Elizabeth and John Carter:1974, Michigan City, Indiana

 

  Elizabeth Marie Fulkerson was born on April 5th, 1956. 

  She attended Rogers High School in Michigan City, Indiana.  In 1973, she married Lawrence A. Carter on March 10th. 

  The Carters lived at 833 Odell Street in Michigan City in 1974. 

  17 year old Elizabeth Marie Fulkerson Carter and her baby, John were at home on January 29th, 1974.  A fire broke out shortly before 3 p.m. and neither Elizabeth or her baby made it out of the house. Lawrence Carter was at work. Firefighters were told by neighbors that they didn’t think anyone was inside. 

  At first this was thought to be just a terrible accidental fire. Elizabeth Carter’s remains were at a funeral home being embalmed when the funeral director noticed embalming fluid leaking from a bullet hole in her side. He called the police and a medical examiner who performed an autopsy. 

  An investigation would reveal that Elizabeth had actually been shot. The fire was set by her killer to try to cover up the crime. Elizabeth and Lawrence Carter’s baby son, John, died of smoke inhalation. 

  Who did this? Who killed a young mother and baby in late January 1974 in Michigan City and why?

  An arrest was made fairly quickly. Winfred Lee Garrett was also 17. He lived at 602 North Karwick Road. That’s just about a block away from the Carter’s house at 833 O’Dell. 

  Winfred Lee Garrett confessed to entering the home to burglarize it.  He said Mrs. Carter came home and he was trying to flee when she caught him. He said he shot her then with a .22 caliber rifle. He started the fire to try to hide the crime. 

  His lawyers sought psychiatric examinations of Winfred Lee Garrett. They also sought a change of venue from Michigan City to South Bend. It was difficult to seat a jury that was not biased.  Everyone had heard about the murders of Elizabeth and baby John. 

  

   The trial eventually began in late November 1974 in South Bend, Indiana. Psychiatrists testified that he was sane at the time of the murder but had a childlike intelligence on par with an 11 year old. He also read at a third grade level. This didn’t stop his trial or sway the jury, it seems. 

   Winfred Lee Garrett was found guilty of first degree murder in South Bend. His trial had only lasted three days. He was sentenced to life in prison. 

  Garrett and his lawyers appealed the conviction and it was overturned in January of 1977. The taped confession was found to be obtained without proper consent and understanding. 

   In late May of 1983, Winfred Lee Garrett was arrested in Michigan City for armed robbery. 

  Winfred Lee Garrett was killed in 1990 after a relative shot him during an argument at home. 

   Elizabeth and her baby John are buried together at Greenwood Cemetery in Michigan City. They both had such short and tragic lives. They should still be here. 

 

   It appears that their house on Odell Street was never rebuilt. The lot is overgrown now with trees, vines and weeds. On the day Google Earth took photos on that street, the lot had a pile of rubbish in front of it. 

   Most true crime stories don’t have a lot of twists and turns and red herrings. Most are like this one. They are senseless and tragic. A 17 year old with a child’s mind does something stupid and horrible.

  We can’t bring these victims back. We can’t go back in time and change things. We can only remember them and try to build a better world in the future.

   Rest in peace, Elizabeth and John.