United States of America
CARRINGTON
Celeste Simone
Active 1992 in California, USA
DID YOU KNOW...
Legal Fact
Carrington was the 1st Northern California woman sentenced to death since 1941
Interesting Fact
She considered trying to escape jail by using a plastic knife
Sad Fact
Carrington had an abortion at age 14
THE DISPATCH
The Beginning
Celeste Simone Carrington lived a hard life in a tough part of Philadelphia. She was pregnant by age 14, carrying her own father’s child. As a young adult, she moved to California where she went to community college. She excelled at track and field and competed internationally in shotput.
Early Crimes
She began to head down the wrong track. Although never criminally charged, she was fired from her janitorial job for stealing cheques. She kept a set of keys to buildings she had worked at.
In 1991, Carrington became depressed and lost her job. She had been trying to financially support her lover, and her lover’s three children, and was no longer able to do so. She had no criminal history, until she began her murder spree.
After being fired, Carrington began stealing cheques from companies she had access to, and writing at least one out to a friend to cash. He was arrested.
In Redwood City, California on January 17, 1992, Carrington broke into a Dodge car dealership. She had worked in the building and knew the back entrance was often left unlocked. She wore gloves and used a crowbar to force open interior doors. She stole a .357 magnum revolver and five bullets.
The Murders
Victor Esparza
- January 26, 1992
- San Carlos, California
Victor Esparza was a janitor at a San Carlos shoe factory. Carrington had once been a janitor there, and had kept a key. On January 26, 1992, Carrington borrowed a neighbour’s car and drove to the facility. She used the key to get into the building to rob it. She set off the alarm when she entered. Esparza saw Carrington. She said she was working, and must have accidentally set off the alarm.
Esparza asked her to call the building manager to deal with the alar. Instead, Carrington flashed a gun and demanded money. Esparza gave her about $45 and his ATM card. She shot him without provocation as she was leaving the cubicle. The gun was only about 6 inches from his head. Carrington later said it was exciting and made her feel powerful.
The PIN that Esparza had written down for her was invalid. She got no additional money after killing him.
Caroline Gleason
- March 11, 1992
- Palo Alto, California
Just a few months later, on March 11, Carrington needed more money. She had once cleaned a real estate office in Palo Alto. She had kept a key to the building. She got a ride from a neighbour to her destination. Carrington brought gloves, a screwdriver, and the same .357 magnum she had stolen.
When Carrington arrived, her key did not work. She scouted the building from the outside and saw two cars, and two janitors working in the building. She waited until the janitors left. Carrington used the screwdriver to force open the door.
Carrington wandered the facility looking for money, but found none. Then she saw real estate property manager Caroline Ann Gleason, who was still working. Carrington confronted Gleason. She said she did not want to kill Gleason, but got nervous. She pulled the trigger.
Carrington took $400 and some keys from Gleason’s desk. She located Gleason’s car, and found her ATM and PIN. Carrington drove Gleason’s car to a bank, but failed to get money. She was able to withdraw $200 from an ATM at a 7-Eleven store, and $100 from a different back. Carrington dropped the car off at a hospital parking lot and took a taxi home.
Gleason was the first murder in Palo Alto that year. She was 36.
Allan Marks, Survivor
- March 16, 1992
- Redwood City, California
Pediatrician Dr. Allan Marks, 35, survived an encounter with Carrington in Redwood City. On March 16, 1992, Carrington brought gloves and the .357 magnum revolver to a medical facility. The outside doors were not locked when she arrived at 5:30pm. She found out her key did not unlock any internal doors. Frustrated, Carrington waited for a few hours in a closet until she thought everyone had left the building.
When she left the closet, she saw Dr. Marks leaving his office after a late night appointment. She pulled out her gun and, according to Carrington, Dr. Marks “went crazy” and they struggled. He was shot twice, with the bullets tearing through his left thumb, left shoulder and right forearm. He retreated to his office and locked the door. Dr. Marks called 911. Carrington fled with some building access cards and prescription drugs.
Because he was a pediatrician, police could not immediately determine the woman’s motive.
Arrest & Trial
Carrington Arrested
- March 20, 1992
- East Palo Alto, California
On March 20, 1992, Carrington was arrested for 2 murders, an attempted murder and a number of burglaries. Police recovered a .357 handgun from her home. They also found evidence from all 4 crime scenes: keys to the dealership; the gun used to kill Esparza (and Gleason); Gleason’s purse and pager, her petty cash box and the key to the building; and a doctor’s drug kit taken from Marks’ medical building.
During police interviews, she confessed. In court, she pled not guilty. District Attorney James Fox told media his office would seek the death penalty. He said it was the first time the county had ever sought the death penalty for a woman.
Carrington Guilty of 2 Murders
- June 16, 1994
- San Mateo County, California
The jury found Carrington guilty of 14 different charges on June 16, 1994. This includes the murders of Esparza and Gleason and the attempted murder of Marks. They deliberated for one day. Her crimes included some actions which were considered “”special circumstances””. This includes murdering more than one person, and premeditation. Legally, these circumstances made her eligible for the death penalty.
On August 2, a jury recommended the death penalty. It took them only 2 1/2 hours.
