James Ray Cable
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James Ray Cable | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1948 La Grange, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Died | December 3, 2013 (aged 64–65) |
| Convictions | |
| Criminal penalty | 300 years imprisonment |
| Details | |
| Victims | 4–6+ |
Span of crimes | 1977–1990 |
| Country | United States |
| State | Kentucky |
Date apprehended | For the final time on April 26, 1990 |
James Ray Cable (1948 – December 3, 2013) was an American serial killer and rapist who, from 1977 to 1989, killed at least one man and three women in the state of Kentucky.[1]
Little is known about Cable's childhood. Born in La Grange, Kentucky in 1948, he was first arrested in 1971, on accusations of raping a 7-year-old girl in Owensboro.[2] Later that year a jury convicted and sentenced him to life imprisonment. Just under a year later, on June 11, 1972, Cable escaped from the Kentucky State Reformatory but was caught later that same day, leading to his receiving an escape conviction.[2]
In April 1977, 35-year-old Willie S. Daniels, who was serving a life sentence for manslaughter and two counts of robbery, was attacked by Cable in the prison's gym. Cable proceeded to strike Daniels with a steel rod across his head. Daniels was rushed to the prison's hospital where he died as a result of his injuries.[3] Cable was convicted of first degree manslaughter the following year and had 10 years added to his sentence.[4]
Release and kidnapping conviction
Three years later, Cable was paroled.[2] In 1983, Cable was returned to prison for violating his parole. He was once again released in early 1986. In 1988, he returned to prison for violating a court order prohibiting contact with his estranged wife.[2]
On April 5, 1990, Cable, along with accomplice Phillip Clopton, kidnapped a 15-year-old Louisville girl. They drove her to a campsite deep into the woods, where they both raped her before tying her to a tree.[5] Cable briefly left the area to meet with his parole officer while Clopton stayed. Over the next three weeks, both would continuously rape, whip, and assault the girl.[5] On April 26, Clopton was alone with the girl but forgot to chain her up, leading to her stealing his gun, shooting and killing him, and running away.[6] She escaped the woods and alerted authorities, leading to Cable's arrest.
The girl told authorities that Cable and Clopton had confessed to killing teens Sherry Wilson and Bridgett Allen, both 14 and missing since January 25.[5] After Clopton's death, his diary was searched, and it was found to contain evidence of Cable's confessing to him that he killed Helen Booth, 24, in 1989.[6] It also linked Cable to a severed arm that had been found that March.[7] At the time, Cable could not be conclusively linked to the murder; however, he was convicted and sentenced to 300 years in prison on the kidnapping and rape charges.[8]