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Big LURCH
Birth name: Antron Singleton
Classification: Murderer
Characteristics: Cannibal - Drugs - Rapper
Number of victims: 1
Date of murder:
April 10,
2002
Date of arrest:
Same day
Date of birth: 1975
Victim profile: Tynisha
Ysais,
21 (acquaintance)
Method of murder: Stabbing
with knife
Location: Los Angeles, California, USA
Status:
Sentenced to life in prison on November 7, 2003
Big Lurch
(born Antron Singleton c. 1975, in Fort Worth, TX, although some
sources say Compton, California) is a rap artist currently serving a
life sentence for murdering 21 year old female acquaintance Tynisha
Ysais and eating parts of her body in April 2002 while under the
influence of PCP.
During his music career, Singleton
worked with such Bay Area rappers as Too Short, Mac Dre, RBL Posse,
C-Bo, E-40, and New Orleans based Mystikal.
In April 2002, Singleton murdered
Tynisha Ysais in her apartment while under the influence of PCP. Her
boyfriend Thomas Moore testified that he and Singleton spent the evening
prior to the murder smoking PCP, also known as Angel Dust.
The victim was found in her apartment
by her friend Alisa Allen. Her chest had been torn open and a three-inch
blade was found broken off in her shoulder blade. Teeth marks were found
on her face and lungs, which had been torn from her chest.
Eyewitnesses
reported that when Singleton was picked up by police, he was naked in
the middle of the street, covered in blood and staring at the sky. A
medical examination performed shortly after his capture found human
flesh in his stomach which was not his own.
On November 7, 2003, he was sentenced
to life in prison. He had been convicted of murder and aggravated mayhem
the previous June after pleading not guilty by reason of insanity at the
time of the murder. The court ruled that his intoxication and plea of
insanity were not satisfactory reasons for committing the crime.
Antron Singleton (born September 15, 1976),
better known by his stage name Big Lurch, is an American rapper.
He is serving a life sentence for murdering 21-year-old female roommate
Tynisha Ysais and eating parts of her body while under the influence of
PCP in April 2002.
During his music career, Singleton worked with such
Bay Area rappers as Luni Coleone, Too Short, Mac Dre, RBL Posse, C-Bo,
E-40, Keak Da Sneak, Yukmouth, E-A-Ski and New Orleans-based rapper
Mystikal, TQ, DJ U-Neek, Texas' Lil Keke, and Big Bone. He was also a
member of the group Cosmic Slop Shop along with fellow members Doonie
Baby and Rick Rock.
Early life
Born in Fort Worth, Texas, Singleton grew up nearby
in east Dallas, Texas. At 7 years old, he began writing poetry. He
decided to pursue a career in rapping, and began performing in 1990.
Murder and lawsuit
On April 10, 2002, 25-year-old Singleton murdered
Tynisha Ysais in her Los Angeles, California, apartment. Her boyfriend
Thomas Moore testified that he and Singleton spent the evening prior to
the murder smoking PCP.
The victim was found in her apartment by her friend
Alisa Allen. Her chest had been torn open and a three-inch blade was
found broken off in her shoulder blade. Tooth marks were found on her
face and on her lungs, which had been torn from her chest. Eyewitnesses
reported that when Singleton was picked up by police, he was naked,
covered in blood, standing in the middle of the street and screaming at
the sky. A medical examination performed shortly after his capture found
human flesh in his stomach that was not his own.
On November 7, 2003, Singleton was sentenced to life
in prison. He had been convicted of murder and aggravated mayhem the
previous June after pleading not guilty by reason of insanity at the
time of the murder. The court ruled that his intoxication and claimed
insanity were not satisfactory reasons for committing the crime.
In 2004, Stress Free Ent. and Black Market Records
released a solo LP on behalf of Singleton, It's All Bad. Features
included Killa Tay, C-Bo, Lil Keke, Roger Troutman II and Too $hort.
Ysais' mother, Carolyn Stinson, filed a wrongful
death lawsuit against Black Market Records, Singleton's record label.
The label, in similar fashion, has put out albums for X-Raided while he
was awaiting trial and eventually convicted of murder (Xorcist,
Unforgiven, Vol. 1, etc.). The suit charged that the label had
provided Singleton with drugs "to encourage [him] to act out in an
extreme violent manner so as to make him more marketable as a 'gangsta
rap' artist." "Part of what makes a Gangsta Rap artist marketable is the
fact that the artist is a current ongoing participant in violent gang
activities," the lawsuit said.
