In the Shadow of the Bitterroot:

Wayne Nance and His Place in Montana’s Criminal History

Introduction

In the tapestry of American criminal history, certain figures emerge not merely as perpetrators of violence, but as catalysts for communal fear, law-enforcement evolution, and long-lingering sorrow. One such figure in the northern reaches of the United States was Wayne Nathan Nance (1955–1986), a native Montanan whose suspected killing spree across the 1970s and 1980s profoundly unsettled the towns and valleys of western Montana. Though he was neither arrested nor formally tried for the murders attributed to him, his life and deeds continue to occupy a singular place in the state’s collective memory — a somber reminder of vulnerable lives lost, investigative limitations of the era, and the harrowing way communities reckon with unresolved violence.

Early Life and the Path to Violence

Born in Clinton, Montana, on October 18, 1955, Wayne Nathan Nance grew up in and around Missoula, the son of a long-haul truck driver and a waitress. Early reports paint a complex and contradictory portrait: academically gifted yet socially troubled, creative but alienated. Teachers and peers described him as eccentric, an adolescent who occasionally flirted with dark ideas that hinted at a deeper psychological unrest.

After graduating from Sentinel High School in 1974, Nance served briefly in the United States Navy before a discharge for misconduct, an episode that foreshadowed the instability that would later define his interactions with the world around him.

To neighbors and colleagues, Nance was unassuming — a furniture mover at Conlin’s Furniture in Missoula and a familiar face in the community. Yet beneath this veneer of normalcy, investigators later found troubling signs: obsessive photography of female coworkers, harassment complaints, and a disturbing capacity for duplicity that would allow him to hide in plain sight.

The Murders Attributed to Nance

Across a span of more than a decade, law enforcement ultimately came to believe that Nance was responsible for a string of homicides that defied easy categorization. Because he was never apprehended and died during his final crime attempt, definitive convictions were never secured. Still, physical evidence unearthed after his death linked him to at least six murders, and investigators continue to consider the possibility of additional victims.

The earliest known killing attributed to Nance took place on April 11, 1974. Donna Lorraine Pounds, a 39-year-old West Riverside woman, was found shot five times in the head and left in her basement. Nance, only 18 at the time, had been an acquaintance of the family, and eyewitnesses placed him near the home before and after the crime. Insufficient evidence at the time prevented a charge, leaving the case unsolved for years — a grim beginning to an ominous pattern.

In the early 1980s, the remains of several young women — some unidentified for decades — surfaced in woods and fields near Missoula. These included a teenage runaway found near Beavertail Hill State Park and a body later identified through DNA as Marcella Cheri “Marci” Bachmann, buried in a shallow grave and violently shot. Investigators found strands of her hair in Nance’s truck and photographs of her among his belongings.

In September 1985, the skeleton of another unidentified woman was discovered near a creek north of Missoula; modern genetic research would eventually identify her as Janet Lee Lucas, though direct proof of Nance’s involvement remains unclear.

That same year yielded one of the most shocking episodes linked to Nance: the double murder of Michael and Teresa Shook in Ravalli County. Tied up and stabbed to death in their own home, the Shooks’ brutal deaths and the peril they left for their children — who were rescued by neighbors — captured headlines and deepened the community’s trauma.

The Fatal Home Invasion

The end of Nance’s killing spree came not through law enforcement, but at the hands of two intended victims. On the night of September 3, 1986, Nance targeted Douglas “Doug” and Kristen “Kris” Wells at their Missoula home. In a violent home invasion that began under the guise of needing a flashlight, Nance struck Doug, tied the couple up, stabbed Doug, and attempted to assault Kris. In a harrowing turn, Doug managed to free himself, retrieve a rifle, and shoot Nance before beating him in a desperate act of self-defense. Nance died of his wounds the following day.

This encounter, chilling in its violence and dramatic in its closure, became the nexus for linking Nance to the string of unsolved murders that had haunted law enforcement for years. With Nance gone before a trial could occur, the Wellses’ survival served as both their own salvation and the grim key to an unraveling mystery.

