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Glen Helzer
Glen Helzer
Glen Helzer
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Glen Taylor Helzer (born July 26, 1970) is a self-declared prophet, former cult leader and spree killer who founded and led the Children of Thunder.[1] Helzer and his followers murdered five people as part of an extortion plot intended to culminate with Helzer taking over the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and hastening the return of Christ; among their victims was Selina Bishop, daughter of blues guitarist Elvin Bishop.[2]

Key Information

Early life

[edit]

Glen Taylor Helzer was born in Lansing, Michigan, on July 26, 1970, to Gerry and Carma Helzer, both devout Mormons.[3] He had a younger sister, Heather, and brother, Justin.[4] Helzer graduated from Ygnacio Valley High School and served in the National Guard in Texas and as a missionary in Brazil.[5] He worked as a stock broker for Morgan Stanley Dean Witter until August 1998, when he went on disability after being diagnosed with bipolar disorder.[6][7]

Helzer married his wife, Ann, in April 1993. They had two daughters before separating in June 1996.[8]

Children of Thunder

[edit]

Glen Helzer and his brother Justin met Dawn Godman on Memorial Day 1999 at a murder mystery dinner hosted by a Mormon congregation in Walnut Creek, California.[9] Godman became Justin's girlfriend and moved into a house in Concord with the Helzer brothers in April 2000.[10][11]

Glen Helzer was excommunicated from the LDS Church in 1998 due to his drug use.[9] Around this time, he declared himself a prophet. He developed a list of maxims he called “The Twelve Principles of Magic,” by which he expected his followers to abide.[2][12] He had plans to train Brazilian orphans to assassinate Mormon leaders so that he could take over the LDS Church and start a self-help group called Transform America, which was intended to “create a state of peace and joy.”[9] Helzer collectively referred to himself and his followers as the Children of Thunder.[11]

Murders

[edit]

To finance his plans, Helzer developed a scheme to extort money from Ivan and Annette Stineman, an elderly couple in Concord, California, who had been Helzer's clients when he was employed as a stockbroker. On July 30, 2000, the Helzer brothers and Godman kidnapped the Stinemans and forced them to write checks for $100,000 before murdering them.[10]

The trio then murdered Glen Helzer's girlfriend, Selina Bishop, on August 2 in order to prevent her from potentially providing information that could lead to his arrest.[13] To extort the Stinemans' money, Helzer convinced Bishop (who knew him as Jordan), to open bank accounts in her name for Helzer's use; he told her that he was inheriting a large sum of money, which he needed to hide from his ex-wife.[14][15]

Helzer and Godman then went to Bishop's apartment, where Bishop's mother, Jennifer Villarin, was staying; Helzer had decided to eliminate Villarin because she had seen him, and he feared she could identify him. He murdered Villarin and her friend, James Gamble (who was at the apartment that night), using a gun registered to Justin Helzer.[9][13]

Arrest and trial

[edit]

The five murders were connected when police recovered duffel bags from the Sacramento River Delta, which contained the dismembered remains of Bishop and the Stinemans. Investigators searched the Stineman residence and found a note by Ivan Stineman mentioning Taylor Helzer. Friends of Bishop were shown a photo of Helzer, whom they identified as Jordan. A Department of Motor Vehicles check revealed that he owned a 1998 Saturn sedan and Justin owned a white 1995 Nissan pickup, which matched descriptions of vehicles believed to be connected to the murders. Investigators also found that Justin had recently purchased a 9-millimeter Beretta, the same gun used to kill Villarin and Gamble. Fingerprints belonging to Justin and Godman were found in the Stinemans' van, which had been stolen and abandoned.[16][17]

On August 7, 2000, police arrested Justin Helzer and Godman at their Concord home. Glen fled to a nearby house, where he threatened a woman and demanded money, a gun, and a car. He cut off his ponytail and then left through the back door; he was arrested shortly after that.[15]

Godman accepted a plea deal and agreed to testify against the Helzers; she was sentenced to twenty-five years to life in prison for the murders and twelve years and eight months for other charges related to the murders.[18] Glen pleaded guilty to all charges and was sentenced to death.[19] Justin pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, with his attorneys claiming that he had a delusional disorder.[20]

Brother's incarceration and death

[edit]

