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Jack Harrison Trawick | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 18, 1947 Birmingham, Alabama, U.S. |
| Died | June 11, 2009 (aged 62) |
| Cause of death | Execution by lethal injection |
| Criminal status | Executed |
| Conviction | Capital murder |
| Criminal penalty | Gach murder Death Pruitt murder Life imprisonment without the possibility of parole |
| Details | |
| Victims | 5 – 14 (two convictions) |
| Date | 1972–1992 |
| Country | United States |
| Locations | Alabama, Oregon |
| Imprisoned at | Holman Correctional Facility |
Jack Harrison Trawick (February 18, 1947 – June 11, 2009) was an American serial killer convicted of two murders in Alabama. On June 17, 1992, Trawick killed 27-year-old Aileen Pruitt by stabbing her multiple times. Four months after Pruitt's killing, Trawick raped and murdered 21-year-old college student Stephanie Gach on October 9, 1992. Apart from these two murders, Trawick also confessed to killing Betty Jo Richards in 1972 and several more women, bringing his suspected victim count to a range of five to 14.
After his arrest on October 29, 1992, Trawick was found guilty and sentenced to death in 1994 for the murder of Stephanie Gach and executed by lethal injection on June 11, 2009. Trawick was additionally tried for the murder of Aileen Pruitt in 1995 and sentenced to life without parole, although he did not face further trial proceedings for the other killings due to his death sentence for murdering Gach.[1]
Murders
editConfirmed
edit- Betty Jo Richards
On July 16, 1972, Trawick killed his first victim, 17-year-old Betty Jo Richards, in Quinton, Alabama.
- Aileen Pruitt
On June 17, 1992, nearly 20 years after committing his first murder, Trawick murdered 26-year-old prostitute Frances Aileen Pruitt, better known as Aileen Pruitt, in Birmingham, Alabama.
- Stephanie Gach
On October 9, 1992, four months after murdering Pruitt, Trawick killed 21-year-old community college student Stephanie Alexis Gach in Birmingham.
Trawick committed the crime on the night of October 9, 1992, when he first targeted Gach by stalking her all the way from a shopping mall to her apartment. As Gach was walking from her parking space to her apartment, Trawick pulled up beside her in a van and forced her to enter the van at gunpoint (Trawick used a toy gun). Gach was gagged and tied up by Trawick, who drove to a secluded area, where he bludgeoned Gach in the head with a hammer, and subsequently strangled her, and stabbed her in the chest with a knife.[2]
After murdering Gach, Trawick disposed of the body by throwing it on the side of a road, and also threw out the contents of her wallet. He also cleaned the blood from the van at his house. A day after Trawick killed Gach, the police responded to a missing person report filed by Gach's mother, who found that her daughter did not return home the previous night. An autopsy report showed that the cause of death was strangulation and a fatal three-inch knife wound to Gach's heart.[2]
Suspected
editApart from the three above victims, Trawick additionally confessed to at least two murders, which brought the suspected total count to between five and 14.
The police also suspected Trawick to be involved in several other homicides apart from the ones he confessed to. In one of these cases, Trawick was named a auspect in the unsolved killing of 23-year-old Toni Lim at her apartment in March 1990. In another case, Trawick was suspected to be involved in the disappearance of Dr. Michele Saint Romain (aged 26) in June 1991.[3]
Trial
editBetween 1994 and 1995, Trawick was tried for the murders of both Stephanie Gach and Aileen Pruitt respectively.
