Faye Della Wilson was born on August 4, 1921, in Harrison, Arkansas. She grew up in a time when life was often difficult. Faye was the daughter of a family that faced many struggles. Information about her early life is limited, but it is clear that she came from humble beginnings.

In 1940, Faye met Ray Copeland and they quickly married. Together, they had several children. They faced many challenges in their life together. Ray had a criminal past that included stealing livestock and forging checks. This made it hard for the family to settle in one place for long. They often moved around as Ray's activities caused trouble.

Faye worked various jobs to help support the family. She was a factory worker and also worked as a maid. Despite the instability, she managed to care for her children and maintain the home. As the years passed, her life with Ray became more complicated due to his repeated run-ins with the law.

In 1986, Faye Della Copeland and her husband, Ray Copeland, began committing crimes that would lead to their conviction as serial killers. They lived on a farm in Mooresville, Missouri, where they targeted drifters and homeless individuals. Ray would hire these men as farmhands. However, the farmhands would later disappear under suspicious circumstances.

Ray Copeland had a history of fraud, making it difficult for him to conduct business openly. To avoid detection, he used the farmhands to buy cattle with bad checks. Once the cattle were purchased, he would sell them quickly, profiting from the transactions while the workers vanished. The couple continued this scheme for several years.

In August 1989, one of Ray's former employees, Jack McCormick, contacted Crime Stoppers. He claimed to have seen human bones on the Copeland property and said that Ray had attempted to kill him. Police were initially doubtful, but they decided to investigate based on Ray's past criminal activities.

On October 17, 1989, law enforcement arrived at the Copeland farm with a search warrant. They expected to find evidence of fraud but instead uncovered something much more serious. Although the initial search did not reveal anything significant, further inspection led to the discovery of three bodies in a nearby barn. As the investigation proceeded, additional bodies were found on the property. Each victim had been killed with the same weapon, a .22 caliber Marlin rifle.

Faye's role in the crimes became a point of debate during her trial. Defense lawyers painted her as an abused wife, trying to survive in a violent relationship. Yet, the jury found sufficient evidence to convict her. She received multiple death sentences for her involvement.

In 1991, Ray was also convicted and sentenced to death on five counts of murder. After Faye's sentence was commuted to life imprisonment in 1999, she appealed her conviction, arguing that she had suffered years of abuse from Ray. Her sentence was reduced to consecutive life terms.

Faye Copeland would spend her later years in a nursing home after suffering a stroke. She was granted medical parole to leave prison with the hope of not dying behind bars. She passed away from natural causes in 2003. Throughout her life, she had five children and seventeen grandchildren.