Bio

Gregory Lynn Russeau was born on October 11, 1969, in Smith County, Texas. He grew up in a working-class family. He attended school and reached the 11th grade before leaving to pursue various jobs.

Russeau worked in different capacities, including as a barber, in kitchens, and as a laborer. By the age of 17, he had already been involved in criminal activities, which led to an arrest for attempted burglary.

In October 1988, Russeau was sentenced to ten years in prison for burglary of a habitation, engaging in organized criminal activity, and theft. He was released on parole after serving a portion of his sentence. Following his release, he faced several other legal issues and continued to accrue a history of crime, including arrests for theft and possession of a controlled substance.

By 2001, he was living in Tyler, Texas, where he committed a serious offense that would later lead to his arrest and trial. At the time of his arrest on October 15, 2002, he was 33 years old and had already built a criminal record that included multiple felonies, mainly related to property and theft.

Murder Story

On May 30, 2001, Gregory Russeau murdered James Syvertson, a 75-year-old auto mechanic, in Harris County, Texas. Russeau struck Syvertson multiple times in the head, resulting in his death. After the attack, Russeau took the victim's wallet and a vehicle from Syvertson's auto repair shop.

Russeau was arrested and charged with capital murder. During the trial, the evidence presented led the jury to find him guilty. On October 15, 2002, he was sentenced to death for the crime. The case went through various appeals, with issues raised about the evidence and past criminal record of Russeau.

In June 2005, a court affirmed the conviction but reversed the punishment, requiring a new sentencing hearing. This second hearing took place in April 2007, where again, the jury assessed Russeau's punishment at death. The court acknowledged numerous prior offenses in determining his future dangerousness.

Russeau's criminal history at the time of the murder included multiple burglaries and thefts. During the hearings, psychiatric evaluations indicated that Russeau presented a potential future threat. Despite his defense attempts to question the sufficiency of evidence and the nature of the punishment, the courts affirmed the decision, upholding the death sentence.

Gregory Lynn Russeau was executed on June 18, 2015, in Texas for the 2001 murder of 75-year-old auto mechanic James Syvertson.