Carrington Sentenced to Death
- November 23, 1994
- San Mateo County, California
On November 23, 1994, the judge confirmed Carrington’s death sentence. She became the 1st Northern California woman sentenced to death since 1941. She joined 5 other Southern California women on Death Row in Chowchilla prison.
Carrington’s Location
As of August 24, 2021, Celeste Simone Carrington was incarcerated at the Central California Women’s Facility.
SIMILAR SERIAL KILLERS
Robbin Monique Machuca
Machuca was also a Black woman killing people during robberies in the 1990s in America
Joseph Kallinger
Serial killer Kallinger was also born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Lemuel Warren Smith
Like Carrington, Smith worked as a janitor
BOOKS
Books including Celeste Simone Carrington
Women and Capital Punishment in the United States: An Analytical History by David V. Baker
Publisher : McFarland & Company; 1st edition (November 23, 2015)
Language : English
Paperback : 440 pages
ISBN-10 : 0786499508
ISBN-13 : 978-0786499502
Includes some discussion of Carrington’s crimes.
The history of the execution of women in the United States has largely been ignored and scholars have given scant attention to gender issues in capital punishment. This historical analysis examines the social, political and economic contexts in which the justice system has put women to death, revealing a pattern of patriarchal domination and female subordination.
The book includes a discussion of condemned women granted executive clemency and judicial commutations, an inquiry into women falsely convicted in potentially capital cases and a profile of the current female death row population.
Forensic Criminology by Wayne A. Petherick, Brent E. Turvey, Claire E. Ferguson
Publisher : Academic Press; 1st edition (August 31, 2009)
Language : English
Hardcover : 624 pages
ISBN-10 : 0123750717
ISBN-13 : 978-0123750716
Includes some discussion of Carrington’s crimes.
Forensic Criminology gives students of criminology and criminal justice an introduction to the forensic realm and the applied forensic issues they will face when working cases within the justice system. It effectively bridges the theoretical world of social criminology with the applied world of the criminal justice system.
While most of the competing textbooks on criminology adequately address the application and the social theory to the criminal justice system, the vast majority do not include casework or real-world issues that criminologists face. This book focuses on navigating casework in forensic contexts by case-working criminologists, rather than broad social theory. It also allows criminology/criminal justice instructors outside of the forensic sciences the ability to develop and instruct a core course that might otherwise be considered beyond their expertise, or in conflict with forensic courses taught in chemistry, biology, or medical programs at their institutions because of its focus on criminology and criminal justice careers.
With its practical approach, this textbook is well-suited for forensic criminology subjects being taught and developed in law, criminology, and criminal justice programs around the world.
VIDEO
Brief video including Celeste Simone Carrington
THE STATS
Celeste Simone Carrington in a Historical Timeline
Statistical table for Celeste Simone Carrington
| Killer Name | Carrington, Celeste Simone |
| Gender | F |
| Arrest Date | March 20, 1992 |
| Conviction Date | June 16, 1994 |
| Sentence | Death sentence |
| Birth Location | Philadelphia |
| Birth Date | , 1961 |
| Status | Alive or Unknown |
| Poor | Yes |
| Head Injury | a brain abnormality |
| Suffer Physical Abuse | Yes, including not being provided with food, beaten by both parents |
| Suffer Physical Abuse | Yes, including not being provided with food, beaten by both parents |
| Psychological Abuse | Yes, including being locked out of house |
| Sexual Abuse | Yes, by father between the ages of seven and 14 years |
| School Grade | community college |
| School Other | learning disorders |
| Fired | yes, for stealing checks |
| Job Types | janitor |
| Labour Type | Blue |
| sk_empl_status | Unemployed |
| Sexual Preference | Lesbian |
| Marital Status | Common Law |
| Number of Children | partner had 3 |
| Killer Type | Criminal Enterprise (drugs/robbery), Organized, Territorial |
| Psych Diagnosis | current and long- standing depression and bipolar disorder |
| comment1 | Allegedly attempted to escape from county jail. Carrington was going to use a plastic knife covered in tin foil (to make it look like metal). The inmate who was supposed to have provided this information later denied ever having met Carrington |
| Total Dead Victims | 2 |
| Victims (Convicted) | 2 |
| Victim Gender | Various |
| Victim Age | 36 |
| Victim Type | Strangers to be robbed |
| Method of Killing | Shot |
| Weapon | Gun |
| Gun Type | .357 magnum revolver |
| Robbery | Yes |
| Body - Left, Not Hidden | Yes |
Killer Rating
RESOURCES
- The Los Angeles Times (Apr 07, 1983)
- The San Francisco Examiner (Mar 14, 1992)
- The San Francisco Examiner (Mar 17, 1992)
- The San Francisco Examiner (Mar 22, 1992)
- The San Francisco Examiner (Dec 06, 1992)
- Santa Maria Times (Jun 17, 1994)
- The San Francisco Examiner (Aug 02, 1994)
- The Press Democrat (Nov 25, 1994)
- Santa Maria Times (Nov 26, 1994)
- Superior Court Appeal No. SC29739
E. Kelly Hemingway | Last updated August 25, 2021