Marcus Delon Wesson (born August 22, 1946) is an American criminal convicted of nine counts of first-degree

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

and 14 sex crimes, including the

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...

and

molestation Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assau ...

of his underage daughters. His victims were his children, fathered by

incest Incest ( ) is human sexual activity between family members or close relatives. This typically includes sexual activity between people in consanguinity (blood relations), and sometimes those related by affinity (marriage or stepfamily), adoption ...

uous relationships with his daughters and nieces, as well as his wife's children. He has been described as the worst

mass murderer Mass murder is the act of murdering a number of people, typically simultaneously or over a relatively short period of time and in close geographic proximity. The United States Congress defines mass killings as the killings of three or more p ...

of Fresno, California.

Early life and education

Marcus Wesson was born in

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

, the eldest of four children of Benjamin and Carrie Wesson. He was raised as a member of the

Seventh-day Adventist Church The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and ...

. Wesson claimed that his mother was a religious fanatic. His father was an alcoholic and child abuser who abandoned the family when Wesson was a child. By the early 1960s, the family had moved to

San Bernardino, California San Bernardino (; Spanish for "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 cen ...

. After dropping out of high school, Wesson joined the Army, serving from 1966 to 1968 as an ambulance driver.The Many Portraits of Marcus Wesson - Those who know the accused killer draw starkly conflicting views of him. (April 18, 2004). ''The Fresno Bee.'' Shortly after leaving the military, Wesson moved in with an older woman, Rosemary Solorio and her eight children in San Jose, California. In 1971, Solorio gave birth to Wesson's son. In 1974, Wesson began sexually abusing Solorio's eight-year-old daughter, Elizabeth.Guthrie, J. (September 14, 2009)
Survivors recall horror of Wesson mass killing.
''San Francisco Chronicle.'' Wesson married Elizabeth Solorio when she turned 14, and he was 27. Four months later, she gave birth to her first child. Eventually the couple had 10 children together, including one infant who died.Ryan, H. (May 19, 2005)
Child brides and vampire names: Bizarre the norm in mass murder trial.
''CNN''. One of Elizabeth's younger sisters left her own seven children with them, claiming to be unable to care for them due to a drug problem. Wesson never held a steady job; he lived off

welfare Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...

and had his working adult children give him all their earnings. In 1989, Wesson was convicted of

welfare fraud Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifical ...

and perjury. The family often lived in run-down shacks, boats, and vacant houses. Wesson was abusive towards his wife and children. He prevented Elizabeth from participating in the children's upbringing. He

homeschooled Homeschooling or home schooling, also known as home education or elective home education (EHE), is the education of school-aged children at home or a variety of places other than a school. Usually conducted by a parent, tutor, or an onlin ...

the children and taught them from his own handwritten Bible that focused on

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

being a

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...

. He told the children that he was God and had them refer to him as "Master" or "Lord." He taught the children to be prepared for

Armageddon According to the Book of Revelation in the New Testament of the Christian Bible, Armageddon (, from grc, Ἁρμαγεδών ''Harmagedōn'', Late Latin: , from Hebrew: ''Har Məgīddō'') is the prophesied location of a gathering of armies ...

and said that the girls were destined to become Wesson's future wives. Wesson's school "curriculum" involved teaching girls oral sex as young as 8 or 9. Their domestic responsibilities included washing Wesson's dreads and scratching his armpits and head. The girls were not allowed to talk to their male siblings or their mother. Both male and female children were physically abused. Wesson raped two daughters and three nieces, beginning at age eight. Each of the five girls became pregnant.

