John Fautenberry was born on July 4, 1963, in New London, Connecticut. His father was a former Marine and police officer. After John's sister was born, his parents got divorced. His father and grandparents didn't want him, so John went to live with his mother. She got married two more times. John's stepfathers ignored him and often beat him for small mistakes. Once, he got beaten for confusing potato salad with tomato salad. To feel safe, John would pretend to nail his and his sister’s blankets to their beds with an imaginary hammer.

John's family moved a lot, living in places like Ohio and Hawaii before moving to North Kingstown, Rhode Island, in 1983. By this time, John had already been in trouble with the law. He stole a 1968 Chrysler in Atlanta but got caught in Heflin, Alabama, after leaving a gas station without paying for gas.

In 1985, John's mother died of cancer. This made John even more upset and distrustful of people. He started using drugs and alcohol more. To make money, he took several short-term jobs as a long-haul trucker, traveling all over the United States. But he often got fired for doing a bad job. Before he started committing murders, he got in trouble for minor crimes, like carrying a hidden weapon in Ohio and causing a public disturbance in Ledyard, Connecticut.

In 1986, John moved to Portland, Oregon, with his father's help. Soon after, his father moved out, taking John's two half-brothers to southern Oregon. John then began an affair with his stepmother, Olivia Herndon. This led to John Sr. and Olivia getting divorced. John and Olivia stayed together for nearly 15 years, even though they never got married. They were still together even while John was in prison.

John Fautenberry's first known victim was 47-year-old Donald 'Don' Nutley from Waco, Texas. They met in November 1990 at a truck stop in Troutdale, Oregon. Nutley mentioned he was going to Mount Hood for target practice, and Fautenberry offered to join him. Don agreed, and they traveled to the area together. Nutley then disappeared. His remains, including his teeth and skull with a bullet hole, were found on April 21, 1991, in a wooded area near Zigzag, Oregon.

On February 1, 1991, Fautenberry met 27-year-old trucker Gary Farmer from Springfield, Tennessee, at a truck stop in Bloomsbury, New Jersey. According to Fautenberry, Farmer made unwanted advances, which led to Fautenberry killing him. He took Farmer's knife, watch, and $40, leaving his body in the truck. Farmer's body was found on February 5, and after identifying him, authorities released a sketch of the suspect.

Sixteen days later, 45-year-old Joseph Daron Jr., a data supervisor from Miami Township, Ohio, went missing after dropping off his daughters. His coworker reported him missing, and soon after, his car was seen in Portland, Oregon, and Idaho. Fautenberry used Daron's credit cards 25 times. On March 20, Daron’s body was found near River Downs in Anderson Township. Fautenberry had posed as a hitchhiker, and after Daron picked him up, he killed and robbed him.

Fautenberry drove Daron’s car to Portland and met 32-year-old bank teller Christine Anne Guthrie at a party on February 23. They went to the Silver Sands Motel in Rockaway Beach, and Guthrie disappeared. Her body was found on April 1 near Timber, Oregon, with gunshot wounds to her head.

Fautenberry then drove to the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, leaving Daron's car in the parking lot. He bought a one-way ticket to Juneau, Alaska, and started working on a fishing boat. On March 14, he met 39-year-old miner Jefferson "Jeff" Diffee at a bar. Diffee invited him to his condo, where Fautenberry beat and stabbed him 17-18 times, stealing his wallet, ATM card, and handgun. The next day, Fautenberry withdrew $400 from Diffee's account, which was noticed by the authorities. Diffee’s coworkers reported him missing when he didn't show up for work.

Three days after killing Diffee, Fautenberry, who was being watched because of his connection to Daron's stolen car, was arrested at his hotel room in Juneau. Diffee’s bank card was found in his room. During questioning, Fautenberry confessed to six murders, including the 1984 stabbing of 25-year-old homeless man Richard F. Combs in Roseburg, Oregon. However, another man was already serving time for that crime. Despite investigating, the authorities didn’t charge Fautenberry for Combs' death.

Fautenberry was also considered a suspect in other murders but was cleared. In a phone interview with WKRC-TV, he confessed to four murders, and then attempted suicide by cutting his wrist but was saved. Newspapers compared him to other serial killers, though Fautenberry denied being one, claiming he killed for money, not for pleasure.

Initially held at the Lemon Creek Correctional Center on a $1 million bail, which later increased to $3 million, Fautenberry was charged with the murders of Diffee, Farmer, and Daron. He first stood trial in Alaska and pleaded guilty to killing Diffee, receiving a 99-year prison term. He was then extradited to Ohio, sentenced to death for Daron's murder, and sent to the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility. In September, he was extradited to New Jersey, pleaded guilty to murdering Farmer, and received a life sentence.

After his death sentence in Ohio, Fautenberry filed several appeals, all of which were denied. By 2008, he had exhausted all his appeals, and prosecutor Joe Deters requested his execution. Fautenberry’s bids for parole were denied due to protests from victims' families.

On July 14, 2009, Fautenberry was executed by lethal injection at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility, two hours after the Supreme Court denied a final request to delay the procedure.