Justin was found guilty and sentenced to death and incarcerated at San Quentin. Justin attempted suicide in 2010 by ramming pens into both his eyeballs. He survived but was left blinded and with brain damage. Justin committed suicide by hanging on April 14, 2013, while incarcerated at San Quentin.[21]

See also

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References

[edit]

Bibliography

[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Glen Helzer

View on Grokipedia
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Glenn Taylor Helzer is an American former financial advisor who orchestrated the murders of five people in 's Bay Area during July and August 2000 as part of an extortion scheme intended to "Transform America," a purported initiative to hasten the second coming of Christ. Raised in the Mormon Church before his around 1998–1999, Helzer had previously worked at from 1992 to 1999, where he managed investments for clients including Ivan and Annette Stineman, whom he targeted first. Devising a plot he called "Children of Thunder," Helzer enlisted his brother Justin Helzer and friend Dawn Godman to and kill the Stinemans on July 30–31, 2000, followed by the murders of Selina Bishop on August 2 and Jennifer Villarin and James Gamble on August 3 to eliminate witnesses; the group dismembered the bodies and discarded them in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Helzer pleaded guilty to five counts of first degree murder with special circumstances, as well as charges of robbery, , , and , leading to a death sentence imposed after a penalty phase trial. The Supreme Court affirmed his conviction and sentence in January 2024, rejecting his automatic appeal.

Early Life and Background

Family and Upbringing

Glen Taylor Helzer was born on July 26, 1970, in , to Gerry Helzer and Carma Helzer. The Helzers were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), and Helzer was raised in the Mormon faith alongside his younger brother Justin and sister Heather. His family resided in the Concord area of by the time of his adulthood, indicating a relocation from during his early years. Helzer's upbringing occurred within a religious that adhered to LDS principles, including moral codes and community involvement typical of devout Mormon families. His parents maintained close familial ties, as evidenced by their public defense of their sons during early investigations and testimony in legal proceedings. Contemporary records from school and social contexts portray a conventional early life without noted deviations, aligning with standard expectations in a structured religious environment.

Education and Early Career

Helzer entered the financial sector in the , working as a at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter in . His role involved advising clients on investments, reflecting a conventional path in securities trading typical of the era's bullish markets. By August 1998, Helzer transitioned to leave from his position, marking the onset of professional interruption amid personal challenges. This period coincided with financial strain, as steady income ceased, though specific earnings prior remain undocumented in public records. He had married and fathered two daughters during his career years, but the union dissolved by the early , with his ex-wife later testifying to the family's prior stability. These developments signaled early deviation from professional norms, including and marital dissolution, setting a trajectory of instability without evident substance experimentation or deeper personal diagnoses in contemporaneous accounts.

Ideological Development

Religious Influences and Beliefs

Glen Helzer was raised in a devout Mormon family in , where religious observance shaped his early worldview, including expectations of prophetic potential instilled by his parents. His upbringing emphasized adherence to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) doctrines, such as scriptural authority and moral binaries of good versus evil. In the early , Helzer served a Mormon mission in , after which witnesses described him as fundamentally altered, developing a personalized interpretation of scripture that diverged from mainstream LDS teachings. He began viewing the LDS Church as veering in the "wrong direction" and doctrinally "incorrect," rejecting its institutional authority in favor of self-proclaimed revelations positioning himself as tasked with divine intervention. Helzer's theology emphasized scriptural literalism blended with apocalyptic urgency, claiming that traditional notions of were satanic deceptions that believers must transcend for , potentially through acts of purification. He professed hearing God's voice directing a crusade against to usher in a purified era, rejecting organized religion's constraints for a direct, personalized divine mandate. Helzer's descent into methamphetamine addiction, documented during the period leading to his crimes, exacerbated paranoia and messianic delusions, as psychiatric evaluations indicated impaired reality-testing where he could not distinguish drug-fueled visions from genuine revelations. Associate accounts and evidence linked chronic meth use to intensified religious fervor, transforming interpretive scriptural enthusiasm into rigid, violent . This causal progression from familial through personal reinterpretation and substance-induced amplification formed the empirical basis of his aberrant beliefs, prioritizing self-validated prophecy over empirical or institutional verification.

