Bio

Patricia Vann Taylor Allanson was born on August 22, 1937. Some sources list her full name as Mary Linda Patricia Vann. As a child she was adored by her aunts and especially by her grandmother. She had big green eyes and blondish hair. People described her as quick and clever.

Her mother was Margueritte and her stepfather was Colonel Clifford Radcliffe. She was raised as an Army brat and moved with the family. She had a younger stepbrother named Kent, whom she liked to bully and tease.

Pat was spoiled by her mother and stepfather. If she did not get her way, she sometimes threw tantrums. She also learned to charm both men and women when she wanted something.

At age fifteen she married Gil Taylor, an Army sergeant. She and Gil had three children: Susan, Debbie, and Ronnie. Gil was often away on deployments. Pat returned to live near her parents and had her mother help care for the children. The marriage fell apart and they divorced in 1971.

Murder Story

Patricia Taylor Allanson, born August 22, 1937, is often called "The Deadly Magnolia" in news and true-crime sources. She is linked in reports to deaths in 1974 and 1991 in Zebulon and Atlanta, Georgia. Sources list her classification as a possible murderer and say financial gain was a motive. Reports give a possible victim count of one to three and list shooting and poisoning as methods. She was never convicted of murder, but she did serve prison time on other charges.

In 1974 Walter and Carolyn Allanson, Tom Allanson's parents, were killed. Tom Allanson was arrested, tried, and convicted for their deaths and was sentenced to life in prison. Investigators and later reporting say Patricia gave inconsistent statements and was suspected of helping set up or manipulate events around those deaths. Tom later said he believed Patricia had tried to get him to die and that she had worked to profit from the situation.

After the deaths of Walter and Carolyn, Patricia was involved with Tom's elderly grandparents. Reports say she worked to become their caregiver and to be named in their wills. Tests later showed arsenic in the grandparents' systems, and Patricia was arrested, tried, and convicted on related charges. She served about eight years in prison for those convictions.

After her release, Patricia gained work caring for a wealthy Atlanta couple, Mr. and Mrs. James Crist. The Crists fell ill and Mr. Crist died. In 1991 Patricia pleaded guilty to seven charges that included theft, attempted murder, and posing as a registered nurse. The plea bargain she accepted included a condition that she would not be charged with Mr. Crist's murder or be investigated further for the deaths of Tom's parents. She received an eight-year sentence.

Patricia Allanson was released from prison in 1999, according to accounts. In 2008 she was arrested on allegations of doctor shopping for thousands of pain pills; some reports say more than 3,700 pills in under a year and note bond set at $22,500 on three felony counts. Tom Allanson served about 15 years and was later paroled. He has told investigators and reporters that he believes Patricia manipulated events and people to get what she wanted.