Brian Hawkins’s cold case confession refers to the January 2018 moment when Brian Keith Hawkins, then 44, walked into KRCR television in Redding, California, and admitted on camera that he had helped kill 19-year-old Frank McAlister in 1993. His statement to the station, followed hours later by a voluntary confession to police, ended a 25-year cold case and led to murder charges against Hawkins and the two siblings who had been with him that night.1ABC News. Man Confesses to 1993 Murder in Emotional TV Interview Before Turning Himself In
The 1993 Killing He Confessed To
Frank McAlister, a 19-year-old from Redding, had received about $4,500 from a car-accident insurance settlement in March 1993 and was carrying thousands of dollars in cash. On May 7, 1993, Hawkins and siblings Curtis and Shanna Culver lured him to a remote area near Shingletown in eastern Shasta County under the pretense of selling him methamphetamine. The real plan was robbery.2Redding Record Searchlight. Curtis, Shanna Culver Plead Guilty in Frank McAlister Murder Case
Hawkins and Curtis Culver stabbed McAlister multiple times in the chest and head, left his body in the woods, and drove his car back to Redding, abandoning it at a Costco. Police found blood inside and outside the vehicle but could not build a case. A hiker found McAlister’s skeletal remains near Grace and Nora lakes in April 1994.2Redding Record Searchlight. Curtis, Shanna Culver Plead Guilty in Frank McAlister Murder Case Hawkins and the Culvers were identified early as the last people to see McAlister alive and were interviewed repeatedly over the years, but all three denied involvement, and the case went cold.3CNN. California Cold Case Death Arrests
Walking Into KRCR in 2018
On January 9, 2018, Hawkins arrived at KRCR in Redding and told staff he wanted to confess to a murder. The station recorded an interview but held it back until Hawkins had surrendered and police could verify his account.1ABC News. Man Confesses to 1993 Murder in Emotional TV Interview Before Turning Himself In
In the interview, Hawkins said he had “found God and Christ” and that his faith had pushed him to come forward. “I’ve been through hell my whole life because of this,” he told the station. “Every minute of every day has been a nightmare.” He said confessing was “the closest I can come to doing the right thing.”4New York Post. Man Surrenders, Confesses to Decades-Old Murder
Hawkins said he had tried in 2017 to reach McAlister’s family in person to confess and ask forgiveness, but by the time he arrived, McAlister’s father, Douglas Irvin McAlister, had already died in October 2017.5Christian Post. Family Gets Closure as Man Touched by God Confesses 25-Year-Old Murder After the interview, Hawkins drove to the Redding Police Department, turned himself in, and gave investigators a detailed voluntary statement describing the robbery, the stabbing, and each participant’s role.6KRCR. Shasta County Siblings Sentenced in 1993 Cold Case Murder
Arrests and Charges
Within 12 hours of Hawkins’s confession, Curtis and Shanna Culver were arrested in Red Bluff and booked into the Shasta County Jail on homicide charges.6KRCR. Shasta County Siblings Sentenced in 1993 Cold Case Murder Prosecutors charged Hawkins and Curtis Culver with murder and robbery in Shasta County Superior Court, adding two special circumstances: lying in wait and murder during a robbery. Shanna Culver was held on suspicion of murder, with parts of her case handled privately because she had been a minor at the time of the killing. All three were arraigned on January 12, 2018; Hawkins and Curtis Culver were held without bail.3CNN. California Cold Case Death Arrests
Pleas and Sentences
Hawkins resolved his case first. On November 26, 2019, he pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, robbery, and additional special allegations, and was sentenced to 25 years to life in state prison.6KRCR. Shasta County Siblings Sentenced in 1993 Cold Case Murder
The Culver siblings took longer. On January 14, 2022, both pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, robbery in concert, and multiple assault charges. Curtis Culver admitted he had carried a knife during the robbery and had struck McAlister over the head with a rock after the victim had already been stabbed.7Oxygen. Curtis, Shanna Culver Sentenced in Frank McAlister Murder On May 26, 2022, a Shasta County Superior Court judge sentenced Curtis Culver to 35 years in state prison and Shanna Culver to 20 years. Both must serve 85 percent of their sentences before becoming eligible for parole.8Redding Record Searchlight. Brother, Sister Receive Prison Terms for Roles in 1993 Cold Case Murder
Frank McAlister was his mother’s only child. In a written statement shared at Hawkins’s sentencing, the family said the killing had robbed him of “the opportunity to create a positive legacy,” a family, and “a chance to love and be loved.”7Oxygen. Curtis, Shanna Culver Sentenced in Frank McAlister Murder
Other People Named Brian Hawkins
The Brian Hawkins in this cold case is not the same person as Brian E. Hawkins, a pastor and former San Jacinto, California, city councilman who ran for Congress and was acquitted in a 2024 child-endangerment trial,9Patch. Child Endangerment Trial Underway for San Jacinto City Council Member and is not the Brian Hawkins who is a U.S. Army veteran and conservative policy professional associated with the American Legislative Exchange Council and Stand Together.10ALEC. Brian Hawkins Those are unrelated public figures who share the name.