Overview
- New retrospectives published Tuesday recount Grady Stiles’ years of violent abuse and the contract killing that followed.
- Born with ectrodactyly that fused his hands and feet into claw-like shapes, he performed in sideshows from age seven, spent off-seasons in Gibsonton, Florida, and earned up to $80,000 a season.
- In 1978 in Pittsburgh, he shot his daughter’s fiancé, pleaded guilty, and received 15 years of probation after officials said prisons could not safely house him.
- After remarrying Mary Stiles, the abuse continued, and she and her son hired 17-year-old Chris Wyant for $1,500, leading to Stiles being shot in the head in his trailer on November 29, 1992.
- Court records show Wyant received 27 years, Mary was sentenced to 12 years for manslaughter, and her son received a life term, as relatives later described Stiles as cruel and sadistic.