IE 11 is not supported. Bruce Harkey was convicted Tuesday of capital murder for a 2012 scheme to kill his 85-year-old stepmother, Bonnie Harkey, and her housekeeper, Karen Johnson. The matriarch of the family, Bonnie Harkey aka The Pecan Queen, was murdered. And, Im the only one left alive that knows the truth, he wrote, his ballpoint indenting the paper. But his father resisted any overtures, preferring to run the farm himself, with Bonnie at his side. But both those possibilities were excluded when the bloodhound, using a scent swab from her pillow, followed her trail down the driveway almost to the road, indicating shed likely left in a vehicle. Bruce was infuriated. She never said anything about it, but I could tell by the way she acted.. She was the closest thing to a mother I ever had, he said, choking back tears. Join Facebook to connect with Bonnie Heakins Harkey and others you may know. Left: The entrance to the Harkey homestead off U.S. 190. Of his two grandsons, in fact, O.B. A local lawyer by the name of Dick Miller stepped in on Bonnies behalf, asking his law partner, Darrel Spinks, to get involved. He thought everything would be fine and dandy because the two boys knew what they were getting and Connie would get a pecan orchard too.. Where do most of the u, s. pecans come from? the Millican family Assist all periodontal surgeries, perform all post-operative follow-up appointments, assist patients . Betty Ann had provided a long pink dress for Bonnie to be buried in. The fear was that Bonnie had tripped in the orchard or somehow fallen into the river. He was always saying, Bonnie killed my son, she needs to suffer the way my son did, he told me. That question would be answered 27 hours later and 178 miles away in Leon County, when several Texas Rangers, sheriffs deputies, and cadaver dogs found Bonnies body in a creek bed near an RV campground in Normangee. He sensed her reluctance to embrace him and John, feeling her disdain as soon as the wedding was over. I try to be careful when driving. But Bruce Harkey tells a different story. Soon a court had appointed Spinks as the permanent guardian of Bonnies estate and her longtime friend Betty Ann as the guardian of her person. Why are pecans more expensive than other nuts? Harkeyville is north of U.S. Highway 190 two miles west of San Saba in central San Saba County. When shed tell a story, hed interrupt and say, No, thats not the way it goes, recalled Bonnies sister. Press ESC to cancel. Clydene Oliver, the proprietor of Oliver Pecan Company, remembers when Riley, who often sold nuts to her family in bulk, dropped by her storefront on West Wallace Street. They walked to a nearby ravine and down the embankment to a small stream. (I just wish the old bitch was dead, he told Les Dawson, a justice of the peace, at the courthouse. John packed up in the fall of 1965 to attend Texas Tech University, in Lubbock; Connie enrolled there two years later after being named San Sabas homecoming queen. Proper noun a rione in Rome, Italy, named after the local basilica. Her closed casket sat in the sanctuary alongside photos of her with Riley and Miss Kitty. He became the head of the San Saba County Pecan Growers Association, and around town, farmers sought him out for advice. Proud of his planning, Riley trumpeted what he had done around town. It didnt matter that Carl had signed away his rightsBonnie still had a life estate in the property. I guess with any big estate worth any value, if youve got a bunch of people involved, theres going to be fuss.. With rights to the Prichard Orchard secured, the Harkey brothers now set their sights on a potential buyer: their reclusive yet high-profile neighbor Tommy Lee Jones. Then, in 2007, hed looked west, buying the 209-acre strip of farmland adjacent to Harkey Pecan Farms, where he grew wheat and grazed his horses. He needed an address to satisfy probation requirements, so he sent letter after letter to Bonnie, begging her to let him live on the Harkey farm. When the caretaker came to the door, Pressley sneaked up behind her, killed her and then kidnapped his grandmother. Pressley was in police custody hours later, confessing to the crimes., He did say he was sorry repeatedly, said Sgt. Investigators focus on one of Bonnies stepsons, Bruce Harkey, as the mastermind behind the plot to kill Bonnie Harkey. EDHEC Alumni. What is the average price