Twisted Justice: The Story of Donetha Snead and Serial Killer William Darryl Lindsay

0:01 The resolution of this case may have brought justice, but the mystery surrounding Donetha Laverne Sneed still lingers. The 32 year old woman vanished from St. Augustine, FL in April 1993, and it took years before authorities uncovered the truth. Donetha's life was not without challenges. She was reportedly involved in drugs and sex work, making her an easy target for dangerous individuals. According to the Doe Network, serial killer Daryl Lindsay confessed to police in 1997 that he was responsible for Donetha's murder. He claimed to have seen her working as a prostitute on W King Street and spent the day with her at his trailer on Masters Farm. But everything changed when Lindsay learned that Donetha was HIV positive.

0:47 During their drive back to King Street, he viciously beat her and then dumped her body into a Creek in the nearby woods. Lindsay was suspected of being connected to over 25 murders and eventually pleaded guilty to six counts of second degree murder in 1999. He died from cancer just two years later while serving his 30 year prison sentence. Sadly, Donatha's remains have never been found, along with another one of Lindsay's potential victims, Diana Richardson. The details of Lindsay's heinous crimes have been featured in numerous television programs, but the true extent of his terror will never be known.

1:29 His reign of terror lasted from 1983 to 1996, leaving behind a trail of unspeakable horrors. Now, let me share some of the harrowing discoveries we made about Lindsay's other killings. Welcome to No Tears for Black Girls, December 29th, 1996, the date that would forever be etched in the minds of the residents of Asheville and beyond. It was the day that Lindsay, a seemingly unassuming man, was arrested for suspicion of murder. But as the investigation unfolded, the true extent of his depravity was revealed. He was connected to not just one, but at least seven and potentially up to 20 killings across 4 southern states. Hailing from Saint Augustine, he sent shock waves through the community when he confessed to the infamous murder of Anita Mcquaig in 1988.

2:25 But this was just the beginning. As his trial progressed, more and more disturbing details emerged about his past. He had been lurking among them for over a decade, praying on those vulnerable individuals in their midst. Lindsay was no stranger to the seedy underbelly of Lincolnville and West Augustine, a place he frequented for both drugs and deviant sexual encounters. Growing up with an adoptive mother who constantly berated him, it's no surprise that he developed a twisted and violent psychosexual behavior. This manifested in failed marriages and an alter ego he called Bad Bill. A sadistic personality that only came out when confronted by women about his inadequacies, Lindsay exhibited all the warning signs of a potential serial killer. Animal abuse.

3:15 Emotional detachment. Substance abuse and sudden bouts of extreme violence followed by remorseful regret. His victims were carefully selected from the notorious crackhead corner at Volusia and W King streets. Connie Terrell and Lashawna Streeter, both addicted to crack cocaine and working as prostitutes. Donatha Haley solicited while walking near the railroad tracks on W King. Cheryl Lucas lured into his car at the Pick and Save on Palmer St. And finally, Anita Mcquaig, desperate for her next hit at the intersection of Riberia and King in Lincolnville. This was a man who not only preyed on the vulnerable but also revelled in their suffering.

4:01 As he sat in the hot seat of the interrogation room, Lindsay smugly revealed his first kill in Saint Augustine. A regular at the dingy Tradewinds Lounge where Sin and Vice were on tap every night, the two women he claimed to have slain in this coastal town were never found. But once word spread of his capture and trial, disturbing accounts began to surface of other women who had narrowly escaped meeting their demise at Lindsay's hands. Some were prostitutes, others hardened convicts, and some were just innocent party girls caught up in the dangerous world of cocaine. For Lindsay, violence and murder had become second nature, yet it was his unremarkable presence that allowed him to evade detection for so long.

4:47 Lisa Foley was last seen on October 9th, 1983 after a wild night of drinking at the Trade Wines Lounge. According to Lindsay's twisted recollection, an argument over money escalated into a fatal strangulation during their post sex tryst. Her body was later found dumped by the side of Picchetti Rd. Another nameless victim added to Lindsay's list of conquests, Anita Mcquaig was not so lucky. She had made the mistake of getting into Lindsay's car on that fateful November evening in 1988, unaware of the path of destruction she was embarking on. The following morning, a county worker discovered her broken body in a shallow pit near Saint Augustine Beach.

5:31 Lindsay had inflicted unspeakable horrors upon her broken bones, cigarette burns, bite marks littering her naked body. In his eventual confession, scribbled on April Fool's Day in 1997, Lindsay admitted to her murder but claimed no recollection of what sparked his violent outburst. Mcquaig and Lindsay were locked in a heated brawl outside the car when he grabbed a three foot long board and repeatedly struck her upper body. Afterward, he dragged her about 15 feet to a nearby pond and tossed her in. Once finished, he calmly returned home to his mother's house.

