Jerry Spraggins

Last updated

Jerry Spraggins
Born
Jerry Jerome Spraggins

(1954-12-17) December 17, 1954 (age 68)
New Jersey, U.S.
Conviction(s) Murder
Sexual assault
Aggravated robbery
Criminal penalty40-years-to-life
Details
Victims1–3
Span of crimes
1981–1983
CountryUnited States
State(s) New Jersey
Date apprehended
For the final time on April 7, 1985
Imprisoned at New Jersey State Prison, Trenton, New Jersey

Jerry Jerome Spraggins (born December 17, 1954) is an American murderer, rapist and suspected serial killer. Convicted and sentenced to a 40-years-to-life imprisonment for the 1983 murder of a woman at an apartment in Montclair, New Jersey, he was also suspected, but ultimately acquitted of two similar murders that occurred in that same apartment from 1981 to 1983. Spraggins remains incarcerated for his single murder conviction.

Contents

Early life and crimes

Jerry Jerome Spraggins was born on December 17, 1954, in New Jersey. Little is known about his early life, but he and his family moved to Montclair when he was ten years old. As an adult, he married, had a son and found employment as a taxi driver for the Claridge Taxi Company, in addition to working part-time as a mechanic. [1]

While mostly considered a humble, ordinary man, Spraggins was also a Peeping Tom who frequently spied on naked women whenever he felt certain urges. Due to this, he was arrested and convicted on charges of voyeurism and marijuana possession in 1977, and in November 1980, he was arrested again on charges of criminal trespassing, criminal sexual contact and lewdness. [1]

Murders

In November 1981, 83-year-old Lillian Harris, an elderly woman who lived in an apartment in the Cranetown Apartments housing complex, was found dead. Her cause of death was initially believed to be the result of a heart attack, but some investigators cast doubt on this theory when they noticed some of the jewellery was missing. However, as there was no strong evidence suggesting foul play, the death was written off as natural. [2]

On April 18, 1983, the decomposing body of 51-year-old Joan R. Leight was found in the same apartment. Initially, her death was also attributed to a heart attack, but it was later suggested that she had been asphyxiated and possibly sexually assaulted. [2] Five months later, on September 2, the body of yet another woman, 68-year-old Sarah G. McHale, was found in the apartment. Unlike the previous victims, however, this time it was apparent that she was sexually assaulted, smothered with a pillow and ultimately strangled by her assailant. [2] The similarities between her murder and the two previous deaths sparked renewed interest in the odd case, with some suggesting that all three had fallen victims to a serial killer. [3]

Arrest, trial and imprisonment

On December 16, 1984, Spraggins was arrested for breaking into a different apartment complex, for which he was charged with trespassing and attempted sexual assault. [4] Due to the similarity of this act and the murders at Cranetown Apartments, investigators started delving into his past and uncovered his criminal record. With this, they were able to confirm that a fingerprint left on one of the window screens matched those of Spraggins. On April 7, 1985, when he learned that the police was searching for him, Spraggins voluntarily went to the police station to see what was going on, where he was immediately booked and charged with the murders of Leight and McHale. [3]

While awaiting trial, Spraggins initially refused to do any interviews but finally agreed to give one to the Herald News in August 1985, claiming that he wanted to show the public that he was not the monster the media portrayed him as. [1] In said interview, Spraggins was frank about his past convictions but claimed innocence in the murders, saying that when he was freed he would move away. He also advised young people to find some meaning in their lives and not get into trouble. [1]

At his trial, however, Spraggins admitted responsibility for all three crimes, saying that he had a "problem about looking in windows" and wanted to get it off his chest. [5] In his admissions, he admitted to sexually assaulting both Leight and McHale, but claimed that he thought both of them had fallen into unconsciousness and would simply wake up later. When it came to Harris, he gave a much briefer statement in which he admitted that some jewellery found in his room by his father and sister not long after the woman's death were indeed hers. His lawyer contested the motion that the confessions should be entered as evidence, claiming that the police had obtained them against his client's will and under duress. [2]

Spraggins was eventually found guilty solely on the McHale murder charge, and was acquitted of all other charges related to Harris and Leight's deaths. [6] During sentencing, the prosecution sought the death penalty, claiming that Spraggins' crime was enough to warrant it, while his lawyer argued that his client was mentally ill and therefore ineligible for such a sentence. [7] In the end, he was sentenced to a total of 40-years-to-life for the murder and sexual battery charges, and as of October 2022, Spraggins continues to serve his sentence at the New Jersey State Prison.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Jersey State Prison</span> State Prison for men In Trenton, New Jersey US

The New Jersey State Prison (NJSP), formerly known as Trenton State Prison, is a state men's prison in Trenton, New Jersey operated by the New Jersey Department of Corrections. It is the oldest prison in New Jersey and one of the oldest correctional facilities in the United States. It is the state's only completely maximum security institution, housing the most difficult and/or dangerous male offenders in the inmate population. NJSP operates two security units and provides a high level of custodial supervision and control. Professional treatment services, such as education and social work, are a priority at the facility. The Bureau of State Use Industries operated the bedding and clothing shops that were once located in Shop Hall at the facility. These industries have been relocated to South Woods State Prison.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lorenzo Gilyard</span> Convicted American serial killer

Lorenzo Jerome Gilyard, Jr., known as the Kansas City Strangler, is an American serial killer. A former trash-company supervisor, Gilyard is believed to have raped and murdered at least 13 women and girls from 1977 to 1993. He was convicted of six counts of murder on March 16, 2007.

