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Bobby Joe Long

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Bobby Joe Long
Born
Bobby Joe Long[1]

(1953-10-14)October 14, 1953
Kenova, West Virginia, U.S.
DiedMay 23, 2019(2019-05-23) (aged 65)
Florida State Prison, Raiford, Florida, U.S.
Cause of deathExecution by lethal injection
Other namesThe Classified Ad Rapist
The Adman Rapist
Spouse
Cynthia Barlett
​
​
(m. 1974; div. 1980)​
Children2
Conviction(s)

(September 24, 1985)

Criminal penaltyDeath (July 25, 1986)
Details
Victims2 convicted
8 suspected
Span of crimes
March 27 – November 11, 1984
CountryUnited States
State(s)Florida
Date apprehended
November 16, 1984
Imprisoned atFlorida State Prison

Bobby Joe Long[a] (October 14, 1953 – May 23, 2019) was an American serial killer and rapist who was executed by the state of Florida for the murder of Michelle Denise Simms. Long abducted, sexually assaulted, and murdered at least eight women in the Tampa Bay area in Florida during an eight-month period in 1984.

Long was sentenced to death for two of the eight murders he was suspected of committing. He was executed by lethal injection on May 23, 2019.

Early life

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Bobby Joe Long was born on October 14, 1953, in Kenova, West Virginia, to Joe and Louetta Long.[3] Long was born with an extra X chromosome, also known as 47,XXY, a specific variant of Klinefelter syndrome. This condition results in excessive estrogen production, resulting in development of female traits such as breasts. Long was teased as a child for his large breasts and underwent breast reduction surgery in adolescence.[4] He sustained multiple head injuries in various childhood accidents.[5]

Long had a dysfunctional relationship with his mother, sleeping in her bed until he was a teenager, and reportedly resented the multiple short-term boyfriends she brought with her when returning home late at night from her job.[3] Long married his high-school girlfriend in 1974, with whom he had two children before she filed for divorce in 1980.[6]

Crimes

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Long moved to the Tampa Bay area in 1983. In 1984, while on probation for assault, Long raped and strangled 20-year-old Artiss "Ann" Wick in March; her body was discovered in a rural area on November 22, 1984. She had reportedly hitch-hiked from Gas City, Indiana, to Tampa, and was engaged to be married.

Long also attacked 33-year-old Linda Nuttall in her home.[7]

In the early hours of November 3, 1984, Long abducted 17-year-old Lisa McVey as she rode her bike home from work. She was blindfolded and taken to Long's home, where he repeatedly raped her. Aware of the danger she was in, the blindfolded McVey reported leaving as many fingerprints in Long's home as she could to aid any future police investigation. After 26 hours, Long released McVey and she provided investigators with information on his home, car and a time period in which she heard him use an ATM. This led to police identifying Long and he was arrested on November 16, 1984. He was linked to the murders through red carpet fibers found on the bodies of several victims.[8]

Capture

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At the time of his capture, Long was wanted in three Tampa Bay area jurisdictions where investigators had collected multiple forms of forensic evidence, including clothing, carpet fibers, semen, ligature marks, and rope knots.[9]

Long was arrested outside a movie theater on November 16, 1984, and charged with the sexual battery and kidnapping of Lisa McVey. Long signed a formal Miranda waiver, and consented to questioning. After the detectives procured a confession for the McVey case, their questioning focused on a series of unsolved sexual battery homicides in the Tampa Bay area. As the detectives questioned Long about the murders, he replied, "I'd rather not answer that."[10]

The detectives continued the interrogation, and handed Long photographs of the various murder victims. At this point, Long stated, "The complexion of things sure have [sic] changed since you came back into the room. I think I need an attorney." No attorney was provided, and Long eventually confessed to eight murders in Hillsborough County, and one murder in Pasco County.

Fiber evidence analysis by the FBI linked Long's vehicle to most of his victims.[9]

Trial

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The Hillsborough County State Attorney's Office and the Public Defender's Office of Hillsborough County reached a plea bargain deal. Long pled guilty on September 24, 1985,[11] to eight homicides and the abduction and rape of Lisa McVey, receiving 26 life sentences without the possibility of parole (24 concurrent and two to run consecutively to the first 24) and seven life sentences with the possibility of parole after 25 years. The State retained the option to seek the death penalty for the murder of Michelle Simms. In July 1986, Long was found guilty and was sentenced to die in Florida by lethal injection.[12]

Although Long confessed to raping and killing women, his confession was thrown out. His trial proceeded straight to the penalty phase, which was possible in the 1980s. In early 1985, he received the death penalty.

