Ronald Adrin Gray (born August 14, 1965) is an American
serial killer
A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A
*
*
*
* with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...
and
rapist
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, Abusive power and control, ...
whose convictions include four counts of murder, one count of attempted murder and eight counts of
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 ...
.
His crimes were committed when he was in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
, stationed at
Fort Bragg
Fort Bragg is a military installation of the United States Army in North Carolina, and is one of the largest military installations in the world by population, with around 54,000 military personnel. The military reservation is located within Cum ...
,
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
.
Gray was tried and convicted by a military court and sentenced to death. On November 26, 2008, a federal judge issued a stay of execution stopping the planned December 10 execution. On January 26, 2012, the
Army Court of Criminal Appeals
In the United States military, the Army Court of Criminal Appeals (ACCA) is an appellate court that reviews certain court martial convictions of Army personnel.
Jurisdiction
In the United States, courts-martial are conducted under the Uniform C ...
denied relief in Gray's case and on November 13, 2017, the
Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
The United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (in case citations, C.A.A.F. or USCAAF) is an Article I court that exercises worldwide appellate jurisdiction over members of the United States Armed Forces on active duty and other perso ...
similarly denied an appeal for extraordinary relief.
President George Bush authorized Gray's execution in 2008, following a Department of Justice review. Gray's execution would be the first by the U.S. military since 1961.
Early life
Gray was born in
Cochran, Georgia
Cochran is a city in Bleckley County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 5,026. The city is the county seat of Bleckley County.
Cochran is named for Judge Arthur E. Cochran and was incorporated on March ...
,
but grew up in
Liberty City, a
public housing
Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is usually owned by a government authority, either central or local. Although the common goal of public housing is to provide affordable housing, the details, terminology, def ...
project in
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
.
He enlisted at age 18 in 1984 and was assigned to the Target Acquisition Battery, 1-39
Field Artillery
Field artillery is a category of mobile artillery used to support armies in the field. These weapons are specialized for mobility, tactical proficiency, short range, long range, and extremely long range target engagement.
Until the early 20t ...
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...
. At the time of his arrest, he was stationed at
Fort Bragg
Fort Bragg is a military installation of the United States Army in North Carolina, and is one of the largest military installations in the world by population, with around 54,000 military personnel. The military reservation is located within Cum ...
, near
Fayetteville, North Carolina
Fayetteville () is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a major U.S. Army installation northwest of the city.
Fayetteville has received the All-America C ...
, holding the rank of
Specialist Four (E-4) and serving as a cook assigned to 3rd Battalion,
504th Parachute Infantry Regiment
The 504th Infantry Regiment, originally the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment (504th PIR), is an airborne forces regiment of the United States Army, part of the 82nd Airborne Division, with a long and distinguished history. The regiment was f ...
,
82nd Airborne
The 82nd Airborne Division is an airborne infantry division of the United States Army specializing in parachute assault operations into denied areasSof, Eric"82nd Airborne Division" ''Spec Ops Magazine'', 25 November 2012. Archived from thorig ...
.
During his
court-martial
A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...
, his mother Lizzie Hurd
and sister testified that he had been abused by his stepfather as a child. Colonel David Armitage, a military
forensic psychiatrist
Forensic psychiatry is a subspeciality of psychiatry and is related to criminology. It encompasses the interface between law and psychiatry. According to the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, it is defined as "a subspecialty of psychiatr ...
, also testified that in Gray's early life he had experienced:
Crimes
On April 27, 1986, Gray murdered civilian Linda Jean Coats, age , a student at nearby
Campbell University
Campbell University is a private Baptist university in Buies Creek, North Carolina. It is affiliated with the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina (Southern Baptist Convention). Southern Baptist ConventionColleges and Universities sbc.net ...
.
On December 11, 1986, Gray abducted, raped, and murdered a second civilian, Tammy Cofer Wilson, age 18.
On December 15, 1986, Gray abducted, raped, sodomized, and murdered Private Laura Lee Vickery-Clay, age 18. She disappeared from Fort Bragg. Two witnesses saw her at a local K-Mart with a man later identified as Gray. Vickery-Clay's car, found the next morning a block from her home, appeared to have been driven through the woods, and the driver's seat was set back farther than necessary for Vickery-Clay to drive. Three of Gray's fingerprints were found on the hood of the car.
On January 17, 1987, a soldier discovered Vickery-Clay's half-naked, decomposed body in the woods in Fort Bragg. She had been raped, sodomized, and shot in the neck, forehead, chest, and back. She had also suffered blunt force trauma to various parts of her body. The murder weapon, a .22 caliber pistol that Gray had stolen in November 1986, was found 60 feet from the victim's body.
