Anthony Shore: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

Anthony Allen Shore.

Convicted Texas serial killer Anthony Shore was set to die on Wednesday evening by lethal injection. Shore’s execution would have marked the seventh in the state of Texas this year, according to Fox News.

The 55-year-old was arrested in 2003 after he confessed to killing a 21-year-old woman by “twisting a nylon cord around her neck and tightening it with a piece of wood,” according to court documents obtained by Heavy. At the time of his arrest, he was on probation for sexually assaulting two relatives. Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg has described Shore as “a ‘true serial killer’ who terrorized young Hispanic females in the Houston area for years,” according to Fox.

Read on to learn more about Anthony Allen Shore.

1. He Was Granted a 90-Day Stay Hours Before His Execution

In 2004, jurors convicted Shore of capital murder. In trial, his lawyers told jurors that against their advice, Shore wanted it known that he wanted the death penalty, according to the Washington Post.

Shore was set to be executed Wednesday evening. Approximately three hours before his execution, he was granted a 90-day stay. Shore’s new execution date is set for January 18.

In appeals, Shore’s lawyers claimed that their client had suffered from brain damage early in life, which affected his decision about wanting to be sentenced to death. Fox News reports Knox Nunnally, one of his attorneys, as saying, “I would describe Anthony’s demeanor as that of any condemned man, that even though his life is severely altered by being in prison, especially on death row, he would rather have that than death.”

The appeal was turned down earlier this year. Two weeks ago, the Supreme Court refused to review the case.

According to Fox News, a judge withdrew the execution warrant on Wednesday after prosecutors said they wanted to further investigate “an alleged scheme in which Shore says another death row inmate asked him to confess to his crime.”

2. All His Victims Were Hispanic and Three Had Been Sexually Assaulted

In 2004, Shore was convicted of raping and strangling Maria del Carmen Estrada, then 21.

Estrada’s death had been unsolved for more than a decade, but authorities were alerted of Shore’s connection to the case when he submitted a DNA sample for an unrelated matter. While on trial for Estrada’s murder, he admitted to killing three other women from 1986 to 1995– one of his victims was just 9 years old. Court documents state, that Shore “confessed to committing four murders in which he attacked and sexually assaulted, or attempted to sexually assault his victims, an aggravated sexual assault that did not end in murder, and the sexual molestation of two children.” All of his victims were Hispanic, and three had been sexually assaulted.

Shore’s first murder occurred on September 26, 1986. Court documents reveal he killed 14 year old Laurie Tremblay during an attempted sexual assault. Shore, then 24, explained in trial that he had gotten to know Tremblay by giving her rides on a semi-regular basis. During one of those rides Shore unhooked Tremblay’s bra in an act of sexual aggression. Tremblay demanded he stop, and the two engaged in an argument. Shore then “hit Tremblay in the back of the head and then used a cotton cord to strangle her.” After strangling her to death, he placed her body behind a restaurant.

3. He Has Been Dubbed the ‘Tourniquet Killer’

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Shore has been dubbed the ‘Tourniquet Killer’ because of the way he strangled multiple victims.

According to his offender profile on the Texas Department of Criminal Justice website, the South Dakota native killed his first victim by strangling her to death with a cord and dumping her body behind a restaurant.

Court documents state that he “used a pair of shears to aid in his attempt to rape” his second victim. He then strangled her by twisting a nylon cord around her neck and tightening it with wood.

Shore bound his third victim’s hands together with an electrical cord and wrapped her head in duct tape. His fourth victim, Diana Rebollar, was just 9 when she was killed in August 1994. Shore had duct taped Rebollar’s hands and feed, and attacked her. Court documents reveal that Shore later admitted to strangling Rebollar with a rope with a bamboo stick attached to it.

4. He Was Born to Military Parents and Moved Often as a Kid

Shore was born in South Dakota to parents in the US Air Force. His mother, Deanna, was honorably discharged after becoming pregnant with him.

According to the Houston Press, Shore moved nine times before starting high school– from South Dakota to California, Florida, and then to Houston.

5. He Has Two Daughters

Shore had two daughters at the time of his arrest. His youngest, Tiffany, is 32. Tiffany has previously worked as a sheriff’s deputy and now works with the Air National Guard, according to Chron. Shore’s eldest daughter, Amber, hasn’t been heard from in years. Speaking to Chron recently, Tiffany said that although Amber hasn’t reached out, it’s unlikely she’ll attend their father’s funeral. “The final slap in the face for him would be to pretend that he’s not important enough. His own children think he’s insignificant.”

ABC Eyewitness News recently spoke to Gina Cook, one of Shore’s sisters, who said she believes her brother may have killed more than four people. “I believe that there is the possibility that there are many others. But he’ll never tell and we’ll never know.” Cook added on that she hoped the state would not give her brother a stay of execution. “I believe that his victims deserve the right to some closure. And I think it will help give them closure. I hope that whatever money has been made from his artwork and whatever goes to his victims.”

Gina informed ABC that Shore asked no family members be present.