In 1806, following the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, The Louisiana Neutral Zone was created. It was the result of two countries setting aside a buffer zone between their two territories. Spain owned the land to the west, Texas and Mexico, and the US owned the land to the east, the Neutral Zone was a swath of land, that extended from the Calcasieu River on its eastern border to the Sabine River on its western border. Its northern border was near Natchitoches, Louisiana and its southern border was the Gulf of Mexico. It contained approximately 5,000 square miles, into which neither country was allowed to enter or control. Lawlessness ensued almost immediately, as the agreement between Spain and the US began to attract criminals to the area.

During the Civil War, both West and Kimbrel fought in the Confederate Army. Winn Parish was staunchly opposed to entering the Civil War, making the area unpopular among its surrounding parishes. Following the Civil War, West and Kimbrel returned to find carpetbaggers and scalawags cheating the residents out of their property. To add to the problems, occupation troops stationed in the area ignored the wrongdoings.

Travelers, crossing the Neutral Zone, were frequently invited to spend the night at the home of Jackson Law Kimbrel, John West or a member of the inner circle. During the night, they would be murdered and their possessions taken. Their bodies were usually dumped down various wells in the vicinity. Other families were simply ambushed and killed to the last person while on the road. Entire families disappeared, including children, even infants.

To further antagonize Dean, on Easter, 1872 in Atlanta, the clan took Dean’s inlaws, Alexander Brock and his family, captive. West, who was also a deputy sheriff told them they were under arrest. They were suspended to the rafters of an area Masonic Building by their thumbs while John West left to attend church services. Guarding them was Jackson Laws Kimbrel and Lee Ingram, who later decided to watch the building from the saloon across the street. Dan Dean was the one who cut the captives loose.

One day, believed to have been in 1872, a huge crowd of vigilantes approached West and other members of the gang on the streets of Atlanta, Louisiana. John West was hit in the neck with a blast from a shotgun. His head separated from his body and came to rest solidly atop a fence post - where it sat for years!

Many of the gang members surrendered, including Jackson Laws Kimbrel. Dean allowed Kimbrel to leave with his life, in exchange for the earlier kindness he had shown Dean. Laws Kimbrel was never heard from again in the area. Other gang members were put to death by firing squad. The remains of the gang members, including the headless corpse of John West, were interred in an unmarked, common grave located outside the Methodist Cemetery in Atlanta. They were considered too indecent to be buried among honorable people.

Some details of this story came from the Kimbrel newsletter