12 Desperate Hours: Where is Gary Lee Quinlivan now?

Lifetime's upcoming film, 12 Desperate Hours, will premiere on Saturday, February 25, 2023, bringing to light the story of Gary Lee Quinlivan. The film is loosely based on the exploits of Gary.

The new thriller from Lifetime stars Samantha Mathis as a mother who is forced to chauffeur around an armed man on his quest to cause an uninvited rampage.

As dark as it sounds, this story is adapted from Rule's anthology Last Dance, Last Chance and Other True Cases: Crime Files Vol. 8. It is based on the true accounts of a murderer named Gary Lee Quinlivan.

The synopsis for the film reads:

"Val, a mother finds herself and her young children held hostage by Denny (Harrison Thomas) when he forces his way into her house after committing murder earlier that day."

It continues to say that to save the kids and her husband Mark, played by David Conrad, who will be home soon, Val offers to drive Denny where he wants. The synopsis adds that in doing so, she "becomes his unwilling accomplice as he goes on a rampage of destruction."

Gary Lee Quinlivan had a complicated history in law enforcement, with accounts stating that he served prison time but was paroled out to King County in 1985. He reportedly lived outside after this and died in 2011.

---

12 Desperate Hours: Who was Gary Lee Quinlivan, and what did he do?

Gary Lee Quinlivan's story started with heartbreak as his girlfriend, Joan Marlatt, dumped him. He went on to continually try to reach her before having an altercation with her mother. According to reports, Marlatt's mother was found dead by strangulation the next morning.

He reportedly asked his friend Fritz Donahue to drive him to Marlatt's place but claimed that he accidentally shot him as he slipped in the mud. He ran into the woods and emerged outside the home of Patricia Jean Jaque. He made her chauffeur him to Tacoma, but the two were apprehended along the way.

Quinlivan was charged with murder in the second degree, murder in the first degree, and kidnapping in the first degree. However, entered a special plea of not guilty by reason of insanity. This saga continued for quite some time, with a conviction overturned in 1972.

He was finally sentenced to two lifetimes in his retrial in 1973, according to reports. He was, however, eligible for parole. According to Distractify, Quinlivan was paroled out to King County in 1985.

He was most likely under supervision for six more years. The same source also claims that Quinlivan passed away on August 21, 2011, in Renton, Washington, at the age of 77.

---

12 Desperate Hours will contain a fictional account of the events. However, it is most likely going to follow Gary Lee Quinlivan's story as it is the closest recorded case like the one in the film.

Speaking about the story, the film's Gina Gershon said:

"It moved me... I’m just so sick of looking at the paper and reading about another mass shooting. I’m so disheartened to feel like these kids go to school and they may never get out of school. It’s just horrible, we’ve failed as a society in America and it’s just not getting better."

While Quinlivan's tale is not widely known among the general public at the time of the occurrence, it sent shockwaves through the country. This case dates back to 1963. The events of this crime merely lasted a day, but it still remains one of the more important cases for true-crime fanatics.

12 Desperate Hours will premiere on February 25, 2023, at 8 pm ET on Lifetime.