Murder in a Small Town at the Turn of the 20th Century

During the early years of the twentieth century, there lived a man by the name of John R. Kizer near Pocahontas, Arkansas. He was a veterinarian and with the exception of dogs-that he ruthlessly hated, he had a way with animals. The dogs, however, he would inject with a hypodermic needle filled with poison. No one knew why he had such a hatred of dogs though it may have been due to nuisance to farmers and their cattle. Neither did anyone know Kizer would eventually treat at least nine people in the manner he treated these dogs.

John Kizer was born in 1872 and in 1917, he married Birdie Brooks-a widow with children but also an inheritance. John made a decent living as a veterinarian but grew up in poverty as a small child and knew what it was like to not have money. The Kizers moved to Pocahontas and became County Agents. They instructed husbands and wives on agriculture and house ware and were very well respected.

In 1925, Kizer purchased a life insurance on Birdie knowing he would receive it shortly. Birdie grew very sick three weeks later. Kizer would have a general term for diagnosing almost all of his human patients "malaria." Malaria was a general word that seemed to fit Birdie's temperature, ague, and fevers. Kizer began another theme he would use later in not sending for a doctor until too much time had elapsed to save the person. Kizer treated his wife with a secret preparation given in a sow needle before a doctor was called. Birdie's arm swelled and had to be amputated. She was dead only three weeks later.

After Birdie's death, John Kizer contributed a stained glass window in her honor for the local Methodist church. This raised a few eyebrows as Kizer was not known to be a charitable man and it may have began a theme of Kizer stepping and doing such things as this to avoid others suspecting he was guilty of murder. Maybe he donated this window, paid for victims' burials, and other contributions such as those out of a feeling of guilt.

At age 53, John wanted to remarry. He was opportunistic and set his eyes on a young woman named Mary Anderson who happened to be married. One day when Mary was in Pocahontas shopping, her husband was back at their farm. Mary stayed the night in Pocahontas due to bad weather. With Mary in Pocahontas, Kizer drove out of town to the Anderson Ranch. At 7 o'clock in the morning he called the local undertaker claiming Mr. Anderson had died in his sleep of a likely heart attack. Kizer insisted to pay for funeral expenses and asked for the best coffin available.

It did not take long for Kizer to propose to Mrs. Anderson and he was surprised when she declined saying she was still too in love with her husband.

It took one year for John Kizer to find another victim-this time it was a family member. His niece, Mrs. Robert Riggs, became ill on her own and Kizer went to visit her. He offered to stay and help as his niece recovered. Again, Kizer insisted in no doctor and treated his niece with a hog needle for malaria. She was dead within one month. Kizer told Robert Riggs he would make him his sole heir and insinuated it would be a good idea if Riggs did the same for him. Riggs agreed and Kizer managed to get back the things he willed to Robert as well as those Robert willed to him when Robert became ill. Robert Riggs died within the month.

By this time, Kizer had a considerable amount of money and land but he was not finished yet. Talk began in the county about how Kizer was always mentioned in the will of those he knew who were dying. Kizer always insisted on swift burials-perhaps to avoid autopsy that would find poison. Most town folk thought Kizer was still one of the props in the community and deserved Riggs' money since he and Kizer were best friends. People had began to wonder, however.

John's next victim was a distant relative of his named Aunt Lizzie and her friend Mary Brown became the following victim. These two elderly ladies offered payment to Kizer for his services though no one other than the three of them knew. Kizer kept them in a cottage he rented to Aunt Lizzie. Aunt Lizzie was the first of the two to be diagnosed with malaria. On the day she died, she told Mrs. Brown she was feeling better until John gave her an injection. Mrs. Brown went to find John but Aunt Lizzie was already dead when they arrived back to the home.

John Kizer pretended to cry, rushed to undertaker McNabb, and ordered another immediate embalming. Mrs. Brown soon came down with malaria as well. One week later, Kizer arranged for a funeral for Mrs. Brown to be billed to him.

It was Jan 1929 when Kizer was called to the home of the woman who would eventually help take him down---Mrs. Grace Adams (name has been changed). Adams was a widow who had a sick boar. Kizer cured the oar but as he was leaving her house on a subsequent visit he poisoned her dog right in front of her. Mrs. Adams would not see John Kizer again in her home. Adams called him a murderer and soon she would have the chance to call him that once again.

Two months after the altercation between Mrs. Adams and John Kizer, he met Rozena Bonner Arnold a widow with one child,. Arnold was the most wealthy widow Kizer knew. The two courted and eventually married. Kizer did something out of character by providing Rozena a lavish wedding. He even bought Rozena the first electric refrigerator Randolph County had ever seen. Rozena's family loved Kizer-including young Bonner whom he would eventually adopt.

Grace Adams, whose dog Kizer had poisoned, did not attend the wedding even though she was a relative of Rozena. Kizer's behavior did not appear to be that of a serial killer. His in-laws loved him. He took Bonner hunting.

After a month of marriage, Rozena refused to sign a life insurance policy. She and her parents did not believe in them saying that it was "speculation on the dead." After harassment by John, Rozena agreed to a $500 life insurance policy that John forged to $25,000.

In September 1932, Kizer and Rozena went to Hardy, Arkansas to buy some goats. Two days after returning home, Rozena suffered convulsions. Before the trip, Kizer admitted he had given Rozena quinine tablets because her color looked bad and he was afraid she was taking malaria.

