Mary Vincent (artist)

Mary McGriff (née Vincent; born 1963) is an artist and victims' advocate.[1] She became known to the public after surviving a violent attack in which her arms were cut off while hitchhiking in 1978.[2] McGriff has focused her adult life on her art,[3] and she generally avoids the public spotlight.

Early life

Vincent is one of seven children[2] and lived with her parents in Las Vegas. Her father worked as a mechanic and married her mother, a blackjack dealer, while serving in the military.[2] Vincent's parents were going through a messy divorce which caused her to run away from their home in Las Vegas. After a brief period living on the streets and inside unlocked cars, Vincent hitchhiked to her grandfather's home in Berkeley, California in September 1978.[3]

Attack

After arriving in California and staying with her grandfather for a while, Vincent became homesick and decided to hitchhike back to Las Vegas. While hitchhiking, Vincent grew tired and started flagging drivers down for a ride, eventually coming upon Lawrence Singleton, who let her into his vehicle. During the ride, Vincent grew suspicious of Singleton when he began purposely driving the wrong way and eventually attempted to escape, but Singleton knocked her unconscious with a sledgehammer before she could get away. When she regained consciousness, Singleton tied her up and violently raped her, then proceeded to chop both of her forearms off with a hatchet. He then threw her down a cliff and drove off, leaving her for dead.[4] Vincent managed to survive the fall and climb back up the cliff despite having lost her hands, and proceeded to dip the stumps of her forearms in mud and hold them up to slow the bleeding.[2] She then went on to flag down drivers for help, and after trudging along Interstate 5 for nearly three miles, she was able to get the attention of a couple who helped her get medical attention.[5]

Aftermath and recovery

In the hospital, Vincent immediately worked with police to help identify and find her attacker, insisting on postponing sleep to finish creating a composite sketch for investigators.[2] She also testified in Singleton's trial, leading to his ultimate conviction.[6] Vincent won a civil judgment against her attacker and was awarded $2.56 million, but did not receive the payment due to her attacker's unemployment and inability to pay.[7] Also, according to Vincent, when she walked by Singleton in the courtroom, he surreptitiously told her that he promised to "finish her off" when he was released from prison.[8]

Singleton was freed from prison in 1987 after serving eight years of his fourteen-year sentence, despite massive public protests against his release. He moved back to Florida, where in 1997 he murdered a mother of three in Sulphur Springs, Florida. Vincent testified against Singleton during his subsequent murder trial in 1998, and he was sentenced to death; before he could be executed, Singleton died on death row in 2001 from natural causes.

Adult life

Vincent began using prosthetic arms within two weeks after the attack.[2] As someone who likes to "tinker", Vincent has used spare parts from broken-down electronics to modify her prosthetics into custom designs.[3] Among the changes in her life after the attack, she began a career in art. As an adult, Vincent attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She married and subsequently divorced a man named Tom, and has two sons.[9] She currently lives in Vaughn, Washington, with her husband Tony McGriff.[10]

Advocacy

After her attacker was released from prison and attacked and murdered a woman, Vincent volunteered to testify against him again at his trial.[9] She spoke openly about finding healing by becoming a victims' advocate in support of victims' rights[1] and delivers motivational speeches.[11]

Art

Vincent works with chalk pastels to create "powerfully upbeat women" like "female action figures".[3] She also draws family and individual portraits on commission.[3] Her customized prosthetics are also self-creations, including a custom prosthetic for bowling.[3]

References
  1. Kallas, Anne (May 1, 2009). "Crime Survivor Speaks". Ventura County Star. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  2. Jacobs, John (October 11, 1978). "Mary faces her future with horror and hope". The San Francisco Examiner.
  3. Hackett, Regina HACKETT (January 30, 2003). "A victim, a survivor, an artist". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Photos by Ron Wurzer. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  4. "A Victim's Life Sentence". PEOPLE. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  5. "- YouTube". YouTube.
  6. Clary, Mike (February 25, 1998). "Court Summons Brutal Memory of Killer". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  7. Associated Press (September 28, 1988). "Rape Victim Gives Up on Collecting Award". The New York Times. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  8. "- YouTube". YouTube.
  9. "Left for Dead - Mary Vincent". Morbidology. January 2, 2018. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  10. "The Heart of a Survivor: Blood, Courage, Triumph". Key Peninsula News. January 2, 2018. Retrieved May 31, 2023.
  11. Myrtil, Bianca (December 13, 2020). "True Crime: How Mary Vincent fought the odds to catch her attacker". Film Daily. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
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