Today in True Crime History: March 9

Photo by Matthew Henry from Burst

1992 — Desmond Keith Carter, kills his 71-year-old neighbor, Helen Purdy, while under the influence of crack, alcohol, and tranquilizers. He stabs her 13 times and steals $15. His grandmother had tried to get help for him before the murder, but a mental health center turned him away because he didn’t have medical insurance. Carter was executed in 2002.

2010 — Yazeed Essa is sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 20 years for the death of his wife, Rosemarie Essa. He’d poisoned her in the guise of handing her a supplement, and she got sick behind the wheel of her vehicle.