of pecans per pound? Bonnie quit her job at the telephone company, and she and Connie moved into the Harkey house. At least 1 dead, 5 injured in Massachusetts house party shooting, 2-year-old daughter of Tampa Bay Buccaneers player drowns after falling into pool, Tornado strikes Virginia coast, leaving behind trail of damage, AI-generated music growing exponentially, sparking debate. No detail in his orchards escaped him. 4d. Begin typing your search term above and press enter to search. In the days before the murders, hed proclaimed to everyone he encounteredat the San Saba Printing Company, at the Corner Caf, at J&Js Tractor Companythat he planned to spend the weekend at Johns house, in Fort Worth, playing golf. Hed openly shared his travel plans to Fort Worth, he continued, because he was excited to go to the big city. On April 1, 1970, a month before her due date, Judi gave birth to the next Harkey: a seven-pound, two-ounce boy named Eric. Bruce Harkey, they say, felt pressure from years of past-due child support. How many years does it take for a pecan tree to produce pecans? new . Some of those secrets still haunt some of the people involved., Just outside of San Saba sits the small town of Harkeyville, named for the Harkey family and its generations of pecan farming. John Spong writes primarily about popular culture. There are no secrets around here, and if there is a secret, someone will make up a story to fill in the gaps, explained Boyd. During a good year, the Harkey Pecan Farm outside San Saba, the self-proclaimed Pecan Capital of the World, can produce about $100,000 worth of pecans. The investigation into the murder of Bonnie Harkey and her caretaker broadens as lawmen look for a motive in the familys history.April 24, 2015. One afternoon, he showed up at Oliver Pecan Company an hour before closing time to ask for a job. Walnuts intended for retail sale can be removed from their shells and baked before packing and shipping. Who is the biggest pecan producer in the world? How much money can you make off a pecan tree? Where is Harkeyville Texas? They had not been trained to be nice boys. Though Bonnie tried to impose some structure, taping a list of rules to Bruces bedroom wall at one point, Riley rarely stepped in to discipline them. Davis said Bruce Harkey a former Reno police officer and investigator for the Texas Attorney Generals Office often went out of town on the weekends so it was not unusual that he was away when the killings happened. Some possessions were salvaged . She aint going to forgive me, Carl told Wilkerson through tears. In May the brothers had persuaded Carl to sell them his future rights to the Prichard Orchard for a measly $75,000, even though the property was valued at more than $500,000. Bruce and I just kind of confined ourselves upstairs and made it into a little apartment, recalled Jennifer. By 1956, Leonard Bend Pecan Farm had 3,300 acres of orchards on the peninsula and had become the largest contiguous walnut orchard in Texas and the second largest in the United States. 2:26. I didnt have anything to do with the death of Bonnie Harkey or Ms. Johnson, he repeated. The two needed to get back immediately, the sheriff told him: Karen was dead and Bonnie was missing. But Bruce, now a convicted felon, had trouble finding work. Her husband, Riley had passed away, and she relied on a caretaker, Karen Johnson, for help around the house and getting around town.. Autopsy reports indicate Bonnie Harkey may have been buried alive. After Connie had her mothers drivers license revoked, in 2009, Bonnies condition only worsened. They brought their own refrigerator, microwave, and coffeemaker and remarried the next fall. What's the difference between praline pecan and butter pecan? As a favor to their friends son,Betty Ann and Craigan Johnson hired him to clean out their barn, but the work was short-term. A few hours after Carls confession, news reached Bruce that the investigation was tightening around him. It bothered Bonnie that we didnt have any money growing up, recalled her sister, Wilma Cook. His late father left the family estate in Bonnies control, but Bruce was set to inherit a large portion of the estate upon his stepmothers death. How much money can you make with pecan trees? But to Bruces dismay, Bonnie effortlessly took on the role of family matriarch. (John by this time had settled outside Fort Worth and had three children of his own.) mostly concerned himself with fire ants, which can hamper the grafting process and damage expensive irrigation equipment. She was curled into the fetal position and buried under a thick layer of leaves, mud caked into her white curls. Sheriff Allen Brown was already out on patrol when the 911 call came in. Lived To 94 Bonnie Sharkey. Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. We must not let death steal the memories of her joy in life! Pastor Crosby exhorted the crowd. Bonnie entertained often, volunteering her home for garden club and church functions, serving up sandwiches, cakes, and other dainty refreshments on fine china. Scanner chatter is a rich source of gossip in this tiny Central Texas city of 3,099, and ears perked up that Sunday as paramedics and law enforcement officers rushed four miles west of town to Harkeyville, where a 1927 red-brick house sat among three hundred acres of pecan orchards. U.S. Highway 190 and Texas State Highway 16 intersect on the eastern side of town. I do not take any medicine that would cause unsafe driving. Read More. House in Marcq-en-Barul, Hauts-de-France, France Contact. When I reached out to Bruce for his side of things, he sent me a letter. The town has recently focused its energies on tourism, redeveloping its downtown, but the pecan industry remains alive and well. She, like the three hundred other assembled mourners, was still reeling from the shock of her friends violent end. If you want to enjoy the unmistakable flavor of chocolates but don't like candy, praline nuts are an excellent option. Who is Bonnie Harkey? Bonnie Harkey owned the pecan farm and had willed 94 acres of it to a grandson, Carl Wade Pressley. Family members have fought a long battle in court over who would inherit those lands after the death of Bonnie Harkey. Tonight @DatelineNBC reports on the death of Bonnie Harkey, the matriarch of a prominent San Saba pecan farming family. The paramedics who arrived five minutes later quickly determined she was dead. He gave the co-worker three gunstwo old Chinese military rifles and one semiautomatic .22asking him to obliterate the serial numbers; he also talked about rubbing poison on Kamis steering wheel. In a heartbreaking letter to the Texas Department of Public Safety to contest the revocation of her license, she wrote, in shaky cursive: I really dont know what caused someone to report that I am incapable of operating an automobile. He was floored. Bruce was sentenced to life without parole. When Bonnie Harkey, the 85-year-old matriarch of a prominent San Saba family, was brutally murdered in 2012, her death spelled the end of a legendary pecan dynasty. Bonnie Harkey woke up and ate breakfast, and then Karen, her caretakerwhod brought along her young son for the daydrove her to church in Bonnies gold Chevy Malibu. He said he would kill me and they would never implicate him, Kami told KXAN. It was very true. The gravestone for Bruces firstborn, Eric Harkey, in the San Saba City Cemetery. How many acres do you need for a pecan orchard? As the farms two orchards matured, they began to yield a handsome profit. Jun 1986 - Dec 200115 years 7 months. San Saba offers something for everyone. He genuinely thought he was fixin to get a not-guilty verdict, recalled Spinks, who was present. (They have been breeding for perfection and believe now they have a strain that gives Turkeydom about everything that is to be desired in a turkey, theNewsgushed in 1932.) One of those girls was Judi Bishop, one year older and from Goldthwaite, a town 22 miles north. They have also lived in Caryville, TN and Statesville, NC. I drove to San Saba in late summer. The grisly crime shocked the rural community of Harkeyville named for the pecan-farming family in San Saba County, about 100 miles northwest of Austin. Bruce, Carl said, had been talking constantly about getting rid of Bonnie. Because of that, Bonnie did pretty much everything she could to alienate me. He was convinced she had caused Erics death. Bruce was Bonnies step-son. Bruce could con you into doing anything he wanted you to do, he said mournfully in his prison whites. Preview. Afterward, they returned home, where Bonnie changed out of her Sunday best and into a teal tracksuit. Bruce Harkey, who had been taking care of the orchard, was fired sometime during 2011, McAfee said. At