2016 Citronelle homicides

Last updated

2016 Citronelle homicides
Location Citronelle, Alabama, United States
DateAugust 20, 2016 (2016-08-20)
4:10 a.m. (CT)
Attack type
 Mass shooting
Weapons
Deaths6 (including an unborn child)
Injured0
PerpetratorDerrick Ryan Dearman
MotiveUnknown

On August 20, 2016, a mass killing occurred in Citronelle, Alabama, United States, resulting in the deaths of five people, including a woman who was five months pregnant. They were killed in the early morning in a private residence in a rural area west of the city. It was owned by a brother of Laneta Lester, who had sought refuge there. She and her brother's infant were abducted and taken to Leakesville, Mississippi, by her estranged boyfriend, Derrick Dearman. He released her that day. Lester returned with the infant to Citronelle. She notified police of the killings. Investigators described this mass killing as the worst in Mobile County's history. The house burned down a couple of weeks after the crime.

Contents

Dearman was considered a suspect. He was arrested after he turned himself in at the Greene County, Mississippi police station. He was extradited to Alabama, where he was charged with six counts of capital murder (including the fetus, under Alabama law) and two counts of abduction. Initially he pleaded not guilty to the charges. In September 2018 he pleaded guilty to the capital murder charges. He still had to face a jury trial, which convicted him of the murders and kidnappings, and sentenced him to death. The Alabama Supreme Court upheld the sentence and authorized the state to set a date for his execution. His execution date was set by Alabama Governor Kay Ivey for October 17, 2024. [2] He was executed on that date.

Killings

In the early morning of August 20, 2016, a male assailant entered a residence in the 1700 block of Jim Platt Road about 4 a.m., in a rural area west of Citronelle. He killed five persons who were sleeping, including two married couples, one including a woman who was five months pregnant. He used a variety of weapons, including an axe and guns. [3] [4] All victims were shot and then slashed with an axe, and all were dead at the scene. [5] He kidnapped Laneta Lester, his estranged girlfriend, and an infant of her brother and his wife; [6] he took them with him to his father's house in Leakesville, Mississippi, about 30 miles to the west. He later released them.

Lester returned to Citronelle with the infant, where she went to the police department and notified authorities about the killings. [3] She said she had been abducted by her estranged boyfriend, Derrick Dearman, and that he had killed the people at the house. The police found the five bodies at the crime scene. They said it would take time to process the crime scene. Initial reports said Lester had escaped from Dearman, but she and the infant were reportedly released by him. [7] [8] [3] [9] [10] [11]

Investigators said that residents had made a 9-1-1 call from the house about 1 a.m., several hours before the killings, and reported that Derrick Dearman was on the property. Officers responded to the house, but found no evidence of him on the wooded grounds and left. [9] Investigators initially believed the attacker had used an ax and several firearms that were in the house in the attack, and that the killings were committed in the process of an attempted burglary or abduction. [12] [13] Police found two firearms and a "bladed weapon" at the house. [14] The attack was described as the worst mass killing in the history of Mobile County. [15]

Victims and perpetrator

Victims

The deceased victims shared the house where the homicides took place. It was owned by Lester's married brother, Joseph Adam Turner, who lived there with his wife. [16] Lester was said to have gone there seeking refuge from her ex-boyfriend, Derrick Dearman, who lived in Mississippi. Lester's brother Joseph and his wife were both among the homicide victims. The other three adult victims sharing the house included another married couple, of which the woman was five months pregnant. [11] [16]

The victims were named as: [11] [17]

Perpetrator

After Lester had notified police, a suspect, identified as Derrick Ryan Dearman (September 14, 1988 – October 17, 2024), turned himself in to police in his hometown of Leakesville, Mississippi, located about 30 miles (48 km) to the west of Citronelle. [9] He reportedly surrendered after his father convinced him to do so. [19] Dearman was the estranged boyfriend of Laneta Lester. She had left him due to an allegedly abusive relationship and gone to Citronelle to her brother's house, seeking shelter with him. [11] The former wife of Dearman described him as having "a temper, especially when he doesn't get his way". [11] He had two children from his marriage. In Mississippi, he had accumulated an extensive criminal record.

Alabama quickly extradited Dearman to Citronelle under charges associated with the killings.

