Nannie Doss

Nannie Hazel Doss (November 4, 1905 – June 4, 1965) was an American serial killer who confessed to murdering 11 people between 1927 and 1954, though she may have killed as many as 15. Born in Alabama, Doss endured a troubled childhood marked by abuse, which shaped her violent tendencies. She murdered her first husband, Samuel Doss, in 1927, and subsequently married four more times, systematically poisoning husbands, children, grandchildren, and in-laws with arsenic over nearly three decades. Her motive was largely financial—she sought insurance payouts and the freedom to move on to new husbands. Despite her numerous relocations across multiple states and marriages, suspicion finally fell upon her in 1954 when her fourth husband, Richard Morton, died under suspicious circumstances. She confessed to her crimes and was sentenced to death, becoming one of America's most prolific female serial killers. Her case has been the subject of numerous true crime documentaries and studies on domestic violence and serial murder.