"Robin Stopped a Monster": Rodney Alcala Found Guilty of Five Murders, 2010

Name: "Robin Stopped a Monster": Rodney Alcala Found Guilty of Five Murders, 2010
Uploaded: 2015-07-19T00:00:00Z
Duration: 3 min 3 s
Description: The clerk reads the first of five guilty verdicts against Rodney Alcala in Orange County Superior Court on February 25, 2010, for the 1979 murder of 12-year-old Robin Samsoe, and her family reacts. Filmed by the Orange County Register.

The clerk reads the first of five guilty verdicts against Rodney Alcala in Orange County Superior Court on February 25, 2010, for the 1979 murder of 12-year-old Robin Samsoe, and her family reacts. Filmed by the Orange County Register.

Subject: Rodney Alcala
Recorded: February 25, 2010
Runtime: 3:03

Content warning: The verdict for the murder of a 12-year-old girl is read, and her family speaks about her death and about the death penalty. No graphic detail.

The Interview

This is a 3-minute Orange County Register video from February 25, 2010, the day an Orange County jury found Rodney Alcala guilty of five murders, posted again on the Register's YouTube channel in 2015. In the courtroom, the judge directs the clerk to read the verdicts; the clerk reads the first, for the murder of Robin Samsoe, and the judge summarizes the verdicts on all five counts. Members of Robin's family then speak to reporters. Alcala, who represented himself, is not heard. No speaker is named in the audio.

Historical Context

Robin Samsoe, 12, was abducted in Huntington Beach on June 20, 1979, and murdered. Alcala was twice convicted of her murder and sentenced to death, in 1980 and 1986; both convictions were reversed. At his third trial, in 2010, he was also tried for the murders of four women in Los Angeles County from 1977 to 1979: Jill Barcomb, Georgia Wixted, Charlotte Lamb and Jill Parenteau. He acted as his own lawyer.

Circumstances

After six weeks of testimony and less than two days of deliberation, the jury returned its verdicts just before 2 p.m. on Thursday, February 25, 2010, finding Alcala guilty of five counts of first-degree murder, with special circumstances of torture, rape, kidnapping and multiple murder found true. The family's comments appear to have been recorded outside the courtroom (inference from content). The Register's title date, February 26, 2010, is the date the video was published online. The jury returned a death verdict on March 9, 2010, and Judge Francisco P. Briseño sentenced Alcala to death on March 30, 2010.

What the Recording Covers

The clerk reads the verdict on Count One: guilty of murder in the first degree, "victim Robin C. Samsoe," signed by Juror Number Nine as foreperson. The judge summarizes that the jury found Alcala guilty of first-degree murder on Counts One, Three, Four, Five and Six. Outside, a relative says people keep telling the family "at least you finally got a verdict," and answers, "You're talking to the wrong family. We won't believe the final until it's final." Robin's brother, Robert Samsoe (identified from news reports; his name is not spoken), says "Robin stopped a monster" and that each trial means "burying Robin again." A family member (possibly the same speaker) says, "I want to push the button," wishes the case were in Texas, and says "it's not a victory yet" because of the appeals.

What Makes the Recording Significant

It records the verdict that first convicted Alcala of the four Los Angeles County murders and, for the third time, of Robin Samsoe's murder, more than 30 years after her death, together with the family's immediate reaction, filmed by the newspaper that covered the case for three decades.

Archival Importance

It is one of a set of Orange County Register videos from the 2010 trial: the prosecution's closing argument, Alcala's own closing argument, these guilt verdicts, the penalty verdict and the families' statements at the formal sentencing. The court reporter's transcript is the complete official record of the verdicts; this video is an edited excerpt that shows only the first verdict read in full.

Important Caveats

Alcala is not heard. No speaker is named in the audio: the judge and clerk identifications are inferences, and Robert Samsoe is identified from the Associated Press report of the "Robin stopped a monster" quote. The other family lines may be his or another relative's; frames at about 01:58 and 02:35 show the same bearded man in glasses and a white shirt at the microphones in the courthouse hallway, which suggests one speaker throughout, but the clip is edited, so the lines are not attributed to him by name. The family's views on execution are their own. The title's "2010-02-26" is the publication date (verdicts read February 25, 2010). Count Two is not mentioned in the clip and is not explained here.

Judge: The clerk is, uh, directed to read the verdicts.

Court Clerk: We the jury, in the above-entitled action, find the defendant, Rodney James Alcala, guilty of the crime of felony, to wit, violation of Section 187(a) of the Penal Code of the State of California, murder, as charged in Count One of the amended information. We the jury further find and affix the degree thereof: murder in the first degree. Victim Robin C. Samsoe. Dated February 25th, 2010. Juror Number Nine, foreperson.

Judge: In summary, the verdicts as read reflect that you have found the defendant guilty of first-degree murder as to Counts One, Three, Four, Five and Six. [About 01:22 to 01:55: no speech in the captions; the audio has low-level background sound with almost no voiced speech (audio measurement by the fact check). The machine text repeats the judge's summary here twice; this appears to be a machine repetition, not speech. Check by listening.]

Samsoe Family Member: Every [unclear: "time" / "body"], I just done the ride down, somebody goes, "Well, at least you finally got a verdict." You're talking to the wrong family. We won't, we won't believe the final until it's final.

Robert Samsoe: Robin stopped a monster, and that's why we're here every day, to let you guys know that if it wasn't for Robin, you could be your loved ones and stuff here too, because he was a monster. We're burying Robin again each time. We're opening up old wounds, and it's, [unclear: "nobody should have to do that" (captions) / "nobody's got to do that" (Whisper)]. He'll never see daylight like we do.

Samsoe Family Member: But do I think he's gonna get executed? I want to push the button, or whatever it takes. [unclear: "The idea will be there." (captions only)] They haven't even figured out how they're gonna execute yet. I wish we were in Texas. In Texas, about six years from now, we'd be strapping them in and letting it go. But it's not a victory yet, until they inject him or shoot him or hang him. It's not over, because of [unclear: "our appeals" (both sources) / "all the appeals"]. I mean, you guys watched, some of you were here the whole time. What was the mistake this time? [Clip ends at 03:03.] ---