Kendall Francois

Kendall Francois
Mugshot of Francois
Born	(1971-07-26)July 26, 1971 Poughkeepsie, New York, U.S.
Died	September 11, 2014(2014-09-11) (aged 43) Wende Correctional Facility, Alden, New York, U.S.
Other names	"The Poughkeepsie Killer"
Criminal status	Deceased
Conviction(s)	First degree murder (8 counts)
Criminal penalty	Life imprisonment without parole
Details
Victims	Wendy Meyers (30) October 1996 Gina Barone (29) November 1996 Catherine Marsh (31) and her unborn child November 1996 Kathleen Hurley (47) January 1997 Mary Healey Giaccone (29) February 1997 Sandra Jean French (51) June 1998 Audrey Pugliese (34) August 1998 Catina Newmaster (25) August 1998
Span of crimes	October 1996 – August 26, 1998
Country	United States
State(s)	New York
Date apprehended	September 2, 1998

Kendall Francois (July 26, 1971 – September 11, 2014) was a femicide serial killer from Poughkeepsie, New York, convicted of murdering eight women, from 1996 to 1998. The women were between ages 25 and 51.

Early years

Francois wrestled and played football at Arlington High School. Upon graduation in 1989, he enlisted in the United States Army, where he completed basic training at Fort Sill. After four years in the Army, Francois was discharged due to obesity issues. He returned to New York, and enrolled at Dutchess Community College as a liberal arts major.

Student monitor at Arlington Middle School

Francois took a job as a student monitor at Arlington Middle School while attending DCC. His stench earned him the nickname “Stinky” from the students. Despite his smell, it was noted that he tended to make inappropriate sexual jokes with female students while touching their hair.

Killing spree

The first three victims were sex workers for whom Francois was a repeat customer. The women shared similar physical appearances, caucasian, slight build, dark hair. He picked up the first victim, 30 year old Wendy Meyers, at the local Valley Rest Motel on October 24, 1996. During intercourse, Francois began strangling Meyers. Meyers became unconscious but had managed to remain alive. Francois then proceeded in his act of murder by placing Meyers face down in a bathtub. Francois held Meyers down until she died. A month later, (November 29), Francois murdered a 29 year old woman Gina Barone in his vehicle. Days later, he murdered the third victim, Cathy Marsh, who was pregnant at the time of her murder. The bodies of the three women were placed side by side in the attic of his home on 99 Fulton Street, in which, Francois lived with his parents and younger sister.

Marsh was not reported missing until March 7, 1997, by which time, Francois had already murdered the fourth & fifth victims, 47 year old Kathleen Hurley & 29 year old Mary Healey Giaccone (Giaccone was not reported missing until November 13). Poughkeepsie Police Department Detective Bill Siegrist inquired with the Neighborhood Recovery Unit (the department's narcotic unit). It was reported back to Lt. Siegrist that some of the female sex workers on Main Street complained about a local man (Francois) who was rough with them and was violent during intercourse.

Francois was known by local law enforcement for assaulting sex workers. Detectives began surveilling Francois' home, and had a wired sex worker meet with Francois. Little useful information was obtained, however, they noticed that Francois had a routine. In the morning, he would drive his mother to her work at a nearby psychiatric rehabilitation center where she was a nurse in the family vehicle. He would then drive through the streets of downtown Poughkeepsie.

In early January 1998, Poughkeepsie Police interviewed Francois about the missing women, but were unsuccessful in making a conviction. Later that month, Francois was arrested for assaulting a woman. The victim was a female sex worker. Francois was disputing paying the victim for her services. Francois punched her in the face, knocking her down onto the bed, then got on top of the victim and began to strangle her. Francois was arrested, and on May 5, he pled guilty to third-degree assault, it was ruled as a misdemeanor for which he spent only 15 days in jail.

June 1998 Francois murdered the sixth confirmed victim, 51 year old Sandra Jean French. French was reported missing on June 12 in Dover, New York. French's car was found abandoned in Poughkeepsie, just three blocks from the Francois home. On August 26, 25 year old Catina Newmaster vanished. Like all of the other confirmed victims, Newmaster was caucasian, slight of build, brunette and was last seen alive in downtown Poughkeepsie.

