Loren Herzog | |
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Born | Loren Joseph Herzog December 8, 1965[2] Linden, California, U.S. |
Died | January 16, 2012[3] Susanville, California, U.S. | (aged 46)
Cause of death | Suicide |
Conviction(s) | Murder (4 counts, overturned) Voluntary manslaughter Accessory to murder (3 counts) Furnishing amphetamine |
Criminal penalty | 78 years (overturned) 14 years, paroled after 11 years |
Details | |
Victims | 4–19+[1] |
Span of crimes | November 27, 1984 – November 18, 1998 (Confirmed) |
Country | United States |
State(s) | California |
Date apprehended | March 17, 1999 |
Wesley Shermantine | |
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Born | Wesley Howard Shermantine, Jr. February 24, 1966[4] Linden, California, U.S. |
Conviction(s) | Murder (4 counts) |
Criminal penalty | Death |
Details | |
Victims | 4–19+[1] |
Span of crimes | November 27, 1984 – November 18, 1998 (Confirmed) |
Country | United States |
State(s) | California, Utah |
Date apprehended | March 17, 1999 |
The Speed Freak Killers is the name given to serial killer duo Loren Herzog and Wesley Shermantine, together initially convicted of four murders — three jointly — and suspected in the deaths of as many as 72 people in and around San Joaquin County, California, based on a letter Shermantine wrote to a reporter in 2012.[5] They received the "speed freak" moniker due to their habitual methamphetamine abuse. Herzog committed suicide in 2012. Shermantine remains on death row in San Quentin State Prison, in San Quentin, California.[6]