Marvin Lee Irvin
Murderer
Ervil LeBaron
Murderer · USA · 1972
Ervil Morrell LeBaron (1925 to August 16, 1981) was the leader of a polygamous…
35 victims
Brian Kevin Rosenfeld
Murderer · USA · 1985
Brian Kevin Rosenfeld Brian Kevin Rosenfeld was sentenced to three concurrent l…
23 victims
Marvin Gray
Murderer · USA · 1975
Marvin Gray was convicted killer who claimed responsibility for 23 slayings and…
23 victims
Yahweh ben Yahweh
Murderer · USA · 1980
Yahweh ben Yahweh was born and legally named Hulon Mitchell Jr. (October 27, 19…
23 victims
Rodolfo Alvarez Medrano
Mass murderer · 2002
Rodolfo Alvarez Medrano (a/k/a "Kreeper") provided assault weapons used by fell…
10 victims
Mark Allen Davis
Murderer · USA · 1985
Mark Allen Davis was indicted in the Sixth Judicial Circuit, Pinellas County. T…
1 victim
Lemaricus Davidson
Murderer · USA · 2007
January 7, 2007 — Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom were kidnapped, late…
2 victims
Anne Louise Gordon
Murderer · USA · 2002
Anne Louise Gordon was sentenced to life in prison without parole on July 17, 2…
2 victims
Robert Leach
Murderer · USA · 1999
Robert L. Leach, Jr. was convicted in a capital case of two counts of first deg…
2 victims
Misty Witherspoon
Murderer · USA · 2005
Misty Witherspoon — defendant; her husband was Quinn Witherspoon (a Concord Pol…
1 victim
- Gender
- male
- Country
- USA
- Location
- St. Joseph, Missouri, USA
- Date of birth
- 1950
- Age at first offence
- 29
- Characteristics
- —
- Victim profile
- Women
- Method of murder
- Shooting / Stabbing with knife
- Date(s) of murder
- 1979 / 1990
- Years active
- 1979–1990
- Date of arrest
- 1991
- Status
-
Life imprisonment
Sentenced to life imprisonment, 1991
Case record: Marvin Lee Irvin
Other details
Marvin Lee Irvin was a former police officer.
Background
West was last seen as leaving St. Joseph State Hospital in St. Joseph, Missouri, on September 11, 1979, where she worked as a nurse's aide. She never made it to the bus stop and has never been heard from again. Prior to her disappearance, West had been threatened.
West had been a friend of Marvin Lee Irvin’s first wife.
Marvin Lee Irvin confessed to West's murder in 1991.
Investigation
Marvin Lee Irvin had been investigated as a suspect shortly after West's disappearance, and West's family believed he was involved. Irvin passed a polygraph and there was little evidence to implicate him.
Police later admitted they made mistakes in the investigation, including failing to search Irvin's vehicle.
A search turned up the bodies of Irvin’s other victims, but there was no sign of West.
Confession and modus operandi
Irvin stated he had stabbed West four times in the chest as she sat in his car. He stated he buried her body in a cornfield in Highland, Kansas.
Irvin also confessed to killing two other women in 1990 and burying them in the same field.
Trial
Irvin pleaded guilty to the other two homicides.
Sentencing
Irvin received a sentence described as “100-year. minimum on plea to three counts” in 1991, and he was serving a sentence of life in prison.
Outcome
Irvin has never been charged in West's case, which remains unsolved.
Timeline
- September 11, 1979 — West was last seen leaving St. Joseph State Hospital in St. Joseph, Missouri.
- 1990 — Irvin confessed to killing two other women and burying them in the same field.
- 1991 — Irvin confessed to West’s murder and pleaded guilty to the other two homicides; he received a sentence described as “100-year. minimum on plea to three counts” and was serving a sentence of life in prison.
Spotted an error, or have more information about this case?