Doug and Kris Wells’ House

Author: Jewls Krueger

Just before midnight on September 3, 1986, a 30 year old furniture mover named Wayne Nance broke into the Missoula, Montana home of his co-workers Doug and Kris Wells, stabbed Doug in the basement, and sexually assaulted Kris upstairs. Doug survived the stabbing, retrieved a rifle he had been repairing, and shot Nance during a violent confrontation on the stairs. Nance died the following day. Only after his death did investigators begin to link him to at least six other Montana killings dating back to 1974, in a spree that had become known as the work of "The Missoula Mauler."

Wayne Nance

Wayne Nathan Nance was born on October 18, 1955 in Clinton, Montana to George Edwin Nance, a long haul truck driver, and Charlene Mae Mackie, a waitress. He graduated from Sentinel High School in Missoula in 1974. As an adult, he worked as a mover and delivery driver for Conlin's Furniture, a Missoula department store where Kris Wells worked as his supervisor. Coworkers later described him as an "average guy," but multiple female customers had complained about receiving harassing phone calls after deliveries and had identified Nance as the caller. Coworkers reported that he had installed a peephole into a women's changing area and had begun taking photographs of his female colleagues.

Investigators would later learn that Nance had also developed an obsession with Kris Wells. After his death, police recovered a large collection of photographs of Kris from his belongings, some taken from the bushes along her usual jogging route, along with a photo album with handwritten notes such as "I love you," "I am crazy about you," and "I want you to live with me."

What Happened

Just before midnight on September 3, 1986, Doug and Kris Wells were returning home from an evening with friends when they noticed an unfamiliar truck parked half on their side lawn. Doug went inside to grab a flashlight, then walked back outside to investigate. The truck was gone, but Doug spotted someone crouched in the bushes near his home. He called out and identified the person as Wayne Nance, one of Kris's coworkers from Conlin's Furniture. Nance claimed that he had been driving by, seen someone lurking around the house, and pulled over to investigate. He asked Doug if they could go inside to grab a flashlight so they could take a closer look, and Doug agreed.

Once inside the home, Nance pistol whipped Doug over the head and forced Kris to tie her husband up at gunpoint. Nance then tied Kris up, dragged Doug down to the basement, and stabbed him in the chest with an eight inch knife, missing his heart by roughly an inch. Believing Doug to be dead, Nance went back upstairs and sexually assaulted Kris in the second story bedroom.

Further Reading

To Kill And Kill Again

Want to know more about The Missoula Mauler? John Coston's book is widely considered the most thorough chronicle of the twelve-year murder spree of Wayne Nance.

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Although Nance had thought he had killed Doug Wells by stabbing him in the chest, Doug survived and was able to free himself. He retrieved a .250 Savage rifle he had been repairing, loaded a single round, and made his way upstairs. Nance heard Doug on the stairs and came out of the bedroom. The two men fought, and Doug shot Nance in the side. Nance managed to fire back with his own handgun, striking Doug in the leg, before Doug was able to overpower him and shoot him again. The police were called and both men were rushed to the hospital, where Nance died on September 4, 1986. Doug Wells ultimately made a full recovery.

Wayne Nance's Murderous Past

After his death, Wayne Nance's past was investigated and was found to be linked to at least six other Montana homicides between 1974 and 1986. Before Nance was identified, the perpetrator was known as The Missoula Mauler.

The Missoula County Sheriff's Office believes his first victim was 44 year old Donna Pounds, a Baptist minister's wife who was found shot to death in the basement of her Missoula home on April 11, 1974. Nance had been friends with the Pounds children and had been seen in the family's backyard on the day of the killing. Between 1980 and 1985, the remains of three young women whose identities were unknown at the time were found in wooded areas east of Missoula. Two have since been identified through DNA testing: 15 year old Devonna "Debbie" Nelson, found near Beavertail Hill in 1980, and 16 year old Marcella "Marci" Bachmann, whose remains were found near Deer Creek in 1984 and identified in 2006. The remains that had been known for years by the placeholder name "Christy Crystal Creek" were identified in May 2021 through investigative genetic genealogy as 23 year old Janet Lee Lucas.

On December 12, 1985, Michael and Teresa Shook were found tied up and shot to death in their Ravalli County home. Their killer had set fire to the home in an apparent attempt to destroy evidence, but their four young children escaped and survived. Investigators later found several items stolen from the Shook home in Nance's possession, and the similarities between the Shook case and the September 1986 attack on the Wells were part of what caused authorities to reopen the earlier unsolved cases as potentially the work of the same killer.

Because Wayne Nance died before he could be arrested, he was never charged with, tried for, or convicted of any of the killings.

The House Today

The home where the Missoula Mauler met his demise is located at 100 Parker Court in Missoula. The house is on the north-east corner of Parker Court and N. Davis St. The house is currently painted a light blue color. The home is private property, remember to stay on public roads and walkways at all times. Be respectful at all times and do not attempt to contact the current residents or homeowners.