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BuzzFeed Article Recounts Case of Paroled Texas Serial Killer

Updated 26 days ago

A BuzzFeed article published on September 29, 2025, revisited the case of Kenneth McDuff, a Texas serial killer originally sentenced to death for murdering three teenagers in 1966. His death senten...

BuzzFeed Article Recounts Case of Paroled Texas Serial Killer

A BuzzFeed article published on September 29, 2025, revisited the case of Kenneth McDuff, a Texas serial killer originally sentenced to death for murdering three teenagers in 1966. His death sentence was commuted to life in prison after a 1972 Supreme Court ruling temporarily abolished capital punishment. McDuff was subsequently paroled in 1989. The Los Angeles Times reported that his release was part of a broader effort to alleviate severe crowding in Texas prisons.

wikipedia.org reported, After his release, McDuff killed again. He was convicted for the 1992 murder of Melissa Northrup, a 22-year-old convenience store worker from Waco. He also received a second death sentence for the 1991 killing of Colleen Reed in Austin. Following a nationwide manhunt that ended with his capture in Kansas City, McDuff was returned to death row. He is believed to be the only person in U.S. history to be released from death row and later returned for new capital crimes. McDuff was executed by lethal injection in Texas on November 17, 1998.

Editorial Process: This article was drafted using AI-assisted research and thoroughly reviewed by human editors for accuracy, tone, and clarity. All content undergoes human editorial review to ensure accuracy and neutrality.

Reviewed by: Catamist Support

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