Formation of Children of Thunder

In the late 1990s, Glen Taylor Helzer, a former and excommunicated Mormon, formed a small cult-like group he named the Children of Thunder, positioning himself as a self-appointed tasked with . Helzer initially recruited his younger brother, Justin Helzer, leveraging familial ties and shared religious upbringing to secure loyalty. He later brought in Dawn Godman, Justin's girlfriend, whom they met through a Mormon event, and Selina Bishop, Helzer's then-girlfriend, expanding the core membership to four. The group's ideology centered on apocalyptic preparation, with Helzer claiming visions that positioned the members as instruments to defeat , overthrow corrupt elements within the Mormon church, and hasten Christ's return to . Core tenets emphasized accumulating substantial wealth—targeting $10 million—for "divine" purposes, including funding missionary trips and a initiative called Transform America to unite followers in peace and spiritual transformation. Absolute obedience to Helzer's commands was non-negotiable, framed as essential for fulfilling and averting end-times catastrophe, with dissent equated to spiritual betrayal. To reinforce cohesion, the group engaged in methamphetamine-fueled sessions and shared intimate experiences, such as alternating between the brothers, which Helzer presented as tests of devotion and purification rituals. Trial testimony from later described these practices as mechanisms to deepen commitment, blurring and amplifying Helzer's within the insular structure.

Criminal Activities

Planning and Financial Motivations

Helzer, a former , devised an extortion scheme targeting Ivan and Annette Stineman, an elderly Concord couple for whom he had previously managed investments, as part of the "Children of Thunder" plan formulated around mid-2000 after moving to a Saddlewood Court residence in Concord. The objective was to coerce the Stinemans into transferring approximately $100,000 via forged or forced financial instruments to fund activities, including a proposed group. Coordination involved Helzer's brother, Justin Helzer, and associate Dawn , who assisted in outlining tactics such as the targets on July 30, 2000, and compelling them under duress to issue checks payable to Godman. While the group rationalized the theft as divine redistribution to advance prophetic work, court records indicate the scheme's core was pragmatic acquisition of capital amid Helzer's transition from . This financial ploy reflected desperation for , as Helzer had left stockbrokering and sought rapid funds through client exploitation rather than legitimate means, predating escalation into . Accomplices' roles included logistical preparation during the summer planning phase, emphasizing over voluntary .

The 2000 Murders

On July 30, 2000, Glen Helzer and his brother Justin Helzer murdered elderly couple Ivan Stineman, 85, and Annette Stineman, 78, in the couple's , home after coercing them to sign over checks. The victims were shot multiple times in the , after which their bodies were dismembered using a and placed into duffel bags filled with ice and cement for disposal. The bags containing the Stinemans' remains were dumped into the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta near Rio Vista. Two days later, on August 1, 2000, the Helzers killed Selina Bishop, 22, at a Concord residence by beating and stabbing her repeatedly. Bishop's body was similarly dismembered with a chainsaw, packed into duffel bags with ice and cement, and discarded in the Sacramento River near the same Delta location as the Stinemans' remains. On August 3, 2000, Jenny Villarin, 45, and James Gamble, 54, were shot to death while asleep in Bishop's Woodacre apartment in Marin County, California. Their bodies were left at the scene, where they were discovered later that day. The dismembered remains of the Stinemans and Bishop were recovered from duffel bags floating in the Sacramento River near Rio Vista on August 9, 2000, with forensic analysis, including dental records and DNA, confirming their identities. These killings brought the total victim count to five, linked through ballistic and dismemberment evidence consistent with the methods employed.

Investigation and Capture

The investigation into the disappearance of Ivan and Annette Stineman, an elderly couple last seen on July 29, 2000, and reported missing on August 3, 2000, in , initially focused on potential financial irregularities, including forged checks and bank alerts related to an extortion scheme targeting their assets. located the Stinemans' minivan abandoned in Oakland on August 6, 2000, containing a , sawhorse, and palm prints belonging to Justin Helzer and Dawn Godman, who resided with Glenn Taylor Helzer, prompting immediate suspicion of their involvement in foul play. On August 7, 2000, authorities executed a at the suspects' shared residence in Concord, arresting Glenn Taylor Helzer (30), Justin Alan Helzer (28), and Dawn Godman (26) initially on drug possession charges, with Glenn Helzer additionally facing accusations of , , weapons violations, and terrorist threats stemming from a brief situation during the raid. The search yielded drugs including Ecstasy and hallucinogenic mushrooms, along with other physical evidence tying the group to the Stinemans and additional victims. Concurrently, dismembered remains in black gym bags surfaced in the on August 7 and 8, 2000, later identified on August 9 as including Ivan Stineman, with tentative matches to Annette Stineman and Bishop, confirming the murders' scale and linking disparate cases through forensic and . Glenn Helzer provided a partial post-arrest, acknowledging aspects of the plot but attributing actions to divine directives, while the seizure of materials from the residence, including documentation of the group's "Children of Thunder" , substantiated their collective involvement in the orchestrated . Godman's subsequent with investigators, detailing the group's dynamics and crimes, further corroborated the evidence leading to charges against all three.