This is a list of notable overturned convictions in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald Leroy Evans</span> American serial killer

Donald Leroy Evans was an American serial killer who murdered at least three people from 1985 to 1991. He was known for confessing to killing victims at parks and rest areas across more than twenty U.S. states.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Breed Motorcycle Club</span> Outlaw Motorcycle Club

The Breed Motorcycle Club was a one-percenter motorcycle club that was formed in Asbury Park, New Jersey in the United States in 1965. The club disbanded in 2006 after numerous prominent members were indicted on racketeering and drug trafficking charges.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Floyd Thomas Jr.</span> Convicted American serial killer

John Floyd Thomas Jr. is an American serial killer, serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole for the murders of seven women in the Los Angeles area during the 1970s and 1980s. Police suspect Thomas committed 10 to 15 more murders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rodney Alcala</span> American serial killer (1943–2021)

Rodney James Alcala was an American serial killer and sex offender who died of natural causes while on death row in California. He was sentenced to death for five murders committed in the state between 1977 and 1979, and received an additional sentence of 25 years to life after pleading guilty to two homicides committed in New York in 1971 and 1977. While he has been conclusively linked to eight murders, Alcala's true number of victims remains unknown and could be much higher – authorities believe the actual number is as high as 130.

This is a list of notable overturned convictions in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Mark Edwards</span> American convicted murderer

Robert Mark Edwards is an American murderer who killed two female realtors in sexually-motivated murders, one in California in 1986 and another in Hawaii in 1993. In separate trials, he was sentenced to death and to life imprisonment in the respective states and is currently awaiting execution at the San Quentin State Prison.

Larry Lamont White is an American serial killer who shot to death three women in Louisville, Kentucky from June to July 1983. Originally convicted of two murders, for which he was sentenced to death, his sentence was later overturned, and White was paroled. After being imprisoned for firearm violations in 2006, he was linked to his first murder via DNA and given a new death sentence, and he is currently awaiting execution for it.

Robert Lee Walden, Jr. is an American murderer, serial rapist and suspected serial killer who attacked several women in Tucson, Arizona from 1989 to 1992, raping four and killing two of them. Sentenced to death on one count and to several life terms for his other crimes, Walden confessed to a third murder after his trial, for which he has never been tried.

John Charles Bolsinger was an American serial killer who was posthumously linked to the murders of three women in Eugene, Oregon from 1986 to 1988, committed after his release from prison for a 1980 murder in Utah. He was never convicted of the latter homicides, as he committed suicide shortly after the final murder, and was linked to them via DNA analysis from Oregon State Police and Parabon NanoLabs in 2022.

Vernon Brown was an American murderer, child molester, and suspected serial killer who was convicted for the murders of a young woman and a young girl in St. Louis, Missouri in 1985 and 1986, but is suspected of committing at least two other murders, including being a prime suspect for the murder of the St. Louis Jane Doe. Brown was sentenced to death and executed in 2005 for the two murders he was convicted of, having never confessed responsibility for any other murders.

Donald Arthur Piper is an American murderer and suspected serial killer convicted of killing two women in hotels around West Des Moines and Clive, Iowa in 1993 and 1997, but is considered a suspect in four other killings. For his confirmed crimes, Piper was convicted and sentenced to two life terms.

Doeur Seoung is a Cambodian-American serial killer and rapist who committed four murders in Texas and California from 1985 to 1998, two of which were done while he was still a teenager. He was given life terms for his respective crimes in both states, but his current status is unknown.

George Lamar Jones was an American serial killer who killed at least three women in Mississippi and Wisconsin from 1972 to 1997, with his latter murders occurring at the same time as those of Walter E. Ellis, another unrelated serial killer. For his respective crimes, Jones was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment, remaining behind bars until his death in 2012.

Edward Lewis Lagrone was an American serial killer and rapist. He was convicted of fatally shooting three members of the Lloyd family in Fort Worth, Texas in May 1991, including a 10-year-old girl he had impregnated, approximately seven years after being released from prison for a previous murder. Lagrone was subsequently convicted, sentenced to death and executed for the latter crimes in 2004.

Melvin Johnson was an American serial killer, rapist and sex offender who was posthumously linked to at least four murders committed in Decatur, Illinois from 1984 to 1988, three of which were sexually motivated. He was never convicted of murder during his lifetime, and died before he could be brought to trial for the crimes.

John Michael Hooker was an American serial killer who killed his girlfriend and her mother in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 1988, after having served time for a manslaughter conviction as a teenager. For the latter crimes, Hooker was convicted, sentenced to death and executed in 2003.

Karl Lee Myers was an American murderer, rapist and suspected serial killer. Convicted and sentenced to death for two separate murders in Oklahoma, committed in 1993 and 1996 respectively, he was also acquitted of a 1978 killing in Kansas and remained a suspect in several other murders. Myers remained on death row for the remainder of his life, dying behind bars in 2012 without being executed.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Theresa Nance (August 8, 1985). "Spraggins airs advice for kids 'hangin' out". Herald News – via Newspapers.com.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Elliot Pinsley (January 16, 1986). "Eerie accounts of murders". The Record . p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. 1 2 "Police: Man killed 2 women in same Montclair apartment". Courier News . April 12, 1985 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Mechanic charged in deaths". Home News Tribune . April 12, 1985 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ Elliot Pinsley (January 16, 1986). "Eerie accounts of murders". The Record . p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "Jury convicts man of one death in Montclair, acquits on 2 others". Courier News. January 25, 1986 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Penalty phase begins in Spraggins' trial". The Record. January 29, 1986 – via Newspapers.com.
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.