Louis Gaskin
American murderer (1967–2023)
Louis Bernard Gaskin (March 11, 1967 – April 12, 2023) was an American serial killer who was executed in Florida for the 1989 murders of Robert and Georgette Sturmfels in Palm Coast. He was also convicted of the attempted murders of Joseph and Mary Rector, and the murder of Charles Martin Miller in 1986. He was popularly known as the Ninja Killer because he dressed in a full black ninja outfit to avoid identification. He was executed on April 12, 2023, at the age of 56.
Murders
On the night of December 20, 1989, Gaskin walked up to the Palm Coast home (at the time, unincorporated Flagler County) of 56-year-old Robert and 55-year-old Georgette Sturmfels with a .22 caliber rifle and wearing a complete black ninja outfit to avoid identification. Gaskin circled the home to the back window, where Robert was sitting in a recliner, and Georgette sat on the sofa. Gaskin fired his gun, shooting Robert five times, killing him, and shooting Georgette once. Georgette was still alive after the first shot, so Gaskin reloaded his gun and shot Georgette in the head, killing her.
A few hours later, Gaskin drove up to the home of Joseph and Mary Rector. As the Rectors watched television, Gaskin fired his rifle into the home, hitting Joseph.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Louis Gaskin” is american murderer (1967–2023). The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Louis, Gaskin and American, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “american murderer (1967–2023)” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 8, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q108434589. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1967, 2023, 1989 and 1986.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Louis Gaskin”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Louis Gaskin primary sources, Louis Gaskin archive and Louis research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Louis Gaskin”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Louis Gaskin” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.