Births
Steven Parkus
1937 – Bill Cosby – was once a comedic icon. He rose to fame as a stand-up comedian in the 1960s, before starring in the espionage series “I Spy,” becoming the first Black actor to win an Emmy Award. He later created the animated series “Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids” and then went on to star in his most famous role, Dr. Cliff Huxtable on “The Cosby Show.” For years, Cosby was a beloved figure, earning the nickname “America’s Dad” for his portrayal of a warm and supportive father. However, in the later years of his career, this image began to crumble. Starting in the 2000s, a string of women came forward with allegations of sexual assault against Cosby, spanning decades. These accusations shattered his public image and led to a series of legal battles. In 2005, a civil lawsuit against Cosby was settled out of court, with details remaining confidential. A decade later, in 2015, criminal charges of aggravated indecent assault were filed against him in Pennsylvania. The legal proceedings were long and contentious, with a mistrial occurring in 2017. Finally, in 2018, Cosby was convicted and sentenced to prison. He served nearly three years before the conviction was overturned on a technicality in 2021. Despite this, civil lawsuits continue. A California jury awarded damages to an accuser in 2022, and additional lawsuits were filed in 2023. Cosby has consistently denied all allegations. Bill Cosby’s legacy is a complex one. His comedic contributions are undeniable, having brought laughter to millions over the years. However, the sexual assault allegations have left an undeniable stain. The legal battles continue, casting a long shadow over both Cosby’s life and the #MeToo movement.
1953 – John Ausonius – better known as “Lasermannen” (Swedish for “The Laser Man”), was a Swedish serial killer and bank robber. Ausonius holds a dark place in Swedish history. Despite attending the prestigious KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Ausonius embarked on a path of crime. He turned to bank robberies, earning the nickname “The Bicycle Robber” for his use of a bicycle as a getaway vehicle. However, his crimes took a horrific turn in the early 1990s. From 1991 to 1992, Ausonius embarked on a series of racially motivated shootings. Targeting immigrants and people of color, he used a laser sight to target his victims, earning him the moniker “Lasermannen.” Though some victims were killed, many survived and were able to aid in his capture. Ausonius’ reign of terror ended in 1992 when he was arrested during an attempted bank robbery. He was convicted of murder, attempted murder, and bank robbery, receiving a life sentence. Ausonius remains a symbol of far-right extremism and the dangers of racial violence.
1960 – Steven Wesley Parkus – is a convicted murderer who gained notoriety for his crimes committed while incarcerated. Born on July 12, 1960, Parkus was sentenced to death for the strangulation of fellow inmate Mark Steffenhagen on November 24, 1985, at the Missouri State Penitentiary. This incident occurred in the protective-custody unit, where both men were housed due to threats of sexual abuse or suicidal tendencies. Parkus had a history of violent behavior, including previous attempts to strangle others and the rape of a prison teacher. His death sentence was later commuted to life in prison due to findings of mental illness, including schizophrenia, mental retardation, and psychosis.
Deaths
Rocky Barton
1866 – Dr. Alfred William Warder – was a British physician known for his involvement in a series of tragic and criminal events. Born in 1823, Warder became infamous for poisoning his third wife, Helen Vivian Warder, with aconite, a toxic substance also known as wolf’s bane. Warder had previously been married twice, and both of his former wives had died under suspicious circumstances. In 1866, as Helen’s health deteriorated, her brother, a local surgeon, grew suspicious of Warder’s treatment. This led to an investigation, and when Helen died, another doctor refused to sign the death certificate due to the irregular circumstances. Facing imminent arrest, Warder fled to London but returned to Brighton, where he committed suicide by ingesting prussic acid. His death marked the end of a grim chapter in Victorian England’s history, highlighting the dark side of medical practice during that era.
1927 – Jose Augusto do Amaral – better known by the chilling nickname “Preto Amaral,” casts a long shadow across Brazilian history. Believed to be the country’s first serial killer, Amaral’s life story is a mix of documented facts and murky historical accounts. Born in Conquista, Minas Gerais in 1871, Amaral’s early life was marked by the brutality of slavery. His parents hailed from Congo and Mozambique, forced into a life of servitude. A sliver of hope arrived in 1888 when Princess Isabel’s Lei Áurea law abolished slavery in Brazil. Amaral, then a teenager, gained his freedom. With limited opportunities for a former slave, Amaral joined the Brazilian army. He even served in the War of Canudos, a bloody conflict between a religious community and the Brazilian government. However, details of his life after his military service remain unclear. By 1926, Amaral had found himself in São Paulo, living a transient life. It was here that a dark chapter unfolded. At the age of 55, he is accused of committing a series of brutal murders targeting young men. These attacks, allegedly motivated by a twisted sexual desire, involved strangulation and sodomy. One of Amaral’s attempted victims managed to escape, leading to his capture in 1926. However, justice remained elusive. Amaral died in prison in São Paulo on July 12, 1927, before facing a trial. While some aspects of his case are well documented, others rely on historical accounts, leaving a shroud of uncertainty around the exact number of his victims and the full extent of his crimes.
