David Lewis Rice
Encyclopedia
David Lewis Rice is a follower of the Christian Identity
movement who, on Christmas Eve
1985, gained entry to the Seattle home of civil rights
attorney
Charles Goldmark using a toy gun and pretending to be a deliveryman. He tied the family up, chloroformed them into unconsciousness, beat them with a steam iron, and stabbed them. Rice erroneously believed the family to be Jewish Communists, and saw the crime as part of a broader religious war
between American Christianity
and Soviet atheism
. At trial, Rice argued he was not responsible for the crime because he was insane at the time.
Rice was convicted in 1986 of aggravated murder for the four deaths and was sentenced to death. The conviction was later overturned on the grounds of an incompetent defense. Rice repeatedly displayed psychotic symptoms throughout his trial, but his attorney failed to emphasize them in his defense. In 1998, he pleaded guilty to the crimes in exchange for avoiding the death penalty. He remains in prison serving out a life sentence.
The Goldmark Murders remain one of the most notorious anti-Semitic hate crimes in recent memory in the United States
, even though the victims were not actually Jewish. It also remains a cause célèbre
of capital punishment proponents, since Rice avoided death based only on the ineptitude of his attorney's work at trial. Rice is currently incarcerated in Washington State Penitentiary
.
Christian Identity
Christian Identity is a label applied to a wide variety of loosely affiliated believers and churches with a racialized theology. Many promote a Eurocentric interpretation of Christianity.According to Chester L...
movement who, on Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...
1985, gained entry to the Seattle home of civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
attorney
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
Charles Goldmark using a toy gun and pretending to be a deliveryman. He tied the family up, chloroformed them into unconsciousness, beat them with a steam iron, and stabbed them. Rice erroneously believed the family to be Jewish Communists, and saw the crime as part of a broader religious war
Religious war
A religious war; Latin: bellum sacrum; is a war caused by, or justified by, religious differences. It can involve one state with an established religion against another state with a different religion or a different sect within the same religion, or a religiously motivated group attempting to...
between American Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
and Soviet atheism
Atheism
Atheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities...
. At trial, Rice argued he was not responsible for the crime because he was insane at the time.
Rice was convicted in 1986 of aggravated murder for the four deaths and was sentenced to death. The conviction was later overturned on the grounds of an incompetent defense. Rice repeatedly displayed psychotic symptoms throughout his trial, but his attorney failed to emphasize them in his defense. In 1998, he pleaded guilty to the crimes in exchange for avoiding the death penalty. He remains in prison serving out a life sentence.
The Goldmark Murders remain one of the most notorious anti-Semitic hate crimes in recent memory in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, even though the victims were not actually Jewish. It also remains a cause célèbre
Cause célèbre
A is an issue or incident arousing widespread controversy, outside campaigning and heated public debate. The term is particularly used in connection with celebrated legal cases. It is a French phrase in common English use...
of capital punishment proponents, since Rice avoided death based only on the ineptitude of his attorney's work at trial. Rice is currently incarcerated in Washington State Penitentiary
Washington State Penitentiary
Washington State Penitentiary is a Washington State Department of Corrections men's prison located in Walla Walla, Washington...
.