Samuel Little
Samuel Little | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 7, 1940 |
| Other names | Samuel McDowell |
| Conviction(s) | Murder |
| Criminal penalty | Life imprisonment |
| Details | |
| Victims | 3–90+[1] |
Span of crimes | 1970–82[1] – 1989–2005[1] |
| Country | United States |
| State(s) | California (convicted) 13 others (accused)[1] |
Date apprehended | September 5, 2012 |
| Imprisoned at | California State Prison, Los Angeles County |
Samuel Little (born June 7, 1940) is an American serial killer. In 2014, he was charged with the murder of three women in California between 1987 and 1989. After this conviction, California authorities said that he might have killed people in nine states from 1982 onwards. He claims to have killed as many as ninety people; investigators claim to have linked him to at least thirty murders.[2]
Biography
Little was born on June 7, 1940, in Reynolds, Georgia, possibly during one of his mother's prison stints. Little has claimed his mother was a "lady of the night."[3] Soon after his birth, his family moved to Ohio. He grew up in Lorain and was brought up mainly by his grandmother. He attended Hawthorne Junior High School, where he had problems with discipline and achievements.[4] In 1956, while still a high school student, Little was arrested for the first time and convicted for breaking and entering into property in Omaha, Nebraska. He was held in an institution for juvenile offenders.[5] Little did not continue his education after high school, spending most of his free time on the streets, engaging in petty theft and occasionally working part time as a day laborer.
Crimes
Little was arrested in 1961 and sentenced to three years in prison for breaking into a furniture store in Lorain. He was released in 1964. He left Ohio and shuttled between different states for the following few years and made a living through robbery and theft.
In the late 1960s, Little moved to Florida, where he lived with his mother. He worked as an ambulance attendant and then a cemetery worker. Having a strong physique, Little took up boxing during prison time and considered himself a prizefighter at one point.[6]
By 1975, Little had been arrested 26 times in 11 states for crimes including theft, assault, attempted rape, fraud and attacks on government officials.[7] Little spent much of his time with prostitutes and pimps. In 1982 he was arrested in Pascagoula, Mississippi and charged with the murder of 22-year-old prostitute Melinda LaPree, who had gone missing in September that year.
A grand jury declined to indict Little for the murder of LaPree. But while under investigation Little was transferred to Florida to be brought to trial for the murder of 26-year-old Patricia Mount, whose body was found in the fall of 1982. Prosecution witnesses identified Little in court as a person who spent time with Mount on the night before her disappearance.
Due to the difficulties in determining the time of the murder and mistrust of witness testimonies, Little was acquitted in January 1984 of Mount's murder.[6] Little then moved to California, where he stayed in the vicinity of San Diego.[8] In October 1984, Little was arrested for attacking and beating two prostitutes and was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison. He was released in February 1987 and soon moved to Los Angeles, where he committed several murders.[9]
Little was arrested on September 5, 2012, at a Louisville, Kentucky homeless shelter, after authorities used DNA testing to establish that he was involved in the murder of Carol Elford, killed on July 13, 1987; Audrey Nelson, killed on August 14, 1989; and Guadalupe Abodacha, killed on September 3, 1987. All three women were killed and later found on the streets of Los Angeles.
Little was extradited to Los Angeles, where he was charged on January 7, 2013.[10] A few months later, the police said that Little was being investigated for involvement in dozens of murders committed in the 1980s, which until then had been undisclosed. In connection with the new circumstances in the state of Mississippi, the case of the murder of LaPree was reopened, in which Little was acquitted in 1984.[11] In total, Little was tested for involvement in 60 murders of women committed in the territory of many US states.[12]
Trial and incarceration
The trial of Samuel Little for the murders of Elford, Nelson and Abodacha began in September 2014. The prosecution presented the DNA testing results as well as testimony of witnesses who were attacked by the accused at different times throughout his criminal career.[13][14] On September 25, 2014, Little was found guilty and was sentenced to life imprisonment without possibility of parole. On the day of the verdict, Little continued to insist on his innocence.[15] As of 2016, Little was serving a sentence at the California State Prison, Los Angeles County.[16]
Later confessions
