The 1996 murder of John Dale Terry remains one of the most disturbing and legally unusual cases connected to the Ottumwa area. The crime occurred near Agency, Iowa, just outside Ottumwa, Iowa, and involved a level of violence and aftermath behavior that quickly drew the attention of investigators and the public alike.
On July 27, 1996, Terry, 39, was with Benjamin Edward Schreiber and his girlfriend, Evelyn Tangie. The three had reportedly been drinking together before leaving in Schreiber’s vehicle. At some point during the night, Schreiber lured Terry to an abandoned trailer in a rural area. What happened next was not a sudden altercation but a sustained and brutal attack. Terry was beaten to death with a blunt object described as an axe or pickaxe handle, struck repeatedly in a manner that suggested intent rather than impulse. His body was discovered the following day.
In the hours after the killing, Schreiber and Tangie returned without Terry. Witnesses later reported that both appeared to have changed clothes and washed themselves, suggesting an attempt to clean up evidence. Schreiber also made incriminating statements implying he had severely beaten Terry and that the victim would no longer be a threat to anyone. Meanwhile, the weapon used in the attack had been disposed of but was later recovered by authorities, containing blood and hair evidence that tied it directly to the crime.
Law enforcement moved quickly. Schreiber was arrested within three days, and prosecutors built a strong case based on physical evidence and witness testimony. In 1997, he was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The jury reportedly needed only a short time to deliberate, reflecting the strength of the prosecution’s case and the clarity of the evidence presented.
Tangie’s involvement added another layer of complexity. She was charged and initially convicted of second-degree murder, with prosecutors arguing there was some level of cooperation or knowledge of the crime. However, her conviction was later overturned on appeal due to a violation of her constitutional rights. Specifically, testimony about statements made by Schreiber was allowed in court without giving her the opportunity to confront and cross-examine that evidence, which the appeals court determined was improper. This outcome underscored how procedural issues can significantly affect even serious criminal cases.
In the years that followed, Schreiber filed multiple appeals and legal challenges. He argued ineffective legal representation, conflicts of interest, and other procedural concerns, all of which were ultimately rejected. He also participated in a broader legal challenge involving DNA collection laws, claiming that requiring samples from convicted felons after sentencing was unconstitutional. Courts disagreed, ruling that such requirements were not punitive but administrative.
The case gained national and even international attention decades later due to an unusual legal argument stemming from a medical emergency. In 2015, while incarcerated, Schreiber suffered severe kidney stones that led to sepsis, a life-threatening infection. His condition became critical—he collapsed, lost consciousness, and his heart stopped multiple times. Medical staff revived him repeatedly, despite reports that a do-not-resuscitate order had been in place.
In 2018, Schreiber filed a motion claiming that because his heart had stopped, he had technically died and therefore completed his life sentence. He argued that being revived effectively placed him in a “second life,” meaning continued imprisonment was unlawful. The courts firmly rejected this reasoning. Both lower courts and the Iowa Court of Appeals clarified that a life sentence legally refers to a person’s natural life until permanent, irreversible death—not a temporary clinical death followed by resuscitation. In a notably blunt conclusion, the court stated that he was either still alive and therefore subject to his sentence, or dead, in which case the appeal would be irrelevant.
That ruling carried broader legal significance, reinforcing how the justice system interprets life sentences in an era of advanced medical intervention. It effectively closed any potential loophole involving resuscitation or near-death experiences as a means of avoiding incarceration.
Schreiber remained in prison for the rest of his life. In 2023, he died in custody in Fort Dodge, Iowa at the age of 70. Despite his earlier claim of having “already died,” his sentence was carried out as originally imposed.
The case stands out not only for the brutality of the murder but also for the layers that followed—questions of complicity, appeals based on constitutional rights, and one of the most unusual legal arguments ever seriously reviewed by a court. While many cases are remembered solely for the crime itself, this one continues to be discussed because of how it intersected with evolving legal and medical boundaries.
