John Albert Gardner III | |
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Born |
Culver City, California, U.S. |
April 9, 1979
Nationality | American |
Criminal charge | 2 counts of first-degree murder, assault with the intent to rape |
Criminal penalty | Two life sentences without possibility of parole, one term of 25 years to life, and an additional 24 years' imprisonment |
Criminal status | Sentenced May 14, 2010 |
John Albert Gardner III (born April 9, 1979) is an American convicted double murderer and sex offender. He confessed to the February 2009 rape and murder of 14-year-old Amber Dubois from Escondido, California, and the February 2010 rape and murder of 17-year-old Chelsea King from Poway, California, after he entered a plea agreement that spared him from the death penalty. Additionally, Gardner attempted to rape Candice Moncayo of San Diego County, and had been previously incarcerated for the molestation of a 13-year-old girl.
Gardner was born in Culver City, California. His parents divorced and Gardner frequently relocated around Southern California as a child (including Palmdale, California) and lived in Running Springs, California as a teenager. His mother Cathy Osborn was a psychiatric nurse and Gardner was put on psychiatric medication starting at age 6. He was held in a psychiatric hospital for 60 days at age 10 (in 1989).
As a student, Gardner was labeled "seriously emotionally disturbed." He graduated from Rim of the World High School in Lake Arrowhead, California in 1997 with a 3.2 grade point average and IQ of 113. He was also diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. He later said that his father was an alcoholic who beat him.