United States of America
BRUMMETT
Lyle Richard
Active from 1975 to 1976, Texas
DID YOU KNOW...
Crime Fact
Brummett had one murder and 2 rape charges dropped
Prison Fact
Brummett sexually assaulted a 17-year-old boy
Court Fact
Brummett cut a deal and agreed to testify against his co-accused
THE DISPATCH
The Beginning
Lyle Richard Brummett was only 18 when he was arrested for 2 counts of sexual assault and credit card abuse. Those charges were stayed after he was arrested for murder.
The Murders
Carol Ann London and Elizabeth "Beth" Vallance Pearson
- September 17, 1975
- Kerrville, Texas
On September 17, 1975, Carol Ann London and her friend Elizabeth Luella “Beth” Vallance Pearson had car trouble. Brummett and friend Allen Ladd Woody stopped to help the Kerrville, Texas, girls. Lyle Richard Brummett was out on bond for sexual assault charges. According to Brummett, Woody sexual assaulted Pearson. Brummett assaulted London. According to Brummett, Woody killed Pearson and, fearing identification, he killed London.
London was 18, Pearson was 16. Their bodies were not found right away.
Dianne Kathleen Roberts
- August 15, 1976
- Austin, Texas
Dianne (Diane) Kathleen Roberts was at home with friends on August 15, 1976. This included Brummett. Before leaving, Brummett loosened a window screen. He used it later to regain entry into the house. He sexual assaulted and murdered the woman. Roberts had a pillow case wrapped around her neck. She was sprawled nude on her bed.
Brummett also used his bare hands to kill her. Imprints of his fingers were on her windpipe.
Arrest & Trial
Arrest & Bodies Found
- August 18, 1976
- Austin, Texas
The next day, based on eye witness accounts, Travis County police arrested Brummett for Roberts’ murder.
On August 18, police act on Brummett’s confessions. Pearson and London were found in shallow graves on a ranch outside of Kerrville, Texas. Police had driven out in the middle of the night to begin the search. The two young women were found in the early morning.
Brummett's Crimes Continue in Prison
- September 29,1976
- Austin, Texas
On September 29, 1976, Brummett and 3 other inmates sexual assaulted a 17-year-old boy who is also in prison. He was indicted November 3rd for the assault. The charge of aggravated sexual battery was added to the Roberts murder charges.
Brummett Indicted
- October 26, 1976
- Austin, Texas
Brummett was charged with the death of London. Woody was charged with the death of Pearson. Since London’s murder took place in Kerr County, and Roberts was killed in Travis County, there are separate trials.
Escape & Recapture & Letter
- February 3-9, 1977
- Austin, Texas
Brummett contrived to escape. He told authorities about another buried body. On February 3, 1977, Brummett traveled with police to Kerr County. It was the middle of the night when police started searching a heavily wooded area for a murder victim. Brummett told police Woody had dumped a body in the area. Police return empty-handed to the station in the early morning of the 4th. Brummett, who was dressed in civilian clothes during the search, asked to use the bathroom. Unattended, Brummett walked casually out of the building.
Brummett crashed a party and passed out drunk. The next day, residents recognized him and insisted he leave. Brummett called police on February 5, and asked them to pick him up at a convenience store. He said he screwed up.
A few days later, on February 9th, newspapers print a letter dated from January. In it Brummett said he wants to die in the electric chair. He has lost all reason to live. He was getting divorced and he missed the newborn baby. He said life was a drag now that he was in jail.
Accomplice Woody on Trial
- April, 1977
- Fort Stockton, Texas
During Woody’s trial, Brummett testified Woody sexual assaulted and killed Pearson. Brummett testified against Woody as part of a plea deal. Charges against Brummett for Pearson’s murder were dropped.
Brummett Pleads, Gets Sentenced
- April 21 & 27, 1977
- Austin, Texas
Brummett confessed to the murders of London and Roberts. On April 21, 1977, he pled guilty to the murder of London and was sentenced to life.
On April 27, 1977, Brummett pled guilty to murdering Roberts and was sentenced to life. Both rulings were based on a plea deal to avoid the death penalty.
Appeals
Brummett hired a disbarred lawyer to represent him at a parole hearing. After being denied parole, Brummett sued. Further information is available under Resources.
Lyle Richard Brummett’s Location
Brummett remains incarcerated in the Ramsay prison facility in Rosharon, Texas as of August, 2021.