On August 22, Dearman was extradited to Mobile, Alabama, to face trial. [20] While being escorted to an administrative building, he reportedly said, "Don't do drugs", apologized, and said he turned himself in after realizing what he had done. He later apologized to Lester by name and described the victims as friends. [19] [6] The following day, he said he was on methamphetamine at the time of the killings, and blamed the killings on the influence of the drug. [16]

On August 31, 2016, Dearman was charged with six counts of capital murder (one charge for Chelsea Reed's fetus, under Alabama's fetal homicide law [21] ) and two counts of abduction. He pleaded not guilty to all of the counts. [11] [12] It was classified as capital murder first, because it was associated with attempted burglary, and secondly, because two or more persons were killed in commission of the same crime. [22]

A couple of weeks after the murders, the Turner house burned down. [6]

Dearman was assigned two court-appointed defense attorneys. In mid-August 2017, Circuit Judge Rick Stout, at the request of the state, ordered Dearman to receive a mental evaluation, to be completed by the state of Alabama. It was intended to cover three topics: Dearman's competency to stand trial, his mental capacity at the time of the crimes, and his intelligence quotient (IQ). Around this time, one of his attorneys resigned from the case. Dearman objected to having his IQ and competency tested, as he had not made a plea related to either. He tried to establish limits to such testing, but the court denied the motion. The judge was to receive the results of the testing and review them before sharing with the prosecutor and defense. [23]

In September 2018, Dearman pleaded guilty to the charges of capital murder and kidnapping. [24] [25] Under Alabama law, because of the capital murder charges, he was still subject to a jury trial, with the possibility of receiving a death sentence. He had fired his two court-appointed attorneys before entering his plea. The judge ruled that he was fit to stand trial. [26] [27]

At the jury trial, Dearman was found guilty on the six capital murder charges and first-degree kidnapping counts, and the jury approved the death sentence. This was affirmed by the court on October 12, 2018, and Dearman was sentenced to death for these murders. [28]

In April 2024, it was reported that Dearman had given up on trying to overturn his sentence. [29] [30]

On September 3, 2024, the Alabama Supreme Court approved the death warrant of Dearman, who was scheduled to be executed on October 17, 2024. [31]

He was executed at 6:14 PM on October 17. [32] His last meal was a seafood platter brought to the prison from a local restaurant, consisting of "fried catfish, three fried shrimp, three boiled shrimp, three fried oysters, three onion rings, a deviled crab and two sides". [33]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2006 Richmond spree murders</span> 2006 murder spree in Richmond, Virginia

The 2006 Richmond spree murders took place during a seven-day period in January 2006 in and around Richmond, Virginia, United States; seven people—four members of the Harvey family and three members of the Baskerville–Tucker family—were killed.

A familicide is a type of murder or murder-suicide in which an individual kills multiple close family members in quick succession, most often children, spouses, siblings, or parents. In half the cases, the killer lastly kills themselves in a murder-suicide. If only the parents are killed, the case may also be referred to as a parricide. Where all members of a family are killed, the crime may be referred to as family annihilation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murder of Scotty Joe Weaver</span> 2004 homophobic murder in Alabama, United States

Scotty Joe Weaver was an 18-year-old murder victim from Bay Minette, Alabama, whose burned and partially decomposed body was discovered on July 22, 2004, approximately eight miles from the mobile home in which he lived. He had been beaten, strangled and stabbed numerous times, and his body doused in gasoline and set on fire. It was one of only two murders in which the victim's sexual orientation was part of the motive reported in Alabama in the period from February 1999 – when Billy Jack Gaither was kidnapped, beaten to death, and then the body set on fire – and July 22, 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Lee Willie</span> American murderer (1958–1984)

Robert Lee Willie was an American serial killer who killed at least three people in Louisiana from the late 1970s to 1980. He was sentenced to death for the rape and murder of 18-year-old Faith Hathaway and was executed in 1984.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terry Blair (serial killer)</span> American serial killer (1961–2024)

Terry Anthony Blair was an American serial killer who was convicted of killing seven women of various ages in Kansas City, Missouri, although investigators believed that there were additional unidentified victims.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gary Ray Bowles</span> American serial killer (1962–2019)

Gary Ray Bowles was an American serial killer who was executed in 2019 for the murders of six men in 1994. He is sometimes referred to as The I-95 Killer since most of his victims lived close to the Interstate 95 highway.

