1. Synopsis of Sullivan’s case
2. Legal Defense Fund letters and documents
3. Letters – 1979
4. Letters – 1980
5. Letters – 1981
6. Letters – 1982
7. Letters – 1983
Robert Austin Sullivan, a gay man, was born in Boston, Massachusetts. He was adopted as an infant by a prominent physician and raised in Belmont, Massachusetts. He had a Catholic upbringing and was very active in sports throughout his education. He graduated high school in 1965 and attended the University of Miami for four years where he majored in business management. While in college he became involved in student government as a journalist for the college newspaper. He also received awards for his leadership and organizational abilities. After college he pursued a career in hotel/restaurant management; his last position was food and beverage manager for a Sheraton property. In the spring of 1973 Sullivan was arrested and charged in connection with a murder in the Miami area. Unable to afford private counsel, he accepted a court-appointed attorney. On November 12, 1973, he was convicted and sentenced to death. All direct appeals to the Florida Supreme Court proved fruitless. On November 30, 1983, after ten years of court battles, Sullivan died in the electric chair in the State of Florida.