Kevin Foster was sentenced to death by the State of Florida for the murder of a teacher. According to court documents Kevin Foster was the leader of a teenage militia who called themselves Lords Of Chaos who went from vandalism to full fledged murder. Kevin Foster would shoot and kill a teacher, Mark Schwebes, who caught them vandalizing a school. Kevin Foster would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death.
The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously turned down an appeal filed by Kevin Don Foster, on death row after he was convicted in the 1996 murder of a Lee County high school band director.
An appeal by Foster was denied earlier this year based on the Florida Supreme Court determination that any death sentence not unanimous and made final before the U.S. Supreme Court 2002 ruling was not subject to resentencing, according to the state attorneys office.
The latest appeal was filed May 1 by Foster, now 41.
Foster was convicted in 1998 of the first-degree murder of Mark Schwebes, a Riverdale High School music teacher, and sentenced to death.
In April 1996, Schwebes caught Foster and other members of the group called the Lords of Chaos preparing to vandalize Riverdale High School and set the auditorium on fire.
Schwebes instructed them to leave and told them that he would report the incident to the resource officer the following day.
The group, at the direction and insistence of Foster, then planned the murder of Schwebes.
The group tracked down where Schwebes lived and went to his home. They knocked on the front door, and when Schwebes answered Foster shot him twice, once in the face and once in the pelvis.
The three other members who were present that night entered into plea agreements. Christopher Black and Derek Shields were sentenced to life in prison. Peter Magnotti was sentenced to 32 years in prison
The Lords Of Chaos was a group of teenagers in Florida lead by Kevin Foster who decided to start their own militia that would start with simple vandalizing and would end with the murder of a teacher. In this article on My Crime Library we will take a closer look at Kevin Foster and the Lords Of Chaos
Lords Of Chaos – The Beginning
The Lords Of Chaos would begin in Fort Myers Florida with just three core members: Kevin Foster, Pete Magnotti and Christopher Black. Foster was the only one out of the three who had a criminal record.
The Lords Of Chaos would start with the burning of a church bus and setting a birdcage on fire killing one of the Macaws inside.
Derek Shields who was in and out of the group would join on the next spree in which the group would go after a much bigger target, an abandoned Coca Cola Factory. Kevin Foster was apparently upset that the groups actions up to that point were being mocked in the local press where their vandalism was described as being committed by “obviously pea-brained vandals” and “person(s) of less than average intelligence and a cretin’s personality.”
On the night of the Coca Cola factory fire, April 20 1996, the Lords Of Chaos had stolen a number of propane canisters and would put them strategically around the empty factory. Kevin Foster would fill a Pepsi can full of gunpowder which he attached a twenty five foot wick. The fire would go off without a hitch causing over a hundred grand in damages.
Lords Of Chaos Escalation
The next target on the list for the Lords Of Chaos was the owner of a restaurant where Derek Shields mother worker. Shields was upset with the man who insulted his mother. Kevin Foster and Pete Magnotti would carjack and rob the man who would escape with no injuries
Lords Of Chaos Murder
On the night of April 30, 1996 after a plan to rob a clothing store in order to dress themselves for grad night the teenage killers plan changed when the plan fell apart so they decided to vandalize the school to which the majority of the group attended, Riverdale High School,
It was a typical vandalism with the group stole a number of small items from the school before Kevin Foster threw a Clorox bottle filled with gasoline which he lit on fire and threw into a window into the school gym.
As the Lords Of Chaos were admiring their handiwork from the school parking lot a teacher, Mark Schwebes, recognized two of the teens and told them he would be reporting them in the morning. Chris Black reportedly said “This has to be fixed tonight, because tomorrow’s a school day. So, he’s gotta die tonight.”
The Lords Of Chaos would obtain Mark Schwebes address through directory assistance and drove over to his home. It was decided that Derek Shields would knock on the door and Kevin Foster would pull the trigger.
At 11:30 pm the group arrived at the home and Derek Shields would walk up to the door with Kevin Foster hiding off to the side. After Derek Shields knocker Mark Schwebes opened his door and would be shot once in the face with a shotgun and once in the buttocks. The shotgun shells would be left at the murder scene.
Lords Of Chaos Arrest And Trials
Fort Myers Police initially thought that Mark Schwebes was murdered due to a love triangle however the Lords Of Chaos would soon be bragging that they had murdered a teacher. A girlfriend of one of the teens who associated with the group would tell her what happened and she would go to the police.
Soon the police would learn from other members of the group that the Lords Of Chaos were responsible for the majority of the vandalism that had occurred in the Florida town the prior week including the Coca Cola factory fire. Kevin Foster, Derek Shields, Christopher Black and Pete Magnotti were soon arrested along with a few lesser group members: Chris Burnett, Brad Young and Craig Lesh.
Brad Young and Craig Lesh would be released with no charges filed. Chris Burnett agreed to plead guilty to robbery and arson charges for a lesser sentence of two years in prison and would agree to testify against the other members of the group.
Pete Magnotti, who was seventeen at the time, would plead guilty to first degree murder and be sentenced to thirty two years in prison.
Derek Shields and Christopher Black would both end up pleading guilty to first degree murder and received life without parole sentences.
Kevin Foster decided to go to trial and turn down the same sentence received by Derek Shields and Christopher Black. Foster would be quickly convicted and sentenced to death.
Kevin Foster would make news years later when he attempted to convince a writer to murder people who testified against him. Kevin who also conspired with his mother would receive an additional sentence and his mother received five years in prison. Kevin Foster remains on Florida death row
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
