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John Arthur Spenkelink 1949 - 1979

John Arthur Spenkelink was born on March 29, 1949 in Le Mars, Comté de Plymouth County, IA États-Unis, and died at age 30 years old on May 25, 1979 in Raiford, Comté d'Union County, FL. John Spenkelink was buried at Rose Hills Mortuary 3888 Workman Mill Rd, in Whittier, Los Angeles County, CA. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember John Arthur Spenkelink.

John Arthur Spenkelink

March 29, 1949

Le Mars, Comté de Plymouth County, IA, 51031, États-Unis

May 25, 1979

Raiford, Comté d'Union County, FL, 32083, États-Unis

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John Arthur Spenkelink John Spenkelink (1949 - 1979)

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John Arthur Spenkelink's History: 1949 - 1979

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Introduction

Convicted American Murderer. He was executed under controversial circumstances in 1979, the first convict to be executed in Florida after capital punishment was re-legalized in 1976, and the second (after Gary Gilmore) in the country. A drifter who had served time in California for petty crimes, and had escaped from a prison work farm, Spenkelink shot and killed a fellow small-time criminal named Joseph Szymankiewicz in 1973 in Tallahassee, Florida. He claimed that he acted in self-defense: that Szymankiewicz had stolen his money, forced him to play Russian roulette, and sexually assaulted him. However, evidence indicated that Spenkelink had left their shared motel room, returned with a gun, and shot Szymankiewicz in the back. He turned down a plea bargain to second-degree murder which would have resulted in a life sentence. In 1976 he was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death. In 1977 Governor Reubin Askew of Florida signed his first death warrant, but the Supreme Court stayed the execution pending consideration of 22 separate appeals. In 1979 Askew's successor, Bob Graham, signed a second death warrant. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall issued a second stay, which was overturned by the full Court. Spenkelink's case became a national cause célèbre, encompassing both the broader debate over the morality of the death penalty and the narrower question of whether the punishment fit Spenkelink's crime. His cause was taken up by former Florida Governor LeRoy Collins, actor Alan Alda, and singer Joan Baez, among many others. Also at issue was the assertion that capital punishment discriminated against the poor and underprivileged. (Spenkelink often signed his prison correspondence with the epigram, “Capital punishment means those without capital get the punishment.”) The execution was finally carried out on May 25, 1979 in "Old Sparky", the Florida State Prison electric chair. That morning Doug Tracht, a popular Jacksonville disc jockey, aired a recording of sizzling bacon and dedicated it to Spenkelink. The controversy did not end with Spenkelink's execution: When the blinds covering the windows of the execution chamber were opened to the witnesses, Spenkelink had already been strapped into the chair, gagged, and blindfolded. Since the witnesses had not seen the prisoner brought into the chamber, rumors later spread that he had fought the guards, that his neck had been broken in the altercation, and that he was dead before the execution took place. Spenkelink's corpse was eventually exhumed by a Los Angeles coroner, who determined that the cause of his death was in fact electrocution. To prevent similar future controversies, prison officials removed the window blinds to allow witnesses to view the entire execution procedure from beginning to end. In addition, the Florida Legislature passed a law (since rescinded) requiring autopsies for all executed convicts.
03/29

1949

Birthday

March 29, 1949

Birthdate

Le Mars, Comté de Plymouth County, IA 51031, États-Unis

Birthplace

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05/25

1979

Death

May 25, 1979

Death date

Méthode d'exécution : électrocution

Cause of death

Raiford, Comté d'Union County, FL 32083, États-Unis
Death location

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Gravesite & Burial

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Funeral date
Rose Hills Mortuary 3888 Workman Mill Rd, in Whittier, Los Angeles County, CA 90601, États-Unis
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John Arthur Spenkelink lived 33 years shorter than the average family member when died at the age of 30.

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James Micheal Gaudin

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05/13/2023

John Arthur Spenkelink

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John Arthur Spenkelink Mar 29, 1949 - May 25, 1979

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Other Biographies

Other Spenkelink Family Biographies

Spenkelink, Mary (Dec 27, 1890 - Nov 1971) Spenkelink, Bernard (Aug 22, 1916 - May 3, 1961)

Spenkelink, Lois (Jul 27, 1911 - Sep 6, 1991) Spenkelink, Geraldine (Jun 25, 1890 - Mar 1970)

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John Arthur Spenkelink 1949 - 1979

John Arthur Spenkelink's History: 1949 - 1979

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