Dateline NBC - Where Is Gloria Pointer’s murderer Hernandez Warren now?

Hernandez Warren, a 68-year-old Cleveland resident, was convicted of the brutal murder and s*xual assault of 14-year-old Harry E. Davis Junior High student, Gloria Pointer, in May 2014. The 1984 murder of Pointer had turned cold over the years due to a lack of technological advancements, until a DNA match in 2013 linked the convicted r*pist to Pointer's murder.

Disclaimer: This article contains disturbing details about s*xual assault and murder. Readers' discretion is advised.

Warren lived in the same neighborhood as Gloria Pointer and allegedly followed her on her way to school on December 6, 1984, before he s*xually assaulted, pushed her down the stairs, and beat her to death with a 45-inch piece of angle iron. She was left partially clothed at the bottom of the stairwell of an East 105th Street apartment.

The Dateline NBC episode, titled A Promise to Gloria, explores the arrest and conviction of Hernandez Warren, 30 years after his crime in 1984. The episode airs on January 5, 2024, at 10 pm EST.

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Who is Hernandez Warren and why did he murder Gloria Pointer? Details explored

Gloria Evett Pointer was a student of Harry E. Davis Junior High School when she was found murdered under mysterious circumstances. She was on her way to school on the morning of December 6, 1984, when she was allegedly stalked by a black man in a brown coat and knit cap.

Per witness reports, the two were spotted walking down Orville Avenue when the man grabbed Gloria's arm. They disappeared around 10515 Orville Avenue and Gloria's body was found almost three hours later at the bottom of a fire escape stairwell of a East 105th Street apartment by the building custodian.

The Cleveland, Ohio student was considered missing from the moment she failed to turn up to school. While the news of her murder was quick to arrive, the investigation turned cold owing to a lack of physical evidence and technological advancements in the era.

However, the Gloria Pointer murder case was reopened in 2013 leading to Hernandez Warren's arrest through a DNA match on May 13, 2013. He was a resident of Gloria's neighborhood and was a convicted r*pist. Hernandez had spent 16 years in prison for assault and r*pe during a 1985 burglary.

Hernandez had s*xually assaulted Pointer and was about to leave, when he found her following him out. He then pushed her down the stairs and allegedly used a 45-inch piece of angle iron that weighed approximately 8 pounds as the murder weapon to beat Gloria to death. Warren shared with the detectives on May 14, 2013:

"I killed her, but why and how, I don't know."

In another interview with Cleveland police Detective Lem Griffin, Hernandez Warren shared:

"I'm a punk. I ain't got no heart ... I deserve to die. I've been thinking about this since I got out of the joint.''

According to Cleveland.com, the partial profile of the primary suspect in Pointer's murder had been identified earlier but it was not entered into databases that would link criminals to crimes.

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Where is Hernandez Warren now?

Following his arrest, Hernandez Warren confessed to his crimes and pleaded guilty to the murder and r*pe of Gloria Pointer in May 2014. He was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 30 years as part of his plea deal. He was initially faced with the death penalty if found guilty.

Per the Ohio Department of Corrections, Hernandez Warren is presently incarcerated at the Southeastern Correctional Institution.