- Mar 13, 1985 The convict, Stephen Peter Morin, 34 years old, was executed for the death by shooting of Carrie Marie Scott, 21, outside a San Antonio restaurant. He also received death sentences for the 1981.
- Wikipedia: Stephen Morin After the Obesssion: Sarah Pisan Vegas Woman Stalked By Killer Stephen Morin in the Early 1980’s I helped him soundproof the van Murderpedia: Stephen Peter Morin Executed Today: 1985: Stephen Morin, serial killer convert Thrice-condemned killer quietly accepts death injection Drifter Executed for 3 Murders.
Mugshot of Stephen Peter Morin after his arrest in Texas. Morin was suspected in dozens of murders across the US, including the abduction and murder of three young women in Las Vegas between 1979-1980.
Morin was a serial killer executed for three known murders but he has been linked to as many as 54! If this is only half true, then it shows that Morin was a travelling killer, stopping off in a town or city for a few days, then hurriedly moving on. One person whom has said that Morin wormed his way in with his mother, has stated this; all before the 3 murders he was known to have committed. Morin waived his appeals after being convicted of the 1981 Capital Murder of Carrie Marie Scott, asking to be put to death. The State of Texas duly obliged. Morin is not one of those widely known multiple killers. He was born on 19th February 1951, and is believed to have drifted around the country. It is not known when or why he started killing.What is known is that he murdered Miss Scott, 21, outside a San Antonio restaurant. He claimed she would not shut up and his gun went off. Yeah right. After killing her, he stole her car, making that a capital crime. He then abducted a woman called Margaret Palm, but her persistence in talking to him, resulted in her being freed. After his arrest, he was charged with murdering Carrie Scott, Janna Bruce in Corpus Christi, and later, Sheila Whalen of Golden, Colorado. He decided to plead guilty to the capital charge, and later waived his appeals against his Death Sentence. On March 13th 1985, the State of Texas executed Morin by lethal injection, only the 6th to die by that method after Texas dropped the chair. Morin had been a heavy drug user for years, so it took technicians 40 minutes to find a usable vein. Something for the apologists to cry about. Looking into the background of Morin, Police believed he was possibly responsible for the murders of 7 men & 47 women.
During his time on death row, Morin, like others, turned to God, Karla Faye Tucker is another that springs to mind, but that is mightily convenient when they are facing execution. Of course it would impress certain people but the 6th Commandment meant nothing to them before God 'came into their lives' Yes, I am very cynical about religion, and the people who go overboard about it. I do understand that people embrace it as a comforting part of their lives, and that they do not let it dictate their lives, but unfortunately, too many twist what is set in stone, to suit whatever bile and hatred they spew. Personally, I think black magic is total bollocks!
It has now emerged that Morin has been linked to 30 murders, not 54. Wild speculation always follows when a serial killer has been caught, and the body count is usually high. Thanks to Andy for this correction.1982 mugshot | |
| Born | February 19, 1951 Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Died | March 13, 1985 (aged 34) |
| Cause of death | Lethal injection |
| Conviction(s) | Murder |
| Criminal penalty | Death |
| Details | |
| Victims | 4–48 |
Span of crimes | November, 1969–December 11, 1981 |
| Country | United States |
| State(s) | Nevada, Colorado, Texas (others suspected) |
| December 12, 1981 | |
Stephen Peter Morin (February 19, 1951 – March 13, 1985) was an Americanserial killer responsible for at least forty murders of young girls and women and 7 men in the 1970s and early 1980s.[1] Since Morin led a transient lifestyle and constantly moved around the country, the exact number of his victims is uncertain, but he's suspected of a total 48 violent crimes across the USA. In the early 1980s, he was pursued by the federal authorities.
The court found Morin sane and sentenced him to death by lethal injection. In 1985, he was executed at the Huntsville Unit.
Early life[edit]
Little is known about Morin's childhood. He was born on February 19, 1951, in Providence, Rhode Island, into a poor family.[2] He dropped out of school early, and in his teenage years, Morin began to use narcotics and delved into the criminal lifestyle.
In the mid-1960s, Morin was arrested in Florida for car theft. He was convicted and spent some time in an institution for juvenile delinquents. Freed in 1968, Morin left Florida and wandered around the country. For the majority of the 1970s, he resided in Northern California, specifically in the San Francisco Bay Area, constantly changing his places of residence and using various pseudonyms while committing crimes. For some time, he lived in San Francisco, where he worked as a car mechanic and builder.[3]
Murders[edit]
In the 1970s, Morin became addicted to drugs and led a transient lifestyle. In 1976, in San Francisco, Morin attacked a 14-year-old girl, abducting and then raping her. After this crime, he was put on a federal wanted list. During this period, he committed a series of murders of girls and young women in different states. In January 1980, he tried to abduct 19-year-old Susan Bilot in Las Vegas, Nevada. She survived by dodging him twice.
In June 1980, he abducted 20-year-old Cheryl Ann Daniel from Las Vegas, whose corpse was found in Utah six months later. Near Daniel's body, a wallet belonging to Morin was found, which allowed the investigators to connect these killings back to him. In the fall of 1981, he found himself in Colorado, where he killed 23-year-old Sheila Whalen in Golden.[4] After Whalen's murder, Morin moved to Texas, attacking 21-year-old Janna Bruce in Corpus Christi, whose strangled body was found on December 2nd.