On November 9, 2018, Little confessed to the 1996 fatal strangulation of Melissa Thomas.[17] On November 13, 2018, Little was charged with the 1994 murder of Denise Christie Brothers in Odessa, Texas, after having confessed the crime to a Texas Ranger in May 2018.[18] The Ector County, Texas District Attorney and Wise County Sheriff's Office also announced on November 13 that Little had confessed to dozens of murders and may have committed more than 90 across 14 states between 1970 and 2005.[1][19] On November 15, 2018, the Russell County, Alabama District Attorney announced that Little had earlier that month confessed to the 1979 murder of 23-year-old Brenda Alexander whose body was found in Phenix City.[20] On November 16, 2018, Macon, Georgia sheriffs announced that Little had credibly confessed to the 1977 strangling murder of an unidentified woman and the 1982 strangling murder of 18-year-old Fredonia Smith.[21] In the fall of 2018, Little confessed to Louisiana State Police the 1982 murder of 55-year-old Dorothy Richards and the 1996 murder of 40-year-old Daisy McGuire; both of their bodies were found in Houma, Louisiana.[22] On November 19, 2018, Harrison County, Mississippi sheriff Troy Peterson said that Little had confessed to strangling 36-year-old Julia Critchfield in the Gulfport area in 1978 and dumping her body off a cliff.[23] On November 20, 2018, Lee County, Mississippi law enforcement officials announced that Little had admitted to killing 46-year-old Nancy Carol Stevens in Tupelo in 2005 and that the case would be presented to a grand jury in January 2019.[24] On November 21, 2018, Richland County, South Carolina authorities announced that Little had confessed to murdering 19-year-old Evelyn Weston whose body was found near Fort Jackson in 1978.[25] Little also confessed to having killed 20-year-old Rosie Hill in Marion County, Florida in 1982.[3]
References
- ^ a b c d e Fieldstadt, Elisha (November 14, 2018). "Suspected serial killer Samuel Little may be connected to at least 90 murders". NBC News. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
- ^ Williams, Timothy (2018-11-26). "He Says He Got Away With 90 Murders. Now He's Confessing to Them All". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-11-27.
- ^ a b Williams, Timothy (November 26, 2018). "He Says He Got Away With 90 Murders. Now He's Confessing to Them All". New York Times. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
- ^ John Caniglia (8 April 2013). "Sam Little, who grew up in Lorain, is linked to serial killer probes". The Plain Dealer.
- ^ "Timeline retraces the whereabouts of a career criminal, alleged serial killer". Associated Press. 7 April 2013 – via Fox News.
- ^ a b Tami Abdollah (7 April 2013). "More cases connected to L.A. serial killer suspect". Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
- ^ "Timeline retraces the whereabouts of a career criminal, alleged serial killer". Associated Press. 7 April 2013 – via Fox News.
- ^ "Exclusive: LAPD arrests serial killer suspect from 1980s. January 07, 2013".
- ^ "Women's testimony called 'blueprint' to serial killer suspect's behavior". 1 September 2014.
- ^ "Man Linked to Three Cold Case Murders. Monday, January 7, 2013".
- ^ "Cross-Country Killer: Samuel Little Tied to Cold Case Murders in 10 States? at April 8, 2013".
- ^ "man suspected of killing dozens of women across the United States over the course of decades". 2 April 2013.
- ^ "Women's testimony called 'blueprint' to serial killer suspect's behavior". 1 September 2014.
- ^ "Former Pascagoula prostitutes testify of escapes from convicted serial killer Samuel Little. on September 04, 2014".
- ^ "L.A. serial killer gets 3 life terms, screams, 'I didn't do it!'". 25 September 2014.
- ^ "LITTLE, SAMUEL - AV2258 - 76 - 11/24/2014 - Lancaster".
- ^ "Arrest made in 1996 murder of Opelousas woman". KATC.com. 14 November 2018. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
- ^ Rojas, Nicole (November 14, 2018). "Killer Samuel Little Charged in 1994 Texas Cold Case". www.msn.com. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
- ^ Williams, Timothy (November 26, 2018). "He Says He Got Away With 90 Murders. Now He's Confessing Them All". New York Times. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
- ^ Williams, Chuck (November 15, 2018). "Almost 40 years after Phenix City murder, California serial killer makes a confession". Ledger-Enquirer. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
- ^ Kovac Jr., Joe (November 16, 2018). "Skeletal remains of slain Macon women linked to suspected Georgia-born serial killer". The Telegraph. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
- ^ "Mass murderer implicated in 3 Louisiana deaths confesses to 90 killings spanning 4 decades". The Advocate. November 15, 2018. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
- ^ Fitzgerald, Robin (November 19, 2018). "She was strangled, thrown in a Coast dirt pit in 1978. Now a suspected serial killer has confessed". Sun Herald. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
- ^ "Man who confessed to 90 deaths says he killed Decatur woman in 2005". Decatur Daily. November 20, 2018. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
- ^ Bland, David Travis (November 21, 2018). "Serial killer likely murdered Columbia woman in 1978, sheriff says". The State. Retrieved 21 November 2018.