Mark Essex

Mass Murderer

Mark Essex 1972–1973 Sniper Rampage

Early Life and Motive

Mark James Robert Essex was born August 12, 1949, in Emporia, Kansas. He served in the U.S. Navy as a dental technician but experienced racial harassment while enlisted. He received a general discharge in February 1971 for “character and behavior disorders.” His anti-white and anti-police views deepened, motivated in part by the November 1972 shooting of two Black students in Baton Rouge by police.

Shootings – December 31, 1972

On New Year’s Eve, December 31, 1972, Essex parked near New Orleans Police Department headquarters on Perdido Street. He ambushed police during shift change using a Ruger .44 Magnum carbine and a Colt .38 revolver:

• Cadet Alfred Harrell (19) – killed.
• Lieutenant Horace Perez – wounded (ankle injury).

Essex then fled, triggering further violence that led to the death of Officer Edwin Hosli Sr. (shot later after he entered a warehouse Essex broke into). Hosli succumbed on March 5, 1973.

Shootings – January 7, 1973

On January 7, 1973, Essex initiated a second spree in New Orleans that culminated in a rooftop standoff at the Howard Johnson’s Hotel downtown. He fatally shot or wounded numerous individuals.

• Joseph Perniciaro (grocery store owner) – wounded (shot in shoulder).
• Dr. Robert Steagall (28, hotel guest) – killed (shot in chest).
• Elizabeth Steagall (25, wife, hotel guest) – killed (shot in head).
• Frank Schneider (62, assistant manager) – killed.
• Walter Sherwood Collins (56, general manager) – killed.
• Officer Phillip Coleman (26) – killed.
• Officer Paul Arlynn Persigo (33) – killed.
• Deputy Superintendent Louis Sirgo (48) – killed.
• Robert Beamish (43, hotel guest) – wounded (shot in abdomen; survived).
• Patrolman Charles Arnold (27) – wounded (face).
• Officer Lawrence Arthur (31) – wounded (side).
• New Orleans firefighter Joseph Anderson – wounded (arm).
• Patrolman Michael Burl (24) – suffered smoke inhalation and other injuries.
• Patrolman Robert Childress (33) – smoke inhalation.
• Deputy Sheriff David Munch (Jefferson Parish, 33) – wounded (leg and neck).
• Sergeant Emanuel Palmisano (43) – wounded (arm and back).
• Officer Kenneth Solis (26) – wounded (shoulder and back).
• Firefighter Timothy Ursin (29) – wounded (shoulder and chest).

Essex’s rampage ended when law enforcement, aided by a Marine Corps helicopter, killed him on the hotel rooftop after a prolonged exchange of gunfire. ...Read More

Confirmed Victims: (7)

Frank Schneider 62 yr old Male

    ...View 6 additional victims    ...View 6 additional victims    ...View 6 additional victims    ...View 6 additional victims    ...View 6 additional victims    ...View 6 additional victims

Mark Essex

    ...View 18 additional sources