Theresa Knorr
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| Theresa Knorr | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 12, 1946 Sacramento, California, U.S. |
| Charge(s) | murder, conspiracy to commit murder, torture |
| Penalty | life imprisonment |
| Status | in prison, eligible for parole in 2027 |
| Occupation | unknown |
| Spouse | Clifford Clyde Sanders Robert Knorr |
| Children | Howard Knorr (né Sanders) Sheila Knorr (née Sanders) Suesan Knorr William Knorr Robert Knorr Theresa “Terry” Knorr |
Theresa Knorr (née Cross) (born March 12, 1946) is a mother, a convicted murderer, and likely serial killer known for severely abusing and murdering two of her children while using the others to facilitate and cover up her crimes.
Theresa Cross was born in Sacramento, California. She was the youngest child in the family and very devoted to her mother. When her mother died in 1961, she went into a depression. At the age of sixteen she married Clifford Clyde Sanders. They had a son, Howard, together, but fought from time to time. Their marriage ended when Theresa shot Clifford to death in 1964 while they were living in Galt, California. She was tried but acquitted of the crime, having claimed self defense. Given the suspicious circumstances of her first husband's death, it seems likely she is a serial killer, because his death raises the number of deaths she is responsible for to three. She was pregnant at the time and would shortly deliver her second child, Sheila, in 1965.
In 1966, when seven months pregnant with her third child, she married the child's father, Robert Knorr. The child, Suesan, was born in September 1966, followed a year later by a son named William and in 1968, another son, Robert. In 1970, Theresa gave birth to another daughter, Terry.
Theresa focused her anger primarily at her daughters and trained her sons to beat and discipline the others. The second daughter, Suesan, was forced to eat large quantities of macaroni and cheese so she would become more plump, because Knorr was jealous of her daughter's skinny physique. One night, Suesan was shot in the chest by her mother. Suesan survived, though the bullet remained in her chest. Later, Theresa Knorr performed a home surgery on Suesan to remove the bullet. The wound became infected and Suesan became ill. Her mother and brothers then took her to a field where they set her on fire, burning her to death. Theresa Knorr then forced her oldest daughter, Sheila, into prostitution and later thought she contracted an STD. Knorr murdered Sheila by tying her up and locking her in a closet, where Sheila eventually starved to death.
Knorr and her sons were arrested in 1993, after being turned in by her youngest daughter, Terry. Knorr first pled not guilty. However, when she learned that one of her sons decided to testify against her, she pled guilty to all charges to avoid capital punishment. She was sentenced to two consecutive life terms. She will be eligible for parole in 2027.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- "Theresa Cross, the notorious case of a mother who tortured and murdered her children". Crime Library. http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/family/theresa_cross/index.html.
