- unknown serial killer in Austin, Texas who killed from 1884-1885
- 7 females, 1 male murdered, 6 females, 2 males seriously injured who were attacked indoors while asleep in their beds
- 5 females dragged, unconscious but still alive, then killed outdoors
- 3 females were severely mutilated outdoors
- 1 female mutilated indoors
- all posed similarly.
- 6 females had a “sharp object” inserted into their ears
On June 11, 1988, he was sentenced to death by lethal injection for the murder of Ernestine Griffin. On August 30, 1988, he was placed on death row, where, as of 2010, he remains awaiting ruling by a U.S. District Court on a petition for writ of habeas corpus.
In August 1974, Allen beat Opal Cooper, age 85, to death in her home during a robbery. He was sentenced to 2–21 years for manslaughter and paroled in January 1985.
On May 18, 1987, he choked and beat a 73-year-old woman in her home, who survived. Two days later, he assaulted Laverne Hale, age 87, resulting in her death nine days later.
On June 2, 1987, he burglarized the house of an elderly man just five blocks from the scene of Laverne Hale’s murder. This time the tenant was absent; Allen vented his anger by setting the house on fire.
On July 14, 1987, he killed Ernestine Griffin, age 73, with a ten-inch butcher knife, and repeatedly struck her on the head with a kitchen toaster. He stole a camera and $15. He was arrested later that day.
- born February 10, 1949
- from Indianapolis, Indiana
- convictions: murder, burglary, assault, arson
- number of victims: 3
- sentence: 88 years in prison and death by lethal injection
- span of killing: 1974-1987
- date apprehended: August 4, 1987
Convicted March 30, 2010 in California, and has been indicted for the New York Murders. When police searched Alcala’s home, they found and release 120 photos of other women that could possibly be victims of this prolific serial killer.
Cheryl Bradshaw chooses Rodney Alcala as the winning bachelor on The Dating Game
Though Alcala won the date with Bradshaw, she ultimately refused to go out with him, according to reports.
“One wonders what that did in his mind,” crime profiler Pat Brown said in an interview with CNN. “That is something he would not take too well. They don’t understand the rejection. They think that something is wrong with that girl: ‘She played me. She played hard to get.’ ”
Alcala became a killer just months after his appearance on the show, prosecutors said.
Robin Samsoe, ninth victim of Rodney Alcala
Orange County
On June 20, 1979, Alcala approached 12-year-old Robin Samsoe and her friend Bridget Wilvert at Huntington Beach and asked them to pose for pictures. After posing for a series of photographs, a neighbor intervened and asked if everything was alright and Samsoe took off. Later Robin got on a bike and headed to an afternoon dance class.
Alcala kidnapped and murdered Samsoe and dumped her body near Sierra Madre in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. Her body was scavenged by animals and her skeletal remains were discovered July 2, 1979. Her front teeth had been knocked out by Alcala.
Jill Parenteau, eighth victim of Rodney Alcala
Los Angeles County
In June 1979, Alcala raped and murdered 21-year-old Jill Parenteau in her Burbank apartment. He strangled Jill to death using a cord or nylon. Alcala’s blood was collected from the scene after he cut himself crawling through a window. Based on a semi-rare blood match, Alcala was linked to the murder. He was charged for murdering Parenteau, but the case was later dismissed.
Charlotte Lamb, seventh victim of Rodney Alcala
Los Angeles County
In June 1979, Alcala raped, beat, and murdered 33-year-old legal secretary Charlotte Lamb. Alcala strangled Charlotte to death using a shoelace from her shoe and left her body posed in a laundry room of an El Segundo apartment complex where it was discovered on June 24, 1979.