Robert Anthony Buell
Robert Anthony Buell | |
|---|---|
 Mugshot taken on October 13, 2000 | |
| Born | September 10, 1940 Norwood, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | September 25, 2002 (aged 62) |
| Cause of death | Execution by lethal injection |
| Other names | Bob Buell |
| Criminal status | Executed |
| Conviction(s) | Aggravated murder Kidnapping (x3) Rape (x3) Felonious sexual penetration (x3) Felonious assault (x2) |
| Criminal penalty | Death sentence |
| Details | |
| Victims | 2–3 |
Span of crimes | 1981–1983 |
| Country | United States |
| State(s) | Ohio |
Date apprehended | 1984 |
Robert Anthony Buell (September 10, 1940 – September 25, 2002) was an American child murderer, serial rapist, suspected serial killer, and former planning department worker from Akron, Ohio. He was convicted of the July 17, 1982 murder of 11-year-old Krista Lea Harrison.[1]
Buell was executed by lethal injection on September 25, 2002. His final meal was a single black unpitted olive.[1] In 2010, eight years after his death, he was found to have also killed Tina Marie Harmon.[2]
Murder cases
[edit]
On July 17, 1982, Buell was reportedly seen abducting Krista Harrison in a park in Marshallville, Ohio. Harrison's body was found six days after her kidnapping. She had been sexually assaulted and strangled. Two other young girls have been thought to have also been victims of Buell: Tina Marie Harmon, age 12, murdered in 1981; and Deborah Kaye Smith, age 10, murdered in 1983.[3]
Although strong evidence is present connecting Buell to all three cases, Buell was only charged with the murder of Krista Harrison.[3] He has since been linked by DNA evidence to Tina Harmon's murder.[4] Buell was also a serial rapist. In 1983, Buell raped and tortured a woman who was able to escape and notify police, an event that ultimately led to his arrest.[5] He also raped another woman. Buell pleaded no contest to these crimes and received a 121-year sentence.
Buell was sentenced to death for Krista Harrison's murder on April 11, 1984. Eighteen years later, on September 25, 2002, he was executed by lethal injection, still denying involvement in the Harrison murder.[6]
This case was presented as "Material Evidence" in Forensic Files, season 5, episode 8, made before Buell's execution. Information regarding the 2010 DNA match was later added to the end of the episode.
See also
[edit]- List of people executed in Ohio
- List of people executed in the United States in 2002
- List of serial killers in the United States
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Robert Anthony Buell #801". ClarkProsecutor.org. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
- ^ "ExecutedToday.com » 2002: Robert Anthony Buell". Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ a b "Family of Tina Harmon, abducted and killed in 1981, wants police to reopen the case". IndeOnline.com. Archived from the original on June 16, 2013. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
- ^ "DNA proves Robert Buell killed 12-year-old Tina Harmon girl in 1981". IndeOnline.com. Archived from the original on January 12, 2014. Retrieved January 12, 2014.
- ^ "Robert Anthony Buell". ClarkProsecutor.org. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
- ^ Gillespie, Charley (September 26, 2002). "Buell put to death". The Times Recorder. p. 4. Retrieved December 27, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
Media related to Robert Anthony Buell at Wikimedia Commons
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- 1940 births
- 2002 deaths
- 20th-century American criminals
- 21st-century executions by Ohio
- 21st-century executions of American people
- American murderers of children
- American people convicted of rape
- American torturers
- Executed suspected serial killers
- Executed people from Ohio
- People convicted of murder by Ohio
- People executed by Ohio by lethal injection
- People from Akron, Ohio
- People from Norwood, Ohio
- Ohio people stubs