The Coast to Coast Killer

Tommy Lynch Sells "The Coast to Coast Killer

1979-1999

Across the United States

Tommy Lynn Sells, born on June 28, 1964, in Oakland, California, was an American serial killer known as the "Coast-to-Coast Killer." He claimed responsibility for over 70 murders across multiple states, although investigators have confirmed his involvement in at least 22 cases. Sells was executed by lethal injection on April 3, 2014, in Huntsville, Texas, for the 1999 murder of 13-year-old Kaylene Harris.

Sells experienced a tumultuous childhood, marked by abuse and instability. He began exhibiting violent behavior at a young age and spent much of his adult life drifting across the United States, committing various crimes, including theft, assault, and multiple murders.

Confirmed Victims

John Cade, 39 – July 5, 1979

Colleen Gill, 33 – July 31, 1982

Tiffany Gill, 4 – July 31, 1982

Ena Cordt, 28 – July 26, 1985

Rory Cordt, 4 – July 26, 1985

Suzanne Korcz, 27 – May 1, 1987

Stefanie Stroh, 20 – October 15, 1987

Keith Dardeen, 29 – November 17–18, 1987

Elaine Dardeen, 30 – November 17–18, 1987

Peter Dardeen, 3 – November 17–18, 1987

Casey Dardeen (newborn) – November 17–18, 1987

Melissa Tremblay, 11 – September 11, 1988

Kent Lauten, 51 – December 18, 1988

Teresa Hall, 25 – December 9, 1991

Tiffany Hall, 5 – December 9, 1991

Joel Kirkpatrick, 10 – October 13, 1997

Stephanie Mahaney, 13 – October 15, 1997

Debra Harris, 31 – April 4, 1999

Ambria Halliburton, 8 – April 4, 1999

Mary Perez, 9 – April 18, 1999

Haley McHone, 13 – May 13, 1999

Bobbie Lynn Wofford, 14 – July 5, 1999

Kaylene Harris, 13 – December 31, 1999

Dardeen Family Murders (1987): Sells confessed to the brutal slaying of the Dardeen family in Ina, Illinois. He murdered Keith Dardeen, his pregnant wife Elaine, their 3-year-old son Peter, and their newborn daughter, who was born during the attack.

Survivor Krystal Surles (1999): On December 31, 1999, Sells attacked 13-year-old Kaylene Harris and her 10-year-old friend, Krystal Surles, in Del Rio, Texas. Kaylene was killed, but Krystal survived and provided a description that led to Sells' arrest.

Julie Rea's Exoneration: Sells' confession to the 1997 murder of 10-year-old Joel Kirkpatrick in Illinois led to the exoneration of the boy's mother, Julie Rea, who had been wrongfully convicted of the crime.