Jeffrey Dillingham

Case record: Jeffrey Dillingham

Status and sentence

Jeffrey Dillingham was executed by lethal injection in Texas on November 1, 2000.

Timeline

• March 12, 1992 — Jeffrey Dillingham and Brian Dennis Salter entered the Fort Worth residence of Jack and Karen Koslow and attacked them with a steel pry bar and a hunting knife.
• Two weeks after March 12, 1992 — Dillingham was arrested after a friend helped him get rid of evidence and confessed to police; Dillingham confessed and implicated Salter and Kristi Koslow.
• February 14, 1996 — The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed Dillingham's conviction and death sentence.
• October 7, 1996 — The United States Supreme Court denied Dillingham's petition for writ of certiorari.
• February 18, 1998 — The Tarrant County trial court recommended that relief be denied based on a state habeas application filed by Dillingham.
• April 18, 1998 — The Court of Criminal Appeals denied relief based on the trial court's finding.
• October 13, 1998 — The Supreme Court denied relief based on action of the Court of Criminal Appeals.
• September 29, 1999 — A federal district court denied Dillingham's writ of habeas corpus.
• April 18, 2000 — The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of Dillingham's habeas relief.
• October 2, 2000 — The United States Supreme Court denied writ of certiorari.
• November 1, 2000 — The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles rejected requests for commutation, a pardon, and a reprieve; Dillingham was executed by lethal injection in Texas, pronounced dead at 6:28 p.m.

Background

In March 1992, Dillingham and his friend Brian Dennis Salter, both 19, were hired by 17-year-old Kristi Koslow to murder her parents. Kristi did not get along with them after her father remarried.

The offence

Dillingham and Salter entered the upscale Fort Worth residence of Jack and Karen Koslow using a code provided by their daughter Kristi. The alarm system was disarmed, and the intruders came in through a rear entrance. The Koslows were asleep.

Following the floor plan given to them by Kristi, the intruders went into the master bedroom and began attacking Jack and Karen Koslow. Jack Koslow ran to his closet to fetch a shotgun, but he did not get it loaded in time to defend himself. Both were forced to lie on the floor. Dillingham beat the Koslows with a steel pry bar. Brian Salter slashed their throats with a hunting knife.

After the attack, the intruders stole Mr. Koslow's wallet, $200 in cash, and a wrist watch worth $1,600. Karen Koslow, 40, died at the scene. Jack Koslow was beaten into unconsciousness and left for dead, but later regained consciousness, staggered to a neighbor's house, and called police.

The plan was to murder the Koslows so that Kristi, Jack Koslow's daughter, would inherit their money. Both Dillingham and Salter were to get a share of the money after the murders, with Dillingham's share over $1 million. Testimony showed Kristi offered the men $1,000,000 for the murders and that she stood to inherit $12,000,000.

Caren Koslow suffered 29 wounds, mostly blows to her neck from the pry bar, and died at the scene. The slashing of her neck nearly decapitated her.

Investigation and evidence

Police initially suspected Jack Koslow of murdering his wife. A tip was later received from a friend of Dillingham, who assisted in disposing of the murder weapon. Dillingham was arrested after a friend of his confessed to police about helping Dillingham get rid of evidence. Dillingham confessed to police about the murder and the involvement of the friend who helped dispose of evidence, and he implicated Salter and Kristi Koslow.

Dillingham told police that he tried to plan the killings as best he could because he did not "want to get caught." The friend who helped dispose of evidence told police about the murder and Dillingham's involvement. Brian Salter also confessed to police, implicating Dillingham.

Trial

Jeffrey Dillingham was tried first. He rejected a plea bargain and did not make a plea bargain similar to Salter's. Dillingham was convicted of capital murder and was sentenced to death.

Dillingham wept nonstop throughout his trial.

Kristi Koslow was convicted of capital murder, but the jury spared her from the death penalty by giving her a life sentence. Salter and Kristi both received life sentences and were eligible for parole in about 27 years. Salter was offered a life sentence in return for his testimony. Kristi's jury chose a life sentence instead of the death penalty.

At Kristi Koslow's trial, her father testified that he favored giving her the death sentence, and outside the jury's presence her father testified he favored giving her the death sentence.

