He dumped the bodies of his victims – most of whom he shot or strangled – by the roadside or in alleys.
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He targeted women, some of whom were prostitutes or cocaine addicts. She was among at least nine women and a teenage girl killed by one of the most prolific serial killers in Los Angeles history, the “Grim Sleeper”.
Outside the courtroom, relatives of Franklin’s victims hugged prosecutors and wiped away tears moments after the death verdict was read.
The jury vote sentencing him to death followed an emotional appeal from a prosecutor who argued that jurors should afford Franklin the same compassion that he showed his victims by opting for the “ultimate penalty” of execution.
Lonnie Franklin Jr. appears in count in Los Angeles, Thursday, May 5, 2016. The first-degree murder charges included crimes dating back more than 30 years.
Enietra Washington said that she got a lift from Franklin in his auto before he shot her in the chest while she was in the passenger seat.
The name “Grim Sleeper” referred to the gaps between the killings.
Diane Ware said she has been awaiting justice for her slain daughter Barbara for years.
The recommendation, which must be formally upheld and imposed by a judge at a sentencing hearing scheduled for August 10, came after about eight hours of deliberations, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said. “I’m glad I lived to see it”.
Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman became emotional when talking about the relationship she developed with those still grieving Franklin’s victims during the investigation and court proceedings, which dragged on for years. Prosecutors presented evidence in the penalty phase that suggest he could be responsible for an additional five killings.
During Franklin’s lengthy trial, Amster questioned forensic evidence and said DNA from other men was also found on several bodies.
As she was losing consciousness, he sexually assaulted her and she remembered seeing the flash from a Polaroid camera. Police found pictures of 180 women at Franklin’s house, many of whom have never been found.
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63, was also found guilty in the attempted murder of Enietra Washington, who survived being shot in the chest and pushed out of a moving vehicle in November 1988. In addition, a German woman testified that Franklin and two other U.S. Army men kidnapped and raped her in Stuttgart in 1974.
