Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Henry Lee Lucas

Henery Lee Lucas was born on August 23, 1936 to an alcoholic couple. His mother would work as the neighborhood prostitute to run the house while his father (who had no legs due to a train accident) would just drink all day. The Lucas family had nine children, out of which some were given away to relatives, foster homes, and institutions. But Henry was lucky enough to stay with his parents. Henry and his father were witnesses to his mother's beatings, violent outbursts, and a bunch of men who shared her bed. After his father's death, Henry would always be the subject to his mother's cruelty and beatings. Henry was introduced to bestiality by his mother's live-in lover, "Uncle Bernie." He wanted to know what sex with a human would be like, so at age 15, Henry picked a girl near Lynchburg, strangled and buried her body in the woods when she tried to get away.

Henry had confessed to almost 3,000 murders, one of which was his mother as well. After killing his mother with a kitchen knife, five days later he was arrested and boasted about raping his mother's corpse. Henry had an accomplice, Ottis Toole, who helped in over 100 murders with him. in 1989, Henry was sentenced to death. Henry died in 2001 while he was in prison due to heart failure.

After talking about Nature and Nurture in class i think this is a very good example of both. Since he was born to an alcoholic couple he could have been messed up from day one from his mother drinking while pregnant. Also his home life wasn't the best. He was raised poorly and saw how violent his mother would act, and didn't think anything of it. He never new wrong from right and his parents set a horrible example for him since day one of his life.


"Sex is one of my downfalls. I get sex any way i can get it. If i have to force somebody to do it, i do..I rape them; I've done that. I've killed animals to have sex with them, and i've had sex..While they're alive." -Henry Lee Lucas




CC big country, . (2011). Henry lee lucas- a gruesome tale of murder. Retrieved from http://hubpages.com/hub/The-Infamous--Famous-Henry-Lee-Lucas


Fisher, Mark. (2000). Henry lee lucas. Retrieved from http://www.carpenoctem.tv/killers/lucas.html


Schechter, H, & Everitt, D. (1997-2011). Henry lee lucas: portrait of a serial killer. Retrieved from http://www.houseofhorrors.com/lucas.htm






   










Monday, February 14, 2011

John Wayne Gacy: The Clown That Killed

It was the biggest shock in the United States when John Wayne Gacy, a very well respected member of the Junior Chamber of Commerce, the owner of a contracting business, local Democratic party's precinct captain, confessed about his crimes. The day of December 22, 1978, Gacy admitted to burying 28 victims underneath his house, in a crawlspace and disposing 5 other victims in the Des Plaines River.

Gacy was borin in 1942 and had a very normal childhood. He had a wonderful relationship with his mother and sisters. His father was an abusive alcoholic. After Gacy married and had two kids, there had been rumors circulating that he was a homosexual and a child molester.

Gacy would place real handcuffs on his victims and lure them in the pretext of demonstrating "trick" handcuffs. He would then dare them to free themselves. While his victims, mostly boys, were busy trying to free themselves, he would tie a rope around them or threaten to slit their throats if they made any noise. He would later molest and rape his victims. When he started his contracting business he would hire mostly young teenage boys. His employees soon started to disappear. His neighbors would complain about the strange odors coming from his house and thats when he surrounded himself voluntarily when he realized that the police were about to arrest him.

Police had discovered tons of evidence along with 33 bodies buried on and near Gacy's property. He was convicted and sentenced to death by lethal injection which was carried out on May 10, 1994.
His last words was: Kiss my ass

He showed no remorse for his actions. He is a disgusting person.




Taylor, T.T. (2003). The clown that killed. Retrieved from http://www.prairieghosts.com/gacy.html


Montaldo, C.M. (2011). John wayne gacy the "killer clown". Retrieved from http://crime.about.com/od/serial/p/gacy.htm


John wayne gacy the "killer clown". (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/gacy237.htm



Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Suspected Ohio Serial Killer: Anthony Sowell

 There has been a case in Cleveland, Ohio about a suspected Serial Killer named Anthony Sowell. Since i live in Cleveland i thought it was a very interesting case that i would like to share.


With a necktie wrapped around her wrists, the first women to accuse Anthony Sowell of rape climbed through a third-floor window to a rooftop in East Cleveland to get away from him. The women, who was three-months pregnant, yelled until neighbors spotted her on that July 1989 morning. Sowell was then convicted a year later. The crime was so horrendous that state parole officials would not let Sowell be released early from a 15-year prison sentence. 