Fetal abduction refers to the rare crime of child abduction by kidnapping of an at term pregnant woman and extraction of her fetus through a crude cesarean section. Dr. Michael H. Stone and Dr. Gary Brucato have alternatively referred to this crime as "fetus-snatching" or "fetus abduction." Homicide expert Vernon J. Geberth has used the term "fetal kidnapping." In the small number of reported cases, a few pregnant victims and about half of their fetuses survived the assault and non-medically performed cesarean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of violence against LGBTQ people in the United States</span>

The history of violence against LGBTQ people in the United States is made up of assaults on gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender individuals, legal responses to such violence, and hate crime statistics in the United States of America. The people who are the targets of such violence are believed to violate heteronormative standards and they are also believed to contravene perceived protocols of gender and sexual roles. People who are perceived to be LGBTQ may also be targeted for violence. Violence can also occur between couples who are of the same sex, with statistics showing that violence among female same-sex couples is more common than it is among couples of the opposite sex, but male same-sex violence is less common.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murder of James Craig Anderson</span> 2011 hate crime murder

James Craig Anderson was a 47-year-old American man who was murdered in a hate crime in Jackson, Mississippi, on June 26, 2011, by 18-year-old Deryl Dedmon of Brandon. At the time of his death, Anderson was working on the assembly line at the Nissan plant in Canton, and raising an adopted son with his partner.

The FEAR militia was an American terrorist group of between four and eleven individuals that the State of Georgia alleged in 2012 to have planned to destroy a dam and poison apple orchards in Washington State, set off explosives in Forsyth Park in Savannah, Georgia, and assassinate President Barack Obama. Four of the individuals charged were soldiers stationed at Fort Stewart, Georgia. The group killed two people in an attempt to prevent them from revealing their plans to the public. The group used the Army to recruit militia members, who wore distinctive tattoos that resemble an alpha and omega symbol.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shawn Grate</span> American serial killer on death row

Shawn Michael Grate is an American serial killer and rapist who was sentenced to death for the murders of five young women in and around northern Ohio from 2006 to 2016. Grate was convicted on two counts of aggravated murder on May 7, 2018, in Ashland County, pleaded guilty to two additional murders on March 1, 2019, in Richland County, and pleaded guilty to an additional murder on September 11, 2019, in Marion County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samuel Little</span> American serial killer (1940–2020)

Samuel Little was an American serial killer of women who was convicted of eight murders and confessed to committing 93 murders between 1970 and 2005. The Federal Bureau of Investigation's Violent Criminal Apprehension Program has confirmed his involvement in at least 60 murders, the largest number of confirmed victims for any serial killer in American history. Little provided sketches for twenty-six of his victims although not all have been linked to known murders.

In capital punishment, a volunteer is a prisoner who wishes to be sentenced to death. Often, volunteers will waive all appeals in an attempt to expedite the sentence. In the United States, execution volunteers constitute approximately 10% of prisoners on death row. Volunteers can sometimes bypass legal procedures which are designed to designate the death penalty for the most serious offenders. Other prisoners have killed in prison with the desire of receiving the death sentence. Opponents of execution volunteering cited the prevalence of mental illness among volunteers comparing it to a form of suicide. Execution volunteering has received considerably less attention and effort at legal reform than those who were exonerated after execution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerald Bordelon</span> American murderer (1962–2010)

Gerald James Bordelon was an American convicted murderer and sex offender who was executed in Louisiana for murder. Bordelon was sentenced to death for the kidnapping and murder of Courtney LeBlanc, his 12-year-old stepdaughter. Bordelon waived his appeals and asked to be executed, saying he would commit a similar crime again if he was ever given the opportunity. Bordelon was executed at Louisiana State Penitentiary on January 7, 2010, becoming the first person executed in Louisiana since 2002 and the state's first voluntary execution. He remains the most recent person executed in Louisiana.

David Neal Cox Sr. was an American convicted murderer who killed his wife, Kim Cox, by shooting her. Cox was arrested hours after the killing and was charged with capital murder, sexual battery, and several other offenses. Cox pleaded guilty to all eight charges and was sentenced to death in 2012. While on death row, Cox confessed to murdering his sister-in-law in 2007. Cox waived his right to appeal and was executed via lethal injection on November 17, 2021, becoming the first person to be executed in Mississippi in over nine years.

