Charles Albright: The Eyeball Killer
The Eyeball Killer:AccusedCharles Albright·VictimsMary Pratt·Susan Peterson·Shirley Williams
Case at a glance
- When
- December 1990 – March 1991
- Where
- Oak Cliff, Dallas, Texas
- Perpetrator
- Charles Frederick Albright
- Outcome
- Convicted of Shirley Williams’s murder in 1991 and sentenced to life; died in custody on August 22, 2020
The case
Between December 1990 and March 1991, three women were shot to death in the Oak Cliff area of Dallas, Texas: Mary Lou Pratt, 33, on December 13; Susan Peterson, 27, on February 10; and Shirley Williams on March 10. All three had worked as prostitutes. In each case the killer had removed the victim’s eyes with a precision that suggested a practiced hand.
Two patrol officers and a deputy constable traced the attacks to Charles Albright, a 57-year-old Dallas man and former teacher with a long interest in taxidermy. He was arrested on March 22, 1991. Forensic analysts matched hairs found on Shirley Williams to Albright and tied animal hairs from his vacuum cleaner bag to her raincoat.
Prosecutors tried Albright only for the murder of Shirley Williams. In December 1991 a jury found him guilty, and he was sentenced to life in prison. The other two cases were never brought to trial. Albright denied the killings for the rest of his life and died on August 22, 2020, at age 87, while in custody at a prison medical facility in Lubbock, Texas.
Case photographs
Where it happened
Oak Cliff, the Dallas area where the three women were killed
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Jason Neal has been writing true crime since 2019 and is the author of the True Crime Case Histories book series.
The full written account of this case is in True Crime Case Histories: Volume 8: Book · Paperback · Audiobook