Gary Gilmore

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American homicide. A "throwaway" kid, he was abandoned by his mom when he was four, 12/04/1944, along with two older siblings. They never saw their mom again. The grandparents were not able to care for the kids and their dad, overseas in the Navy, came home long enough to sign them over to social services. Gary grew up in foster homes, having to be transferred from one when it burned on 2/03/1947. On 1/10/1948, the boy was sent to an orphanage when the current foster mom became ill. He was actually adopted by a couple on 1/25/1949, but his history of rejection was too firmly ensconced by then and he continued to have problems. With a history of Juvenile Court for vandalism by age 11, he went into a home for juvenile delinquents at 14. He built up a rap sheet for vandalism, auto theft, assault, robbery and rape; 18 out of his first 36 years were spent in jail. On July 19 and 20, 1976, angry over a fight with his girl friend, Gilmore killed two men, one a gas station attendant and the other a motel manager in Provo, UT. Both men were shot in the back. He was arrested on the 22nd and his trial started 10/25/76. Two days later he was convicted. He insisted that hideous demons gave him no peace, shrieking in his head. He pled to be sentenced to the firing squad and his execution was carried out 1/17/1977, 8:07 AM MST, Utah State Prison just south of Salt Lake City. Link to Wikipedia biography