John Floyd Thomas, Jr.

John Floyd Thomas Jr. (born July 26, 1936)

On April 1, 2011, Thomas pleaded guilty to the seven counts of murder as part of a deal to avoid the death sentence.

Early life Thomas was born in Los Angeles and his mother died when he was 12 years old. He was later alternately raised by his aunt and a godmother. Throughout his childhood, Thomas attended public schools, including Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles. Thomas served in the U.S. Air Force in 1956 for a brief period of time. While stationed at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, a superior noted that Thomas was regularly "late" and "slovenly" in appearance.

CODIS launch and re-examination In 2001, the LAPD launched the "Open-Unsolved Homicide Unit," which reopened cold cases that included biological evidence that belonged to the perpetrators. The unit started after the launch of CODIS, which used DNA evidence left in cold cases and compared it to the DNA in federal databases. One of the many cases looked at was the murder of 68-year-old Ethel Sokoloff, who was found sexually assaulted and choked to death in her home in November 1972. He was held without bail at the LA County Jail.

Although he was charged with seven murders, investigators said they strongly believe he killed 15 or more women in the "Westside Rapist" and "Southland Strangler" period, and raped many more. On April 1, 2011, Thomas pleaded guilty to the seven counts of murder as part of a deal to avoid the death sentence for the Adrienne Askew murder. He was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Cora Perry (#10), 79, was found murdered on September 20, 1975; her kitchen window was found open, the screen missing Elizabeth McKeown (#13), 67, was reported missing on February 16, 1976; she was found raped and strangled two days later in the trunk of her car Maybelle Hudson (#14), 80, was found beaten, sexually assaulted, and strangled in her garage in April 1976 Adrienne Askew (#18), 56, was found sexually assaulted and strangled in June 1986, just three years after her mother had suffered the same fate, in the same apartment

Thomas was suspected of being involved in the following murders: Ethyl Grimes (#2), 81, was found robbed and strangled in her apartment on May 13, 1974 Lucy Grant (#4), 92, was found raped and murdered in her home on November 8, 1974; there were signs of forced entry, and the home appeared to be burglarized Ramona Gartner (#5), 74, was found murdered in her apartment on December 4, 1974 Una Cartwright (#7), 78, was found raped and murdered in her apartment on April 8, 1975; her door was found open, and a TV was stolen Olga Harper (#8), 75, was last seen entering her apartment on April 20, 1975; three days later, she was found beaten, raped, and murdered in her home on April 23, 1975 Effie Martin (#9), 86, was found beaten, raped, and strangled in her apartment on May 22, 1975; the murderer was suspected to be the "Westside Rapist," but some sources also referred to the killer as the "Wilshire Area Rapist" Lilian Kramer (#12), 67, was found murdered in her apartment on November 14, 1975; police suspected the Westside rapist because of "certain points of similarity" Isabel Askew (#17), 85, was found, partially decomposed, 11 days after she was reported missing from her apartment on October 22, 1983