6:12 At the time, the northern portion of Anastasia Island was largely undeveloped. Dirt roads snaked through scrub forests and borrow pits dotted the landscape. Law enforcement in Saint Augustine and the surrounding beaches focused primarily on urban areas. If it wasn't for the sheer brutality of Lindsay's crimes, they would have gone unnoticed by both the media and the community at large. Even his pattern of murdering women he abused failed to raise any alarms, as most of them were societies forgotten addicts, prostitutes living in squalor. While Crackhead Corner on W King Street was infamous for its drug activity, the neighboring historic community of Lincolnville had its own share of blight.

6:58 In a secluded wooded area known as the Cut, dealers and prostitutes often loitered. The East End of the Sr. 312 bridge over the Matanzas River also served as a popular gathering spot where concrete columns were occasionally used as bragging points for sexual exploits. It was on Saturday night, June 10th, 1989, when Connie Terrell was picked up by Lindsay along W King Street at approximately 8:30 PM. Less than 12 hours later, a fisherman stumbled upon her naked body half submerged in a borrow pond off Holmes Blvd. She had been strangled with a rope and then shot with a 22 caliber.

7:42 Police would later discover that Lindsay had confessed to her murder in an April 1997 statement where he provided chilling details of the killing. After disposing of Connie's body, Lindsay drove back towards his mother's house. He carelessly tossed the spent cartridge onto the median of the road before trying to recall what he did with her clothes. Most likely, he discarded them in San Sebastian Creek while making his way home. Lashawna Streeter met her fate at Crackhead Corner on March 1st, 1992 around 4:15 PM when Lindsay pulled into the parking lot. It would be her last time seen alive. Within an hour, she would be brutally beaten and kicked to death by Lindsay, who claimed she tried to rob him.

8:28 She struggled to open the door but Lindsay's fist connected with her face. The car screeched to a halt and he continued his brutal assault on Lashawna. She fought back but was no match for his rage. Finally, she fell into unconsciousness. Her lifeless body was discovered 10 days later by a local resident taking a shortcut across Quinney's land. Half naked and concealed under debris, she had been discarded like trash. Cheryl Lucas tried to escape Lindsay's grasp in the middle of a rainy night in June 1995 at the intersection of Palmer and King streets. She managed to grab some money before fleeing towards Crackhead Corner, but Lindsay caught up with her and viciously ended her life with a pry bar. Her remains were only found days later by boaters at Moultrie Creek boat Ramp.

9:19 In addition to these murders, Lindsay also confessed to killing Donatha Haley and Diana Richardson, although their bodies were never recovered. Donatha disappeared in April 1993 after spending time with Lindsay at his trailer on Masters Farm. On the way back to King Street, she revealed that she was HIV positive. Lindsay confessed to detectives that it was during this moment he began plotting her demise. As they reached the dead end of the road. With no trace of remorse, Lindsay abruptly stopped the truck and unleashed a violent assault upon her. The onslaught continued, blow after brutal blow, until she lay lifeless, unconscious.

10:02 He then dragged her body through the thicket, eventually tossing her into the murky Creek below. Diana vanished in October 1999, lured by Lindsay's offer of money for sexual favors. It was later revealed that he had taken her to the same desolate borrow pit where he had murdered Connie Terrell. In a fit of rage during their encounter, Lindsay struck Diana with such force that she immediately succumbed to unconsciousness. With no hesitation, he hauled her lifeless form from his vehicle and cast it into the watery depths of the pond where it swiftly sank some 30 feet below. But it wasn't until retired Deputy Fred Thompson sent a Christmas card to his former boss, Sheriff Neil Perry, that justice was finally served.

10:51 For William Darrell Lindsay, this small gesture proved to be an invaluable link in cracking this case, a testament to the strong bonds within a tight knit community and the unwavering determination of law enforcement. Enclosed in that Christmas card was a newspaper clipping which caught the attention of the Saint Johns County Cold Case Homicide Task Force in January 1997. Through months of intense investigation and countless interviews, Lindsay was ultimately extradited from Asheville, NC to St. Augustine, FL 10 months later, thanks to the collaborative efforts between the Buncombe County Sheriff's Office and Sheriff Perry's Task Force, Lindsay would face trial for six murders.

11:37 It was the sweltering summer of 99 when William Darrell Lindsay struck a deal to escape capital punishment and instead served 30 years at Florida's notorious Cross City Correctional Institute. The sentence was set to end on December 11th, 2025, when he would be an aged 90 year old man. However, fate had other plans as he met his demise in a Florida prison cell on April 17th, 2001.