References

  1. ↑ "Ala. jury recommends death for Dearman". Greene County Herald. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
  2. ↑ "Alabama sets mid-October execution date for man who killed 5 in ax and gun attack". The Independent. September 4, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 Edgemon, Erin (August 20, 2016). "5 dead, including pregnant woman, in south Alabama mass homicide". Alabama Live. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
  4. ↑ https://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/story/news/crime/2024/10/11/alabama-to-execute-derrick-dearman-thursday-for-2016-quintuple-murder/75604043007/
  5. ↑ "Spiritual adviser explains killers conscience".
  6. 1 2 3 "Suspect in deaths of 5 in Alabama blames drugs for slaughter". Chicago Tribune. Associated Press. August 22, 2016. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  7. ↑ Sharp, John (August 22, 2016). "Citronelle mayor: City is in 'shock' following murders". Alabama Live. Retrieved September 2, 2016.
  8. ↑ "5 dead in 'gruesome' murders in Citronelle, Alabama". BNO News. August 21, 2016. Archived from the original on August 24, 2016. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
  9. 1 2 3 Specker, Lawrence (August 21, 2016). "'Horrific' Citronelle murders of 5 may take days to decipher, authorities say". Alabama Live. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
  10. ↑ Hrynkiw, Ivana (August 21, 2016). "Citronelle slaying victims identified, suspect charged with six counts of murder". Alabama Live. Retrieved September 2, 2016.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Hrynkiw, Ivana (August 22, 2016). "Citronelle quintuple homicide: What we know Monday". Alabama Live. Retrieved September 2, 2016.
  12. 1 2 Specker, Lawrence (August 31, 2016). "Derrick Dearman pleads not guilty in Citronelle mass murder". Alabama Live. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
  13. ↑ "The Latest: 'Several' firearms, ax used in Alabama killings". Santa Cruz Sentinel. August 24, 2016. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  14. ↑ Sharp, John (August 23, 2016). "Accused Citronelle killer used ax first to murder victims; made several stops while fleeing to Mississippi". Alabama Live. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  15. ↑ Biunno, J.B.; Quynh, Jacqueline (August 31, 2016). "Derrick Dearman Pleads Not Guilty In The Citronelle Murders". WKRG. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 "What drove Derrick Dearman to kill 5 people in Citronelle?". Alabama Live. Associated Press. August 23, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  17. ↑ Sharp, John (August 22, 2016). "Citronelle mayor: City is in 'shock' following murders". Alabama Live. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
  18. ↑ Hrynkiw, Ivana (August 22, 2016). "Family of Citronelle victims: Remember who they were, not how they died". Alabama Live. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  19. 1 2 Specker, Lawrence (August 22, 2016). "Derrick Dearman, Citronelle quintuple murder suspect: 'Don't do drugs'". Alabama Live. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
  20. ↑ Specker, Lawrence (August 22, 2016). "Citronelle murder suspect Derrick Dearman bound for Mobile". Alabama Live. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  21. ↑ Margolin, Emma; Grimson, Matthew (August 22, 2016). "Five People, Including Pregnant Woman, Brutally Killed in Alabama". NBC News. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  22. ↑ Karimi, Faith; Patterson, Thom (August 21, 2016). "Man to be charged in Alabama mass murder". CNN. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
  23. ↑ Specker, Lawrence (February 28, 2018). "In Citronelle mass murder, court still evaluating accused killer Derrick Dearman". AL.com. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
  24. ↑ "Mississippi man pleads guilty in 5 Alabama slayings". The Seattle Times. September 10, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
  25. ↑ "Mississippi man pleads guilty in 5 Alabama slayings". Charlotte Observer. September 10, 2018. Archived from the original on September 10, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
  26. ↑ "Judge accepts guilty plea from Citronelle quintuple murder suspect". al.com. September 10, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
  27. ↑ "The Latest: Mississippi Man Pleads Guilty in 5 Slayings". The New York Times. September 10, 2018. Archived from the original on September 11, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
  28. ↑ "Derrick Dearman sentenced to death for 2016 Citronelle slayings of five and unborn child". al.com. October 12, 2018. Retrieved October 13, 2018.
  29. ↑ "Alabama murderer gives up appeals and asks to be executed so that victims' families have 'justice'". NBC News. April 4, 2024. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
  30. ↑ "Death row inmate who killed five, including pregnant woman, says he wants to be executed". The Independent. April 13, 2024. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
  31. ↑ "Alabama sets mid-October execution date for man who killed 5 in ax and gun attack". AP News. September 4, 2024.
  32. ↑ Staff, WALA Digital (October 17, 2024). "Derrick Dearman put to death for Citronelle murders". WALA-TV. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
  33. ↑ Encinas, Amaris; Roney, Marty (October 17, 2024). "Derrick Dearman executed in Alabama for murder of girlfriend's 5 family members". USA Today. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.