Dayton Daily News
CLEVELAND — A drawing showing 11 tombstones and credited to Cleveland serial killer Anthony Sowell is for sale again - after disappearing from a website that peddles so-called “murderabilia.”
A letter posted along with the pencil drawing on serialkillersink.net states that the condemned inmate will continue sending artwork to the website, but contends he does not profit from sales.
“Frist (sic) let me say that I give out artwork to you and others all the time,” the letter states. “I’m not breaking any laws and I will keep on sending out letters, artwork, and photo’s (sic). I’m not being paid for them, they have nothing to do with my case and what ever people do with them is up to them.”
The letter, addressed to Serial Killers Ink owner Eric Gein, goes on to state that Sowell provides the artwork to increase the website’s notoriety and expects to use the site in the future as a place to air his grievances.
The drawing of the tombstones created a stir weeks ago, when listed for sale at $175 on Serial Killers Ink. The drawing is now posted along with other items, including photos billed as images of Sowell as a baby. The drawing is listed at $225 and “out of stock. “
The 11 tombstones presumably represent Sowell’s victims.
A jury found Sowell, 53, guilty last year of murdering 11 women whose remains were found inside and outside his home on Imperial Avenue in Cleveland.
Robin Knab, a regional director with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, said last month that prison policy allows inmates to create art and send it to family and friends, but not to profit from the creations.
Local attorney Ian Friedman said at the time that Ohio laws do not necessarily prevent a third party from profiting from an inmate’s art.
Serial Killers Ink is one of several websites that sell collectibles associated with heinous criminals, according to Andy Kahan, a victims’ advocate in Texas who coined the phrase “murderabilia” to describe the industry.
Kahan suggested that Gein removed the tombstone drawing and other works listed as Sow-ell creations to keep the inmate from getting in trouble with prison officials.
Gein denied the claim in an email to The Plain Dealer on Nov. 11. He stated that he did not remove the items from the website. Instead, he said, the items disappeared because of a database crash and were back up later that day.
“We have nothing to hide and certainly wouldn’t purposely remove profitable items from our site,” he said.
Kahan said he monitors Serial Killers Ink daily and the Sow-ell items did not return until late last week.
When The Plain Dealer first reported on the tombstone drawing on Oct. 30, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Tim McGinty stated that prisons should “severely restrict” murderers’ access to the public and that any money they receive as a result of their notoriety should go toward restitution owed victims’ families.
Kahan said Gein appears to have “some sort of working relationship with Sowell.” Art-producing inmates are sometimes compensated in noncash ways, including subscriptions to magazines, he added.
Kahan said the Ohio prison system needs to become more “pro-active” in making sure Sowell is not benefiting from the sale of art.
“This is a definite slap in the face to the victims’ families,” he said.
Copyright 2012 Dayton Newspapers, Inc.