SIMILAR SERIAL KILLERS
Bernard Pesquet
Pesquet and Brummett were both arrested in August, 1976
David Edwin Mason
Mason, the "Cassette Killer", was also born in December, 1956
Donald Leroy Evans
Evans and Brummett both escaped jail for a short period of time
BOOK
Book including Lyle Richard Brummett
Never the Same Again: A Rock ‘n’ Roll Gothic by Jesse Sublett
Publisher : Boaz Publishing Company (April 1, 2004)
Language : English
Hardcover : 296 pages
ISBN-10 : 1893448029
ISBN-13 : 978-1893448025
On a hot August night in Texas, 22-year-old Jesse Sublett was onstage experiencing what he thought was the realization of a long-held dream: his first big gig with a rock band. The next day, however, as he returned home, he found a nightmare instead: His longtime girlfriend, Dianne Roberts, had been savagely murdered in their bed.
Jesse became the police’s prime suspect. While in custody he figured out how a close friend brought the serial killer into their home. Jesse solved the crime and, though he couldn’t undo the damage, he moved on.
Jesse and pals Fazz Eddie Muños, Jon Dee Graham, and Billy Blackmon created the Skunks―a new wave rock ’n’ roll band that was instrumental in establishing Austin, Texas, as the live music capital of the world.
In his star-studded memoir you’ll find cameo appearances from Patti Smith, Debbie Harry, Elvis Costello, Carla Olson, Rolling Stones, Go-Go’s and more.
In the late 1990s Jesse was diagnosed with stage IV throat cancer, with less than 99 per cent chance of survival. He came to understand that the cancer was somehow connected with his past, with the hardscrabble life he endured growing up in the Texas Hill Country, his girlfriend’s murder, and the self-absorbed life of his years on tour with the band.
Never The Same Again is a road trip through a landscape of rock and roll dreams, murder and disease―a true story, mostly, about a tall, rugged Texan facing long odds and running out of time.
THE STATS
Lyle Richard Brummett in a Historical Timeline
Statistical table for Lyle Richard Brummett
| Killer Name | Brummett, Lyle Richard |
| Killer AKA | Lyle Richard Stone |
| Partnership | Yes |
| Gender | M |
| Arrest Date | August 17, 1976 |
| Conviction Date | April 21, 1977 |
| Sentence | Life term; Life term |
| Birth Date | December 26, 1956 |
| Status | Alive or Unknown |
| Height | 177 |
| Sexual Preference | Straight |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Killer Type | Sexual/Sadistic, Territorial |
| Partner Name | Allen Ladd Woody (no separate record entry in database) |
| Parnter Gender | M |
| comment1 | Beth Pearson, 15, and Carol Ann London, 18, Dianne Roberts |
| Total Dead Victims | 3 |
| Victims (Convicted) | 2 |
| Victims (Misc) | 1 charge dropped in plea deal |
| Victim Gender | F |
| Victim Race | White |
| Victim Age | 18, 16, |
| Victim Type | Strangers |
| Method of Killing | Strangulation |
| Sex Assault | Yes |
| Body - Left, Not Hidden | Yes |
| Body - Moved, Buried | Yes |
| Previous Crimes | burglary on or about July 21, 1975 (charges November 14, 1975); rape on or about November 16, 1975 and rape on or about September 2, 1975 and credit card abuse on or about September 23, 1975 (charges dismissed June 27, 1977) |
Killer Rating
RESOURCES
- Kerrville Mountain Sun (Aug 14, 1975)
- Austin American-Statesman (Aug 17, 1976)
- Brownwood Bulletin (Aug 19, 1976)
- Austin American-Statesman Pt. 1 (Aug 19, 1976)
- Austin American-Statesman Pt. 2 (Aug 19, 1976)
- Kerrville Mountain Sun (Aug 26, 1976)
- Austin Daily Texan (Oct 01, 1976)
- Austin Daily Texan (Nov 29, 1976)
- Austin American-Statesman Part 1 (Feb 05, 1977)
- Austin American-Statesman Part 2 (Feb 05, 1977)
- Austin American-Statesman (Feb 06, 1977)
- Austin American-Statesman Part 1 (Feb 09, 1977)
- Austin American-Statesman Part 2 (Feb 09, 1977)
- Del Rio News Herald (April 12, 1977)
- Austin American-Statesman (Apr 22, 1977)
- The Odessa American (Apr 27, 1977)
- El Paso Times (Apr 28, 1977)
- Appeal No. 91-8652 (Dec 2, 1992) - PDF
- Appeal No. 14-99-00750-CV (Nov 30, 2000) - PDF
- Appeal Nos. 04-05-00916-CV; 04-05-00917-CV; 04-05-00918-CV & 04-05-00919-CV (Jul 5, 2006)
E. Kelly Hemingway | Last updated August 28, 2021