The Kizers returned home and Rozena went to bed. The doctor Kizer sent for agreed Rozena could have malaria but he was paid $400 for this one house call and his reputation is in question. John Kizer never spent large amounts of money. Perhaps Kizer did this to have back up to his malaria theory. People had already began to doubt Kizer's diagnoses. How popular was malaria in northeast Arkansas and why did it seem to strike those surrounded by Kizer.

Kizer returned to undertaker McNabb for immediate embalming. After Rozena's death, Kizer produced a $10,000 life insurance policy he took out prior to Rozena's death that she never knew about. Kizer continued to care for Rozena's parents.

Grace Adams, the woman who had longed suspected Kizer was not who he claimed to be asked that Rozena's body be exhumed. Grace could not give a good enough reason for it but the sheriff spoke to the Bonner family. The Bonners would not agree to Rozena's exhumation though it would happen not too many weeks later.

Kizer asked the Bonners to come to Pocahontas and live with him and young Bonner. Two nights after the move, the Bonners home burned down. Rather than suspect Kizer committed arson, they were grateful he kept them from burning to death that night in their beds. The elderly Bonner was saddened by having no home insurance until Bonner revealed he purchased a $15,000 one for them several days before the fire. Kizer's excuse was that since no one was present to look after things, it was best to play it safe in case something happened. The insurance company, understandably, did not want to pay the settlement immediately but after being threatened with a law suit, they did.

Kizer then adopted Bonner and bought stocks/bonds/and other valuables in his name. Some of the townspeople ceased believing in foul play. Kizer attempted to exchange some of his father in law's best farmland for some town lots but the older Bonner would not agree to it. The older Bonner said young Bonner would inherit the land.

In 1934, Father Bonner collapsed while in a field. Kizer found him and told him he had a stroke. Kizer gave him capsules and he lay in bed for two weeks before becoming too sick for a doctor to help. Kizer sent for the same physician he paid $400 to for the visit to say Rozena died of malaria. This time the doctor listed the cause of death as stroke.

Kizer had the audacity to say to Mrs. Adams that now people would no longer suspect him in these deaths and he was glad Father Bonner collapsed in a field to prove it. Adams did not believe Kizer.

After some time, Kizer convinced Mrs. Bonner to donated 326 acres of land and some valuables for his town lots. She soon gave him 585 more acres of farmland and three more city blocks.

Mrs. Kizer soon became ill. She was already in poor health-not related to Kizer's capsules or injections (at least initially). She requested no doctors-only John. Three weeks after McNabb buried Mrs. Bonner, Kizer registered the final deed on the land Mrs. Bonner had given him.

Young Bonner Kizer was now John's next obstacle to overcome. In 1936, Bonner wanted to join the Navy. Kizer was afraid Bonner would be safe until he reached the age of maturity and could own the property outright. Kizer talked Bonner into staying in school for two years before making his decision. The decision would never have to be made.

On October 9, 1946, Bonner played a football game and injured his shoulder. The doctor who examined him noticed an accumulation of poison in his system and a spot under one of his arms. Kizer said the boy had ruptured blood vessels and a bad heart. He nonchalantly said,"There will be one less football player on the team in regard to if it killed him.

Bonner died within ten days of the football game. Kizer had Bonner's body embalmed immediately as with the others. Like the other victims, Kizer had not called for a doctor to examine Bonner until it was too late.

Finally, people in Pocahontas noticed something was amiss and spoke of dragging Kizer to force him to admit to murder. Grace Adams again appeared on the scene and demanded Bonner's body be examined for poisoning.

Four local doctors agreed Bonner's death was from having been poisoned. The autopsy concluded strychnine was found in the liver in quantities sufficient to cause death. Kizer claimed Bonner must have accidentally taken the strychnine he kept in his bathroom.

Mrs. Adams and other relatives asked Pocahontas Attorney George Booth to press for a court order to examine Rozena's body. Kizer claimed this was an attempt to gain the jewelry Rozena had been buried with. When the exhumation was complete, no jewelry was found. Rozena's mom was also exhumed. Arsenic was found in one body while strychnine was found in the other.

Kizer's motives were clear-everydeath netted him cash or property save Anderson's and that was not from lack of trying, Kizer offered his lawyers land as a fee claiming he had no money. His lawyers knew this was not the case as one had been his lawyer in the Bonner case. The lawyers did accept being paid in valuable land.

John Kizer was kept in a Paragould, Arkansas jail and on November 19^th, he was to be driven to Pocahontas for a preliminary hearing. He was in a depressed mood being afraid of lynch mobs.

Kizer claimed he needed a shave to look presentable so they stopped at a barbershop in nearby Walnut Ridge Arkansas. He had a soft drink and then went to the men's room. When he came back, his glass was empty.

When they arrived at Pocahontas, about fourteen miles away, they could not get Kizer out of the car. His face was grimaced in pain. Kizer died in the office of Dr. S. Baltz an hour later. He died in a manner similar to his victims-strychnine poisoning.

A small bottle of the poison was found in his cell in Paragould but who gave it to him was never answered.

Kizer was buried on a family farm where he had been born. It is known as the Brown-Reynolds farm today.

Another question remains. Why did Kizer kill himself? Why was he afraid of a mob? In March 1901, Kizer witnessed a mob break down the door of a man who shot a sheriff. Kizer heard the man's pleas the entire night. He was very aware of what the citizens of Pocahontas could do when angry enough and he had caused plenty of anger.

Much of my information was taken from a file in the Peg Barnhart collection in the Randolph County, library. I also read and used some of the info of the story that ran in the April 1957 issue of True Detective "They died like dogs" by: Charles Moorehead.