In 1986, 28-year-old Mary Kathryn Ennis and her husband were separated, and she was living alone with her 7-year-old son, Andy in Hillsborough. Many of her neighbors described her as being a devoted and caring mother. Her neighbor two doors down, James W. Jones, said that he had “never seen a woman more devoted to her son” than Mary. Her landlord described her as “a nice, sweet person with a pleasant attitude” and said that he loved having her as a tenant as she always paid her rent on time, and did not throw wild parties.
On November 4th, 1986, around 9 p.m., Andy would be the last to see her before her disappearance. He said that she was talking with someone on the phone before he went to bed. When he woke up in the morning, he found that she was gone. Andy made himself breakfast, and later Mary’s employer called the house when she didn’t show up to work. The employer called Mary’s father, and shortly after, Mary was reported missing.
Andy also ended up calling his grandfather, Richard Ennis, after a while. The two went to see Mary’s boyfriend, David Smudski, at his work. Smudski said that he had not seen Mary, so Richard took Andy to school. Smudski was the one who found Mary’s car, a 1981 Chevy Malibu, while on his way to her trailer. The car was found parked half a mile from her home, beside Lawrence Road. The car doors were locked.
The Search Begins
A search for Mary began, and the N.C. Memorial Hospital’s Air Care helicopter was brought in to help the cops search nearby fields and the woods. At the time she went missing, Mary was described as being 5 feet 9 inches tall, 135 pounds, and slender. The State Bureau of Investigation searched Mary’s house as well as her car, and Sheriff Lindy Pendergrass reported that her personal items were all still there. Her family told the cops that some of her clothes were missing: A pair of blue jeans, sneakers, and a sweatshirt. “We have to have suspicions of foul play now,” Pendergrass told The Durham Sun.
Mary’s disappearance worried her neighbors. Her landlord said that he suspected that she had been forced somewhere. He told The Chapel Hill News that he had seen her the day prior, and that Mary had made an appointment with his wife to get her hair done that Thursday. “Nothing points to her leaving on her own,” he said. He also said that his wife had been frightened by the disappearance and was scared to be home by herself. He reiterated that Mary was not the kind of woman who ever left her son alone.
A few months after the search began, rewards were offered for information about Mary’s whereabouts. The state offered a $5,000 reward, the Orange County Crimestoppers offered $1,200, and the reward fund at the Central Carolina Bank in Chapel Hill was around $7,000. Even with the reward total eventually reaching a whopping $20,000, the case remained unsolved.
In February of 1988, over a year after Mary’s disappearance, her father, Richard C. Ennis was given permission from the court to take custody of his daughter’s possessions. Richard was designated as the “permanent receiver” of his daughter’s possessions, as well as her insurance policies and other income. Eventually, Mary’s parents took full custody of Andy.
It would take two and a half years before Mary’s loved ones finally discovered where she was. In January of 1989, her skeletal remains were found not far from the state prison in Hillsborough. This was due to tips, and a map drawn by two inmates at the prison.
Joseph David Annadale
The Orange County District Attorney, Carl Fox, stated that they had received enough tips to allow them to charge 28-year-old Joseph David Annadale with her murder. Annadale was described as being in and out of prison for most of his adult life and had gained the nickname “Cujo.” At the time of his arrest, he was serving 60 years for a series of armed robberies he committed in Durham and Orange counties between the years of 1987 and 1988.
Annadale had just moved into the trailer across from Mary eight days prior to her disappearance. It appeared Annadale kidnapped the young mother from her home the night of November 4 and ended up murdering her and disposing of her body. Fox said at the time that he expected to seek the death penalty for Annadale.
The trial was postponed for a month when Annadale’s attorney requested more time to prepare for the case. This was due to a new public defender being added to the case just before the original trial date. Annadale was also in favor of this, as he knew he could be facing the death penalty if found guilty. He wanted his counsel to be as prepared as possible, given his life would be on the line. The judge granted their request but stated that it was an unfortunate situation.
In September of 1989, the trial began in the Orange County Superior Court. Proceedings soon became interesting as witnesses took the stand. One of which was Mary’s son Andy, who was by then 9 years old.
Andy was shown a photographic line-up with six pictures, and was asked to select anyone he recognized. He picked Annadale out of the lineup, but he thought that the man was named Mike or Steve. Andy’s therapist, Dr. Hawk, was called in to help him with his emotions.