Gach murder trial
editOn March 21, 1994, jury selection began for Trawick's trial, where he faced charges of capital murder in connection with Gach's death. Under Alabama state law, the offence of capital murder carries the death penalty.[4]
On March 23, 1994, the jury found Trawick guilty of capital murder after an hour and 40 minutes of deliberation over the case.[5]
On May 5, 1994, Jefferson County Circuit Judge James Hard followed the jury's recommendation and formally sentenced Trawick to death for the capital murder of Gach.[6]
Pruitt murder trial
editOn October 23, 1995, Trawick's second murder trial for the death of Aileen Pruitt began with jury selection.[7] During the trial itself, Trawick also pleaded innocent by mental illness. The jury also heard a taped confession by Trawick, who admitted to the murder of Pruitt and recounted how he committed the crime. Additionally, Trawick mentioned in the tape that he felt some remorse for the death of Pruitt, after he saw a photo of Pruitt's young son inside her purse.[8]
On October 25, 1995, the jury found Trawick guilty of the murder of Pruitt. After taking into account of Trawick's previous criminal records, Jefferson County Circuit Judge James Hard sentenced Trawick to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, the maximum sentence he was bound by law to impose for the charge of murder, which did not carry the death penalty like the capital murder charge preferred against Trawick for Gach's killing.[9]
Appeal process
editOn November 9, 1995, Jack Trawick's appeal against his death sentence was rejected by the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals.[2]
On February 28, 1997, the Alabama Supreme Court dismissed Trawick's appeal against his death sentence.[10]
On March 18, 2008, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals turned down Trawick's appeal against his sentence.[11][12]
On November 17, 2008, Trawick's final appeal was denied by the U.S. Supreme Court, which confirmed his death sentence.[13]
Death row and execution
editAfter he was sentenced to death in 1994, Jack Trawick was incarcerated on death row at the Holman Correctional Facility for the next 15 years.
In December 2003, it was reported that several murderers, including Trawick, had the details of their crimes published online. In the website that covered the crimes of Trawick, he had allegedly taunted the mother of one of his victims by her name.[14][15]
On June 11, 2009, 62-year-old Jack Harrison Trawick was put to death by lethal injection at the Holman Correctional Facility.[16] Trawick's execution was the 43rd documented execution to happen after the state's 1983 resumption of executions, as well as the 196th execution in the state since 1927. Trawick was the 19th condemned inmate executed by lethal injection.[17]
Prior to his execution, Trawick ordered a last meal of fried chicken, French fries, onion soup and a roll. Stephanie Gach's sister Heather, as well as Aileen Pruitt's sister Donna Middlebrooks, attended the execution of Trawick.[18]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Killer who taunted victim's mother". NBC News. June 11, 2009.
- ^ a b c Trawick v. State [1995], Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals (United States).
- ^ "Lawmen checking if suspect linked to other deaths". Birmingham Post-Herald. October 31, 1992 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Accused killer's jury chosen". Birmingham Post-Herald. March 22, 1994 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Trawick quickly found guilty". Birmingham Post-Herald. March 24, 1994 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Judge sentences Trawick to death". Birmingham Post-Herald. May 6, 1994 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Trawick back in court". Birmingham Post-Herald. October 24, 1995 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Confessed killer describes slaying". Birmingham Post-Herald. October 25, 1995 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Jury gives guilty ruling". Birmingham Post-Herald. October 26, 1995 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Trawick v. State [1997], Alabama Supreme Court (United States).
- ^ Trawick v. Allen [2008], 11th Circuit Court of Appeals (United States).
- ^ "Court rejects appeals of death row artist". The Tuscaloosa News. March 18, 2008.
- ^ Trawick v. Allen [2008], U.S. Supreme Court (United States).
- ^ "Details of murder posted on Internet". The Tuscaloosa News. December 27, 2003.
- ^ "Killer's description of crime is on Internet". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. January 14, 2004.
- ^ "Alabama: Killer executed". The Daily Herald. June 11, 2009 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Updated: Alabama executes Jack Trawick for slaying of Stephanie Gach". Alabama Local News. June 11, 2009.
- ^ "Alabama Death Row inmate Jack Trawick apologizes before execution". Birmingham News. June 11, 2009.
Category:1947 births Category:2009 deaths Category:American serial killers Category:American people convicted of murder Category:People convicted of murder by Alabama Category:Executed American serial killers Category:People executed for murder Category:People executed by Alabama by lethal injection Category:Violence against women in the United States Category:Serial killers from Alabama Category:People from Birmingham, Alabama Category:American people of Egyptian descent