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The Amish church, originating in Switzerland in 1693, is a community of traditional Christians recognized for their large families, simple lifestyles, and reluctance to embrace modern technology. While their daily lives are guided by their interpretation of God’s word, the growing number of Amish people has led some to encounter legal trouble. The following list highlights ten strange and sometimes tragic events involving the Amish community, ranging from bizarre to unfathomable.
10. Faithful Drinkers
The law doesn’t make exceptions when it comes to impaired driving – whether the vehicle is a car or a horse-drawn buggy. This was the case for a 21-year-old Amish man who, after consuming 10 beers, ran a stop sign. A deputy in Geauga County, Ohio, initially thought he was chasing a runaway horse but eventually realized the man was drunk and driving the buggy. After reaching his farm and failing a sobriety test, the man exchanged his horse-drawn ride for a ride in a police car.
A similar event occurred in 2011 when a 17-year-old Amish teenager from Conewango, New York, led the police on a slow-speed chase. Lewis D. Hostetler refused to stop his horse after officers saw him drinking beer in his carriage. The young rebel was charged with resisting arrest, littering on the highway, possessing alcohol illegally, having insufficient tail lamps, and obstructing law enforcement.
Although amusing, the previous two drunken drivers are nothing compared to the wild behavior of four teens in upstate New York. In the summer of 2012, an intoxicated Amish quartet decided it would be a good idea to drag race their horse-drawn buggies down a dark rural road. When authorities arrived, one of the horses collided with a police car, causing the buggy to overturn. Miraculously, all four youths walked away uninjured, but they were still charged with underage alcohol possession.
9. Tragic Accidents
Just days before his 10th birthday, Samuel Herschberger's life would be forever altered by a horrific accident. On August 22, 1991, while doing farm chores, Samuel fell into a tractor-powered drive shaft. In seconds, his left arm and right foot were torn off, his scalp was ripped from his head, and his right arm was crushed. By some miracle, Samuel survived the gruesome ordeal and became one of the most well-known Amish figures in Illinois—and possibly in the entire nation. His story made national headlines, and donations poured in to help his family with their quarter-million-dollar medical bills.
Unlike Samuel, Jacob Stutzman from Indiana was not as fortunate. In the fall of 2013, while working on his farm, the 23-year-old Amish man slipped and fell onto a moving saw blade. First responders rushed to the sawmill but were unable to save him. Jacob was pronounced dead at the scene, adding to the tragic list of accidental farm fatalities.
8. A Shot in the Dark
In December 2011, Rachel Yoder was returning from a Christmas party in northern Ohio when tragedy struck just three miles from her home. A .50-caliber bullet fell from the sky and struck the 15-year-old in the head. As Rachel lay dying in her buggy, her horse continued its journey, bringing her closer to home. It wasn't until later that evening that her brother noticed the buggy moving in circles on their family farm. Upon investigating, he found his sister lying on the ground, unresponsive, and slipping away. Rachel passed away the following day. Initially, authorities believed she had fallen from the buggy and suffered a head injury, but an autopsy confirmed her death was a homicide.
Five months after Rachel’s death, the Yoder family received closure when Marion Yoder – unrelated to Rachel – turned himself in to the police following the issuance of an arrest warrant.
On that tragic winter evening, 28-year-old Marion Yoder had been returning from a hunting trip when he fired a shot into the air from his rifle. In an unimaginable twist, the bullet traveled over a mile and struck Rachel. Although Yoder was initially charged with felony reckless homicide, Rachel's family requested the charges be dropped, believing a felony charge was unfair under the circumstances. Yoder ultimately pleaded guilty to negligent homicide and was sentenced to 180 days in jail. The judge, however, suspended all but 30 days of his sentence.
7. No Profit = Bullet
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania is home to one of America’s most secretive industries. Known as the “puppy mill capital of the U.S.,” the county houses numerous facilities where hundreds of dogs are crammed into small cages stacked on top of each other. These operations are largely dominated by the Amish, for whom a dog's life is simply a source of profit. Female dogs are bred repeatedly until their bodies break down, at which point they are euthanized with a bullet. The puppies are sold to pet stores or at auctions. There are approximately 600 unlicensed facilities in Lancaster County, where breeders take extreme measures to avoid detection. These practices include “de-barking” puppies by inserting sharp objects into their throats to scar their vocal cords.
