Bedroom-basher to die!
Joewith...@school.com
Associated Press news wire:
Killer-Rapist Gets Death Sentence
By LARRY GERBER
SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) -- A serial killer and rapist was sentenced to
death
Thursday for a spree that originally was blamed on an innocent man who
served
16 years in prison.
Gerald Parker, 43, was told that just one of the six murders during his
1978-79
spree would warrant an execution.
``That the defendant would repeat these acts six different times is
beyond
belief,'' Judge Francisco P. Briseno said.
Jurors late last year convicted and recommended Parker's death for the
rapes
and killings of five women ages 17 to 31, and the murder of a full-term
fetus
being carried by the pregnant Dianne Green, now Dianne D'Aiello.
Her ex-husband, Kevin Green, was sentenced to life in prison for that
case and
served 16 years before he was exonerated in 1996. DNA evidence linked
Parker to
the attack, and he later confessed.
Ms. D'Aiello told Briseno that Parker deserved to die, but that she
still
believes Green beat and raped her shortly before Parker did. She had
testified
against Green at his trial, even though his attorneys argued that her
recollection couldn't be trusted.
``One of the two men is being sentenced here today but the other is
being
forgiven,'' she said. ``I feel like I've been raped by the system all
over
again 17 years later.''
Green has remarried and moved to Missouri. He has maintained his
innocence
throughout.
``This is not about me,'' he said Thursday in a phone interview from
Jefferson
City. Green said his ex-wife's mother raised the allegations out of
animosity
toward him ``at a time when Dianne couldn't even remember her name.''
A bearded Parker held his head high and surveyed a courtroom sprinkled
with
victims' relatives as he walked to the defendant's bench with shackled
hands in
his pockets. He declined an offer to make a statement and stared
straight at
Briseno as the judge delivered the sentence.
The ``bedroom basher'' case terrorized women in Orange County, where
Parker was
stationed as a Marine staff sergeant.
The other victims were Sandra Kay Fry, 17; Kimberly Rawlins, 21; Marolyn
Carleton, 31; and Debora Jean Kennedy, 24. Most were alone in their
homes when
they were assaulted.
Parker said he attacked repeatedly under the influence of drugs and
alcohol,
and his attorneys told of a history of mental and emotional disturbance.
Briseno said those factors weren't enough to mitigate a death sentence.
AP-NY-01-21-99
------------------------------------
Real Killer Gets Death Sentence
By LARRY GERBER
SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) -- Kevin Green spent 16 years in prison for a
murder he
didn't commit. The real killer now has a place on death row.
Gerald Parker was sentenced Thursday to die for six homicides that had
terrified women in Orange County in the late 1970s.
Jurors last year convicted Parker and recommended the death sentence.
His
victims included five women and a full-term fetus being carried by
Green's
ex-wife, Dianne D'Aiello, whom Parker raped.
Green was sentenced to life in prison for that case and served 16 years
before
he was exonerated in 1996. Newly developed DNA tests linked Parker to
the
attack, and he later confessed.
Judge Francisco Briseno told Parker, 43, that just one of the six
murders would
warrant capital punishment: ``That the defendant would repeat these acts
six
different times is beyond belief.''
Ms. D'Aiello told Briseno that Parker deserved to die, but that she
still
believes Green beat and raped her shortly before Parker did.
``One of the two men is being sentenced here today but the other is
being
forgiven,'' she said. ``I feel like I've been raped by the system all
over
again 17 years later.''
Green has remarried and moved to Missouri. He has maintained his
innocence
throughout.
``This is not about me,'' he said Thursday in a telephone interview from
Jefferson City. Green said his ex-wife's mother raised the allegations
out of
animosity toward him ``at a time when Dianne couldn't even remember her
name.''
During sentencing, Parker declined an offer to make a statement and
stared
straight at the judge.
Jackie Besonnette, whose sister, Debra Lynn Senior, was killed, told the
judge
that ``it's not just the Green case'' and asked him to remember Parker's
five
other victims.
``I hope you will rule death for him,'' she said. ``It will still be too
good.''