After he was released from prison, police would discover over the years that their were ten bodies and a skull in and around Sowell's Home. Police would come over to Sowell's home unexpectedly to check up on him, but nothing odd occurred to them. One lady told police about her being choked and beaten by Sowell but they did nothing to stop it.  Neighbors would complain that the smell on Imperial Avenue was disturbing. Everyone though everyone thought it was the meat market right next to Sowell's home that had been smelling so bad over the past years, it was not. It was the dead bodies rotting in Sowell's home. Neighbors told police that Sowell was a very quiet person. He would keep to himself but also help others if they needed it. 


Reports say that all the victims were black women who were strangled. Seven had the remains of cords still wrapped around their throats. He apparently preyed for years on women with drug problems or police records. Gladys Wade told WKYC-TV that Sowell attacked her on the street and dragged her into his house last December. "It was like the devil, eyes glowing," she said, "He was demonic or something. You could see the demons in him. That's what made me fight more. Because i knew this man was trying to take my life."


Sowell has been charged of killing 11 women and 85 count indictment. Could East Cleveland Police had done a better job of this case? If Sowell didn't get out early from jail some of these murders could not have happened. The ten victims that have been identified: Tonia Carmichael, 52; Nancy Cobbs, 45; Tishana Culver, 31; Crystal Dozier, 38 Telacia Fortson, 31; Amelda Hunter, 47; Michelle Mason, 45; Kim Yvette Smith,44; Janice Webb, 49; and Leshanda Long, 25. What has happened is so upsetting, and hopefully nothing like this will EVER happen again. 11 lives were lost...






caniglia, Initials. (2009). Sowell's violent past offers glimpse of accused rapist suspected of mass murder. Retrieved from http://blog.cleveland.com


Leila , A. (2011). Cost of defense for serial killing suspect anthony sowell tops $530,000. Retrieved from http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/anthony_sowell/index.html


montaldo, Initials. (2009). The crimes of anthony sowell. Retrieved from http://crime.about.com/od/current/a/anthony_sowell.htm





Thursday, February 3, 2011

Ted Bundy: top 10 serial killers

What is a serial killer? A serial killer is someone who kills at least three victims one by one in a series of sequential murders.
No matter which culture, country, or origin you belong to, we as a society look at murder as a horrendous crime. We value human life more than anything else in the world. However, there has been countless serial killers and mass murderers throughout history that you have seen or have read about. Serial killers are usually tough to spot in a crowd, because they look like anybody else. Do you think all serial killers have mental illnesses or pure hatred and rage due to their past childhood, or certain events? You will figure out what you think when i explain a different serial killer each week and what makes them all the same.

Theodore Robert Cowell a.k.a. Ted Bundy

Ted Bundy was born in 1946 to an unmarried mother who was only 22 years old. Growing up, his grandparents made him believe that he was their son and that his mother was his elder sister. Bundy was a good student and got his heart broken by his first love, who left him. He spent years trying to win her back and when he did, he started to kill innocent people, majority of them between the years of 1974 and 1978. Later on, he dumped his girlfriend just like she had before.

Bundy was really attractive and good looking, which helped him in luring his victims. His unique style  of approaching potential victims would include him faking an injury to his arm by placing a fake cast or sling over it. He would drink alcohol before approaching them and gain their trust by acting as a policeman or fire department personnel. He would then take the victims to his car and hit them with a crowbar over their head. Bundy would rape and sexually assault his victims just before strangling and mutilating the bodies.

Bundy would rape, murder, and engage in necrophilia with his young female victims. it is also said that he would visit the Taylor Mountain, where he would dump the corpses, apply makeup on the dead bodies, and then sleep with them till the bodies would decay. In 1989 Bundy was executed for 40 murders, which he confessed about. Bundy admitted to pornography addiction and how it had led him into doing those things. He was executed in an electric chair on January 24, 1989. His last words were "I'd like to give my love to my family and friends"






Charles Montaldo, Initials. Serial killer ted bundy [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://crime.about.com/od/serial/p/tedbundy.htm


Howard, C. (2011). Crimes of the century. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/2007/crimes/14.html

S.E. Smith, Initials. (2003, December). what is a serial killer? [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-serial-killer.htmhttp://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-serial-killer.htm