In 2013, two Amish men from central New York were arrested after they killed a dog and her nine puppies because the Australian red heeler's litter had failed to sell. The District Attorney reported that Merlin Schmucker, 26, and Jonathan Eicher, 19, shot the puppies and disposed of their bodies in a roadside ditch, where a highway crew later discovered them. Eicher defended their actions, claiming they were acceptable among the Amish under these circumstances. However, Town Justice Carol Heald disagreed and sentenced the men to 30 days in county jail. Additionally, they were each fined $500 and prohibited from owning dogs for 15 years.
6. Hidden Ingredient
To maintain their 19th-century-inspired way of life, the Amish avoid things like licenses, high school education, and, of course, electricity. This lifestyle choice has drawn criticism, particularly regarding Amish bakers who sell goods such as meats and cheeses within their communities. The lack of refrigeration in many homes raises concerns about food safety, leading to tension between the Amish and health officials over potential foodborne illnesses.
For some Amish bakers in Pennsylvania, the boundaries of religious freedom took a disturbing turn. In the spring of 2019, authorities received an anonymous tip claiming that Yoder Baked Goods – a Lancaster County bakery – was using “suspicious ingredients.” Upon inspection, the bakery appeared to meet food safety regulations, but further investigation revealed something far more shocking: the bakery's whoopie pies – a cookie pie or cake – contained human breast milk. While the use of human fluids in food is both revolting and illegal, it was unlikely to pose any health risks to consumers. Despite this, the bakery was shut down.
5. Wooing the Cattle
In 2010, two Amish brothers from Lancaster, Wisconsin were taken into custody after being charged with a series of sexual offenses. The local Sheriff described the case as one of the most bizarre and disturbing he had ever encountered. Christian G. Stolzfus, 19, and Dannie G. Stolzfus, 18, were accused of sexually abusing at least six of their family members, with victims ranging in age from 5 to 16 years old. To make matters worse, the brothers were also charged with bestiality. Authorities alleged that these incidents took place over a three-to-four-year period on their family farm in Grant County, involving multiple animals. Among the livestock, a cow and a horse were reported to have been the objects of the brothers' twisted desires. After their arrest, they faced charges including repeated sexual assault of a child, indecent exposure, and two counts of sexual gratification with animals.
Christian, despite facing a potential sentence of over 400 years in prison, was ultimately sentenced to just one year behind bars for his crime of child sexual assault. As for his brother Dannie, his records remain sealed, though it is believed that he likely received a similarly lenient sentence. One can only hope that they choose to embrace a vegan lifestyle in the future, though only time will tell if they again develop a craving for livestock.
4. Amish Dr. Ruth
Between September and November of 2011, a faction of a breakaway Amish group launched a series of attacks against local Amish residents in Bergholz, Ohio. According to authorities, this group of religious rebels made late-night visits to the homes of former acquaintances, forcibly cutting off the beards of the men and giving the women a trendy buzz cut with clippers. Afterward, the rogue barbers took photos of their handiwork to show their leader, Sam Mullet. Mullet explained that he sought to send a message to the rest of the Amish community, urging them to feel shame for the way his group had been treated. As he put it, 'They changed the rulings of our church here, and they’re trying to force their way down our throat, make us do like they want us to do, and we’re not going to do that.' One victim reported to the FBI that he would have preferred to be 'beaten black and blue than to suffer the disfigurement and humiliation of having his hair removed,' considering that such an act is deeply offensive in the Amish faith. After months of fear and preparation, local authorities were contacted and the FBI became involved.