least 1 dead, 5 injured in Massachusetts house party shooting, 2-year-old daughter of Tampa Bay Buccaneers player drowns after falling into pool, Tornado strikes Virginia coast, leaving behind trail of damage, AI-generated music growing exponentially, sparking debate. But he was bleeding her dry, said her niece Teresa Cook. He is the living epitome of evil.. Search Begins for Missing Bonnie Harkey. Bonnie Harkey's . Also known as Bonnie Manus | Bonnie Harkey. Bruce had grown brazen with his declarations around town. Finally, when their daughter was four, Kami worked up the courage to walk out. Certified twitter advocate. San Saba County He just had a meltdown. Who is Sherlocks Sponsor Alfredo on Elementary? He covered her lifeless body with fistfuls of leaves and mud. Professional coffee lover. Dont tell anybody I had anything to do with it. Bruce gave him $100, with the promise of depositing $350 more in his bank account on Monday, once the deed was done. Bruce seethed. Im gonna be out of town. The matriarch of the family, Bonnie Harkey aka The Pecan Queen, was murdered. There were weevils and caterpillars and webworms. He willed it to Connie, while the other two groves were to go to John and Bruce, so that all three kids would have their own orchards someday. Her body was eventually discovered 200 miles east, in a rural area in Leon County. We didnt know he had stolen them, said Shawn Oliver. Bonnie Heakins Harkey is on Facebook. View 12 photos $1,107,711 5 Beds 6 Baths 2454 sqft. When Bonnie and Karen got home, he texted Lillian, who was to come back and ring the doorbell, serving as a distraction while he tiptoed into Bonnies bedroom. He and Lillian were out in Normangee, four hours east of San Saba, staying at a campground. House in Tourcoing, Hauts-de-France, France Contact. Mesa, Az. Two years after the murders of Bonnie Harkey, 85, and her caretaker, Karen Johnson, the last two suspects involved in their deaths have been sentenced. That summer the couple left San Saba and moved to Lubbock,where, like his siblings, Bruce enrolled at Texas Tech. I didnt have a damn thing to do with harming that woman in any way, Bruce Harkey said in a phone call with KXAN. I dont feel guilty because Carls not a human being. Local columnist Lindy Lieban Schulz voiced the collective unease. Her pecan-based desserts were legendary, often earning her first place at the countys pecan food show and a front-page mention in theSan Saba News & Star. He got married and divorced two more timesa daughter was born in 1982and then returned to Texas, where in 1987 he snagged a plum position in the Texas attorney generals office investigating Medicaid fraud and nursing home abuse. 2023 National City and Regional Magazine Awards Finalists Announced, Texas Monthly Receives a Nod From the American Bar Association, HBO Max Releases Official Trailer for Love & Death, Step Aside, Perrys: This 30-Ounce Smoked Pork Chop Is Ready to Take the Crown, Willie Nelsons Son Lukas on Ancient Texts, Pearl Jam, and I Never Cared for You, Love and Death in Silicon Prairie, Part I: Candy Montgomerys Affair, I Biked the I-35 Hell Route From Austin to San Antonio So You Dont Have To, Texas-Style Pulled Pork Is Embarrassing, The Astrodomes Decline From Eighth Wonder to Eighth Blunder of the World, 15 Treasure-Filled Spots to Antique in Small-town Texas, Mosquito Hawks Are Flitting All Over Texas, Matthew McConaughey Is Monetizing His Whole Vibe, Love and Death in Silicon Prairie, Part II: The Killing of Betty Gore. She was 85. Wearing his thin, light-blue coveralls, Riley dispensed tips on everything from soil drainage and fertilization techniques to how many grazing sheep to allow in the groves and how to stave off pecan scab, a type of fungus that looks like a horticultural syphilis. 1:20 Cold Justice Kelly Siegler Meets with . Bruce and John, however, with their inheritance in sight, had already begun some wrangling over the property. How is it, if Im the mastermind, that I established an alibi before I planned the crime? said Bruce. But he dont care about anybody but himself.. April 24, 2015. IE 11 is not supported. It also uncovered a dark tale of family, greed, and hate. . [The doctor] had given us explicit instructions not to feed this baby and put him down with nobody around. (Bonnies niece Teresa contests this view.
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