A 15-year-old girl survived a horrific attack by a serial killer in California in 1978, demonstrating remarkable resilience and strength in the face of unimaginable violence. Mary Vincent was hitchhiking to her grandfather’s home when she encountered 51-year-old Lawrence Singleton, who offered her a ride. What began as a glimmer of hope quickly turned into a nightmare.
Singleton drove Mary off the highway to an isolated area, where he assaulted her for hours. He brutally severed both of her arms, leaving her for dead in a ravine. In her desperate fight for survival, Mary filled her wounds with dirt to stem the bleeding and managed to crawl out of the 30-foot drop.
“I can’t go to sleep,” she recalled, remembering the voice in her head urging her to survive. In a state of shock and pain, she flagged down a passing vehicle, leading to her rescue. A court document obtained by UPI noted that she was found naked, holding up her arms to prevent her muscles and blood from falling out.
Mary was taken to a local hospital, where she helped create a forensic sketch of her attacker. This led to the identification and capture of Singleton, who was later convicted of attempted murder, mayhem, kidnapping, and multiple counts of sexual assault. During the trial, Mary pointed to Singleton with her prosthetic arm, declaring,
“I was attacked. I was raped and my hands were cut off. He used a hatchet… He left me to die.”
Despite the severity of his crimes, Singleton received a relatively lenient sentence of 14 years but was released after serving only eight years. This early release sparked public outrage throughout California. Many residents protested his freedom, leading to Singleton being placed in a trailer on San Quentin prison property as no community would accept him.
Tragically, Singleton’s release allowed him to commit another violent crime. In 1997, he murdered 31-year-old Roxanne Hayes in Tampa, Florida. He was sentenced to death but died of cancer in 2001 while still incarcerated. Mary expressed her devastation over his release, stating, “It had to happen again before anyone realized he shouldn’t have been released in the first place.”
Years of nightmares followed Mary, but she has since emerged as a powerful advocate for criminal justice reform. Her story played a pivotal role in California’s legislation aimed at increasing penalties for crimes similar to Singleton’s, commonly referred to as the “Singleton bill.”
Now living in Washington with her husband and two grown children, Mary has found healing through art. She creates powerful images of strong women and designs prosthetic devices for sports and recreational activities, utilizing materials salvaged from old radios and appliances. Her journey from victim to survivor exemplifies the strength of the human spirit in overcoming adversity and advocating for change.