Long was convicted and appealed his first degree murder conviction and death sentence for crimes committed in Hillsborough County. Long appealed his first degree murder conviction and sentence of death in the death of Virginia Johnson.[13]

On appeal, Long's death sentence was vacated, his conviction reversed, and his case remanded back to the trial court with directions to enter an order of acquittal for the murder of Virginia Johnson.[13]

Execution

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On April 23, 2019, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed Long's death warrant, the first death warrant he had signed since taking office in January 2019.[14][15] His subsequent appeals denied, he was executed by lethal injection on May 23, 2019, more than thirty years after his conviction.[16] He ate his final meal at 9:30 a.m. local time; he requested roast beef, bacon, French fries, and soda.[17] He was pronounced dead at 7:00 p.m., having made no last statement.[18]

TV movies

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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ The Florida Department of Corrections inmate database recorded Long's name as "Robert J. Long,"[2] but Long's birth certificate from West Virginia recorded his name at birth as Bobby Joe Long.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b Sullivan, Dan (May 1, 2019). "Florida wants to execute Robert Joseph Long. His real name is Bobby Joe Long. Does it matter?". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
  2. ^ "Inmate Release Information Detail". Florida Department of Corrections. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Bobby Joe Long – The Classified Ad Rapist". Department of Psychology, Radford University. Archived from the original on August 21, 2008. Retrieved August 12, 2009.
  4. ^ Ramsland, Katherine. "Shame and the Serial Killer: Humiliation's influence on criminal behavior needs more attention". Psychology Today. Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. Retrieved September 13, 2020.
  5. ^ Giannangelo, Stephen J. (1996). The Psychopathology of Serial Murder: A Theory of Violence. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-275-95434-5. Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. Retrieved November 2, 2016.
  6. ^ Moore, Melissa. "Married to a Monster: Ex-wife discusses serial killer who raped, killed 10 women". crimewatch. Telepictures Productions Inc. Archived from the original on July 8, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
  7. ^ ""Long overdue:" Florida serial killer executed after 34 years". WTVT. Raiford. May 24, 2019. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
  8. ^ "Case of Bobby Joe Long: Notorious Tampa Bay serial killer executed". June 16, 2019. Archived from the original on June 16, 2019.
  9. ^ a b Hickey, Eric W. (1991). Serial Murderers and Their Victims. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole. pp. 135–136. ISBN 0-534-15414-X.
  10. ^ "Long v. State". Justia Law. Retrieved December 22, 2024.
  11. ^ O'Brien, Brendan (May 23, 2019). "Florida to execute man convicted of abducting, killing eight women in 1984". Reuters.
  12. ^ Andone, Dakin (May 24, 2019). "Florida executes convicted serial killer and rapist Bobby Joe Long". CNN. Retrieved December 22, 2024.
  13. ^ a b "Long v. State". Justia Law. Retrieved December 22, 2024.
  14. ^ "Robert Joseph Long – Death Warrant – May 2019" (PDF). Florida Supreme Court. April 23, 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 24, 2019. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  15. ^ "Upcoming Executions | Death Penalty Information Center". deathpenaltyinfo.org. Archived from the original on April 22, 2019. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  16. ^ "Convicted Killer Who Terrorized Tampa Bay in Mid 80s Executed". Bay News 9. Archived from the original on May 23, 2019. Retrieved May 23, 2019.
  17. ^ Davidson, Tom (May 23, 2019). "Serial killer Bobby Joe Long requests special final meal ahead of execution". mirror. Archived from the original on May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  18. ^ "Serial Killer Who Took 10 Women's Lives Executed in Florida". Time. Archived from the original on May 24, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  19. ^ Lloyd Sowers, "'Believe Me': Hillsborough deputy's survival story now a Lifetime movie" Archived February 27, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. WTVT, September 27, 2018.
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