Joe Metheny was a huge man who had a serious drug habit. The only difference between Metheny, who owned a roadside barbecue stand in the 1990s, and others we have written about in the past was the fact that he had alleged that some of his victims ended up on the menu, because he claimed that human flesh tasted similar to pork.
Metheny could have portrayed “Leatherface” in the movies due to his anger issues and large size. His attorneys stated that his mother had neglected her six children while she worked double shifts, and his father was an alcoholic who was killed in a violent car accident when Metheny was six. The family was considered to be financially poor, and Metheny was often sent to live with other families in foster care. Joe Metheny was described as intelligent, street smart, and always polite to others.
In 1973, Metheny joined the United States Army, serving in Germany, and he later claimed he had served in the Vietnam War towards the end of it, but became addicted to heroin. Some state that Metheny never made it to Vietnam, and his service there remains unverified.
By the 1990s, Joe’s weight grew to over 400 pounds, earning him the nickname of “Tiny.” The 6-foot-1-inch man was a fixture in bars in the Baltimore, Maryland area, and during that time became homeless, living in makeshift camps. Any money Metheny made went to feed his addiction to crack cocaine, heroin, and liquor. His work colleagues described him as very well-mannered, but soon he snapped…
In 1994, Metheny murdered Cathy Ann Magaziner and buried her in a shallow grave on the site of the factory where he worked. He later dug up her remains, placed her head in a box, and disposed of it in the trash.
Sometime, around this time, Metheny opened a roadside BBQ joint in Baltimore. People raved about his food, and Metheny seemed well-liked by the locals who dined there. The only issue was the ingredients that Metheny used. He later claimed that he used his victims in the BBQ and the burgers that he served. Metheny fed unsuspecting customers a horror straight out of their worst nightmares.
In 1995, Metheny was tried for murdering two homeless men, Randall Brewer and Randy Piker, with an axe at the tent city where he stayed. Their bodies were discovered on August 2, 1995. A jury stated in July 1996 that there was insufficient evidence to convict Metheny for the murders, but later, Metheny noted that he did indeed kill the two.
In November 1996, Metheny would strike again by stabbing Kimberly Lynn Spicer with a knife. He then kidnapped and tried to rape Rita Kemper on December 8, 1996. The two had shared drugs in the trailer in which Metheny was residing at the time on the pallet factory site, where he worked. Spicer fought back, fleeing from the trailer, but Metheny gave chase, beat her, and dragged her back in, attempting to rape the woman. But Spicer was able to escape through a window of the trailer and contacted local authorities.
Metheny told Spicer, “I’m going to kill you and bury you in the woods with the other girls,” before she escaped.
“Joe Metheny was tried in 1997 in the Kemper case[7] and given a sentence of 50 years for kidnapping and attempted sexual assault. He was acquitted of attempting to murder her.[3] He was sentenced to death in 1998 for the murder of Spicer.[6] At his sentencing hearing, he said that he committed murders because he “enjoyed it”,[1] he “got a rush out of it, got a high out of it” and “had no real excuse why other than I like to do it”.”
“In August 1998, he pleaded guilty to murdering and robbing Magaziner, and prosecutors sought the death penalty in that case, as well. He received a sentence of life in prison in that case. His death sentence was overturned in 2001, and the sentence for the murder of Spicer was reduced to life without parole. The rationale for the death penalty was that the murder had been committed in committing a robbery, but the evidence indicated that robbery was not his motivation.”
On August 5, 2017, Metheny was found dead in a prison cell at the Western Correctional Institution in Cumberland, Maryland, at the age of 62.
Written By: John G. Clark Jr.