Trial, Guilty Plea, and Sentencing

In March 2004, Glenn Taylor Helzer pleaded guilty to five counts of first-degree in Contra Costa County Superior Court, admitting special circumstances including multiple s committed during a and for financial gain, as well as additional charges of , , and . The plea, entered without any agreement from prosecutors for leniency, followed Helzer's confession detailing the premeditated killings of and Annette Stineman, their son Brandon Stineman, Bishop, and James Gamble during a 2000 scheme. The penalty phase for Helzer's case began in November 2004, where the weighed aggravating factors such as the deliberate and gruesome nature of the crimes against any mitigating evidence, including Helzer's claims of religious delusion. After one and a half days of deliberation, the recommended on December 17, 2004, citing the cold-blooded execution-style murders as outweighing defenses of mental impairment. Judge Patricia Scanlon formally imposed five sentences on Helzer in March 2005, reflecting the special circumstances admitted in his . Helzer's brother and co-defendant, Justin Helzer, faced a separate concluding in guilty verdicts for the same five murders, after which the penalty phase resulted in a recommendation in August 2004 based on evidence of his active participation in the planning and executions. Justin received formal sentences alongside Glenn in March 2005.

Post-Conviction History

Appeals and Current Status

Helzer's automatic appeal, challenging aspects of the trial proceedings and penalty phase including alleged evidentiary errors and , was denied by the California Supreme Court on January 22, 2024, in a unanimous decision affirming the death sentence. The U.S. subsequently denied review of the state court's ruling on October 7, 2024. A habeas corpus petition filed on Helzer's behalf in the California Supreme Court on January 12, 2024, remains pending as of October 2025, seeking post-conviction relief on grounds including claims of constitutional violations during the guilty plea and sentencing. As of October 2025, Helzer, born July 26, 1970 and aged 55, remains incarcerated on California's , with no executions carried out since Governor Newsom's 2019 moratorium on . Condemned inmates, including Helzer, are housed across state facilities under the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's management, previously centralized at San Quentin State Prison.

Fate of Associates

Justin Helzer, Glen Helzer's brother and a key participant in the crimes, was convicted in 2004 of multiple counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances and sentenced to death by a Contra Costa County jury on August 3, 2004. He was incarcerated on death row at San Quentin State Prison, where he died by on April 14, 2013, at age 41, by hanging himself with a bedsheet in his single cell. Dawn Godman, the third member of the small group known as Children of Thunder, pleaded guilty in 2003 to reduced charges including voluntary manslaughter and accessory after the fact in exchange for testifying against the Helzer brothers. She was sentenced on May 3, 2005, to a term of 37 years to life in prison, avoiding the death penalty imposed on her co-defendants. As of 2025, Godman remains incarcerated at the Central California Women's Facility in Chowchilla, with parole eligibility not until 2043; she has appeared before the Board of Parole Hearings for suitability reviews but has not been granted release. The Children of Thunder consisted solely of the Helzer brothers and , with no evidence of additional active members or enduring structures following their arrests and convictions in –2005. Public records and follow-up reporting indicate no broader remnants or ongoing group activities, and family statements from the Helzers have been limited, focusing primarily on the legal proceedings rather than public commentary on the group's dissolution.