During a pre-trial hearing, Andy had testified that he heard an argument after he had gone to bed. He went to investigate, and saw his mother arguing with Annadale. In cross-examination, he specified that they were arguing about Mary seeing another man. Annadale had asked “Why are you seeing him?” and Mary had replied “Because I want to.”
Andy also testified that his mother had spoken to him earlier in the day, saying that if she was not at home in the morning, then she would be at David Smudski’s house.
The Testimony of a Child
Andy said he had played outside with Annadale prior to his mother’s disappearance. He also said that he and Mary had stayed overnight in Annadale’s trailer during a power outage, and that he ate breakfast with him two weeks before the disappearance. Previous reports noted that David Annadale was in prison until about eight days before Mary went missing, so Andy’s testimony contradicts that timeline. But we also have to remember that the boy was only 7 years old when his mom went missing, and 9 when he was asked to testify in court. It’s understandable that some of his information would be inconsistent or even that details might not add up.
Inmates who had known Annadale in the Raleigh Central Prison were also allowed to testify, and what they shared was disturbing and graphic.
Wendell Strickland and Carmelo Mangione said that Annadale had claimed that he had been paid $5,200 to cut Mary’s throat, to which Strickland said “$5,200 isn’t much for a human life.” Mangione added that Annadale said he was asked to kill her because she had messed up money related to either drugs or a loan. Strickland stated that Annadale had talked to him once about the decomposition time of bodies, as well as masking the smell. Now, I want to add that we don’t really know the full details of what happened to Mary when Annadale abducted and murdered her, or what he exaggerated to make himself look tougher in front of the inmates.
Mangione testified that Annadale took Ennis to a wooded area, where he first tried to strangle her to death. When this approach failed, he instead pulled out a knife and cut her throat. Strickland and Mangione were the inmates that drew maps to help the authorities locate Mary’s remains.
Annadale’s Ex-Girlfriend Weighs In
Annadale’s ex-girlfriend, Shelby Riddle, also testified against him during the trial. She did so out of a “plea-immunity” agreement to avoid being charged with multiple counts of accessory to armed robbery. Riddle was living with Annadale in the Timbers Mobile Home Park when he confessed to the murder. Riddle testified that Annadale told her about the murder when the two were doing cocaine. She testified that Annadale had asked to borrow her car so that he could move Mary’s body to a better hiding place. He told her that he had hacked up her corpse with a shovel, and buried the parts in plastic bags. This horrified Riddle, as she had been friends with Mary. As a sort of revenge, she left news articles about the murder out where Annadale could see them as a way to guilt him. She said that he would look at her and ask “Why are you doing this to me?”
At one point, Riddle claimed that Annadale forced herself and her young daughter out of their home, and said that he was going to give a confession of where the body was. He also said he was going to kill himself because he “Couldn’t live with what he had done.” Annadale eventually reversed his confession, claiming that he was under the influence of valium.
Riddle’s testimony isn’t the only time Annadale showed some form of guilt over the murder. Strickland, his old cellmate, testified that Annadale had asked him to contact a woman who was a medium. He supposedly wanted to contact Mary’s spirit to apologize for killing her, and to let her know that her son was being cared for. Another inmate, Robert Webster, testified that Annadale had woken up at one o’clock screaming “I killed her! I killed the bitch!”
Despite this supposed guilt that Annadale felt, he never confessed to the authorities.
The Jury Deliberates
Annadale’s defense attorney, Kirk Osborn, tried to get multiple of the witness testimonies struck or discredited. These included 9-year-old Andy’s testimony, Shelby Riddle’s testimony, and the testimony of one of the inmates. Andy’s was argued on the point that his testimony wasn’t consistent, and that he was potentially being coerced into answering a certain way. Riddle was testifying as part of a plea bargain, and Osborn argued that she may be lying as a sort of retribution against Annadale. Riddle had reported Annadale for assaulting her with a gun and threatening to kill her at one point. The judge allowed all testimony to remain.
The jury deliberated for eight hours before returning their verdict. David Annadale was convicted of the first-degree murder and kidnapping of Mary Kathryn Ennis. Annadale showed no emotion when the verdict was read. Several members of the jury left the courtroom in tears. The jury, comprised of seven women and five men, later decided against the death penalty, and instead sentenced Annadale to life in prison.