The other victims were Sandra Kay Fry, 17; Kimberly Rawlins, 21; Marolyn
Carleton, 31; and Debora Jean Kennedy, 24. Most were alone in their
homes when
they were assaulted.
Parker's sentence may not mean the end of Green's legal odyssey. He said
he had
been sued and had countersued his ex-wife in a civil dispute over their
baby's
wrongful death.
AP-NY-01-22-99
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following appears courtesy of the 1/22/99 online edition of The
Los
Angeles Times newspaper:
Friday, January 22, 1999
Man Sentenced To Death
Courts: Gerald Parker was convicted 17 years after a series of slayings.
One
victim's husband served time after being wrongly convicted.
By DANIEL YI, Times Staff Writer
SANTA ANA--Serial killer Gerald Parker, dubbed the "bedroom basher"
for a
rampage of sex slayings that terrorized Orange County in the 1970s, was
sentenced to death Thursday after an emotional hearing in which victims'
families spoke of their years of anguish and loss.
Using new DNA technology and a computer database, prosecutors
developed
the case against Parker 17 years after he raped and murdered five Orange
County
women and killed the unborn child of a sixth woman. The latter victim's
husband
was later wrongly convicted of the crime.
Orange County Superior Court Judge Francisco P. Briseno told Parker
his
"inhuman behavior is beyond belief" and rejected defense arguments that
he was
a drug addict and came from a troubled family.
Several relatives of the victims addressed the court--some saying
the end
to the long-running case would help bring closure. But others said they
remained emotionally crushed by the murders.
Parker "will have a peaceful death" by lethal injection, said
Jackie
Bissonnette, whose sister, Debra Lynn Senior, 17, was among Parker's
victims.
"Our sisters, daughters and friends were left bleeding to die."
One of the victims, Dianna D'Aiello, survived the attack, but the
unborn
child she was carrying died as a result of her injuries. D'Aiello's
husband at
the time, Kevin Green, was convicted of the murder and spent nearly 17
years in
prison. Green was freed in 1996, when officials acknowledged that they
had
convicted the wrong man.
D'Aiello has maintained that she still partially blames her
ex-husband for
their baby's death. She said she believes both Green and Parker attacked
her
the night of the rape, with Green assaulting her first. When her
ex-husband
left, Aiello said, Parker broke into her apartment shortly after. She
has filed
a wrongful death lawsuit against him, and on Thursday reiterated her
claim.
"I feel that I've been beaten and raped by two men. By a stranger
and by a
man who I loved and trusted," D'Aiello said in court.
Green, who now lives in Missouri and has remarried, said his
ex-wife's
comments should not detract from the judge's decision.
"As far as Dianna and all that kind of stuff is concerned, I just
wish
that wasn't a distraction on this date," he said. "I figure the man has
earned
what he was been sentenced to, and I hope this gets closure to all of
those
other families."
Parker, 43, was convicted in October. According to authorities,
Parker
knocked his victims unconscious with a blunt object and raped or
attempted to
rape them before killing them. Parker confessed to the crimes and said
he was
remorseful.
On Thursday, a bearded Parker, wearing shackles and a jail
jumpsuit,
stared straight ahead during most of the proceedings. He declined to
address
the court.
Victim Debora Kennedy's sister, Ann Jones, said her younger
sister's
murder has had a devastating effect on the whole family. Jones said that
even
after all these years, she still doesn't leave a window open or answer
the
phone when her husband is not around.
"I think the fears that I feel will always be with me," she said.
"I'm
trying to get over this, but I'm not sure that I ever will."
Assistant Dist. Atty. Mike Jacobs, who prosecuted Parker, said he
has no
doubt that the right person is paying for the crime.
--------------------------------------------------------------
The following appears courtesy of yesterday's Reuters news wire:
California killer of six sentenced to death
SANTA ANA, Calif., Jan 21 (Reuters) - A man who raped and murdered five
women
and killed a foetus during an attack on a sixth woman was sentenced to
death
Thursday.
Gerald Parker, 43, confessed to his role in the death of the foetus, the
result
of a brutal rape attack on Dianne D'Aiello.