References

  1. https://law.justia.com/cases/california/supreme-court/2024/s132256.html
  2. https://supreme.courts.ca.gov/sites/default/files/supremecourt/default/documents/2-1560-s132256-resp-brief-082615.pdf
  3. https://www.marinij.com/2024/01/22/ringleader-in-marin-east-bay-murders-loses-death-penalty-appeal/
  4. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Grand-Jury-Hears-Mother-of-Suspects-In-Multiple-2743698.php
  5. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/guitarists-daughter-linked-to-plot/
  6. https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2004/12/14/ex-wife-wants-helzer-spared/
  7. https://www.recordnet.com/story/news/2004/07/29/attorneys-spar-over-convicted-killer/50697370007/
  8. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Victim-s-Mystery-Bank-Account-Selina-Bishop-3303348.php
  9. https://www.insideedition.com/self-declared-prophet-loses-death-penalty-appeal-after-2000-killing-spree-conviction-85642
  10. https://www.sfchronicle.com/news/baycitynews/article/alleged-gym-bag-killers-appear-in-court-2882808.php
  11. https://www.upcpodcast.com/archive1/thunder
  12. https://culteducation.com/group/869-children-of-thunder/3645-helzer-witnesses-talk-of-his-religion-youth.html
  13. https://people.com/crime/helzer-brothers-stockbroker-turned-cult-killer-people-magazine-investigates/
  14. https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2004/12/10/doctor-helzer-unsure-of-reality/
  15. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/CONTRA-COSTA-COUNTY-Verdict-for-Helzer-5-death-2628107.php
  16. https://www.cracked.com/article_35628_how-not-to-get-away-with-murder-glenn-helzer-and-the-children-of-thunder.html
  17. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/MARTINEZ-Witnesses-call-younger-Helzer-sweet-2705247.php
  18. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/MARTINEZ-Killers-lawyers-blame-seminars-2663959.php
  19. https://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/CONTRA-COSTA-COUNTY-Killer-lays-out-grisly-2772420.php
  20. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-aug-11-mn-2726-story.html
  21. https://scocal.stanford.edu/opinion/people-v-helzer-34766
  22. https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2005/05/03/helzer-brothers-accomplice-receives-37-year-sentence/
  23. https://www.newstimes.com/bayarea/article/MARTINEZ-Contra-Costa-jury-begins-deliberations-2748895.php
  24. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Defendant-to-testify-against-pals-in-slaying-of-2563256.php
  25. https://harpers.org/archive/2013/11/the-man-who-saves-you-from-yourself/
  26. https://www.recordnet.com/story/news/2004/06/15/prosecutor-paints-grisly-picture-in/50696930007/
  27. https://totalcrime.co.uk/murderbook-2000-2009/
  28. https://case-law.vlex.com/vid/people-v-helzer-1034722831
  29. https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/23/23-7295/315598/20240624160552118_Helzer%2520Brief%2520in%2520Opposition%2520.pdf
  30. https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/ca-supreme-court/115732395.html
  31. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Body-Parts-Identified-Disparate-Tragedies-3303352.php
  32. https://murderpedia.org/male.H/h/helzer-brothers.htm
  33. https://www.cnn.com/2000/US/08/09/crime.bishop.reut/
  34. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/CONTRA-COSTA-Guilty-plea-in-scheme-that-left-5-2785347.php
  35. https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2004/11/09/glenn-helzers-sentencing-trial-gets-under-way/
  36. https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2004/12/18/jury-recommends-5-death-sentences/
  37. https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2004/08/04/jurors-say-helzer-deserves-death/
  38. https://www.sfchronicle.com/politics/article/glenn-helzer-death-sentence-18621618.php
  39. https://www.horvitzlevy.com/u-s-supreme-court-passes-on-two-california-supreme-court-cases/
  40. https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/capital-punishment/condemned-inmate-list-secure-request/
  41. https://www.sportskeeda.com/us/shows/where-glen-helzer-justin-helzer-dawn-godman-now-details-explored-ahead-the-playboy-murders-id
  42. https://www.newstimes.com/news/baycitynews/article/Three-death-sentences-for-Justin-Helzer-2736859.php
  43. https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/san-quentin-death-row-inmate-found-dead-in-apparent-suicide/
  44. https://www.sfchronicle.com/crime/article/justin-helzer-hangs-himself-in-prison-4436354.php
  45. https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/MARTINEZ-Woman-apologizes-for-aiding-murders-2636640.php
  46. https://ccwfpapertrail.org/one-mural-one-message-and-one-collaboration-at-a-time/
  47. https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/01/23/ringleader-in-marin-east-bay-murders-loses-death-penalty-appeal/
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