Married to Murder: The Bizarre and True Accounts of People Who Married Murderers by William Webb Read Free Book Online
Authors: William Webb
Rolling was a man who gave the university town of Gainesville the nickname of “Grisly Gainesville.” In 1990 he murdered and mutilated five college students as they slept in their apartments in crimes eerily reminiscent of Richard “the Night Stalker” Ramirez’s activities in California. Unlike Ramirez, Rolling went to the trouble of cleaning up the crime scenes and posing the bodies.
If anything, Rolling’s crimes were more ghastly than Ramirez’s. He cut the head off of one victim and the nipples off of another. He also stole body parts and women’s underwear from the crime scenes. The press quickly gave the criminal a sensational nickname—the Gainesville Ripper—after Jack the Ripper.
Rolling was a career criminal who, like most serial killers, paid the bills with ordinary crimes such as armed robbery and burglary. Incredibly, Rolling actually robbed a bank in Gainesville while police were searching for the ripper. The bank robbery turned into a fiasco when an anti-robbery device in a bag of money sprayed the money with pink ink, which made it impossible to use. Rolling tossed the useless money away near a campsite in the woods he had been using. Police later found it and identified the cash as the bank robbery loot.
Rolling was caught after another botched robbery at a Winn Dixie supermarket. A supermarket employee saw the robbery in progress and called the police, who caught Rolling while he was trying to make a getaway.
Love or Profit
Sondra London wrote Rolling while he was being held in the psych ward of the Florida State Prison. Rolling was in the psych ward because of violent behavior and suicide attempts. Rolling started corresponding with her and soon proclaimed his love for her. He composed a song about his love and sang it at one of his pre-trial hearings.
London’s version of love was somewhat unusual; she copyrighted all of Rolling’s letters to her so she could sell them. She also signed an exclusive agreement to appear on Geraldo Rivera’s syndicated talk show, which was then a national sensation.
Even though Rolling believed in London, his parents apparently didn’t trust her. They told the press that they thought she was simply cashing in on their son. There was little love lost between Rolling and his parents anyway. At the time of the Grisly Gainesville Crimes, Danny Rolling was actually wanted for the attempted murder of his own father.
Rolling attempted to avoid the death penalty by claiming insanity. Among other things, he tried to blame the murders on his evil alter ego “Evil Gemini” and claimed that abuse in his childhood had caused the problems. Psychiatrists that interviewed Rolling claimed he had a personality disorder and the personality of a 15-year-old. Obviously, he wasn’t a very suitable candidate for marriage. The ploys didn’t work, and Rolling was sentenced to death.
Profiting from Grisly Gainesville and the Happy Face
Sondra London kept cashing in on her marriage with Danny Rolling by appearing on American, British, Australian, French, and German TV programs. She also worked as an associate producer for the tabloid TV show, A Current Affair , and David Monaghan Productions in Great Britain.
London achieved some fame in 1996 by posting Keith Jesperson’s confessions to her website. The action caused America Online (AOL) to ban her website and Wyoming Governor Jim Geringer to attack her in the media.
More recently Sondra London has produced several books, including the one she coauthored with Rolling. That book, The Making of a Serial Killer contained 50 illustrations by Rolling. The confessions Rolling made to her were published in The Globe supermarket tabloid. People in Florida were so incensed by London’s profiteering that the state sued under the “Son of Sam Law,” which bars criminals from profiting from media accounts of their crimes. The lawsuit failed because the Supreme Court had ruled the law unconstitutional.
London is still
If anything, Rolling’s crimes were more ghastly than Ramirez’s. He cut the head off of one victim and the nipples off of another. He also stole body parts and women’s underwear from the crime scenes. The press quickly gave the criminal a sensational nickname—the Gainesville Ripper—after Jack the Ripper.
Rolling was a career criminal who, like most serial killers, paid the bills with ordinary crimes such as armed robbery and burglary. Incredibly, Rolling actually robbed a bank in Gainesville while police were searching for the ripper. The bank robbery turned into a fiasco when an anti-robbery device in a bag of money sprayed the money with pink ink, which made it impossible to use. Rolling tossed the useless money away near a campsite in the woods he had been using. Police later found it and identified the cash as the bank robbery loot.
Rolling was caught after another botched robbery at a Winn Dixie supermarket. A supermarket employee saw the robbery in progress and called the police, who caught Rolling while he was trying to make a getaway.
Love or Profit
Sondra London wrote Rolling while he was being held in the psych ward of the Florida State Prison. Rolling was in the psych ward because of violent behavior and suicide attempts. Rolling started corresponding with her and soon proclaimed his love for her. He composed a song about his love and sang it at one of his pre-trial hearings.
London’s version of love was somewhat unusual; she copyrighted all of Rolling’s letters to her so she could sell them. She also signed an exclusive agreement to appear on Geraldo Rivera’s syndicated talk show, which was then a national sensation.
Even though Rolling believed in London, his parents apparently didn’t trust her. They told the press that they thought she was simply cashing in on their son. There was little love lost between Rolling and his parents anyway. At the time of the Grisly Gainesville Crimes, Danny Rolling was actually wanted for the attempted murder of his own father.
Rolling attempted to avoid the death penalty by claiming insanity. Among other things, he tried to blame the murders on his evil alter ego “Evil Gemini” and claimed that abuse in his childhood had caused the problems. Psychiatrists that interviewed Rolling claimed he had a personality disorder and the personality of a 15-year-old. Obviously, he wasn’t a very suitable candidate for marriage. The ploys didn’t work, and Rolling was sentenced to death.
Profiting from Grisly Gainesville and the Happy Face
Sondra London kept cashing in on her marriage with Danny Rolling by appearing on American, British, Australian, French, and German TV programs. She also worked as an associate producer for the tabloid TV show, A Current Affair , and David Monaghan Productions in Great Britain.
London achieved some fame in 1996 by posting Keith Jesperson’s confessions to her website. The action caused America Online (AOL) to ban her website and Wyoming Governor Jim Geringer to attack her in the media.
More recently Sondra London has produced several books, including the one she coauthored with Rolling. That book, The Making of a Serial Killer contained 50 illustrations by Rolling. The confessions Rolling made to her were published in The Globe supermarket tabloid. People in Florida were so incensed by London’s profiteering that the state sued under the “Son of Sam Law,” which bars criminals from profiting from media accounts of their crimes. The lawsuit failed because the Supreme Court had ruled the law unconstitutional.
London is still
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