William J. Guatney was born on February 14, 1922, in Pekin, Illinois. Abandoned by his birth mother shortly after birth, he was adopted by Bert and Ruby Guatney. He spent his early years in rural Kansas towns like Fredonia and Treece, where his adoptive father worked in coal mines. The death of his father in 1935 deeply affected him, leading to a troubled adolescence marked by petty theft and alcohol abuse.

In 1942, Guatney was drafted into the U.S. Army and served in a tank division during World War II. He sustained a severe shrapnel wound to the head in 1944, leading to an honorable discharge. Post-war, he suffered from memory lapses and confusion, resulting in a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia and organic brain damage due to alcohol abuse. Between 1947 and 1979, he was hospitalized 66 times in various psychiatric facilities across the country.

By the late 1950s, Guatney had disconnected from most of his family, only sporadically visiting his brother in Neosho Falls, Kansas. Guatney led a transient lifestyle, often traveling by train and working at state fairs as a cattle herder. He was known for his ability to mimic animal sounds, which endeared him to children.

Guatney first drew police attention in mid-1976, connected to the murder of 12-year-old Jacob Surber and 13-year-old Jon Simpson, both killed near the Nebraska State Fair on August 30, 1975. Surber’s body showed multiple stab wounds; Simpson was found decomposed in a hopper car. Though arrested and questioned, Guatney denied involvement and was released for lack of evidence.

By 1979, law enforcement had formed a task force linking up to 15 boy victims across Nebraska, Kansas, Illinois, and Arizona, usually near railroad sites during fairs. As a cattle herder at fairs, Guatney matched the profile. Forensic clues—like a letter opener matching the instrument used in the Surber case—heightened suspicion.

He was arrested on August 20, 1979, in Springfield, IL, charged with the murders of Surber and Simpson. Additional charges included the murder of 12-year-old John Hanrahan Jr. (May 20, 1979) in Topeka, and suspicion in the deaths of Mark Helmig (Aug 1976, Pekin), Marty Lancaster (June 1978, Normal), and others Despite confessing to three murders, his mental health issues led to questions about the validity of his confessions.

In January 1980, Guatney's trial for the murders of Surber and Simpson began in Lancaster County, Nebraska. However, his erratic behavior led to a court-ordered psychiatric evaluation. Initially deemed competent, his mental state deteriorated by mid-1981, resulting in a diagnosis of delusions and hallucinations. By September 2, 1981, he was ruled incompetent and all murder charges were dismissed on insanity grounds.

In December 1981, shortly after institutionalization, Guatney escaped but was found near railroad tracks and returned by December 17. Staff were reprimanded for negligence. He was later transferred to a nursing home in Alliance, NE, then to a VA facility in Leavenworth, KS. A brief 1983 disappearance ended in arrest on suspicion of murder in Bellevue, NE—though cleared. He spent his remaining years in psychiatric facilities and died of natural causes on March 31, 1996, in Kansas.