The Mysterious Death of William McMichael III
I want to talk about another news story in the Chapel Hill area I noticed when I was first pulling the research on the disappearance and murder of Mary Kathryn Ennis. Since it involves a shooting death in Chapel Hill that I’d never heard of before, I thought you all would want to learn about it as well.
The article that first caught my eye ran in the News and Observer on January 12, 1989 and it was titled “Young man’s success ends with bizarre death.” This was in the same issue that shared the news that Mary Kathryn Ennis’s relatives had been shown the site where the young mother’s body was found.
This is how the article about the death of William McMichael, age 23, written by Joseph Berryhill began:
If there’s a formula for succeeding in the business world at a tender age, Carrboro’s William J. McMichael III knew it.
Mr. McMichael, 23, launched a balloon-delivery business with a friend during his senior year at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He then watched the business soar—to the point of being hired to launch balloons at Atlantic Coast Conference football games and to help decorate for part of President-elect Georg Bush’s inaugural festivities in Washington.
As I read more, I learned William, a Charlotte native, had knocked on the door of a residence around 4 a.m. on January 10, 1989. The home was in a subdivision near the Grey Culbreth Junior High School, about a mile from William’s apartment at The Villages in Carrboro. The first reports released said William had attempted to enter the home, and the owner, 46-year-old Lee Sizemore, had struggled with the young man before retrieving a gun. He shot William four times.
William McMichael was pronounced dead a short time later at the North Carolina Memorial Hospital. There were numerous reasons this story caught my eye. One, it involved a UNC student about to graduate. Two, he was an entrepreneur who had a launched a successful business before he even obtained his degree. Three, he had tried to enter the home of someone he didn’t even know in the middle of the night? There had to be more to this story.
An Enterprising Young Man from Charlotte
William McMichael had graduated from East Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte and was a gifted tennis player who enjoyed teaching the sport to children. He first attended UNC-Wilmington on a tennis scholarship before transferring to the University of North Carolina, where he played on the tennis team for a year. Though he was majoring in English and political science, he developed an interest in business. He and a friend came up with the idea for Helium Highs, a balloon delivery service, and he helped start the business in 1987 using a $1,000 of his summer savings. The service grew into a wholesale office that also produced promotional items such as matchbooks, glassware, and other items. The success and growth of the business attracted media attention from all over the state.
The night of the shooting, William’s roommate reported he had eaten dinner at their apartment before heading out to a bar in downtown Chapel Hill. Sometime after that, he made two different late-night calls to his parents, who were separated at the time. After one of those calls, his father decided to make the three-hour drive to Chapel Hill to find out what was going on with William.
Struggling with His Mental Health
A former classmate of William’s told The Chapel Hill News that she had seen her friend right before Christmas, and he had been struggling with several different things. He’d found out he was adopted, his parents were getting a divorce, and he had just broken up with a girlfriend. But even this friend said he didn’t seem as upset as she would have thought and seemed more reflective than anything. Another former classmate said he’d never seen William act aggressively or attack anyone. The publicist for his company, Helium Highs, said he’d talked to William the afternoon before he was killed and the young man was in good spirits.
Initial toxicology tests performed after William’s death showed no traces of alcohol. The medical examiner ordered additional tests to determine if William had been under the influence of any drugs at the time. As the days passed, news media released more detailed reports of what happened on the night William was shot. Around 4 a.m., William began pounding on the door to the Sizemore home. When Lee Sizemore opened it, William said something like, “Is this the stairway to heaven?” Lee told the young man to leave and tried to close the door, but William pushed his way in, and a struggle ensued. Lee received bruises and was bitten during the altercation.
He broke free and went to retrieve a .25-caliber handgun from his car. While this was going on, Lee’s wife Debbie called the police from an upstairs bedroom. Lee shot the gun to make sure it was working properly before trying to get back into the home. He discovered William had locked the door. When he began banging on it, William let him back in. He tried to get the young man to leave the house by showing him the gun, but William charged at him instead. Lee said this is when he fired the four shots, which hit Willam in the head and chest.
No Charges for the Homeowner
On January 20, 1989, District Attorney Carl Fox said he believed Lee Sizemore was acting within his rights to defend himself and his family, therefore he didn’t plan to file murder charges. He considered the investigation closed. Fox said he had talked to acquaintances who said William had been drinking earlier in the day of the shooting and had been experimenting with LSD and possibly ecstasy.
A few weeks after William’s death, two other UNC students, John Haydock and Chris Crute were named as officers for Helium Highs, Incorporated after William’s father initiated the change in ownership. He knew how hard the students had worked to build the company with his son and felt they were the right people to continue the business.