On December 11, 1981, Morin attempted to abduct 21-year-old Carrie Ann Scott while attempting to steal her car. Initially, he said that he'd had no intentions to kill her, but claimed to have been overcome with something, and subsequently shot her in the parking lot of Maggie's Restaurant in San Antonio. After that, he abducted Margy Mayfield and held her hostage for 10+ hours in a car.[5][6][7]
Arrest[edit]
Following Scott's murder, the motel in San Antonio where Morin had been staying for the past few days, was surrounded by the SAPD's SWAT team and searched. During the search, 32-year-old Sarah Clark, his accomplice, was arrested, and 23-year-old Pamela Jackson, another victim abducted on November 30th, was rescued. Several false IDs, credit cards and social security cards were found, leading to suspicions that Morin committed other murders in a multitude of states.
On the afternoon of December 12th, Stephen Morin was arrested at a bus station in Austin. [1] At the time of his arrest, he surrendered without resistance.[2] Upon arrival in Austin, Morin had released Mayfield. Despite his peaceful surrender, Morin refused to cooperate with investigators and claimed to be innocent.
Trials[edit]
Morin was charged with the murders of Carrie Ann Scott and Janna Bruce, since there was a lot of evidence supporting his guilt in those cases. After withdrawing his appeals and pleading guilty, he was convicted and sentenced to death in February 1984.[8] Later on, he was additionally convicted of killing Daniel, before being extradited to Colorado on charges of killing Sheila Whalen, for whose killing he was also sentenced to death at the end of 1984. Morin was also supposed to be later extradited to Utah to stand trial for other killings he supposedly committed there, but for reasons unknown, this never occurred. In total, Stephen Morin was investigated for 48 violent murders committed in the states of Utah, Colorado, Nevada, Washington, Idaho, Indiana, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Texas, New York and California.[9][10][4] In Nevada alone, Morin was tested for involvement in 8 murders.[7][3]
Imprisonment[edit]
After his conviction, Morin converted to Christianity. His execution date was scheduled for March 1985. Shortly before this, the convicted stated that he did not want to appeal for a new trial or postpone the execution,[11] which conflicted with his lawyer David Goldstein, who filed a petition for a forensic examination on his client, since he showed signs of mental retardation. The application, however, was rejected.[2]
Execution[edit]
Morin was executed by lethal injection on the afternoon of March 13, 1985, at the Huntsville Unit in Texas, in the presence of his victims' relatives and his girlfriend. On the day of his execution, for his last meal, Morin ordered steak, baked potatoes, butter, green pea salad, banana pudding and coffee.[12] His final words were the following:
'Father, forgive these people for they know not what they do. Forgive them as you have forgiven me and I have forgiven them. Lord Jesus, I commit my soul to you.'
Before his execution, Morin was described as being in a happy mood. Due to his history of drug abuse, the execution technicians were forced to probe both of Morin's arms and legs with needles for nearly 45 minutes before they found a suitable vein, a first-time occurrence at that time.[13] He was pronounced dead at 12:55 AM, becoming the sixth man to be executed by lethal injection in Texas since the method was introduced in 1982.[14][2]
Popular culture[edit]
- 'Signs of a Serial Killer' by Crystal Clary (ISBN9781491861387)
- The Eyes of a Stranger by Carrie Frederickson (ISBN1481729799)
- Sarah's Story: Target of a Serial Killer by Sarah Lea Pisan (ISBN1481729799)
- Obsession: Dark Desires: 'Paging Sarah'
- Serial Thriller: 'The Chameleon' on Investigation Discovery
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ ab'Jury being picked for trial of suspected serial killer'. The Deseret News. Associated Press. July 11, 1984. Retrieved 3 April 2014.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
- ^ abcd'Stephen Peter Morin, a Christian convert three times condemned...'UPI. Retrieved 2017-01-28.
- ^ ab'Suspect identified in local murder cases'. The Daily Spectrum. June 18, 1981.
- ^ ab'Jury being picked for trial of suspected serial slayer'. Deseret News. July 11, 1984.
- ^Sid Roth's It's Supernatural! (2017-01-18), Margy Palm Was Abducted by a Serial Killer. Then God Intervened! | It's Supernatural! Classics, retrieved 2017-01-28CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
- ^Teresa H. Anderson (December 12, 1981). 'Stephan Peter Morin, a transient wanted in at least...' API.
- ^ ab'Defendant's guilty plea shocks courtroom'. TimesDaily. April 7, 1982.
- ^'Man's murder confession stuns courtroom in Texas'. The Bulletin. April 7, 1982.
- ^Clarke, Chris (April 14, 2005). 'Stephen Morin: How I unwittingly helped a serial killer'. The Guardian. Retrieved 3 April 2014.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
- ^Richard Luna (March 13, 1985). 'Thrice-condemned killer Stephen Morin, who said his final...'API.
- ^''Born-again' killer awaits lethal needle'. Lodi Sentinel-News. March 11, 1985.
- ^'Morin's final meal order'. Archived from the original on 2003-12-02.
- ^'MURDERER OF THREE WOMEN IS EXECUTED IN TEXAS'. The New York Times. Associated Press. March 14, 1985. Retrieved 3 April 2014.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
- ^'TEXAS EXECUTES DRIFTER WHO KILLED THREE WOMEN'. The New York Times. United Press International. March 13, 1985. Retrieved 3 April 2014.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
External links[edit]
- Offender Information from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice
- Last Statement from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice
- Final Meal Requests at the Wayback Machine (archived December 2, 2003). Texas Department of Criminal Justice (2003-09-12). Archived from the original on 2003-12-02. Retrieved on 2007-08-17.