Murders

Before March 12, 2004, Wesson had declared his intention to relocate his daughters and their children to Washington state, where Wesson's parents lived. On March 12, 2004, several members of Wesson's extended family, along with two nieces who rebelled against him, converged on his family compound demanding the release of their children. Fresno police were summoned to what was described as a

child custody Child custody is a legal term regarding '' guardianship'' which is used to describe the legal and practical relationship between a parent or guardian and a child in that person's care. Child custody consists of ''legal custody'', which is the righ ...

issue, and a standoff ensued. Wesson told the police to wait at the door and disappeared into the home. When he came back to the door, his clothes were bloodied. Fresno police testified they did not hear gunshots being fired shortly after, though other witnesses at the standoff testified they did hear gunshots fired at that time.Child brides and vampire names: Bizarre the norm in mass murder trial
By Harriet Ryan, Court TV via CNN.com, Thursday, May 19, 2005, In the aftermath, police discovered nine bodies, including two of Wesson's daughters and a total of seven of their children, in a bedroom filled with antique

coffins A coffin is a funerary box used for viewing or keeping a corpse, either for burial or cremation. Sometimes referred to as a casket, any box in which the dead are buried is a coffin, and while a casket was originally regarded as a box for jewe ...

. Each victim had been fatally shot through the eye. Wesson's other children, who were not present inside the house, survived the incident.

Victims

* Sebhrenah April Wesson (age 25): Daughter * Elizabeth Breahi Kina Wesson (age 17): Daughter * Illabelle Carrie Wesson (age 8): Daughter/GranddaughterStewart, J.Y. (June 4, 2005)
Jury gets Fresno murder case.
''The Los Angeles Times'' * Aviv Dominique Wesson (age 7): Daughter/Grand-niece * Johnathon St Charles Wesson (age 7): Son/Grand-nephew * Ethan St Laurent Wesson (age 4): Son/Grand-nephew * Marshey St Christopher Wesson (age 1): Son/Grandson * Jeva St Vladensvspry Wesson (age 1): daughter/granddaughter * Sedona Vadra Wesson (age 1): Daughter/Grand-niece

Trial

At Wesson's trial, the prosecutor was Chief Deputy District Attorney Lisa Gamoian. Wesson was represented by public defenders Peter Jones and Ralph Torres. They presented the

defense Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

that his 25-year-old daughter Sebhrenah committed all the murders, including of her son Marshey, and then committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

.i The murder weapon, a

.22 caliber .22 caliber, or 5.6 mm caliber, refers to a common firearms bore diameter of 0.22 inch (5.6 mm). Cartridges in this caliber include the very widely used .22 Long Rifle and .223 Remington / 5.56×45mm NATO. .22 inch is also a popular ...

handgun A handgun is a short- barrelled gun, typically a firearm, that is designed to be usable with only one hand. It is distinguished from a long gun (i.e. rifle, shotgun or machine gun, etc.), which needs to be held by both hands and also braced ...

, was found with her body, and Sebhrenah's DNA was found on the gun, which lent credence to Wesson's claim. The jury declined to find that Wesson fired the fatal shots but convicted him of murder anyway, presumably finding that he had persuaded his children to enter into a suicide pact.

Conviction and sentence

Wesson was convicted of nine counts of first-degree murder on June 17, 2005, and also found guilty on 14 counts of forcible rape and the sexual molestation of seven of his daughters and nieces. Wesson was sentenced to

death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

on June 27, 2005, and is currently in

San Quentin State Prison San Quentin State Prison (SQ) is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men, located north of San Francisco in the unincorporated place of San Quentin in Marin County. Opened in July 1852, San Quentin is the ...

References

External links

Fresno police chief: 'Horrific' scene at home
at CNN.com * Scheeres, Julia

''

Crime Library Crime Library was a website documenting major crimes, criminals, trials, forensics, and criminal profiling from books. It was founded in 1998 and was most recently owned by truTV, a cable TV network that is part of Time Warner's Turner Broadcas ...

''. Retrieved on 2007-11-16. {{DEFAULTSORT:Wesson, Marcus 1946 births 2004 mass shootings in the United States 2004 murders in the United States African-American United States Army personnel American mass murderers American murderers of children American people convicted of child sexual abuse American people convicted of murder American prisoners sentenced to death American rapists Criminals from Kansas Cult leaders Filicides in California Former Seventh-day Adventists Founders of new religious movements Living people Mass shootings in the United States People convicted of incest People convicted of murder by California Prisoners sentenced to death by California Violence against children