On January 3, 1987, he raped and attempted to murder Private Maryann Lang Nameth, age 19. Gray entered her barracks room under the pretense of notification of a party that he did not want to leave on the barracks notification board. Once inside, Gray grabbed Nameth, held a knife to her throat, and asked for her military field gear. Gray tied Nameth's hands behind her, removed her underclothing, and raped her. Gray then stabbed her repeatedly in the neck and on the side of her body, threatening to return and kill her if she screamed. Nameth suffered a lacerated trachea and a collapsed lung but survived. When Gray's photograph appeared in the news following his arrest for another crime, Nameth identified him as her assailant.
Three days later, on January 6, he raped, sodomized, robbed, and murdered a third civilian, Kimberly Ann Ruggles, age 23. On the evening of January 6 Ruggles, a local cab driver was dispatched to pick up a passenger named "Ron" at Gray's address. In the early morning of January 7, military police officers on routine patrol discovered Ruggles' empty cab parked at the edge of the woods. Her nude body was discovered a short distance away. She had been raped, sodomized, beaten, and stabbed seven times.
Ruggles' mouth was gagged with a cloth belt that matched a pair of black karate pants other police officers had found in Gray's possession hours earlier. Gray's fingerprints were on the interior door handle of Ruggles' taxi, and Ruggles' fingerprints were found on money in Gray's possession. Gray's footprints were also found at the scene of the crime.
List of victims
Criminal case
In November 1987, Gray pleaded guilty in Cumberland County Superior Court to 22 felonies: two counts of second-degree murder (Coats and Wilson), two counts of first-degree burglary, five counts of first-degree rape, five counts of a first-degree sexual offense, one count of attempted first-degree rape, three counts of second-degree kidnapping, two counts of robbery with a dangerous weapon, and one count each of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill and inflicting serious injury. He was sentenced to eight life sentences, including three to be served consecutively.
A military court also tried Gray. The general court-martial lasted from December 1987 until April 1988 and was composed of commissioned and enlisted soldiers at Fort Bragg. Gray was convicted of 12 charges, including the premeditated murders of Ruggles and Vickery-Clay, the attempted premeditated murder of Lang Nameth, three rapes, two robberies, and two counts of forcible sodomy. On April 12, 1988, he was unanimously sentenced to death. In addition, he was
dishonorably discharged
A military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve. Each country's military has different types of discharge. They are generally based on whether the persons completed their training and the ...
, ordered to forfeit all of his pay and allowances, and reduced in rank to Private E-1. On July 29, 1988, the Commanding General of the 82nd Airborne Division approved the sentence.
Gray was 22 at the time of his sentencing.
Gray remains on death row at the
United States Disciplinary Barracks
The United States Disciplinary Barracks (USDB) colloquially known as Leavenworth, is a military correctional facility located on Fort Leavenworth, a United States Army post in Kansas.
It is one of three major prisons built on Fort Leavenwo ...
, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. As a United States Armed Forces member, Gray cannot be executed until the president approves the death sentence. On July 28, 2008, President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
approved Gray's execution, making Gray the first service member sentenced to death since 1961.
One month later, Army Secretary
Pete Geren
Preston Murdoch Geren, III, known as Pete Geren (born January 29, 1952) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 20th United States Secretary of the Army from July 16, 2007, to September 16, 2009. He is a Democratic former me ...
set the execution date as December 10, 2008, and ordered that Gray be put to death by lethal injection at the
Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Indiana. The military released the news of Gray's execution date on November 20, 2008.
United States Army Corrections Command
The United States Army Corrections Command (ACC) exercises command and control and operational oversight for policy, programming, resourcing, and support of Army Corrections System (ACS) facilities and TDA elements worldwide.
On order, ACC coor ...
will be responsible for conducting the execution, based on an agreement with the
Federal Bureau of Prisons
The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Justice that is responsible for the care, custody, and control of incarcerated individuals who have committed federal crimes; that i ...
.
Appeals
Immediately following Gray's court-martial, the trial records were forwarded to Defense Appellate Division and received by them on August 8, 1988. Counsel filed initial pleadings with the Court of Military Review on September 15, 1989. On February 13, 1990, that court ordered a sanity board, which, on June 30, 1990, found that Gray was responsible at the time of the offenses and that he was competent to understand his trial and the present appellate proceedings. On July 20, 1990, the Government Appellate Division answered Gray's assignment of errors.
On December 27, 1990, Gray filed a motion with the Court of Military Review requesting that the court order the Government to provide $15,000 for an expert psychiatrist, a death penalty qualified attorney and an investigator. Oral arguments were heard on the motion in January 1991. On March 12, 1991, the Court of Military Review denied the motion. Gray renewed his request for a psychiatrist and an investigator on August 7, 1991, but the Court of Military Review denied it on August 23, 1991. On September 12, 1991, Gray filed a writ-appeal petition requesting that this Court order the Government to provide $10,000 and an emergency stay of the proceedings before the Court of Military Review. On October 18, 1991, this Court denied the writ-appeal petition and the stay application.
