Remembering Patty Papay

 

Hopes and Dreams

Patty Papay had two dreams in life: to be a great wife and a great mother. Patty’s first dream came true when she married Pete Papay. Her second dream was fulfilled when she had her two children, Heather and Eric. Patty loved being a wife and mother. Patty would often be seen pulling Heather and Eric to the church or park in their favorite wagon. Patty cherished her time with her children and the three of them were inseparable. In addition to being a great mom, Patty was the type of person who would help anyone in need. Many described her as a kind soul who often went out of her way to help others. When Patty met a troubled young girl named Ruth Hooper, her caring nature again took hold. She befriended the young woman and gave her a job as a babysitter for Heather and Eric. Ruth Hooper would repay Patty by stealing her husband and then killing her.

Calculated Evil

By the time Ruth Hooper met Patty Papay, she had already had a very troubled life. She lived with her grandparents and her mother, and had no contact with any of her siblings. Ruth also had serious mental problems. She had been hospitalized for these issues several times. Hooper stated in court, “I was hospitalized when I was fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen.”

The minute Hooper met Patty Papay, she saw the ready-made life she always craved. A nice home, a husband and two wonderful children. She wasted no time and began having an affair with Pete Papay. When Patty learned of the affair, she tried to work through the problems for the sake of her children. Pete was not the wonderful husband he portrayed himself to be and Ruth Hooper was not going let go of her new future. Patty finally decided this was no way for the children to live and she made the decision to divorce Pete Papay. Pete moved out of their home and Patty became a single mother with two young children.

Nine months after Pete moved out, he married Ruth Hooper. There remained two problems for them. One, Pete and Ruth did not want to pay child support to Patty. Second, Patty had custody of the children. Ruth Papay knew she had to do something to take care of these issues. She decided Patty needed to be killed. Ruth made a detailed written “plan” of how to kill Patty Papay. The extremely detailed and meticulously detailed plan remained in Ruth’s possession for about two to three weeks until April 4, 1981. At 8 p.m., that evening Ruth’s “plan” went into effect.

A Vicious, Violent Murder

At approximately 8 p.m. on April 4, 1981, Ruth Papay drove to Patty’s Papay’s house to return the children after a weekend visit. Ruth Papay and Patty had a volatile relationship and Ruth Papay did not have a driver’s license. There was no logical reason for Ruth Papay to go to Patty’s house while Pete Papay stayed home.

Prior to leaving, Ruth placed a gun, surgical gloves and a bottle of prescription pills she bought the previous day in her purse.

Although it was pouring rain that night, when Ruth Papay arrived, she chose to park in an inconspicuous area next to the house rather than in the front of the house that was much closer.

Ruth Papay first removed four-year-old Eric and his car seat and brought him to the front porch. Ruth Papay then went back and got one-year-old Heather and brought her to the house. Ruth Papay then forced her way into the house.

Immediately after getting into the house, Ruth pulled the gun out of her purse and began to beat Patty in the head with it while the children watched.

Ruth chased Patty into the kitchen. She held the gun to Patty and told her she would blow the kids’ brains out if she cried. She also said she would blow her brains out if the kids don’t shut up.

While holding a gun to Patty, Ruth then attempted to force Patty to drink a mixture of Wisk detergent, Downy fabric softener, Comet Cleanser and rubbing alcohol. Ruth also attempted to force Patty to take the pills she brought with her. Patty likely was semi-conscious at this point.

Ruth Papay stated the cleanser, household detergents and pills were not, in her estimation, killing Patty fast enough. She then decided to place a rag in Patty’s mouth and pinched her nose shut, hoping she would die soon. At some point, Patty gained her strength and knew Ruth would stop at nothing to kill her. She then began to fight back.

Heather and Eric Papay were forced to watch their mother die.

When Patty began to fight back, Ruth wrestled her to the ground. Ruth was much bigger than Patty. Ruth states, “It was like a dream when I heard the kids, and while we’re laying down there, I had the gun to her stomach and was clicking it.” The only reason Patty did not die was because the gun was not loaded.

The fight then continued throughout the house. After the murder, Patty’s hair and blood were all over the house. On the floors, the walls and even on the doorknobs. There was no doubt Patty fought not only to live, but to protect her children. It is estimated this torture went on for two to three hours.

The fight finally ended in the bedroom. By this time, Ruth Papay had managed to get a knife from the kitchen. Ruth Papay, while sitting on top of Patty, took the knife and stabbed Patty Papay three times in the heart. Ruth Papay then fled the house, leaving the children behind. They would spend between 10-12 hours in the house with their mother lying dead on the bedroom floor.

An Arrest and a Confession

Sometime between 7:30 and 8:00 a.m. on April 5, Ruth Papay went back to Patty Papay’s home. Ruth claimed she went back because she forgot to bring some diapers and a pair of shoes back and she wanted to return them. She also stated she wanted to check on the children because she knew what she had done and wanted to make sure they had something to eat. According to Ruth, when she arrived, four-year-old Eric’s first words were “Mommy is dead, Mommy is dead.”

By the time Ruth arrived at Patty Papay’s house, Pete Papay had already called police. Ruth Papay wasted no time in confessing to what she had done. She told police the gun was with her grandmother and that they would find the knife and written “plan” in the trash can at her home. She also told them she had brought the medical gloves, which she put on to keep the blood off her hands. Some of Ruth Papay’s comments were:

• “When I hit her with the gun, I knew there was no turning back.”
• “I knew that if I stop, I would still end up down here.”
• “I wanted to make it look like a suicide.”
• “Her name is Pat Papay. I kill her because it was a reaction, something snap. I didn’t go over to do it, I didn’t go with that idea in mind.”

Tried and Convicted

At trial, Ruth Papay took the stand and continued to talk. According to Ruth, she quit school in eleventh grade because “I can’t cope with people.” She also said her emotions get out of hand and she becomes angry. According to Ruth Papay, Patty took the children and told her to get off her property. Ruth then stated,

“I just snapped – went off. I had the gun in my purse hanging on my slacks, and I just looked down and I reach in and pull the gun out, open the door and went in after her.”

Ruth Papay’s defense at trial was that she committed the murder because she was on her period. She said the “plan” was something she wrote down to help her cope. She never did explain why she parked her car around the side of the house or why she brought rubber gloves, pills and a gun to the house if she did not plan to kill Patty.

Throughout the trial, Ruth Papay giggled and showed no remorse. At trial, a police officer with fifteen years of experience and who interviewed Ruth Papay after the murder stated,

“I believe she went over there to kill Pat Papay, just like the note said. I believe when she gave the statement, she might try to color it up or change the way it happened. But in interviewing her, she would show no remorse, no nothing when the question of Patricia Papay was brought up and how she was killed – very cold.”

The officer also stated the only time she did show remorse was when she would not be able to see her husband anymore.

The trial took one day. Based on overwhelming evidence and the statements of Ruth Papay, Judge Max Chilcote found Ruth Papay guilty of aggravated murder and sentenced her to life prison. He also ordered her to spend every anniversary of the murder in 24 hours of solitary confinement. Prosecutor John Allen states the only reason Ruth Papay did not face the death penalty was because it was not available at the time of the murder. Heather and Eric went to live with their grandmother. To this day, Eric still remembers his mother’s murder. Both Heather and Eric remain haunted by their mother’s death.