Joseph Mitchell Parsons

Who is Joseph Mitchell Parsons?

Joseph Mitchell "Yogi" Parsons was an American who was executed for the August 1987 murder of Richard Lynn Ernest. Parsons hitched a ride with Ernest in California and stabbed him to death at a remote rest area in Utah. After assuming Ernest's identity, Parsons continued to insist that he was Ernest when he was later arrested.

Parsons, who called himself the "Rainbow Warrior", pleaded guilty to the murder. During his sentencing hearing, Parsons said that he killed Ernest to fend off a homosexual advance, but was unable to present any evidence to support this claim in his defense. The jury sentenced him to death. In 1999, Parsons stated that "it's time to move on" and dropped his appeals, allowing his execution to proceed. Discussion was later raised whether "Rainbow Warrior" was a reference to homosexuality or Parsons' favorite auto racing team.

Parsons chose to die by lethal injection, avoiding the publicity that John Albert Taylor, the previous prisoner to be executed in Utah, sought by selecting the firing squad. Parsons shunned attention and described himself as "Utah's forgotten inmate".