, he discovered he was homosexual. Only a year later, he was released on a hardship discharge. At age 30, Dean met twelve year old David Brooks and Wayne Henley Jr., his two teenage accomplices. He offered the two young boys two hundred dollars per head that they brought to him or he would lure his own victims to his apartment through deception. He would forcefully transport them to his choice of region. He raped/tortured and then strangled or shot all twenty eight of his victims. Next, he would bury the bodies in various locations across Houston, Texas. This tragic, mass murdering spree lasted from 1970 to 1973 and only came to an end because Henley no longer wanted to participate. Henley invited two of his friends, Timothy and Rhonda over to Dean’s Pasadena residence with the intentions to hang out with his friends. Dean was furious that Henley bought a girl into his home and attempted to murder all three of them. Henley begged and pleaded with Dean not to kill him and if he allowed him to live, he’d help murder his two friends. Fortunately for the three teenagers Henley was untied, grabbed a gun and fatally shot Dean. The three friends went to the police and the murder spree finally came to an end. Henley and Brooks told the police everything and even led them to the bodies of the many victims. David Brooks and Wayne Henley was sentenced to life in prison for their parts of the abductions and murders. A great theory to apply here is the differential theory by Sutherland. In this theory, he expresses that crime is a learned and mimicked behavior. Once the criminal attitudes and attributes are adopted, it makes it a lot easier to commit crimes. Brooks and Henley were introduced to this murder pattern by Dean Corll, they observed and followed. However, general strain theory states that crime is/can be motivated by the level of strain people experience in society. General Strain Theory: The Candy Man Addition It is not uncommon for individuals to commit crimes when they struggle with securing prosperity, or finding the pieces to this puzzle of an “American dream”. Cohen Cloward and Ohlin Agnew do a great job conveying this in their General String Theory. It relates directly to all three subjects: Dean Arnold Corll, Wayne Henley Jr, and David Brooks. Dean was a shy and hard working kid before becoming a cold hearted serial killer. Before he graduated high school, he worked day and night [unofficially] at the candy shop with his younger brother. He helped his family run their business and even had a few girlfriends growing up. With Dean’s parents always arguing, him struggling with his sexuality and having to find a new living so suddenly, he may have been very stressed or frustrated. Also, while serving in the army, his family needed him back at the family business so he was able to get an honorable discharge after only serving ten months. Dean was obviously not where he wanted be in life, but that worked in his favor when it came to him luring victims he could relate too. He befriended young boys who were financially because they were more vulnerable to committing crimes and he knew this. Another thing that probably gave him ammunition, was that for three years, he never got caught by the police. Henley told police in an interview that the only reason he took Dean’s offer was because he needed the money for his family. He took this murder spree as an opportunity to receive financial gain. David Brooks also took the offer for the same price. Two young teen boys who were both from struggling social classes learned the behavior and attitude of a serial killer and they too, became serial killers. Too often, it is expected for you to be able to obtain success because everyone allegedly possesses same the equal rights. However, everyone is not born at the same level of status and privilege so these things that are so easily accessible to some, may be scarce to others. For example, David Brooks dropped out of high school and college isn’t always affordable for low income families so a lower education level gives him more time and less job opportunity. Of course an offer like Dean’s would be irresistible when you do not have many other options. The strain theory is not unique to Dean Corll’s case; In high-crime cities all over the United States, people’s cases are speak for themselves when they say low income families and crime have a high correlation.