Buddy Justus

Buddy Earl Justus (December 25, 1952 – December 13, 1990) was an American spree killer who raped and murdered three women, including a pregnant woman, across Georgia, Florida, and Virginia in October 1978. Convicted of all three murders and sentenced to death in all three states, Justus was executed in Virginia in 1990.

Early life Justus was born in Niagara Falls, New York, on Christmas Day, 1952. He came from an abusive family, and eventually ended up in a Virginia orphanage.

Justus later married his adoptive mother, Alice. The marriage was extremely dysfunctional. Alice often accused her husband of infidelity and there were frequent separations. During one such separation, Justus tried to commit suicide twice and indicated he would try again unless his wife returned. Justus's spiritual adviser, Reverend Thomas Smith, later said that the murders were motivated by Justus's impending divorce. He said Justus "went crazy" after learning that Alice wanted a divorce.

Justus moved south, picking up an 18-year-old hitchhiker, Dale Goins, along the way. They kidnapped and murdered 32-year-old housewife Rosemary Jackson while she was leaving a store in Atlanta.

Trial and execution Justus was arrested on October 11, 1978, in Grundy, Virginia. He and Goins were tried for each of the three murders they had committed. Justus was convicted of killing Moses, Jackson, and Hawkins, receiving a death sentence for each murder. Goins, received multiple life sentences in Georgia and Florida after his lawyers successfully argued that he had a lesser role in the murders and had been coerced into participating by Justus. As of 2025, Goins is serving his life sentence in Georgia.

Justus twice tried to kill himself on death row.

After his appeals failed, Justus was executed in the electric chair at the Virginia State Penitentiary on December 13, 1990. His last meal consisted of steak, french fries, tossed salad, strawberry pie, and tea. A request for a glass of wine was denied. Inmates usually banged the bars whenever an execution took place, but this time, there was silence. The prison was almost empty since it was set to be closed the next day. Prison officials granted a final request by Justus to make his final steps to the electric chair by himself rather than with guards at his side. "We are supposed to be a society that's supposed to be caring ... and that to continue capital punishment is taking steps backward. There's better ways to deal with it than to take lives." Justus was the last man executed at the Virginia State Penitentiary. All subsequent executions in Virginia were carried out at Greensville Correctional Center.