Murder, a Dolly, and a Radio Station: The Amarillo Tale

I started in radio in the early nineties here in Amarillo. I remember hearing the whispers about a murder that happened at a radio station here in town. Over the years, I would get bits and pieces of the story.

I just knew it involved a dolly. Yes, a dolly made this story a bit crazy on top of everything else. The other day, we were here at work having a conversation down the hall when this story came up.

A Shocking Story Long Buried

So I asked to get a rundown of what happened. This radio station in question was on Amarillo Boulevard. There was a field nearby. There were also fast food places. All of this plays into the story.

If you try to Google the story, good luck. I found just one thread discussing it—no archived news stories, no press coverage. For a murder, that’s incredibly odd.

This all happened in the late eighties. According to the story. Debbie Garre worked in sales at this station. She had lost her husband recently who worked at KVII. This is where the dolly will come into play later on.

Now from what I could find Debbie was involved with someone at the station. They took a business trip to Florida. That is where she met David Cain. They hit it off and had an affair while her "sugar daddy", was at a conference.

Debbie and David had a brief affair while in Florida. When they returned to Amarillo, she assumed it was over. David did not. He hitchhiked his way to Amarillo and stayed in an apartment located behind the radio station—yes, the station had an apartment.

A Murder, a Shower, and a Smell That Wouldn’t Go Away

They had a falling out one day, and he pushed her. He also threatened to reveal their affair to her "sugar daddy." So she went to the car and grabbed a gun. She shot David as he was showering. That is where he was left.

That is, until the Texas heat presented a problem. The smell from the body. In a radio group that I am in, the discussion came up. One co-worker of Debbie's went to grab lunch. When he got back, he noticed the stench.
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One day, a coworker returned from grabbing lunch and noticed the stench. He mentioned it to Debbie, who was standing at the front desk. He wasn’t the first. Others had speculated about the smell, blaming a nearby grease trap or perhaps a dead animal in the field. But Debbie knew the truth: she had to do something with the body.

A Dolly, A Pickup, and Amarillo’s Bumpy Roads

She got back to the station and had to deal with getting the body on the dolly and then onto the pickup truck. It turned out to be tougher than she thought. She couldn't really call anyone to help her move the dead body.

So she did what she could. She decided to somehow use a garden hose to hook the dolly to the pickup and move it that way. What she didn't consider is that Amarillo roads are full of those dang potholes. That has always been an issue. That and dips in the road.

So as you would figure the truck and dolly hit a pothole and she lost the dolly off the truck. Guess what she did? She left it. So long story short she was caught.

Still, you can't really find anything about this anywhere. Oh, and where is that dolly? After it was no longer needed as evidence, they called and asked if the station wanted the dolly back. Whoever they talked to said "yes." So that dolly is still probably somewhere at KVII or owned by one of their employees. That is probably the only evidence of this crazy Amarillo murder story.

Oh, that and Crime TV at one point featured it in a story. Read about that HERE. The only thing I could find in print on this story.

What Has Happened to Debbie?

Debbie was arrested and sentenced to 20 years in prison. From what I could find, she didn’t serve the full term. She’s out now—and still living here in Amarillo.

Oh, and the dolly? After the investigation, law enforcement asked KVII if they wanted it back. Someone at the station said yes. So it’s possible the dolly used to transport a dead body is still somewhere inside KVII today. Or an employee ran off with it.

And though this crime once made it to an episode of Crime TV, almost no one talks about it. And almost no one knows it happened at all.