His admission resulted in the release from prison in 1996 of D'Aiello's
ex-husband, former U.S. Marine Kevin Green, the father of the unborn
baby, who
was convicted of the murder and served 16 years behind bars.
Parker became known as the ``bedroom basher'' during his rape and murder
spree
from December, 1978, to October, 1979, because he bludgeoned his victims
with a
hammer. He confessed to his crimes after being linked to the victims
through
his DNA.
Parker was convicted of raping a 13-year-old girl in 1980 and was
paroled after
serving more than 10 years in prison. He was back in jail on a parole
violation
when he was charged with the rape-murders and the death of D'Aiello's
unborn
son in 1996.
D'Aiello testified against Green at his trial in 1980 that while she
suffered
memory loss because of the attack she had had a ``flashback'' that it
was her
ex-husband who attacked her when she refused to have sex with him.
On Thursday she told Orange County superior court Judge Francisco
Briseno she
believed both Green and Parker attacked her that night, with Green
assaulting
her first. When her ex-husband left, Aiello said, Parker broke into her
apartment shortly after and raped her and left her for dead.
``I wish I could have closure to my case. Only one of the two men is
sentenced
here today and the other, Kevin, is being forgiven,'' she said.
21:08 01-21-99
------------------------------------------------------------------
THe following appears courtesy of the 1/22/99 KNBC-TV, Los Angeles,
California local NBC-TV affiliate station web page:
Rapist, murderer, fetus-killer sentenced to death
KNBC
SANTA ANA, Jan. 21 – A man who killed an unborn child and beat five
women with
a board or a hammer before raping and murdering them was sentenced to
death
Thursday.
Gerald Parker, 43, dubbed the “bedroom basher,” admitted his role in the
death
of the fetus, which resulted in the release of the father-to-be Kevin
Green,
who had been convicted of second-degree murder and spent 16 years behind
bars.
But Green’s ex-wife, who now goes by her maiden name of Dianne
D’Aiello and
was not called to testify during the trial, told a judge she believes
both men
attacked her that night: her husband, who left the apartment door open
when he
left, and then Parker.
During an “impact statement,” she told Superior Court Judge
Francisco
Briseno: “I wish I could have closure to my case. Only one of the two
men is
sentenced here Thursday, and the other ... Kevin ... is being forgiven.”
Green, who now lives in Missouri and has remarried, told reporters
he has
not spoken to his ex-wife since being released from prison.
A jury had recommended in November that Parker be put to death for
the
killings that occurred between Dec. 2, 1978, and Oct. 21, 1979.
The string of murders was dubbed the work of the “Bedroom Basher,”
because
Parker entered the women’s homes and bludgeoned them with crushing
blows, using
something like a 2-by-4 and a hammer.
In addition to the fetus Chantel Marie Green, Parker was convicted
of
murdering Debra Lynn Senior, 17, of Costa Mesa; Sandra Kay Fry, 17, of
Anaheim;
Kimberly Gaye Rawlins, 21, of Costa Mesa; Marolyn Kay Carleton, 31, of
Costa
Mesa; and Debora Kennedy, 24, of Tustin.
Throughout Parker’s trial, D’Aiello insisted in interviews with
reporters
that her ex-husband did beat her that night because she refused to have
sex
with him.
“Parker took advantage of a situation,” D’Aiello told Briseno. “He
waited
outside while my husband beat me and left me for dead, then Mr. Parker
entered
my home ... beat me and raped me and left me for dead again.
This was the second crime against me. I feel (Parker) should get the
death
penalty.”
D’Aiello said she was in a coma for a month after the attack, and is
now
partially deaf, has lost her sense of smell and has a plate in her head
that
causes her severe headaches.
Briseno told D’Aiello the issue of Green is separate from Parker’s
trial.
“I’m not saying you’re wrong,” Briseno said. “I simply need to
segregate
that and not make it a part of (this) trial.”
Other family members told the judge of the pain that Parker caused.
Ann Jones, the older sister of Kennedy, said her sister “was a very
loving
person. She was born with a learning disability, but she had a big heart
...
she was very sensitive and warm.