Alex Christopher Ewing

Serial Killer

Alex Christopher Ewing: The Colorado Hammer Killer

Background

Alex Christopher Ewing is an American serial killer whose name became associated with a terrifying series of home invasions and hammer attacks committed in Colorado during January 1984. His confirmed murder victims were Patricia Louise Smith and three members of the Bennett family: Bruce, Debra and their seven-year-old daughter, Melissa. Ewing also attacked several people who survived, including the Bennetts' three-year-old daughter, Vanessa. The Colorado murders remained unsolved for more than three decades. Ewing was eventually identified through DNA evidence while he was serving a lengthy prison sentence in Nevada for an unrelated home invasion and attack. The development of modern forensic testing allowed investigators to compare DNA preserved from the Colorado crime scenes with Ewing's DNA profile. This connection led to his extradition to Colorado, separate murder trials and convictions in 2021 and 2022.

Confirmed Murder Victims

• Patricia Louise Smith, age 50 Killed on January 10, 1984, inside her townhouse in Lakewood, Colorado. Smith, an interior designer, was sexually assaulted and beaten to death with an auto-body hammer.
• Bruce Bennett, age 27 Killed during the night of January 15-16, 1984, inside the Bennett family home on East Center Drive in Aurora, Colorado. His body was discovered on the morning of January 16. He died from blunt-force and sharp-force injuries.
• Debra Bennett, age 26 Killed during the night of January 15-16, 1984, in the family's Aurora home. She was discovered on January 16 and died from severe blunt-force trauma.
• Melissa Bennett, age 7 Killed during the night of January 15-16, 1984, in her bedroom at the Bennett home in Aurora. She died from blunt-force and sharp-force injuries and had also been sexually assaulted.

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Confirmed Victims: (4)

Patricia Louise Smith Age: (50), Date of Death: 1984-01-10

Survivors:

James Haubenschild Age: (22), Date of Attack: January 4, 1984

Kimberly Rice Age: (21), Date of Attack: January 4, 1984

Donna Dixon Age: (28), Date of Attack: January 9, 1984

Vanessa Bennett Age: (3), Date of Attack: January 15, 1984

Roy Williams Age: (31), Date of Attack: January 27, 1984

Christopher Barry Age: (38), Date of Attack: August 9, 1984

Nancy Barry Age: (24), Date of Attack: August 9, 1984

Alex Ewing guilty in 1984 Hammer Killer murder of Patricia Smith