Jerry Summers: The Lula Lake Murders

  • Monday, October 4, 2021
  • Jerry Summers
Jerry Summers
Jerry Summers

On the Georgia side of Lookout Mountain lies the very picturesque and beautiful rural property that is now owned by the Lula Lake Land Trust which was formed in 1994 primarily through the efforts of Robert Davenport, a member of the second generation of the family that founded the Krystal Company, a fast food restaurant chain in the South.

            Originally, the initial tract of land purchase was over 1,000 acres and its size has now increased to over 8,000 acres.  Through the efforts of the Davenport family, what was once a dumping ground for garbage, burned out stolen automobiles and a popular lovers lane is now a scenic natural site that is available to the public under the supervision and control of the land trust created by him prior to his untimely death in 1994.

            The waters of Rock Creek Gorge tumble downward into Lula Lake and then roar over Lula Falls on its descent to the Chattanooga Valley below.

            Open to the public on a limited basis there is a parking fee required for admission.

 This rustic site was also the venue for one of the most highly publicized murder cases in the history of the region. 

            A young couple, Orville "Pete" Steele, age 19, and his girlfriend, Carolyn Newell, age 16, on Sunday, April 14, 1963, had gone to Lula Lake.  Their bodies were found six days later after a massive search in the community had taken place. 

            Pete Steele’s body was tied to a tree and he died of strangulation with the use of twine and a wooden stick tightened around his neck.  Some 100-150 feet from Pete’s body lay the remains of Carolyn Newell with her wrists bound together with twine.  She has been raped several times, struck in the head and then choked to death.  The grisly scene revealed that she was naked from the waist down and wild animals had eaten part of her leg.

            Suspicion immediately directed towards 27-year-old James Blevins who later admitted he would drive to Lookout Mountain and spy on young couples who engaged in sexual intercourse.  He was picked up for questioning and admitted that he had talked to the couple but denied any involvement in their murders.

            He was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, held without bond and was housed in the jail at Rome, Georgia, because of rumored threats against him in Walker County.  The State of Georgia elected to try the Carolyn Newell case first and the Pete Steele case was put on hold until it was concluded.  Thus the stage was set for a prosecutorial mistake that would ultimately result in Blevins being acquitted of both murders.

            The case was prosecuted on behalf of the State of Georgia by attorney general Earl Self, and special prosecutor from Summerville, the legendary Bobby Lee Cooke.  James Blevins was defended by another great of the Georgia Bar, Colonel Frank Gleason of Rossville, who was an aggressive and tenacious trial lawyer.  In a case that attracted not only local and state media coverage, it also was picked up by the New York Times.

            In a hotly contested trial by outstanding lawyers, Blevins was found guilty of the Newell murder and sentenced to death by electrocution.  On appeal, the conviction was overturned on the ground that “the selection of jurors must be drawn in open court.”  By analogy, a new trial was granted because “the indictment charging Blevins with murder was likewise not returned in open court but was handed to the court clerk in the trial judge's office.”

            A second trial was held in the case and Blevins was acquitted.  The State of Georgia next attempted to try the defendant in the Pete Steele case but the prosecution made the mistake of not giving Blevins a trial “within two regular terms of court after the term for which he had filed a demand for trial” as required by Georgia statute.

            In a decision based on a technicality the Georgia Court of Appeals on March 11, 1966, held that Blevins’ “right to a speedy trial” had been denied and that the murder charge in the Pete Steele case had to be dismissed freeing James Blevins.

            Pulitzer Prize winning writer Cormac McCarthy is alleged to have repeatedly relied on the facts of the Blevins murder case when he wrote his novel Child of God which closely parallels the historical details in the actual murder in northwest Georgia at the site which is now the Lula Lake Land Trust.

            Since the location is now generally closed to the public after dark, little facts are known as to whether the ghosts of Carolyn Newell and Pete Steele are present on the beautiful and tranquil premises.

* * *

Jerry Summers

(If you have additional information about one of Mr. Summers' articles or have suggestions or ideas about a future Chattanooga area historical piece, please contact Mr. Summers at jsummers@summersfirm.com)

 

           

           

Lula Lake
Lula Lake
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