Marvin Charles Gabrion

Rachel Timmerman and her daughter, Shannon, who was never found

By Judy Reed

Marvin Charles Gabrion, convicted in the 1997 slaying of Rachel Timmerman, of Cedar Springs, and sentenced to death, will not get an “emergency” psychiatric review to determine his mental functioning.

Gabrion’s attorneys sought the order as part of a claim to show Gabrion’s trial lawyers were not up to standards. They also questioned whether he was “even competent to be executed.”

U.S. Judge Robert Holmes Bell rejected the request. “The Court is reticent to enter an order allowing an expert to evaluate Defendant without some showing that such an examination is necessary,” wrote Bell. “Defendant has not provided an affidavit indicating circumstances that warrant further inquiry.”

U.S. Attorney Timothy Verhey wrote that there is no emergency in this case, and that there is no basis for a fourth mental assessment. Gabrion has been evaluated three times previously, and found competent.

Gabrion is on death row at a federal penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana.

Although Michigan does not have the death penalty, Gabrion was sentenced to death by lethal injection, because Rachel’s body was found on federal land, in the Manistee National Forest.

Prosecutors believe Gabrion murdered Rachel to keep her from testifying that he raped her the previous fall. The rape trial was set to begin within days of her disappearance.

Rachel disappeared from her father’s house in Cedar Springs in June 1997. She had told her father she was going on a date with a man named John Weeks, who had been calling her. He asked her to bring her 11-month-old baby, Shannon, along with her. Weeks was reportedly calling Rachel at the request of Gabrion.

Her body was found in Oxford Lake, in Newayo County, weighted down by cinder blocks, on July 5, 1997. Her daughter, Shannon, was never found. Gabrion reportedly told inmates that he killed the baby, too.

Gabrion is suspected of killing at least three other people—including John Weeks, who disappeared shortly after the crime and was never seen again.

Rachel’s father, L.C. (Tim) Timmerman and his brother, John, have written a book that tells the story of Rachel and Shannon’s disappearance and Gabrion’s subsequent arrest called The Color of Night. The book can be found on Amazon in both hard cover and as a kindle e-book.

Marvin Charles Gabrion II

The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals handed down a decision last week affirming the death penalty for Marvin Charles Gabrion II, convicted in 2002 in the 1997 kidnapping and drowning death of 19-year-old Rachel Timmerman, of Cedar Springs.

The Court upheld the conviction and sentencing 12-4.

Although Michigan does not have the death penalty, Gabrion was sentenced to death by lethal injection, because Rachel’s body was found on federal land, in the Manistee National Forest.

Prosecutors believe Gabrion murdered Rachel to keep her from testifying that he raped her the previous fall. The rape trial was set to begin within days of her disappearance.

Rachel Timmerman and her daughter Shannon.

Rachel disappeared from her father’s house in Cedar Springs in June 1997. She had told her father she was going on a date with a man named John Weeks, who had been calling her. He asked her to bring her 11-month-old baby, Shannon, along with her. Weeks was reportedly calling Rachel at the request of Gabrion.

Her body was found in Oxford Lake, in Newayo County, weighted down by cinder blocks, on July 5, 1997. Her daughter, Shannon, was never found. Gabrion reportedly told inmates that he killed the baby, too.

Gabrion is suspected of killing at least three other people—including John Weeks, who disappeared shortly after the crime and was never seen again.

Rachel’s father, L.C. (Tim) Timmerman and his brother John have written a book that tells the story of Rachel and Shannon’s disappearance and Gabrion’s subsequent arrest called The Color of Night. The book can be bought at Schulers, or ordered from either Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

One of Gabrion’s arguments in his appeal was that his lawyers were not allowed to tell the jury that if Gabrion had been tried in state court, he would only face a life sentence instead of a death penalty. But the court said Michigan’s lack of that punishment was not a mitigating factor to argue in a death penalty case.

Gabrion also argued that the court was biased in favor of pro-death penalty jurors. However, Gabrion did not object to any of the jurors that sat on the case.