Arrest

On September 1, 1998, Francois brought a local woman named Christine Sala to his home. Francois pulled the car into the garage and demanded sex from Sala. After Sala told Francois no, Francois punched Sala in the face and held Sala by her throat. Francois then pulled Sala out of the car by her hair and demanded that Sala perform oral sex on him, repeatedly saying “I’ll kill you, I’ll kill you.”

After Francois violently raped Christine Sala, Sala managed to convince Francois to drive her back to Main Street where he had picked her up. They got into his car and drove to a local Sunoco station, but just before pulling in, Sala jumped from the car and ran away. Detectives Skip Mannain & Bob McCready happened to be in the area handing out flyers about the Catina Newmaster disappearance. Witness Deborah Lownsdale approached their unmarked police car, and told them that a woman, who was now walking away, said that she was just assaulted. The detectives located Sala, who confirmed the attack. Sala was brought into the police station where she filed a complaint against Francois.

Police returned to Francois' home that day to talk with him about his attack upon Sala. Francois agreed to go to the police department headquarters to discuss the report. Over the next few hours, Francois eventually made many admissions regarding the disappearance of the women. He was arrested and charged with a single count of murder in the death of Catina Newmaster. A search warrant was drawn up & signed, and after midnight, a team of detectives, the district attorney, EMS crews, crime scene processors & police officers entered the Francois home at 99 Fulton Street.

99 Fulton Street

Police reports indicate that the rooms and hallways were filled with garbage, and the inside of the house smelled putrid. Empty bottles, rotting food, piles of clothes, old newspapers and broken furniture were strewn everywhere. The cabinets, sinks and closets were also filled with junk. The stench was so overpowering that investigators had to put on anti-putrefaction masks before entering the property.

One of the bodies discovered in the house was 34 year old Audrey Pugliese, who had not been reported missing, bringing the confirmed death toll to eight.

Trial & sentence

On September 9, 1998, Francois entered a plea of "not guilty" before Judge Thomas J. Dolan in Dutchess County Court. In his next appearance on October 13, he was formally charged with eight counts of first-degree murder, eight counts of second-degree murder and one count of attempted assault.

On December 23, Francois' lawyer attempted to enter a guilty plea before District Attorney William V. Grady could formally file his intent to seek the death penalty. Judge Dolan originally declined to allow Francois to enter such a plea. The defense team appealed the decision and the matter headed over to the State Court of Appeals. The Appeals Court ruled to allow the guilty plea.

Francois showed no emotion and presented as being detached from the proceedings. Francois showed little remorse during his trial, and he commented that “Killing seemed easier than getting into a relationship.” On August 7. 2000, Francois was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole after pleading guilty to eight counts of first degree murder and eight counts of second. The plea agreement allowed him to avoid a possible death sentence.

Francois was incarcerated in Attica Correctional Facility until shortly before his death. He died in the Wende Correctional Facility on September 11, 2014, at the age of 43. The official cause of death was "AIDS related illness,” as it was revealed in his trial in 2000 that he tested positive for HIV/AIDS in 1995, the year before his first confirmed murder. T

Victims

Name	Age	Date of death
Wendy Meyers	30	c. October 1996
Gina Barone	29	c. November 1996
Catherine Marsh	31	c. November 1996
Kathleen Hurley	47	c. January 1997
Mary Healey Giaccone	29	c. February 1997
Sandra Jean French	51	c. June 1998
Audrey Pugliese	34	c. August 1998
Catina Newmaster	25	c. August 1998

On October 9, 1997, 27 year old female sex worker Michelle Eason was reported missing in the city of Poughkeepsie. Unlike the victims she was of African American decent. She was last seen alive in the downtown area. Francois denied killing her, he said he did know her and he was never charged in her disappearance. Her case remains unsolved.

See also

• List of serial killers in the United States

Further reading

• Rosen, Fred (July 1, 2015). Body Dump: Kendall Francois, the Poughkeepsie Serial Killer. Open Road Media. ISBN 9781504022644.
• Rowe, Claudia (2017). The Spider and the Fly. HarperLuxe. ISBN 978-0062497628