The Icebox Killer

When you hear about serial killers, names like Ted Bundy or John Wayne Gacy might come to mind. But one of the most cold-hearted killers in American history was a woman, a nurse, a mother—and a murderer. Her name was Judy Buenoano, and her case shocked the nation.

Judy wasn’t just a killer. She was a manipulator, a poisoner, and a woman who would stop at nothing for money. Between 1971 and 1983, she murdered her husband, her son, and her fiancé—all for life insurance. This is the true story of how she earned the nickname: “The Icebox Killer.”

🧪 A Quiet Beginning with a Dark Soul

Judy Buenoano was born Judias Welty in 1943, in Texas. Her early life was tough—her mother died when she was four, and she was sent to live with her father and stepmother, where she claimed to have suffered abuse.

At age 14, she was sent to a girls’ reform school for attacking her family. She later trained as a nurse and lived a relatively quiet life—until the killing began.

💰 Husband #1: A Mysterious Death

In 1971, Judy was married to James Goodyear, a U.S. Air Force sergeant. He had just returned from Vietnam, healthy and strong. But weeks later, he suddenly fell ill. His symptoms were strange—nausea, confusion, and muscle weakness. Within days, he was dead.

Doctors called it “natural causes.” Judy mourned—briefly—and collected $70,000 in life insurance.

Three months later, she moved to Colorado, where her boyfriend at the time—Bobby Joe Morris—also fell mysteriously ill and died.

Judy collected more insurance money.

🚗 The Death of Her Own Son

In 1979, Judy’s 19-year-old son, Michael, became paralyzed after a sudden mysterious illness. He had just joined the military and took pills from his mother, who claimed they were vitamins.

Months later, Judy took Michael canoeing in Florida. The boat capsized, and Michael drowned—wearing leg braces and unable to swim.

Police found it suspicious, but Judy had an explanation: “It was an accident.”

She collected $20,000 in life insurance for Michael’s death.

It was the third “accidental” death in her life. Still, no charges were filed.

💍 The Fiancé Who Got Away—Almost

In 1983, Judy began dating John Gentry, a wealthy businessman. She told him she was a doctor and had been giving him “vitamin capsules” to keep him healthy. In truth, she was poisoning him with arsenic.

But Judy got impatient. Instead of letting him die slowly, she rigged his car with a pipe bomb. When John turned the key, the car exploded.

Miraculously, he survived.

That was Judy’s mistake.

👮‍♂️ The Investigation Begins

After the car bombing, police searched Judy’s home. What they found shocked them:

Arsenic in her home lab

Life insurance policies on several men

A fake diploma and nursing license

A list of people she had insured—including her dead son

Police exhumed the bodies of James Goodyear and her son Michael. Toxicology tests showed massive levels of arsenic in both. Investigators now believed Judy had killed at least three people and attempted to kill a fourth.

The media called her “The Black Widow”, but others called her something colder: “The Icebox Killer.”

🧑‍⚖️ The Trial: A Woman Without Emotion

Judy’s trial began in 1984. Prosecutors painted her as a greedy, heartless killer who used poison to silently eliminate those close to her. Witnesses described her as “cold,” “calculating,” and completely void of remorse.

The most haunting part? She never cried. Never blinked. Not even when the jury found her guilty of first-degree murder.

She was sentenced to death.

⚖️ Final Days on Death Row

For 14 years, Judy sat on Florida’s death row, the first woman to be sentenced there in over 100 years. She maintained her innocence until the very end, claiming the deaths were “coincidence” or “accidents.”

But evidence told a different story. The arsenic, the fake names, the exploding car—it all pointed to a woman who used love as a weapon and money as a motive.

In 1998, Judy Buenoano was executed by electric chair. She was 54.

Her last meal was broccoli, asparagus, strawberries, and hot tea.

She declined to make a final statement.

💀 Why Judy’s Story Still Haunts Us

Judy Buenoano's case stands out because of what it breaks—our belief that killers are easy to spot. She wasn’t a monster in the shadows. She was a mother, a nurse, a “loving” partner.

She didn’t use a gun or a knife. She used patience and poison.

She didn’t kill in rage. She killed with calculated silence.

🔍 Lessons from the Icebox Killer

1. Evil Can Wear a Smile

Judy looked like a normal woman. That’s what makes her so chilling. She reminds us that not all danger looks dangerous.

2. Greed is a Deadly Poison

Every murder was about money. She took lives for dollars. Greed, when unchecked, can turn a person into something inhuman.

3. Arsenic Leaves a Trail

It took years for her crimes to catch up with her, but justice did come. Arsenic poisoning is slow, but it leaves behind clues—like she did.

🔥 Final Words: A Legacy of Cold-Blooded Crime

Judy Buenoano isn’t remembered for love, kindness, or sacrifice. She’s remembered for what she took—and how silently she took it.

The woman who killed her husband, her son, her lover, and almost another man, all to collect checks, proved that evil doesn’t always come with a warning.

Sometimes it comes with a hug, a cup of tea… or a vitamin pill.