Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Serial Killer Dubbed Grim Sleeper Dies in California Prison
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
March 30, 2020

Share

SAN QUENTIN — Lonnie Franklin, the convicted serial killer known as the “Grim Sleeper” who preyed on the women of South Los Angeles for more than two decades, has died in prison. He was 67.

“I won’t say I’m pleased he died but at the end there was justice for all the bad things he did in his life. We can now be at peace.” — Diana Ware
California corrections officials said Franklin was found unresponsive in his cell at San Quentin State Prison on Saturday evening. An autopsy will determine the cause of death; however, there were no signs of trauma, corrections spokeswoman Terry Thornton said in a statement.
The stepmother of a victim named Barbara Ware told People magazine she was shocked by the news.
“I won’t say I’m pleased he died but at the end there was justice for all the bad things he did in his life,” Diana Ware said. “We can now be at peace.”
Franklin had been on death row since August 2016 for the deaths of nine women and a teenage girl. Franklin was linked at trial to 14 slayings, including four women he wasn’t charged with killing. Police have said he may have had as many as 25 victims.
Most of the victims were fatally shot at close range, though two were strangled. Their bodies were dumped and left to rot in alleys and trash bins.

Community Complained Police Didn’t Seriously Investigate Killings

The killer earned his moniker because of the apparent hiatus from the late 1980s to 2002. The murders went unsolved for years and Franklin avoided suspicion by working as a city trash collector and onetime garage attendant for Los Angeles police.

The killer earned his moniker because of the apparent hiatus from the late 1980s to 2002. The murders went unsolved for years and Franklin avoided suspicion by working as a city trash collector and onetime garage attendant for Los Angeles police.
Community members complained that police didn’t seriously investigate the killings because the victims were black and poor and many were drug users and prostitutes during the crack cocaine epidemic.
Franklin was connected to the crimes after a task force that re-examined the old cases discovered that DNA from Franklin’s son, which was in a database because of an arrest, showed similarities to genetic evidence found on some of the “Grim Sleeper” victims.
A detective posing as a busboy at a pizza parlor collected utensils and crusts while Franklin was attending a birthday party. Lab results connected him to some of the bodies and led to his arrest.
Investigators found a gun used in one of the killings and photos of victims in Franklin’s house after his arrest.
Last year, Franklin was granted a reprieve when Gov. Gavin Newsom halted the execution of more than 700 condemned inmates on the nation’s largest death row for at least as long as he’s governor.
California hasn’t executed anyone since 2006 and inmates are far more likely to die of old age.

DON'T MISS

Big Spenders: These Companies Are Giving the Most to California Legislative Candidates

DON'T MISS

Stock Market Today: Wall Street Drifts Ahead of Election Day, While Oil Rises and Yields Sink

DON'T MISS

Saints Fire Head Coach Dennis Allen After Seven-Game Losing Streak

DON'T MISS

Raiders Fire Offensive Coordinator Luke Getsy and 2 Other Offensive Coaches

DON'T MISS

Storm in the Caribbean Is on a Track to Likely Hit Cuba as a Hurricane

DON'T MISS

Israel Ends Agreement With UN Agency Providing Aid in Gaza

DON'T MISS

Demarcus Robinson’s One-Handed Catch in OT Gives Rams Win Over Seahawks

DON'T MISS

Trump, Musk and an American Masculinity Crisis

DON'T MISS

What One Tossup District Says About the Trump-Harris Battle for the Suburbs

DON'T MISS

Herbert Shines, Chargers Defense Dominates in Win Over Browns

UP NEXT

Immediate Threat: Mussel Invades California’s Delta, First Time in North America

UP NEXT

Lyft Pays $2.1 Million to Settle Case Alleging the Ride-Hailing Service Deceived Drivers

UP NEXT

Southern California County Official Pleads Guilty to Bribery Charge in COVID Funds Scheme

UP NEXT

Visalia Rollerblader Suffered Major Injuries After Being Struck by Vehicle

UP NEXT

Fresno County Man Indicted for Possessing Stolen Guns

UP NEXT

Anti-Semitic Incident at Oakland Cafe Raises Concerns About Rising Intolerance

UP NEXT

Schwarzenegger Endorses Harris, Warns Against Another Trump Term

UP NEXT

Will Noncitizens Be Able to Vote? This California City Will Decide Their Fate

UP NEXT

California Voters Consider Controversial Vacation Homes Tax in Iconic Lake Tahoe Area

UP NEXT

Los Angeles Sees Bus Burned, Store Thefts and Rowdy Crowds After Dodgers Win World Series

Raiders Fire Offensive Coordinator Luke Getsy and 2 Other Offensive Coaches

9 mins ago

Storm in the Caribbean Is on a Track to Likely Hit Cuba as a Hurricane

12 mins ago

Israel Ends Agreement With UN Agency Providing Aid in Gaza

17 mins ago

Demarcus Robinson’s One-Handed Catch in OT Gives Rams Win Over Seahawks

43 mins ago

Trump, Musk and an American Masculinity Crisis

47 mins ago

What One Tossup District Says About the Trump-Harris Battle for the Suburbs

57 mins ago

Herbert Shines, Chargers Defense Dominates in Win Over Browns

1 hour ago

US Confirms Reports That Iran Arrested an Iranian-American Citizen

1 hour ago

A Vivid Trump-Harris Contrast in Campaign’s Grueling Final Days

1 hour ago

Harris and Trump Battle to the Wire in Swing States, Times/Siena Polls Find

1 hour ago

Big Spenders: These Companies Are Giving the Most to California Legislative Candidates

Nearly $100 million has been spent this year by corporate- and labor-funded committees in California legislative races, including more than ...

2 mins ago

2 mins ago

Big Spenders: These Companies Are Giving the Most to California Legislative Candidates

2 mins ago

Stock Market Today: Wall Street Drifts Ahead of Election Day, While Oil Rises and Yields Sink

5 mins ago

Saints Fire Head Coach Dennis Allen After Seven-Game Losing Streak

Raiders
9 mins ago

Raiders Fire Offensive Coordinator Luke Getsy and 2 Other Offensive Coaches

12 mins ago

Storm in the Caribbean Is on a Track to Likely Hit Cuba as a Hurricane

17 mins ago

Israel Ends Agreement With UN Agency Providing Aid in Gaza

Rams
43 mins ago

Demarcus Robinson’s One-Handed Catch in OT Gives Rams Win Over Seahawks

47 mins ago

Trump, Musk and an American Masculinity Crisis

Search

Send this to a friend