Here’s an interesting bit of trivia for you.
Anyone who has even a passing knowledge of history has heard the name “Borgia,” and anyone who’s heard that name already knows that a person’s wearing of a priest’s collar and holding of a supposed-to-be “holy” office will not in any way limit or hinder the capacity of that person to commit evil acts. Likewise, a perusal of the statistics of priests and other ministers who have abused children is a sobering reminder of this fact. It isn’t surprising, then, that Hans Schmidt did some pretty rotten things. He’s hardly an anomaly. He does, however, hold the distinction of being the only Catholic priest ever executed in America. (He got the electric chair in the early years of the 20th Century.)
Schmidt, as a wee tyke, supposedly liked to watch animals being slaughtered. This in itself is a good tip-off to future violent sociopathic behavior. Among other atrocities, Schmidt the grown man—and priest—murdered his pregnant wife (he had performed the wedding ceremony himself, even though Catholic priests weren’t, and still aren’t, allowed to marry) and dismembered her body. “Sacrifices should be consummated in blood,” Schmidt was quoted as saying at the time. Evidence suggests that Schmidt’s wife wasn’t his only, or his first victim. It is probable the man was a serial killer, and that his position as a clergyman helped him to get away with it for as long as he did. Holy? Hardly. Wholly deranged is more like it.