Brian Salter testified that they were offered $1,000,000 for the murders by Kristi, who told them she stood to inherit $12,000,000. Testimony showed she wanted them dead because she did not get along with them after her father remarried.

Jack Koslow testified at his daughter's trial and described the attack and aftermath. The testimony included that he remembered "the whole world turning black," and that he remembered him beating him and beating him until he did not remember any more. He later emerged from unconsciousness to stumble to a neighbor's home for help. He suffered blind spots for months and still bore a large scar on his throat.

Robert Mayfield, one of the Tarrant County prosecutors who worked to convict Dillingham, later described the crime scene as a "veritable blood bath." Mayfield also described Dillingham's confession as "so unemotional," and provided the following account of what Dillingham said:

"She was screaming and I hit her with the pry bar and she continued to scream and I hit her in the throat and then she laid down and let it pass."

Mayfield also described Dillingham's reasoning as a cost-effective analysis, including that "stepping over 2 bodies was nothing."

Sentencing and appeals

Dillingham's conviction and death sentence were affirmed by the Court of Criminal Appeals on February 14, 1996.

The United States Supreme Court denied Dillingham's petition for writ of certiorari on October 7, 1996.

The Tarrant County trial court recommended relief be denied based on the state habeas application filed by Dillingham on February 18, 1998. The Court of Criminal Appeals denied relief based on the trial court's finding on April 18, 1998. The Supreme Court denied relief based on action of the Court of Criminal Appeals on October 13, 1998.

A federal district court denied Dillingham's writ of habeas corpus on September 29, 1999. The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial on April 18, 2000. The United States Supreme Court denied writ of certiorari on October 2, 2000.

Dillingham's chief appeal strategy was to protest that he received the death penalty while the other defendants did not. Each of his eight appeals to state and federal courts was rejected.

Two members of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles voted to reduce his sentence to life in prison, but they were outvoted by the other 16 members.

Outcome

The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles rejected requests for commutation, a pardon, and a reprieve. Dillingham was executed by lethal injection on November 1, 2000. He was pronounced dead at 6:28 p.m.

Final statement and execution remarks

In his final statement, Dillingham said:

"I would just like to apologize to the victims of the family for what I did. I take full responsibility for that poor woman's death, for the pain and suffering I inflicted on Mr. Koslow."

He then offered a prayer, including:

"Father, I want to thank you for all of the beautiful people you put in my life. I could not have asked for two greater parents than you gave me. I could just ask for two greater people in their life now. It is a blessing that there are people that they love so much but even more so, people that I love so much. I thank you for all the things you have done in my life, for the ways that you have opened my eyes, softened my heart. The ways that you have taught me. For teaching me how to love, for all of the bad things you have taken out of my life. For all the good things you have added to it. I thank you for all the beautiful promises that you make us in your word, and I graciously received every one of them. Thank you Heavenly Father for getting me off of death row and for bringing me home out of prison. I love you Heavenly Father, I love you Jesus. Thank you both for loving me. Amen."

Aftermath and related inmates

Brian Salter and Kristi Koslow became eligible for parole in 2027.

Jack Koslow sold the 2-story brick house with large shutters, trimmed hedges and a brick sidewalk. He still lived in Fort Worth and had remarried. He still bore a scar on his throat from the night he was attacked, and some friends said he had no lingering injuries from the attack besides the scar.

No one from the victim's family was present at the execution. Outside the execution site, about a dozen demonstrators held candles during a steady downpour. Dillingham's father, his father's fiancée, and his stepfather were led in prayer during the execution by two spiritual advisers. Dillingham had declined interviews with the media while on death row.

Other details

• Dillingham had no prior criminal history.
• Dillingham was 27 at the time of execution.
• Dillingham worked in a video store and had been a former honor student.
• The victims and defendants were white.
• Dillingham was an adult with full mental competence at the time of his crime.
• Dillingham was represented by a court-appointed attorney, and the quality of his legal counsel was never questioned.
• The Texas Attorney General media advisory scheduled Dillingham to be executed after 6 p.m. on Wednesday, November 1st.
• The Texas Execution Information Center stated that he was executed for the murder-for-hire of a 40-year-old woman.