He is currently serving his life sentence at
California State Prison, Los Angeles County in Lancaster, California. He
has spent the last 4 of 5 years in solitary confinement. He was recently
transferred to California State Prison, Sacramento (SAC).
Wikipedia.org
Hip-Hop News: Texas Rapper Big
Lurch Gets Life Sentence
Rap News Network
11/8/2003
Big Lurch aka Antron Singleton,
rapper from Texas was recently served with life sentence in prison. This
is due to the tearing open of 21 year old Tynisha Ysais' chest and
eating of her lung, brutally killing her her under the influence of PCP.
Lurch worked with of Bay Area rappers such as RBL Posse, C-Bo, E-40,
Luni Coleone, and also Mystikal,etc. Lurch had pled insanity for the
case but the judge was not having it.
Here is an old article from earlier in the year before the decision was
made, incase you aren't familiar with this story:
Big Lurch Faces Trial For Torture
and Murder
By Chuck "Jigsaw" Creekmur, BET.Com Staff Writer
Posted July 12, 2002-- Antron "Big
Lurch" Singleton, the rapper who was accused of cannibalism, is
preparing for pretrial hearings on July 18. The 27-year-old pleaded not
guilty in Los Angeles Superior Court on June 13 after being arrested for
the grisly murder of a 21-year-old South Central Los Angeles woman in
April.
The rapper, whose charge of murder
was amended to include torture, was also charged with one count of
aggravated mayhem and is currently being held without bail.
If convicted on the charges,
Singleton faces the death penalty or life in prison. The District
Attorney's office has not indicated whether or not they will seek the
death penalty for the rapper who, according to sources, killed Tynisha
Ysais, 21, in a PCP induced attack.
A detective's report said Ysais
was killed in her apartment. Further examination revealed tooth marks on
her face and lungs, which were torn from her chest.
A medical examination performed
soon after his capture found human flesh in Singleton's stomach that was
not his own.
Ysais was found in her apartment
with her chest torn open and a three-inch blade broken off in her
shoulder blade. The detective also said that her lungs appeared to be
chewed and torn.
Ysais' boyfriend also told police
that both he and the aspiring rapper used PCP the day before the alleged
murder took place.
Eyewitnesses said that, when he
was picked up by police, Singleton was naked in the middle of the street
covered in blood and staring at the sky.
A friend of Ysais', Alisa Allen,
then discovered Ysais laying dead in her apartment, which prompted her
to contact authorities.
As Big Lurch, Singleton has rapped
with popular rappers like Mystikal and E-40.
At the time of the murder, he was
reportedly working on a new album.
Rapper 'ate roommate'
April 14, 2003
An
aspiring rap star, who has been charged with murdering his roommate and
eating part of her lung, did so as part of his record label's plan to
cultivate a "gangsta" image for him, the victim's mother charged in a
lawsuit filed in Los Angeles.
Antron Singleton, a rapper who
goes by the stage name Big Lurch, faces murder and torture charges after
police found him staggering naked and covered in blood on a south-east
Los Angeles street on April 10 last year.
In a nearby apartment, police said
they found the mutilated body of Tynisha Ysais, 21, with teeth marks on
her face and on pieces of her lung, which had been torn from her chest.
A subsequent medical examination
showed Singleton had human blood and flesh in his stomach, police said
when they charged him.
Singleton, who would be
eligible for the death penalty if convicted, is still awaiting trial.
In a
wrongful death lawsuit filed just before the close of business on Friday
in Los Angeles Superior Court, Ysais's mother, Carolyn Stinson, claimed
that Singleton's record label had provided him with drugs "to encourage
(him) to act out in an extreme violent manner so as to make him more
marketable as a 'Gangsta Rap' artist."
The
lawsuit named Singleton, Death Row Records, headed by rap mogul Suge
Knight, Stress Free records and two employees as defendants.
A
representative of Death Row Records, now known as Tha Row, could not be
reached for comment.
David
Chesnoff, Knight's lawyer, said he had not seen the lawsuit and could
not comment.
Singleton, originally from Texas, had been in Los Angeles for a few
months recording a rap album prior to the death of Ysais.
"Part of
what makes a Gangsta Rap artist marketable is the fact that the artist
is a current ongoing participant in violent gang activities," the
lawsuit said.
"Singleton met this criterion and was even more marketable because his
songs were as violent as his lifestyle and included rape, murder and
ended with him eating his victim's body organs."
The
lawsuit alleges Singleton used a "sharp (object) to remove body organs"
from Ysais and eat them.
"These
acts were performed within the course and scope of his employment with
the other defendants," it added.
Stinson's
lawyer, Winston McKesson, of Beverly Hills, could not be reached for
comment.
