On this date in 1933, the bound and mutilated body of outlaw Verne Miller was found just outside Detroit, MI. Miller, the chief suspect in the Kansas City Massacre, was a decorated World War I veteran and former lawman. After a short stint as sheriff of Beadle County, SD, Miller turned to a life of crime. He started out in bootlegging, then moved on to robbery. Eventually he wound up as a trigger man for organized crime. The list of people with motives to kill him was long, but Miller’s murder was never solved.
Further reading:
Wikipedia: Vernon C. Miller
FBI Famous Cases – Kansas City Massacre /”Pretty Boy” Floyd
Vern Miller—Sheriff, Moonshiner, Hit-man
Lawman to Outlaw: Verne Miller and the Kansas City Massacre, by Brad Smith
Public Enemies: America’s Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933-34, by Bryan Burrough
Nobody Move! 
Reblogged this on Brittius and commented:
Verne Miller, was more interesting than most of the Golden Era of Gangsters upper echelon. Two factors of note, are that Miller was a decorated WW1 veteran, meaning, he had hands-on combat experience and handled himself under extreme stress, and, a law enforcement background, where he knew, what the law element was thinking and knew, their next moves. Having gone bad, a combat veteran with law enforcement background, is one of the worst nightmares for police.
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Yeah, he was probably the most dangerous of the lot back then. I’d say a close second would be Baby Face Nelson, who was just plain crazy.
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Correct. Nelson was psychotic.
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John D.:
Yeah, Verne got on the wrong side of his “former employer”, that’s for sure.
Also read where he used to be a pretty good “wheel-man” to boot.
A very good story that needs to be told to complete the history of the gangster era in America.
Roll safe.
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He was a talented guy. Shame he went over to the dark side.
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