The Murder of Robert Beckowitz
Robert Beckowitz (October 5th, 1948 – July 17th, 1982) was an American biker murdered by his best friend, James Edward Glover, who then took photos with Beckowitz's girlfriend, Jeannine Lynn Clark, mutilating his corpse.[1]
Early Life
Robert Beckowitz was born on October 5th, 1948. He was raised along with his brother, Gerald, in an orphanage. “He used to tell us about how he was beaten in the orphanage,” a neighbor of his said. Other people who knew him called him a troubled man.
Murder
On July 17th, in his apartment in the 19300 block of Woodbine in northwest Detroit, Robert Beckowitz was watching the Benny Hill Show with his 37-year-old friend, James Edward Glover, and his 21-year-old girlfriend, Jeannine Lynn Clark. Glover and Clark were secretly having an affair, which was possibly part of Glover’s motivation for the crime. Glover excused himself from watching the program. As Glover had spinal damage and needed a cane to walk around, he went to grab one of Beckowitz's guns. Glover then came up behind Beckowitz with a .45 caliber handgun and shot him in the head, killing him, and then proceeded to stab Beckowitz 83 times.
Over the next 3 days, Glover and Clark had sex, took methamphetamine, and took pictures of themselves in the nude with Beckowitz's corpse while mutilating it with a hacksaw Glover borrowed from his parents. In some pictures, Glover is seen putting Beckowitz's dismembered penis in his face, and others show Beckowitz's dismembered head on a chair with dismembered body parts such as his finger from his hand or his big toe from his foot in his nose and mouth respectively.
By the end of the ordeal, Beckowitz had been cut up into 14 pieces, which were then hidden around the apartment in plastic bags, and sustained over 80–100 stab wounds. On July 20th, Clark phoned the police and confessed everything. Glover was found heavily sedated on drugs and arrested. Glover pleaded not guilty in 36th District Court, where he was charged with second-degree murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and mutilation of a dead human body. Judge William Hathaway remanded Glover to the Wayne County Jail without bond and ordered him to undergo psychiatric evaluation. Clark, who was also arrested, claimed she was held captive by Glover and remained in custody for a violated bank robbery charge.
Going against Clark's claims of being held against her will were neighbors that said she and Glover had been seen outside the house several times since the day of the murder. Clark and Glover were seen visiting a garage sale. Her neighbor, Janice Zmich, said her son saw Glover and Clark outside the house Thursday morning, as well as hearing a woman she believed to be Clark outside the house about 3:45 a.m. yelling to be let back inside. Clark also went out to buy film for Glover's camera. Clark was ultimately charged with mutilating Beckowitz’s corpse.
Glover was found mentally competent to stand trial. He then pleaded guilty to charges of second-degree murder, mutilating a corpse, and using a firearm in the commission of a felony in exchange for a promise that he would not be given a life sentence. Glover offered no explanation for the killing or for what followed. Glover was sentenced to 30 to 50 years in prison for what the judge called a “48-hour frenzy” of murder and dismemberment on December 1st, 1982. Glover said he “must have been” responsible for the mutilations and photographs, but he said he could not be sure because he was heavily drugged on synthetic opiates and amphetamines. “It’s a big puzzle ... I cannot explain,” he said.
Clark was convicted of mutilating Beckowitz's corpse on February 3rd, 1983. Her claim of being held against her will was supported by Glover, who said, “Right now, I’d say she didn’t really stay of her own free will.” Glover testified. However, he did say she was allowed to leave at certain points. Prosecutor Thomas Bahen said the photographs proved that Clark enthusiastically joined in on the mutilation. Bahen said, “No one is going to know all of what happened, but those photographs are graphic evidence of some things that did happen.” Bahen said, “Look at her face (in the photographs). Do you see fear, revulsion, disgust? I don’t think you will find those things.” Bahen also said that Glover, who had spinal damage and a cane to walk, must have needed Clark’s help to move Beckowitz’s body, and she could have overpowered him if she was being held against her will. Clark was sentenced to 6 to 10 years for mutilating Beckowitz.[2]
References
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