Donald Beardslee
Donald Beardslee | |||||||||
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First degree murder with special circumstances (2 counts) | |||||||||
Criminal penalty | Missouri 19 years imprisonment California Death | ||||||||
Details | |||||||||
Victims | 3 | ||||||||
Span of crimes | 1969–1981 | ||||||||
Country | United States | ||||||||
State(s) | Missouri and California | ||||||||
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Donald Jay Beardslee (May 13, 1943 – January 19, 2005) was an American
Early life
Born in
Criminal career
In 1969 in Missouri, he choked, stabbed and drowned Laura Griffin, whom he had just met. The two met in a bar, and, after drinking and dancing with her, Beardslee went home with her. He turned himself in and confessed to the killing. Beardslee pleaded guilty to second degree murder, received a 19-year sentence, and served seven years before being released on parole in 1977.[3] No motive was established nor did he offer any explanation.[4]
Four years after leaving prison, while he was still on parole, Beardslee was arrested in California for the April 5, 1981, drug-related homicides of 19-year-old Patty Geddling and 23-year-old Stacie Benjamin in
Beardslee's phone number was found near Geddling's body and when police called he confessed and led them to Benjamin's body. At the time of this offense, he was still on parole for the 1969 Missouri killing which made him eligible for the
The defense tried to appeal on the grounds of inadequate defense since the original lawyer quit the case, and on grounds of mental defect due to a head injury from a falling tree in the Minnesota work farm accident when he was 21. Prosecutors noted that he was of above average intelligence although family members testified he had lifelong trouble expressing emotion and prison records indicate diagnoses of schizophrenia.
Beardslee was executed on January 19, 2005. He was the first prisoner to be executed in California since Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger took office.[10] Beardslee had no final words.[11] Schwarzenegger denied clemency to Beardslee, stating that "we are not dealing here with a man who is so generally affected by his impairment that he cannot tell the difference between right and wrong."
Beardslee had attended the College of San Mateo while on parole.
See also
- Capital punishment in California
- Capital punishment in the United States
- List of people executed in California
- List of people executed in the United States in 2005
- List of serial killers in the United States
References
- ^ a b "Petition for Executive Clemency: Donald Jay Beardslee", Habeas Corpus Resource Center, San Francisco, California, December 30, 2004, pages 15-17.
- ^ Egelko, Bob (16 January 2005). "Enigmatic killer down to final days / Unless the governor grants clemency, a troubling saga will end in San Quentin". SFGate. Hearst Communications Inc. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
- ^ "Ex-St. Louis Man Charged In Killings Near San Francisco". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. 1981-04-29. p. 16. Retrieved 2022-01-04.
- ^ Egelko, Bob; Fimrite, Peter; Fagan, Kevin (2005-01-19). "Murderer Beardslee executed / Lethal injection at San Quentin after governor, high court deny final appeals". SFGATE. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
- ^ Egelko, Bob; Fimrite, Peter; Fagan, Kevin (2005-01-19). "Murderer Beardslee executed / Lethal injection at San Quentin after governor, high court deny final appeals". SFGATE. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
- ^ Woudenberg, Carina (21 October 2015). "Coastside murderer granted parole". Staff. Half Moon Bay Review. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
- ^ "No parole in double-murder". East Bay Times. 2005-10-28. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
- ^ [email protected], By Carina Woudenberg [ (21 October 2015). "Coastside murderer granted parole". Half Moon Bay Review. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
- ^ "People v. Beardslee - 53 Cal.3d 68 S004609 - Mon, 03/25/1991 | California Supreme Court Resources". scocal.stanford.edu. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
- ^ Tempest, Rone (19 January 2005). "California Executes Confessed Murderer". Los Angeles Times. SAN QUENTIN. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
- ^ "Executed Inmate Summary - Donald Beardslee". Capital Punishment. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
External links
- Donald Beardslee. California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Retrieved on 2007-11-12.
- Beardslee Killed By State of California
- Detailed description of his life and crimes
Preceded by Stephen Wayne Anderson |
Executions carried out in California | Succeeded by Stanley Tookie Williams |