Origins & Early Life

Samuel Little (né McDowell; June 7, 1940 – December 30, 2020) was an American serial killer who was convicted of 8 murders and confessed to committing 93 murders, across 19 states, between 1970 and 2005. The FBI's Violent Criminal Apprehension Program has confirmed his involvement in at least 60 murders, the largest number of confirmed victims for any serial killer in American history. Little provided sketches for 26 of his victims, although not all have been linked to known murders. His crime spree stretched across the country, with a concentration of murders in Miami and Los Angeles.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Little was born Samuel McDowell on June 7, 1940, in Reynolds, Georgia. The census from the year Little was born said his mother, Bessie Mae, worked as a maid and that his father was 19-year-old Paul McDowell. Little said that his teenaged mother was a "lady of the night", and that she abandoned him as an infant. Soon after his birth, Little's family moved to Lorain, Ohio, where he was brought up mainly by his grandmother. He attended Hawthorne Junior High School.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

By his own account, he began having sexual fantasies about strangling women as a child, starting when he saw his kindergarten...

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