Morris Solomon Jr. was born on March 15, 1944, in Albany, Georgia. He grew up in a difficult home environment. Solomon's upbringing was described as abusive by relatives and friends. He was primarily raised by his grandmother, Bertha. Bertha often beat Solomon and his brother for minor issues like bedwetting or mispronouncing words. There were times she hit them for no clear reason.

When Solomon was very young, Bertha used harsh punishments. She would lay him over her lap and hit him repeatedly. At times, she made him remove his clothing and stand on a stool in a corner, where she continued to beat him with different objects. Solomon was sometimes beaten until he bled. On one occasion, she tied his hands around a bedpost to prevent him from moving away during a beating.

For the first 13 years of his life, Solomon had little contact with his parents. He later reunited with them when his grandmother and the family moved to Isleton, a small town in California. This area had a small number of black families living in poor conditions. Solomon witnessed ongoing violence between his parents, including frequent fights and abuse. His mother was often described as having relationships with various men.

After finishing high school, Solomon attended community college and worked in several jobs like carpentry, car repair, and bus driving. He joined the army and served in Vietnam for one year, starting in the summer of 1966. After returning from Vietnam in the summer of 1967, he became engaged to a woman he had known before his service. When she ended their engagement, Solomon moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, where he married and had a daughter.

Morris Solomon Jr. was known for a series of murders that took place in California between June 1986 and April 1987. These murders primarily involved women who were often involved in drugs and sex work. The first victim was Yolanda Johnson, whose body was discovered on June 18, 1986. Following her, Angela Polidore was found on July 20, 1986.

The case began to gain attention as more bodies were found, all sharing similar circumstances. Maria Apodaca was discovered on March 19, 1987, and Cherie Washington was found shortly after on April 20, 1987. Just a couple of days later, the bodies of Linda Vitela and Sheila Jacox were unearthed. Both women had been dead for about a year. The last known victim was Sharon Massey, found on April 29, 1987, who had been dead for around six months.

The investigation commenced when Solomon reported Yolanda Johnson's body to the police, which raised suspicion about his true involvement. He provided his fingerprints and a blood sample but made inconsistent statements during questioning. When Apodaca's body was discovered, he again gave false information, claiming he was worried about some minor legal issues.

On April 20, 1987, police were granted permission to search Solomon's abandoned car, where they discovered a depressed area of soil. They excavated it and found Washington's body. Two days later, police recovered the bodies of Vitela and Jacox at a location linked to Solomon. Finally, Massey's body was found at the same site where Apodaca had been buried.

Throughout the investigation, several details indicated that the murders could be linked to Solomon. Witnesses reported Solomon had threatened to kill Johnson over stolen stereo equipment. It was also suggested that items found with the victims could be traced back to Solomon, including sheets and other materials from his residence.

As the trial unfolded, evidence against him was mainly circumstantial. Witnesses testified about his connections to the victims, and while DNA testing was not advanced at the time, a semen sample from one victim was found to match Solomon's blood. He was eventually convicted of six of the murders.

Solomon's first death penalty trial ended in a mistrial. However, a second jury voted to sentence him to death in 1992. He faced more scrutiny from survivors of his previous assaults who spoke about their experiences with him. Eventually, Solomon's sentence was upheld by the California Supreme Court.

He remained on death row until he died at the California Health Care Facility on August 1, 2024, at the age of 80.