Community Impact and Law Enforcement Challenges

The influence of Nance’s crimes on Missoula and surrounding areas extended far beyond the grim tally of homicide reports. For a community steeped in small-town social intimacy, the idea that a local man — known personally by many — could commit such calculated violence in homes, on trails, and in quiet rural spaces shattered assumptions of safety. Fear grew not only from the crimes themselves but from the uncertainty of how many victims there might be and where the killer might strike next.

Law enforcement in the 1970s and 1980s faced significant technological limitations in linking and solving murders across jurisdictions. In a time before widespread DNA databases, genetic genealogy, and coordinated national tracking systems, detectives worked case by case, often stymied by lack of evidence, misattributions, and decades-old cold files. In many ways, the story of the *Missoula Mauler* underscores the evolution and urgency of modern investigative tools — tools that might have hastened his arrest or given earlier closure to families.

Legacy and Ongoing Questions

Nearly four decades after Nance’s death, the community continues to grapple with unanswered questions. Who were all the victims? How many lives remain unidentified or misunderstood because of procedural gaps? Advancements in DNA and forensic genealogy have helped identify previously unknown remains, such as that of Janet Lee Lucas, yet uncertainty lingers about his full range of crimes.

Nance’s life and actions remind historians and criminologists of the frailty of assumptions — that danger can hail from familiar faces and that patterns of violence may elude comprehension until tragedy forces recognition. His case has fueled true-crime scholarship, podcast narratives, and local discourse, not as a sensational aside but as a cautionary chapter in a state’s history.

Conclusion

For the families touched by loss and the community that watched its innocence fracture, the story of Wayne Nathan Nance stands as both a personal and public tragedy. It is a narrative woven from the unforgiving threads of violence, survival, and unresolved grief. Yet it also serves as a testament to the recovery of survivors, the adaptability of investigative science, and the persistent quest for truth across decades. In viewing this history with empathetic nuance and factual clarity, one recognizes not merely a criminal, but a complex human story with ripples felt long after the final shot was fired in a quiet Missoula home.

Works Cited

“Wayne Nance.” *Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia*, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Nance](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Nance). Accessed 3 Jan. 2026.

“Montana Murder Mysteries: The Gruesome World of Missoula Mauler Wayne Nance.” *NBC Montana*, [https://www.nbcrightnow.com/all_abc_fox/montana-murder-mysteries-the-gruesome-world-of-missoula-mauler-wayne-nance/article_42fe30aa-d0e6-5767-b743-0b38a02446c5.html](https://www.nbcrightnow.com/all_abc_fox/montana-murder-mysteries-the-gruesome-world-of-missoula-mauler-wayne-nance/article_42fe30aa-d0e6-5767-b743-0b38a02446c5.html). Accessed 3 Jan. 2026.

Marco Margaritoff, “The Terrifying Story of Wayne Nance, The Suspected Serial Killer Who Terrorized Montana.” *All That’s Interesting*, 9 Aug. 2021, [https://allthatsinteresting.com/wayne-nance](https://allthatsinteresting.com/wayne-nance). Accessed 3 Jan. 2026.

“Wayne Nance: The Suspected Montana Serial Killer Who Was Never Arrested.” *InForum*, [https://www.inforum.com/news/wayne-nance-the-suspected-montana-serial-killer-who-was-never-arrested](https://www.inforum.com/news/wayne-nance-the-suspected-montana-serial-killer-who-was-never-arrested). Accessed 3 Jan. 2026.

“Othram.” *Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia*, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Othram](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Othram). Accessed 3 Jan. 2026.

Montana Right Now, *“Montana Murder Mysteries: Unraveling the Crimes from Missoula Mauler Wayne Nance,”* [https://www.montanarightnow.com/missoula/montana-murder-mysteries-unraveling-the-crimes-from-missoula-mauler-wayne-nance/article_94784d4c-67e7-11ea-b73a-9ba0bd0413a0.html](https://www.montanarightnow.com/missoula/montana-murder-mysteries-unraveling-the-crimes-from-missoula-mauler-wayne-nance/article_94784d4c-67e7-11ea-b73a-9ba0bd0413a0.html). Accessed 3 Jan. 2026.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Nance?utm_source=chatgpt.com "Wayne Nance"

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