Cynthia Lynn Coffman (born January 19, 1962) is an American serial killer convicted in the 1986 deaths of two women in California. She was convicted along with her boyfriend, James Marlow. Coffman admits to being present at the murders but insists she suffered from battered woman syndrome. She was sentenced to death and is sitting on death row in Central California Women's Facility.[1][2]
Cynthia Coffman | |
|---|---|
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| Born | January 19, 1962 |
| Conviction(s) | Murder |
| Criminal penalty | Death |
| Details | |
| Victims | 4 (2 convictions) |
Span of crimes | October – November 1986 |
| Country | United States |
| State(s) | California |
Date apprehended | November 14, 1986 |
Background
editShe was born in St. Louis, Missouri.[3] After her father left her family, she was raised by her mother. Coffman's mother attempted to give her and her brothers away at one point. By age 18, Coffman married and became a mother, but the marriage did not last long. She moved to Arizona with a friend and met Marlow shortly after he was released from jail. They began to use methamphetamine together, got married, and began to commit violent crimes.[4]
Crimes
editCoffman and Marlow were accused of kidnapping and killing four women in October and November 1986.[5]
- Sandra Neary (32) on Oct. 11, 1986 from Costa Mesa, California
- Pamela Simmons (35) on Oct. 28, 1986 from Bullhead City, Arizona
- Corinna Novis (20) on Nov. 7, 1986 from Redlands, California[6]
- Lynel Murray (19) on Nov. 12, 1986 from Huntington Beach, California[7]
They were arrested on November 14, 1986,[8] following which Coffman confessed to the murders.[9] Coffman's attorneys say that she loved Marlow but that he battered, brainwashed, and starved her, so she did not run from Marlow when the crime spree began.[4]
Trial and punishment
editThey were put on trial in July 1989 and in 1990 sentenced to death. Coffman was the first woman to receive a death sentence in California since the reinstatement of the death penalty in that state in 1977.[10] A trial in 1992 convicted her of another murder, for which she received a sentence of life imprisonment.[8]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Wride, Nancy (April 26, 1992). "Condemned and Waiting : Cynthia Coffman Came West for a New Life; Now She Faces 2nd Death Sentence". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ NEUFELD, MICHAEL P. (September 19, 2012). "San Bernardino County Has 35 Death Row Prisoners". ROTWNEWS.com. Archived from the original on November 9, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
- ^ Lasseter, Don (1995). Property of the Folsom Wolf. Kensington Publishing Corporation. p. 9. ISBN 978-0-7860-0090-6.
- ^ a b Wride, Nancy (April 26, 1992). "Condemned and Waiting : Cynthia Coffman Came West for a New Life; Now She Faces 2nd Death Sentence". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
- ^ "CRIME HUNTER: Serial killer Cynthia Coffman longest serving woman on death row". torontosun.com. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
- ^ "A murdering couple is sentenced to death | HISTORY". www.history.com. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
- ^ "Murder Suspect Testifies About Killing of Teen". Los Angeles Times. December 1, 1988. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
- ^ a b Flowers, R. Barri (2004). Murders In The United States: Crimes, Killers And Victims Of The Twentieth Century. McFarland. p. 163. ISBN 978-0-7864-2075-9.
- ^ Kelleher, Michael D.; C. L. Kelleher (1998). Murder most rare: the female serial killer. Praeger. p. 117. ISBN 978-0-275-96003-2.
- ^ Furio, Jennifer (2001). Team killers: a comparative study of collaborative criminals. Algora Publishing. p. 56. ISBN 978-1-892941-62-6.
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