1937 – Alexander Meyer – The son of a coal merchant, Meyer had a history of sexual advances towards women, on the first occasion when they refused him, he shot them with a rifle and would serve 20 months before being paroled, once out of prison he would continue his predatory behavior culminating in the rape and murder of a 16 year old girl. Witnesses recall seeing his truck in the vicinity and he would be brought to justice and executed on this day in 1937.
1984 – Ivon Ray Stanley – was a convicted criminal who gained notoriety for his involvement in a brutal crime. Born in the mid-1950s, Stanley was a high school dropout with an IQ of 81. In 1976, he and an accomplice, Joseph Edward Thomas, were convicted of the robbery and murder of Clifford Floyd, an insurance salesman. Floyd was robbed, beaten, shot, and buried alive. Stanley was sentenced to death and was executed in Georgia’s electric chair on July 12, 1984. His execution was notable as he was the 21st person executed in the United States since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976. Stanley’s case drew attention due to the severity of the crime and the circumstances of his execution, including his low IQ and the fact that he was not the triggerman.
1987 – Daniel Patrick Lynam – was a tragic figure whose life ended in a horrific manner. Born in 1951, Lynam had a history of mental illness that significantly impacted his life and relationships. On July 12, 1987, he committed a series of murders, taking the lives of seven family members, including his parents, his two children, his wife, and her parents, before ending his own life. Lynam’s actions were driven by severe psychological issues, and the exact reasons behind his tragic decisions remain unclear. He was a house painter by profession, but struggled to maintain steady employment, often relying on his wife, Linda, who worked as an X-ray technician. Despite attempts by his wife to seek help for his mental health, the situation culminated in this devastating event.
1999 – Cyrano A. Marks – was a mass murderer who committed a tragic and violent crime on July 12, 1999, in Atlanta, Georgia. Born in 1960, Marks had a history of domestic violence. On that fateful day, he drove to the home of his girlfriend, Deleane Briskey, and shot her along with her four children and her sister, Essie Jo Hugley. The victims were Craig DeCarlo Briskey (15), Tasha Briskey (16), David Antonio Lucas Jr. (13), Antuan Lucas (9), and Essie Jo Hugley (37). Marks then took his own life by shooting himself. This horrific event left a deep scar on the community and highlighted the severe consequences of domestic violence. The only survivor was an 11-year-old boy who managed to hide and later recounted the terrifying ordeal to the authorities.
2000 – Orion Cecil Joiner – was an American convicted murderer, born on October 27, 1949. He was executed by lethal injection on July 12, 2000, in Huntsville, Texas, for the brutal murders of his two next-door neighbors, Carol Lynette Huckabee and Eva Marie DeForest, in December 1986. Joiner, who lived in the same apartment complex as the victims in Lubbock, Texas, was seen near their apartment with blood on his shirt and hands. The investigation revealed that Huckabee and DeForest were bound with duct tape and stabbed multiple times. Huckabee was also raped, and both women had their throats slashed. Despite his claims of innocence until his execution, the evidence against Joiner included blood stains on his clothing that matched the victims’ blood types. He was sentenced to death in April 1988 and spent over a decade on death row before his execution.
2006 – Rocky Barton – A domestic dispute turns deadly in Waynesville as Kimbirli Jo Barton is shot and killed by her husband, Rocky Lee Barton. Kimbirli had just arrived at the house to collect her belongings after threats from Barton earlier that day. The murder was witnessed by both Barton’s uncle and Kimbirli’s 17-year-old daughter. Tragically, the violence didn’t end there. Barton then turned the gun on himself, inflicting a self-inflicted gunshot wound. This incident exposes a disturbing pattern in Barton’s past. Legal records reveal a history of arrests for burglary, assault, drug offenses, DUIs, and violence against women. One particularly horrific example involved an ex-wife who was brutally beaten with a shotgun, stabbed, and left for dead. The relationship between Kimbirli and Barton appears complex. Despite knowing him for many years, they had only been married two years at the time of the tragedy. This marriage even took place while Barton was incarcerated for the attempted murder of his previous wife in Kentucky.