When the additional toxicology tests from William McMichael’s autopsy were released, they showed no traces of LSD. District Attorney Fox said his decision not to charge Lee Sizemore wasn’t based on the results of those tests. Instead, he said William had visited North Carolina Memorial Hospital in early December of 1988 and told doctors he believed he was suffering from manic-depressive disorder, now known as bipolar disorder. William told doctors he had suicidal ideation and was struggling with the divorce of his parents and failed relationship. He also told them he’d been taking cocaine and ecstasy in the months prior.
While questions remain about William McMichael’s toxicology tests, based on the high level of stress he was under trying to graduate, scale his business, and his personal issues, he may have begun experimenting with drugs in the months prior to his death to alleviate the stress. If that’s the case, and he did try to enter the home of a person he wasn’t acquainted with, the homeowner was within his rights to protect his wife and two small children who were also in the home. This story highlights the importance of mental health care, and the heartbreaking thing is, it looks like William had tried to seek out help right before his death. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough at the time.
Show Sources:
Mary Kathryn Ennis
The Chapel Hill News
November 6, 1986
Search Continues for Missing Woman
https://www.newspapers.com/image/783080307
November 7, 1986
Orange deputies ask public to help find missing woman
https://www.newspapers.com/image/787833655
The Chapel Hill News
November 16, 1986
Neighbors Ponder Woman’s Fate
https://www.newspapers.com/image/783082777
The Chapel Hill News
January 7, 1987
State Kicks in Reward Money in Search for Missing Woman
https://www.newspapers.com/image/783096219
The Durham Sun
February 9, 1988
Missing woman’s father is given her possessions
https://www.newspapers.com/image/788022699
The Chapel Hill Herald
January 11, 1989
Ennis’ body found near Hillsborough
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790561671
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790561673
The News and Observer
January 12, 1989
Relatives shown site of body
https://www.newspapers.com/image/655997662
The Chapel Hill Herald
August 8, 1989
Trial of man accused in 1986 Ennis slaying postponed
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/789335094
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/789335095
The Chapel Hill Herald
September 19, 1989
Ennis’ son takes stand in hearing
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790236963
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790236968
The Chapel Hill Herald
September 21, 1989
Witness tells grisly story of Ennis killing
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790237245
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790237248
The Chapel Hill News
September 25, 1989
Annadale sought to contact victim’s spirit, inmate testified
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/783673247
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/783673253
The Durham Sun
September 26, 1989
Ex-girlfriend: Annadale said he killed Ennis
https://www.newspapers.com/image/788062982
The Durham Sun
September 22, 1989
Inmates, son will be allowed to testify in Annadale trial
https://www.newspapers.com/image/788062344
The News and Observer
October 4, 1989
Orange jury convicts Annadale of murder
https://www.newspapers.com/image/655857874
The Chapel Hill Herald
October 4, 1989
Annadale convicted of murder
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/789461567
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/789461590
The Durham Sun
October 5, 1989
Jury gives Annadale life sentence
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/788077172
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/788077177
https://law.justia.com/cases/north-carolina/supreme-court/1991/351a90-0.html
William McMichael III
The Chapel Hill Herald
January 11, 1989
Local man killed in 4 a.m. struggle
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790561671
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790561690
The Chapel Hill News
January 12, 1989
Friends, mother unsure why McMichael dead
https://www.newspapers.com/image/783364737
The Chapel Hill Herald
January 12, 1989
Tests determine man killed in struggle not intoxicated
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790561755
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790561757
The Chapel Hill Herald
January 13, 1989
McMichael case still a mystery
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790561789
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790561799
The Chapel Hill Herald
January 14, 1989
New angle considered in McMichael Case
https://www.newspapers.com/image/790561877
The Chapel Hill Newspaper
January 20, 1989
Intruder’s Killer Won’t Be Charged
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/783365031
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/783365042
Helium Highs to survive death of founder
The Chapel Hill News
February 1, 1989
https://www.newspapers.com/image/783365821
The Chapel Hill Herald
March 15, 1989
Fox: McMichael decision not based on drug tests
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/789348357
Page 2
https://www.newspapers.com/image/789348360
The Chapel Hill News
June 14, 1989
Questions linger over shooting death
Page 1
https://www.newspapers.com/image/783507637
Page 2
