Antron Singleton (born September 15, 1976), better known by his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Big Lurch, is a convicted murderer, cannibal and former rapper. He is serving a life sentence for murdering 21-year-old roommate Tynisha Ysais and eating parts of her body in April 2002. He was a member of the group

Cosmic Slop Shop Cosmic Slop Shop was an American hip hop group from Oakland, California. The group was composed of Antron "Big Lurch" Singleton, Marvin "Doonie Baby" Selmon and Ricardo "Rick Rock" Thomas. Their single "Sinful" from their only studio album '' ...

Biography

Born in Dallas, Texas, Singleton grew up nearby in

East Dallas East Dallas, also referred to by the East Dallas Chamber of Commerce as the Lake & Garden District, is an expansive area of numerous communities and neighborhoods in Dallas, Texas ( United States) that border nearby suburban cities to the ea ...

, Texas.

Murder and lawsuit

On April 10, 2002, 24-year-old Singleton murdered his 21-year-old roommate Tynisha Ysais in the apartment he shared with her and her boyfriend in Los Angeles, California. The victim was found in her apartment at night by a friend. Her chest had been torn open and a three-inch blade was found broken off in her scapula. Teeth marks were found on her face and on her lungs, which had been torn from her chest. The friend testified that Singleton was naked and covered in blood, standing on the street and staring at the sky. A medical examination performed shortly after his capture found human flesh in his stomach that was not his own. The victim's boyfriend said he and the aspiring rapper used PCP the day before the murder took place. On November 7, 2003, Singleton was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He had been convicted of

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

and aggravated mayhem the previous June after pleading not guilty by reason of insanity at the time of the murder. The defense argued that Singleton was in a psychotic state due to his use of PCP the night before the murder. The court ruled that his intoxication and claimed insanity were not satisfactory reasons for committing the crime. The district attorney argued that drug use can not be used as grounds for an insanity plea in California, and the judge agreed. Ysais' mother filed a wrongful death lawsuit in 2003 against Singleton, his bodyguard, Stress Free Records,

Death Row Records Death Row Records is an American record label that was founded in 1991 by The D.O.C., Dr. Dre, Suge Knight, and Dick Griffey. The label became a sensation by releasing multi-platinum hip-hop albums by West Coast-based artists such as Dr. Dre ('' ...

, and Ysais' boyfriend. The suit charged that the labels had provided Singleton with drugs "to encourage imto act out in an extreme violent manner so as to make him more marketable as a '

gangsta rap Gangsta rap or gangster rap, initially called reality rap, emerged in the mid- to late 1980s as a controversial hip-hop subgenre whose lyrics assert the culture and values typical of American street gangs and street hustlers. Many gangsta rappe ...

' artist." "Part of what makes a Gangsta Rap artist marketable is the fact that the artist is a participant in violent activities," the lawsuit claimed. Death Row protested it had no connection to Singleton and was dropped from the lawsuit. He was interviewed for the 2011 documentary ''Rhyme and Punishment''. His was one of two stories of drug-intoxicated cannibalism depicted in a 2013 television pilot. Singleton is currently incarcerated at California Health Care Facility in

Stockton, California Stockton is a city in and the county seat of San Joaquin County, California, San Joaquin County in the Central Valley (California), Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. Stockton was founded by Carlos Maria Weber in 1849 after he acquir ...

.CDCR Inmate Locator
(09/30/2020)

Discography

*''It's All Bad'' (2004) *''Da Family'' (with

) (1998)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Big Lurch 1976 births 2002 murders in the United States Living people African-American male rappers American male rappers American cannibals American people convicted of murder American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment People convicted of murder by California People from Dallas Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by California 21st-century American criminals Horrorcore artists Rappers from Dallas Southern hip hop musicians Gangsta rappers 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American musicians