For a complete account of the Court of Appeals decision and facts in the case, click link below…

Gabrion Court of Appeals opinion.pdf

Marvin Gabrion

Rachel Timmerman and daughter Shannon

The man found guilty of killing a Cedar Springs woman may not escape his death sentence after all.
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals threw out the decision that one of their three-judge panels made in August, when they overturned the death sentence for Marvin Gabrion, 57.
Gabrion was convicted in 2002 for the 1997 kidnapping and drowning death of Rachel Timmerman, 19, of Cedar Springs. Although Michigan does not have the death penalty, Gabrion was sentenced to death by lethal injection, because Rachel’s body was found on federal land, in the Manistee National Forest.
In August, a three-judge federal appeals panel upheld his conviction but overturned the death penalty on the grounds that the trial judge, Robert Holmes Bell, should have allowed lawyers to tell the jury during the sentencing phase in 2002 that Gabrion would not have faced death if he had been tried in a state court.
However, a majority of the 16 judges on the Sixth Circuit of Appeals threw out that decision last week. The full court will now revisit the sentencing phase of the trial.
Rachel disappeared from her father’s house in Cedar Springs in June 1997. Her body was found in Oxford Lake, in Newayo County, weighted down by cinder blocks, on July 5, 1997. Prosecutors believe Gabrion murdered Rachel to keep her from testifying that he raped her the previous fall. The rape trial was set to begin within days of her disappearance. Her daughter, Shannon, who was 11 months old at the time, also disappeared, and was never found.
Rachel’s father, L.C. (Tim) Timmerman and his brother John have written a book that tells the story of Rachel and Shannon’s disappearance and Gabrion’s subsequent arrest called “The Color of Night.” The book can be bought at Schulers, or ordered from either Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

Book signing at Schuler Books on 28th Street Feb. 8 at 7 p.m.

By Judy Reed

A young mother. A missing child. A cold-blooded killer. They sound like characters in the latest crime thriller. They are—the difference is that they are real live people, and the victims are from Cedar Springs.
The Color of Night, by L.C. (Tim) Timmerman, and his brother John, tells the shocking story of Tim’s 19-year-old daughter, Rachel, and her baby, Shannon VerHage. Rachel and her 11-month-old daughter Shannon disappeared on June 3, 1997, when an unidentified man picked them up at her father’s home in Cedar Springs. She told him she would be home in a couple of hours, but was not seen again until her body was found weighted down by cinder blocks at the bottom of Oxford Lake, in Newaygo County, on July 5, 1997. The baby was never found.
Rachel had disappeared two days before she was scheduled to testify in a rape trial against Marvin Gabrion, a man who had assaulted her the previous summer, and threatened to kill her if she told police. He was eventually convicted of Rachel’s murder, and now sits on death row in a prison in Terre Haute, Indiana, awaiting execution. Although Michigan does not have the death penalty, Gabrion was sentenced to death by lethal injection, because Rachel’s body was found on federal land, in the Manistee National Forest.
The highly publicized trial tested the death penalty, and painted a gruesome picture of a killer bent on revenge. It appears Gabrion would do anything to cover up his crimes—including making witnesses “disappear.”
Tim told the Post that he thought it was necessary to tell Rachel and Shannon’s story. “A lot of the emotions resurfaced that I thought I’d buried, but it was worth it. Was it pleasant? No. It was a lot of hard work,” he remarked.
When Rachel disappeared and did not turn up by Father’s Day, Tim knew for sure something was wrong, even though he had received a letter in her handwriting previously telling him she was fine. “I knew because she had been so faithful about Father’s Day over the years,” he said.
Even after Rachel’s body was found, Tim still held out hope that they would find Shannon alive. “We had a lot of hope until about her 5th birthday that she’d get enrolled in kindergarten somewhere, but that hasn’t happened. I feel Rachel and Shannon are together in heaven,” he explained. She would be 14 now.
Tim, who is an electrician, wrote the book with his brother, John, a professor of Creative Writing and Literature at Calvin Collge. Tim and John plan to hold a book signing at Schuler Books on 28th Street on February 8, at 7 p.m. Tim said he will also give a short talk during that time.
Reviews of the book have been good. The December issue of the Library Journal said it was a “…harrowing story…true crime and law aficionados will take great interest in her case.” Tim also said that most people have told him that they loved it and couldn’t put it down. “I hope people here like my book,” said Tim. “I put a lot of hours into it.”
Residents in Cedar Springs were riveted by this case, and if they want the inside scoop, with all the gritty details, they will want to read the book.
A word of warning: because of the subject matter, the book is explicit in its detail of certain events, and includes language and sexual slang some may find offensive. It’s definitely not for children.
The book can be bought at Schulers, or ordered from either Amazon or Barnes and Noble.