William G. Zuern Jr., Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death
TweetWilliam G. Zuern Jr.
American murderer
Date of Birth: 05-Dec-1958
Place of Birth: Ohio, United States
Date of Death: 08-Jun-2004
Nationality: United States
Zodiac Sign: Sagittarius 
About William G. Zuern Jr.
- William Gerald Zuern (December 5, 1958 – June 8, 2004) was executed by the State of Ohio for the murder of a Hamilton County sheriff's deputy working as a corrections officer in the county jail.
- Zuern spent 19 years and 7 months on death row, with lawyers fighting his death sentence.
- His execution occurred on the day before the 20th anniversary of the crime for which he was condemned. In May 1984, Zuern, who was awaiting trial for a murder in Cincinnati, was incarcerated at the Community Correctional Institute in Hamilton County, Ohio.
- In the latter part of the month, Zuern had a conversation with another inmate about corrections officers' failure to give Zuern his full five minutes of telephone time.
- During the conversation, Zuern expressed general hostility towards the officers, saying "somebody should do something to them sons of bitches".
- The inmate also had observed Zuern sharpening a straightened portion of a hook from a metal bucket over the course of three days and informed a corrections officer that Zuern either had a knife or a shank. On June 9, 1984, another inmate informed a sheriff's deputy that he and Zuern had argued the day before and that Zuern said he was going to kill him.
- The inmate also said that Zuern had a homemade knife which he had sharpened on his cell floor.
- That evening, officers proceeded to search Zuern's cell, among others.
- Before the officers arrived at Zuern's cell, Zuern received word from another inmate that the officers were coming to search his cell. At approximately 10:20 PM, Officers Joe Burton and Phillip Pence arrived to perform the search and found Zuern lying naked in his bunk.
- Officer Pence ordered Zuern to get to his feet; he then stood at the door of the cell.
- Pence unlocked the cell and told Zuern to come out and put his hands against the wall.
- Zuern lunged at Pence and fatally stabbed him in the chest with the metal shank.
- The weapon was a long dagger-like piece of metal, approximately seven inches long.
- One end was sharpened to a point, and the other end was curved into a loop.
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