Samuel Little is a name that doesn’t come up nearly enough when talking about true crime, but as blerds, we all have those different fandoms we appreciate—some more extreme than others. One of those fandoms, horror, is usually divided into several branches, and serial killers are a major one. In speaking to several different groups of people, I’ve realized that I am absolutely not alone in my enjoyment of learning about different serial killers, not just in the U.S. but all over the world. Criminal Minds and this new comic book I found from Dark Horse Comics called Those Not Afraid have only fueled my interest. It’s kind of bad. But hey, judgment-free zone here!
Who Was Samuel Little?
One thing that interests me about the serial killer I’m going to present to you is the fact that no matter what it is, our people have to outdo literally everybody. So I am here to talk about Samuel Little. Samuel is now considered the most prolific serial killer in United States history, due to the confirmed number of victims. He was born in 1940 and allegedly started his killing spree in 1960. By the FBI’s official account, he began in 1970. The thing is, he started committing random crimes as early as the mid-1950s when he was convicted of breaking and entering while he was in Nebraska.
The Crimes of Samuel Little
By 1975, he had been arrested no less than 26 times, which is actually insane because he never ended up staying in prison! He was arrested and jailed in 11 states for various crimes, including attacking government officials. If that isn’t someone on the path to ultimate self-destruction, I don’t know what is. Literally 11 states, and no one was like, MAYBE we shouldn’t let this guy out?
Moving forward—picture it: Mississippi, 1982. He was facing charges for the murder of a 22-year-old woman named Melinda LaPree, and the grand jury declined to indict him for her murder. Simultaneously, he was under investigation and then extradited to Florida for the murder of another woman, Patricia Mount. Was he convicted? Absolutely not. Why not? Well, the witnesses couldn’t be trusted, so he was acquitted in 1984. Is this LUCK? What is happening?!
How Did Samuel Little Avoid Capture for So Long?
New Year, 1984—he moved to San Diego. Well, at least the vicinity of the city. He was arrested for the attempted murder of one woman named Laurie, who survived. A month later, he was found with another woman in his back seat, whom he took to the same place of the first attempted murder. Thank goodness the police got him. But not actually. Even though he almost killed them, he only got two and a half years in prison. When he got out in ‘87, he moved to Los Angeles and IMMEDIATELY killed 10 more people.
FINALLY, the horror ended in 2012 when he was arrested in Kentucky and extradited to California to face charges. But not for murder—no. For drugs! But interestingly enough, when they ran his DNA, three more murders popped up. Please, someone, GET THIS MAN! His DNA ended up being tested in 93 murders and confirmed in 60 of them. 60. Back in 2014, he was found guilty of eight murders. In 2018, he just decided he was too bored and came clean about 11 more murders from 1978 to 1996. At some point, the FBI got fed up and was like, “Yeah, he’s the absolute worst we’ve ever seen. Give him an award at this point.” They officially declared him the most prolific serial killer in U.S. history.
The Dark Legacy of America’s Worst Serial Killer
Listen, when people bring up serial killers, they always bring up the Big 3 like Marvel and DC: Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, and John Wayne Gacy. Sometimes they even include Jack the Ripper, The Zodiac, and Albert Fish, but be serious—this man, Samuel Little, saw their numbers and was like, “Hold my beer.” 93 murders, 60 confirmed, and they were still confirming before he died back in 2020 because he drew 23-26 pictures of victims they were still trying to match.
Now, you could say his upbringing had something to do with this because he was raised by a prostitute, and several of his murders were also prostitutes. But when you really think about it, it is almost like he randomly decided that all the crimes he was committing previously were so boring he just went straight to murder. There wasn’t a rhyme or reason—it was just that he wanted to kill someone. And he did. Several someones. 93 someones.
Not saying murder is cool, but whenever we as a people see a chance to up the score on someone, we do. And we do it in the most insane way possible. This should definitely be studied and talked about more. The reason I brought that comic book up earlier is because he reminded me so much of the Black man in the story that is competing with another serial killer who happens to be white. Up until they both get arrested, he had the body count to put his competition to shame and make him step it up.
Is it in our DNA to just be better than everybody in everything? Probably. Imagine going 40 years without ACTUALLY getting caught and then deciding on your own terms to become the scariest thing the FBI and U.S. history books have ever seen in terms of a singular man. I’m just saying.
The Impact of Samuel Little on Blerd History
Samuel Little’s story isn’t just another tale of a serial killer—it’s a wild, unsettling chapter in Blerd history that deserves more attention. When we talk about true crime, we often hear the same names over and over, but Little’s case proves that sometimes the most dangerous figures fly under the radar for far too long. His reign of terror lasted decades, and his ability to evade capture raises serious questions about how society values certain victims over others. If anything, his case is a grim reminder that real-life horror can be more terrifying than fiction.
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