Eventually, the FBI raided the compound of the rogue Amish group, and Sam Mullet, along with several of his followers, was charged with hate crimes. Further investigations revealed that, in addition to their impromptu haircuts, Mullet had ordered beatings for those who defied him. Disturbingly, the 67-year-old father of 18 even forced some of his followers to sleep in a chicken coop. To add to the horror, Mullet was also charged with sexual crimes after it was revealed that he had forced many of his followers' wives—including some of his daughters-in-law—into sexual relations, claiming it was to 'cleanse them of the devil.' Mullet’s defense attorney claimed that he was simply acting as an 'Amish Dr. Ruth.' Ultimately, Mullet was convicted and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
3. First Amish Conviction
On March 18, 1993, Edward Gingerich walked into his chiropractor's office complaining of a headache. After receiving a scalp massage and being advised to drink molasses, he returned to his farmhouse in northwestern Pennsylvania. Hours later, Gingerich brutally beat his wife Katie to death and proceeded to cut out her intestines. Their 5-year-old child, who witnessed the horrifying act, fled the farm in terror and ran to his Uncle Daniel’s house. When Daniel arrived on horseback, he found his brother sitting on Katie’s naked body in the kitchen. Daniel quickly left to call the police from a neighbor’s house. Gingerich was found walking aimlessly down a country road, his 3-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son in tow. When arrested, he claimed to the police that he had been possessed by the devil and admitted he was aware his children were present during the brutal murder.
Just over a year after the shocking crime, Gingerich was convicted of involuntary manslaughter, marking the first time an Amish person was tried and sentenced for criminal homicide. On March 19, 1998—exactly five years and a day after the tragedy—Gingerich was released from a State Correctional Institution and transferred to an Amish mental health facility in Michigan. Over the years, he moved between states, eventually returning to Pennsylvania in February 2007. In January 2011, Gingerich took his own life by hanging himself in a barn.
2. “Amish Stud”
“Where did my friend, love, trustworthy husband go to? He hates me to the core,” Barbara Weaver wrote in a letter to her counselor shortly before her murder. Barbara, a 30-year-old Amish mother of five, had been desperately trying to save her marriage to Eli Weaver, a man notorious for his infidelities and abusive behavior, who was known as the 'Amish Stud' on dating sites. Over their 10-year marriage, Eli abandoned his family twice to live as 'English,' only to return to the fold each time. In the summer of 2009, however, Eli had finally made up his mind to leave for good and began plotting with his girlfriend, Barb Raber, to kill his wife. “Maybe you could blow up the house?” Eli texted Raber, to which she replied, “What about your kids?” “The kids will go to heaven because they’re innocent.” The murderous couple, who had been meeting for trysts in Eli's barn, ultimately decided that a bullet was the most effective way to end Barbara’s life. At 3:30 a.m. on June 2, 2009, Eli left for a fishing trip, fully aware that he would never see his wife again. Just an hour later, Raber entered the Weaver home through an unlocked basement door, armed with a shotgun. She quietly crept up the stairs, into the dark hallway, and into Barbara’s bedroom. Seconds later, Barbara was dead, shot through the heart as she slept. It didn’t take long for detectives to unravel the murderous plot, and the following week, both Eli and Barb were arrested. Barb Raber was convicted of aggravated murder and sentenced to 23 years to life, while Eli was found guilty of complicity to commit murder and sentenced to 15 years to life. In one of her final letters, Barbara wrote of her husband, 'I often think of Christ’s words: ‘Forgive him, for he knows not what he does.’?'
1. Over The Hill Testicles
In the early hours of July 23, 2013, Deputy Adam Hughes was dispatched to a farmhouse in Webster County, Missouri, where he found 23-year-old Jacob Schwartz lying in bed, surrounded by blood. When asked about what had happened, Schwartz responded with chilling calmness, explaining that he had gone outside and performed self-castration. As if it were a regular matter, Hughes inquired about the sequence of events that led to this situation. Schwartz explained that he had cut open his scrotum, removed his testicles with a knife, and tossed them over a hill. He then applied blood-stop powder to the wound and went to bed to count sheep. During the questioning, Schwartz began seizing and eventually lost consciousness, prompting an ambulance transport to the hospital. A search of the house and the surrounding area yielded no sign of the missing testicles, nor was there blood found anywhere except in Schwartz's bedroom. The County Sheriff was immediately skeptical, stating, 'I find it hard to accept what the 23-year-old man said as being completely truthful. I think that what he said he did to himself would be very, very hard to do.' Sheriff Cole continued, stating, 'Unless someone comes forward with a different version of how Schwartz’s testicles were sliced, diced, and thrown to greener pastures, no charges can be brought. It’s been a month since this happened, and I don’t see that happening, although, as I said before, it’s hard for me to believe the story we were told.'