2012 – Oscar Segundo Lopez Rodriguez – often referred to as the “Monster of Lolol,” was born on November 1, 1972, in Lolol, Colchagua Province, O’Higgins Region, Chile. His parents were Óscar del Carmen López Araya and Osvaldina de las Rosas Rodríguez Espinosa. López Rodríguez was an antique shop owner in his hometown. Unfortunately, he became infamous for committing two brutal murders in July 2012. His victims, Juan René Duarte Becerra and María José Reyes Moore, were both customers at his shop. López Rodríguez attacked and decapitated them in separate incidents, shocking the small, peaceful town of Lolol. The first attack occurred on July 10, 2012, when Juan Duarte visited López Rodríguez’s shop. Duarte was stabbed in the back and subsequently beheaded. López Rodríguez kept Duarte’s head in a coffer and buried the rest of his body in his backyard. The second attack happened on July 12, 2012, when María José Reyes Moore stopped by the shop with her daughter. Without apparent reason, López Rodríguez attacked her, leading to her tragic death. Her children witnessed the horrifying event and sought help from the police. López Rodríguez was shot and killed by police responding to the scene of Reyes Moore’s murder. Investigations suggested that he was suffering from psychosis and “mystical delusions.” This tragic series of events left a lasting impact on the community of Lolol, marking a dark chapter in its history.
2013 – John Manuel Quintanilla – Quintanilla and his accomplice, Jeffrey Bibb, entered a game center in Victoria through a partially open back door, armed with rifles and wearing gloves and pantyhose masks. Quintanilla approached the clerk and demanded the money in her apron, which she handed over. While pointing his rifle at the clerk and a customer named Linda Billings, Victor Billings, Linda’s 60-year-old husband, intervened. Quintanilla shot Victor twice, and as Victor grabbed the muzzle of the gun, Quintanilla fired again. Quintanilla also shot at two fleeing customers, but missed, hitting the door area instead. Victor Billings succumbed to his gunshot wounds. The robbers escaped with approximately $2,000. Quintanilla was later arrested in January 2003 for an unrelated aggravated robbery. While in custody, he confessed to the murder at the game center and led authorities to a canal where items used in the robbery were recovered. Jeffrey Bibb was convicted of murder and sentenced to 60 years in prison.
2017 – Scharlette Holdman – was a force to be reckoned with in the fight against the death penalty. An anthropologist and civil rights activist, she earned the nickname “The Angel of Death Row” for her tireless work on behalf of death row inmates. Holdman’s upbringing in Memphis exposed her to the harsh realities of racism and poverty. This fueled her lifelong commitment to social justice. She earned a doctorate in anthropology and went on to become a key figure in the legal battles against capital punishment. Holdman’s impact stemmed from her unique approach. She wasn’t a lawyer, but an investigator who meticulously researched the backgrounds of death row inmates. Her goal was to uncover mitigating factors – traumatic experiences, mental illness, or disadvantaged backgrounds – that could explain their crimes and convince juries to forgo the death penalty. Working with shoestring budgets, Holdman ran organizations like the Florida Clearinghouse on Criminal Justice. She scoured the state, and even the country, for volunteer lawyers to take on death penalty cases. Her relentless advocacy earned her another nickname – “The Mistress of Delay” – as she succeeded in securing stays of execution for many inmates. Holdman’s clients included some of the most notorious criminals, including Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber, and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the Boston Marathon bomber. Despite the horrific nature of their crimes, Holdman believed in the importance of due process and the inherent value of human life. Scharlette Holdman’s legacy is one of unwavering dedication to justice. She challenged the death penalty system by meticulously humanizing the very people it sought to erase.
Events
Wild Bill Hickok
1537 – Robert Aske, lawyer & rebel, was hanged in chains outside Clifford’s Tower, the keep of York Castle
1861 – Wild Bill Hickok reputed to have shot and killed David McCanles, possibly his first kill, Hickok was later acquitted after it was found he acted in self-defense
1963 – Pauline Reade, 16, disappears in Gorton, England, the first victim of The Moors Murders
1971 – Juan Corona indicted for 25 murders
1986 – Steven McDonald, NYPD patrolman is shot and paralyzed by Shavod Jones
1992 – Lead vocalist of Guns n Roses, Axl Rose is arrested on riot charges in St.Louis, stemming from a concert on July 2nd
