US News

Serial killer trial begins with gruesome photos

Apr 4, 2007, 1:35 GMT

Los Angeles - A man accused of being one of the worst-ever serial killers in Los Angeles went on trial Tuesday for 11 murders, with prosecutors showing gruesome photographs of strangled women with bloated faces.

Chester Dewayne Turner, 40, is accused of killing the victims, most of whom were prostitutes, in the 1980s and 1990s. He was tied to the killings by DNA examination of the semen found in the victims' bodies. Turner has pleaded not guilty, claiming that he was a drug dealer to the prostitutes who often paid him with sex.

'These are the victims of a killer,' said Deputy District Attorney Bobby Grace, gesturing at the photos. 'Today we can say the name of that killer: Chester Turner.'

Authorities had earlier arrested and convicted another man in three of the murders they now attribute to Turner. David Allen Jones was cleared by DNA tests and freed from prison in March 2004 after serving 11 years. Jones, who has an IQ of 60, received 720,000 dollars in compensation for his false conviction and time in prison.