| Larry Gene Bell | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 30, 1949 Ralph, Alabama |
| Died | October 4, 1996 (aged 46) Columbia, South Carolina |
| Conviction(s) | 2 counts murder |
| Penalty | Death by Electrocution |
| Status | Executed |
Larry Gene Bell (October 30, 1949[1] – October 4, 1996) was a double murderer in Lexington County, South Carolina, who was electrocuted for the murders of Sharon "Shari" Faye Smith and Debra May Helmick. Bell forced Smith to write a "Last Will and Testament" before he murdered her and taunted her parents by telephone.
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Larry Gene Bell was born in Ralph, Alabama and had three sisters and one brother.[1] The family reportedly moved around a lot, with Bell attending Eau Claire High School in Columbia, South Carolina from 1965 to 1967.[1] The Bell family moved to Mississippi, where Larry Gene Bell graduated high school and took training as an electrician.[1] He returned to Columbia, South Carolina, married and had one son.[1]
Bell joined the Marines in 1970, but was discharged the same year due to a knee injury suffered when he accidentally shot himself when cleaning a gun.[1] The following year, he worked as a correctional officer at the Department of Corrections in Columbia for one month. Bell and his family moved to Rock Hill, South Carolina in 1972 and the couple divorced in 1976.[1]
Bell kidnapped 17-year-old Sharon "Shari" Faye Smith at gunpoint from the end of her driveway on Platt Springs Road on May 31, 1985. Her car was found running, with the door open. Her body was later found in Saluda County, South Carolina. He then kidnapped ten-year-old Debra May Helmick near Old Percival Road in Richland County, South Carolina. Bell was also a suspect in the 1984 disappearance of Sandee Elaine Cornett from Charlotte, North Carolina. Cornett was a girlfriend of one of Bell's coworkers.
On June 27, Bell was arrested. Throughout the largest manhunt in South Carolina history, Bell made eight telephone calls to the Smith family, often speaking with Shari's sister, Dawn. Bell eventually gave exact directions to the locations of both of the bodies and described to the family how he had killed Smith.[1][2] During his six-hour testimony at his trial, Bell continuously blurted out bizarre comments and carried on nonstop theatrics, rambling continuously and refusing to answer questions. He later made statements indicating that he may have been attempting to fake mental illness in order to receive a more lenient sentence.[1] He claimed to be Jesus Christ until his death.
Bell chose to die by the electric chair instead of lethal injection. Bell was the last prisoner in South Carolina executed by electrocution until James Neil Tucker was executed in 2004 for the double murders of Rosa Lee Dolly Oakley and Shannon Lynn Mello
The CBS television movie Nightmare in Columbia County portrayed the events of the Shari Smith murder. The case was also featured on the TruTV show Forensic Files and the Discovery Channel's The FBI Files.
A year after Smith's death, her sister, Dawn Elizabeth Smith, was crowned Miss South Carolina (1986). Dawn Smith Jordan has written a book on the family's story throughout the ordeal, Grace So Amazing: A True Story of God's Grace in the Midst of Life-Shattering Tragedy and also recorded a song, "Sisters," dedicated to her sister.
A second book about Bell's killing spree, Murder in the Midlands by Larry Gene Bell and the 28 Days of Terror that Shook South Carolina, was also written about his killing spree.
Audio pertaining to the murders was sampled on the album Hide the Kitchen Knives, by The Paper Chase.