On December 22, 1987, Ronald Gene Simmons began a killing spree that would become the worst massacre in Arkansas history as well as the deadliest domestic crime in the history of the United States. His murderous rampage ended six days later, leaving fourteen members of his family and two former coworkers dead.

Join us at the quiet end for The Christmas Vacation Massacre. Gene Simmons was a nightmare from early on in his marriage.  He went from controlling but hard-working military man, to wife beater, to incestuous father, and, in the end, to a merciless mass murderer.

Sources

Arkansas Man Sentenced to Death for Killing 14 Members of his Family, Deseret News, 2/12/1989.

The Devil of Pope County: America’s Worst Family Massacre Podcast, Tony Holt, 2023

Ronald Gene Simmons, 1940-1990, Encyclopedia of Arkansas, retrieved 12/12/2023

Zero at the Bone: Story of Gene Simmons Mass Murder, Marshall & Williams, 1991.