On December 16, 1991, Gray filed a motion with the Court of Military Review requesting that military authorities perform the court order additional medical and psychological tests. On December 31, 1991, that court granted Gray's request and ordered a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (
MRI
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio waves ...
) scan of the brain; a 20-channel scalp electrode, sleep-deprived
EEG
Electroencephalography (EEG) is a method to record an electrogram of the spontaneous electrical activity of the brain. The biosignals detected by EEG have been shown to represent the postsynaptic potentials of pyramidal neurons in the neocortex ...
; and a
SPECT
Single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT, or less commonly, SPET) is a nuclear medicine tomographic imaging technique using gamma rays. It is very similar to conventional nuclear medicine planar imaging using a gamma camera (that is, ...
scan of his brain, as well as intellectual, academic, psychological, and personality tests. On February 18, 1992, a report based on these tests was completed by Captain Fred H. Brown, Jr., Ph.D., a clinical psychologist from Womack Army Medical Center at Fort Bragg. Brown stated in an affidavit filed with the appellate court that Gray was sane during the offenses and the proceedings. On March 9, 1992, counsel filed a petition for a new trial based on newly discovered evidence of lack of mental responsibility.
On February 26, 1992, Gray filed a supplementary assignment of errors, to which the Government responded on March 27, 1992. On April 8, 1992, the Court of Military Review heard oral arguments, and on December 15, 1992, denied the petition for a new trial and affirmed the findings and sentence. On December 30, 1992, Gray filed a motion renewing his request for funds for an expert investigator and a behavioral neurologist. Gray filed a petition to reconsider this decision on January 4, 1993. The Court of Military Review heard oral arguments on the motion for funding on January 21, 1993, and denied the motion for funding and the petition for reconsideration on January 22, 1993.
On February 11, 1993, Gray filed a motion and suggestion for reconsideration by the court sitting
en banc
In law, an en banc session (; French for "in bench"; also known as ''in banc'', ''in banco'' or ''in bank'') is a session in which a case is heard before all the judges of a court (before the entire bench) rather than by one judge or a smaller ...
of the denial of funding and a motion and suggestion for reconsideration by the court sitting en banc of the decision of December 15, 1992. On March 11, 1993, the court denied both motions and the suggestions for reconsideration en banc, but granted a motion allowing Gray to file a supplemental assignment of errors (XXVIII-LVI). The Government answered this assignment of errors on April 12, 1993. On June 9, 1993, the Court of Military Review again affirmed the findings and sentence. Gray filed a motion for reconsideration on June 28, 1993, which the court denied on June 30, 1993.
With Gray's sentence affirmed by the President and the warrant issued by the
Secretary of the Army
The secretary of the Army (SA or SECARMY) is a senior civilian official within the United States Department of Defense, with statutory responsibility for all matters relating to the United States Army: manpower, personnel, reserve affairs, insta ...
, the execution was scheduled for December 10, 2008.
Army spokesman Lt. Col. George Wright said on November 20 (the date when the execution date was announced) that Gray had two legal options remaining: filing a petition with a federal appellate court to stay the execution, or requesting that the president reconsider approval of the execution.
On November 26, 2008, a federal judge granted Gray a stay of execution to allow time for further appeals. On January 26, 2012, the U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals denied relief.
On September 29, 2015, a judge ruled against Gray's arguments of his appeal thus ending the long-running appeal set into motion by Bush's approval of Gray's sentence in 2008.
On November 13, 2017, the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces issued a
Per Curiam Opinion denying Gray's
Writ of Error Coram Nobis with
prejudice
Prejudice can be an affective feeling towards a person based on their perceived group membership. The word is often used to refer to a preconceived (usually unfavourable) evaluation or classification of another person based on that person's per ...
for lack of jurisdiction.
On June 28, 2018, the United States Supreme Court declined to hear Gray's case, without giving a reason.
See also
*
John A. Bennett
John Arthur Bennett (April 10, 1936 – April 13, 1961) was a U.S. Army soldier who remains the last person to be executed after a court-martial by the United States Armed Forces. The 19-year-old private was convicted of the rape and attempted ...
*
List of death row inmates in the United States
, there were 2,414 death row inmates in the United States. The number of death row inmates changes frequently with new convictions, appellate decisions overturning conviction or sentence alone, commutations, or deaths (through execution or otherw ...
*
List of serial killers in the United States
A serial killer is typically a person who kills three or more people, with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defines serial murder a ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, Ronald
1965 births
American people convicted of murder
American people convicted of rape
American people convicted of sodomy
American prisoners sentenced to death
American serial killers
Living people
Male serial killers
People convicted of murder by the United States military
People convicted of murder by North Carolina
People from Bleckley County, Georgia
People from Fort Bragg, North Carolina
People from Miami
Prisoners sentenced to death by the United States military
Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by North Carolina
United States Army personnel who were court-martialed
United States Army soldiers
Violence against women in the United States