Ray Shawn Jackson: The Gillham Park Strangler
Early Life
Ray Shawn Jackson, born on August 28, 1967, in Kansas City, Missouri, was the only son in his family. At the age of seven, he and his family moved to Kansas City, where they were raised in a very impoverished area. In his late teens, Jackson began working as a semi-skilled laborer.
Modus Operandi
Jackson preyed upon sex workers in the Kansas City area during the late 1980s. He would approach women on the streets, offering them crack cocaine. If they agreed, he would lead them to secluded areas in or near Gillham Park. There, he would choke them from behind until they lost consciousness. Upon regaining consciousness, the victims were stripped, raped, and then strangled to death. Jackson often left their bodies in provocative poses, with their clothing scattered around the crime scene.
Victims
Between September 1989 and April 1990, six women were found murdered in or near Gillham Park in Kansas City, Missouri. The victims were:
- Annette Stewart, 33 – Found dead on September 16, 1989, near 31st and Oak streets in Kansas City.
- Kimberly Creer, 22 – Found dead on September 20, 1989, in Gillham Park.
- Tresa Williams, 21 – Found dead on October 22, 1989, at 4136 Euclid Ave in Kansas City.
- Janice Berryman, 36 – Found dead on October 28, 1989, in Gillham Park.
- Tonya Ward, 23 – Found dead on January 18, 1990, in Gillham Park.
- Michelle Mitchell, 22 – Found dead on April 5, 1990, in Gillham Park.
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