In July of 1964 the Parsons siblings were found dead in a closet
In Episode 72, Suburban Murder – Locked in a Closet, we take a look at the life of the three Parson’s siblings. William, Hilda, and Lenore were brutally beaten, robbed and left in a closet to die. Learn about their lives and what led up to the unsolved murders that are still on the Livonia Police Department’s Cold Case list sixty years later.
William, Hilda, and Lenore
Below is a collection of newspaper articles, documents and the actual crime scene photos from 1964.
Thank you to the Livonia Police Department for helping out with police reports and crime scene photos.
The Early Years
Both Lenore and William were called to Camp Custer in 1918. William went to France with the 85th but didn’t see any action.
In 1919 Lenore and Hilda graduated from Nichols Memorial Hospital. William returned from France after WWI ended. The following year Hilda married William Whitwright.
The Move from Battle Creek to Livonia
In 1936, the Parsons siblings and Hilda’s husband all moved into the house on Melrose in Livonia. William also spent a lot of time hunting and opened his chiropractic office in Detroit, Michigan.
The Extortion of William Parsons
In 1948 William Parsons became the victim of an elaborate extortion scheme. In 1949 he helped send four men to prison.
Criminal Abortion Charges
In the early 1960’s William Parsons got caught helping perform 2 separate abortions. He was given a sentence of 2.5 to 4 years. He ended up serving a year and a half.
The Murder of the Parsons – July 24th, 1964
The police negatives from 1964 were in black and white. In some cases I have colorized them.
The Parsons home. Note the giant antlers in the backyard. No doubt a trophy from one of William’s many hunting expeditions.
The sign for Lenore and Hilda’s home-based chiropractor business. Viewable from Elmira.
Inside 11040 Melrose
The Parsons’ kitchen table. Dried out tomatoes in the bowl. Place settings for three people. Thursday evening dinner that was interrupted. The blood stain on the kitchen floor. By the time police arrived it was dried. Blood dripped down from the closet above.
The other room on the main floor. Completely torn apart. What were the assailants looking for? In the photo you can see the Parsons siblings various certificates.
The photo on the bottom left shows the stairway to the basement. The door to the right is the room where they put their pet German Shepherd whenever a guest would come over. It was still in there when police arrived three days later.
The closet door that the three Parsons siblings were locked behind. The assailants were most likely unaware that William was still alive when they placed the bodies inside the closet. The photo on the far left shows the front of the door. In the middle and right you see the back of the door. The blood and the dents are from William trying to escape. As are the bent wire coat hangers. Why the door has vent holes drilled in the top and bottom is unknown.
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