The Carol Thompson Case: A Chilling Suburban Betrayal
On a cold March morning in 1963, Highland Park, a quiet neighborhood in St. Paul, Minnesota, was rocked by a brutal and shocking crime. Carol Thompson, a 34-year-old homemaker and mother of four, was attacked in her home. Struck with a hammer and left with her throat slashed, Carol managed to summon incredible strength to crawl to a neighbor’s house in a desperate attempt for help. Tragically, she succumbed to her injuries shortly after.
The initial investigation pointed toward a robbery gone wrong. The violence of the attack and the lack of forced entry into the home left the community rattled and grasping for answers. But as police delved deeper, inconsistencies in the story began to emerge, particularly surrounding Carol’s husband, T. Eugene Cotton Thompson. Cotton was a well-known attorney who appeared outwardly devastated by his wife’s death. Yet, investigators uncovered troubling financial details that hinted at a darker motive. Cotton was drowning in debt and had recently taken out a substantial life insurance policy on Carol—worth nearly $1 million in today’s dollars.
The case took a dramatic turn when authorities uncovered evidence that Cotton had hired hitmen to carry out the murder. Cotton had enlisted the help of an intermediary to connect him with three men willing to commit the crime. Promising payment in exchange for Carol’s death, Cotton meticulously planned the attack to look like a botched robbery. However, sloppy execution and evidence left behind at the scene eventually led to the capture of the perpetrators. Their confessions revealed the shocking truth: the beloved wife and mother had been killed as part of a cold-blooded murder-for-hire plot orchestrated by her own husband.
Cotton’s trial was a media spectacle, drawing nationwide attention. Prosecutors painted a damning picture of Cotton as a calculating man who prioritized financial gain over the life of his wife. With overwhelming evidence and witness testimony from the hired killers, Cotton was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.
Carol Thompson’s murder left an indelible mark on her family and the community. Her four children were left to grapple with the unthinkable betrayal by their father, while neighbors struggled to reconcile the seemingly perfect suburban facade with the dark truths uncovered during the trial. The case has since become one of Minnesota’s most infamous crimes, studied by criminologists and legal experts as a cautionary tale about greed, betrayal, and the fragility of trust.
Decades later, the memory of Carol’s tragic death remains a poignant reminder of the hidden complexities within seemingly idyllic lives. Her story is not just about the crime but about the ripple effects of loss, betrayal, and the pursuit of justice in the face of unimaginable heartbreak.
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Resources
Swanson, W. (2006). Dial M: The murder of Carol Thompson. Minneapolis: Borealis Books.
Giese, D. J. (1967). The Carol Thompson murder case. St. Paul, MN: MBI Publishing Company.
Minnesota Historical Society. (n.d.). Murder of Carol Thompson. MNopedia. Retrieved from MNopedia
Justia Law. (1966). State v. Thompson. Minnesota Supreme Court Decisions. Retrieved from Law Justia
Star Tribune. (2013, November 23). Thompson case unforgettable even after 50 years. Retrieved from Star Tribune
Swanson, W. (2020, August 7). MoNo Classics: The 1963 Murder of Carol Thompson w/ William Swanson. [Audio podcast episode]. In Most Notorious! A True Crime History Podcast. Retrieved from Most Notorious
Heffernan, J. (2015, September 1). Infamous Thompson murder case had associations with Duluth. Jim Heffernan’s Blog. Retrieved from Jim Heffernan Blog
Find a Grave. (2007, June 14). Carol Ann Swoboda Thompson (1928-1963) – Find a Grave Memorial. Retrieved from Find a Grave
The History Handbook. (2023). The Murder of Carol Thompson in Saint Paul. Retrieved from History Handbook
