June 16. 1955: Judge Chillingworth and his wife go missing
Florida residents woke up to the first story in what would become a years-long kidnapping mystery and murder trial, culminating six years later in the conviction of a Palm Beach County municipal judge for the killing of a higher judge and his wife.
Curtis Chillingworth, 58, was a well-known Palm Beach County circuit judge with a sterling reputation. He and his wife Marjorie, 57, split their time between a winter home in West Palm Beach and a secluded summer beach home in nearby Manalapan.
On June 15, 1955, the couple turned up missing. Foul play was immediately suspected. But the only clues were bloodstains on the stairs in the house and a half-used roll of masking tape on the beach. Authorities suspected they were kidnapped, stuffed into a car and driven away, but then what? Were they murdered? Being held for ransom?
A massive manhunt failed to turn up any clues. Investigators looked at convicts Chillingworth had sentenced during his 34 years on the bench but found no solid leads.
It wasn't until five years later that the truth came out. Floyd Holzapfel, a West Palm Beach garage attendant, confessed his role. He and a pool room operator named Bobby Lincoln murdered the couple in a plan masterminded by corrupt Municipal Judge Joseph A. Peel.
Peel had been taking payoffs and selling protection to local moonshiners and numbers runners. When police brought search warrants for his signature, Peel tipped off the suspects. Chillingworth discovered the corruption and vowed to have Peel disbarred.
Peel hired Holzapfel and Lincoln to make Chillingworth go away. They testified to abducting the couple in their nightclothes, taking them out to sea in a rented boat, tying weights to them and throwing them into the water. Their bodies were never recovered.
Holzapfel was sentenced to life in prison, while Lincoln was given immunity in exchange for his testimony. Peel served 21 years in federal prison before he was released on parole with terminal cancer. He died in Jacksonville nine days after his release.
On June 15, 1955, the couple turned up missing. Foul play was immediately suspected. But the only clues were bloodstains on the stairs in the house and a half-used roll of masking tape on the beach. Authorities suspected they were kidnapped, stuffed into a car and driven away, but then what? Were they murdered? Being held for ransom?
A massive manhunt failed to turn up any clues. Investigators looked at convicts Chillingworth had sentenced during his 34 years on the bench but found no solid leads.
It wasn't until five years later that the truth came out. Floyd Holzapfel, a West Palm Beach garage attendant, confessed his role. He and a pool room operator named Bobby Lincoln murdered the couple in a plan masterminded by corrupt Municipal Judge Joseph A. Peel.
Peel had been taking payoffs and selling protection to local moonshiners and numbers runners. When police brought search warrants for his signature, Peel tipped off the suspects. Chillingworth discovered the corruption and vowed to have Peel disbarred.
Peel hired Holzapfel and Lincoln to make Chillingworth go away. They testified to abducting the couple in their nightclothes, taking them out to sea in a rented boat, tying weights to them and throwing them into the water. Their bodies were never recovered.
Holzapfel was sentenced to life in prison, while Lincoln was given immunity in exchange for his testimony. Peel served 21 years in federal prison before he was released on parole with terminal cancer. He died in Jacksonville nine days after his release.
Read more:
Daytona Beach Morning Journal: No Trace of Judge, Wife
Daytona Beach Morning Journal: Ex-Judge Joseph Peel obituary
South Florida Sun Sentinel: Judge & Executioner
Daytona Beach Morning Journal: No Trace of Judge, Wife
Daytona Beach Morning Journal: Ex-Judge Joseph Peel obituary
South Florida Sun Sentinel: Judge & Executioner