Unsolved Murders: Christopher Stanback - Part II

Results of the initial autopsy indicated Chris Stanback had died of head trauma, but offered few clues as to the murderer. Many speculated that the mutilation included castration, making it a very personal crime.

Chris' brother Harold, nicknamed Rudy, was a known drug dealer. The two brothers bore more than a slight resemblance to each other; was it a case of mistaken identity? Just two weeks before his death, Chris had been apprehended in Cullman with a group of older drug dealers. Since Chris had refused to claim the confiscated drugs, was his murder in retaliation?

Perhaps the most bizarre rumor concerned the involvement of prominent Florence officials. It had been widely reported that Chris was dating the daughter of a high ranking city employee. Everyone close to the situation knew this single father had expressed grave concerns about the relationship. Had this official recruited police chief Rick Thompson to help him dispose of the problem?

Weeks turned into months, and there was still no answer to the mystery of Chris' death. Various local officials offered a $10,000.00 reward in the case, and Chris' uncle promised a matching amount if anyone could help solve the crime. Eventually local police asked the FBI to investigate, calling it a possible hate crime. Years passed, and officials were still no closer to an answer.

The Stanback family remained determined to bring the murderer to justice. Hearing that Chris' age classified the crime as a child murder, they asked the Center for Missing and Exploited Children to enter the case. In April 2003, Chris Stanback's body was exhumed for a second autopsy, but the results offered no new evidence. Several Florence police officers took polygraph tests at this time; all of them passed. The investigation was back to square one.

Currently, the Alabama Bureau of Investigation is in charge of the Stanback murder, considering it one of their top priorities. Teresa Stanback still places reward posters around the area and hopes that someone will come forward after fourteen years. She laments that her son's grave has been repeatedly vandalized. Some days it's hard for her to find the strength to go on, but she has never given up hope.

This case has often been compared to that of Emmitt Till, the young black man murdered in 1950s Mississippi. Emmitt's murderers were eventually found; let's hope Chris' are too.


What's up with this: Quinn Ranch, a home for orphaned and problem boys in Red Bay, is sponsoring a deer hunt for the youths in January. Who came up with the idea of teaching these troubled boys how to use guns?