10/29/2026
A SHOCKING MURDER
In October of 1919, a tragic crime near Baden once captured headlines across the Bay Area. Michael J. Needham, a San Francisco “rental-car chauffeur” was found murdered in the bushes near the Leipsic crossing of the San Mateo electric railroad, along the highway between Baden and Holy Cross Cemetery.
A DESPERATE PLAN WITH DEADLY CONSEQUENCES
The young men involved – 17-year old John Helm and 19-year olds Lawrence McCarthy and Gordon Tescher - were lonesome and homesick while working in California. They planned to steal an automobile to return home to Indiana—or possibly flee to Mexico.
The youths hailed Needham’s taxi, claiming they wanted to travel to San Mateo. During the ride, Needham was struck over the head, bound and gagged, and left beside the road, where he succumbed from his injuries. His automobile was stolen, yet money and a gold watch were reportedly left in his pockets.
FINGER POINTING AND CONTRASTING REACTIONS
After their arrests, the young men pointed fingers at their 17-year-old companion, John Helm, claiming he had encouraged the crime and boasted of getting away with other crimes in St. Louis.
Tescher expressed deep remorse, reportedly saying he wanted to “slave and do anything to make some sort of reparation.” Helm, by contrast, was described as maintaining a “perpetual grin” throughout the ordeal.
THE OUTCOME
All three young men were sentenced to life imprisonment at San Quentin State Prison, bringing a sobering conclusion to a case that began with a plan to steal a car and ended in murder.
This disturbing episode reminds us that the quiet, seemingly-idyllic roads and open land around Baden have witnessed dramatic moments in our past.
Excerpts from San Francisco Bulletin and South San Francisco Enterprise, October and November 1919.
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